[GLODEM] the belief that nuclear weapons improve our security is a myth

[Dietrich Fischer <102464.1110 at compuserve.com>]

GLOBAL DEMILITARIZATION                             July 25, 2003

Dear friends, we hope you will take a moment to help urge political
leaders of the nuclear weapons states to disable all the nuclear
weapons in the world.
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Please send the following or a similar letter, email, fax or phone
message to the President of the United States each month.  Also
please send copies to the Heads of State of the other nuclear
weapons nations, whose addresses are listed at the end.
If you work with a peace, environmental or religious organization:
In your next bulletin or correspondence with your members, please
urge them also to send these messages each month.  You are welcome
to share this message with anyone else who may be willing to help.
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THE BELIEF THAT NUCLEAR WEAPONS IMPROVE OUR SECURITY IS A MYTH

President George W. Bush
The White House
Washington, DC 20500, USA
tel +1-202-456-1111, fax +1-202-456-2461
email president at whitehouse.gov

Cc: Vladimir Putin, President, Russia <rusun at undp.org>
Tony Blair, Prime Minister, Britain (Fax +44-207-925-0918)
Jacques Chirac, President, France <fraun at undp.org>
Hu Jintao, President, China <chnun at undp.org>
Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister, Israel (Fax +972-2-664-838)
Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Prime Minister, India <indun at undp.org>
Gen. Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan <pakistan at undp.org>

Dear Mr. President,

     Please take leadership in calling a conference of all nuclear
states to agree on swift nuclear disarmament, as all the nuclear
powers pledged upon signing the nuclear nonproliferation treaty.  The
existence of nuclear weapons poses a constant threat to all of us.  As
David Krieger, president, and Angela McCracken, Ruth Floyd intern in
human rights and international law, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
(www.wagingpeace.org) have stated:

     "It is a common belief that nuclear weapons protect a country by
deterring potential aggressors from attacking.  By threatening massive
retaliation, the argument goes, nuclear weapons prevent an attacker
from starting a war.  To the contrary, nuclear weapons are actually
undermining the safety of the countries that possess them by providing
a false sense of security.  While deterrence can provide some
psychological sense of security, there are no guarantees that the
threat of retaliation will succeed in preventing an attack.  There are
many ways in which deterrence could fail, including misunderstandings,
faulty communications, irrational leaders, miscalculations and
accidents. In addition, the possession of nuclear weapons enhances the
risks of terrorism, proliferation and ultimately nuclear
annihilation."

     Sincerely,

     [Your name, post address & country]
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OTHER ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE:
1) Write also to your national and local representatives.
2) Write by hand (a list of mailing addresses is attached below).
3) Reformulate as a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.
4) Invite others to subscribe to this list.
5) Inform us of what you have done, and make other suggestions.
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Addresses of the heads of other nuclear weapons states:

President Vladimir Putin
Office of the Government
Krasnopresenskaya 2
Moscow, RUSSIA
tel +7-095-925-3581, fax +7-095-205-4219
email rusun at undp.org

Prime Minister Tony Blair
Prime Minister's Office
10 Downing Street
London, SW 1A 2 AA, BRITAIN
tel +44-171-270-3000
fax +44(207)925-0918
website www.number-10.gov.uk

President Jacques Chirac
Office du President, Palais De L'Elysee
55-57 rue du Faubourg St. Honore
75008 Paris, FRANCE
tel +33-1-4292-8100, Fax +33-1-4742-2465
email fraun at undp.org

President Hu Jintao
Office of the Premier
225 Chaoyangmennei Dajie, Dongsi
Beijing, P. R. CHINA
email chnun at undp.org

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon
Office of the Prime Minister
3 Rehov Kaplan, Hakirya
Jerusalem 91007, ISRAEL
tel +972-2-705555, fax +972-2-664838

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Prime Minister's Office
South Block
New Delhi 110011, INDIA
tel +91-11-3013040, fax +91-11-3016857
email indun at undp.org

Gen. Pervez Musharraf
Office of the President
Islamabad, PAKISTAN
telex 5742
email pakistan at undp.org
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Best regards,
Sue & Marvin Clark, Co-directors, Global Demilitarization
42 Maple Avenue, Troy, NY, 12180 USA
Dietrich Fischer, A-7461 Stadtschlaining, Austria, board member

Administrative Board Members:
Oscar Arias, Nobel Peace Laureate, honorary member
Jonathan Schell, Author
Mary Evelyn Jegen, SND, Pax Christi International
Bill Price, Director, World Peacemakers
Bill Hartung, Author
Organizations are for identification only
Emailings since July 1996