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Recent Posts
- Memorial Day Is A Time To Mourn the Dead … Let’s Not Glorify War
- Nonviolence, Peace, and War- In the Words and Voices of Martin Luther King, Dave Dellinger, Dorothy Day, and Others
- Peace and Justice Online Website Highlights Its Top Five Posts
- Romney Has A Koch Problem; Let’s Reclaim Our Democracy- Let’s Overturn Citizens United
- Let’s Eradicate Poverty in America, with Commentary by Michael Moore, Cornel West, Barbara Lee
- My Day with Occupy Wall Street; and Naomi Klein, Chris Hedges, Bernie Sanders on OWS
- Ten Years of War in Afghanistan
- Nuclear Power: Dangerous, Dirty & Expensive- 20 Key Facts
- Ellsberg, Swanson, Nader & Benjamin- On Iraq, Afghanistan, Manning & Wisconsin
- Stop Big Oil. Strengthen Our Democracy. End the Wars. Create Jobs. Save the Planet.
- Wisconsin Would Be The First Domino – We Are All Wisconsinites
- Barbara Lee & Bernie Sanders: War in Afghanistan & War on the Middle Class
- Tom Hayden on “The Long War;” Sign up for Tom’s Free Online School of Activism
- End the Wars! Move the Money! And A Video: Mike Zweig on Democracy Now
- Military Recruitment in Our Schools- Students’ Rights and an NYCLU Guide
- Conversations with Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers- With Inspiring Audio
- Afghans for Peace Releases Video
- Kathy Kelly Urges, “A New Year’s Call for Peace”
- United for Peace and Justice Issues Weekly Afghanistan War Reports; Nation Interviews Matthew Hoh
- New START Treaty Ratified- Good News! But Let’s Beware the Military-Industrial Complex; Eisenhower Warned Us
- Did Paul Krugman Predict the Extension of the Bush Tax Cuts, 10 years Ago?
- Veterans for Peace Demonstrate at White House- 131 Arrested
- Peace Action NYS’s Cheryl Wertz on Korea, Guantanamo, Afghanistan, and the New START Treaty
- War Resisters League’s Frida Berrigan Receives Kairos Award
- War Resisters League Urges, “Don’t Buy War Toys.”
- Reverend Billy Asks, “What Would Jesus Buy?”
- American Friends Service Committee Issues Report Card on the War in Afghanistan
- Honduras: The Reforms, the Coup, and the Aftermath- Speech by Nectali Rodezno Izaguirre
- Thousands Demonstrate at Fort Benning; Call for Closing School of the Americas; 26 Arrested
- The Tillman Story: The Mystery and the Cover-Up
- Code Pink Holds Contest Protesting President Bush’s Book
- Republicans Vow to Repeal Health Care Reform
- Radioactive Waste? No Thanks!
- It’s Veterans Day. Let’s Support the Troops, Not the Wars.
- Nuclear Power? Still, No Thanks!
Check Out All the Posts on Peace and Justice Online
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- Economy, Taxes, Health Care (13)
- Energy and Environment (9)
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Nonviolence, Peace, and War- In the Words and Voices of Martin Luther King, Dave Dellinger, Dorothy Day, and Others
The photo, above, is of King delivering his magnificent “I Have a Dream” speech, in 1963. You may have noticed that the second photo in the Peace and Justice Online masthead is of the same rally. Today, however, I am quoting from King’s important (and often overlooked) 1967 speech, “Beyond Vietnam- A Time to Break Silence.” In this speech, speaking of excessive military spending, Dr. King tells us, “Somehow, this madness must cease.” Listen here:
Peace and Justice Online Website Highlights Its Top Five Posts
The Peace and Justice Online website (www.peaceandjusticeonline.org) has reached a readership milestone. I am very pleased to announce that the site has achieved a total of more than 15,000 page views.
I am presenting, here, below, links to each of the five most viewed posts, along with a brief summary of each post. Each post includes a “Comments” option. Please do not hesitate to add a comment to any of the posts.
