Organizing Notes

Bruce Gagnon is coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space. He offers his own reflections on organizing and the state of America's declining empire....

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Location: Brunswick, ME, United States

The collapsing US military & economic empire is making Washington & NATO even more dangerous. US could not beat the Taliban but thinks it can take on China-Russia-Iran...a sign of psychopathology for sure. @BruceKGagnon

Saturday, July 10, 2021

History lesson: Hawaiian resistance to military & land eviction

 


The Sand Island Story is a 24-minute documentary produced in 1981 by Windward Video (Victoria Keith & Jerry Rochford).

It was shot in 1979 & 1980 and documents four months of Sand Island residents attempts to forestall eviction by the State of Hawai'i. 

Ultimately their efforts failed and the people of this shoreline fishing community watched as bulldozers smashed their homes and destroyed their community, in order to create a public park. 

To this day, no public park has been created on this site. 

This film was included in a PBS series broadcast nationally in 1982 called "Matters of Life & Death." 

We should never forget the stories of human resistance.

Friday, July 09, 2021

Identical Twins: Viet Nam and Afghanistan/Iraq


All of these Oregon Viet Nam veterans had dreams as children,
none of those dreams included dying for Wall Street.

Over 58,000 Americans nationwide took their last breath for profit.

The U.S. Economy Can't Make a Killing off of Peace.

Betrayal is the last bullet in the chamber.

It is the great truth that has great silence.

One day while I was on a bunker in Viet Nam,
a sniper round went over my head.

The person who fired that weapon was not a terrorist,
a rebel, an extremist, or a so-called insurgent.

The Vietnamese individual who tried to kill me was a
citizen of Viet Nam who did not want me in HIS country.

This truth escapes millions.

Mike Hastie
Army Medic Viet Nam
Portland, Oregon
July 9, 2021

I was born in America,
but my heart is Vietnamese.

Haiti's White Rulers Have Spoken on Haiti's Political Future

 


For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
(202) 643-1136
communications@blackallianceforpeace.com


JULY 9, 2021—The Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) condemns the arrogance and illegality of United Nations Special Envoy for Haiti Helen La Lime’s July 8 statement that Haitian Prime Minister Claude Joseph will be the new president, just one day after the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse.

The decision was announced to the press after a closed-door UN Security Council meeting had been called on Haiti. But BAP asks: Who gave the United Nations special envoy the power to make that kind of determination for the people of Haiti?

This sounds like a play right out of the old regime-change book. As BAP stated in its July 7 press release, BAP smells a rat.

BAP is concerned the political situation the United States created by supporting a dictatorship in Haiti is quickly replicating the moment when the United States swept in to colonize the predominantly African/Black country after the 1915 assassination of Haiti’s president, Vilbrun Guillaume Sam.

“The Black Alliance for Peace remains steadfast in our call against foreign intervention and occupation of Haiti,” says Jemima Pierre, BAP’s Haiti/Americas Coordinator. “We call on all anti-imperialist and Black internationalist forces to stand with the Haitian people and oppose U.S. and European interventions deployed under the guise of the ‘Responsibility to Protect.’”

What Haiti needs is authentic national sovereignty and self-determination.

“When people say Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, they fail to understand it is the Pan-European colonial powers that have kept Haiti with its hands tied behind its back,” says BAP National Organizer Ajamu Baraka. “We say time out on white Western powers causing destruction in the global South.”

Shortly after Democrats wrung their hands over the possibility of Donald Trump staying past his term in office, Biden came into office and immediately lent his support to Moïse to stay beyond the February 7 term limit. That decision sent thousands of Haitians protesting in the streets week after week.

“The Haitian people clearly understood that the United States, the United Nations, and the Organization of American States were behind this,” says Chris Bernadel, a member of BAP’s Haiti/Americas Committee. “During these massive protests, they called for all of these Western powers to exit Haiti.”

While Biden expressed support for Black Lives Matter and for democracy during his campaign for president, true support would have meant ending U.S. meddling in Haiti’s affairs. This assassination relieves the Biden-Harris administration of the embarrassment of having to reconcile the contradiction between pretending to respect Black lives and democracy and supporting a dictator who had reigned after his term had ended on February 7.

That is why for BAP, it doesn’t matter who pulled the trigger to kill Moïse because the Pan-European colonial-capitalist powers are responsible for the suffering of the Haitian people.

BAP vigorously opposes any and all foreign institutions and structures intervening in Haiti. The Haitian people must be allowed to exercise self-determination and address their internal political situation without interference, as BAP noted in its July 6 press release.  

Rocket launch alert: Protect the Mhoine, protect the planet!

 


One of Scotland’s most important contributions to global fight against ecological and climate breakdown lies beneath the ground – in layers of peat that have been trapping carbon for thousands of years. 
 
