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Rolla Peace News January 15, 2019 |
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Dear Friends: http://tomsager.org/Peaceletters/peaceletter011519.html In this newsletter is: 1. NOON VIGIL FOR PEACE: THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, 2019 2. WORLD WITHOUT WAR 3. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) a) Thoughts On a Government Shutdown: Taking the Garbage Out b) More Thoughts On a Government Shutdown c) Withdrawing US Troops From Syria d) Drawing Down Troops In Afghanistan e) Coming Unglued 1. NOON VIGIL FOR PEACE: THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, 2019 We vigil for peace in front of the Rolla Post Office, THIS THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, FROM NOON TO 1:00 PM (and most subsequent Thursdays until peace is established). Please try to join us. The temperature is predicted to be in the 40s. If you do not feel comfortable standing with us in front of the Post Office, please consider driving by and showing your support for our message by honking your horn and flashing a peace sign. 2. WORLD WITHOUT WAR Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Green New Deal, radical as it seems to many, is not radical enough, according to Robert Koehler. He states (and he's right) that any plan to address climate change that doesn't take into account the damage to the environment and wasting of resources caused by our obsession with war and weaponry is not going to be successful. The Green New Deal, as far as it goes, is the kind of about-face our country needs to accomplish if we are going to have a habitable planet to leave to our descendants. All the moderate and right-wing politicians are horrified at the thought of their oil stocks tanking, losing their gas guzzlers and having to rely on public transportation, perhaps even having to moderate their billionaire lifestyles. It's not an easy prospect to contemplate for most of us who are comfortable with the status quo. But the alternative to radical action is the disintegration of the ecosystem that supports life as we know it, and possible extinction of the human race. What the proponents of the Green New Deal have not made clear is that the nearly-trillion-dollar military budget, most of which is used in ways that harm the planet and human beings, could be used to accomplish their goals, at the same time taking away a huge source of environmental damage. We have been participating one way or another in nasty little military actions against countries much smaller than ours, killing their people and destroying their means of living, for at least a couple of decades now. As a nation, we have gained nothing except hatred. It's time to stop fooling ourselves. We can be what human beings have always had the potential to be: Stewards of the planet, caring for it and each other. Or, we can die. Those are the choices. 3. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) a) Thoughts On a Government Shutdown: Taking the Garbage Out b) More Thoughts On a Government Shutdown c) Withdrawing US Troops From Syria d) Drawing Down Troops In Afghanistan e) Coming Unglued THOUGHTS ON A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN: TAKING THE GARBAGE OUT One of the many consequences of lack of government services that we seldom consider — until it's too late — is the lack of trash disposal. Garbage piles up quickly and eventually cities will choke on their own waste. Rotting garbage breeds rats and flies which spread disease. A city that lacks adequate garbage disposal will soon become unlivable.“Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout would not take the garbage out” —Shel Silverstein During New York City's sanitation workers strike of 1968 which lasted 8 days, 100,000 tons of garbage piled up in mountains. Last week, California Reps Jackie Speier and Jared Huffman picked up trash in two California national parks and shipped some it to Washington where they attempted to deliver three boxes of trash to the White House. Huffman remarked that soon they will have enough trash to build a wall. Meanwhile garbage in Washington DC's national parks is being picked up by the City of Washington DC. It is uncertain whether the federal government will reimburse the city. Curbside garbage collection and recycling is the fifth most dangerous profession, (after fishermen, loggers, airplane pilots and roofers). Think about it. Sanitation workers have to get on and off slow moving trucks, sometimes on busy streets where cars whiz by. Curbside trash collectors and recyclers experienced 30 fatalities In the US in 2017 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In the United States, each one of us generates 5 to 7 pounds of garbage each day, depending on whose statistics you use. Here in Rolla, according to Brady Wilson, director of Environmental Services, we have not experienced a single fatality or serious injury during curbside pickup. Rollaites generate 17,000 tons of trash each year which is landfilled at a cost of $724,000. In addition we recycle 3,000 tons of waste and mulch 2,500 tons of yard waste, which amounts to a considerable savings over the cost of landfilling. Recycling won't solve our trash problems; but it is an important component. Read about recycling in Rolla here. And while I'm on the subject of trash, here is my favorite waste disposal story: MORE THOUGHTS ON A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNShortly after God created man, all the parts of the human body got together to choose a president. As the shutdown passes the 25 day mark, an estimated 800,000 federal workers have been furloughed or are working without pay. Now factor in all the government contractors who are also out of work due to the government shutdown. And the ripple effect, such as businesses that rely on the patronage of federal workers. Also consider that the banks and health insurance companies are unlikely to wait for payments. And factor in that so many families live paycheck to paycheck and are already in debt. Lot's of folks out there hurting badly. Lots of angry folks out there too.“Popular revulsion for the ruling elite ... is nearly universal.” —Chris Hedges Bottom line: The government cares a whole lot more about its pet projects than it does about the common people who elected them. Incidentally, I've been calling our senators and representative asking them (angrily) to open the government (NOW!) If you want to do likewise, here are the phone numbers: WITHDRAWING US TROOPS FROM SYRIAWhite House comment line: 202-456-1111 (closed during shutdown) Looks like this might actually happen. Donald Trump has declared victory in Syria. Way past time to end these forever wars. DRAWING DOWN TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN Another big plus. We're in the 18th year of this longest ever war that was supposed to be a cakewalk. Maybe Trump is ready to declare victory in Afghanistan too and bring the troops home. Meanwhile the Taliban continues to make gains on the ground against an unpopular ineffectual Afghan government. COMING UNGLUED OI' Donald seems to be fraying about the edges — serving the championship Clemson football team fast food at the White House. He could have at least taken them to a fancy restaurant and given them a rain check to visit the White House later. Would you want a man who serves fast food to the championship college football team to have the launch codes for thousands of nuclear weapons? Rolla Peace News is distributed by email once a week on Tuesday evenings (except on rare occasions) and is posted on the web at http://tomsager.org (click on Grassroots Rolla: at the top of rightmost column). If you don't wish to get notices of peace events in the Rolla area, let me know and I'll take you off this list. If you want to be added to this list, let me know. Wage peace, Helen helenm (at) fidnet.com |