I hope you will also check out the website’s Directory of Resources. This Directory is an annotated listing of online resources for the peace and justice activist. I will be doubling the number of entries in the Directory, over the next few months. I would welcome suggestions for sites that you feel would be helpful to include. Just drop me a note, through the Contacts page.
And now, the Top Five Posts on Peace and Justice Online. Continue reading
Romney Has A Koch Problem; Let’s Reclaim Our Democracy- Let’s Overturn Citizens United
Demonstration at Koch Estate in Southampton
Two hundred of us recently rallied outside the Southampton estate of David Koch, the oil billionaire who has been a prime financier of the Tea Party. As Koch hosted a $50,000-per-seat fundraiser for Mitt Romney, we chanted, “Democracy Not Plutocracy,” “Our Democracy Is Not For Sale,” and “Overturn Citizens United.”
As my readers know, the Supreme Court decision in the case of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission has been a major contributor to the weakening of our democracy, as it has substantially increased the ability of corporations and the wealthy to influence our elections. This decision, along with lower-court rulings and a key tax law loophole, has allowed unlimited, anonymous contributions to foster an electoral process that is more akin to “One Dollar, One Vote,” than to “One Person, One Vote.”
The United States population now has a greater disparity in both wealth and income than we have had in decades. (For details, click here.) As Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis cautioned us, “We may have democracy, or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can’t have both.” As we work for a more equitable economy, Continue reading
Let’s Eradicate Poverty in America, with Commentary by Michael Moore, Cornel West, Barbara Lee
Yes. It is time we did something about the fact that there are more than 46,000,000 people in America who are living in poverty. If we were to seriously address this shameful situation, we could virtually eliminate poverty.
Most of my readers know the facts. The extent of inequality in America, of both income and of wealth, is far greater than it has been in decades. The top 1% of us earn more each year than all those in the bottom 50%, combined. The top 1% now earns 20% of all the income that Americans earn.
The wealthiest 400 people in America (400!) now hold more wealth than the bottom 150,000,000 of us, combined. The top 1% holds as much wealth as the bottom 90%, combined. The wealthiest 1% of Americans own more than 40% of America’s wealth.
Michael Moore discusses the extent of poverty in America and contrasts it with Continue reading
My Day with Occupy Wall Street; and Naomi Klein, Chris Hedges, Bernie Sanders on OWS
Some of my favorite signs at the occupation:
“I lost my job. Then I found an occupation.”
“This is the first time I’ve felt hopeful in a very long time.”
“Jobs, Not War. People, Not Profit.”
“Democracy, Not Plutocracy.”
Dozens of members of our Long Island peace and justice community have joined with the Occupy Wall Street demonstrators at various times, in the weeks since the occupation began on September 17. Some have participated in the occupation several times. Some have stayed overnight in Zuccotti Park. One of our peace group members, a college professor, took his students to the occupation, as a field trip. The experience that the students had, being there at the occupation and speaking with the demonstrators, was the epitome of quality, meaningful education.
It was inspiring for me to be among the hundreds of people who occupied the park, as they had transformed Zuccotti Park into Liberty Plaza, a vibrant, cooperative, democratic community. Contrary to some media reports, I found Continue reading
Ten Years of War in Afghanistan
It’s been ten terrible years of war in Afghanistan. Nearly two thousand U.S. soldiers have been killed in this war. Tens of thousands of Afghans have been killed. We have spent nearly $500 Billion fighting this war. The war in Afghanistan should never have begun. The U.S. invasion of Afghanistan was immoral and in clear violation of international law. We must do all that we can to end the war, now.
Thousands of Americans will be demonstrating in their hometowns this month, calling for an end to the war. I believe that these demonstrations are essential, as they help to inform others in our communities of the facts behind the war, and they further a community’s commitment to taking a stand for peace. Importantly, Continue reading
Nuclear Power: Dangerous, Dirty & Expensive- 20 Key Facts
Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant
The simple fact is that nuclear power is terribly dangerous. From a health and safety standpoint, it is utterly irrational for us to continue to generate electricity by splitting the atom. Nuclear power is unreasonably expensive. When all of its costs are considered, it becomes clear that nuclear power is unaffordable. Importantly, a reliance upon nuclear power impedes our efforts to develop and implement the production of electricity by safe, affordable, sustainable means, such as solar, wind, and geothermal.
