THE IO TRADITION - WHERE FROM?
Io, Io-matua-kore, Io-taketake, Io the parentless, Io the root
foundation of all things.
The Reverend Maori Marsden tells of a discussion he held with
some of his elders on his return from the Second World War. He
was talking about the war and in particular about the atom bomb.
One elder asked him to explain the difference between the atom
bomb and an ordinary bomb. Maori Marsden took the word hihiri,
which means pure energy, and to quote Maori:
"Here I recalled Einstein's concept of the real
world behind the natural world as being comprised of
'rythmical patterns of pure energy', and said to him
that this was essentially the same concept. He then
exclaimed "Do you mean to tell me that the Pakeha
scientists (tohunga Pakeha) have managed to rend the
fabric (kahu) of the universe?" I said "Yes." "I
suppose they shared their knowledge with the tutuaa
(politicians)?" "Yes." "But do they know how to sew
(tuitui) it back together again?" "No!" "That's the
trouble with sharing such 'tapu' knowledge. Tutuaa
will always abuse it".
THE IO TRADITION - WHERE FROM? Maori Theology by Michael Shirres.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Controversial nuclear weapons project gets council green light - 26 Jan 2006
Greenpeace today accused the Government of steam-rollering the country into adopting a new generation of nuclear weapons after planning consent was given to a controversial new defence project.
Greenpeace believes the Orion laser, planned for the Atomic Weapons Establishment in Aldermaston, and other elements of the current £1 billion upgrade of Aldermaston's research and development facilities will be used to develop a new nuclear weapon - very possibly a new generation smaller, so-called 'battlefield' nuclear weapons that would be more likely to be used.
Last night West Berkshire council gave planning consent to the project, removing the last bureaucratic obstacle to construction of the laser.
Dr Dominic Jenkins, Greenpeace Senior Disarmament Campaigner, said:
"Defence Secretary John Reid promised a national debate on whether we should replace Trident, but by building the Orion Laser the Government will have made the decision already. By proceeding with plans for new nuclear weapons without even asking if we need them, or if the billions they will cost could better be spent on fighting terrorism, New Labour has put the cart before the horse."
Construction of the laser, which can recreate the conditions of a nuclear explosion, undercuts the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) - at a time when both these treaties are in peril. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has warned that the collapse of these treaties is possible - a development that would lead to the runaway proliferation of nuclear weapons and a new arms race.
It is almost certain that the Orion laser is part of preparing the Aldermaston site to design and build a new atomic bomb:
In its 1998 Strategic Defence Review the Government stated that its development of a science-based program to give it the capacity to build a successor to Trident without nuclear testing was the "main driver" for the future development of the Aldermaston site.
AWE annual reports and other statements have repeatedly placed the building of the new laser, acquisition of super-computers, and other developments at Aldermaston in the context of its retaining a capability to build a new atomic bomb.
Former top American nuclear weapon designer physicist Seymour Sack has pointed out that there is no need for US nuclear weapons laboratories to build high-powered lasers if their only concern is to maintain the safety and reliability of existing nuclear warheads.
The history of the Cheveline nuclear weapons program shows past prime ministers and AWE scientists have hidden previous development at Aldermaston from the public, from Members of Parliament and from members of the Cabinet.
The scale of the development of Aldermaston, described by the AWE as "similar in scale to the Terminal 5 project at Heathrow," would involve the hiring of hundreds of new scientists and other staff, increased meetings with US scientists, the renewal of the Mutual Defence Agreement for technical cooperation, and the commitment of over a billion pounds during the next three years to the project. Such a development makes no sense if the sole intension is the maintenance of the existing arsenal. The Government has presented no evidence that these expenditures are needed to maintain Britain's existing nuclear weapons.
For more information contact Greenpeace on 0207 865 8255
Greenpeace believes the Orion laser, planned for the Atomic Weapons Establishment in Aldermaston, and other elements of the current £1 billion upgrade of Aldermaston's research and development facilities will be used to develop a new nuclear weapon - very possibly a new generation smaller, so-called 'battlefield' nuclear weapons that would be more likely to be used.
