From: owner-abolition-usa-digest@lists.xmission.com (abolition-usa-digest) To: abolition-usa-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: abolition-usa-digest V1 #372 Reply-To: abolition-usa-digest Sender: owner-abolition-usa-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-abolition-usa-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk abolition-usa-digest Wednesday, September 6 2000 Volume 01 : Number 372 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 3 Sep 2000 17:12:25 -0700 From: "David Crockett Williams" Subject: (abolition-usa) Schedule Global Peace Walk 2000 final leg - --------from schedule/route link at http://www.globalpeacenow.org Global Peace Walk 2000 San Francisco - Washington DC - New York / U.N. 1/15/2000 - 10/5/2000 - 10/24/2000 Present Tenative Schedule 8/27 - 10/25, 2000 Call 415-267-1877 for exact dates & details, and to contact on the road. September 2nd-4th, Sat.-Mon. - Columbus, Ohio September 6th, Wed. - Zanesville, Ohio September 10-11th, Sun.-Mon. - Wheeling, West Virginia September 15th-17th, Fri.-Sun. - Pittsburgh, PA September 19th - Tues. - Uniontown, Pennsylvania September 22nd - Fri. - Cumberland, Maryland September 24th - Sun. - Hancock, Maryland September 26th - Tues. - Hagerstown, Maryland October 5th-12th (Thurs.-Thurs.) - Washington DC - Ceremonies & Events Global Peace Walk through Washington DC (Oct. 5) Delivery of the Messages of Peace (Proclamations & Support Letters) to the White House (Oct. 6), Senate & Congress (Oct. 10-11) Nuclear Abolition and Demilitarization of Space (Oct. 7) - Washington DC Ceremonies at Jefferson Stone (Oct. 8) & Millennial Circle of Peace at Washington Monument (Oct. 9) - Washington DC Indigenous People's Day (Oct. 12) - Washington DC October 14th, Sat. - Baltimore, Maryland October 17th, Tues. - Swarthmore College Ocotber 18th, Wed. - Philadelphia, PA October 21st, Sat. - Princeton University, New Jersy October 23-25th, Mon.-Wed. - 55th Anniversary of UN Spiritually United Nations Day at the United Nations, New York City. Ceremonies & Spiritual Environmental Summit. Past Schedule January 15th (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Birthday) War Memorial Building, San Francisco, CA January 28th - Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA February 4th - Keene, CA (Cesar Chavez Memorial) February 5th - LA, Hollywood, CA February 12th-13th - Ward Valley, CA February 15th - Nevada Nuclear Test Site February 16th - Las Vegas, Nevada February 26th - March 2nd - Navaho Nation and Hopi Land March 14th - Glen Canyon Dam, AZ - International Protest March 24th-29th - Phoenix, AZ (Global Peace Zone) April 8th - Rosario Cemetary, Santa Fe, NM April 22nd - Taos, New Mexico (Earth Day) May 14th - Vietnam Veterans Cemetary, Angel Fire, NM May 29th - Memorial Day @ Oklahoma City 1995 bombsite June 25th - Kansas City, MO @ Liberty Memorial July 1st-4th - Fast for Leonard Peltier @ Doherty Park near Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary, Kansas July 10th - Independence, MO - Prayer @ Truman Library July 17th - Fulton, MO - Winston Churchhill Memorial August 12th-15th - St. Louis, MO (Global Peace Zone) August 25th-26th - Indianapolis, IN - Traditional Ceremony at Native American Church Global Peace Walk A Project of Yucca Foundation [501 (c) 3] P.O. Box 170245, San Francisco, CA 94117-0245 (415) 267-1877 E-Mail: GPZONE2000@aol.com - -----------end website excerpt------- ** gear2000@lightspeed.net David Crockett Williams, CLU Chartered Life Underwriter Scientist - Activist - Manager GENERAL AGENCY SERVICES http://www.GeneralAgencyServices.com For your personal and financial independence The Legal Revolution - Justice for All Legal Resource Center http://www.prepaidlegal.com/go/dcwilliams Free online legal content: FAQ, audio guides, legal forms, discussion boards; optional attorney access, national legal protection A home-based business plan cuts current wage income taxes, IRS compliant Tax Relief System http://ima.thetaxpeople.net/~dcwillms Capital Hills New-Energy Research Center http://www.angelfire.com/on/GEAR2000/chrc.html Science & Technology in Society & Public Policy list http://www.egroups.com/group/dcwilliams Global Emergency Alert Response http://www.angelfire.com/on/GEAR2000 Global Peace Walk 2000 http://www.globalpeacenow.org - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Sep 2000 09:01:32 EDT From: JGG786@aol.com Subject: (abolition-usa) Special Invitation Share this with friends with interest, Jonathan State of the World Forum IS PLEASED TO PRESENT A SPECIAL SESSION WITH President Abdurrahman Wahid of Indonesia ON THE SUBJECT OF Spiritual Insight and Political Responsibility Jonathan Granoff, Moderator, CEO Global