Democracy for New Mexico

Citizen Action Interview on Radio Free Silver, Community Cable

From Dave McCoy, Citizen Action: Friends, Kyle Johnson of Radio Free Silver will run an interview with Dave McCoy, Director of Citizen Action, nightly for a week at 7 PM on Ch 27 in Silver City starting this Friday the 20th. It will probably run next Tuesday or the following Tuesday at 2 PM on Ch 27 in Albuquerque and Friday the 20th at 8 PM in Santa Fe. A page on Radio Free Silver is dedicated to the show and includes a link back to Citizen Action.

More on Tuesday's de-MILITARIZE UNM Effort

From Stop the War Machine: Demilitarizing UNM of war profiteers is on the UNM Regents agenda for this Tuesday, April 10, at 9 AM or shortly thereafter, in the SUB ballroom B. We are about third on the 9 AM agenda.

History: On September 29, 2006, Bob Anderson, anti-war activist for Stop the War Machine (SWM) was assaulted and arrested at the UNM sponsored Lockheed Martin meeting for speaking out against the university helping promote the new generation of nuclear weapons, Reliable Replacement Warheads (RRW). Concerned citizens went to regents meetings to protest the weapons research and support by UNM. David Harris, interim president of UNM later had a meeting with SWM, at which time he promised to let us have an agenda item for all the regents to hear our concerns and to consider a resolution which we have prepared.

Contact person is: Jeanne Pahls 858-0882 or 401-4808, StoptheWarMachine@comcast.net

This presentation is on behalf of four groups:

• Stop the War Machine
• Democracy for New Mexico
• Los Alamos Study Group
• Progressive Action Coalition

Here is the outline of our UNM Regents presentation:

1. Robb Chavez (Democracy for New Mexico): Brief overview and history of how we came to be presenting today.
2. Paul Eichhorn (Stop the War Machine): Brief review of the Resolution.
3. Vicki Johnson (UNM alumnus): Samples of UNM contracts and funding agencies.
4. Greg Mello (Los Alamos Study Group): Accepting military research contract money changes the agenda of the university from public education center to a private research center run as a subsidy of private weapons corporations; the effect of this on New Mexico.
5. Vicki Johnson (alumnus): The community looks to UNM to be on the right side of US commitments to international treaties.
6. Andrew Marcum (UNM student): UNM's responsibility regarding research
7. Sebastian Pais (Progressive Action Coalition) or Andrew Marcum (both UNM students): student sentiment
8. Carla Josephson (parent of two UNM students): closing

We are submitting this resolution to the UNM Regents for discussion and vote:
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
DEMILITARIZE UNM RESOLUTION
UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO BOARD OF REGENTS

UNM Regents have formed a partnership to operate a research technology park and contracted for weapons research. This has caused great concern.

Accepting research grants from military agencies and contractors has changed the agenda of a university from public education center to that of a private research center run as a subsidy of a private weapons corporation. A corporation like Lockheed Martin may reap large profits while UNM is the one
doing key parts of the technology research used for weapons.

Because the University of New Mexico (UNM) has close relations with two of the nation's nuclear weapons research and design laboratories and the world's largest arms manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, UNM stands at the center of an unfolding ethical, political and ecological crisis.

For instance:

(1) Assisting, as we have seen on September 29, in the promotion of an entirely new nuclear weapons arsenal called the Reliable Replacement Warhead, which is in contradiction to Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and,

(2) Providing research for components of ground, air, space and nuclear weapons system required for the new arsenal of the United States.

This has led to the unacceptable situation where dissent against these policies by our students and community has been ignored and even criminalized.

In response the Board of Regents of the University of New Mexico regret the appearance of the University supporting the RRW symposium that was held on campus on Sep. 29. We have decided it is necessary for the University of New Mexico to heed former President Eisenhower's warning of the dangers to our nation of the military-industrial-academic complex.

To improve the quality of education and better serve the needs of students and citizens in the state, we resolve to begin a three-year phaseout program to reduce aggregate value of contracts transacted with military agencies and contractors.