Last night West Berkshire council gave planning consent to the project, removing the last bureaucratic obstacle to construction of the laser.
Dr Dominic Jenkins, Greenpeace Senior Disarmament Campaigner, said:
"Defence Secretary John Reid promised a national debate on whether we should replace Trident, but by building the Orion Laser the Government will have made the decision already. By proceeding with plans for new nuclear weapons without even asking if we need them, or if the billions they will cost could better be spent on fighting terrorism, New Labour has put the cart before the horse."
Construction of the laser, which can recreate the conditions of a nuclear explosion, undercuts the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) - at a time when both these treaties are in peril. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has warned that the collapse of these treaties is possible - a development that would lead to the runaway proliferation of nuclear weapons and a new arms race.
It is almost certain that the Orion laser is part of preparing the Aldermaston site to design and build a new atomic bomb:
In its 1998 Strategic Defence Review the Government stated that its development of a science-based program to give it the capacity to build a successor to Trident without nuclear testing was the "main driver" for the future development of the Aldermaston site.
AWE annual reports and other statements have repeatedly placed the building of the new laser, acquisition of super-computers, and other developments at Aldermaston in the context of its retaining a capability to build a new atomic bomb.
Former top American nuclear weapon designer physicist Seymour Sack has pointed out that there is no need for US nuclear weapons laboratories to build high-powered lasers if their only concern is to maintain the safety and reliability of existing nuclear warheads.
The history of the Cheveline nuclear weapons program shows past prime ministers and AWE scientists have hidden previous development at Aldermaston from the public, from Members of Parliament and from members of the Cabinet.
The scale of the development of Aldermaston, described by the AWE as "similar in scale to the Terminal 5 project at Heathrow," would involve the hiring of hundreds of new scientists and other staff, increased meetings with US scientists, the renewal of the Mutual Defence Agreement for technical cooperation, and the commitment of over a billion pounds during the next three years to the project. Such a development makes no sense if the sole intension is the maintenance of the existing arsenal. The Government has presented no evidence that these expenditures are needed to maintain Britain's existing nuclear weapons.
For more information contact Greenpeace on 0207 865 8255
Known as Orion, the £100m project is the closest Britain gets to extreme engineering
The Guardian, Friday January 20 2006 Article history
£100m laser project will mimic nuclear explosion· Aldermaston plan seen as vital because of test ban
· Critics demand inquiry, fearing new weaponsIan Sample, science correspondent
On the site of an old runway in the Berkshire countryside, builders are preparing the ground for an extraordinary scientific facility that will create states of matter found nowhere else on Earth.
Known as Orion, the £100m project is the closest Britain gets to extreme engineering. The world's most powerful laser will be capable of recreating for a fraction of a second the conditions found at the heart of a thermonuclear explosion.
At the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) in Aldermaston, Britain's nuclear warhead factory and intended home to Orion, the laser is seen as a vital investment. It will allow weapons scientists to fine tune the complex computer models used to simulate nuclear explosions. The other hope is that, in an era where live tests are banned, a world-class piece of shiny new kit will stop Britain's bright young scientists losing interest and drifting into other jobs, leading to a future where the country's expertise is confined to those who remember the cold war.
Next Wednesday, Orion faces its final hurdle before work on the project can begin in earnest. It is West Berkshire council's last chance to raise objections to Ministry of Defence proposals to build Orion and a number of other facilities. The council cannot deny planning permission because as an MoD project, Orion is covered by crown immunity.
The project has inflamed anti-nuclear campaigners, who believe Orion may be used to develop next generation nuclear weapons and want the matter settled by a public inquiry. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has received 155 letters opposing the project. More than 200 have been sent to West Berkshire council.
"This is of major national importance and shouldn't be put through on the nod at a local planning committee meeting in a church hall," said Di MacDonald of the Nuclear Information Service, a nuclear disarmament group. "Given the number of objections, the planning committee would be well within its remit to pass this back to the government to raise a public inquiry."
Richard Stokes, leader of Slough borough council, believes the MoD is trying to push Orion through before the law on crown immunity changes in April. "After that time, they will need to apply for planning permission like everyone else and we're hoping we can delay the decision until that time," he said.
