Author: Mike Ryan

U.S. Nuclear Policy: Taking the Wrong Road

by David Krieger

On September 21, 2014, the International Day of Peace, The New York Times published an article by William Broad and David Sanger, “U.S. Ramping Up Major Renewal in Nuclear Arms.”  The authors reported that a recent federal study put the price tag for modernizing the U.S. nuclear arsenal at “up to a trillion dollars” over the next three decades.

All this emphasis on modernizing the nuclear deterrent force may be good for business, but ignores two important facts.  First, nuclear deterrence is only a hypothesis about human behavior that has not been and cannot be proven to work.  Second, it ignores the obligations of the U.S. and other nuclear-armed states to pursue negotiations in good faith for an end to the nuclear arms race and for nuclear disarmament.

To read more, click here.

Making the Connection: The People’s Climate March and the International Day of Peace

by Bob Dodge

Climate change and world peace will each be highlighted on September 21, the International Day of Peace. In our nuclear armed, temperature rising, resource depleting world these issues are intricately related and represent the greatest threats to our planet. It is not coincidence that they be highlighted together. We must make the connection between peace on the planet and peace with the environment. Sunday’s Peoples Climate March will empower citizens the world over to demonstrate the will of the people and demand action as global leaders convene in New York on Tuesday for the U.N. Climate Summit.

As our planet warms, causing severe droughts and weather conditions, crop losses at home and around the world, conflict ensues as competition for finite resources develops.  Entire populations and countries are at risk with rising sea levels. Climate change is a catalyst for conflict.

To read more, click here.

Small Island Country Attempts to Hold Hegemon to Its Promises

Leslie Thatcher, editor of Truthout, interviewed NAPF President David Krieger about the Marshall Islands’ Nuclear Zero Lawsuits.

The interview focuses on the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the breaches of the NPT that are the basis for the lawsuits, the history of U.S. nuclear weapon testing in the Marshall Islands, and what individuals can do to support the courageous action of the Marshall Islands.

Leslie Thatcher, “Small Island Country Attempts to Hold Hegemon to Its Promises,” Truthout, September 11, 2014.

Tony de Brum Speaks About Lawsuits

In an interview at the People’s Climate March in New York City, Marshall Islands Foreign Minister Tony de Brum explained why the Marshall Islands (RMI) is suing the nine nuclear-armed nations. According to de Brum, the lawsuits seek a “nuclear-free world,” one which RMI has a “moral and legal mandate” to pursue. “It is incumbent on us,” says de Brum, “to make a statement to the world and remind our development partners…to own up to their promises to reduce nuclear weapons.”

To watch the video, click the link below.

“Why We’re Suing Nuclear Nations – Interview with Tony de Brum,” YouTube / Ecological Options Network, October 1, 2014.

Hearing on U.S. Motion to Dismiss Scheduled for October 10

The first court hearing around the Nuclear Zero lawsuit filed by the Marshall Islands against the United States in U.S. Federal District Court is scheduled to take place on October 10 in Oakland, California. The hearing will address the Motion to Dismiss, filed by the United States in July 2014.

For those interested in reading the background documents in this case, they are:

• Complaint filed on April 24, 2014 by the Republic of the Marshall Islands
• Motion to Dismiss filed on July 21, 2014 by the United States
• Opposition to the Motion to Dismiss, filed on August 21, 2014 by the Republic of the Marshall Islands
• Amicus Curiae brief by Nuclear Watch New Mexico, filed on August 21, 2014
• Amicus Curiae brief by Tri-Valley CAREs, filed on August 21, 2014
• Amicus Curiae brief by Physicians for Social Responsibility, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and Pax Christi International, filed on August 21, 2014
• Reply Memorandum in Support of Motion to Dismiss, filed on September 8, 2014 by the United States

U.S. Plans Massive Nuclear Weapons Modernization Program

Since a deal was struck with Senate Republicans in 2010, the Obama administration has been ramping up the modernization of U.S. nuclear weapons programs, despite campaign promises to the contrary. The cost is projected to be up to $355 billion over the next decade. Many proposals have come up against obstacles, such as the discovery of a fault line underneath the proposed plutonium facility in Los Alamos, New Mexico.

Beyond the refurbishing of nuclear weapon facilities, the Obama administration is also planning to build 12 new missile submarines, 100 new bombers, and 400 land-based missiles, all with nuclear capabilities. These proposed additions to the United States’ arsenal have been projected to cost up to $1.1 trillion dollars to complete. The size and scope of these nuclear projects have concerned officials inside and outside of the administration. Despite all of this, the Obama administration insists that its current course does not conflict with longstanding international legal obligations to negotiate and achieve total nuclear disarmament.

William J. Broad and David E. Sanger, “U.S. Ramping Up Major Renewal in Nuclear Arms,” The New York Times, September 21, 2014.

New Mexico Nuclear Waste Dump in Extended Shutdown

The Department of Energy has announced that a nuclear waste facility in Carlsbad, New Mexico will remain closed until 2016. Known as the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, the facility stores nuclear waste 2,000 feet underground in storage drums. In early February, a truck caught on fire in the underground component of the facility, causing workers to suffer from smoke inhalation.  Several days later, a faulty storage drum ruptured, spreading radiation throughout the facility. At least 22 workers were exposed to radiation. The site has been closed ever since, and the estimated costs before reopening are estimated to total over $500 million.

