“Sergeant Bergdahl was dismissed from the Coast Guard because of mental illness, was recruited into the Army in spite of such issues, and then was sent to the frontlines of Afghanistan where he walked away from his base and was captured, kept as a prisoner, and tortured by the Taliban for nearly five years.” — Read Article in Consortium News
The Golden Rule Promotes Peace
EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON THE NEED FOR PEACE
FROM VENTURA COUNTY STAR— “In 1958, four Quaker peace activists set sail aboard the Golden Rule to try to stop nuclear weapons testing in the Marshall Islands.
On Tuesday, the Golden Rule and its current crew continued the mission of trying to put an end to the nuclear era. This time, they sailed into Oxnard’s Channel Islands Harbor, where they are trying to educate the public about the need for peace.”
READ ARTICLE AND SEE PHOTOS
Military and Veterans Expo & Job Fair
More than 30 agencies that are hiring veterans and military personnel will be showcased at the 6th Annual Military and Veterans Expo and Job Fair at the Camarillo Community Center on Saturday.
[FREE]
Saturday
August 26, 2017
10:00am-2:00pm
Camarillo Community Center
1605 Burnley St
., Camarillo, CA 93010
More Details on Event, Expo Event Guide
http://www.vcmilc.org/milvet-expo.html
Meet and Eat with the Crew of the Historic Golden Rule Peace Boat in Oxnard!
Join us for a musical welcome, potluck, and presentation:
With Special Guests Captain Ron and Dr. Robert Dodge
Tuesday August 29, 2017, 5 pm
Peninsula Park – 3231 Peninsula Rd., Oxnard
The non-profit organization, Veterans for Peace, has recovered and restored the original peace boat, the Golden Rule, that set sail in 1958 to stop nuclear testing in the atmosphere, and which inspired many peace makers and peace ships that followed. The restored VFP Golden Rule is voyaging once more to show that a nuclear peace is possible.
Planned are a musical welcome by Captain Ron, potluck, presentation and free boat tours. Dr. Robert Dodge of Physicians for Social Responsibility will speak.
Come to the marina for a tour and get your picture taken
on the Golden Rule.
August 29: 2pm to 4pm, August 30: 1pm-3pm, Channel Islands Harbor
Sponsored by Veterans For Peace Chapter 112
For more information email vfpgoldenruleproject@gmail.com or call Helen Jaccard, 206-992-6364
The Golden Rule is a National Project of Veterans For Peace, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
VFPGoldenRuleProject.org
Facebook: Golden Rule Peace Boat
The Golden Rule Has Set Sail Once Again!
The Veterans For Peace Golden Rule peace boat has set sail again!
We were able to complete repairs to her rudder and resume our 2017 voyage to Ban Nuclear Weapons. Chuck DeWitt and Don Mathes worked nonstop to construct a new rudder and get the Golden Rule back on her journey. We are now on our way to Santa Cruz for our next educational events.
The cost of manufacturing and installing the new rudder was approximately $3,000. With your help, we will continue to take the best care possible of this historic wooden vessel. Given the current political climate and heightened threat of nuclear war, the Golden Rule’s mission is more important than ever before. Please Help Us Complete Our Voyage!
Please consider donating so the Golden Rule will be able to continue sailing for a world free of nuclear weapons. You are the wind in her sails.
Veterans For Peace Golden Rule Project
vfpgoldenruleproject.org
Farm training program for veterans BEGINS SEP 5
Here’s a program beginning Sept 5 for 12 weeks teaching sustainable farm business management. It’s run by two veterans who operate a family farm. We want to fill up this class so that it’s offered next year as well. The program is GI Bill eligible.
Please spread the word!
http://www.military.com/daily-news/2017/06/09/this-combat-vet-wants-inspire-new-generation-farmers.html
Open Burns sickening the military and the poor
Open burns are how the military gets rid of its garbage, even its poisonous garbage. It’s been sickening soldiers for years. As with so many service-related illnesses these develop slowly and the VA has just now acknowledged that it is culpable for the cancers, breathing problems and other disabling conditions. Now the open burns have been taking place in US residential neighborhoods sickening the residents, most of whom are poor and minorities AND MOST LIKELY TO LOSE HEALTH CARE IF THE REPUBLICANS HAVE THEIR WAY!
ProPublica has the latest:
http://www.propublica.org/article/military-pollution-open-burns-radford-virginia
Mother Jones sounded the alarm years ago when it was just affecting soldiers
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2010/03/toxic-fire-pits-iraq-afghanistan-us-military/
Annual Veterans For Peace Convention
Veterans For Peace is excited to be coming to Chicago for their 32nd Annual Convention, August 9-13th.
Located at the beautiful and historic Palmer House, veterans and allies will gather to discuss “Education Not Militarization”.
Registration begins on Wednesday, August 9th and ends on August 13th with a benefit concert by Jackson Browne. The week will be filled with amazing workshops, discussions, community and music.
http://www.veteransforpeace.org/2017-annual-convention/
Speakers: http://www.veteransforpeace.org/2017-annual-convention/speakers/
Registration: http://www.veteransforpeace.org/2017-annual-convention/registration/
FACEBOOK PAGE: http://www.facebook.com/events/1512690828792339/
WORKSHOPS
http://www.veteransforpeace.org/2017-annual-convention/workshops/
• Agent Orange/Unexploded Ordinance-What We Left Behind in Vietnam
• War Resistance and Social Justice WWI and Today
• Challenges and Solutions to Veteran Homelessness
• The United Nations Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty
• Strategic Planning for Peace and Justice: How Can VFP Make a Difference?
