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The
WAND News Bulletin is posted on the
web site monthly.
When it appears, WAND sends out a condensed
version via email. If you would like
to receive these email Bulletins, please
let us know.
Sayre
Sheldon (l) and Julia Ward Howe (r)
at the Boston area Mother's Peace Day
celebration on May 10. Also
performing were Kate Taylor, John Sheldon,
Meredith Sheldon. |
| Table
of Contents | Click
to move to content within the Bulletin. |
Capitol
Hill Update, May 2007
 |
Things
are moving fast up on the
Hill. In the past couple
weeks, we've seen several
votes on funding the Iraq
war, on missile defense,
on Iran, and more. It's
hard to keep up! But we
hope you'll take action
on things that meant the
most to you.
|
|
|
In-District
Lobby
Days |
May 28 – June 1
As part of
coalition
efforts
to
prevent a U.S. military attack
on
Iran, organizations
are joining
together to call
for
“In-District Lobby Days” during the
Congressional recess May 28-June 1, 2007.
During this time, Members of
Congress
will be in their home districts. This
presents an effective opportunity for
grassroots
activists to
meet with their
Members of
Congress.
This coalition
has
prepared a toolkit,
with information on how to schedule
a meeting, talking points,
tips for successful lobby
visits, and a meeting debriefing
form. Contact cong@armscontrolcenter.org
for
more
information.
At
this writing, the House of Representatives
is considering the FY08 defense
authorization. There will be votes
in coming weeks on key WAND issues
in various subcommittees.
The
issues are new nuclear warheads,
missile defense, Iran, and Iraq.
New nukes and missile defense
will be considered by the following
subcommittees: House and Senate
Energy and Water Development Appropriations,
House and Senate Defense Appropriations,
and Senate Armed Services Strategic
Forces Subcommittee. Attempts
will be made on all relevant legislation
to require Congressional authorization
prior to a military strike on
Iran. And of course at every opportunity,
WAND advocates to bring our soldiers
home from Iraq. We urge WAND members
to be sure to contact their Representatives
and Senators about all of these
issues.
 |
No
new nuclear bomb plant!
No new nuclear arms race!
If you thought the U.S. was
done making new nuclear weapons,
think again.
Then get in touch
with Congress to say: don't
start a new nuclear arms race.
| Take
action. |
 |
No
more money for missile defense
Deny funds to this
overpriced, misplaced, malfunctioning
weapons system.
Missile
defense is the single most
costly weapons system in the
Pentagon budget and is one
of the least justifiable military
programs. The Administration
proposed nearly $11 billion
for missile defense for FY08|
Take
action . |
|
|
WAND's
good friends Larry Korb and
Miriam Pemberton offer a skeptical,
trenchant perspective on the
federal defense budget -- and
propose sound alternatives.
A
Unified Security Budget for
the United States, FY 2008
Miriam Pemberton and Lawrence
Korb | April 26, 2007 | Full
report here.
And
from an op ed by Miriam Pemberton
...This
is what happens when you: take
an aircraft that was already
trying to do too many things
for the Cold War; try to retrofit
it for the post-Cold War period,
then the War on Terror; and
then rush it into a war while
it still … needs work.
What
keeps this thing alive (if not,
reliably, capable of flight)?
Certainly, there are the obvious
suspects of enormous stables
of dedicated lobbyists and jobs
carefully dispersed in key congressional
districts. Then, there’s
a federal budget process that
keeps money flowing in the pipeline
for weapons systems we don’t
need, and fails to examine the
big-picture question of what,
overall, we do need to make
us safer.
As
our country seeks to find its
way out of a disastrous war,
this question must no longer
be deferred. While projecting
spending on the war to decline
in future years, Pentagon officials
are making the case to the budget
and appropriations committees
that military spending overall
must rise during those years.
If Congress funds the
President’s request for
FY 2008, we will already be
spending more on the military
in real terms than at any time
since World War II...