John R. Emshwiller, “New Mexico Nuclear Waste Dump Expected to Remain Closed Until 2016,” The Wall Street Journal, September 30, 2014.

Russia Tests Nuclear Missile

Russia successfully tested a new intercontinental ballistic missile capable of hitting targets up to 5,000 miles away. This test was one of many conducted on the Bulava missile, and follows the trend of increased military activity since the beginning of the crisis in Ukraine. The missile is capable of carrying 6-10 nuclear warheads of up to 100 times the explosive yield of the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima, Japan.

The 39-foot, 40-ton missile was successfully launched from a submarine in the White Sea to a target in Russia’s far east. Admiral Chirkov, Naval Commander-in-Chief, has stated that two more launches will be carried out in October and November of this year.

“Russia Successfully Tests Nuclear Missile, More Planned: Naval Chief,” Reuters, September 10, 2014.

U.S. Tests Nuclear Missile

On September 23, the U.S. Air Force conducted a test launch of a Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. The missile was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California to Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. It came two days after the International Day of Peace (Sept. 21) and three days before the official UN Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons (Sept. 26). Clearly this timing was meant to send a message, and it is not a message of peace.

Though the Air Force Global Strike Command contends that the ICBM test launch program is to validate and verify the effectiveness, readiness and accuracy of the weapon system, this test is yet another example of the continuation of decades of psychological and physical terror the U.S. has imposed upon the people of the Marshall Islands.

David Krieger, President of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation and a consultant to the Marshall Islands on the Nuclear Zero Lawsuits, commented, “The officials at Vandenberg say the purpose of the test is to ‘validate and verify the effectiveness, readiness and accuracy of the weapons system.’ This means the effectiveness, readiness and accuracy of a weapons system capable of destroying civilization. The Air Force is only doing its job: practicing for the destruction of the human species. Instead of launching missiles we should be leading negotiations to rid the world of weapons of mass annihilation.”

“U.S. Nuclear Missile Test: Timing Is Everything,” Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, September 22, 2014.

This Month in Nuclear Threat History

History chronicles many instances when humans have been threatened by nuclear weapons. In this article, Jeffrey Mason outlines some of the most serious threats that have taken place in the month of October, including the Cuban Missile Crisis and nuclear tests by many different countries.

To read Mason’s full article, click here.

For more information on the history of the Nuclear Age, visit NAPF’s Nuclear Files website.

Security Without Nuclear Deterrence

Commander Robert Green, Royal Navy (Ret.), has published an updated e-book version of his book Security Without Nuclear Deterrence.

The nuclear-armed nations and their allies cite nuclear deterrence as the primary justification for maintaining nuclear weapons. Its fallacies must therefore be exposed and alternatives offered if they are to be eliminated.

As a former operator of British nuclear weapons, Commander Green chronicles the history, practical difficulties and dangerous contradictions of nuclear deterrence. He offers instead more credible, effective and responsible alternative strategies to deter aggression and achieve real security.

Click here for more information on the e-book, available through Amazon.com.

Tri-Valley CAREs Video Contest

Tri-Valley CAREs, a nonprofit organization based in Livermore, California, is holding a video contest entitled “Six Decades of Nuclear Bombs: Tell Us Why a Clean Environment Is Important to You.”

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is one of the United States’ two nuclear weapons design and research laboratories. Every nuclear weapon in the U.S. arsenal was designed at either Livermore or Los Alamos National Lab in New Mexico.

Operating this lab in Livermore, California for six decades has taken a serious toll on the local environment. In fact, the Lab has released over 1 million curies of radiation into the local environment (approximately the same amount that was deposited on the people of Hiroshima from the atomic bomb in 1945).

Tri-Valley CAREs invites you to create a video in 2 minutes or less about the impacts of nuclear weapons on the environment in Livermore. Three cash prizes are available for the top videos.

For more information, click here.

ICAN Civil Society Forum

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) has announced a Civil Society Forum to take place in Vienna, Austria on December 6-7. The forum will take place in advance of a government conference on the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons, also in Vienna.

Representatives of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, along with many other campaigners, activists, experts, public figures and survivors, will gather to learn and to teach, to energize and be energized, to demonstrate our unity and to demand the end of the era of nuclear weapons. Over a packed but fun-filled two days, we will engage in discussions with the best and brightest voices in the humanitarian disarmament field, hear testimonies from inspirational individuals who know the meaning of courage, develop our campaigning and advocacy skills and, of course, get up to speed on the ins and outs of the humanitarian imperative to ban nuclear weapons.

To learn more about the Civil Society Forum and to register, click here.

NAPF at Peace and Justice Studies Association Conference

The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will be well represented at the upcoming conference of the Peace and Justice Studies Association. NAPF Peace Leadership Director Paul K. Chappell will deliver a keynote address on the first day of the conference. NAPF Director of Programs Rick Wayman and social media consultant Shai Ford will present a workshop on the Nuclear Zero Lawsuits.

This year’s conference will take place at the University of San Diego on October 17-18. For more information, click here.

Poetry Contest Winners

The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation has announced the winners of its annual Barbara Mandigo Kelly Peace Poetry Awards. The contest has three categories: Adult (over 18); Youth (ages 13-18); and Youth (12 and under).

