Missouri Legislative Session a Wash, re: Death Penalty Legislation

May 9, 2003

May 2003 FORNews

May 7, 2003

Tom Sager's Peace Porridge

We will be posting more essays by Tom in the future. You will find them under the "Essays" heading above.

April 28, 2003

So you think you joined the military, but now don't want to go?  Some facts about DEP

More essays to follow from Kelly Maynard. Check out the "War & Peace" heading above.

April 22, 2003

Teach-in targets U.S. in Iraq

Speakers draw parallels to Arab-Israeli strife.

April 19, 2003

Keep Peace Prominent

While the pitched battles may be dieing down in Iraq, there is still a profound need for us to demonstrate our opposition to war, including calling for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq, calling for no U.S. bases to be established there, calling for no attack on Syria or Iran, etc.
Please join us in any or all of the following:

• Wednesdays anytime between 4:15 and 5:45 p.m. for the highly visible Rush Hour Peace Demonstration.


• We also encourage you to participate in the weekly Saturday Peace Vigil from 10-11 a.m. at the Columbia Post Office


• Women in Black - Tuesdays from noon to 1 p.m. at MU's Speakers Circle.

We also encourage everyone to continue to display peace messages on buttons, stickers, yard signs, with black arm bands, etc. Keep letters critical of the war and occupation coming in to the newspapers. Make you voice heard. Also, help us line up speaking engagements with your class, house of worship or organization.

April 18, 2003

Questions which remain unanswered about the War on Iraq

There remain questions to which we all need answers. But what are the questions? Do we need to know if we are being lied to or trivia about the invasion? Taken together these articles are a good example of why we cannot rely on the US mainstream, corporate, media for news.

• Eight questions about the war: What we still don’t know about Operation Iraqi Freedom
  
  Only three of the eight deal with larger issues: why this war, civilian deaths, and looting. The rest may as well be a "Monday morning quarterbacking" sports article, asking only irrelevant questions about the tactics of the US armed forces. Why these are important and not distractions from the larger issues, the writer doesn't say.
  

  
  



• Iraq war: Unanswered questions.
  There are 10 here and they all deal with different lies told by the US and UK before and during the fighting. Questions deserving honest answers.

April 17, 2003

Background on Syria

While it's a bit unclear how seriously those in the White House are setting their sights on Syria, in terms of military intervention in the near term, it can't hurt to be proactive and get up to speed on the country, the issues, etc. This is a report by Stephen Zunes on the Foreign Policy in Focus website.

April 10, 2003

Conscientiously opposed to war?
Or are you considering enlisting in the military?

The Mid-MO FOR offers free military and draft counseling. Especially worthwhile for men approaching their18th b-day. For appt. call: John Galliher (882-3441), Lana Jacobs (443-0096), John Schuder 445-7569) or Jeff Stack (449-4585).

Two Wrongs don't make a Right

Although the recent observations of Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) are right about poor and minority kids making up a disproportionate part of the enlisted ranks of the armed forces, drafting the rest of our kids is not the way to correct the evil of violence and war. Evil does not become good by making it more universal.

If it is wrong to send our economically deprived kids to kill and die in the sands of Iraq—which it is—it is equally insane to provide the administration with millions of additional kids for the same purpose in Iraq and other countries that the administration dislikes.

Rather than reviving a military draft, we should repeal the whole selective service system, stop the flow of our troops to the Gulf region and return home our military personnel stationed abroad.

Then, perhaps, we could afford to both fund the pressing needs of many of our own and other peoples of the world for housing, food, medical care and education while at the same time, serving as a beacon for a more peaceful world. As we used to say in the Vietnam War days, "Whatever the question, the draft is not the answer."

April 5, 2003

New Weekly Memorial Prayer Service in Jefferson City

Every Sunday Evening  Beginning, April 6, 7 p.m. Wesley Foundation, 805 Atchison Court, on Lincoln University campus

Ecumenical, memorial prayer service for all of the victims of the war in Iraq and to share time with others who are deeply
concerned. Following 20 to 30 minutes of prayer, participants will have the opportunity to share their feelings of anger and grief as well as their statements and visions of hope.

Ongoing:

Wednesday noon hour vigil from noon to 1 pm in front of the High Street post office, across from the State Capitol.

Thursday rush hour vigil from 5 to 6 pm on the southwest corner of Missouri and Stadium boulevards, Jefferson City. 

People for Peace weekly business meeting every Tuesday night, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Center for Rural Ministry, Jefferson City.  (Take Highway 54 West to the first median crossover after the Eldon-Camdenton mileage sign.  Go up the hill.  The Center is on the left.)

March 25, 2003

Peace Cities Petition submitted to the City Council

Columbia:

Wednesdays, 4:15-5:45 p.m., corner of Broadway and Providence

Tuesdays, Noon-1:00 p.m., MU's Speakers Circle

Saturdays, 10-11 a.m., Post Office

February 16, 2003

More than 600 Mid-Missourians demonstrated their opposition to Bush's intended War on the Iraqi people!

They braved cold, wind and rain to join with Millions from around the world

PRE-EMPTIVE PEACE, NOT PRE-EMPTIVE WAR: RESPONSE TO STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS

February 1, 2003

Iraq Issue Guide:

Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies has put together a really excellent primer on the Iraq crisis.

Bennis is a frequent guest on Pacifica radio's "Democracy Now!" with Amy Goodman, another excellent source of current info on the Iraq situation. DN! can be heard locally from 8-9 a.m. Mon.-Fri. on 89.5 KOPN, or at the Democracy Now! website.

January 21, 2003

Columbians Demonstrate Their Opposition to a War against Iraq

Five hundred Columbians march downtown article from the Columbia Daily Tribune

Local demonstration is first for many article from the Columbia Missourian