Peace Action West & Code Pink & Common Dreams – 2013-10-04 12:40:08
http://www.peaceactionwest.org/
Shutdown Nukes, Not the Government
Katie Heald / Peace Action West
(October 2, 2013) — The news this week has been dominated by drama and political point-scoring rather than the actual impacts of these budget battles. While House Republicans shut down the government in their rage at Obamacare, the US is still on course to spend billions of dollars on nuclear weapons that we don’t need. But we can rein in some of that wasteful spending thanks to crucial decisions that will be made in the next few weeks behind the scenes. We have to keep our eye on the ball.
Your representative is on a key committee that oversees the program to upgrade the B61 nuclear bomb for the egregious price tag of over $11 billion dollars. $11 billion for just one of the bombs in our arsenal. Write, call or email demanding that your representative cut funding for the B61 right now.
Shutdown Funding for Nuclear Bombs
Tell your representative to cut funding for the B61 nuclear bomb.
In a victory earlier this year, Senator Feinstein’s committee cut funding for the B61 program by 30%. But House Republicans keep trying to undo that cut and throw extra millions at this nuclear bomb.
Even though all the attention is on the shutdown right now, decisions about the nuclear weapons budget for 2014 are still being made away from the spotlight. And that means spending on the B61 is up in the air again. Tell your representative to cut funds for the B61 and shut down wasteful nuclear weapons programs.
Decisions on this program could come at any time. Act right now and tell your representative to cut the B61 budget before it is too late.
Katie Heald is Deputy Political Director of Peace Action West — 2201 Broadway, Ste 321 Oakland, CA 94612, 800.949.9020
Shut Down Drones, Not the Government
CodePink
(October 2, 2013) — Government shutdown. Cuts to food assistance. Out-of-control surveillance state. More money spent on military than on Medicare.
Get empowered: Join us at the 2013 CODEPINK Drone Summit: Global Proliferation and Resistance in Washington DC from November 16-17.
We are bringing together drone survivors and families of victims from Pakistan and Yemen, human rights advocates, lawyers, authors, artists and musicians, and grassroots activists for a weekend of educating and organizing. We’ll share information and inspiration on how to ground the killer drones, curtail domestic spying, and redirect our resources to human needs.
Join us –– space is limited, so register now!
Onward toward peace,
Alli, Amanda, Kelleen, Janet, Jeremy, Jodie, Linda, Lisa, Medea, Nancy K, Nancy M, Natasha, Noor, Roqayah, Sergei, and Tighe
A War Contractor Resigns in Protest
I Hereby Resign in Protest Effective Immediately
Brandon Toy / Common Dreams
(July 16, 2013) — I hereby resign in protest effective immediately.
I have served the post-911 Military Industrial complex for 10 years, first as a soldier in Baghdad, and now as a defense contractor.
I have always believed that if every foot soldier threw down his rifle war would end. I hereby throw mine down. At the time of my enlistment, I believed in the cause. I was ignorant, naïve, and misled. The narrative, professed by the state, and echoed by the mainstream press, has proven false and criminal. We have become what I thought we were fighting against.
Recent revelations by fearless journalists of war crimes including counterinsurgency “dirty” wars, drone terrorism, the suspension of due process, torture, mass surveillance, and widespread regulatory capture have shed light on the true nature of the current US Government. I encourage you to read more about these topics at the links I have provided below.
Some will say that I am being irresponsible, impractical, and irrational. Others will insist that I am crazy. I have come to believe that the true insanity is doing nothing. As long as we sit in comfort, turning a blind eye to the injustices of the world, nothing will change. It is even worse to play an active part, protesting all along that I am not the true criminal.
I was only a foot soldier, and am now a low level clerk. However, I have always believed that if every foot soldier threw down his rifle war would end. I hereby throw mine down.
Sincerely,
Brandon M. Toy
Stryker Engineering Project Management
General Dynamics Land Systems
Sterling Heights, Michigan