We, the Regents of the University of New Mexico, want transparency and citizen involvement in compliance with this resolution. To ensure public involvement and accountability, UNM will no longer conduct research oversight in secret such as through the Security Managerial Group.  We will instead form an open Oversight Committee that will have citizen input and implement this resolution concerning controversial research.

Action taken: __________________ Date: ______

Editor's Note: Also see our updated previous post on this action.

(Updated) de-MILITARIZE UNM

From Stop the War Machine:

Attend the Regents Meeting to Support Peace Resolution!
Bring signs, too! Speak out against war and empire!
Tuesday, April 10, 2007 at 9 AM, SUB Ballroom
Need info: www.StoptheWarMachine.org or 505-268-9557SEE UPDATED INFO BELOW

From Bob Anderson of Stop the War Machine: The UNM Regents meeting definitely begins at 9 AM on Tuesday, 4/10 in the UNM SUB  ballroom.

A group of 7 people representing 4 groups (Stop the War Machine being one of them; Robb Chavez of Democracy for New Mexico being another) will be making a presentation at the UNM Regents meeting on Tuesday, April 10 regarding the need to Demilitarize UNM.  The time itself of the presentation is yet to be determined. 

We are inviting folks to support these 7 folks by coming to the Regents meeting and bringing signs that call for the demilitarization of UNM. (For those who aren't sure: Signs are allowed at Regents meetings.) Possible suggestions for signs:

• "De-militarize UNM!"
• "No Weapons-Related Research at UNM"
• "Lockheed Martin out of UNM"

We are also inviting people to support these 7 presenters by writing a letter to the UNM Regents that we can present to them at the meeting. You can send your letter to StoptheWarMachine@comcast.net and we will print it out and put it in an envelope for you.

Please spread the word! Please come out and support the team of "De-Militarize UNM" presenters!

Two websites you may want to check out - very interesting reading, and you will probably see some folks you know here:

• Minutes from the UNM Regents meeting 10-10-06
• Minutes from the UNM Regents meeting 11-14-06

Editor's Note: Also see our later post on this action.

Hold an America's Dialogue Discussion

From America's Dialogue:
I’m writing from Eugene, Oregon, to let you know about an unprecedented week of national grassroots discussions taking place April 14-22, 2007; and to invite your participation and your help in getting the word out to friends and acquaintances all across the country. The project is AMERICA’S DIALOGUE. You can get more information at AmericasDialogue.org. During this week, people will be gathering in small groups all across the country to discuss the future of America.

What kind of America, and what kind of world, do we want to see? What are our priorities as a nation and a people? These discussions will be centering around a new 42-minute video about Hiroshima, nuclear weapons, nuclear waste, and the human cost of militarism and war. The video will serve both as an educational experience for millions of Americans, young and old, and as the catalyst for our discussions about America.

The video - AMERICA’S DIALOGUE - is available on DVD; but people can also form discussion groups and view the video on their computer on our website. The following page connects you to the video on our
site and to the video on Google Video:

.

If you would like a DVD to show at a meeting, just let me know the exact address and I’ll be glad to send a copy. You’re free to copy the DVD and share it with others. You can also use the video as part of a fundraiser or membership drive for your own group if you like.

We’d love to hear from you - any ideas and suggestions and plans to view the video and participate in America’s Dialogue. We would also appreciate your letting anyone and everyone you know, both locally
and across this country, find out about AMERICA’S DIALOGUE. We’ll be networking with many individuals, groups and organizations all across the country to initiate an unprecedented dialogue about the future of our country.

America’s Dialogue
P.O. Box 12144
Eugene, OR 97440
Tele: 1-800-898-9441
Email: thetributeseries@comcast.net
Web: https://www.americasdialogue.org

Kirtland AFB Nukes Target of Memorial Set for Hearing Today

From Stop the War Machine:
State Senator Jerry Ortiz y Pino has introduced Senate Memorial 29, which calls for the dismantlement of the 2000 nuclear weapons at Kirtland, the largest concentration of nuclear weapons anywhere. If Albuquerque were to secede from the union, it would be the world's third largest nuclear power: Russia, USA, Albuquerque.