Security Institute Dr. Ashok K. Gangaden, Founder-Director of the Global Dialogue Institute, Professor of Philosophy, Haverford College Audrey Kitagawa, Head, Sri Ramakrishna Spiritual Family, noted attorney, Honolulu, Hawaii Dr. Chung Hwan Kwak, Chairman of the Interreligous and International Federation for World Peace John OSullivan, Editor in Chief, United Press International Thursday, September 7, 2000 9:15 am Check In* 9:45 Event Begins Mercury Ballroom New York Hilton and Towers Please register by completing this form and emailing to worldforum6@earthlink.net , or fax to (212) 261-6154. If you do not have access to email or fax you can call (310) 428-2069 to rsvp for this special event. There is no charge to attend this event. We kindly ask that you respondy by Tuesday, September 5, 2000, no later than 6pm. You must rsvp to be placed on the guest list. There will be no registration at the door. You are not required to register for any other event of the forum to attend this special session. *DUE TO TIGHT SECURITY CONCERNS, IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU ARRIVE BY 9:15 AM FOR SECURITY CHECK-IN AND CLEARANCE. Name:__________________________________________________ Title: ____________________________________________ Organization:______________________________________ Address:_________________________________________ City:_____________________________________________ State:____________________________________________ Zip Code:_________________________________________ Tel:______________________________________________ Fax:______________________________________________ Email:____________________________________________ Thank you. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Sep 2000 15:35:41 -0400 From: fdpeace@earthlink.net Subject: (abolition-usa) Cost on Nuclear Missile Defense Some messages on the abolition-usa and abolition-caucus lists have stated the projected cost on the National Missile Defense System as $60 Billion over the next 5 years, if I remember correctly. Can someone please clarify, stating where the $60 B number came from and why it differs from the one reported by Peace through Reason, as stated below: "The Clinton Administration has spent approximately $5.7 billion on NMD, and budgeted an additional $10.4 billion in FY 2001-2005 to support possible deployment of the initial NMD architecture. Our current estimate for developing, procuring and deploying our initial system - 100 interceptors, an ABM radar, upgrades to 5 early warning radars, and command and control - is around $25 billion (Fiscal Years 91-09)." Thank you, Frank Dworak - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Sep 2000 18:22:28 EDT From: JTLOWE@aol.com Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Special Invitation Hi Jonathan, You amy remember I spoke to you about coming out here to the wilds of CT to speak to our church about Sufi Moslems. You are welcome to address the congregation, not children, on any of the following Sundays; November 5,12,19 December 3, 10, 17 January (2001) 7, 14 and 28. This series on world religions will be held following regular church services in the meeting house. That is Congregationalism for sanctuary. You* are welcome to come Saturday and stay with us and go to church, etc., or you can come early Sunday but I would worry that there would be traffic or train delays. I am hoping that you can work this into your busy schedule. It would be great to see you. Peace and health, Colby *You and your wife and any and all of your children. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Sep 2000 20:19:09 -0400 From: Ellen Thomas Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Cost on Nuclear Missile Defense Just so you know, Peace through Reason didn't write that quote; it was from the White House. See "NATIONAL MISSILE DEFENSE DECISION" September 1, 2000 http://www.whitehouse.gov/library/hot_releases/September_1_2000.html Ellen Thomas At 03:35 PM 9/4/2000 -0400, you wrote: >Some messages on the abolition-usa and abolition-caucus lists have >stated the >projected cost on the National Missile Defense System as $60 Billion >over the >next 5 years, if I remember correctly. Can someone please clarify, >stating where >the $60 B number came from and why it differs from the one reported by >Peace >through Reason, as stated below: > >"The Clinton Administration has spent approximately $5.7 billion on NMD, >and >budgeted an additional $10.4 billion in FY 2001-2005 to support possible >deployment of the initial NMD architecture. > >Our current estimate for developing, procuring and deploying our initial >system - 100 interceptors, an ABM radar, upgrades to 5 early warning >radars, >and command and control - is around $25 billion (Fiscal Years 91-09)." > >Thank you, >Frank Dworak > >- > To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" > with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. > For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send > "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ______________________________________________________________ * Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! * Online Petition - http://www.PetitionOnline.com/prop1/petition.html ______________________________________________________________ - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 05 Sep 2000 08:02:39 -0400 From: Ellen Thomas Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews 00/09/05 - Daybook; Presidential Candidates; Activist Announcements 1) Daybook, Washington Times and AFP, September 5, 2000 [no relevant= events] http://www.washtimes.com/national/daybook-200095221626.htm PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES - - BUSH AND CHENEY ANNOUNCE SCHEDULE FOR DEBATES=20 From: "Boddy, Lee" =20 Date: Sun, 3 Sep 2000 16:41:34 -0500=20 The schedule and locations of the debates Governor Bush and Secretary Cheney have accepted are as follows:=20 * A presidential debate next Tuesday, Sept 12 in Washington in a special= time prime edition of Meet the Press moderated by Tim Russert; * A presidential debate on October 3 in Los Angeles in a prime time edition= of Larry King Live that will be seen worldwide and on a Spanish language= network;=20 * A vice presidential debate on October 11 in Winston Salem, North Carolina sponsored by the presidential debate commission; * A vice presidential debate in a forum yet to be decided.=20 * A final presidential debate on October 17 at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, sponsored by the presidential debate commission.=20 - - RALLY FOR DC STATEHOOD=20 Featuring Green Party Presidential Candidate RALPH NADER=20 Saturday, September 16, 7 PM=20 UDC Auditorium, 4200 Connecticut Ave. NW, Building 46 VanNess/UDC Metro=20 $5 donation, none turned away for lack of funds=20 Also Featuring DC Statehood Green Candidates: Arturo Griffiths, DC Council (at-large) Martin Thomas, US Shadow Representative Thomas E. Smith, Board of Education (Wards 1&2) Renee Bowser, DC Council (Ward 4) Gail Dixon, Board of Education (Wards 5&6)=20 For more information call (202) 332-1709 http://www.votenader.org -=20 http://www.dcstatehoodgreen.org - -------- 3) ANNOUNCEMENTS - - Protests at the Commission on Presidential Debates begin Thursday,= September 7 to demand Third Party inclusion in the national debates * WHERE: In front of the office of the Commission on Presidential Debates, 1200 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC * WHEN: Thursday, September 7, noon to 1 pm, continuing every Thursday (September 14, 21, 28) at noon * For more information... * On the CPD=92s policy: http://www.fair.org - http://www.reclaimdemocracy.org * The D.C. Statehood Green Party: http://www.dcstatehoodgreen.org * The Maryland Green Party: http://www.enviroweb.org/mdgreens * Alliance for Democracy: http://www.afd-online.org/ - ---- - - DC Prayer Vigil for The Earth =20 Sunrise, September 23rd, 2000 "In this time of prophecy we are all asked to join together--black, red, white, yellow and brown--to pray as One People for the Earth." At sunrise on Saturday, September 23rd, 2000, near the Washington Monument, Native= American spiritual elders will hold a sacred Pipe Ceremony to begin a 33-hour Prayer Vigil for the Earth. Participants will maintain continuous silent and open prayer offered in various traditions throughout the vigil. A sacred fire= will burn at the center of the ceremonial circle. The circle will be enclosed by= 30 tipis and structures of other traditions, including an African Alter, a Labrynth, a Buddhist Stupa, and a Sukkah in the Jewish tradition. Within and around the circle various ceremonies will be held including the World Peace Prayer Ceremony, healing music in the Sufi Tradition, walking meditations, round dances for racial unity, drumming, chanting and Talking Circles. Indigenous leaders for the Vigil will include William Commanda of= the Algonquin Nation from Manawaki, Quebec, Canada and Harry S. Byrd of the= Lakota Nation. The Prayer Vigil welcomes people of all paths of spirituality. In= the circle, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Bahais, Buddhists and many others share in the program. Participants pray together for harmony among= all people and for living in balance with Nature on the Earth. From many= traditions there are ceremonies, songs of healing and thanksgiving, drumming, prayers= and sacred dances. The deeply touching World Peace