It is hoped to get Orion running by 2010, when it will become the focus of research for 100 AWE scientists. Orion subjects ordinary materials to extraordinary forces. For each test, a fragment of material one millimetre across is placed inside a six tonne hollow aluminium sphere. When the laser is fired, the fragment is bombarded with laser light from 10 angles, crunching it to the width of a human hair. Almost simultaneously, two other laser beams fire, heating the sample to 3m degrees C.
"[It] replicates in the lab on a very small scale conditions that would exist at the heart of a nuclear detonation on a minute scale for one thousandth of a millionth of a second," said an MoD spokesman.
Whether Orion will be used to design nuclear devices is unclear, say critics. While nuclear tests are banned, developing warheads is not, and with Britain's nuclear-armed submarine fleet rusting fast, the government is under pressure to review its Trident nuclear missile system before the end of the current parliament. The defence secretary, John Reid's announcement in October that Aldermaston will receive £1.5bn funding until 2008, an increase of more than £400m a year, has raised concerns over what research the government plans. Frank Barnaby, a former AWE weapons scientist and now nuclear issues consultant at the Oxford Research Group, believes that Orion would help in the development of new warheads only indirectly. "I think it's a genuine misunderstanding. There are so many designs already available, it's hard to see the need for a new one," he said.
"What you do need is to maintain a team of scientists who could develop a nuclear weapon if you ever wanted them to and that is a national asset. But in order to get young people to join and stay, you've got to excite them. Orion and supercomputers have a definite element of keeping together the team and getting them to stay."
£100m laser project will mimic nuclear explosion· Aldermaston plan seen as vital because of test ban
· Critics demand inquiry, fearing new weaponsIan Sample, science correspondent
On the site of an old runway in the Berkshire countryside, builders are preparing the ground for an extraordinary scientific facility that will create states of matter found nowhere else on Earth.
Known as Orion, the £100m project is the closest Britain gets to extreme engineering. The world's most powerful laser will be capable of recreating for a fraction of a second the conditions found at the heart of a thermonuclear explosion.
At the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) in Aldermaston, Britain's nuclear warhead factory and intended home to Orion, the laser is seen as a vital investment. It will allow weapons scientists to fine tune the complex computer models used to simulate nuclear explosions. The other hope is that, in an era where live tests are banned, a world-class piece of shiny new kit will stop Britain's bright young scientists losing interest and drifting into other jobs, leading to a future where the country's expertise is confined to those who remember the cold war.
Next Wednesday, Orion faces its final hurdle before work on the project can begin in earnest. It is West Berkshire council's last chance to raise objections to Ministry of Defence proposals to build Orion and a number of other facilities. The council cannot deny planning permission because as an MoD project, Orion is covered by crown immunity.
The project has inflamed anti-nuclear campaigners, who believe Orion may be used to develop next generation nuclear weapons and want the matter settled by a public inquiry. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has received 155 letters opposing the project. More than 200 have been sent to West Berkshire council.
"This is of major national importance and shouldn't be put through on the nod at a local planning committee meeting in a church hall," said Di MacDonald of the Nuclear Information Service, a nuclear disarmament group. "Given the number of objections, the planning committee would be well within its remit to pass this back to the government to raise a public inquiry."
Richard Stokes, leader of Slough borough council, believes the MoD is trying to push Orion through before the law on crown immunity changes in April. "After that time, they will need to apply for planning permission like everyone else and we're hoping we can delay the decision until that time," he said.
It is hoped to get Orion running by 2010, when it will become the focus of research for 100 AWE scientists. Orion subjects ordinary materials to extraordinary forces. For each test, a fragment of material one millimetre across is placed inside a six tonne hollow aluminium sphere. When the laser is fired, the fragment is bombarded with laser light from 10 angles, crunching it to the width of a human hair. Almost simultaneously, two other laser beams fire, heating the sample to 3m degrees C.
"[It] replicates in the lab on a very small scale conditions that would exist at the heart of a nuclear detonation on a minute scale for one thousandth of a millionth of a second," said an MoD spokesman.
