Quotable

I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones
-Albert Einstein (contemplating nuclear devastation)

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Shiver me timbers... SSBN(X) Ahoy!$!$!$

There's a new Trident on the horizon!  The OHIO class submarines currently sailing the Seven Seas, ready to incinerate a continent or two if so ordered by President Obama, are to be replaced by a whole new fleet of ballistic missile subs.

You know that when General Dynamics Electric Boat Corp. of Groton, Connecticut is awarded a $1,848,606,051 cost-plus-fixed-fee with special incentives contract for design work and products for the new class of ballistic missile submarines, the die is cast and it's full steam ahead!!!

According to today's announcement "This contract includes design work for the Ohio Replacement program and continues the design and development of the joint U.S. Navy/U.K. Common Missile Compartment; shipbuilder and vendor component and technology development; engineering integration; concept design studies; cost reduction initiatives using a design for affordability process; and full scale prototype manufacturing and assembly. Additionally, this contract provides for engineering analysis, should-cost evaluations, and technology development and integration efforts. Other efforts contemplated under this contract include the continued design and development of U.K. unique Common Missile Compartment efforts."

Did you catch that mention of the collaboration between the U.S. and United Kingdom?  The British government is looking to replace its Trident fleet (four submarines) and they will continue to lease Trident II D-5 missiles from the U.S. (and contractor Lockheed-Martin of course) for the new subs.  Is that a sweet deal (for defense contractors) or what?  8 percent of the current contract is for the work involving the U.K.


The work will be spread between four different locations and states - Groton, Conn. (91 percent); Newport News, Va. (7 percent); Quonset, R.I. (1 percent); and Bath, Maine (1 percent). Once this project really gets rolling I imagine many more states (and Congressional districts $$$) will be involved.

The "cost-plus-fixed-fee with special incentives contract for design work and " for what is known as SSBN(X) could reach $1,995,831,561 if all the options are exercised (and you can bet they will be). As for the nearly $2 billion figure, bear in mind that this is only "design work." The final tally, once these seagoing nuclear missile launchers are all built, will easily come in at nearly $100 billion (source: Congressional Research Office).

Just think what the U.S. could do for human needs with $100 billion rather than building a weapons system that has been designed for one purpose only - large scale nuclear war (or what the government calls "deterrence."  The Cold War ended decades ago, and with it any possible justification for the doctrine of deterrence.  Where is the justification for a Cold War weapons system in today's world???

Rather than automatically pursuing a Trident replacement, both the U.S. and U.K. governments should do a serious and objective analysis of the justification for this weapons system.  The results might be surprising and not at all what the Pentagon, weapons makers and many in Congress want to hear.  This is some major pork (all 20,810 long tons of displacement, and $100 billion in construction) and everybody involved wants a piece of it.  It's time for everybody feeding from this trough to go vegetarian!!!

Stay tuned for more on this wasteful program (that will only increase the risk of nuclear war) coming in early 2013.

Monday, December 10, 2012

Holiday Hearings for GZ Resisters

Tis the season of resistance for folks at Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action. There are two opportunities to support nuclear resisters this month.

Marion Ward will appear in Kitsap County District Court tomorrow, Tuesday, December 11th at 1:30 PM. Marion is one of the 16 resisters who participated in the blockade of the Bangor Trident ballistic nuclear submarine base last August 6th. Marion is mitigating her charge. Due to a scheduling conflict Marion was unable to have her hearing with fellow resisters in November.


Marion Ward at Bangor, Aug. 6
Rodney Brunelle and Glen Milner will appear in Kitsap County District Court on December 17th at 2:45 PM. Glen and Rodney handed out leaflets at the Bangor base Trigger Avenue gate on October 2nd in commemoration of Gandhi's birthday. While leafleting a Kitsap County Sheriff deputy issued citations to both individuals for being in the roadway. Both Glen and Rodney are contesting the charge.
Our support of these resisters is important! If you are in the area, we hope you can show up on one or both days in support of their nuclear abolition efforts.

Pack a carpool and help pack the courtroom (parking is alot easier at the courthouse than at the mall this time of year). Once inside the courthouse you can look at the information board to locate the
assigned courtroom.

Kitsap County Courthouse is located at 614 Division Street, Port Orchard.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Videos of Nuclear Resisters Speaking in Court

Friends,

If you've been keeping track of the nuclear resisters who blockaded the Bangor Trident nuclear ballistic missile submarine base on August 6th, we have a surprise.  In addition to the written statements (for some of the defendants) published in an earlier post, we now have videos of all ten resisters who appeared in court on November 9th.

The first video covers the contested hearings for Malcolm Chaddock and Bernie Meyer.  The second video covers the eight mitigation hearings.  In order of appearance, they are: Leonard Eiger, Mack Johnson, Tom Rogers, Betsy Lamb, George Rodkey, Brenda McMillan, Michael Siptroth and Elizabeth Murray.

Now you can see and hear each resister's reasoning for participating in the August 6th action.

We are thankful to videographer Rodney Herold for joining us in court that day and recording the proceedings.

You can also read a summary of the hearings in the November 12th news release.

Toward a Nuclear Free World,

Leonard

*******************
 
Contested Hearings for Malcolm Chaddock and Bernie Meyer

 
*****************
Mitigation Hearings: Leonard Eiger, Mack Johnson, Tom Rogers, Betsy Lamb, George Rodkey, Brenda McMillan, Michael Siptroth and Elizabeth Murray 

Monday, November 12, 2012

Nuclear resisters speak out in court

Nuclear resisters spoke out against U.S. nuclear weapons policies in a Kitsap County courtroom.
 
On November 9, 2012 ten nuclear resisters associated with Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action in Poulsbo, Washington, appeared in Judge Stephen J. Holman's courtroom at the Kitsap County District Court. 
 
The ten had participated in a nonviolent direct action along with six other individuals on August 6, 2012. The sixteen resisters engaged in a rolling blockade of the main entrance to the Bangor Trident nuclear submarine base in Silverdale, Washington. All sixteen resisters were briefly detained by Washington State Patrol officers and cited for “Walking on roadway where prohibited.”
 