The Flow Country in Caithness and Sutherland is the largest peatbog in Europe. It stores approximately 400 million tonnes of carbon-- that’s more than double the amount of all of Britain’s woodlands! It is a rare and precious wildlife haven, and a potential UNESCO World Heritage site. 
 
The Space Hub Sutherland project submitted an application to the Highland Council for the development of a rocket launch facility over 800 acres of the Flow Country, on the A’Mhòine Peninsula. This would put the blanket bog’s fragile ecosystem at huge risk. When peat dries out, it stops trapping carbon and instead starts to emit it back out into the atmosphere. Degraded peat is highly flammable, as we saw in the Sutherland wildfire this summer, which raged for six days over 20,000 acres. Scientists estimated that the carbon released by the wildfire doubled Scotland’s emissions over those six days. 
 
The Highland Council have declared a Climate and Ecological Emergency. Let’s send them the message that building a space port right on a uniquely precious ecosystem and massive carbon sink is not an emergency response!

Thursday, July 08, 2021

The deadly connection....

 

 

See https://sites.google.com/site/mainenaturalguard/resources

Israelis Against Apartheid

 


We, Jewish Israelis, oppose the actions of the Israeli government and call upon the international community to immediately intervene in defence of the Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Jerusalem, the Galilee, the Negev, al-Lydd, Yafa, Ramleh, Haifa and throughout historic Palestine.

Wednesday, July 07, 2021

Biden kneels before Israeli President’s chief of staff

 


Israeli media are reporting widely that Biden knelt before Israeli President Rivlin's chief of staff during Rivlin's White House meeting with Biden. 

The chief of staff, Rivka Ravitz, is an ultra-orthodox Israeli who lived in an Israeli settlement for many years, where her husband was deputy mayor. 

Biden promised his support for Israel was 'engraved in stone.'

Like the 'Ten Commandments'? 

How about 'Thou shall not kill'?

Many are asking which country is actually 'in charge' of this relationship?

Clapton discusses life after 2 jabs

 


Eric Clapton is deeply saddened how people are turned against one another - and not able to communicate - about their feelings related to the Covid jab and other such issues.

He had a severe reaction after taking the two vaccines and now has trouble playing guitar. 

When he has spoken out even some in his own family told him to stop.

He says that one of the most important things to him in life is free speech. 

Facebook is starting to warn some users they might have seen 'extremist content' on the social media site. Screenshots shared on Twitter showed a notice asking 'Are you concerned that someone you know is becoming an extremist?' And another that alerted users 'you may have been exposed to harmful extremist content recently.'

Indeed something big is going on. It seems as though it would be wise that we have an international public discussion about these various 'measures' that increasingly restrict freedom. Who is it that doesn't really want that kind of public education to happen?

After all, isn't that what 'democracy' is supposed to be about?

I'm old school I guess. I still believe humans should be able to talk with one another without either side demonizing the 'other'.

Yes, call me ancient history....

Bruce

Tuesday, July 06, 2021

Public comments now due on U.S. Hypersonic testing program

 

 

The US Army is taking public comments on their Hypersonic testing program until July 10.

Please send your comments immediately to the link just below. Feel free to use the talking points below as well.

Learn more about this environmental impact review process here

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

To: jfceaoea@govsupport.us

Regarding: Joint Flight Campaign PEA
 
Our organization opposes the proposed action which entails up to six Hypersonic flight test launches at up to four different launch locations per year, over the next 10 years. Test objectives are expected to dictate range selection from Atlantic and Pacific test ranges.
 
We believe the following:

  •     Testing of Hypersonics will dramatically escalate the nuclear arms race/new Cold War
  •     Our nation can’t afford another arms race – especially one in space
  •     We need to be spending our national treasury on dealing with our real enemy – climate crisis    and growing economic inequality
  •     Toxic rocket fuel exacerbates an already grave climate crisis
  •     It’s time the warmongers listened to the taxpayers


We support the No Action alternative.
 
In peace,

Bruce K. Gagnon
Coordinator
Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space 

Squeezing China in space

 

 

Recently, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson (former US Senator from Florida) testified to the Science, Space and Technology congressional committee in order to request a boost in the agency’s budget. 

He spoke about many of NASA's ambitions, but he also spoke about his support of making the Wolf Amendment permanent. 

Presently, NASA is barred from bilateral discussions with the China National Space Administration (CNSA) by an Obama-era law known as the Wolf Amendment, which says that NASA funding and resources can’t be put toward any collaborative projects or even talks with China.

The Resident discusses.

