Foster
Library’s Topping Room
651
E. Main St.,
Ventura, CA
Over the last several years, waterboarding, stress positions and other methods of torture have become all too familiar in newspaper and television reporting. America's long relationship with interrogation and torture roots back to the1950s and it has been applied, mostly in secret, to "enemies", ever since. How did America come to embrace this practice so fully, and how was it justified from a moral, legal and psychological perspective?
Marjorie Cohn will help us grapple with this subject at our May meeting. She is the editor of
The United States and Torture, an interdisciplinary work which details the complicity of the United States government in the torture and cruel treatment of prisoners both at home and abroad and discusses what can be done to hold those who set the torture policy accountable.
Marjorie Cohn is the immediate past president of the National Lawyers Guild and a professor at Thomas Jefferson School of Law, where she teaches criminal law and procedure, evidence and international human rights.
She testified at the court-martial of Pablo Paredes as a defense expert on the legality of the war in Iraq, and the commission of war crimes by US forces. Her testimony corroborated the reasonables of Pablo's view that the war in Iraq was illegal. She told the judge that the war violates the U.N. Charter, which forbids the use of force, unless carried out in self-defense or with the approval of the Security Council, neither of which obtained before Bush invaded Iraq. At the conclusion of her cross-examination by Navy prosecutor Lt. Jonathan Freeman, the judge said, "I think that the government has successfully proved that any service member has reasonable cause to believe that the wars in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Iraq were illegal." The Navy judge gave Petty Officer 3rd Class Pablo Paredes no jail time for refusing orders to board the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard before it left San Diego with 3,000 sailors and Marines bound for the Persian Gulf.
This event is co-sponsored by Veterans for Peace, Chapter 112 and Cindy Piester of Pulse TV.
A
BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP
connect informally WITH OTHERS who care about
green living and values
We welcome anyone interested in
issues of
sustainability, green choices, ecojustice, and related
themes.
WHEN: 1st and 3rd (and
occasional 5th)
Mondays at 6:30 pm WHERE:Java
Joe’s Coffee Shop,
Ste. 125, 2950 Johnson Drive (805) 642-4332
Selection for May:
Debt: The First 5000 Years by David Graeber
Here anthropologist David Graeber presents a stunning reversal of
conventional wisdom. He shows that for more than 5,000 years, since the
beginnings of the first agrarian empires, humans have used elaborate
credit systems to buy and sell goods—that is, long before the invention
of coins or cash. It is in this era, Graeber argues, that we also first
encounter a society divided into debtors and creditors.
Graeber shows that arguments about debt and debt forgiveness have
been at the center of political debates from Italy to China, as well as
sparking innumerable insurrections. He also brilliantly demonstrates
that the language of the ancient works of law and religion (words like
“guilt,” “sin,” and “redemption”) derive in large part from ancient
debates about debt, and shape even our most basic ideas of right and
wrong. We are still fighting these battles today without knowing it.
FAQ: Do I have to read the book?” Well…… it is great
if you do read the book. On the other hand, if the topic interests you,
please come, even if you don’t always have time to do all the reading.
Green
Conversations
is a project of the Ventura Unitarian Universalist Committee
for Green Sanctuary with Citizens for Peaceful Resolutions
and Java Joe’s.
For more information contact Janette at 652-1213 or
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Every year in April, Dr. Dodge reflects on our national priorities as revealed in the federal budget and the costs and dangers of our nuclear arsenal.
This year, the Ventura County Star published Dr. Dodge's opinion piece, Federal Budget Should Fund Priorities , in which he points out the many issueswhich remain underfunded while nuclear weapons programs not only threaten our very survival, but also steal from the lifeblood of every community in our nation, depriving them of precious resources and taking a toll in opportunity costs. He points out that we now have bipartisan elder statesmen who are working to globally eliminate all nuclear weapons stockpiles. We even have Air Force researchers and RAND Corp. nuclear planners who suggest the U.S. could address its military concerns with roughly 300 nuclear weapons. Our stockpile has outlived its Cold War purpose and it is now time to work to reduce and ultimately eliminate these dangerous weapons and wasteful expenditures.
To read the entire article, click on the link above.
Dr. Dodge also had piece published in Roll Call, the Newspaper of Capitol Hill. In his article, Lead by Example and Ratify Test Ban Treaty , Dr. Dodge, representing Physicians for Social Responsibility, observes that the goal of eliminating all nuclear testing in an effort to stop proliferation recently gained impressive support when the National Academy of Sciences released its long-awaited report on the technical issues behind the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. The new NAS study found that “provided that sufficient resources and a national commitment to stockpile stewardship are in place ... the United States has the technical ability to maintain a safe, secure, and reliable stockpile of nuclear weapons into the foreseeable future without nuclear explosion testing.” Directors of all three nuclear labs have testified that testing is not needed for stockpile reliability. U.S. action on the CTBT will strengthen U.S. and global security by preventing nuclear proliferation.