We’re
putting 21 times more money
engaging the rest of the world
through the military than by
any other means, including diplomacy,
programs to curb the spread
of nuclear weapons, peacekeeping
and peace building, economic
development, and contributions
to international organizations.
|
|
Democrats
agree on $2.9 trillion budget
plan
Proposal promises surplus while
allowing some Bush tax cuts
to expire
Associated
Press | May 16, 2007
Congressional
Democrats Wednesday announced
agreement on a $2.9 trillion
budget blueprint for 2008, promising
a budget surplus in five years
but only by allowing some of
President Bush’s tax cuts
to expire.
The
nonbinding plan, to be officially
released later Wednesday, caps
weeks of private negotiations
and paves the way for action
this summer on annual spending
bills totaling $1.1 trillion
for the coming fiscal year.
|
|
While
this is inspiring, it prompts
us also to mention (again) the
Common Sense Budget
Act. Make sure your
Representative is a sponsor!
Take
action here.
The
Inspiration Budget
Jared Bernstein
and Deborah Weinstein | tompaine.com
Well,
we’re back to heap a load
of praise on an alternative
budget created by the Congressional
Progressive Caucus (CPC), a
bicameral bloc of 72 members
of Congress led by California
U.S. Reps. Lynn Woolsey
and Barbara Lee. It
is devoted to tapping the breadth
and scope of government to tackle
the big challenges we face.
This
budget is a deeply impressive
document. It reflects the spending
priorities of the majority of
Americans who would like to
see our role in the Iraq war
come to a close, and for Congress
to address domestic priorities
relating to economic security.
As such, it stands in direct
contrast to the president’s
budget and war supplemental
requests, which consistently
and perplexingly ignore both
the public and the Congress’s
shifting sentiments regarding
guns and butter.
The
theme of the CPC budget is to
shift resources from war, weapons,
and tax cuts for the wealthiest
to domestic spending. The contrast
to the budgets proposed by the
president and the House Republican
minority is striking. The CPC
invests in health, education,
housing, rebuilding communities
and developing renewable energy
sources. The conservative hawks
plow money into the military
and high-end tax breaks.
|
|
Lynn
Woolsey Cold War weapons systems
amendment
And
while we're heaping praise on
our good friend Lynn Woolsey,
let's mention this as well...
She offered a very important
amendment to the FY08 defense
authorization when the House
of Representatives considered
it May 16. Here is her amendment:
Require
the Secretary of Defense to
issue a report on the continued
use, need, relevance, and cost
of weapons systems designed
to fight the Cold War and the
former Soviet Union.
And
here is the opening statement
on the amendment Ms. Woolsey
presented to the House:
Mr.
Chairman, it is our job in Congress
to make tough decisions. So given
the quagmire in Iraq which is
costing $273 million every day,
and our troops still don't have
the training and equipment they
need, and given we have critical
needs at home that aren't being
fully funded, needs like children's
health care, rebuilding the gulf
coast, keeping our promise to
veterans, repairing tornado-ravaged
towns and collapsed bridges, and
I could go on and on, and you
know it.
Sadly,
we are still spending at least
$60 billion every year to build
and maintain weapons that were
specifically designed to fight
the Soviet Union. It is not
exactly the threat we need to
worry about in the year 2007.
That's why I am offering
this amendment to H.R. 1585,
an amendment that would require
the DOD to identify all weapon
systems that are currently being
produced that were designed
to fight the Cold War, identify
their usefulness, and evaluate
the cost of savings for eliminating
these programs.
My
amendment wouldn't eliminate
a single program. Rather, it
is simply asking the Department
of Defense to take an inventory
of what they are building that
was designed to fight the Cold
War and report back to Congress.
This
December will mark the 18th
anniversary of a meeting in
Malta where the first President
Bush and Soviet President Mikhail
Gorbachev declared an end to
the Cold War. From there, it
was another couple of years
before the Soviet Union was
disbanded, the Berlin Wall came
down, and the Iron Curtain collapsed.
The Cold War is over. It is
time that the Department of
Defense realized this and made
the proper adjustments in their
procurement programs.
|
|
Democrats
Remold Military Budget
John Isaacs | May 10, 2007 |
Full
piece here.
...The
subcommittee's most controversial
decision was to cut $764 million
from the administration's $9.5
billion request for missile
defense programs. The subcommittee
explained that it felt funding
should be redirected from "less
mature, high-risk ballistic
missile defense efforts"
toward "missile defense
programs that offer near-term
war-fighter benefits."
