Hello cgf-ers,
After the recent postings about 'space', I was suddenly struck by the
general absence of geographic concern or writing about Space (ie: the bit
beyond the earth's atmosphere!). This is not just an attempt to be too
clever - my research is currently focussing on secret military sites in the
UK, and in particular Menwith Hill, one of the major sites directing US
Space warfare operations. If you want to be very scared (and for any of you
postmodernists our there, have a good laugh), go to
http://www.spacecom.af.mil/usspace/, that is the United States Space
Command, which is rapidly becoming the most important branch of the US
armed forces, and take a look at their 'Vision 2020', their totally open
and frank plan for total control of Space and therefore space (and people)
on earth in the interests of US military and commercial objectives.
Perhaps the most scary thing about the whole document is the terrible
cartoon-like graphics and at once macho and naive style (including one of
the title pages done like the opening of 'Star Wars'), which just shows
that these people inhabit a completely different mental (but unfortunately
not physical) space than the one we think we know...
David.
PS: On the other hand, here is the good news:
URGENT PRESS RELEASE 1.2.99
NUCLEAR TRIDENT DISARMED BY TRIDENT 2000 ACTIVIST WOMEN
In the early hours of this morning two peace activist women, from the
Aldermaston Women's Group, safely and non-violently carried out
disarmament
work, to prevent the new British Trident submarine from leaving its
dock.
This vehicle for nuclear weapons of mass destruction was due to sail
within
the next month.
The women are Rosie James and Rachel Wenham, both from Leeds. The women
swam 300 metres in wet suits into the Vickers dock yard at Barrow in
Furness to reach HMS Vengeance. They swam in freezing conditions in the
dark with their disarmament equipment of hammers, chisels, crowbars,
screwdrivers and paint. The women then climbed around the submarine and
dismantled radio equipment used to launch weapons of mass destruction.
Both
have been arrested and are being held in police custody at Barrow. Since
August 1998, this is the second disarmament action at Barrow, and the
third
swimming action - the others being at Faslane in Scotland.
The imminent threat of a nuclear conflict is such that the women had no
alternative but to carry out this task of preventing a new vehicle for
these weapons of mass destruction being even tested. This threat to us
all
comes from the facts that
* the British Trident submarine Vanguard was on patrol around Gibraltar
during the Gulf crises
* from the allegiance displayed between Blair and Clinton in the latest
Gulf war, there is little doubt that Blair would follow a U.S.
military lead
* the current British Strategic Defence Policy indicates that the UK
would
contravene International Law, by launching a nuclear attack even if the
sovereignty of the nation itself is not directly threatened.
These facts together denote that although the Trident weapon has not
been
used so far, the illegal threat is constant - so the danger of it being
used is imminent.
A single Trident warhead is 8 times more powerful than those detonated
over
the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Due to this enormous explosive
yield,
these weapons are in direct contravention of International Law governing
War, Human Rights, the Environment and Genocide.
Rachel Wenham states "as a citizen of the world, I have upheld the
Nuremberg Principles in acting to prevent the crime of mass murder from
being threatened and committed".
The women support the campaign Trident Ploughshares 2000. This is
committed
to the implementation of the decommissioning of the Trident programme by
the year 2000. The UK Government refuses to recognise the illegality
of the
Trident warheads, and continues their criminal activities of maintaining
and deploying these weapons. TP2000 activists uphold the law -
including by
disarming the system themselves. The women state: "In this world where
in
the arena of War instantaneous mass murder of innocents is an accepted
possibility, we, the said mass, have the unalienable right to protect
our
rights to life and peace".
Trident Ploughshares 2000
42-46 Bethel Street
Norwich
Norfolk
NR2 1NR
tel + 44 (0) 1603 611953
fax + 44 (0) 1603 666879
http://www.gn.apc.org/tp2000/
Email : [log in to unmask]
Nuclear weapons are immoral, dangerous, polluting, a terrible waste of
resources and were found to be generally illegal by the International
Court
of Justice on 8th July 1996.
David Wood
PhD Student ('The Rural Peace Dividend')
Department of Agricultural Economics and Food Marketing
University of Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 7RU
Tel: 0191 222 5305
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