Prayer Ceremony honors people= of every nation on earth in a flag presentation ceremony. Tipis and other structures serve as a safe place for small groups of people to gather in= quiet contemplation and conversations, for children's activities, and for story telling from many traditions. The circle of tipis around the fire at the foot of the Washington Monument is a beautiful and inspiring sight. The first light of the rising= sun casts long shadows of the tipis and the Washington Monument, dramatically juxtaposing symbols of Community and Nation. Smoke from the ceremonial fire rises and mingles with the morning mist as hundreds of people from many= races greet the day - and each other - as they gather in prayer and fellowship.= Sea gulls, geese and other birds swoop over head, circling among the flags atop= the tipis - following the winds that sweep across the Mall. The moment is breathtaking, inspiring and memorable. We encourage you to create your own event wherever you are. Let us= know about your plans by sending an email to oneprayer4@aol.com -- please use the subject "Joining". [From ] - --- - - New NIF letter on TVC web One of our Tri-Valley CAREs members has just posted talking points and a= sample letter that you can use in creating YOUR NOTE to your Senators. The sample letter urges your Senators to rein in spending on the National Ignition Facility. We invite you to visit our web site at http://www.igc.org/tvc.= There you will easily find the sample letter in our "NIF Boondoggle" section,= right on the front page of our site. Download the sample letter, personalize it= with any talking points or thoughts you may have, and send it to your Senators. = The Senate is scheduled to take up the question of NIF funding when they return from the Labor Day recess on Tuesday, September 5. Please act TODAY. If you= are unsure of who your Senators are -- we have a link right on our sample letter= so you can find out. Send me a copy of your letter at marylia@earthlink.net if= you can. Thanks muchly. Your letter now could make a huge difference. [Marylia Kelley, Tri-Valley CAREs=20 (Communities Against a Radioactive Environment), 2582 Old First Street, Livermore, CA USA 94550, http://www.igc.org/tvc/] - --- - - Shootin' for the Moon Sept/Oct Issue, Bulletin of Atomic Scientists http://www.bullatomsci.org/ An early plan for nuking the moon came to light a few months ago= with the publication of Keay Davidson's book, "Carl Sagan: A Life." Davidson revealed that early in his career Sagan worked for a secret military project researching the idea of detonating a nuclear device on the surface of the moon=97mostly the military just wanted to see what would happen.=20 Author Jeffrey Richelson explains that setting off a lunar= explosion was just one of several plans for exploiting the moon. With today's U.S. Space Command revving up to achieve "full spectrum dominance of the [near-Earth] battlespace" by 2020, perhaps it's time to take another look at air force and army plans of the 1950s and 1960s for putting U.S. bases on= the moon (and keeping the Soviets off). - --- - - Join CNN's debate on Star Wars NMD at (http://community.cnn.com/cgi-bin/WebX?13@@.eeb69d6).=20 Need talking points? See http://www.peace-action.org/starwars-talkingpoints.html and factsheet (in pdf) at http://www.peace-action.org/starwarsfs.pdf - ---- - - Help Wanted: Irradiated Meat Scouts From: "Jessica Vallette Revere" When you go grocery shopping next time, please take a look in the frozen foods section and the fresh meat section and let us know if irradiated beef and/or chicken is actually for sale in your state. The radura (a flower in a circle that is broken up at the top) and the words "treated by irradiation" should appear near the nutrition label. Unfortunately, right now we have to rely on eye-witness reports of these sales. USDA is not keeping track of stores that are participating in the= test marketing. They are, however, keeping track of processors who are sending= their product to irradiators. I am waiting to hear back from the agency about= whether or not they'll readily share this information with us. For information on= the companies we know are selling irradiated beef please refer to: http://www.citizen.org/cmep/rad-food/Indexwhowhatwhere.htm. The list is not complete and your help in making it more complete is very much appreciated. Another good way to find out is by asking your= store's manager directly. Lastly, in Minnesota the beef association is giving away free samples of irradiated beef at the state fair. If you have an opportunity to visit your state fair, see if similar interest groups are doing the same and let us= know. [Jessica Vallette Revere, Public Citizen's