Holding banner (l to r): Betsy Lamb, George Rodkey and Ann Havill
The Trident submarine base at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, just 20 miles from Seattle, Washington, contains the largest concentration of operational nuclear weapons. Each of the 8 Trident submarines at Bangor carry as many as 24 Trident II(D-5) missiles, each capable of carrying up to 8 independently targetable warheads. Each nuclear warhead has an explosive yield up to 32 times the yield of the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima.
 
In speaking to the resisters’appearance in court, Leonard Eiger, communications coordinator for Ground Zero said, “We were there [in the courtroom] to speak on the public record as to our government's obligations to make sincere efforts toward nuclear disarmament, something that is not occurring based on the evidence, and is pushing the world (once again) toward the inevitable accidental or intentional nuclear war.”
 
Two of the defendants, Malcolm Chaddock, Portland, OR and Bernie Meyer, Olympia, WA contested the charge.
 
Early on in his testimony Chaddock invoked international law. The prosecutor objected on grounds that this was a civil (traffic) case. After some clarification Judge Holman allowed both Chaddock and Meyer wide latitude in what could be included in their testimony. 
 
In his testimony, Meyer reinforced the issue of international law. “I have risked arrest because of a higher law. We symbolically blocked the access road to the platform releasing nuclear weapons, nuclear weapons which are a threat to life on earth and are illegal. If the Court believes I am guilty, punish me to the full. If the Court sees the urgency and purpose of international law incorporated by US law, including International Humanitarian Law, join the effort to save life.”
 
Both Chaddock and Meyer were found guilty of the charge, and the judge reduced their fines to $25.
 
Holsing banner (l to r): Constance Mears, Brenda McMillan,
Elizabeth Murray and Bernie Meyer
The remaining eight defendants did not contest the charge, and chose mitigation in order to be able to speak on the record as to the reasons for their August 6th action. Those choosing mitigation were Tom Rogers, Poulsbo, WA; Michael Siptroth, Belfair, WA; Betsy Lamb, Bend, OR; Leonard Eiger, North Bend, WA; Brenda McMillan, Port Townsend, WA; Mack Johnson, Silverdale, WA; George W Rodkey, Tacoma, WA and Elizabeth Murray, Bellingham, WA.

Elizabeth Murray began her testimony with a perspective on what brought her to Bangor for her first action there. “Prior to retiring I served for 27 years as a political analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency. The last position I held was Deputy National Intelligence Officer for the Near East at the National Intelligence Council. I am therefore keenly aware of the need to protect and safeguard our country. However, the past 10 years - particularly in the wake of 9-11 - have shown that it is time to embrace a new paradigm of "strength through peace" - and that includes nuclear disarmament.”
 
Betsy Lamb spoke to her direct intention on the morning of the action. “My purpose was to remind them [workers arriving at the base] of the implications of their labors, to provide them with a moment to stop and think, and perhaps reconsider what they were doing, or at least what they were contributing to.” 
 
Lamb also spoke to a fundamental reason for nonviolent direct action in this case. “Writing my legislators and signing petitions had not succeeded in eliminating the Trident deployments. It was necessary to take my protest a step further, which I did on August 6 when I was in the roadway at the gates of the Base that deploys these Tridents.”
George Rodkey provided a perspective on the importance of individuals taking personal risk for the greater good. “We often hear about various governments and their attempts to gain nuclear weapons (Iran, North Korea), but seldom or never do we hear of the growing non-governmental organizations, groups and individuals acting to bring an end to nuclear weapons. Our acting is, in part, then, to be a catalyst for even greater changes and initiatives to take place. This is a reasonable expectation because taking a personal risk such as this, with altruistic motive, gets peoples’attention like nothing else. Thus the necessity of our action.”
 
Retired Navy Captain Tom Rogers was direct. "I'm here because I believe our country’s national security strategy based on the threat of nuclear annihilation is a dangerous Cold War relic.” Rogers spoke extensively, based on this naval experience, on the relevance of international law to this issue. He cited the 1996 International Court of Justice opinion in which “the conclusion is that use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is contrary to international law and in particular to the principles and rules of humanitarian law.”   

Rogers justified his actions within the context of setting precedent. “If this unlawful threat of use of nuclear weapons is unchallenged, then the violation will become moot. I blocked the road to challenge deployment of the Trident Weapons System as a violation of international law.”

Rogers concluded by invoking the Nuremberg Principles. “When nations fail to challenge unlawful behavior by other nations, it falls on individual citizens to act. The Nuremberg Principle of Individual Responsibility recognizes the right of ordinary citizens to challenge the unlawful behavior of their governments. Among other things, the Principle is intended to protect citizens engaged in reasonable non-violent protest from the legal violence of the state.”
 
Mack Johnson, who focused on the law and the duty to uphold Article 6 of the U.S. Constitution, spoke of the U.S. Government’s selective enforcement of international rulings, applying them only when they are“expedient for our national security.”
 
In his testimony, Eiger spoke to the continuing modernization of the Trident weapons system, including the planned Trident submarine replacement. “A new ballistic missile submarine program (even with fewer missile tubes) will continue to foster our nation’s reliance on the false security inherent in the concept of nuclear “deterrence”, and will quite likely further destabilize efforts at disarmament and nonproliferation.”
 
Michael Siptroth brought out the tremendous human and economic costs of militarism and nuclear weapons spending. He stated that the cost of one Trident submarine ($3 billion) could fund 50,000 teachers each year. “We have a choice. We can educate children or we can build nuclear weapons.”
 
In the conclusion to her statement, Brenda McMillan summed up the resister’s sentiments, "Silence means consent."
 
After hearing everyone’s statement, Judge Holman made a brief statement in which he said that, “If your intention here today was to provoke me to think, then you did.” He went on to say that he is constrained by the law (confined to this specific statute) and that his decision must be based on only the issues that relate to it.
 
Judge Holman reduced everyone’s fine to $25.

In reflecting on the day in court, Ground Zero spokesperson Eiger said, “The judge’s reduction of everyone’s fine is, in some sense, a vindication of our actions. Although constrained by the rules of the court, the judge recognized that we had acted in accordance with our conscience and our understanding of well established legal precedent, including the Nuremberg Principles.”