Concerned citizens have discussed the flaws of Albuquerque safety plan with city council. A number of city councilors have expressed concern over the Albuquerque Emergency Operations Plan, which does not mention the existence of nuclear weapons and relies upon I-25 and I-40 for evacuation routes (remember the snow crisis and the roads out of town)!

There are many other reasons in addition to this to call for dismantlement:

1. All our nuclear weapons did not keep us safe on 911 and do nothing but drain resources that could be better used for education, health care, etc.
2. What are we going to do with them? Use them?
3. 2000 nuclear weapons do not belong in a city, or anywhere.

On January 4, George Schultz, William Perry, Henry Kissinger and Sam Nunn called for disarmament with regard to nuclear weaponry in the Wall Street Journal. On February 8, Governor Richardson declared that the US should lead the way with regard to nuclear disarmament. As the home to the largest concentration of nuclear weapons, New Mexico has an important role in history with regard to disarmament.

We have been told three times in the past four days by the Senate Rules Committee office that SM 29, which calls for the dismantlement of the 2000 nuclear weapons at Kirtland in Albuquerque, will be discussed on Wednesday, March 7, in the Senate Rules Committee that meets at 8:30 AM. Check with the Senate Rules office about SM 29 schedule: (505) 986-4746. Many people are expected to attend the meeting.

Members of the Sen. Rules Committee hearing SM 29:

Linda Lopez (D), chair, 986-4737
John Grubesic (D), vice chair, 986-4260, john.grubesic@nmlegis.gov
Rod Adair (R), ranking member, 986-4385, radair@dfn.com
Kent Cravens (R), 986-4391, jlcravens@nmlegis.gov
Dianna Duran (R), 986-4701, dianna.duran@nmlegis.gov
Dede Feldman (D), 986-4482, dede.feldman@nmlegis.gov
Steve Komadina (R), 986-4377, komadina@stevekomadina.com
Cisco McSorley (D), 986-4485, cisco.mcsorley@nmlegis.gov
Jerry Ortiz y Pino (D), 986-4380, jortizyp@aol.com
Ben Altimirano (D), 986-4733

Attend Hearing in NM on Dangerous New Nuclear Plan

From the Union of Concerned Scientists:
The Bush administration’s controversial Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) would resume U.S. commercial reprocessing—the extraction of weapon-usable plutonium from commercial spent fuel from nuclear reactors—for the first time in over 30 years. The resumption would make it easier for terrorists to obtain the material needed to make a nuclear bomb, and would seriously undermine nuclear non-proliferation efforts by encouraging other countries to begin reprocessing programs that would produce weapon-usable plutonium.

I am writing to encourage you to attend an upcoming Department of Energy (DOE) hearing on the proposed GNEP. Your community is near a potential site for a new GNEP reprocessing facility and an experimental nuclear reactor known as an “advanced burner reactor” that will use plutonium fuel. The plan would entail bringing nuclear waste from nuclear reactors all over the country to your community for processing and long-term storage, exposing you and your neighbors to serious environmental and health risks. A safer and more secure approach is to store spent fuel at each reactor site in robust casks that are protected from terrorist attack.

There are several upcoming meetings in New Mexico, including:

Monday, February 26, 2007, 6 - 9:30 PM
Lea County Event Center, 5101 N Lovington-Hobbs Hwy, Hobbs, NM

Tuesday, February 27, 2007, 9 AM - 12:30 PM
Pecos River Village Conf. Center (Carousel House), 711 Muscatel Avenue, Carlsbad, NM

Tuesday, February 27, 2007, 6 - 9:30 PM
Best Western Sally Port Inn & Suites (Ballroom), 2000 N Main Street, Roswell, NM

Thursday, March 1, 2007, 6 - 9:30 PM
Hilltop House Best Western (La Vista Room), 400 Trinity Drive (at Central), Los Alamos, NM

By law, the DOE has to conduct a Programmatic Environmental Impact Assessment (PEIS) of the GNEP proposal. The hearing is part of this PEIS process, providing the public with an opportunity to present comments or concerns, ask questions, and raise a range of issues including the overall purpose and need for the GNEP program, the risks of nuclear terrorism, potential environmental risks/ implications, and economic considerations.