Notable among the missile defense
cuts was $160 million of the
$310 million requested for the
controversial third national
missile defense site, which
is to be in Europe (the other
two are in Alaska and California).
The administration asked for
funds to begin work on interceptor
silos in Poland and a radar
system in the Czech Republic,
but the subcommittee's funding
restrictions may halt proposed
work in Poland, at least temporarily.
|
WAND
celebrates Mother's Peace Day around
the country!
May
2007 -- How to celebrate moms
and peace in a dark time? Parties,
lunches, marches, concerts...
You name it, we did it up in style
this year. Our chapters, members,
friends gathered in churches, on streets,
in fancy hotel ballrooms... it was
great.
A
short summary here; click through
to see more photos from the various
events!
Southwest
Michigan march!
 |
Boston
area event!
Thanks to everyone who worked
so hard on the Mother's Peace
Day event.
More
photos here.
Kate
Taylor, singer
and activist
with musical guests Meredith
Sheldon and John Sheldon, and
Aretha Witham |
Arkansas
Mother's Day Luncheon 2007
Oregon
WAND marches to illustrate the
federal budget
Atlanta
WAND celebrates in style
by Sen. Nan Grogan Orrock (GA),
WiLL President
 |
The
inspiring event featured
nationally known author
Melissa Faye Greene on the
54 million african children
orphaned by AIDS. We honored
prominent African American
pastor-leader who marches
with us all the time, embraces
all of WAND's issues; and
a Presbyterian peace activist
woman whom we all know as
that pillar of dependably
long time activism, come
rain or come shine. |
|
Protesters
favor soft hats, tough
lyrics
By Brian MacQuarrie, Globe
Staff | May 8, 2007 |
Full
article here.
They operate
with a sense of outrage,
a commitment to nonviolence,
a love of song, and an
irreverent brand of humor.
Meet the Raging Grannies,
feisty women of a certain
age who protest war, nuclear
power, bio hazards, degradation
of the environment, and
a panoply of other causes.
|
| For
25 years, WAND has been
trying to reclaim Mother's
Day from the candy companies,
and restore its originating
spirit: as a day to celebrate
and demand Peace.
That
kinda funny looking lady
Julia Ward Howe was the
first one to stake the
claim: she was really
outraged about the war
after war that kept waging
on... From the really
bloody Civil War to the
really bloody Franco Prussian
war. So she exhorted women/mothers
to rise up already! and
demand another way to
solve conflict.
This year, a bunch of
folks/organizations are
jumping on that message,
and coming up with some
cool stuff. That's fine
by us. Our administration
seems committed to war
as a solution to our problems;
whenever anybody steps
up to say that it creates
MORE problems, we're there.
So
take a look, and slap
down some money as a REAL
gift to your mommabes.
Brave
New Foundation video with
some beeyootiful mommastars:
mothersdayforpeace.com/
Plougshares
free ecard for mommas:
rediscovermothersday.org/ecard.asp
|
|
|
Congratulations
to WAND's own Bobbie Paul!
Right
in the middle there with the nice
blond bob is WAND's own Bobbie
Paul!
In
each of the past nineteen years,
the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability
(ANA of which WAND is a member)
has hosted four days of training,
education, and political advocacy
that bring activists from around
the country to Washington, DC
to explain the concerns of their
communities. (Called ANA Days.)
In
2007, our own Bobbie Paul, who
leads Atlanta WAND, received the
coveted Grass Roots Award.
Only a few know in advance who
the recipient will be and indeed,
Bobbie was duly surprised. It
recognizes extraordinary accomplishment
by a grassroots activist within
ANA. Bobbie also represents national
WAND at ANA.
|
|
The
short n sweet on new nukes
|
The
Bush administration wants
to develop and build new nuclear
weapons --and return our nation's
production capacity of nuclear
weapons to Cold War levels.
|
The
first step in this plan is called
"Complex 2030," for
the date it would be completed.
The name does NOT indicate what
it means: the administration wants
to build a new, multi-billion
dollar bomb plant. The plant would
produce a new nuclear weapon called
the "Reliable Replacement
Warhead" (RRW), the first
new warhead to be developed by
the U.S. in over two decades.
