Friday, June 21, 2013

Gandhi talk on Monday, June 24, 2013 also Walpole Peace Vigil on Saturday, June 29, 2013 at 10-11 AM, Walpole Common - Stop the Spying


Please join us on Saturday, June 29, 2013 to stand against the NSA spy program and the erosion of privacy under the Obama administration.  U.S. Rep. Michael Capuano was right when he called the collection of telephone records of millions of ordinary citizens by the National Security Agency ‘un-American.’ And now we learn that the NSA is also collecting a wide range of other personal information like emails and internet usage, which is nothing short of spying on U.S. citizens and a violation of our privacy.

Having an open and transparent government is critical to preservation of our democracy. The policies of the Bush administration and now the Obama administration to spy on Americans and cloak so much of the government security apparatus in secrecy is a threat to our democracy. We should not have such a powerful security agency as the NSA with so little oversight and transparency.  It is insidious that, through laws like the Patriot Act, the government can spy on our phone calls and internet usage through service providers with the service providers then prohibited from telling anyone, that we would never know. The government has used security as an excuse to make massive amounts of information secret and to hide policies like water boarding, rendition, and drones that are morally questionable. The Obama administration has been particularly aggressive in going after so called whistleblowers who have revealed information about policies like these, information which the American public should know.

Is World Peace Possible? Putting Mahatma Gandhi’s Approach to the Test
Are Gandhi’s teachings relevant today?
Monday, June 24, 2013 at 7:30 PM

A talk on ‘Is World Peace Possible? Putting Mahatma Gandhi’s Approach to the Test’ by Philip Czachorowski will be given at the United Church in Walpole on Monday, June 24, 2013 at 7:30 PM. Mahatma Gandhi was the spiritual leader who led the non-violent campaign for Indian Independence.  Although a Hindu, his beliefs in peace and non-violence were greatly influenced by many religions including Christianity and in particular by the teachings of Jesus and the Sermon on the Mount. When we think of Gandhi in the backdrop of colonial India, it may not be obvious how his approach can be applied today. This talk will address what we have to learn from Gandhi.  The widespread conflicts and inequalities in our world suggest that we need to “give nonviolence a chance!”

The talk is open to the public. The church is located next to the Post Office, at 30 Common Street, Walpole, MA. The parking lot entrance is to the right of the counseling center next to the church.