Most of the defendant’s full court statements are available, and can be accessed at http://psnukefree.blogspot.com/2012/11/august-6th-nuclear-resisters-in.html
 
For over thirty-five years Ground Zero has engaged in education, training in nonviolence, community building, resistance against Trident and action toward a world without nuclear weapons.
 
###

Saturday, November 10, 2012

August 6th Nuclear Resisters in the Courtroom: Their Statements

Dear Friends,

Yesterday was a good day in the courtroom.

Ten nuclear resisters from Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action appeared in Judge Stephen J. Holman's courtroom at the Kitsap County District Court, along with a full complement of supporters (fifteen) to witness the proceedings.

We were there to speak on the public record as to our government's obligations to make sincere efforts toward nuclear disarmament, something that is not occurring based on the evidence, and is pushing the world (once again) toward the inevitable accidental or intentional nuclear war.

Each of us was there by choice as the result of our nonviolent direct action at the Main Gate of the Bangor Trident submarine base (Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor) on August 6th in which 16 of us blockaded the entrance with banners in both a symbolic gesture of closing the base and as a message of that need to people working on the base.

The August action was coordinated with a simultaneous leafleting action at the other Bangor base gate intended to reach people from the base with our message of peace, nonviolence and nuclear abolition.

Pre-hearing strategy session. from left: Mack Johnson, Tom Rogers,
Malcolm Chaddock and Elizabeth Murray
Two of the yesterday's defendants, Malcolm Chaddock and Bernie Meyer, contested the charge (all of us received citations for "Walking on roadway where prohibited").  Their testimonies were not restrained by the judge, even after an initial objection by the prosecutor to limit testimony on international law.  In the end both were found guilty, although the judge reduced their fines.

The remaining eight of us were there for mitigation hearings wherein we did not contest the charge, although we wished to make a statement to the court regarding our reasons for engaging in our action, knowing full well the potential legal consequences. 

from left: Rodney Herold, George Rodkey, Michael Siptroth, Bernie Meyer,
Betsy Lamb and Sue Ablao.  Rodney was videotaping the proceedings,
and Sue was an observer 
Each of us made a statement to the court, and each one was as unique as the makeup and life experience of this diverse group of peacemakers - teachers, retired submarine commander, public health professional, retired CIA political analyst, and more.  One of the lessons I have learned in this work is that any generalization about or marginalization of people involved in peacemaking (peace activists) is meaningless.

A portion of Elizabeth Murray's statement demonstrates this quite clearly.

Prior to retiring I served for 27 years as a political analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency. The last position I held was Deputy National Intelligence Officer for the Near East at the National Intelligence Council. I am therefore keenly aware of the need to protect and safeguard our country.

However, the past 10 years - particularly in the wake of 9-11 - have shown that it is time to embrace a new paradigm of "strength through peace" - and that includes nuclear disarmament.


You can read Elizabeth's full statement at the link further on in this post.

The judge respectfully heard each of our statements, and when all was said and done he reduced each of our fines.  That in and of itself was, in some sense, a vindication of our actions.  Although constrained by the rules of the court, the judge recognized that we had acted in accordance with our conscience and our understanding of well established legal precedent, including the Nuremberg Principles.

Here are links to court statements of those who had statements prepared to read in court, listed by individual defendant.  Each link will take you to Google Docs, where you can read and download statement.  NOTE:  I will add people's statements as I receive them, so you may not yet see all eight listed.  I hope to have all available statements in a couple of days.

 
 
 

And so the cycle of resistance continues, thanks to a dedicated community of peacemakers.  Tomorrow people will come together at Ground Zero for the Annual Meeting, where we will reflect on the past year and plan for the future.  May the cycle be unbroken.

In Peace and Resistance,

Leonard

P.S. - Coutroom video coming soon.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Trident resisters to have their say in court

News Release
 
11/7/2012
 
For Immediate Release
 
Contact: Leonard Eiger, 425-445-2190, subversivepeacemaking@gmail.com
Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action
16159 Clear Creek Road NW Poulsbo, WA 98370
www.gzcenter.org
 
Peace activists who blocked entry to the main gate at the Navy’s West coast Trident nuclear submarine base in an act of civil resistance to nuclear weapons will appear in Kitsap County Court.
 
The activists were part of Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action's peaceful vigil at the main gate to Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor in Silverdale, Washington on August 6, 2012 in protest of the U.S. government’s continued deployment and upgrading of the Trident nuclear weapons system. The vigil also commemorated the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
 
The Trident submarine base at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, just 20 miles from Seattle, Washington, contains the largest concentration of operational nuclear weapons. Each of the 8 Trident submarines at Bangor carry as many as 24 Trident II(D-5) missiles, each capable of carrying up to 8 independently targetable warheads. Each nuclear warhead has an explosive yield up to 32 times the yield of the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima.
 
During the early morning vigil on August 6th four groups of protestors successively stretched banners across the roadway of the base entrance, stopping traffic entering the base during the rush hour. The banners contained messages including “Abolish Nuclear Weapons” and “Give Peace a Chance. No, Seriously.”
 
 
Each group of protestors complied with Washington State Patrol officers’ orders to leave the roadway, and all were escorted to the median where they were processed. A total of 16 persons were issued citations at the scene for “Walking on roadway where prohibited” and released.
 
Ten of those cited in the August action will appear on Friday, November 9th at 1:30 PM in Kitsap County District Court, Room 104 for hearings before a district court judge. They are Tom Rogers, Poulsbo, WA; Michael Siptroth, Belfair, WA; Mal Chaddock, Portland, OR; Betsy Lamb, Bend, OR; Bernie Meyer, Olympia, WA; Leonard Eiger, North Bend, WA; Brenda McMillan, Port Townsend, WA; Mack Johnson, Silverdale, WA; George W Rodkey, Tacoma, WA and Elizabeth Murray, Bellingham, WA.
 
 
Eight of the activists have requested mitigation hearings in order to be able to state, on the record, their reasons for engaging in the resistance action. The two other members or the action have chosen to contest their charges.
 
Bernie Meyer, one of the resisters who is contesting his charge and who has continuously resisted nuclear weapons, had this to say in defense of his actions after another recent action. “I am doing my duty as a citizen. I am calling citizens, government and military to account. I participated in blocking the road to symbolically close the base and prevent nuclear annihilation. My action is meant to be an expression of my duty as a citizen, even more an act of love for the people of this country and of this world, to democratically say to the government ‘live by the law, abolish nuclear weapons which are a threat to life on Planet Earth.’”
 