Monday, July 05, 2021

BIW's impact on Climate crisis

 

Planning for next BIW destroyer 'christening'
 

  • Eight people joined a Zoom call today to continue planning the legal rally at Bath Iron Works (BIW owned by General Dynamics) during the next destroyer 'christening' at the shipyard. (There are currently six destroyers under development at BIW.)
  • It was decided to dedicate this next protest to long-time BIW worker (and peace activist) Peter Woodruff who recently passed away.
  • The date of the BIW ceremony has not yet been announced but we've been told by the Bath police that it is likely to happen in July. Thus we have begun our planning process.
  • On the day of the event we will meet at the South Gate along Washington Street in Bath. We will hold a rally with speakers and music. Maine VFP will provide their sound system. The IDEAL Marching Band has tentatively agreed to come depending on their availability.
  • Two volunteers (Lisa & Sam) are working on the news release and other advance messaging.
  • Large banners will be hung from bridges in Bath early that morning. Bruce is coordinating that effort and so far Mark, Cynthia and Meredith have volunteered to be part of that team. Several more people will still be needed. Please let Bruce know if interested.
  • We brainstormed a good short 'Hash tag' for the event but are still looking for the perfect words. Let us know if you have any ideas.
  • Even though we don’t yet have a ‘date certain’ for the BIW ceremony we urge folks to help us pass the word about this upcoming event.   



An excellent lesson on China

 

 

Xi Jinping Hails China's Rise, Says China Will Not Be Bullied Or Preached To By West.

On the day of the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), President Xi Jinping, in Tiananmen square, amid all the pomp and circumstance, delivered a stark geopolitical message:

The Chinese people will never allow foreign forces to intimidate, oppress or subjugate them. Anyone who tries to do this will find themselves on a collision course with a large steel wall forged by more than 1.4 billion Chinese.

Alexander Mercouris (London) does a real nice job in this video of giving some important historical context to the motivations and vision of today's China.

He ends with the ultimate question about China - will Washington learn to have real positive engagement with China or try to dominate Beijing via war?

Sunday, July 04, 2021

Riffing on the 4th of July – Reflections on meeting the challenges of our times

 


By Kate Kheel

The Fourth of July commemorates the day the thirteen colonies in the “New World” declared independence from the United Kingdom of Great Britain. What is independence? How does it inform our culture and minds? Are we in-dependent or inter-dependent beings…or perhaps both? And might there be merit in also acknowledging and commemorating on this day (or another) our inter-dependence with all life forms and Earth? 

Independence vs. Interdependence

Independence is the freedom of one entity to operate without the control or coercion of another.

Independence is achieved by standing up for oneself and defending one’s own agency. A feeling of self-sufficiency can also increase independence as in the case of a child no longer needing or being dependent upon a parent or guardian.

Inter-dependence occurs when two or more entities are mutually reliant upon one another. Inter-dependence is a fact of the natural world of which we humans play an integral role. Nature is inherently one grand, profoundly inter-dependent organism/system.

As an inter-connected organism, we rely on and need one another. We are on the same “team,” and feel invested in our team’s successes, failures, and challenges. For the team’s success is our success, and the team’s challenge is our challenge.

We instinctively reach out to help teammates. At times assistance may involve applying painful medicine; but with an understanding of our inter-dependence, even this is done with loving care. We want our team – ourselves – to heal, live, and thrive. 

 

 

Our civilization comprises separate entities: individuals, the military, government, or human society, each acting upon and often controlling one or more other entity. History can be seen as a dualistic dance of hierarchy between superior and underling where the underling (dependent one) experiences a loss of agency and may eventually seek independence. In some instances, this results in conflict or war.

If we view others as discreet entities separate from ourselves, often competing for limited resources and love, there is a greater likelihood for underlying and unavoidable strife – For one person’s abundance may be perceived as dependent on the scarcity of another. The prevalence of this way of perceiving and operating in the world results in a top-down paradigm where the one on top envisions and dictates policies and customs for themselves and those they deem, and/or who are in fact, dependent on them.

If we sense our inter-dependence and inherent oneness, what follows naturally is respect and care for all living beings and Earth herself. For wherefore goes another, therefor go I. We pivot from a place of viewing ourselves and others as separate beings either controlling or being controlled by another, to inter-dependence where we understand and feel that we, all living beings, the Earth and Heavens are one inter-connected, inter-reliant Being.

Residing solely in the independency/dependency model of the world, if left unchecked, can lead to societal actions that may bring us to the edge of extinction – E.g. nuclear war, the 5G/satellite/IoT/AI/systems warfare juggernaut, or Climate Change.

But if we reside solely in the world of inter-dependence, and do not acknowledge our instinctual feeling of perceived individuated identity, we risk not being able to function practically in the world where we need at least a modicum of “self” to seek food, shelter and meaning.

Ideally, the “I-am-a-separate-entity” and the “connected-with-all-life” world views, can work together synergistically, each offering its own gift, together or at times alternately, to our perception, understanding, and navigation of the world.