• Pathways to Peace: Abolishing the U.S. Torture Program
• VA Healthcare –
• KNOW War NO war -The Point of View from Japanese Veteran
• Fundraising
• Missing Class: Veterans as First Generation College Students
• Dialogue for Peace: An Introduction of Peace Modalities through Film
• Whose Story? Using a Major Media Event to Encourage Critical Thinking and Introduce Different Perspectives on War and Peace
• Compassion It
• GI Rights and Resistance in the era of Trump
• Warrior Writer Writing Workshop
• Ways to Talk About Peace and the Socrates Cafe
• The Vet, Their Family and the Truth about Joining the Military
• Veterans for “The Climate Mobilization”
• IVAW-Iraq Veterans Against the War
• Understanding Our Human Needs and Healing War Trauma, Racial Trauma, and Childhood Trauma
• VFP Palestine/Israel Delegation
• For The Larger Purpose Of World Peace
• Standing Rock – The Struggle for Self Determination and the Protection of Life.
• Education Not Militarization: The Nuts and Bolts of Pursuing Policy Changes to Counter Recruitment and Demilitarize Schools
• Korean War: The Past and Future
• Education Not Militarization: Educating Students and Countering Military Recruitment Inside the Schools
• Having Served in U.S. Military, Immigrants Fight Deportation Orders
• Overview of Reflections of Vietnam Educational Program
• National Office
• End War Now–Ask Me How!
US kills civilians Mosul and Raqqa
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2017/06/un_staggering_loss_of_life_from_us_bombing_of_raqqa.html
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/06/escalation-civilian-deaths-mosul-170608080843566.html
http://airwars.org/coalitioncivcas2017june/
Twenty eight new airstrikes in the last 24 hours: http://airwars.org/
Free wheelchairs available to vets
Find out the details: http://www.thecamarilloacorn.com For information about the wheelchairs and services provided by Gold Coast Veterans Foundation at 4001 Mission Oaks Blvd., Ste. D, Camarillo, call (805) 482-6550 or visit www.gcvf.org.
It is wrong to deport those who served this country
Veterans Visa and Protection Act
http://grijalva.house.gov/news-and-press-releases/grijalva-reintroduces-veterans-visa-and-protection-act/
ABOUT THE BILL
—From Congressman Raúl Grijalva
It is shameful that our country has turned our back on these men and women who put their lives on the line. A few weeks ago, I went to Tijuana to visit deported U.S. veterans. Many of them still have family back in the U.S. and are currently struggling to support themselves back in Mexico.
It is shameful that our country has turned our back on these men and women who put their lives on the line, which is why I have introduced legislation to allow them to return.
The government should not deport those who have served this country, and any veterans who have been deported should be allowed to return.
This legislation would establish a visa program that allows deported veterans who meet certain requirements to return to the U.S. as lawful permanent residents. Those who are eligible would be able to go through the existing naturalization process for military members, and they’d be granted access to their military and veteran benefits.
This bill would also halt the deportation of any veterans who are currently facing removal proceedings. The only circumstance in which a veteran should be deported is if he or she has been convicted of a violent criminal offense.
After sacrificing so much to ensure our own freedom and protection, we owe it to these brave individuals to ensure they are not subject to deportation and allow those who have been deported to return.
Please encourage your Representatives to support my bill, the Veterans Visa &
Protection Act, if you agree that people who serve this country should not face deportation.
I’ve requested an official congressional hearing on this legislation, and it will take all of us speaking out for this issue to get the attention it deserves.
Thank you for standing with me in this effort.
Peace,
Raúl Grijalva
http://grijalva.house.gov
FULL TEXT OF BILL: http://grijalva.house.gov/uploads/VeteranVisaProtectionAct.pdf
ACLU PETITION
Urge your representative to pass the Veterans Visa and Protection Act and #BringThemHome.
http://action.aclu.org/secure/stop-deporting-our-veterans
More Information: http://www.deportedveteranssupporthouse.org/legislation/
Photo: Anthony Delanoix
http://unsplash.com/@anthonydelanoix
The Golden Rule sails in California again for a nuclear-free world!
The Golden Rule will be sailing your way again this year, from Eureka on Humboldt Bay to San Diego, where she will spend the winter.
More Information: http://www.vfpgoldenruleproject.org/
We are excited about our 2017 sailing season with a focus on preventing nuclear war.
2017 Voyage Map: http://share.delorme.com/goldenrule
FOW: No More Money For War!
Veterans For Peace Rejects President Trump’s Military Build-Up
The President plans to increase Pentagon spending by $54 billion, claiming that the U.S. military is broken and
depleted. Mr. Trump recently spoke to service members aboard the new $13 billion USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier reiterating his call for more spending. Ironically the carrier is a real-life example of why more spending is not needed. U.S. military capabilities far outstrip all other nations. The carrier is an addition to a navy that was
already unmatched by all others. With ten carriers, the U.S. has more than all other nations combined and the
carriers are larger, providing more deck space per carrier than other nations. The U.S. Navy has thousands of aircraft, making it the second largest air force in the world behind the U.S. Air Force. The U.S. already spends almost three times what any other country spends on defense and more than the next nine countries combined.
READ ARTICLE: http://www.veteransforpeace.org/our-work/position-statements/veterans-peace-rejects-president-trumps-military-build/
Total Cost of Wars since 2001
http://www.nationalpriorities.org/cost-of/war/