News from OREPA

I just got the years first news letter from the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, and it looks like 2005's going to be a big year in deciding the future of nuclear weapons in the U.S. and the international community. So here's a breif list of what's going on:

-The mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki have declared 2005 to be a Year of Rememberance and Action for Peace to recognise the 60th anniversary of the bombings there.

-What Congress is calling "Critical Decision Zero" WILL be made this year. The decision in question is whether the Department of Energy will spend $1.1 billion on a new nuclear bomb plant in Oak Ridge (is it just me, or is anyone else wondering how this could possibly be in accordance with the international nonproliferaton agreements that the U.S. is part of?). The Department of Defense has already decided that it wants the bombs and that's not going to change, but Republican David Hobson of Ohio is the chairman of the Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee and is opposing further nuclear proliferation. Now's the time to show him some support and to ask our representatives to add theirs as well.

-The UN will review the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. This could change the way the entire world behaves with it's nuclear weapons.

-OREPA is sponsoring demonstrations in several cities to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings and marches to raise awareness in advance of the big decisions being made. For more information go to www.stop the bombs.org.