Critical Mass Energy &= Environment Program] ___________________________________________________ Today's News and Archives: http://prop1.org/nucnews/briefslv.htm Submit URL/Article: mailto:NucNews@onelist.com OneList Archives: http://www.onelist.com/archive/NucNews (subscribe online) Subscribe to NucNews Briefs: mailto:prop1@prop1.org Quick Route to U.S. Congress: http://www.senate.gov/senators/index.cfm (Senators' Websites) http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.html (Representatives' Websites) http://thomas.loc.gov/ (Pending Legislation - Search) Presidential Candidates' Websites (a-z): George W. Bush - http://www.GeorgeWBush.com -= http://64.92.133.170/Calendar.asp Pat Buchanan - http://www.gopatgo2000.com/default.htm Al Gore - http://www.algore2000.com/ Ralph Nader - http://www.votenader.org/press.html (Please send other sites of qualified candidates.) Other Excellent News-Collecting Sites - Downwinders - http://www.egroups.com/group/downwinders DOE Watch - http://www.egroups.com/group/doewatch Online Petition to Abolish Nuclear Weapons - http://www.PetitionOnline.com/prop1/petition.html Distributed without payment for research and educational=20 purposes only, in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 05 Sep 2000 08:47:13 -0400 From: "Howard W. Hallman" Subject: (abolition-usa) Mini-Nuke Web Page >From: David Culp >To: "Howard W. Hallman (E-mail)" >Subject: Mini-Nuke Web Page >Date: Thu, 31 Aug 2000 17:00:29 -0400 >X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2448.0) > >The Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) has put up a web page >on "mini-nukes", with lots of links. The issue is currently being debated >in the U.S. Congress. The material includes: > >* Washington Post article (June 12) >* Albuquerque (New Mexico) Journal article on mini-nukes (August 15) >* Los Alamos National Laboratory report on "Nuclear Weapons in the 21st >Century" >* Other background material > >The address is . > > >David Culp > >Friends Committee on National Legislation (Quakers) >245 Second Street, N.E. >Washington, D.C. 20002-5795 >Phone: (202)547-6000, ext. 146 >Fax: (202)547-6019 >E-mail: david@fcnl.org >Website: http://www.fcnl.org > Howard W. Hallman, Chair Methodists United for Peace with Justice 1500 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036 Phone/fax: 301 896-0013; e-mail: mupj@igc.org Methodists United for Peace with Justice is a membership association of laity and clergy. It has no affiliation with any Methodist denomination. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 08:57:01 EDT From: JGG786@aol.com Subject: (abolition-usa) CORRECTION ON PRES. WAHID PANEL PLEASE FORWARD TO ALL CONCERNED. LOGISTICS COMPEL RSVP TO PRES. WAHID PANEL BY EMAIL. FAX WILL NOT WORK. EMAIL SO THAT IF WE ARE OVERBOOKED WE CAN NOTIFY YOU. SUCCESS HAS ITS PLEASANT PROBLEMS. PLEASE FORGIVE ANY INCONVENIENCE. WE ARE DOING THE BEST WE CAN. THANK YOU. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 05 Sep 2000 12:35:18 -0400 From: fdpeace@earthlink.net Subject: (abolition-usa) Projected Cost of National Missile Defense Ellen Thomas has corrected me. The source of the information on the projected $25 Billion cost of NMD, contained in a message distributed via abolition-usa, was the U.S. government. My apology. I have found the source of the $60 Billion estimate at Peace Action's website: Star Wars (NMD) has been and will be astronomically expensive Since the 50s the U.S. has spent $122 billion on various missile intercept systems. Since Reagan's introduction of Star Wars in 1983 we've spent $69 billion dollars without fielding a workable system. The Congressional Budget Office recently estimated that, through 2015, it would cost $60 billion to build and maintain the system planned by the Clinton Administration. Current NMD budget for FY 2001-2005 is $12.7 billion, but is likely to rise sharply. Pentagon cost estimates for highly technical weapons systems are almost always much lower than the actual final cost of the weapon system (e.g. B-1 bomber, B-2 bomber, F-18, M-1A-1 tank, etc, etc, etc) - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 22:30:45 -0700 (PDT) From: marylia@earthlink.net (marylia) Subject: (abolition-usa) CUT NIF - URGENT ACTION ALERT So, here's the story in a nutshell, read below to find out more . . . DEBATE ON SENATE ENERGY AND WATER APPROPRIATION BEGINS NOW SENATOR HARKIN TO OFFER AMENDMENT TO CUT NIF CONSTRUCTION $ VOTE TO OCCUR WED/ THURS of THIS WEEK YOUR URGENT ACTION IS NEEDED - CALL YOUR SENATORS NOW URGE THEM TO SUPPORT SENATOR HARKIN'S EFFORT TO CUT NIF CAPITOL SWITCHBOARD IS (202) 224-3121 THE BASIC TALKING POINTS ON NIF (THIS SHOULD BE A FAMILIAR TUNE BY NOW) PLUS NEW