The contest encourages poets to explore and illuminate positive visions of peace and the human spirit. To read this year’s winning poems, click here. For more information on the 2015 poetry contest, click here.

Rendez-Vous Ottawa

Rendez-vous Ottawa will take place on October 25-26 at the University of Ottawa. The conference will introduce the global conversation about the humanitarian impacts of nuclear weapons to a North American audience and give participants the tools needed to spread the word and join the work towards a ban on nuclear weapons. Topics include the impact of nuclear weapons, our ability to respond to a nuclear detonation, legal and political roads to disarmament, the humanitarian approach to disarmament, campaigning skills and more.

NAPF Director of Programs Rick Wayman will be a speaker at the event. For more information, click here.

Evening for Peace

On November 16, 2014, the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will host its 31st Annual Evening for Peace. This year’s Distinguished Peace Leader is Medea Benjamin, co-founder of the social justice organization CODEPINK and the international human rights organization Global Exchange.

Medea Benjamin has been on the front lines for thirty years, shining light on the struggles of the world’s innocent and poor.

For more information about the Evening for Peace, click here or contact the Foundation at (805) 965-3443.

“Over the last 23 years, we have shown that it is possible to live in peace and friendship without possessing a single nuclear warhead. Our weapon has been mutual trust and respect, transparency and confidence building.”

— Erlan Idrissov, Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan, speaking on the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons (September 26).

“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible but in the end, they always fall – think of it, always.”

— Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948), who was born on October 2. This quote is featured in the book Speaking of Peace: Quotations to Inspire Action, available in the NAPF Peace Store.

Christian Hatchett
David Krieger
Carol Warner
Rick Wayman

Nuclear Weapons Do Not Make Us Safer

by David Krieger

This letter to the editor of the Washington Post was published on August 22, 2014.

Are NATO-based nuclear weapons really an advantage in a dangerous world, as Brent Scowcroft, Stephen J. Hadley and Franklin Miller suggested in their Aug. 18 op-ed, “A dangerous proposition”? They are not. They make the world a far more dangerous place.

Nuclear deterrence is not a guarantee of security. Rather, it is a hypothesis about human behavior, a hypothesis that has come close to failing on many occasions. Additionally, nuclear weapons are not “political weapons,” as the writers asserted. They are weapons of mass extermination.

The United States and the other nuclear-armed countries are obligated under the terms of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and/or customary international law to pursue negotiations in good faith for an end to the nuclear arms race and complete nuclear disarmament. This is the substance of the Nuclear Zero lawsuits brought by the Marshall Islands against the nine nuclear-armed countries at the International Court of Justice and in U.S. federal court. The United States continues to evade its obligations.

Rather than continuing to posture with its nuclear weapons in Europe, the United States should be leading the way in convening negotiations to eliminate all nuclear weapons for its own security and that of all the world’s inhabitants.

A link to the letter is here.

Hiroshima Peace Declaration

by Mayor Kazumi Matsui

Summer, 69 years later. The burning sun takes us back to “that day.” August 6, 1945. A single atomic bomb renders Hiroshima a burnt plain. From infants to the elderly, tens of thousands of innocent civilians lose their lives in a single day. By the end of the year, 140,000 have died. To avoid forgetting that sacred sacrifice and to prevent a repetition of that tragedy, please listen to the voices of the survivors.

To read more, click here.

Nagasaki Peace Declaration

by Mayor Tomihisa Taue

At this precise moment, 69 years ago, the sky over this hill was covered with a pitch black nuclear cloud. The single atomic bomb, dropped by a United States bomber, blew away houses and engulfed the city in flames. Many fled for their lives through streets littered with charred bodies. 74,000 precious lives were lost to the terrible blast, heat rays and radiation. A further 75,000 people were wounded. Those who narrowly survived were inflicted with deep mental and physical wounds that will never heal, even though 69 years have now passed.

Nuclear weapons are a continuing danger that threatens the present and future of our entire world. The terror that they bring is not confined to Hiroshima and Nagasaki’s past.

To read more, click here.

The Marshall Islands Will Not Give Up

The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) continued its efforts to compel the United States government to comply with its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, asking a Federal Court judge to reject the U.S. government’s claim that the treaty cannot be enforced.

On August 21, the RMI filed an Opposition to the U.S. motion to dismiss, explaining why the Court cannot and should not look the other way.

“If the United States’ position is that in treaty disputes ‘might makes right,’ then I ask you, what does it mean – really – when a nation enters into a treaty with the United States?” said Laurie Ashton, attorney with the law firm Keller Rohrback LLP who serves as lead council for the Marshall Islands. “And what does the United States’ position say about its attempts to enforce other treaties, such as the Chemical Weapons Convention (recently against Syria), or, even more recently, the United States’ allegation that Russia is in breach of certain cruise missile test bans?”

“The Marshall Islands Will Not Give Up,” Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, August 22, 2014.

Amicus Curiae Briefs Support Marshall Islands Lawsuit

On the same day that RMI submitted its Opposition to the motion to dismiss, three amicus curiae briefs were filed in support of RMI’s position. All of these organizations are part of the Nuclear Zero campaign to support the lawsuits filed by the Marshall Islands against all nine nuclear-armed nations.

Tri-Valley CAREs argues in its amicus brief that the venue of Northern California is appropriate because the district contains Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, one of the United States’ two major sites for nuclear weapons research, design, development and modernization.