I encourage you to go to the hearing and ask the DOE why it is pursuing a plan that will make it easier for terrorists to obtain the material needed to make nuclear weapons. Ask them to consider the security advantages of the “no action alternative” of storing waste securely at nuclear reactor sites until the U.S. government builds a permanent repository for direct disposal of spent nuclear fuel. 

Click Here for UCS Briefing Paper on GNEP 

Click here for DOE GNEP web site

You may also submit comments on the GNEP proposal (by April 4, 2007):

Mail to Mr. Timothy A. Frazier, GNEP PEIS Document Manager, Office of Nuclear Energy, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20585-0119;
Via telephone: 866-645-7803;
Via fax: 866-645-7807; or
By e-mail at GNEP-PEIS@nuclear.energy.gov.
Please mark your letters, faxes, or emails “GNEP PEIS Comments.”

If you are planning to attend the hearing and need assistance or have questions, please do not hesitate to call or email me at smeyer@ucsusa.org or 617-301-8065. Also, if you do attend, please let me know and call or email me with any feedback or information that may come out of the hearing and could be relevant to our work on the issue.

Sincerely,
Sean Meyer
National Field Coordinator
Global Security Program

Sign up for action alerts from the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Nuclear Watch NM Seeks Letter Writers

Guest Blog from John Witham, Nuke Watch NM:
NukeWatch is looking for a few brave letter writers to be a rapid response team when the issues merit! 

If you have been been seeing us mentioned in articles, visiting our website or receiving our newsletter you know about our work in nuclear weapons issues, nonproliferation and cleanup of contamination from weapons production.

There is a serious groundswell of opposition to the Bush Administration’s plan to build new nuclear weapons and resume industrial-scale bomb production. Editorials and articles are now being published here in New Mexico...

Santa Fe New Mexican article
Albuquerque Journal article

...and nationally, for example in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, which call for fundamental review and change in policy.  Even Henry Kissinger and Mikhail Gorbachev have called for the elimination of nuclear weapons! Congressional hearings and the new Federal budget are pending. Yet nuclear weapons affairs remain balanced on the knife-edge.  The results can be tipped by the slightest nudge if acted upon in a prompt manner.

How can we take advantage of this significant time?

Our representatives and elected officials take the pulse of the nation by having their staff review letters-to-editors, op-eds, and online comments from citizens responding to articles in the press. Usually these comments are 150 words or less! Congressional staff has told us that there are not enough citizens making their voices heard through these standard media outlets to compel their offices to act decisively on nuclear weapons issues. New Mexicans have a special responsibility and opportunity to do so, as our state is the key state in the nuclear weapons complex (43% of the Department of Energy’s nuclear weapons funding is spent here alone). At the same time, we know from personal experience that because of our relatively small population New Mexicans who do speak can have more effect than citizens in a more populous state. We are living now in a time when some added citizen advocacy could help change U.S. nuclear weapons policies and make a better world for generations to come.

We’d like to identify a group of people with an interest in helping shape this future by occasionally writing (say every couple of months) a letter-to-the -editor.  As time is usually of the essence we are looking for potential “rapid responders” who we can tip off (via email) about a recent editorial, pending legislation or an upcoming hearing, and who can invest a few minutes to write a few words in order to help nudge the scales towards the future we want our children to enjoy.

Please consider being a rapid responder, letting your elected officials know where you stand on nuclear weapons issues and having an impact on our future! If you decide to become a rapid responder we will add your email address to a select list to receive these prompts.  Although we may provide key points about the particular issue and where to send comments, how you respond is up to you.

We deeply respect the privilege of communicating with you and will not share your e-mail address with anyone for any purpose. If you wish to participate as a rapid responder just let us know.  Or, if you have any questions please feel free to give me a call or e-mail me.