This
move is dangerous, foolhardy,
and wildly expensive. Current
estimates for total cost of rebuilding
the complex are $150 billion
-- but that number will most likely
grow. Experts all over the place
are dedicated to proving how unnecessary
the RRW is.
WAND
is mobilizing to lobby against
all the steps needed to bring
about the RRW, from funding appropriations
to votes in Congress. We'll keep
you posted, and ask for your help! |
|
Pieces
on Bombplex/RRW/New nuclear weapons
First
of all, LOTS of smart people just
do NOT like that thing.
Our friends at Council for a Livable
World are keeping track of what
people have to say against it.
Check it out.
Quotes
Opposing Reliable Replacement
Warhead
An example:
Sam Nunn, former Senator (D-GA),
Chairman of Nuclear Threat Initiative
“On the RRW itself, if Congress
gives a green light to this program
in our current world environment,
I believe that this will be: Misunderstood
by our allies; exploited by our
adversaries; complicate our work
to prevent the spread and use
of nuclear weapons, including
the essential steps I have outlined
this morning; and make resolution
of the Iran and North Korea challenges
all the more difficult...I would
not fund additional work on the
RRW at this time.”
March 29, 2007: Testimony before
the House Appropriations Subcommittee
on Energy and Water Development
Faith
Leaders Announce a Major Initiative
for a Nuclear Free World
Two
Events Mark the Rise of Faith-based
Opposition to the President’s
Plans for New Nuclear Warheads |
Click
here for more info
A coalition of national and regional
religious leaders has launched
a major initiative to "zero-out"
funding for the production of
new nuclear warheads.
The
Rev. Bob Edgar, general secretary
of the National Council of Churches
USA (NCC) kicked off the initiative
with a speech at San Ramon Valley
United Methodist Church in Alamo,
Calif.
"We
must ask ourselves why we would
continue to spend billions constructing
weapons that have the power to
destroy us, rather than build
systems and structures that will
save lives and help all persons
reach the potential for which
God created them," said Edgar.
"If
we have the power and the will
to create something that could
annihilate all of humankind,"
said Edgar, "surely we can
summon the will to provide adequate
and affordable health care to
every American."
"The
administration's proposal to build
more nuclear warheads is not only
immoral and unnecessary, but also
dangerous," said
Jessica Wilbanks [a member of
the WAND Board of Directors!],
coordinator of the National Religious
Partnership, which counts the
Episcopal Church, the Islamic
Society of North America, and
the Religious Action Center of
Reform Judaism among its fourteen
national partners. "If other
nations follow suit, we could
be caught up in another arms race."
Congress
Skeptical of Warhead Plan
Lawmakers and Experts Question Necessity,
Implications of a New Nuclear Weapon
By
Walter Pincus
Washington
Post | April 22, 2007
Congressional
hearings over the past several
weeks have shown that the Bush
administration's plan to move
ahead with a new generation of
nuclear warheads faces strong
opposition from House and Senate
members concerned that the effort
lacks any strategic underpinning
and could lead to a new nuclear
arms race.
Experts
inside and outside the government
questioned moving forward with
a new warhead as old ones are
being refurbished and before developing
bipartisan agreement on how many
warheads would be needed at the
end of what could be a 30-year
process. Several, including
former senator Sam Nunn (D-Ga.),
suggested linking production of
a new warhead with U.S. ratification
of the Comprehensive Test Ban
Treaty, a move the Bush administration
has opposed.
The
United States Nuclear Weapons Program
The Role of the Reliable Replacement
Warhead
A report from the
American Association for the Advancement
of Science
Center for Science, Technology
and Security Policy
Washington, DC | April 2007
|
|
The
short n sweet on missile defense
And
here's another weapons systems
plan from the administration that
just makes no sense at all...
|
No
more money for missile defense
Deny funds to this
overpriced, misplaced, malfunctioning
weapons system.