Nuclear Watch New Mexico (NWNM) argues in its amicus brief that future funding levels for nuclear weapon modernization programs indicate that the U.S. is not committed to its NPT Article VI obligation. NWNM further argues that the United States is creating new military capabilities for U.S. nuclear weapons.

Pax Christi International, Physicians for Social Responsibility and International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War submitted a joint amicus brief. In it, they argue that the risk of nuclear catastrophe is substantial and that even a small regional nuclear war would put two billion people at risk of famine.

Rick Wayman, “Amicus Curiae Briefs Support Marshall Islands Lawsuit,” Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, August 28, 2014.

Marshall Islands to Receive Prestigious Peace Prize

The International Peace Bureau (IPB), winner of the 1910 Nobel Peace Prize, has been working diligently for peace since its founding in 1891. Every year IPB awards the Sean MacBride Peace Prize to a person or organization that has done outstanding work for peace, disarmament and/or human rights. The 2014 prize will be awarded to the people and government of the Marshall Islands for their courageous lawsuits filed against the world’s nine nuclear-armed nations.

IPB believes that the Nuclear Zero Lawsuits could be a “significant and decisive step in ending the nuclear arms race and in achieving a world without nuclear weapons.”

“IPB to Award MacBride Peace Prize to the People and Government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands for their Courageous Initiative to Rid the World of Nuclear Arms,” International Peace Bureau, August 6, 2014.

Senators Call for Greater Nuclear Security and Nonproliferation Efforts

A bipartisan group of 26 senators sent a letter to Shaun Donovan, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, calling on President Obama to “support increased funding in the FY2016 budget to more rapidly secure and permanently dispose of nuclear and radiological materials.” They cite the dangers posed to US National Security by “terrorists and rogue states seeking nuclear weapons” as motivation for their proposal.

The letter comes in response to the President’s proposals over the years to decrease funding for nuclear material security and nonproliferation programs. The senators argue that unsecured nuclear material poses high risks to Americans and thus programs to secure and prevent the spread of nuclear material must be accelerated.

“Merkley, Feinstein Lead Senators in Calling for Greater Nuclear Security and Nonproliferation Efforts,” Office of Senator Jeff Merkley, August 18, 2014.

NATO / Russia Conflict Over Ukraine Intensifies

As the Ukrainian Prime Minister submitted a resolution to his Parliament seeking membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Russian President Vladimir Putin used his country’s nuclear arsenal to make an overt threat to Ukraine’s leaders and people. Speaking at a pro-Kremlin youth camp, Putin said, “It’s best not to mess with us… I want to remind you that Russia is one of the leading nuclear powers.”

As NAPF Associate Martin Hellman writes in a recent article, “While NATO membership for Ukraine would almost surely make Russia more caugious in its treatment of that nation, the immediate risk of NATO membership is likely to make Russia much more aggressive in an attempt to prevent that from ever happening.” The risk of conflict between a nuclear-armed NATO and a nuclear-armed Russia is too great for all sides to continue with threatening behavior.

In a recent op-ed, NAPF New York Representative Alice Slater wrote, “Why do we still have NATO anyway? This Cold War relic is being used to fire up new hostilities and divisions between Russia and the rest of Europe.”

Alexei Anishchuk, “Don’t Mess with Nuclear Russia, Putin Says,” Reuters, August 29, 2014.

More Cheating in the Ranks

The U.S. Navy has announced that it is kicking out at least 34 sailors for their involvement in a test cheating ring. The sailors operated undetected for at least seven years as they cheated on qualification exams to become certified instructors at the nuclear training unit in Charleston, South Carolina. The unit trains students in nuclear reactor operations in order to serve on the Navy’s nuclear-powered submarines and aircraft carriers.

Although there was “never any question that the reactors were being operated safely,” according to Adm. John M. Richardson, the cheating was nevertheless “a stunning violation of Navy ethics.” The students and instructors implicated in the cheating ring were not involved in handling nuclear weapons, unlike those caught in a cheating scandal in January at an Air Force base that operates land-based nuclear-armed missiles.

Robert Burns, “Navy Kicks Out 34 For Nuke Cheating,” Associated Press, August 20, 2014.

Texas County Seeks Nuclear Waste

Loving County in Texas, the second least-populous county in the United States (population 95), is seeking to store all of the high-level radioactive waste in the United States. The federal government, with $28 billion to spend after the cancellation of its plan to store the radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain in Nevada, is seeking a new place to store the spent fuel from about 70 reactor sites across the country.

Local officials believe that the money generated from the storage process would benefit the local economy. The county judge, Skeet Jones, said, “We could build some roads. We could bring in some more water. We could have a town that’s incorporated, have a city council, maybe even start a school… Maybe even have a Walmart.”

Matthew Wald, “County of 95 Sees Opportunity in Toxic Waste,” The New York Times, August 7, 2014.

Worldwide Deployments of Nuclear Weapons

According to a new report by Hans Kristensen and Robert Norris, there are approximately 16,300 nuclear weapons in the world, located at 98 sites in 14 countries. Approximately 10,000 of these weapons are in military arsenals; the remaining weapons are said to be awaiting dismantlement. The United States and Russia together possess 93% of the nuclear weapons in the world. Approximately 1,800 nuclear weapons are on high alert and ready for use on short notice.

