Announcements:

Andrew Bacevich at Chicago Temple

“Afghanistan and Beyond: America’s Path to Permanent War”

77 W Washington, August 19 • 7:00 PM
Free and Open to the Public

Andrew Bacevich, award-winning author and professor of international relations at Boston University, will appear in discussion with Jerome McDonnell, host of WBEZ’s Worldview.

Bacevich is a former U.S. Army Colonel and author of the critically acclaimed books, The New American Militarism: How Americans Are Seduced by War and The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism. In his recently published work, Washington Rules: America’s Path To Permanent War , Bacevich argues that the same military policy that has dominated American thinking for fifty years - a permanent armed presence straddling the globe, prepared to intervene anywhere - continues in the Obama administration. Bacevich argues persuasively that this is a dangerous delusion, that military superiority will never force the rest of the world to accommodate America’s needs, be they cheap oil, cheap credit, or cheap consumer goods.

“The person who’s not currently a household name who I most wish was is Andrew Bacevich,” says Rachel Maddow of MSNBC. Publishers Weekly reviews Bacevich’s Washington Rules as "an unsparing, cogent, and important critique of assumptions guiding American military policy." Amy Goodman, host and executive producer of Democracy Now! says, “The hard-earned insights of this veteran, analyst, insider, and parent will resonate with people across the political spectrum and offer a serious, riveting, and authentically personal critique of U.S. power.”

Though our politicians deny it, American global might is faltering. This is the moment, says Bacevich, to reconsider the principles that shape American policy in the world.

Andrew Bacevich’s writing has appeared in Foreign Affairs, The Atlantic Monthly, The Nation, The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal. He has also appeared on PBS’ Bill Moyer's Journal and NPR radio. He is the recipient of a Lannan Award and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Co-sponsors: North Suburban Peace Initiative, Lincoln Park Neighbors United for Peace, American Friends Service Committee, Logan Square Neighbors for Peace and truth-out.org.

For more information contact Contact: Michael Lynn at 773-860-6969 or mlynn226@gmail.com

Posted on 8/2/10 by

Petition to Reduce Military Spending

Earlier this year President Obama appointed a national commission to provide recommendations to address the growing federal deficit. The recommendations are due by December 1st of this year. Preliminary information from the commission indicates that they will likely propose significant cutbacks to Social Security and Medicare while once again ignoring the need to cut military spending. We need to take action now to let the commission and our elected representative know that we demand change to correct misplaced financial priorities.

Fortunately the commission has two progressive members--Senator Dick Durbin and Representative Jan Schakowsky. We have already met with Jan Schakowsky and are in the process of setting up a meeting with Dick Durbin.

We are asking you to please do the following two things:
1. read the petition and add your signature to it
2. send the link to all of your friends and family so that they have the opportunity to sign it as well.


NISPI is also working with other organizations around the country to put pressure on the commission members and elected officials to direct our financial resources to the priorities of human needs, environment and education and away from war making.

Please join us in our efforts to reduce military spending.
Thank you so very much for your continued support.

Sincerest regards,
NSPI

Click on the link below to go to the petition
http://nspipeace.org/petitions/sign.php?pid=5#form

Posted on 9/1/10 by

Three things you can do now to help us get to ZERO.

Countdown to Zero has been released and the movement toward zero has already begun to gain momentum. Now, citizens all over the world are feeling the need to get involved and let our governments that know we must eliminate ALL nuclear weapons. This won’t be an easy task and it won’t happen overnight, but the more people who become aware and get involved, the quicker and more loudly our message will be heard. Over the next 6 months to a year there will be many developments as the word spreads and the wheels start turning.

There are three things you can do right now to help the movement toward zero nuclear weapons:

1. The best way to keep up to speed with what’s happening, and to get involved now, is to become a member of NSPI. Your membership fee goes straight into the work we do and your support is very much appreciated. Please click on the link to “Join NSPI” now and we will keep you informed and involved.

2. Tell all of your friends and family about Countdown to Zero and make sure they go see it in the theatre. We need everyone to understand the seriousness of the global nuclear situation and we need everyone to get involved in the movement toward zero.

3. Please go to www.care2.com/zero right now and sign this very important petition urging our Senators to ratify the New START treaty, the first step in reducing our nuclear arsenal and getting to zero nuclear weapons.

Finally, we are very happy to be a part of getting the message out about the very real threat of the existence of, and potential use of, nuclear weapons. We feel that Countdown to Zero is an effective tool in helping to get this message to the masses and increasing peoples’ awareness of this very serious issue. We are also aware that some people are going to take the message of this film and twist it to serve their own purposes. We believe the filmmakers intended to create this film in order to increase the level of awareness about the serious threat that 23,000 nuclear weapons impose on each and every one of us. By no means do we believe the filmmakers intend to increase levels of xenophobia, and under no circumstance would we support or condone that now or ever. We feel that nuclear weapons are a threat to our existence as human beings and no one should have them; not us, nor France, nor Russia, nor North Korea, nor India...no one. All nuclear weapons are a threat no matter in whose hands they lie. We need to eliminate all nuclear weapons as soon as possible and we all need to be a part of making the world a safer place for everyone.

Posted on 7/31/10 by