Whether Orion will be used to design nuclear devices is unclear, say critics. While nuclear tests are banned, developing warheads is not, and with Britain's nuclear-armed submarine fleet rusting fast, the government is under pressure to review its Trident nuclear missile system before the end of the current parliament. The defence secretary, John Reid's announcement in October that Aldermaston will receive £1.5bn funding until 2008, an increase of more than £400m a year, has raised concerns over what research the government plans. Frank Barnaby, a former AWE weapons scientist and now nuclear issues consultant at the Oxford Research Group, believes that Orion would help in the development of new warheads only indirectly. "I think it's a genuine misunderstanding. There are so many designs already available, it's hard to see the need for a new one," he said.
"What you do need is to maintain a team of scientists who could develop a nuclear weapon if you ever wanted them to and that is a national asset. But in order to get young people to join and stay, you've got to excite them. Orion and supercomputers have a definite element of keeping together the team and getting them to stay."
Star Wars starting wars again
NATO and Russia facing off, plans for star wars causing political ructions – its almost like the 80’s all over again. Without the ra-ra skirts. Which can only be a good thing.
So finally Poland has signed an agreement to host part of the US missile defence system on its soil. With just parliamentary approval to leap (and a supportive parliament in place) it seems the US's Son of Star Wars dreams have advanced apace.
In return for hosting ten US missile interceptors the ex communist, now NATO, country gets 100 US troops stationed on its soil, US patriot missiles and ‘assistance in modernising its military’ and (ahem) help with ‘responding to the threats of the 21st century’.
Russia has reacted with predictable fury to US missiles being placed 115 miles from its border. General Anatoly Nogovitsyn has warned that the deal "could not go unpunished" and the newspapers have made much of the (militarily unsurprising) fact that hosting US missiles on its border puts Poland on Russia’s list of nuclear missile targets.
The fury is predictable because Russia has repeatedly stated its opposition to plans for both Poland and Czech Republic to host part of the planned US system. And the creeping expansion of NATO up to its borders (seen most recently through the lense of conflict in Georgia) is clearly another aggravating factor in the mix. For context - imagine the US response if Russia announced a military partnership with say Mexico and moved in their missiles.
The US claims that the system has nothing to do with threatening Russia its all about taking down missiles from ‘rogue states’ like Iran (though a few years back I guess the topline would be Iraq). Russia doesn’t buy that argument and sees it as a move against their military power.
Don’t let all the political development fool you into thinking that the Son of Star Wars system is actually working though, despite some $100 billion having been spent on missile defences over the past 20 years.
More fundamentally – putting the technical arguments aside – history shows that the more you build defences to neutralising enemy weapons, the more your opponents will develop new weapons and technologies to evade them. As Jacques Chirac put it ‘''ever since men began waging war, you will see that there's a permanent race between sword and shield. The sword always wins. The more improvements that are made to the shield, the more improvements are made to the sword.''
Who wins? Er, the arms companies like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Boeing that build both the weapons and the defence systems - the Polish and Czech systems alone seem set to bring some $4 billion into their coffers over the next few years. Who loses? Everyone else.
This isn't a done deal though - as a US press release issued yesterday by Congresswoman Tauscher, Chair of the Strategic Forces Subcommittee, reminded people. The fact is that under US law Congress requires an independent assessment of the missile defence system which proves that the system can work under operationally realistic conditions before any deployment to Europe goes ahead.
The repeated failures of system tests and its massive costs should give us all hope that star wars and the notion of a cold war revival can once again be kicked back into the realm of arms companies' fantasies.
Meanwhile, public opposition to the building of a star wars radar remains strong in the Czech Republic. Their PM has signed a deal with the US but it still has to get through a hostile parliament. You can become a citizen of Peaceland – a notional state set up by the Czech arm of Greenpeace. And don’t forget the UK’s complicity in the Star Wars programme through allowing use of the Menwith Hill and Fylindales bases in Yorkshire - more here.
Star Wars 17 - Greenpeace
Star Wars 17 defendants statements on sentencing
Henk Haazen - New Zealand
Your Honour, Thanks for the opportunity to say a few words, I have enjoyed this court as much as it is possible under the circumstances. and have a lot of respect for the style in which it is run, at the same time I will be very happy when this is over, as it has messed up my life a bit for the last 9 months.
