Climate Chaos letter sent to Secretary of War Robert Gates

August 4, 2010

 

Dr. Robert M. Gates

Secretary of Defense [sic]

1000 Defense Pentagon

Washington, DC 20301-1000

 

Dear Secretary Gates,

 

I am writing as a representative of the National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance.  We are a group of citizens dedicated to working for an end to the illegal wars and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, and the illegal bombing, since July of 2008, of Pakistan.  It is our opinion that the use of drones is a violation of international law.

 

These actions are causing incredible human suffering, growing distrust of the United States around the world, and are diverting our resources which could be better used to ease human suffering.  We follow the principles of Gandhi, King, Day and others, working nonviolently for a peaceful world.

 

As people of conscience, we are very concerned about our environment.  According to Joseph Nevins, in an article published on June 14, 2010 by CommonDreams.org, GREENWASHING THE PENTAGON, “The U.S. military is the world’s single biggest consumer of fossil fuels, and the single entity most responsible for destabilizing the Earth’s climate.”  And the article claims “. . . the Pentagon devours about 330,000 barrels of oil per day (a barrel has 42 gallons), more than the vast majority of the world’s countries.” Go to http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/06/14-1.

 

The amount of oil used by your military machine is beyond belief, and each military vehicle also releases pollutants through the exhaust.  Tanks, trucks, Humvees and other vehicles are not known for their fuel economy.  Other fuel guzzlers are submarines, helicopters and fighter jets.  Each military flight, whether involved in the transport of soldiers or in a combat mission, contributes more carbon into the atmosphere.

The U.S. military’s environmental record is, to say the least, dismal.  Any war can bring about ecocide in the area of fighting.  One example was the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  Vietnam is still dealing with effects of the use of the toxic defoliant Agent Orange.  More recently, Mother Earth is suffering because the Pentagon continues to use depleted uranium ammunition.  It seems the Pentagon first used DU weaponry during the first Persian Gulf War.

 

Because the United States has hundreds of military bases here and abroad, the Pentagon is exacerbating a growing environmental crisis on a global scale. Of course, this crisis is not limited to U.S. military activities, but the Department of War must be the focus if we are to seriously address the planet’s ongoing climate chaos.

We would like to meet with you to discuss bringing all troops home from these awful wars and occupations and the Pentagon’s role in the destruction of the environment.  At this meeting, we would appreciate if you could provide a detailed breakdown of the military’s greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide.  As citizen activists and members of the National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance, we adhere to the Nuremberg protocols. These principles, established during the trials of Nazi war criminals, call on people of conscience to challenge their government when it is engaged in criminal activity.  As part of our Nuremberg responsibility, we are reminding you that you swore to uphold the Constitution.  In a dialogue, we will detail that the Pentagon is abusing the Constitution and Mother Earth.

 

Please get back to me, so that a meeting can be scheduled as soon as possible.  The current situation is urgent.  Cities and states are starving, while tax dollars are wasted on wars and occupations.  Innocents are dying because of U.S. military policies.  And the environmental damage caused by the Pentagon must be halted.

 

We look forward to your response, as we believe citizen activists have the right to be involved in matters of such great importance.  Your response will be shared with others concerned with the issues raised above.  Thank you for considering our request.

 

In peace,

 

Max Obuszewski, on behalf of the National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance

 

Maria Allwine, Green Party candidate for governor of Maryland, Pledge of Resistance-Baltimore; Moya Atkinson, Falls Church, VA; Ellen E Barfield, Phil Berrigan Memorial Chapter Veterans for Peace, Baltimore; Rain Burroughs, Green Party, CODEPINK, Richmond VA; Gordon Clark, Bethesda, MD; Susan Crane, Jonah House, Baltimore; Frances Crowe, Northampton, MA; Robert Daniels II, LEPOCO Peace Center, Bethlehem, PA; June Eisley, Delaware Pacem in Terris, Wilmington; Jenefer Ellingston, Washington, D.C.; Joy First, National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance, Madison, WI; Carol Gilbert, Baltimore; Chris Gaunt, Grinnell, IA; Sister Mary Ann Hartnett, School Sisters of Notre Dame, Baltimore; Martha Hennessy, Weathersfield, VT; Kathy Kelly, Co-coordinator, Voices for Creative Nonviolence, Chicago; Malachy Kilbride, Washington, D.C.; Stephen Vincent Kobasa, Atlantic Life Community, New Haven, CT; Barbara Larcom, Baltimore; Linda LeTendre, Saratoga Peace Alliance, Saratoga Springs, NY; Bro John Mahoney, Xaverian Brother, Baltimore; Kevin Martin, Executive Director, Peace Action, Silver Spring, MD; Jay Marx, Proposition One [www.prop1.org], Washington, D.C.; Elizabeth McAlister, Baltimore; Claudia and Paul McNeil, Spencer Peace Symposium, Spencer, MA; Judy Miner, Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, Madison; Don Muller, Sitkans for Peace and Justice, Sitka, Alaska; Gael Murphy, CODEPINK, Washington, D.C.; Harold Nelson, Washington, D.C.; John Oliver. member of Baltimore Chapter of Veterans for Peace, Catonsville, MD; Janet Parker, Madison Pledge of Resistance & Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice; Ardeth Platte, Baltimore; Stephen Roblin, Towson, MD; Phil Runkel, NCNR, Waukesha, WI; Robert M. Smith, Brandywine Peace Community, Media, PA; David Swanson, www.warisacrime.org, Charlottesville, VA; Brian Terrell, Strangers and Guests Catholic Worker Farm, Maloy, IA; Jeanie Mihalis Toth, St. Pete for Peace, St. Petersburg, FL; and Paki Wieland, Northhampton, MA