Hans M. Kristensen and Robert S. Norris, “Worldwide Deployments of Nuclear Weapons, 2014,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, August 26, 2014.

Israeli Nuclear Submarines Near Completion

Three Dolphin II-class submarines ordered by the Israeli Navy are nearly complete as construction continues at Germany’s ThyssenKrup Marine Systems shipyard. Although the Israeli government will not admit it, German defense ministry officials and others believe that Israel intends for the new submarines to be nuclear-armed. The submarine’s maximum distance before refueling puts it in range of Iran, further bolstering Israel’s nuclear deterrence capabilities.

Robert Beckhusen, “Israel’s Quiet Doomsday Submarines Are Almost Ready,” War is Boring, August 17, 2014.

This Month in Nuclear Threat History

History chronicles many instances when humans have been threatened by nuclear weapons. In this article, Jeffrey Mason outlines some of the most serious threats that have taken place in the month of September, including the “Damascus Incident” profiled in Eric Schlosser’s recent book Command and Control.

To read Mason’s full article, click here.

For more information on the history of the Nuclear Age, visit NAPF’s Nuclear Files website.

George Takei Visits Hiroshima

Activist and actor George Takei, best known for his role in Star Trek, has made a four-minute video of a recent visit to Hiroshima. Takei, who has strong family ties to Hiroshima, visits the Hiroshima Memorial Peace Park and the Peace Museum, documenting some of the tragedy of the U.S. atomic bombing.

Click here to watch the video.

ICAN Civil Society Forum

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) has announced a Civil Society Forum to take place in Vienna, Austria on December 6-7. The forum takes place in advance of a government conference on the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons, also in Vienna.

Representatives of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, along with many other campaigners, activists, experts, public figures and survivors, will gather to learn and to teach, to energize and be energized, to demonstrate our unity and to demand the end of the era of nuclear weapons. Over a packed but fun-filled two days, we will engage in discussions with the best and brightest voices in the humanitarian disarmament field, hear testimonies from inspirational individuals who know the meaning of courage, develop our campaigning and advocacy skills and, of course, get up to speed on the ins and outs of the humanitarian imperative to ban nuclear weapons.

To learn more about the Civil Society Forum and to register, click here.

Don’t Ever Whisper

Don’t Ever Whisper is an inspiring story about the life and tragic early death of a Marshallese woman, Darlene Keju, a Pacific health pioneer and champion for nuclear survivors. Darlene is well-known for a moving speech that she gave at the General Assembly of the World Council of Churches in 1983 about the suffering caused by U.S. nuclear and thermonuclear testing.

David Krieger, President of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, said, “This inspiring book will help the reader understand not only the life of an extraordinary woman, but also the ongoing struggles of Marshall Islanders in coping with the consequences of U.S. nuclear weapon testing.”

To purchase a copy of the book, click here.

Paul K. Chappell Speaks to Citizens’ Action for Peace

On August 15, NAPF Peace Leadership Director Paul K. Chappell spoke to Citizens’ Action for Peace in Redlands, California on “The Art of Waging Peace.” Held at the Redlands United Church of Christ, Chappell’s lecture discussed the military, historical, and scientific evidence on whether humanity is naturally violent or naturally peaceful, how American citizens have created positive change in the past, and how we can do so again. He also addressed the rise of fundamentalism and what this tells us about human nature.

Despite these uncertain political times, Chappell’s talk was viewed as uplifting and motivating. Emmilienne Wallick Colunga, an 18-year-old student at the University of California Riverside, said, “It’s incredibly easy to become discouraged with the state of affairs in today’s world, the injustice and the violence can be overwhelming at times. Paul Chappell brings hope and inspiration back to those that are discouraged with his knowledge of positive change over the decades and confidence that there is a way to change the world that is not through war and hurt – rather through the art of waging peace.”

For more information on the NAPF Peace Leadership Program, click here. For a full list of Paul’s upcoming lectures and workshops, click here.

People’s Climate March

The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation is supporting the People’s Climate March in New York City on September 21. Nuclear weapons and climate change are the two existential threats that face humanity. Both are the result of human activity and both can be eliminated by human ingenuity. Also, even “limited” use of nuclear weapons would create catastrophic climatic consequences that would dwarf the environmental impact of carbon emissions.

For more information on the People’s Climate March and the September 19-20 Global Climate Convergence for Peace, People and the Planet, click here.

Nuclear Savage: The Islands of Secret Project 4.1

The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will host a free screening of the powerful documentary Nuclear Savage: The Islands of Secret Project 4.1 in Santa Barbara on September 25 to mark Nuclear Abolition Day. The documentary by Adam Horowitz exposes the ugly truth behind U.S. atomic testing in the Marshall Islands.

Commissioned by PBS and winner of multiple film festival awards, Nuclear Savage was abruptly pulled each time it was scheduled to air. It has never been shown on U.S. television.

For more information on the September 25 screening, click here. To learn more about this documentary, click here. If you are interested in hosting a screening of the documentary in your area, please email NAPF Director of Programs Rick Wayman at rwayman@napf.org.

NAPF Distinguished Peace Leadership Award

On November 16, 2014, the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will host its 31st Annual Evening for Peace. This year’s Distinguished Peace Leader is Medea Benjamin, co-founder of the social justice organization CODEPINK and the international human rights organization Global Exchange.