However, the reasons why we did our protest action at Vandenberg are still there, and I feel as strongly about the need to campaign against the Star Wars missile defence system now as I did on 14 July. September 11th showed that you can never guarantee a 100% secure defence system that totally isolates or defends a big democratic country like the US from outside attacks.
The Star Wars missile shield system proposes to build an protective umbrella over the US, by doing so it is forcing other nations into a new nuclear weapons race that nobody can afford both in terms of money and resources, and because of the destabilising effect it has on the current nuclear weapons status quo. The money spend on this program would be better spend on improving life and the living environment for this planet and building bridges of friendship to neighbouring countries..
I think that you can compare the situation, to a being a wealthy person living in a poorer neighbourhood. Living as a wealthy person in a poor area you can choose not to have much to do with the neighbourhood, build a big wall around the property, put guards, dogs and locked gates on it, and try to defend and protect your property like that. This is expensive, builds up resentment and a negative reaction from your neighbours.
Alternatively you can talk to your neighbours get a bit involved with them in a nice way and help out here and there. In short become good neighbours with them, even if they come from a different culture or race and have a different outlook on life, religion etc. Making friends with you neighbours is a much more effective way to ensure a quite nights' sleep.
For me our protest on the 14th of July was to draw public attention to the fact that the US is in the process of isolating itself and building a wall around itself, ignoring protest from most major world governments at the same time. I'm from NZ and felt that it was necessary to come to the US and together with my American friends play an active role in the peaceful anti nuclear protest at Vandenberg, so that our voice could be heard by the people of this country, as this is the place were most of the changes need to be made. Your honour thanks you for your time.
Guy Levacher - Canada
Your Honour, This has been my experience since July 14th 2001. I was arrested by the FBI, chained and shackled. I spent 6 days in maximum security in a state penitentiary with hardcore criminals, drug traffickers and murderers. Travel restrictions were imposed upon me for 4 months, limiting me to the Los Angeles area, prohibiting me from returning to my country, to be with my family and to provide financial and emotional support.
I was unable to be at my wife's' side while her mother was dying of cancer. I was unable to pursue my law studies, for which I had worked so hard. I was a nine month sentence for having exercised my basic human right to protest peacefully. As I stand before you today, I ask that you allow me to return home to continue my legal studies as I await the arrival of my first child. Thank you
Brent Maness - USA
As a citizen of the United States it is my duty to oppose the policies of our government that are contrary to my political and ideological beliefs, this civic responsibility is one I refuse to take lightly. I believe that civil disobedience is an effective and appropriate method of voicing one's opposition to the injustice and violence perpetuated against living beings and the Earth.
I respect the rule of law, but feel that in extreme instances even legitimate law should be broken to prevent a greater evil. The rulings at Nuremberg found that it is intolerable for an individual to acquiesce when he is aware that his government is in violation of international law.
I believed, and still believe, that it was my responsibility as a citizen of the United States to do everything possible to prevent a violation of the Anti Ballistic Missile Treaty. With that said, I am prepared to accept any punishment that the court deems fitting for the crime that I have committed. I took part in the aforementioned action because I believe that by testing the Missile Defence System the U.S. is in violation of an international law that takes precedence over U.S. national law.
The development of the Star Wars program, the consequent U.S. withdrawal from the ABM treaty and other misguided and unfortunate actions taken by the Bush Administration have already begun to exacerbate international instability and create a new nuclear arms race.
This is apparent as the Bush administration embraces the cold-war era policy of "mutually assured destruction" as the best means of preventing nuclear war and speaks of using tactical nuclear weapons in a first strike against the so called "axis of evil". I fear the lessons of Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been forsaken for the ignorance that often accompanies fear and hatred.
Now it is more important than ever that our nation exercise caution and prudence when making policy decisions. I believe that it will prove beneficial for U.S. economic and security interests to stop Star Wars and re-examine the policy decisions, both here and abroad, that have led us to our current state of war and reciprocal violence.