Ground Zero holds three scheduled vigils and actions each year in resistance to Trident and in protest of U.S. nuclear weapons policy. The group has been working to stop the Navy’s plan to build a $715 million Second Explosives Handling Wharf at Bangor, and with Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility filed a lawsuit in Federal court to stop the project. Ground Zero is also working to de-fund the Navy’s planned next generation ballistic missile submarine, estimated to cost at least $99 billion to build.
 
For nearly thirty-five years Ground Zero has engaged in education, training in nonviolence, community building, resistance against Trident and action toward a world without nuclear weapons.
 
The Kitsap County District Courthouse is located at 614 Division Street in Port Orchard.
 
###

Click here for the August 6th News Release.

You can learn more about Ground Zero through interviews, videos and photos of the August weekend by clicking here.

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Endorse Ground Zero's January event honoring MLK

Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action will hold its annual event honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. on January 19, 2013.

We invite organizational support for Dr. King’s legacy of nonviolence and our work to abolish nuclear weapons by endorsing this event.  We will celebrate under the theme “WE ARE ONE”. 

We will list endorsers on all materials publicizing the event, and we ask endorsing organizations to publicize the event among their members. No financial contribution is required. We also welcome people from your organization to join us on January 19th. 
 
Background: When Ground Zero Center co-founders Jim and Shelley Douglass spoke at our recent Hiroshima/Nagasaki observance they spoke about how they began 35 years ago by leafleting at the Trident base.  Their purpose was to share the message (to quote Dr. King) that "Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation, and this means we must develop a world perspective.”  Hence the theme, “WE ARE ONE” for our MLK observance.
 
Thanks to the following organizations that have endorsed WE ARE ONE (list will be kept updated at the EVENTS page):
  • Seattle Raging Grannies
  • Veterans for Peace, Seattle, WA, Chapter 92
  • Lake Forest Park for Peace
  • The Nuclear Resister
  • Code Pink, WA
  • Action des Citoyens pour le Désarmement Nucléaire  (ACDN), France
  • Campaign for a Nuclear Weapons Free World
  • Friends of the Earth, Australia
  • Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space
  • Peace Action West
  • Arab Human Security Network, Damascus, Syria (branch of UNESCO)
  • Veterans for Peace, Portland, OR, Chapter 72
  • Nipponzan Myohoji Buddhist Temple, Bainbridge Island, WA
  • Tacoma Catholic Worker, Tacoma, WA

To endorse our MIK Day event please provide the following information:

1. Name of Organization  

2. Name and email, phone, or postal address of person submitting the endorsement (so we can confirm your endorsement)

3. Send this information by December 1st to:  Tom Shea, member of GZ Outreach Committee, at: tomshea@centurytel.net, P.O. Box 200, Snoqualmie WA 98065 or to Leonard Eiger at subversivepeacemaking@gmail.com.

Questions:  425-831-0033 or tomshea@centurytel.net         
 
Thanks,

Tom Shea 

###

Learn more about Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action at our Website.

 

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

W-76 Life Extension... Problems, Problems, Problems

A report by the U.S. Energy Department's Inspector General made public yesterday paints a bleak picture of the government's program to extend the life of the current W-76 thermonuclear warhead, which is deployed on the Trident II D-5 submarine launched ballistic missile.

The W-76 has been undergoing "refurbishment" under the National Nuclear Security Administration's "Life Extension Program", designed to give the "aging" warheads a new lease on life.

And quite a lease it is.  Existing warheads are removed from either storage or from the missiles on which they are deployed and transported to the Pantex facility in Texas.  There they are disassembled, and are reworked to produce what the government calls "refurbished" warheads.  In fact the refurbished warheads receive a number of upgraded components, including guidance systems, and are an improvement over the original warheads.

Of course, conducting such highly technological and sensitive work is neither cheap, nor can it be done quickly.  The Inspector General's report concludes that the "NNSA may be unable to complete the W76 LEP within established scope, cost and schedule parameters..."  These findings should come as no surprise, nor should any subsequent request for more funding to bail out the program.

What follows is the statement (by the Inspector General) that seems (to me) to be the crux of the matter and begs the question, "What, if anything, will change to make future work on the W76 any more efficient or cost effective???"

...the W76 Life Extension Program (LEP) has experienced significant delays in startup and in achieving production goals. By the end of Fiscal Year 2011, NNSA had completed less than half of the anticipated units due to technical production issues. NNSA intended to address this problem by increasing production rates in future years.
 
Based on the performance (or lack thereof) so far it looks like a long-shot for NNSA to be able to play catch-up on the W-76 Life Extension Program, no matter how much money Congress may decide to pour down the hole.
 
Perhaps someone should re-evaluate, in light of realistic disarmament objectives, just how many of these warheads need to be refurbished after all.  Perhaps it's time to end the W-76 Life Extension Program (with a whimper rather than a bang) once and for all.
 
An additional benefit would be one more reason NOT to build the Second Explosives Handling Wharf at the Bangor Trident submarine base (Naval Base Kitsap Bangor)!!!

Monday, October 1, 2012

Safety board rejected new explosive wharf at Bangor (Kitsap Sun)

The Kitsap Sun uncovered an interesting bit of news.  To summarize - It seems clear that the Department of Defense (DOD) Explosives Safety Board (note that word "Safety") rejected the plan for a 2nd explosives handling wharf at the Bangor sub base. 

So what did the Navy do???  It did an end run and may have received approval through the Secretary of the Navy Explosives Safety Certification. The approval evidently allows the Navy "to deviate from DOD standards if it assumes all risks for exposed sites and potential explosion sites that don't meet DOD safety criteria," (read - "We can do something that doesn't meet safety standards so long as we say it's OK.").

Whoa!!!  Does that make any sense to you?  Who's assuming what risks???  Does this sound like someone who couldn't graduate from medical school and then sends for one of those fake, mail-order diplomas?  Is the Navy playing fast and loose with safety?  What ARE the risks should something go amiss?  There are huge quantities of explosives on those Trident missiles.  Is it time for the Navy to come clean on the risks (to both the base and surrounding communities) created by a second explosives handling wharf

Here is the full Kitsap Sun article.