Missile
defense is the single most
costly weapons system in the
Pentagon budget and is one
of the least justifiable military
programs. The Administration
proposed nearly $11 billion
for missile defense for FY08|
Take
action . |
|
|
Next:
Some pieces on Missile Defense
House
Panel Considers Cuts for Missile
Defense
By THOM SHANKER | May 10, 2007
| New
York Times
The
Bush administration’s proposal
to construct two American missile
defense bases in Europe has roiled
relations with Russia and provoked
sharp questioning even in NATO
capitals, where critics ask: With
the system still unproven and,
under the best of circumstances,
years from completion, why rush
construction now?
Now the Democratic majority in
Congress is moving toward budget
cuts aimed at slowing the administration’s
plans to break ground this year
on one of the bases, in Poland.
Representative Ellen O. Tauscher,
a California Democrat who is a
member of the House Armed Services
Committee, said the committee
would approve “only prudent
investments” in what she
labeled “high-risk, immature
programs” to shoot down
long-range missiles, like the
system advocated for Europe.
New
US Missile Proposals Cause Old Adversaries
To Stir
Russia and China appear to be worried
that possible new US weapons really
are aimed at them.
By Peter Grier
| Christian Science Monitor
| April 25, 2007
Washington
-- Missile defense. Space weapons.
A new nuclear warhead design.
Issues
from the 1980s? Yes – and
issues for today. This spring
has been a time of traveling back
to the future for US strategic
weapons policy as old controversies
return in new geopolitical contexts.
Gates
Talks Softly On Missile Defense
U.S.
ready to discuss limits with Russia
Baltimore Sun | April 25, 2007
| By Associated Press
WARSAW,
Poland -- The Bush administration
is willing to negotiate with Russia
on limitations to proposed U.S.
missile defense bases in Europe,
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates
said yesterday.
No
such negotiations have been set.
But Washington is seeking to allay
Russian concerns about the proposed
system, which would be an extension
of a network of radars, interceptors
and command posts in the western
United States designed to shoot
down a hostile long-range nuclear
missile.
The
system in Europe would be meant
specifically to protect Europe
from a missile launched from the
Middle East. The U.S. proposal
has stirred controversy not only
in Russia but in Europe.
In
Moscow, the Russian military's
chief of general staff warned
that Russia might target elements
of the system.
|
 |
Not
sure where this belongs,
but somewhere, because it's
SO FUNNY.
That's
Ira Shorr as Senator
Jess Trussme for President.
A video on YouTube. And
it's really. Quite. Funny! |
|
Signs
of hope this spring
This
month, Congress has been voting
on the supplemental budget that
funds the war.
Some
days it looks bleak, but the truth
is: We are having
an impact on the debates and votes
about this protracted, senseless
war.
Last
week, 171 Representatives voted
to end the war in Iraq -- the
largest number yet willing
to stand up and say: End this
war now.
The
Senate continued to make progress
towards withdrawing U.S. troops
from Iraq on May 16, with 29 Democrats
voting in favor of the
Feingold (D-WI)-Reid (D-NV) amendment
to redeploy American soldiers
within 120 days with a mandatory
date of completing withdrawal
by March 31, 2008.
This
total is over double the number
of votes a similar measure received
in June 2006, when a
Kerry (D-MA)-Feingold (D-WI)-Boxer
(D-CA) amendment mandating that
troop withdrawal from Iraq be
completed by July 1, 2007 garnered
only 13 votes in favor.
"Strong
disapproval of the war is spreading
from the people to Congress,"
said John Isaacs, executive director
of the Council for a Livable World
and a strong critic of the war.
"By September or October,
there may be a veto-proof majority
— including many Republicans
— ready to call it quits
in Iraq."
|
That's
our good friend Darcy Scott Martin!
|
Every
week, the Anti-War Room on www.StandUpCongress.org
- a website dedicated to helping
citizens brave the Congressional
labyrinth of crucial Iraq legislation
- features online briefings with
the latest information on Iraq
coming from Capitol Hill. The
briefings are hosted by Tom Andrews,
National Director of Win Without
War, and Darcy Scott Martin, former
Washington Director of WAND!
WAND
is an active partner in the Win
Without War coalition; and with
StandUpCongress.org, and we remain
committed to keeping you informed
of all the developments on Iraq. |
|
|
How
has this war cost you?
BILL
MOYERS JOURNAL: a report on the
true human cost of war.
Click
the picture to watch the essay
in entirety.
|
| | | | | |
