The Golden Rule Arrives in Hawaii after last visit 61 years ago on way to stop US nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands
Golden Rule in Hilo, Hawaii after 20-day sail from San Diego.
(Image by Photo by Ann Wright) Details DMCA
Nuclear Madness includes the whole nuclear chain, from uranium mining, enrichment and production -- to use and no safe disposal. These processes create environmental destruction of poor rural areas where indigenous people live. The nuclear industry depends on lies, secrecy and takeover of other people's lands by threat of force if necessary.
Veterans For Peace opposes colonization and use of force as well as the products of the nuclear industry. Many veterans suffer health problems from depleted uranium exposure. And we all hope that military members will never have to decide whether to obey an order that could reduce civilization to ashes.
We recognize the huge impact of military bases and activities throughout the Pacific Islands including Hawaii, Guam, Okinawa, Jeju Island South Korea and Japan -- the US brings destruction of the environment and affects the lives of the people to almost everywhere in the world, with over 800 military bases in other countries. Imagine if there were 800 military bases of other countries in the U.S? Would we want those countries to do unto us as we have done unto them?
North Korea, Iran, INF and New Start (Feb 2021 expires)
Humanity faces two interconnected existential threats -- climate change and nuclear war. Even detonating 100 of the 15,000 modern nuclear weapons would send up enough soot into the upper atmosphere to reduce sunlight and affect crop production for a decade. Two billion people would be at risk of starvation.
The threat of nuclear annihilation has never been greater, as judged by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists who have moved the Doomsday Clock back to two minutes before midnight. Only twice, in 1953 and 2018 have we been so close to wiping out human society.
With North Korea testing nuclear weapons and missiles, the war of words between the U.S. and North Korea could easily have turned into nuclear war. India and Pakistan, both armed with nuclear weapons, are again in extreme conflict over the disputed territory of Kashmir.
Under Article VI of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, all Parties must "pursue good-faith negotiations on effective measures relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race, to nuclear disarmament, and to general and complete disarmament." Although the US has ratified this Treaty, good-faith negotiations have not taken place since the Reagan-Gorbachev era when the US and USSR reduced the number of nuclear weapons from 80,000 to 15,000.
Tearing up the Iran nuclear agreement could mean a disastrous use of nuclear weapons against Iran, with possible retaliation by China and Russia. President Trump's threats to completely annihilate Afghanistan within a 10-day period is a cloaked threat to use nuclear weapons -- and possibly against Iran.
Now the US has withdrawn from Intermediate Nuclear Forces agreement, which was put in place to reduce the chances of war in Europe. President Trump's new Defense Secretary Mark Esper has stated that he would like to place such weapons in Asia within a matter of months. Some of these weapons could carry either conventional or nuclear weapons, which poses an even greater danger of their use or retaliation against what is used.
Finally, President Trump has indicated that he will allow the last remaining treaty, New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, between the US and Russia to expire in February 2021.
All of this is potentially catastrophic news.
But there are people working world wide to stop the possibility of nuclear war.
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