Henk Haazen - New Zealand
Your Honour, Thanks for the opportunity to say a few words, I have enjoyed this court as much as it is possible under the circumstances. and have a lot of respect for the style in which it is run, at the same time I will be very happy when this is over, as it has messed up my life a bit for the last 9 months.
However, the reasons why we did our protest action at Vandenberg are still there, and I feel as strongly about the need to campaign against the Star Wars missile defence system now as I did on 14 July. September 11th showed that you can never guarantee a 100% secure defence system that totally isolates or defends a big democratic country like the US from outside attacks.
The Star Wars missile shield system proposes to build an protective umbrella over the US, by doing so it is forcing other nations into a new nuclear weapons race that nobody can afford both in terms of money and resources, and because of the destabilising effect it has on the current nuclear weapons status quo. The money spend on this program would be better spend on improving life and the living environment for this planet and building bridges of friendship to neighbouring countries..
I think that you can compare the situation, to a being a wealthy person living in a poorer neighbourhood. Living as a wealthy person in a poor area you can choose not to have much to do with the neighbourhood, build a big wall around the property, put guards, dogs and locked gates on it, and try to defend and protect your property like that. This is expensive, builds up resentment and a negative reaction from your neighbours.
Alternatively you can talk to your neighbours get a bit involved with them in a nice way and help out here and there. In short become good neighbours with them, even if they come from a different culture or race and have a different outlook on life, religion etc. Making friends with you neighbours is a much more effective way to ensure a quite nights' sleep.
For me our protest on the 14th of July was to draw public attention to the fact that the US is in the process of isolating itself and building a wall around itself, ignoring protest from most major world governments at the same time. I'm from NZ and felt that it was necessary to come to the US and together with my American friends play an active role in the peaceful anti nuclear protest at Vandenberg, so that our voice could be heard by the people of this country, as this is the place were most of the changes need to be made. Your honour thanks you for your time.
Guy Levacher - Canada
Your Honour, This has been my experience since July 14th 2001. I was arrested by the FBI, chained and shackled. I spent 6 days in maximum security in a state penitentiary with hardcore criminals, drug traffickers and murderers. Travel restrictions were imposed upon me for 4 months, limiting me to the Los Angeles area, prohibiting me from returning to my country, to be with my family and to provide financial and emotional support.
I was unable to be at my wife's' side while her mother was dying of cancer. I was unable to pursue my law studies, for which I had worked so hard. I was a nine month sentence for having exercised my basic human right to protest peacefully. As I stand before you today, I ask that you allow me to return home to continue my legal studies as I await the arrival of my first child. Thank you
Brent Maness - USA
As a citizen of the United States it is my duty to oppose the policies of our government that are contrary to my political and ideological beliefs, this civic responsibility is one I refuse to take lightly. I believe that civil disobedience is an effective and appropriate method of voicing one's opposition to the injustice and violence perpetuated against living beings and the Earth.
I respect the rule of law, but feel that in extreme instances even legitimate law should be broken to prevent a greater evil. The rulings at Nuremberg found that it is intolerable for an individual to acquiesce when he is aware that his government is in violation of international law.
I believed, and still believe, that it was my responsibility as a citizen of the United States to do everything possible to prevent a violation of the Anti Ballistic Missile Treaty. With that said, I am prepared to accept any punishment that the court deems fitting for the crime that I have committed. I took part in the aforementioned action because I believe that by testing the Missile Defence System the U.S. is in violation of an international law that takes precedence over U.S. national law.
The development of the Star Wars program, the consequent U.S. withdrawal from the ABM treaty and other misguided and unfortunate actions taken by the Bush Administration have already begun to exacerbate international instability and create a new nuclear arms race.
This is apparent as the Bush administration embraces the cold-war era policy of "mutually assured destruction" as the best means of preventing nuclear war and speaks of using tactical nuclear weapons in a first strike against the so called "axis of evil". I fear the lessons of Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been forsaken for the ignorance that often accompanies fear and hatred.
Now it is more important than ever that our nation exercise caution and prudence when making policy decisions. I believe that it will prove beneficial for U.S. economic and security interests to stop Star Wars and re-examine the policy decisions, both here and abroad, that have led us to our current state of war and reciprocal violence.
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