By David Swanson, Executive Director of World BEYOND War, and Elizabeth Murray, of Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action, originally published by Kitsap Sun, January 24, 2021 From January 18 to February 14, four large billboards are going up around Seattle that proclaim “Nuclear Weapons Are Now Illegal. Get them out of Puget Sound!” What can this possibly mean? Nuclear weapons may be unpleasant, but what is illegal about them, and how can they be in Puget Sound? Since 1970, under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, most nations have been forbidden to acquire nuclear weapons, and those already possessing them — […]
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The Great Evasion
By Guest Contributor, Lawrence Wittner Two related events—the 75th anniversary of the January 24, 1946 UN General Assembly Resolution 1 (which established a commission to plan for the abolition of nuclear weapons) and the January 22, 2021 entry into force of the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (designed to finally implement that goal)—should be a cause for worldwide celebration. In fact, however, they are a cause for shame. The nine nuclear powers have refused to sign the treaty and, instead, today continue to engage in a nuclear arms race and to threaten nuclear war—a war capable of […]
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MLK: Going to the Heart of Nonviolence
Every year Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action honors the memory of Martin Luther King, Jr. around the anniversary of his birthday. Just what does an organization working to abolish nuclear weapons have in common with Dr. King? Perhaps this quote from Dr. King sums it up best: “When scientific power outruns moral power, we end up with guided missiles and misguided men”. Dr. King speaks to the root – or what could be called the taproot – of violence in the hearts of human beings that spurs “scientific power” to “outrun moral power,” thereby holding all humanity under the […]
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We’re So Certain of Our Colonialist Selves That We’re Destroying Our Own Planet
“The global movement to end racism must turn its attention to the world’s most vulnerable cultures—the indigenous people of Planet Earth—who are still enduring the forces of colonial genocide.” by Robert C. Koehler “There are so many . . . primitive tribes—they don’t understand anything.” The global movement to end racism must turn its attention to the world’s most vulnerable cultures—the indigenous people of Planet Earth—who are still enduring the forces of colonial genocide. They are, after all, still obstacles to the planet’s moneyed interests. I say these words not simply because protecting tribal cultures is humane, but also because […]
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A Historian Reflects on the Return of Fascism
Editor’s Note: The following article, written by historian Lawrence Wittner, presents an important perspective at a time when, it could be argued, our nation is continuing its descent into racism. One of the ten steps any would-be dictator must take to destroy constitutional freedoms – the suspension of the rule of law – has begun, with Trump sending armed Federal police to cities (such as Portland) where they are beating and detaining people with no due process. They are already here in Seattle, and likely on their way to other major cities (to allegedly protect Federal property). May we hear Lawrence […]
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