DEVELOPMENTS MAKE THE CASE EVEN STRONGER - -GAO REPORT/ LABS CALL FOR RETHINKING NIF - -CLEANUP $$ MAY BE AT GREATER RISK THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR HELP -- Well, it is once again very exciting here in Washington DC, Congress is back and as you've probably been hearing on the news, they are very anxious to get through their spending bills. Debate has begun on the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Bill (you'll recall the House passed their version in the end of June.) SENATOR HARKIN TO OFFER AMENDMENT TO CUT NIF CONSTRUCTION $ Senator Harkin plans to bring up an amendment to cut this year's NIF construction funds of $74.1 million. Currently the effort is simply to cut the money. (In other words the proposed amendment will not also shift the funds to anything else.) VOTE TO OCCUR WED/ THURS of THIS WEEK The Senate schedule is always difficult to predict. Harkin's Office is guessing that the amendment will be voted on this Thursday. It is possible, however, that the vote could occur tomorrow (Wednesday). YOUR URGENT ACTION IS NEEDED - CALL YOUR SENATORS NOW URGE THEM TO SUPPORT SENATOR HARKIN'S EFFORT TO CUT NIF CAPITOL SWITCHBOARD IS (202) 224-3121 Yes, I am once again put in the position of asking for your urgent response on this. Senator Harkin has been weighing options, and has just decided which kind of amendment he would offer. THE BASIC TALKING POINTS ON NIF (THIS SHOULD BE A FAMILIAR TUNE BY NOW) (In general, it would be good to emphasize the cost overruns and technical problems with all Senators, and to highlight the non-proliferation problems, NIF's weapons design mission and the related CTBT concerns with Democratic, and pro-arms control Senators. Also make sure your Senators know that the rising money needed for this boondoggle over the years to come is likely to threaten cleanup funds at Livermore Lab and DOE sites across the country.) What is NIF? - A large 192 laser beam facility being built in Livermore, CA. Its stated purpose is to simulate conditions in the later stages of a nuclear weapons explosion by fusing atoms to get thermonuclear ignition. NIF is the most expensive project in DOE's Stockpile Stewardship nuclear weapons program, and its revealed massive cost overruns are siphoning enormous amounts of money from other DOE programs. (When NIF was originally envisioned in 1990 its estimated cost was $400 million. In 1997 it was proposed to Congress at $1.2 Billion. Now GAO estimates are $4 billion, and independent analysts find life-cycle costs likely to be approximately $10 billion.) NIF is experiencing ongoing technical problems that have not been resolved, including: problems with optics, target material, diagnostics etc. It is not even clear whether "ignition" can be achieved at the National IGNITION Facility. Other Laboratories and lab scientists have questioned the value of proceeding with the current NIF. Most significantly, Sandia Laboratory released an official position paper calling for NIF to be scaled back in both size and budget. Despite NIF proponents claims that NIF is essential to maintain the safety and reliability of the current U.S. arsenal in the absence of nuclear test explosions, many nuclear weapons experts (including Edward Teller, father of the Hydrogen Bomb and founder of Livermore labs) have concurred that NIF has almost no relevance to this task. Instead, the NIF undermines arms control and nonproliferation goals, by enhancing the capability for design of new nuclear weapons and modification of existing nuclear weapons. In stark contrast to NIF advocates who state that NIF is a necessary trade-off that supports the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, NIF's capability to alter current codes and support new nuclear weapons design is likely to erode confidence that the nuclear arsenal can be certified safe and reliable without full-scale nuclear weapons test explosions. After major management and technical problems and cost over-runs were revealed last year, Congress (Energy and Water Appropriations Report FY 2000) requested that DOE provide a re-baselining for the NIF. This report was requested by June 1, 2000. DOE was unable to comply with that deadline. Instead they have asked for an extension to Mid-September -AFTER the money will already be appropriated for FY2001. NOW is the time to hit the pause button and cut construction funds for NIF this year. Congress should demand that DOE carefully answer basic questions about NIFs purpose, its chances of fulfilling its described mission, and the unresolved technical problems that continue to plague NIF. An honest debate about the NIF is long overdue. PLUS NEW DEVELOPMENTS MAKE THE CASE EVEN STRONGER There