START: The Winter of Our Disconnect

Friends,

I can feel Winter settling in here in Washington's Cascade Mountains as the snow falls this evening; there is a definite chill in the air. While the changing seasons are something to which we adjust, it is critical for continued progress in the control and ultimately the abolition of nuclear weapons that we avoid any "chilling" of relations between the U.S. and Russia.

Right now the Senate must ratify the New START Treaty in order for the Superpowers to get back on track to inspecting each other's arsenals and exchanging information. This connection is necessary to secure ongoing cooperation and produce real security. Without the agreement we can forget about any reduction in the existing nuclear weapons stockpiles.

While ratification of New START is of such importance, there is a very real disconnect in Washington, DC., and not just among a few rogue senators who are trying to scuttle the treaty. Some senators, such as Jim Demint (S. Carolina), James Inhofe (Oklahoma) and Jon Kyle (Arizona) are holding New START hostage in exchange for increased funding of the nation's nuclear weapons complex.

One of their claims is that the Obama administration isn't doing enough to "modernize" the nations nuclear weapons. Judging by the current "modernization" of the nuclear weapons infrastructure along with the ongoing nuclear weapons work that includes the "stockpile stewardship program" (read "rebuilt warheads") I'm not sure how much more they expect the administration to do.

As for the broad scope of this nuclear disconnect, the numbers speak for themselves; the administration had already pledged $80 billion over 10 years to maintain and modernize the nuclear weapons complex. As if this was not enough, Kyl has demanded an additional $4 billion over 5 years, and it appears that Obama is giving in. Even with this offer, it is not looking good for passage of New START by this Congress. Even though we have the 67 votes needed to ratify the treaty, Kyl is trying to prevent a vote until the next Congress!!!

It is inexcusable that these politicians who are supposed to represent "the people" are playing games with the nation's (and the world's) security. First of all, passage of New START is of the utmost importance. Secondly, increasing funding to modernize the nuclear weapons complex and build new weapons neutralizes any previous efforts to reduce our reliance on nuclear weapons (and send a message of hope to other nations).

Non-ratification of New START is NOT an option! Neither is building up an essentially NEW nuclear weapons infrastructure. Both indicate a disconnect between the people's desire to abolish nuclear weapons and the special interests of those who claim to represent us, but who are far too heavily invested (literally and figuratively) in the Military-Industrial Complex and its parent, the National Security State.

We must not cut anyone even an inch of slack on an issue of such critical importance as New START. Although many senators have shown their support for New START (and we should thank them for that) we now need to demand that they apply some serious pressure to those who hold it hostage.

Click here to send a message to your Senators now! Then click here to download the Phone Bank Tool Kit from the Campaign for a Nuclear Weapons-Free World, and you and your organization can help mobilize grassroots support for New START! This is our last chance on this one folks!

And just think how far $84 billion would go towards programs of social uplift!!!

Peace,

Leonard

They've Got Missiles so We've Got Missiles, or Where Do We Go From Here?

Friends,

As with much of President Obama's Eurofest, the Czechs rolled out the red carpet this past weekend, but he was also welcomed by significant crowds representing the 70 percent of Czechs who do not want any part of the U.S. missile defense shield in their country, and helped topple their pro-missile defense government not long before the President's visit.

President Obama is not ready to let this folly of the U.S. Military-Industrial Complex go quite yet (or perhaps he's channeling Ronald Reagan); during his speech in Prague, he spoke of going forward with European missile defense (invoking Iran as its raison d'etre), and praised the Czech Republic for agreeing to host the radar system (he must have missed the recent news).

As expected, the President threw out some heavy rhetoric about North Korea's launch of a Taepo-dong 2 missile on the same day as the President's speech. He also focused on "Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile activity." He made all the predictable statements, among them, "Rules must be binding. Violations must be punished. Words must mean something. The world must stand together to prevent the spread of these weapons." All very presidential.

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1718 does prohibit North Korea from shooting off missiles (like the Taepo-dong 2) that could carry nasty things like nuclear warheads. Despite the evidence that the North Koreans have a long way to go in becoming a serious nuclear contender, has anyone considered the fact that while President Obama is chiding the North Koreans for shooting off another dud, the U.S. regularly lobs ballistic missiles from its shores all the way to the Marshall Islands (and quite successfully too)???

The 30th Space Wing, 576th Flight Test Squadron at Vandenberg Air Force Base, located on the Southern California coast, conducts regularly scheduled quarterly operational test launches of ballistic missiles so they can be confident when the time comes to launch the real thing, that everything will work. So they ship one of those bad boys, a Trident D5 or a Minuteman III, to Vandenberg where they reassemble it with a dummy warhead (phew!), and then lob it 4,800 miles away to the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands.

Of course, besides all the other data they gather about the functioning of the missile, the most important thing is to see how close the re-entry vehicle will come to its intended target. After all, when they shoot one off containing a real nuclear warhead they want it hit dead on. Of course, what's a few metres when you're talking about an explosive yield of 335 kilotons (W78 warhead)???

But I digress (as usual). The point is that we're screaming at the top of our lungs about the North Koreans shooting a missile or two, and here we are shooting them off right and left. I am not trying to defend the North Korean government; it would be nice if they could feed their people rather than building death machines. But let's face it; until the nuclear powers start making real progress towards disarmament, the six-party talks might as well be the five-party talks (not much of a party, eh?).

I believe President Obama knows that this is the historical moment in which we may have the last opportunity to begin the new and difficult journey towards the abolition of nuclear weapons. If we miss this opportunity, the future could well be a grim one indeed. This President is one who I see as the marriage of idealism and pragmatism, a marriage that creates a most difficult tension when dealing with an issue such as nuclear weapons. How he approaches every aspect of this subject is of critical importance; an error of judgement on just a single aspect could negate progress on many other aspects.

While we must (as nuclear abolitionists) keep the pressure on President Obama on every issue of importance, it will also be extremely important to support him in every positive proposal (and thank him as well). Much of what the President said in his Prague speech was extremely positive; he laid out a clear vision of a nuclear weapons-free world and demonstrated (for the first time in recent years) real U.S. leadership on this most important issue

It will be important to gain as much Congressional support for the President's positive measures. You can advocate by contacting your Senators and Representative and signing a petition at the Friends Committee on National Legislation, and you can also send a personalized email courtesy of the Campaign for a Nuclear Weapons Free World .

It wouldn't be a bad idea to send an email (or letter) to President Obama thanking him for his commitment to a nuclear weapons-free world, and sharing your priorities regarding nuclear weapons. He is going to need both our support and prodding in this journey in which he faces opposition from deeply entrenched interests in both government and industry. Let's stay with him all the way!

Peace,

Leonard



CLICK HERE to read the full text of President Obama's speech on nuclear issues delivered in Prague (courtesy of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation).

CLICK HERE to watch the entire speech on video (at the BBC).

Photo Notes/Credits: (1) Posters hanging from a bridge in Prague over the Vltava river protest the possible construction on Czech soil of a U.S. radar tracking system (By Petr David Josek -- Associated Press); (2) A minuteman III ICBM launches from a silo at Vandenberg AFB. (30th Space Wing Public Affairs, USAF)