***************
Safety board rejected new explosive wharf at Bangor

By Ed Friedrich, Kitsap Sun, October 1, 2012

BANGOR — While the Navy was assuring people that a second explosives handling wharf at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor wouldn't create new safety concerns, the military's explosives safety board was refusing to grant a permit for it.

The Department of Defense Explosives Safety Board approved the location and separation distances for three EHWs in Bangor's 1975 master plan, but wouldn't endorse the decision now that the Navy wants to build a second wharf 37 years later. The scenario had changed, it said in papers responding to a lawsuit filed in federal court by the group Ground Zero for Nonviolent Action.

The safety board's rejection hasn't stalled the $715 million project. Construction began last week. The Navy apparently chose another avenue — the Secretary of the Navy Explosives Safety Certification — that allows it to deviate from DOD standards if it assumes all risks for exposed sites and potential explosion sites that don't meet DOD safety criteria. Records indicate the Navy intended to proceed that way, but spokeswoman Leslie Yuenger couldn't confirm it Monday.

The safety board had given preliminary site approval in October 2011, but with three conditions, including proving that an explosion at one EHW wouldn't cause an explosion at the other. It also required that the Navy conduct a study on the likelihood of risk. The Navy declined, saying the study could delay the project and cost tens of millions of dollars that could be better spent elsewhere.

Ground Zero is asking Judge Ronald Leighton of U.S. District Court in Tacoma for a preliminary injunction halting construction until the environmental effects are fully explained and considered, as required by the National Environmental Policy Act.

Many documents that were kept from the public during the environmental process have come out during the court proceedings. They had been withheld because they consisted of "unclassified controlled nuclear information." The Navy determined some of the papers shouldn't be classified that way, and Friday released Appendix A in its entirety and Appendices B and C in redacted form.

"The Navy all through its EIS was saying there's no problem with explosives," said Glen Milner, who's named on the lawsuit with Ground Zero. "They said all the way through it they were following Department of Defense safety board regulations, and had no problems. Then we find out at the end that none of this is true."

The Explosives Safety Board was formed by Congress in 1928 after a 1926 explosion at the Naval Ammunition Depot in Lake Denmark, N.J., destroyed the depot, killed 21 people and seriously injured 53. Its mission is to provide objective advice to the secretary of defense and service secretaries on matters concerning explosives safety and to prevent hazardous conditions to life and property on and off Department of Defense installations from DoD munitions.

"Imagine the pressure on these people that work there to say to the Navy, 'We are not going to approve your $700 million project,'" Milner said. "I think that says a lot about the hazards of this project."

Navy officials say they don't comment about ongoing litigation.

The Suquamish Tribe also filed a lawsuit against the Navy and is seeking a preliminary injunction, citing violations of the tribe's treaty rights, the Endangered Species Act, the Administrative Procedures Act and the U.S. Constitution.
© 2012 Kitsap Sun. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

###

(Source URL): http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2012/oct/01/safety-board-rejected-new-explosive-wharf-at/#ixzz286DTCtyN

Thursday, September 27, 2012

12 New Tridents On The Way!!!

It's official!  The Navy has confirmed that it plans to build 12 Ohio class ballistic missile submarines to replace the current fleet of 14.  IHS Jane's reports that the new subs will each have 16 missile launch tubes.  You can read the Navy's announcement further on in this post.

Based on the current engineering, research and design effort, the Navy projects construction beginning in 2021 and the first sub going out on "deterrent" patrol in 2031.

Rear Adm. Thomas J. Eccles, chief engineer and deputy commander Naval Systems Engineering Directorate, Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), made a statement hearkening back to the Cold War when he said that "The Ohio Replacement Program will serve as the backbone of our nation's nuclear deterrence into the 2080s." 

Besides the archaic references to "deterrence" in the Navy's announcement, that statement also confirms that the first strike Trident nuclear weapons system will continue to be the centerpiece of the nation's nuclear forces.   

Here is another rather bizarre statement in the announcement.  Eccles' also stated that "It is vital that we perform the rigorous engineering, research, and design work now so that we can ensure that the platform is able to address and best the threats of future highly complex national security environments."  You just have to wonder what kind of "future highly complex national security environments" will require the U.S. to deploy $7 Billion nuclear weapons launch platforms designed to sneak up on targets and fire nuclear armed missiles.

Construction costs for the 12 new subs range as high as $110 Billion!!!  Can we afford either the extraordinary construction, operational and maintenance costs, or the risks that at least 50 years of continued deployment of Trident ballistic missiles will present???

Although one the most sophisticated weapons systems ever devised, the Trident nuclear weapons system is also archaic, an aging relic of the Cold War.  It was devised in the time of the madness in which both the U.S. and Soviets worked continually using nuclear one-upmanship.  The only thing Trident is for is mass annihilation.

As our government continues to spend hundreds of billions of our tax dollars on weapons of mass destruction that quite literally threaten all of humanity we would do well to ask our representatives in Washington, DC - What is all this money buying us???

**********

Navy Signs Specification Document For The Ohio Replacement Submarine Program, Sets Forth Critical Design Elements

Story Number: NNS120906-13Release Date: 9/6/2012     From Team Submarine Public Affairs

WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The Navy formalized key ship specifications for both the United States' Ohio Replacement and United Kingdom's Successor Programs in a document signed Aug. 31 at the Washington Navy Yard.

Rear Adm. Thomas J. Eccles, chief engineer and deputy commander Naval Systems Engineering Directorate, Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) and Capt. William J. Brougham, Ohio Replacement program manager signed the Ohio Replacement First Article Quad Pack Ship Specification document, marking a major construction milestone.

"This document marks significant forward progress for both the U.S. and UK future strategic submarine deterrent programs," said Brougham. "It is a direct result of the engineering rigor and professionalism of government and industry partners on both shores of the Atlantic."

Ship specifications are critical for the design and construction of the common missile compartment, which will be used by both nations' replacement fleet ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) programs. Specifically, the First Article Quad Pack Ship Specification establishes a common design and technical requirements for the four missile tubes and associated equipment that comprise each quad pack.