Medea Benjamin has been on the front lines for thirty years, shining light on the struggles of the world’s innocent and poor.

For more information about the Evening for Peace, contact the Foundation at (805) 965-3443.

“On this International Day against Nuclear Tests, let us all take a fresh look at [the] survivors’ stories. Listen to their words and imagine the effects of these detonations as if they were experienced by each of us. Only then can we can better understand the imperative to renew our commitment to a world free of nuclear weapons and nuclear tests.”

— Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General, commenting on the International Day Against Nuclear Tests (August 29).

“If you want to make peace, you don’t talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies.”

— General Moshe Dyan (1915-1981), Israeli military leader. This quote is featured in the book Speaking of Peace: Quotations to Inspire Action, available in the NAPF Peace Store.

“The world can little afford the trillions of dollars in military spending and trillions and trillions of brain cells wasted on war when our very Earth is under stress and needs the critical attention of our best minds and thinking, and the abundance of resources mindlessly diverted to war to be made available for the challenges confronting us to create a livable future for life on earth.”

— NAPF Representative Alice Slater. This text also appears in a petition for an independent inquiry into the airplane crash in Ukraine and its catastrophic aftermath.

“We need to find ways of avoiding standing still.”

— Alexander Kmentt, director for Disarmament, Arms Control and Non-Proliferation of the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs, commenting on the need to pursue real action for the elimination of all nuclear weapons.

David Krieger
Elliot Serbin
Carol Warner
Rick Wayman

The Marshall Islands: Sounding a Wakeup Call

by David Krieger

The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) is an island country in the northern Pacific with a population of approximately 70,000 people. For such a small country, it is making big waves.  As a country at risk of being submerged due to rising ocean levels, the RMI has played a leadership role in the international conferences concerned with climate change.  As a country that suffered 12 years of devastating U.S. nuclear testing, it has also chosen to take action to assure that no other country suffers the fate its citizens have due to nuclear weapons.  It has sued the nine nuclear-armed countries for failing to meet their obligations under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and customary international law to negotiate in good faith for an end to the nuclear arms race and for nuclear disarmament.

The Marshall Islands has given humanity a wake-up call. Each of us has a choice.  We can wake up, or we can continue our complacent slumber.

To read more, click here.

Open Letter from the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center

by Sister Megan Rice

We send warm greetings and many thanks to all who actively engage in the transformation of weapons of mass destruction to sustainable life-giving alternatives. Gregory Boertje-Obed (U.S. Penitentiary, Leavenworth, Kansas) Michael Walli (Federal Correctional Institution McKean, Bradford, Pennsylvania) and I are sending you some of our observations and concerns on the 2nd anniversary of our Transform Now Plowshares action.

There are a number of reasons for what we did. We three were acutely mindful of the widespread loss to humanity that nuclear systems have already caused, and we realize that all life on Earth could be exterminated through intentional, accidental, or technical error.

To read more, click here.

What Are Acceptable Nuclear Risks?

by Martin Hellman

When I read Eric Schlosser’s acclaimed 2013 book, Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety, I found a tantalizing revelation on pages 170-171, when it asked, “What was the ‘acceptable’ probability of an accidental nuclear explosion?” and then proceeded to describe a 1957 Sandia Report, “Acceptable Premature Probabilities for Nuclear Weapons,” which dealt with that question.

Using the same criterion as this report, which, of course, is open to question, my analysis shows that nuclear terrorism would have to have a risk of at most 0.5% per year to be considered “acceptable.” In contrast, existing estimates are roughly 20 times higher.

In short, the risks of catastrophes involving nuclear weapons currently appear to be far above any acceptable level. Isn’t it time we started paying more attention to those risks, and taking steps to reduce them?

To read more, click here.

U.S. Moves to Dismiss Marshall Islands Lawsuit

On July 21, 2014, the United States filed a motion to dismiss the Nuclear Zero lawsuit that was filed by the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) on April 24, 2014 in U.S. Federal Court.

The U.S., in its move to dismiss the RMI lawsuit, does not argue that the U.S. is in compliance with its NPT disarmament obligations. Instead, it argues in a variety of ways that its non-compliance with these obligations is, essentially, justifiable, and not subject to the court’s jurisdiction.

A response from the Marshall Islands will be submitted to the Court by August 21.

“U.S. Moves to Dismiss Marshall Islands Lawsuit,” Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, July 22, 2014.

Letter About Nuclear Zero Lawsuits in The New York Times

NAPF Director of Programs Rick Wayman had a letter to the editor published in The New York Times on July 15. The letter was a response to The Times‘ editorial about India’s potential membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

In his letter, Wayman wrote, “Your suggestion that India negotiate with Pakistan and China for an end to that region’s nuclear arms race would be a good start to fulfilling its existing international legal obligations. But good-faith negotiations must also go beyond India’s immediate rivals to include all nine nuclear-armed countries.”

He continued, “India’s pursuit of Nuclear Suppliers Group membership is not merely a question of trade and commerce. It is a question of whether known nuclear proliferators will be rewarded or held accountable under international law.”

Rick Wayman, “Pressure on the Nuclear Nine,” The New York Times, July 15, 2014.