has been a great deal of news to undermine NIF in the last couple of months. The problems is that Congress has been out on vacation, and so most Senators won't know this stuff . . .You need to tell them... - -GAO REPORT/ LABS CALL FOR RETHINKING NIF The long-awaited GAO Report was released in August -and I know you've seen many of the press reports. The GAO is quite scathing in its critique of NIF and has also surfaced opposition from scientists at the other labs, who are calling for a scaled-back NIF. One quote from GAO Report that makes it clear: "DOE and Lawrence Livermore now estimate that NIF will eventually cost about $3.3 billion and will be completed by 2008 . . . However, based on our analysis of figures from DOE and Lawrence Livermore, we estimate that NIF's cost is closer to $4 billion because DOE's estimate does not include all research and development costs from other program areas that are needed to support NIF. Furthermore,since significant research and development activities to support NIF remain to be completed and technical uncertainties persist the cost of NIF could grow even higher and the completion could take even longer." (page 4) - -CLEANUP $$ MAY BE AT GREATER RISK As the "costs grow even higher" where do we think the money will come from?? Currently DOE has a late "reprogramming request" that would take $95 million from other Stockpile Stewardship Programs - but of course many in Congress don't want money taken from other weapons programs. In fact Senator Kyl (R-AZ) has offered another plan - in his amendment to the Defense Authorization Bill contains a provision that would take $75 million from the Environmental Restoration and Waste Management Budget - cleanup money. (This provision was adopted to the Senate version of the Defense Authorization Bill - as a non-controversial amendment with no debate or opposition. There is still a chance to have the provision taken out in the Defense Authorization Conference happening right now - stay tuned for more on this, but focus now on the Appropriations effort.) You can bet that in years to come the ever expanding NIF bloat will threaten cleanup funds more than weapons research or production funding. Make sure that Senators from your states know that they need to act now to protect money for their sites. THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR HELP -- Thanks to your help over the past years, along with NIF's failures, we now have an opportunity to really make a difference on this. Please call me with questions, for assistance, and ESPECIALLY to let me know what you're hearing from your Senators. for more information call: Kathy Crandall Alliance for Nuclear Accountability 1801 18th Street NW , 2nd Floor Washington, DC 20009 Phone: (202) 833-4668 Fax: (202) 234-9536 Web: www.ananuclear.org Marylia Kelley Tri-Valley CAREs (Communities Against a Radioactive Environment) 2582 Old First Street Livermore, CA USA 94550 - is our web site, please visit us there! (925) 443-7148 - is our phone (925) 443-0177 - is our fax Working for peace, justice and a healthy environment since 1983, Tri-Valley CAREs has been a member of the nation-wide Alliance for Nuclear Accountability in the U.S. since 1989, and is a co-founding member of the Abolition 2000 global network for the elimination of nuclear weapons, the U.S. Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons and the Back From the Brink campaign to get nuclear weapons taken off hair-trigger alert. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Sep 2000 08:35:29 -0400 From: Ellen Thomas Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews 00/09/06 - Daybook; Presidential Candidates; Activist Announcements 1) Daybook, Washington Times and AFP, September 6, 2000 http://www.washtimes.com/national/daybook-20009621226.htm Energy Department meeting =97 2 p.m. =97 The Energy Department holds a= public meeting on civilian nuclear-energy research and development, development of isotope missions and the Energy Department's draft programmatic= environmental impact statement. Location: Crystal Gateway Marriott, 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington. Contact: 202/685-5806. U.N. forum =97 noon =97 The Cato Institute hosts a policy forum, "A= Robust United Nations in the 21st Century: Benefit, Danger or Fantasy?" Location:= F.A. Hayek Auditorium, 1000 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Contact: 202/789-5229. SENATE COMMITTEES=20 9:30 a.m. =97 Senate Armed Services Committee holds a hearing on pending nominations. Location: 222 Russell Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-3871. 10 a.m. =97 Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing to examine= electronic surveillance and privacy in the digital age. Location: 226 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-5225. 