Dear RN, One of the things Richard and I have discussed before is the usefulness of writing letters to lobby for things. At times one gets the feeling that all our pleas (to not spend on the latest stupid military scheme or to spare this or that prisoner or whatever) amount to rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. (The posting below is an invitation to scientists to join in just such "plea" type work) However, when it comes to trying to get the Titanic to head back home and get properly outfitted for a cross-Atlantic voyage, when it comes to Revolution, we can all see how important it is to have the "passengers" fully convinced of the usefulness of our ideas. I guess it is not just a matter of "convincing" people. It is, as Richard has so clearly argued before, a matter of building democracy, of seeing democracy as much more than voting every so many years. And I think part of what democracy is, is making our "pleas". Each time we alert our fellow travellers to some problem or the other, each time we ask them to stand with us in solidarity, etc. we are helping to educate them, and ourselves, hopefully, to make the changes that are needed.... I think Gandhi once said that we must be the change we seek for the world. A beautiful, and really very challenging idea! all the best, Jan ******************************************************************* From: Martin Willison <•••@••.•••> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Fri, 10 Mar 2000 10:15:31 -0500 From: "R.L. Garwin and K. Gottfried" <•••@••.•••> To: •••@••.••• Subject: Scientists and Missile Defense: A New E-Mail Network Dear colleague: We are pleased to announce a new e-mail network especially for scientists who want to make a difference on nuclear arms control issues. Sponsored by the Union of Concerned Scientists, this network, called ArmsNet, has a specific and immediate goal--to actively engage the American scientific community in the policy debate on National Missile Defense (NMD). Since its birth in 1969, UCS has been engaged in the missile defense issue. During the 1980s UCS played a key role in the 'Star Wars' debate. Today we are the most prominent science organization working on NMD--to find out more about us, please visit our website at http://www.ucsusa.org/arms/arms-home.html President Clinton is expected to decide this summer whether the United States should begin deploying an NMD system intended to protect all 50 states from a limited attack by long-range ballistic missiles. The proposed system would require substantial revisions to the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty and thereby threatens to derail US-Russian nuclear arms reductions and increase tensions with China and NATO. And because the system is still in early development--with only 3 intercept tests to be held before the summer--there will be no technical basis to make a sound decision by then. An important issue for scientists to evaluate is whether the NMD system can be expected to work against an adversary who surely would take steps to defeat it. UCS and the Security Studies Program at MIT have assembled a group of physicists to study this issue, chaired by Andrew Sessler, past president of the American Physical Society. (We are both participants in the study.) UCS and MIT are about to release a detailed technical report that shows that the planned NMD system could be defeated by one of several technically-straightforward "countermeasures" that would be available to any state able to deploy long-range missiles. Thus the planned system would not be effective against even a limited attack by long-range ballistic missiles. As a scientist, you can play an important role in policy issues that have a technical component. A recent survey of congressional staffers shows that Senators and Representatives across the political spectrum are interested in hearing from their constituent scientists on such issues. The Senate's rejection of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty demonstrates what can happen when Congress does not have relevant factual information on nuclear arms issues. It is essential that the scientific community get more involved in the NMD debate now to prevent another serious setback. ArmsNet is designed to facilitate your engagement. We will provide you with e-mail updates, a copy of the upcoming report, background information, action alerts and information on whom to contact, and the opportunity to come to Washington DC in June for briefings and to meet with your congressional representatives. We need your help. Support is growing for President Clinton to postpone the deployment decision until the next administration; a greater appreciation in Congress and the media for the technical limitations of this system could make all the difference. If you find the UCS/MIT report persuasive, we would ask you to help us get the word out-- to send the report with a cover letter to your local media and congressional delegation and to follow up from time to time. And we are looking for volunteers to come to Washington DC June 10-12 to brief your elected representatives. If you are a professional scientist or graduate student and would like to join other scientists and engage in the NMD debate in an effective, efficient and timely way, please join UCS's ArmsNet today. Simply fill out the enrollment form below and return it by replying to this e-mail. (Please note that this is not our personal address, but will be sent directly to UCS in Washington). Sincerely, Kurt Gottfried Professor of Physics Emeritus, Cornell University; Chairman of the Board, UCS Richard L. Garwin Senior Fellow for Science and Technology, Council on Foreign Relations; IBM Fellow Emeritus; consultant to Sandia National Laboratory and to Los Alamos National Laboratory; Member of the Board, UCS Papers of current interest at http://www.fas.org/rlg P.S. Please help spread the word about ArmsNet by sharing this letter and enrollment form with your colleagues. If you are not a scientist, please contact John Spykerman at UCS (•••@••.