U.S. and UK Officially Renew Nuclear Weapon Deal

U.S. and British officials quietly agreed last week to a 10-year renewal of the 1958 Mutual Defense Agreement (MDA). The only indication that a new deal had been struck was a message from President Obama to Congress, in which he acknowledged that the deal will, among other things, “permit the transfer between the United States and the United Kingdom of classified information concerning atomic weapons.”

The deal signals continued cooperation between the two governments regarding nuclear warhead designs and development. Critics of the deal contend that it is in violation of Article 1 of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which prohibits nuclear weapon states from transferring “to any recipient whatsoever nuclear weapons… or control over such weapons or explosive devices directly, or indirectly…”

Richard Norton-Taylor, “UK-US Sign Secret New Deal on Nuclear Weapons,” The Guardian, July 29, 2014.

Los Alamos Employee Fired after Writing about Nuclear Weapons Abolition

James Doyle, a nonproliferation expert at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, was fired after writing an article in his personal capacity that supported the abolition of nuclear weapons. After receiving clearance from the Lab to publish the article, officials retroactively declared the article classified a few days later.

Doyle believes that his firing was retribution for his refusal to stay on message and support the Lab’s central mission, namely its continued development and production of nuclear arms, at a cost of almost $2 billion per year there.

Jay Coghlan, Executive Director of Nuclear Watch New Mexico, said, “[This was] a clear political firing and abuse of classification procedures. Why are we paying tens of millions in profits to the private contractors running LANL? We demand that federal overseers intervene, reprimand the Lab, reinstate James Doyle, fire those responsible for his political firing, and cut contractor award fees because of chronically poor performance and leadership.”

Douglas Birch, “Nuclear Weapons Lab Employee Fired After Publishing Scathing Critique of the Arms Race,” Center for Public Integrity, July 31, 2014.

Air Force Changes Grading System to Stop Cheating

In an effort to combat cheating on monthly preparedness tests, the Air Force is changing its grading system for its nuclear missile corps. Tests will now be pass-fail, and individual scores will not be reported, in a major shift away from the “perfection” culture that required at least a 90 percent to pass. The new test regime focuses more on “practical skills,” emphasizing that “as a team, [missile crews] need to make the right decisions, but as individuals they’re not required to be perfect.”

Changing the grading system may reduce the incentive to cheat, but may not resolve all the missile corps problems. Bruce Blair, former missile officer and head of Global Zero, argues that missile crews have lost a sense of importance in their job, as “their mission is no longer the priority it was” during the Cold War era.

Geoff Brumfiel, “To Stop Cheating, Nuclear Officers Ditch the Grades,” NPR, July 28, 2014.

Are Americans Nuclear Weapon Hoarders?

Comedian John Oliver delivered a scathing 15-minute report on the status of U.S. nuclear weapons on his HBO program Last Week Tonight.

Facts presented by Oliver include:

• Nuclear weapons are the most dangerous things on Earth;
• The United States has a lot of them;
• Some are controlled by floppy disks;
• We’ve nearly dropped them on ourselves a few times;
• No one seems to care about any of those facts.

To watch the episode, click here.

Carol Hartsell, “John Oliver Calls Americans Nuclear Weapon Hoarders,” The Huffington Post, July 28, 2014.

Top Officer Happy with Air Force Ethics

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh is “very happy” with the “ethical fabric” of the United States Air Force, despite a recent series of scandals involving the nuclear-missile corps. In an interview, Gen. Welsh said “[W]e do not have an epidemic of bad ethical behavior by people across the Air Force.”

The Air Force’s intercontinental ballistic missile mission has been the site of a number of recent incidents.  These include a test-cheating ring at the Montana ICBM base, security lapses by officers on missile-launch duty, and allegations of drug possession. Maj. Gen. Michael Carey, head of the strategic missile mission, was forced to retire last year after drunken behavior while on an official trip to Russia.

“Welsh Gives Air Force Top Ethics Marks,” Air Force Times, July 25, 2014.

Nuclear Waste Partnership Received Bonus after Radiation Leak

Just five days after a radiation leak at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, an underground nuclear waste dump near Carlsbad, New Mexico, the Department of Energy awarded a $1.9 million bonus to Nuclear Waste Partnership, the contractor overseeing the site. It is unclear why officials went ahead with the bonus, as an investigation into what caused the February 14 leak “revealed a number of operational lapses by Nuclear Waste Partnership.”

WIPP has remained closed since the incident in February, which contaminated at least 20 workers. The cause of the leak is still under investigation.

“Atomic Waste Site Contractor Received Large Bonus Days After Leak,” Global Security Newswire, July 21, 2014.

Russia Accused of Violating Nuclear Treaty

In a letter to President Putin, President Obama accused Russia of violating the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty by testing a prohibited ground-launched cruise missile. The treaty prohibits the U.S. or Russia from possessing, producing or testing ground-launched cruise missiles with a range of 500 – 5,500 kilometers.

President Obama has declared that the United States will not retaliate by deploying its own ground-launched cruise missiles. However, he has left open the possibility of deploying air- or sea-based cruise missiles, which are permissible under the terms of the treaty.

Michael R. Gordon, “U.S. Says Russia Tested Cruise Missile, Violating Treaty,” The New York Times, July 28, 2014.

Iran Nuclear Negotiations Extended by Four Months

After failing to reach a deal by the July 20 deadline, all parties in the Iran nuclear negotiations agreed to a four-month extension. Wendy Sherman, lead negotiator for the United States, said, “Our intent is absolutely to end this on Nov. 24 in one direction or another.” Negotiations are likely to resume in September.