Our sense of Inter-dependence is being uprooted

At this point in time, our sense of inter-dependence is being uprooted. The metaphorical “umbilical cord” that connects us to Mother Earth has been severed. We are increasingly being corralled into cyber space and becoming more and more dependent on technology to meet our basic needs, be they for sustenance, news, entertainment, sense of belonging, or friendship. Our growing dis-connect from one another and from Earth have become ever more pronounced by covid lockdowns, masking, social distancing, and yet greater reliance on digital text and sound “bytes”.

 


Over-whelmed by “info-pollution” – I.e., the sheer quantity of information and communications that inundate us daily – these have become “cheap” and less substantive. In much the same way we are still hungry after a full meal of fast foods that provide empty calories but little to no nutritive value, information we imbibe from our screened-in, info-polluted way of life leaves us hungry for meaningful and real-world interpersonal connection.

Moreover, the communications themselves have veered into disinformation and censorship. “Facts” are often unverifiable. We can no longer rely on language to be the “bridge” that connects us to one another. Not unlike the story of the Tower of Babel – the iconic Biblical symbol of disconnection of one person from another – we no longer speak the same language. I.e., language no longer serves reliably as the connective fabric that holds us together when abiding in the individuated identity mindset.

The world seeks to self-correct

Although, as a species, we are out of balance now and wreaking havoc on all life, the world (like all living beings) seeks to self-correct…to heal, and another shift is taking place simultaneously. More and more people are awakening to an understanding of our inherent oneness and to a deep care for Mother Earth. Many are choosing to flee urban areas to live on the land and connect with friends and community at the local level – Person to person, face-to-face, and heart-to-heart.

Should we turn the clocks back…go back in time? Or could the dissolution of genuine communication be labor pains birthing a new way of apprehending reality that by-passes language?  Could it be heralding a time when we are (once again) intensely aware of our connection to all life, and no longer solely reliant on the “crutch” of language, information, and facts?  A time when we “get” things intuitively, deeply, thoughtfully, and feeling fully…but this time, with the addition of something new.

 


What’s different now?

The 21st century world offers unique possibilities that were not available in earlier times. We have a new tool now, the internet, that allows us to know what’s going on in distant parts of the world. Indeed, even though the internet grew out of, and is an integral part of the “I-am-a-separate-entity” world view, if used well, it can underscore, and even enhance society’s understanding of our inter-connectedness.

Empathy is aroused when we “see” via the internet, victims of war or famine, child slavery, the cruelty of factory farms, or polar bears dying from starvation caused by habitat loss. The internet also can help us share creative and practical solutions to address problems we all face. We can communicate globally, amplify messages, build coalitions, and send aid where needed. The internet and telecommunications help us work together as one, for the good of all...If we so choose.  

We need both ways of perceiving and being in the world

What seems to be arising now is a restoring of balance and a merging of both ways of apprehending the world – the “I-am-a-separate-entity” and the “connected-with-all-life” viewpoints. As we hold them together in our mind and heart, or perhaps pulse from one to the other, we can begin to dissolve thick demarcation lines of the us/them paradigm and envision other possibilities and solutions.

We need not go back to the way things were before our centuries-long escapade into duality. Collectively, as a society, we are shedding the skin of our old way of perceiving the world, and a new layer is forming beneath. The new model will likely rely more on intuition, but not entirely. For we can now benefit from possibilities the internet and other innovations provide. Language will likely remain, but our intuition will guide us toward more truth-filled communications.

If we soften into the inter-dependent view of the world by trusting our intuition and tuning into our place in the natural world, we can discover what we are being called to do, both as unique individuals and as a society. Then with the aid of some of the tools of our 21st century work-a-day world of individuated identities, we can set about bringing our vision into the world.

How will the union of paradigms inform our advocacy? 

Holding both orientations in our minds and hearts simultaneously will inform how we approach advocacy, be it for safe technology, nuclear disarmament, the wise use of space or any other changes we wish to bring about. The way each of us will show up in the world is an unknown, but our advocacy will flow from a balanced and renewed way of seeing things. Whatever form it takes, likely, our communications will be clearer, less polarizing, and more effective, especially when speaking to those whose actions we feel need correcting. For messages delivered from the heart can more easily dissolve barriers and influence mindsets and actions.

May the visions for a more viable future that arise from a deep understanding of our inter-dependence, be escorted into the world by the global “team” with whom we are inseparably One…while still honoring and holding space for light touch individuation in ourselves and others.

 

 ~ Kate Kheel is a musician and long time advocate for safer internet and telecommunications technology. She is a founding and active member of Stop 5G International, and an integral part of the team of SafeG, a coalition calling for greater reliance on wired (vs. wireless) technology. Kate serves on the Advisory Board of the Global Network and shares about the connection between 5G and the military, and how 5G and satellites, not only are a threat our health, privacy, security and to the environment, but additionally are being used to increase the lethality of war. She lives in Maryland.