In peace,
John Witham, Communications,
Nuclear Watch New Mexico
www.nukewatch.org
john@nukewatch.org
(505) 989-7342

Editor's Note: This is a guest blog from John Witham of Nuclear Watch. If you'd like to submit a piece for consideration as a guest blog, contact me by clicking on the Email Me button the upper left-hand side of our main page.

Albuquerque Activists Respond to Richardson's Call for Disarmament

From Stop the War Machine:
On Thursday, Feb. 8, 2007, Bill Richardson is quoted as saying the United States must lead the way by reducing its nuclear weapons. Disarmament activists in Albuquerque, home to the largest concentration of nuclear weapons in the world, were surprised to hear this.

“Governor Richardson could lead the way himself by calling for nuclear disarmament right here at home in New Mexico,” said Jeanne Pahls of Stop the War Machine/Nukes Out of Duke City. “We met with Governor Richardson last year on this topic and gave him a petition signed by 7,000 people that called for the dismantlement of the nuclear weapons at Kirtland. We asked the governor to call for their dismantlement as well, but we still have not received a response from him on this issue.”

Bob Anderson of Stop the War Machine/Nukes Out of Duke City said, “Governor Richardson’s choosing to address this issue of non-proliferation is due to the tremendous grassroots effort around the world for no more wars and nuclear weapons. Richardson has recognized, since last November, the electoral superpower of the peace movement. It is time for action now, not sometime in the future!”

Governor Richardson could act on his call for disarmament by supporting a memorial written by State Senator Jerry Ortiz y Pino’s office this past week, a memorial calling for the dismantlement of the Kirtland nuclear weapons. As home to 2,000 nuclear weapons, which constitutes roughly one-fifth of the US nuclear arsenal, Albuquerque has a unique role to play in disarmament.

On Friday morning, February 9th, at 7:30 AM Albuquerque citizens will gather at the Albuquerque Peace Center (202 Harvard SE). They will depart for the Roundhouse together in order to spend the day lobbying their senators and representatives on the issue of dismantling the nuclear weapons at Kirtland. They will be taking the petition to have the Kirtland nuclear weapons dismantled, which has 8,000 signatures at this point in time.

It would be nice if the governor would sign on to a local disarmament effort!

Questions? 401-4808

Editor's Note: Check out our previous post on Gov. Richardson's call for a halt in U.S. nuclear weapons production as well as an earlier post on the memorial to dismantle the nuclear weapons at Kirtland Air Force Base.

Gov. Richardson to Call for Halting New U.S. Nuke Weapons Programs

On Thursday, Governor Bill Richardson will make what his presidential campaign is calling a "major address" on foreign policy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC. According to the Campaign News Advisory (see below), Richardson will include among his proposals "halting new American nuclear weapons programs." Quite a compelling announcement considering the roles New Mexico's Los Alamos National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories play in the nuke weapon industry. In fact, Los Alamos is one of two labs to have submitted a design to build what's being called the next generation of nuke bombs, the very controversial "reliable replacement warhead."

According to a January article in the Santa Fe New Mexican:

... last month, the director of Los Alamos National Laboratory listed the new warhead design among the lab's accomplishments. "I think our team did a great job," director Michael Anastasio told employees in a December speech.

At least two watchdog groups in New Mexico -- Nuclear Watch New Mexico and the Los Alamos Study Group -- are opposed to the project, saying it will further nuclear proliferation.

Greg Mello of the study group said the program is primarily about keeping the nuclear weapons complex alive.

Reportedly the Bush administration is considering combining the designs submitted by Los Alamos Lab with that proposed by Lawrence Livermore National Lab in California.

CAMPAIGN NEWS ADVISORY
New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson to Outline Bold, Strong Foreign Policy Vision for America

US must address threat of nuclear terrorism, should stop new nuke programs

Governor Bill Richardson on Thursday will deliver a major address at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, DC.  In the speech, entitled “The New Realism and the Rebirth of American Leadership”, the Governor will outline his vision for a renewed and strong American foreign policy and his detailed philosophy to confront world challenges.

