"Hidden In Plain Sight" Screening

The Walpole Peace and Justice Group is continuing it's speakers series on Dec. 5th with the video, Hidden In Plain Sight. We have choosen this film due to the fact that it documents the history of the infamous School of the Americas at Ft. Benning in Columbus, Georgia which just had 16 people arrested for civil disobedience, out of a crowd of 22,000 that demonstrated on Nov. 17 - 19 to close the school. Since 1990, there have been annual demonstrations to close the school that has grown from a few 100 to around 20,000 in 2005 and 22,000 in 2006. There have been over 170 people arrested who have served more than 78 years in federal prison and local jails. These demonstators come from all over the U.S. and are made up of religous leaders, teachers, veterans, students, grandmothers and torture survivors.


Hidden In Plain Sight

The reason that so many people want to close this school is because it has been training many of the worst human rights violators in many of the countries of Latin America. These people object to the fact that our tax dollars are being used to promote a foreign policy that has supported many oppressive goverments. The film, Hidden In Plain Sight, gives a good overview of this foreign policy and how The School of the Americas has been used as a tool by various governments to control the poor. If you want to see why so many people in Latin America (especially the poor) don't like the U.S., then please come see this very revealing film.

The film will be shown at the Walpoe Public Library at 7:30 on Dec. 5th.

Climate Resources from Tuesday Talk

Danielle Luttenberg Meitiv was kind enough to send along some of the information she presented at Tuesday talk so we could all do our own research and follow-up:

Union of Concerned Scientists www.ucsusa.org
Just released a major new sudy on the effects of climate change on the Northeast - available on their website.

MASSPIRG www.masspirg.org

Massachsetts Climate Action Network: www.massclimateaction.org
Grassroots climate action conference, Sunday November 19th - open to all

Ross Gelbspan's website The Heat Is Online: http://www.heatisonline.org/

Books:

The Heat is On - Ross Gelbspan
The Boiling Point - Ross Gelbspan
An Inconvenient Truth - Al Gore (even better than the film)
The Weather Makers - Tim Flannery
Field Notes From a Catastrophe - Elizabeth Kolbert
The Discovery of Global Warming - Spencer Weart

[Note: The full UCS report is available from the Northeast Climate Impacts Assessment -- the report in PDF form:
Climate Change in the U.S. Northeast, a report of the NECIA]

WPnJ Global Warming Talk Oct 3rd

Getting All Hot and Bothered: The Truth About Global Warming and What We Can Do About

The Walpole Peace and Justice Group is sponsoring a talk on global warming by oceanographer Danielle Luttenberg Meitiv on October 3, 2006 at 7:30 PM at the Walpole Public Library. An international consensus of scientists, religious leaders, politicians, activists and citizens are calling for a coordinated global effort to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reverse global warming. However, while most people are concerned about global warming, many struggle to understand how it works or what its effects might be. Others worry that we don't have the means to address the problem or don't realize that they can make a difference. In this presentation, Getting All Hot and Bothered: The Truth About Global Warming and What We Can Do About, Danielle Luttenberg Meitiv will “translate” the science behind global warming into understandable language and talk about some of the most promising solutions to this global challenge. Special emphasis will be placed on the environmental and political climate of New England, including ways that Massachusetts is taking the lead on this issue and what you can do to make a difference. Danielle Luttenberg Meitiv is an oceanographer, advocate and environmental educator. She received her B.S. in Biology from the University at Buffalo and her M.S. in Oceanography from the University of Rhode Island. Her research focused on the study of climate and ecology in the distant past. She has worked as an oceanographer for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Washington, D.C., led Environmental Defense’s efforts to protect New England’s ocean environment, has coordinated the JGEN project, an international network committed to protecting Israel's environment, and taught in many educational settings.

Walpole Peace Vigil Sept 21st

The Walpole Peace and Justice Group is holding a candlelight vigil on Thursday, September 21, 2006 at the Walpole Common at the corner of Main Street and West Street from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM in support of the Declaration of Peace’s call on Congress to create and initiate a comprehensive plan for peace in Iraq:

- a prompt timetable for withdrawal of troops and closure of bases
- a peace process for security, reconstruction, and reconciliation
- a shift of funding from war to meeting human needs

Please join us for the vigil, either for the full hour or just for a few minutes. We will have candles. September 21st is the International Day of Peace and is a fitting day for calling for peace in Iraq. Information on the Declaration of Peace can be found at their web site, http://www.declarationofpeace.org. Over 400 religious and peace groups have endorsed the declaration. They are also asking people to contact their senators and representatives on September 26.