•••) for other ways to get involved. We apologize for multiple postings. ======================================= ArmsNet Enrollment Form ======================================= Note: If you have difficulty returning this form via e- mail, please print it out and fax it to UCS at (202) 332- 0905 or mail it to UCS-ArmsNet, 1616 P St NW, Suite 310, Washington DC, 20036. The following information will help us provide better services to you and will give a better profile of ArmsNet members. All information is private and confidential and will not be distributed outside UCS without your permission. Biographical Information========================== First Name [___________________________________] Middle Initial [_____] Last Name [___________________________________] Home Address================================= Address [___________________________________] [___________________________________] [___________________________________] City [_____________________] State [_____] Zip [_____________________] Country [_____________________] Phone [_____________________] Fax [_____________________] E-mail [_____________________] Work Address================================= Address [___________________________________] [___________________________________] [___________________________________] City [_____________________] State [_____] Zip [_____________________] Country [_____________________] Phone [_____________________] Fax [_____________________] E-mail [_____________________] Your WEB page, if any [___________________________________] Contact Preferences===================================== For each type of address, where would you prefer to be contacted? (Place an X in either home or work for each type) Home Work Mail [ ] [ ] Phone [ ] [ ] Fax [ ] [ ] E-mail [ ] [ ] Professional Information=========================== Profession (Place X next to category that best fits you) ==Physical Science/Science Technician== Astronomy [ ] Astrophysics [ ] Atmospheric Science [ ] Chemistry [ ] Geology [ ] Geophysicist [ ] Meteorology [ ] Physical Geography [ ] Physics [ ] Physical Science Technician [ ] ==Life Science Scientist/Science Technician== Agricultural Science/Agronomy [ ] Biology [ ] Conservation Biology [ ] Evolutionary Biology [ ] Marine Biology [ ] Molecular Biology [ ] Biochemistry [ ] Ecology [ ] Environmental Science [ ] Forest Science [ ] Limnology [ ] Oceanography [ ] Plant Science/Botany [ ] Toxicology [ ] Zoology [ ] Life Science Technician [ ] ==Computer/Mathematical/Operations Research== Computer Science [ ] Statistician [ ] Mathematician [ ] ==Engineer/Engineering Technician== Aerospace Engineer [ ] Chemical Engineer [ ] Civil Engineer [ ] Electrical Engineer [ ] Industrial Engineer [ ] Mechanical Engineer [ ] Metallurgical, Ceramic, Materials Engineer [ ] Mining Engineer [ ] Nuclear Engineer [ ] Petroleum Engineer [ ] ==Teacher== College & University Faculty [ ] Primary & Secondary School [ ] ==Other== Architect/Surveyor [ ] Clergy [ ] Communications Profession [ ] Elected Official [ ] Government Executive/Manager [ ] Health Care Provider [ ] Health Technician [ ] Lawyer/Judge/Paralegal [ ] Marketing & Sales [ ] Military [ ] Physician [ ] Social Scientist [ ] Social Worker [ ] Student [ ] Visual & Performing Arts [ ] Other [________________________] Professional Specialization [__________________________________] Work Sector (Place X in one sector only) Academic [ ] Government [ ] Nonprofit [ ] Private [ ] Current Job Title [_____________________________________] What year did you begin your professional work in this field? [19 ] Are you retired? Yes [ ] No [ ] Awards earned [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] Arms Control Information================================= Arms Control Interests (Place X in all that apply) Missile Defense [ ] Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty [ ] Fissile Material Protection [ ] Non-Proliferation [ ] Nuclear Reductions [ ] General level of expertise in arms control issues High [ ] Medium [ ] Low [ ] Are you a registered voter? Yes [ ] No [ ] Have you contacted your congressional representatives (state or national) about issues that concern you in the past? Yes [ ] No [ ] Have you contacted your local news media about issues that concern you in the past? Yes [ ] No [ ] What are your main local and regional newspapers? [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] Are you interested in coming to Washington DC from June 10-12, 2000 to receive briefings, media training, and to meet with your congressional delegation? Yes [ ] No [ ] Maybe [ ] Any additional information/comments you would like to share with us [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] [____________________________________________] *********************** END OF FORM *********************