Governor Richardson believes that under the Bush administration the country’s foreign policy has been guided more by “wishful thinking than by reality”.  He believes the United States must take a different path in foreign affairs, “a path not of hard words, but of hard work.” The Governor will offer his assessment of the true challenges facing America and the world, and his plan on how to deal with them.

Governor Richardson will also discuss ways to make America and the world more secure, specifically by addressing the threat of nuclear terrorism and the need to secure the world’s existing nuclear materials.  He will also propose halting new American nuclear weapons programs.

Bill Richardson is uniquely qualified to discuss foreign policy, having served as a US Congressman for 14 years, Ambassador to the UN, Energy Secretary, and as the two-term Governor of a border state.   

What: Governor Bill Richardson major foreign policy address to CSIS

Where: 10 am Thurs. February 8, CSIS offices, 1800 K Street NW, Washington, DC

Site Contact: Andrew Schwartz, CSIS (202) 775-3242 aschwartz@csis.org

News Advisory: February 7, 2007
Contact: Pahl Shipley, Santa Fe (505) 982-2291

Stop Corporate Welfare and Government Secrecy in New Mexico

From Sue Dayton:
On January 27, 2007, the Albuquerque Journal published a front-page article, “Sandia’s Manager Receives Bonus: Lockheed Earns a Contract Extension and $7.7 Million.” The article reported on Lockheed Martin’s “outstanding management” of Sandia National Laboratories. Lockheed’s management was so outstanding that Lockheed executives got $7.7 million in bonuses on top of its $16.6 million “fixed fee” for running the nuclear weapons lab! To add insult to injury the so-called “report card” with the information about Sandia’s performance and the executive bonuses is being withheld from the public. Along with the article the Journal published an editorial calling for the release of Sandia’s “report card” titled, “Let Taxpayers in On Sandia’s Open Secret.”

American taxpayers - and especially New Mexicans - should be OUTRAGED! Why?

• It’s called corporate government welfare. Taxpayers’ hard-earned money should not be used to pay the bonuses of Lockheed executives for doing what they should be doing.
• Sandia National Laboratories and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the sub-autonomous agency of the U.S. Department of Energy now in charge of the nation’s nuclear weapons labs, is creating its own system of classifying documents that should be made public.
• The “classified report card” on Sandia’s performance reeks of government cover-up under a closed-door policy instead of the new open-door policy of government that the House has now pledged to implement. The NNSA’s authority to designate public documents “for official use only” is out of control and the NNSA should be removed from running the labs altogether.
• Sandia’s “classified report card” needs to be released in its entirety. Not 50%, not 75%, not 95%, but in its entirety.

The new House Democratic leadership has pledged to “clean up Washington” by creating an honest government and open leadership policy. Your representatives need to hear from you now. It’s time to tell them that corporate welfare is not the responsibility of American taxpayers and government reports that are not classified should be made available to the public.

Feel free to use the bullet points above and send your letter to the following representatives:

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House
Office of the Speaker
235 Cannon House Office Bldg.
Washington, D.C. 20515
(202) 225-4965
sf.nancy@mail.house.gov
www.house.gov/pelosi
(letters can be submitted via e-mail, website or by mail) 

Bart Stupak, Chairman
Energy and Commerce Committee
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation
2125 Rayburn House Office Bldg.
Washington, D.C. 20515
(202) 225-2927 telephone or FAX  (202) 225-2525
(no e-mail address is available so send letter by mail or fax)

Senator Jeff Bingaman
United States Senate
703 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
(202) 224-5521
E-mail: senator_bingaman@bingaman.senate.gov
(letters can be submitted via mail or e-mail)

Congressman Tom Udall
1410 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
www.tomudall.house.gov
(letters can be submitted via website or by mail)

Congresswoman Heather Wilson
318 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6316 phone
202-225-4975 fax
www.wilson.house.gov
(letters can be submitted via website, fax or mail)

Government Accountability Project
Gloria Jarmon, Congressional Relations
441 ‘G’ St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20548
(202) 512-3000
E-mail: congrel@gao.gov

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me via e-mail. Many thanks for taking the time to write your representatives about this matter of utmost importance. 

Sincerely,
Sue Dayton
sdayton@swcp.com