“The Declaration of Peace is a nationally coordinated grassroots effort to call on Congress to create and initiate a comprehensive plan for peace in Iraq. The Declaration of Peace began in March 2006, through discussions with organizations and individuals around the United States who shared the common goal of ending the war and occupation in Iraq. Consultations with peace and justice coalitions, faith-based groups, veterans and military families, elected officials and staff, and community leaders from around the country led to the development of The Declaration of Peace’s eight points, to be included in Congressional plans for peace.” http://www.declarationofpeace.org/about-us.

For the Walpole Peace and Justice Group,
Philip Czachorowski

One World Peace Walk on Sep 9th

We invite people to join in The One World Peace Walk on September 9th to bring attention to the devastating toll of war on civilians in the Middle East, Darfur, and around the world. Cities and towns have been destroyed, missiles have been rained down on population centers, and hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes. The numbers are appalling: over 1,000 civilians killed and 970,000 people displaced in Lebanon, over 3.8 million people affected in Darfur. The situation in Iraq continues to be dismal with between 41,000 and 100,000 civilian causalities in addition to the tragic toll on our military forces. Join us as we walk to speak out for peace and to tell all world leaders that targeting of civilians is unacceptable and must be stopped.

The walk is sponsored by the Walpole Peace and Justice Group and is supported by the Peace Abby in Sherborn as well as local church outreach groups. Walkers will carry a small replica of the Peace Abbey’s 2 ton memorial stone that has traveled to Arlington National Cemetery, Belfast, Nagasaki, and Hiroshima. The Peace Walk will start at the Norwood Common at 1:45 PM with an opening ceremony and end at the Walpole Common at 4:30 PM with a closing ceremony. We recommend that people park their cars in Walpole and take the MBTA bus from Walpole to Norwood. The walk will proceed down Route 1A and is 4.6 miles long. Water will supplied along the route and refreshments will be served at the closing ceremony.

We are honored to have Joseph Gerson, Program Director for the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) in New England speak at the closing ceremonies. He has been an influential voice on issues of peace and justice since 1976 and has spoken at over 70 colleges and at international conferences. He has given the keynote addresses at the World Conference Against A&H Bombs in Hiroshima, the Japan Peace conference in Sasebo, and the Swedish Peace Council. Dr. Gerson is the author of several books and numerous articles on peace and justice. We will also have a group sing led by local musicians. The public is invited to join the walk or, if you are unable to walk, join us at the closing ceremony to hear Dr. Gerson speak.

Philip Czachorowski

Talk by Carlos and Melida Arredondo

Talk by Carlos and Melida Arredondo on their son killed in Iraq at Walpole Library on Tuesday, Sept. 5 at 7:30

The Walpole Peace & Justice Group is resuming its speaker’s series on September 5 with a talk by Carlos and Melida Arredondo from Roslindale, MA. Carlos gained national recognition when he set himself on fire after learning that his 20 year old son, Marine Lance Cpl. Alexander Arredondo, was killed in action in Najaf, Iraq on August 25, 2004. Carlos attended Alexander’s wake and funeral on a stretcher despite his injuries. He has since recuperated from second degree burns on 26% of his body. Carlos and Melida are currently focusing on public speaking and a media campaign to inform Spanish speaking parents of the unethical recruitment methods used to target troops who come from divorced and low income backgrounds. The talk will focus on their son’s experiences in Iraq and their present views on the war in Iraq. This talk is particularly significant for Walpole as Alexander is buried in the Rural Cemetery in North Walpole. Carlos and Melida are members of Military Families Speak Out, Gold Star Families for Peace, Pax Christi, American Friends Services Committee and Roslindale Neighbors for Peace and Justice. The talk is at the Walpole Public Library at 7:30 PM.

World Out of Balance Film

Joe Public Films is about ready to launch a new movie describing Exxon-Mobil's role in accelerating global warming -- not just by selling and burning fossil fuels, but also by creating a haze of confusion around the science of global warming:


http://www.worldoutofbalance.org