Here are twenty key facts about nuclear power.
Also, I have included, below, links to some of the websites that provide extensive information about nuclear power.
I hope you will check out the powerful video that is embedded, below. It does an excellent job of summarizing the most serious problems with nuclear power, through excerpts of testimony by some of the nation’s most respected anti-nuclear experts, including Helen Caldicott, Michael Mariotte, and Harvey Wasserman.
Also, you might want to check out the second video, with Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Keb’ Mo’, Graham Nash, and Ben Harper. They do a very nice job, singing and speaking about several aspects of the nuclear power issue.
1) Nuclear power plants release radiation into the atmosphere and into our waters. If radiation could be seen or smelled, we would be more aware of this poisonous pollution, and we would be far more likely to ban nuclear power.
2) Nuclear power is so dangerous, and is such a risky investment, that private investors will not provide the backing for it. The only nukes that are currently being built, anywhere, are those Continue reading
Posted in All Peace and Justice Online Posts, Energy and Environment
Tagged activism, ben harper, bonnie raitt, chernobyl, climate change, commentary, current events, energy, environment, fukushima, global warming, graham nash, harvey wasserman, helen caldicott, indian point, jackson browne, keb mo, michael mariotte, news, nuclear power, radiation, vermont yankee
18 Comments
Ellsberg, Swanson, Nader & Benjamin- On Iraq, Afghanistan, Manning & Wisconsin
Daniel Ellsberg
On March 18, Daniel Ellsberg, David Swanson, Ralph Nader, Medea Benjamin, and others gave moving speeches on the need to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and on the strategies that they would encourage us to follow. On March 19, at the White House, 1,500 people demonstrated, calling for an end to the wars and for justice for Bradley Manning. More than 100 people were arrested. The same day, Continue reading
Posted in All Peace and Justice Online Posts, Economy, Taxes, Health Care, Human Rights and Civil Rights, Peace and War
Tagged activism, afghanistan, antiwar, Bradley Manning, commentary, current events, Daniel Ellsberg, David Swanson, economy, iraq, Medea Benjamin, news, peace, Ralph Nader, Wisconsin
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Memorial Day Is A Time To Mourn the Dead … Let’s Not Glorify War
Vets for Peace at Memorial Day Air Show
Note: This was initially posted in May 2012. It is still extremely relevant now, in May 2013. Memorial Day airshows, glorifying war, will soon be conducted in several locales around the country. Anti-war demonstrations will be held at many of these. This article describes the 2012 Jones Beach airshow and the demonstration that was held there by dozens of Long Island peace activists. Please also check out the four-minute video, below. It provides a very good sense of both the airshow (bizarre) and the demonstration (inspiring).
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Bombers flew over the Atlantic, as we watched from the shore. Jet fighters dove through the sky above us. The veteran standing beside me trembled, as the ear-piercing sound of the planes overhead evoked an agonizing memory of war.
The vet was a member of the Long Island Chapter of Veterans for Peace. He and I were among the sixty peace activists who attended Saturday’s Memorial Day Air Show at Jones Beach. Our gathering was organized by Pax Christi Long Island. Members of numerous Long Island peace and justice organizations participated, including Code Pink LI, North Country Peace Group, South Country Peace Group, LI Alliance for Peaceful Alternatives, and the Suffolk Peace Network.
Our purpose in gathering at the beach this Saturday was to reaffirm the true reason that we observe Memorial Day. Memorial Day is a day where we pause, to mourn the loss of those who died in war. It is a day to recommit ourselves to ending ongoing wars and to preventing further wars. Memorial Day is not a day for celebrating the weapons of war. The Jones Beach Air Show glorifies war and trivializes violence.
War as Entertainment
The bomber planes swooped over the ocean, opened their bomb bay doors, and dropped watermelons into the water. Thousands on the beach cheered. We stood solemnly, holding photos of the dozens of Long Islanders who were killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. We read their names. We mourned their loss. We stood before thousands of pink ribbons, each with the name of an American who was killed in Iraq or Afghanistan. We vowed Continue reading →
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