"The Ohio Replacement Program will serve as the backbone of our nation's nuclear deterrence into the 2080s," said Eccles. "It is vital that we perform the rigorous engineering, research, and design work now so that we can ensure that the platform is able to address and best the threats of future highly complex national security environments."

The Ohio Replacement SSBN Program is tasked with recapitalizing the nation's sea-based strategic deterrent in a cost-effective manner. The Navy plans to replace its current fleet of 14 Ohio-class SSBNs with only 12 Ohio Replacement SSBNs. The first Ohio Replacement is scheduled to begin construction in fiscal year 2021, deliver to the Navy in 2027, and conduct its first strategic deterrence patrol in 2031 after undergoing a rigorous testing and evaluation regime.

###

Editor's Note: Sentences above highlighted in bold typeface for emphasis.

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Brochure available for 2nd EHW lawsuit

A trifold brochure is now available from Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action explaining the lawsuits recently filed to stop the construction of a Second Explosives Handling Wharf at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor.  Bangor is the West Coast home port of the Navy's Trident ballistic missile submarine fleet.
Cover of the EHW lawsuit brochure
Click here to download the PDF version of the brochure. If you have questions about the lawsuit or the brochure, send your email message to info@gzcenter.org.

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Nuclear Northwest: Panel Discussion this Thursday

Nuclear Northwest: Panel Discussion
Thursday, September 20, 2012, 7-9pm

Sponsored by the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability, as part of its 2012 Fall Meeting.

Good Shepherd Center, Suite 400
4649 Sunnyside Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103

Presentations will be followed by Q & A.
Free and open to the public.   
 
Panelists and their topics:
 
Leonard Eiger - Puget Sound Nuclear Weapon Free Zone: Nuclear Disarmament Begins at Home

Tom Carpenter - Hanford Challenge: Whistleblowers and the Waste Treatment Plant

Russell Jim - Yakama Indian Nation: Tribal perspective on Hanford
 
Chuck Johnson - Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility: Columbia Generating Station & Small Modular Reactors
 
Liz Mattson - Hanford Challenge: Inheriting Hanford
 
###
 
More information on the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability's 25th anniversary meeting in Seattle at http://www.ananuclear.org/

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Motion filed to halt construction of Bangor wharf

(Editor's Note: The following article was published in The Kitsap Sun on September 6th, and covers the motion seeking a preliminary injunction against construction of the Second Explosives Handling Wharf at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor)

********
 
Ground Zero seeks to halt Bangor wharf construction
By Christopher Dunagan, Posted September 6, 2012, The Kitsap Sun

BANGOR —A federal judge has been asked to halt construction of the Navy's explosives handling wharf at Bangor pending a full review of the environmental damage from the $715 million project.

The group Ground Zero for Nonviolent Action, which filed a lawsuit against the Navy in June, followed up Thursday with a motion that seeks a preliminary injunction to halt construction.

Irreparable harm to the environment from wharf construction far outweighs the cost of delaying the project until the environmental effects are fully explained and considered, as required by the National Environmental Policy Act, according to attorneys for Ground Zero. 

"The plaintiffs have demonstrated likelihood of success on the merits by showing that the Navy failed to comply with numerous provisions of (federal law)," states the motion filed by attorney Katherine George of the Seattle firm Harrison, Benis and Spence.

Meanwhile, in a similar case, the Suquamish Tribe's lawsuit against the Navy has been moved from U.S. District Court in Seattle to U.S. District Court in Tacoma, where the Ground Zero case resides. Now both cases are under the jurisdiction of District Judge Ronald B. Leighton.

Late Thursday, attorneys for the tribe also asked the judge for a preliminary injunction to halt construction of the Bangor wharf. In addition to allegations that the Navy circumvented the National Environmental Policy Act, tribal attorneys cited violations of the tribe’s treaty rights, the Endangered Species Act, the Administrative Procedures Act and the U.S. Constitution.

In her pleadings, George said the Navy illegally determined the exact size and location of the wharf before completing the environmental review, which would have shown that the wharf is larger than the Navy needs. Six alternatives described in an environmental-impact statement talked about different design features, but the Navy failed to consider a smaller wharf or alternative locations, the motion states.

Appendices addressing "purpose and need," "alternatives considered" and "explosives safety arcs" were withheld from public review and comment, contrary to environmental law — even though the Navy used such information to make decisions, according to the motion. Similar information was already in the public domain, the motions says.  

"These documents were critical to the environmental analysis, because the Navy relied on them in ruling out less harmful alternatives and in claiming that the location, size and design of the wharf were inflexibly predetermined," the motion states. Under existing court rulings, the Navy cannot avoid environmental laws by claiming "national security implications," as it has done, according to Ground Zero's pleadings.

The Navy has awarded a $331 million contract to a Virginia company to complete overwater work for the pier. Without court intervention, construction is expected to begin within a few weeks.

Navy officials say they do not comment about ongoing litigation.

© 2012 Kitsap Sun. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


 

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Suquamish Tribe files suit against Bangor Explosives Handling Wharf

The Suquamish Tribe has filed its own lawsuit against the Navy's Second Explosives Handling Wharf project planned for the Bangor Trident base.  It is quite likey that they Judge will combine this case with the case filed by Glen Milner of Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action.  The following is an opinion piece in the Kitsap Sun by Leonard Forsman, Chairman of the Suquamish Tribal Council.
 
****************

Kitsap Sun, MY TURN
Navy left tribe no choice but a lawsuit
By Leonard Forsman. Posted August 29, 2012

In 1855, led by Chief Seattle, Suquamish Tribal leaders signed the Treaty of Point Elliot. The treaty ceded most of the Suquamish Tribe's lands in exchange for the acknowledgment and protection of our fishing and hunting rights, health care, education and a reservation at Port Madison.

Since that time, the Suquamish Tribe has maintained our cultural identity and kept our traditions. We've also been consistent in continuing to value and pursue the priorities that we established — and which the U.S. government made a commitment to protecting — in the treaty we signed in 1855.

Today, with over 1,100 people employed in its government operations and business ventures, the Suquamish Tribe is one of the largest employers in Kitsap County. The purpose of the Tribe's investments is to support government functions that assist the community. These investments — in law enforcement, natural resource management, education, health care, and community development — are designed to have a positive economic and social impact on both Tribal members and non-Tribal members alike. We take our role as good neighbor seriously.