10:30 a.m. =97 Senate Foreign Relations Committee holds a hearing on= Taiwan's accession to the WTO. Location: 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Contact: 202/224-4651. Tribal strategies summit =97 9 a.m. =97 The Justice Department and the= Office of National Drug Control Policy host an Indian summit on tribal strategies= to reduce alcohol and substance abuse and violence. Attorney General Janet Reno speaks at 9 a.m. and retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, speaks at 12:15 p.m. Location: Washington= Monarch Hotel, 2401 M St. NW. Contact: 202/616-2777 or 202/395-6618. 2) Presidential Candidates - --- - - Al Gore - today September 6 - 9:30 AM EDT - Live Webcast - Cleveland, OH - at http://algore.com - --- - - George W. Bush=20 September 6 (today) - Milwaukee, WI 10:00 a.m. - Remarks at American Legion National Convention,= Location: Midwest Express Center, 400 West Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, Wisconsin= 53203, (414) 908-6000=20 September 7 - Westland, MI, Dayton, OH, and Pittsburgh, PA 8:15 a.m. - Remarks to Veterans, Harris Kehrer VFW Post #3323, 1055 South Wayne Road, Westland, Michigan 48186=20 11:50 a.m. - Remarks to Veterans, Wright State University (MSG), Student Union Center - Multi-purpose Room, 3640 Colonel Glenn Highway, Dayton, Ohio 45434, (937) 775-5522=20 6:00 p.m. - Rally in Pittsburgh at Mellon Square Park, corner of William Penn and 6th Avenue. - --- - - Ralph Nader this week - New Mexico Thursday, September 7- Albuquerque, NM=20 3:45 - 4:30 PM - Press Conference, Hyatt Regency, 330 Tijeras, NW 6:30 - 7:30 PM - Fundraising Reception, Fiesta Ballroom, Hyatt Regency,=20 330 Tijeras, NW 8:30 - 9:30 PM - Speech, Kiva Auditorium, 401 Second St., NW Friday, September 8 - Santa Fe and Farmington, New Mexico 9:45 - 10:30 AM - Press Conference, Hotel Santa Fe, 1501 Paseo De Palarta, Santa Fe, NM=20 4:15 pm - 5:00 pm Speech/Rally, Henderson Fine Arts Center, San Juan College, 4601 College Blvd, Farmington, NM=20 - ---- 3) Announcements - - A Force More Powerful TV Series Upcoming PBS series on nonviolent movements, "A Force More Powerful," to be aired Sept 18 and 25 in the US - two 90-minute programs showing how, during= a century of extreme violence, millions chose to battle the forces of= brutality and oppression with nonviolent weapons and won. The series, made by= filmmaker Steve York, tells six stories: the student sit-in movement and boycott that broke the system of segregation in Nashville, Tennessee; Gandhis campaign against British rule in India; the consumer boycott campaigns against= apartheid in South Africa; the valiant resistance of Danish citizens to Nazi invaders; Solidarity's factory occupations and strikes that won the right to free= trade unions in Poland; and the peoples movement that challenged and eventually defeated the dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet in Chile. Episode One= will air nationally on PBS at 9:00 pm on Monday, September 18, 2000; Episode Two= at 9:00 pm the following Monday, September 25. (Check your local listings.) Available on videocassette from Films for the Humanities and Sciences, (800)257-5126, or www.films.com. ___________________________________________________ Today's News and Archives: http://prop1.org/nucnews/briefslv.htm Submit URL/Article: mailto:NucNews@onelist.com OneList Archives: http://www.onelist.com/archive/NucNews (subscribe online) Subscribe to NucNews Briefs: mailto:prop1@prop1.org Quick Route to U.S. Congress: http://www.senate.gov/senators/index.cfm (Senators' Websites) http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.html (Representatives' Websites) http://thomas.loc.gov/ (Pending Legislation - Search) Presidential Candidates' Websites (a-z): George W. Bush - http://www.GeorgeWBush.com -= http://64.92.133.170/Calendar.asp Pat Buchanan - http://www.gopatgo2000.com/default.htm Al Gore - http://www.algore2000.com/ Ralph Nader - http://www.votenader.org/press.html (Please send other sites of qualified candidates.) Other Excellent News-Collecting Sites - Downwinders - http://www.egroups.com/group/downwinders DOE Watch - http://www.egroups.com/group/doewatch Online Petition to Abolish Nuclear Weapons - http://www.PetitionOnline.com/prop1/petition.html Distributed without payment for research and educational=20 purposes only, in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ End of abolition-usa-digest V1 #372 *********************************** - To unsubscribe to $LIST, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe $LIST" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message.