Perspectives on Social Issues
(August 2005)
60 Years after Hiroshima/Nagasaki, Bush Administration Pushing for "Usable" Nuclear Weapons
"Sixty years ago the world was stunned by the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, that ended World War II. But 60 years later there are surprising and disappointing parallels between the issues the world faces today and the issues the world confronted then. Today, the U.S. government is proposing to develop new, ‘usable’ nuclear weapons -- but this time the weapons have 70 times the explosive power of the original Hiroshima bomb. And in the international community, the Bush administration is actively blocking efforts to advance and strengthen treaties to stop the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and work toward disarmament….
In May, more than 150 countries gathered at the United Nations for four weeks to review the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty (NPT). The NPT is the bedrock of the international nonproliferation regime. However, the Bush administration blocked the conference from reaching any agreement on strengthening steps toward disarmament under NPT. As Mohamed ElBaradei, the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, has warned, ‘[Y]ou can't tell everyone “don't touch nuclear weapons” while continuing to build them.’ (Washington Post, Jan. 30, 2005)."
"Marking Hiroshima/Nagasaki 60th Anniversary," FCNL Newsletter, July/Aug 2005.
Mayors Sign "Urban Environmental Accord"
"Mayors from around the world on [June 5, 2005] signed an international treaty calling for increased use of public transportation and drastic cuts to the amount of trash sent to landfills. The signing of the ‘Urban: Environmental Accords’: capped the United Nations World Environmental Day Conference in San Francisco. The nonbinding accords list 21 specific actions that can make cities greener…. Much of the conference focused on global warming and what mayors can do to curb emissions of ‘greenhouse gases’ such as carbon dioxide that trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere….
The accords call for policies to expand affordable public transportation coverage for city residents within a decade. They also call for increasing access to safe drinking water, with a goal of access for all by 2015. Other goals include creating an accessible park or recreation space within a half-mile of every city resident by 2015 and achieving zero growth in the amount of waste being sent to landfills and incinerators by 2040. Among the most pressing issues was a recommendation to increase the use of renewable energy to meet 10 percent of a city's peak electric load within seven years. ‘The challenge is to take these goals and ideas and to manifest them. We are accountable to getting things done,’ San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom said."
"Mayors from Around World Sign 'Urban Environmental Accords.'" La Crosse Tribune, June 6, 2005.
Diverse Worldwide Views on Role of Religion in Politics
"A majority of Americans profess unquestioning belief in God and are far more willing than other nationalities to say religion should have a role in politics, results of a recent 10-country survey show. Only Mexicans come close to Americans in embracing faith, according to a survey for The Associated Press by Ipsos, a Washington-based independent market research company. Unlike Americans, however, Mexicans strongly object to clergy lobbying legislators. Thirty-seven percent of American respondents said religious leaders should ‘try to influence government decisions,’ the poll found….
Higher percentages of respondents in countries other than the United States were opposed to the influence of religious leaders on government actions. Eighty-five percent of French respondents opposed such influence. At least 75 percent of respondents from the United Kingdom, Mexico, Spain, Germany and Australia also opposed the role of religious leaders in government affairs."
“Religious Devotion Sets U.S. Apart from Allies,” National Catholic Reporter, June 17, 2005
Mercury Impairs Brain Development of Children
"A new study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives calculated that the U.S. loses $8.7 billion annually due to the impact of mercury on children's brain development. In the study, ‘Public Health and Economic Consequences of Methylmercury Toxicity to the Developing Brain, pediatricians at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York found that $1.3 billion of the economic losses from mercury pollution is directly attributable to mercury emitted by coal-fired power plants. Mercury emitted from power plants is absorbed by fish and eaten by women and then passed to their children in utero. Scientists have documented that mercury exposure impairs brain development and reduces IQ.
In 2002, the National Academy of Sciences found strong evidence for the toxicity of methylmercury to children's developing brains, even at low levels of exposure. A recent study from the Centers for Disease Controls found that as many as 637,233 American children are born each year with mercury levels above the level associated with brain damage and loss of IQ.
"8.7 Billion Lost Annually Due to Poisoning in the Womb," From the Ground Up, The Ecology Center, Ap/May 2005.
Refugees to U.S. Face Tremendous Hurdles
"Those seeking a safe haven in the United States from religious, political, and economic oppression are finding it more difficult to obtain asylum on U.S. soil. According to a recent report by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, 32 percent of asylum seekers in the United States are detained for 90 days or longer.
‘Refugees who seek asylum in the U.S. face tremendous hurdles, from immigration detention to the lack of legal representation to a new law that will make it even tougher for them to receive protection,’ Eleanor Acer, director of Human Rights First's Asylum Program, told Sojourners. About half of asylum seekers are held in county jails.
- 64 days: The average length of detention for asylum seekers who are determined to have cause for ‘credible fear’ if deported to their country of origin.
- 2 percent: The chance asylum seekers without a lawyer have of gaining asylum in the United States.
- 72 percent: The percentage of asylum seekers denied relief or who withdrew applications for relief from 2000 to 2004.
- 64 percent: The percentage of men who received referral interviews based upon ‘credible fear.’
- 36 percent: The percentage of women who received referral interviews based upon ‘credible fear.'"
"Waiting for Asylum," Between the Lines, Sojourners Magazine, Aug 2005.
|
|
|||||||||
|
Gratitude to the Institute for Peace and Justice
for use of their Pope Paul VIth graphic. |
|||||||||