by Mike Yarrow After the elections Congress will meet in “lame duck” session to enact the $1 Trillion in cuts mandated by the Budget Control Act over the next decade in addition to the $1 Trillion in caps on spending already made.  These cuts, “the Fiscal Cliff,” are set to go into effect January 1, 2013. The cuts are supposed to come 50-50 from the Pentagon and domestic programs.  However, the Pentagon budgets increase each year so even with the “cuts” the Pentagon budget is likely to increase over the next decade.  In addition military contractors are pushing for far fewer Pentagon cuts.  The House has already passed a budget with increases for the Pentagon!  The Pentagon experiences over $100…

by Glen Anderson The climate crisis fits squarely into the crosshairs of FOR’s values and priorities. In the early 1980s, we changed the wording of the FOR’s Statement of Purpose  from affirming the oneness of all humanity to affirming the oneness of all creation.  We know that all people are one human family.  Now we also affirm that our one family extends to plants, animals, ecosystems, oceans, and the atmosphere – all elements that connect us in oneness. Likewise, we know that peace and justice are inextricably connected.  Injustice is inherently violent to victims.  Social, economic and environmental justice are a necessary foundation for peace.  The familiar saying affirms “If you want peace, work for justice.” Furthermore, one of the…

by Larry Kerschner As some of you may know I was privileged to spend the month of September 2011 in Afghanistan with the Clean Water Delegation.  I was also able to spend most of this last June in Viet Nam, returning for the first time in 42 years. I am including the last entry in my diary for the Viet Nam trip: Complete diary entries of both trips at: (Afghanistan) www.globaldaysoflistening.com/pages/CleanWaterProjectDiary and (Viet Nam) www.livejournal.com/~larrywrites I highly recommend an excellent source about what has happened in Viet Nam since the U.S. pulled out in 1975 titled Vietnam: Dragon Rising by Bill Hayton, published by Yale Press. June 23, 2012 (Viet Nam Trip Day 15) When I think of all the…

by Jody Mackey Last night I listened to the final debate as President Obama and Governor Romney yet again supported the use of drones.  Over 80% of the deaths by drones occurred under President Obama and weekly he signs off on a kill list.  Our national dialogue insists drones are cheaper and more accurate than other options while eliminating any risk to U.S. soldiers and being indispensable against Al Qaeda. Yet even before I traveled to Pakistan with Code Pink’s Peace Delegation to Ground the Drones I carried the wrongness of drones deep in my bones. In early October I joined 32 Americans and a Canadian in Islamabad.  We bused 14 hours towards Waziristan where most of the drones operate.…

by Ellen Finkelstein An Israeli judge has cleared the Israeli military and state of any responsibility for killing 23-year-old U.S. peace activist Rachel Corrie in 2003, ruling it “an accident.” At a press conference Cindy Corrie was asked if her daughter should have moved out of the Caterpillar bulldozer’s way, as the Israeli judge suggested. Her reply: “I don’t think that Rachel should have moved. I think we should all have been standing there with her.” Artist-activist Holly Near told a story at the Vancouver Folk Festival about a concert last fall in Albany, NY. During intermission she heard that police were going to enforce a curfew that night and dismantle the local Occupy encampment. Holly turned the second set…

by Brenda Collier The spring 2012 issue of Pacific Call featured articles about the Western Washington Fellowship of Reconciliation (WWFOR) and our need to become more sustainable.  In August the Area Committee (our governing body) approved the budget for new fiscal year (July 2012 to June 2013) and made plans to further address our sustainability issues.  We are very fortunate that national FOR has generously offered us a grant for the next two years that will allow us to balance our budget while we work on sustainability.  This financial support enables us to keep current staff (our full time organizer Ellen Finkelstein and  part-time office manager Sara Rinehart) while we work to strengthen our sustainability. It is wonderful that, despite…

by Bob Poteat The founding of the Bank of England in 1694 is a landmark event in the practice of indebting a government to private interests by financing war.  To obtain a loan of twelve hundred thousand pounds from private investors, William III granted the charter for the Bank of England to private financiers.  Parliament granted an annual interest payment of one hundred thousand pounds, and the Bank was entitled to issue banknotes.[i]  This began the pernicious practice of “monetizing government debt” and began exponential growth of the English public debt.[ii] Borrowing from private sources avoided the time consuming and unpopular problem of raising revenue by taxation and seigniorage which had been surrendered by Charles II in 1666. The fledgling…

by Abby Bernhard (2012 Peace Activist Trainee) Take four experienced activists, eight high-school students from around Seattle, and a myriad of daunting political, social and environmental issues. Mix them all together, add in dashes of wisdom from guest speakers on subjects that include racism, LGBTQ, homelessness, bullying, immigration, Palestine and Israel. Transfer the students to the streets of Greenwood and Westlake. Sprinkle in some history lessons on successful peaceful nonviolent movements. Let the students cool off and reflect outside of Joint Base Lewis McChord and at Garfield Community Center. After four weeks you will have transformed Peace Activist Trainees into real peace activists. Presto-change-o! From July 9th to August 2nd the Peace Activist Trainees (PATs) and their mentors met in…

Elsewhere in this Pacific Call you will find the brochure for the upcoming Fall Retreat:m “We See A Train a’Coming: The Climate Crisis, the Coal Train, and Beyond.” Note that there are several differences from previous years.  The biggest difference is that there is no Friday night portion.  The Retreat will be an all day Saturday event November 10, 2012. Other differences are the reduced price and that you will need to bring your own lunch. We are trying something new this year and hope you will come and bring several of your friends. See related article from May-June 2012 Pacific Call on Dirty Coal and Your Future.  

by Ellen Finkelstein “There is no war without the warrior /Just silent tanks, guns and mortars” (from “Not My War,” for IVAW by Pat Humphries of Emma’s Revolution) I heard 4 young veterans on the Iraq Veterans Against the War “Right to Heal” tour speak last week. I found their stories incredibly moving and compelling. It put a human face to and made me feel the reality of the horrifying statistics: 20-50% of those deployed to Iraq & Afghanistan suffer from PTSD; military suicide rate increased 150% from 2001 to 2009; 1 in 3 women in the military are sexually assaulted. While I have known about the ongoing crisis at Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM) and the impact on service…