That's why it has been so disappointing for us to have our requests to have our treaty rights honored by the U.S. government rejected while the United States seeks to build a massive new explosives handling wharf at Bangor, within the adjudicated usual and accustomed fishing grounds of the Suquamish and four other tribes.

The Tribe's treaty right is a property right under federal law and cannot be taken away without specific congressional authority. If Congress authorizes a treaty right to be taken, that loss must be compensated for under the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The Suquamish Tribe has filed a lawsuit in federal court against the Navy, the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Marine Fisheries Service to protect its treaty rights, fish habitat and several endangered species. The suit asks the court to set aside permits and decisions for the proposed Bangor Explosives Handling Wharf project. The construction of the 6.3-acre over-water wharf is a "taking" under federal law and will violate the 1855 Treaty of Point Elliott, the United States Constitution, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act.

The proposed project will increase the Navy's over-water facilities by almost 25 percent and will eliminate access to fishing grounds associated with the over-water facilities. Not only will the project permanently disrupt salmon and other species migration patterns, but noise from its construction will injure at least seven species of fish, including several listed as "endangered" or "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act.

Over the last two years and in at least a dozen meetings, representatives of the Suquamish Tribal Council met with the Navy and the Army Corps of Engineers in an attempt to ensure that the Tribe's treaty rights and impacts to the environment were adequately protected and mitigated. Although the Suquamish Tribe made great compromises in an attempt to reach an agreement on the project, the Navy and the Army Corps offered little to no corresponding compromise.

The Suquamish Tribe has reached agreement with the Navy at other naval installations to protect its treaty rights and the environment, while at the same time balancing economic and military needs in support of national defense and our veterans. The Tribe also recognizes the local economic benefits this project will bring to Kitsap County. However, the Navy's decision to continue this project without an agreement with the Suquamish Tribe and the Army Corps' approval of the Navy's in-water construction permits is contrary to federal law and is in direct conflict with the Department of Defense's trust responsibility to honor Indian treaties and protect the trust resources of the Indian tribes of this nation.

Unfortunately, because of the actions of the U.S. government, the Tribe has no other recourse than to seek a remedy in federal district court.
 
© 2012 Kitsap Sun. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source URL: http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2012/aug/29/my-turn-navy-left-tribe-no-choice-but-a-lawsuit/#ixzz25MhvN1X6

Monday, August 27, 2012

Judge reduces fines for Trident nuclear resisters

A Kitsap County District Court Judge ruled in favor of four nuclear resisters in a recent ruling.

Elaine Hickman, Tom Rogers, Bert Sacks and Carlo Voli blocked entry to the main gate at the Navy’sWest coast Trident nuclear submarine base in an act of civil resistance to nuclear weapons on May 12, 2012.

The activists were part of Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action's peaceful vigil at the main gate to Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor in Silverdale, Washington in which about 50 people protested the U.S. government’s continued deployment and upgrading of the Trident nuclear weapons system.

The four protesters walked onto the roadway and unfurled a banner, which read, “Give PEACE a chance. No, seriously.” They were cited for “Pedestrian in Roadway Where Prohibited” (a traffic offense) and released at the scene.

Each of the four appeared before Judge Riehl at their July 31st mitigation hearing to explain their motivations for participating in their act of civil resistance.

Hickman, who had her thyroid removed after living downwind from the Hanford Nuclear site, warned of the dangers of nuclear weapons both in their potential use and in their production and disposal.

Rogers is a retired U.S. Navy Captain, who commanded an attack submarine and was responsible for nuclear weapons. Rogers said he felt it was his duty as a citizen to oppose their use and the threat of use as a violation of the 1996 International Court of Justice ruling.

(from left) Bert Sacks, Carlo Voli, Elaine Hickman & Tom Rogers
Voli also cited international law and protested, as a hard-working citizen, the use of 59% of his taxes without his consent for defense and war spending, including upkeep of our unnecessary nuclear capability. 

Sacks, a long-time member of Ground Zero, presented several documents to the court to support his premise that the government knowingly uses war tactics that cause deaths to civilians.

Judge Riehl accepted all the defendants' testimony and deferred his decision until after reviewing the documents presented by the defendants.

The defendants received Judge Riehl's mitigation ruling, signed on August 23rd.  The ruling reduces the defendant's fines based on their intention(s), and reads:

On May 12, 2012, each of the above Defendants was cited by law enforcement of the above civil infractions with a penalty of $56.00.  Each Defendant requested a mitigation hearing, thereby admitting they committed the infraction but requested the Court to mitigate the cost of the civil penalty based on the reasons they committed the infraction.

Unlike most defendants who commit this infraction, the Defendants in these cases did so with intent of bringing attention to their goals of eliminating nuclear weapons.  The Court has reviewed all of the material submitted by the defendants as well as considering their presentations at the court hearings.  Consistent with the previous decision of this Court, (the Court) is satisfied that the appropriate civil penalty , in each of these cases, is $25.00.
 
Dated 8/23/12    Judge James Riehl

Tom Rogers responded to the Judge's ruling by saying that "It is a formal acknowledgment from the court of the propriety and legitimacy of our civil disobedience in using the court to bring attention to our goal of eliminating nuclear weapons." 

Another group of resisters who blocked entry to the Bangor Main Gate on August 6th are currently awaiting confirmation of their November hearing date(s).  Of the 16 people cited, most have chosen mitigation, although one or more will contest the charge.  Details will be available at this blog as soon as hearing date(s) is/are confirmed.

###

Link to Judge Riehl's Mitigation Ruling: https://docs.google.com/open?id=1DDEQlur2wlOIA-PdACEIR2J5ySxKQIaml3tk5JYQU8wPzg91rC3xdny8Zyv7

Saturday, August 11, 2012

HIroshima/Nagasaki Events Video, Photos and More

Friends,

People have been posting videos of Ground Zero Center's Hiroshima/Nagasaki weekend's events.  I'm also finally going through my photos, and expect to have some photos coming in and being posted from others as well.  I'll start adding the links to this post, and will keep doing so until they're all up. 



Enjoy!!!

Leonard

Keynote presentation by Shelley and Jim Douglass, GZ co-founders, on August 4th, by Mike McCormick, Talking Stick TV.  You can also watch it below:



Photo Slide Show of most of the Weekend's events, including the action at Bangor.

Interview with Michael Hill of the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action, by Mike McCormick, Talking Stick TV, on August 4th.

Lynne Greenwald speaking at Ground Zero Center for Non-violence, by Gordon Sturrock.

Cindy Sheehan at Ground Zero Center for Non-violence, August 5, 2012, by Gordon Sturrock.

Interview with Lynne Greenwald of the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action and one of the Disarm Now Plowshares 5, by Mike McCormick, Talking Stick TV.

Longtime Seattle Activist Dorli Rainey speaking at the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action on August 4th, by Mike McCormick, Talking Stick TV.

Interview with Leonard Eiger during the nonviolent direct action on August 6th.   

Link to the leaflet "Can We Talk?" handed out at the Trigger Avenue Gate on August 6th.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Big finish for Ground Zero Center's Hiroshima/Nagasaki commemoration weekend

Peace activists stopped traffic briefly while other activists leafleted at the Navy’s West Coast Trident submarine base.

Activists with Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent action held a peaceful early morning vigil at the Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor Main Gate as Navy and civilian employees entered the base. The vigil commemorated the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.


The Trident submarine base at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, just 20 miles from Seattle, Washington, contains the largest concentration of operational nuclear weapons. Each of the 8 Trident submarines at Bangor carry as many as 24 Trident II(D-5) missiles, each capable of carrying up to 8 independently targetable warheads. Each nuclear warhead has an explosive yield up to 32 times the yield of the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima.

Peace activists lined the roadside with anti-nuke signs, banners and a full-scale inflatable Trident II D-5 ballistic missile. Around 7:00 am Peacekeepers from Ground Zero entered the road to safely stop incoming traffic. Three activists entered the roadway carrying a banner with the message “Abolish Nuclear Weapons.” Washington State Patrol officers escorted the protestors to the median for processing.
Resisters (from left to right): Betsy Lamb, George Rodkey & Ann Havill
(photo by Leonard Eiger)
Almost immediately, another group of activists entered the roadway with a banner bearing the message “Give Peace a Chance. No, Seriously.” As they were being removed from the roadway two more groups carried banners calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons onto the roadway in the same sequence and were subsequently removed. Traffic entering the base was stopped continuously until all protestors were cleared from the roadway.

A total of 16 persons engaged in the blockade. All were issued citations at the scene for “Walking on roadway where prohibited” and released. Those cited were Tom Rogers, Poulsbo, WA; Cindy Sheehan, Vacaville, CA; Marion Ward, Vancouver, WA; Michael Siptroth, Belfair, WA; Mal Chaddock, Portland, OR; Ann Havill, Bend, OR; Betsy Lamb, Bend, OR; Bernie Meyer, Olympia, WA; Leonard Eiger, North Bend, WA; Constance Mears, Poulsbo, WA; Gordon Sturrock, Eugene, OR; Brenda McMillan, Port Townsend, WA; Mack Johnson, Silverdale, WA; Gilberto Z Perez, Bainbridge Island, WA; George W Rodkey, Tacoma, WA and Elizabeth Murray, Bellingham, WA.
Anne & David Hall Leafleting (photo by Berd Whitlock)
During the vigil and action at Main Gate, another group from Ground Zero leafleted outside the Bangor Trigger Gate. The leaflets were titled “CAN WE TALK?” They explained that the peace activists were present to raise awareness of the danger of nuclear weapons, and invited recipients to join in a sincere dialogue on nuclear weapons. Activists handed approximately 200 of the leaflets to people entering and leaving the base.

Each leaflet had an origami crane attached

(photo by Berd Whitlock)
The activities at both gates were part of one coordinated action.  Blocking traffic at the Main Gate diverted traffic to Trigger Gate, which is more conducive to leafleting, and allowed a greater opportunity to communicate a message.

Monday’s vigil, nonviolent direct action and leafleting were the culmination of a weekend of events at Ground Zero Center. Participants commemorated the anniversaries of the atomic bombings and celebrated 35 years of Ground Zero’s resistance to the Trident nuclear weapons system.


Participants had the opportunity to hear from Ground Zero co-founders Jim and Shelley Douglass, persistent peace activist Cindy Sheehan, and the (pepper sprayed) face of Seattle Occupy Dorli Rainey.

The weekend included nonviolence training, letter writing to elected officials, action planning, a vigil at the Kitsap Mall and a screening of the documentary “In My Lifetime.” The film, a presentation of the Nuclear World Project, is intended to help people develop an understanding of the realities of nuclear weapons.

Additional events were associated with the Ground Zero weekend.

Ground Zero's Glen Milner organized this year’s Peace Fleet, a flotilla of boats that sailed into Seattle’s Elliott Bay on August 1st to meet the U.S. Navy fleet in a protest against militarism.

Activists representing Physicians for Social Responsibility, Washington Chapter, arrived at Ground Zero on Saturday during the Bike to the Bomb bicycle ride. Bike to the Bomb protests the use of nuclear weapons against the people of Japan, and spotlights the massive nuclear arsenal stored and deployed at Bangor.

Participants in the 2012 Pacific Northwest Interfaith Peace Walk for a Nuclear Free Future, which began in Portland, Oregon on July 22nd, also arrived at Ground Zero on Saturday to participate in the weekend’s activities. The walk is organized by Buddhist monks from Bainbridge Island, and carries a message of hope for peace and a nuclear free world.
14 of the 16 who blocked the roadway today. (photo by Berd Whitlock)
Ground Zero holds three scheduled vigils and actions each year in resistance to Trident and in protest of U.S. nuclear weapons policy. The group has been working to stop the Navy’s plan to build a $715 million Second Explosives Handling Wharf at Bangor, and recently filed a lawsuit in Federal court to stop the project. Ground Zero is also working to de-fund the Navy’s plans for a next generation ballistic missile submarine, estimated to cost $99 billion to build.

For nearly thirty-five years Ground Zero has engaged in education, training in nonviolence, community building, resistance against Trident and action toward a world without nuclear weapons.

###

Click here to view, download or print the leaflet, "Can We Talk?,  that participants handed out on August 6th at the Trigger Gate.