Patricia Zengerle, “U.S. Nuclear Negotiator Declines Setting Deadline on Iran Deal,” Reuters, July 29, 2014.

Last Living Member of Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Crew Dies

The last member of the crew that deployed the first atomic bomb during wartime died on July 28 in Georgia at the age of 93. Theodore “Dutch” VanKirk was a navigator on the Enola Gay, the B-29 Superfortress that dropped the atomic bomb “Little Boy” on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945. The explosion and its aftereffects killed 140,000.

While VanKirk once said that the bombing hastened the end of World War II and “saved lives in the long run,” he also recognized the futility of war and the importance of nuclear disarmament. In a 2005 interview, VanKirk told the Associated Press, “I personally think there shouldn’t be any atomic bombs in the world – I’d like to see them all abolished.”

Kate Brumback, “Last Crew Member of Enola Gay Dies in Georgia,” Associated Press, July 30, 2014.

This Month in Nuclear Threat History

History chronicles many instances when humans have been threatened by nuclear weapons. In this article, Jeffrey Mason outlines some of the most serious threats that have taken place in the month of August, including the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (August 9, 1945) and the Soviet Union’s first nuclear test (August 29, 1949).

To read Mason’s full article, click here.

For more information on the history of the Nuclear Age, visit NAPF’s Nuclear Files website.

New Study on Consequences of a Small Nuclear Event

A new study published in Earth’s Future warns of the dangerous consequences of a small nuclear event. Using a more comprehensive computer model of Earth’s climate system, the authors find that the detonation of 50 15-kiloton bombs (small weapons in comparison to those in the arsenals of the U.S., Russia, China, and France) in a regional war between India and Pakistan could lead to global cooling for at least 15 years.

This global cooling, in combination with major ozone loss, would have a catastrophic effect on global agriculture. Pressures on the global food supply could “significantly degrade global food security or even produce a global nuclear famine.” The authors hope that the study will help societies “better understand the urgent need to eliminate this danger worldwide.”

John Loretz, “Things Could Always Be Worse… A Lot Worse,” IPPNW Peace & Health Blog, July 16, 2014.

Peace Leadership for Youth

NAPF Peace Leadership Director Paul K. Chappell spent three days in July teaching teens in AHA! (Attitude. Harmony. Achievement.) in Santa Barbara about waging peace. Participants learned about the roots of violence and avenues toward healing through short lectures, videos, clips, interactive discussions, and activities, including skits demonstrating nonviolent ways to resolve conflict.

Chappell said, “I was grateful for the opportunity to discuss the peace leadership skills I wish I had known when I was sixteen. Those skills–such as the ability to calm myself and others down, resolve conflict, increase my empathy, and heal the causes of aggression–would have benefitted me immensely.”

For more information on this event, click here.

Remembering the U.S. Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

On August 6, 2014, the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will participate in three events commemorating the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, 1945, respectively.

NAPF’s 21st Annual Sadako Peace Day will be held at La Casa de Maria in Montecito, California, at 6:00 p.m. This year’s featured speaker is NAPF Board member Robert Laney. The event is free and open to the public.

NAPF Director of Programs Rick Wayman will attend a commemoration event at the gates of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), where many U.S. nuclear weapons have been designed and developed. A whopping 89% of LLNL’s budget request for 2015 is for nuclear weapon activities.  The theme of this year’s Bay Area commemoration event is “Failure to Disarm.” Rick has been invited to speak about the Nuclear Zero Lawsuits, which directly address the failure of all nine nuclear-armed nations to disarm. For more information on the Bay Area event, click here.

Rick will also participate in a webinar hosted by Women’s Action for New Directions (WAND) on August 6 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time. He will be discussing the Nuclear Zero Lawsuits, and will be joined by Neisen Laukon, a woman from the Marshall Islands who has been affected by U.S. nuclear weapons tests. The webinar is free and open to the public. To register, click here.

NAPF Distinguished Peace Leadership Award

On November 16, 2014, the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will host its 31st Annual Evening for Peace. This year’s Distinguished Peace Leader is Medea Benjamin, co-founder of the social justice organization CODEPINK and the international human rights organization Global Exchange.

Medea Benjamin has been on the front lines for thirty years, shining light on the struggles of the world’s innocent and poor.

For more information about the Evening for Peace, contact the Foundation at (805) 965-3443.

“We must learn the lessons of history, that we may learn to identify and avoid the paths that lead to war.”

— Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. This quote is featured in the NAPF book Speaking of Peace: Quotations to Inspire Action.

“Concerns about the ability of facilities here to withstand an earthquake, and what will happen if they fail, are at the heart of safety concerns at Y12. The new report from the US Geological Survey says the risk in Oak Ridge is increased beyond what was believed in 2008. In fact, the increase is among the highest in the nation.”

— Ralph Hutchison, Coordinator of the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, calling for a new Environmental Impact Statement at the Y12 nuclear weapons complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

“The World Council of Churches central committee… calls on member churches and related ministries and networks to… support the lawsuit filed by the Marshall Islands against the nuclear-armed states at the International Court of Justice.”

— Statement from the World Council of Churches.

David Krieger
Elliot Serbin
Carol Warner
Rick Wayman