To read the entire article, click on the link above.
If this inspires you to let world leaders know of your support for the elimination of nuclear weapons, add your voice to that of Noami Watts and Valerie Plame Wilson:
As a citizen of Ventura County, this is what YOU and your fellow taxpayers contributed to the continued development of
nuclear armaments in tax year 2011:
$186,360,000.00
Surprised? Shocked? Outraged?
Each April, Dr. Dodge of Citizens for Peaceful Resolutions and Beyond War calculates the cost of nuclear weapons to our county.
CALCULATE THE COST TO YOUR COMUNITY
If you don't live in Ventura County you can calculate the cost of nuclear arms to your community using the following formula:
$173.30 X pcim X your population = community cost
To determine pcim
(per capita income multiplier) for your community refer to source 1
listed below: find per capita income for your county, divide by national
per capita income: $27,334.i.e. average per capita income in your county ÷ national per capita average = pcim for your county
Population figures for your community can also be found in source 1
DOCUMENTATION AND SOURCES
The
national average nuclear cost per person of $173.30 was obtained by
dividing total U.S. nuclear weapons expenditures of $54 billion (see
sources 2, 3) by the total U.S. population of 311,591,917 (see source 1)
These questions are at the heart of the Awakening the Dreamer, Changing the Dream Symposium
The
Symposium is a profound inquiry into a bold vision: to bring forth a
sustainable, just, peaceful and thriving human presence on Earth.
You will gain fresh insight about our world, meet like-minded people,
find hope and inspiration, and leave clear how you can help create a new
future.
If you are ready to explore what this vision means for you, we invite you to participate.
“It is easy to feel overwhelmed with the problems that our
world faces. This workshop helps each participant to
identify his or her own concerns and passions and empowers each of us to individually make a difference.”
A suggested donation of $10.00 is being requested, including lunch on Saturday and all refreshments. No one will be turned away, so please do not let money be a deterrent from participating.
For more details or to register, contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
or (818) 281-6249
“It is easy to feel overwhelmed with the problems that our
world faces. This workshop helps each participant to
identify his or her own concerns and passions and empowers
each of us to individually make a difference.”
The
Symposium is about waking up to where we are, how we got here and what
your role might be in this Great Turning. The Getting Into Action
Workshop provides a structure for people to create the next steps in
their personal path towards a sustainable, just and fulfilling human
presence on this planet.
A suggested donation of $10.00 is being requested, including lunch on Saturday and all refreshments. No one will be turned away, so please do not let money be a deterrent from participating.
For more details or to register, contact
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
or (818) 281-6249
Note: Meeting date will not be the first Sunday, but will be Saturday, April 7 at 3:00 p.m.
Bruce Gagnon: Full Spectrum Dominance
Earth, Empire, Economics & the Weaponization of Space
CPR has changed the date of it’s April meeting from the usual first Sunday to Saturday April 7 at 3 PM to accomodate the schedule of Bruce Gagnon, the world’s leading advocate of peace in space. Gagnon, the founder and coordinator of Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space , which has 185 affiliates representing every continent on the globe, founded the organization in 1992. He will offer a wide range of information. His topic is Full Spectrum Dominance: Earth, Empire, Economics and the Weaponization of Space.
This is a rare opportunity to hear from Bruce who says, “The entire Iraq war was coordinated by 40 military satelites. All warfare on earth today is coordinated from space technology. Who controls space will be able to win all of the wars below. Who controls space controls Earth which is why the US SPACE COMMAND in their planning document for 2020 says we must control space and deny others access to space. The way they plan on doing this is to develop offensive weapons.”
Saturday, April 7
3:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Foster
Library’s Topping Room
651
E. Main St.,
Ventura, CA
This event is co-sponosered by Veterans for Peace, Chapter 112 and Cindy Piester of Pulse TV.
Foster
Library’s Topping Room 651
E. Main St.,
Ventura, CA
Dr. Bob Dodge will present an introduction to the Awakening the Dreamer symposium. The symposium is a profound inquiry into a bold vision: to bring forth a sustainable, just, peaceful and thriving human presence on Earth. "It is easy to feel overwhelmed with the problems that our world faces. This workshop helps each participant to identify his or her own concerns and passions and empowers each of us to individually make a difference.
This meeting will provide an introduction,
but the main event will be the following
weekend:
Awakening the Dreamer Symposium
June 09, 2012 (9:00 am - 5:00 pm) The Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura, 5654 Ralston Street Ventura California
The Symposium is a profound inquiry...
Awakening the Dreamer: Getting into Action
June 16, 2012 (9:00 am - 5:00 pm) The Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura, 5654 Ralston Street Ventura California Discover what is your role in the...
An inclusive, diverse group of individuals, committed to non-violence, and recognizing the interconnectedness of all life on our planet.
As a citizen of Ventura County, this is what YOU and your fellow taxpayers contributed to the continued development of
nuclear armaments in tax year 2011:
