[KWPeace-groups] This Friday, Oct 2: No New Fighter Jets demos in Waterloo, Kitchener & Cambridge + Other upcoming events and resources

[Tamara Lorincz]

Hello KW Peace friends!

Please spread the word about these upcoming events and resources. I'd love your help on Friday.

With thanks and solidarity,
Tamara

(1)
National Day of Action "No New Fighter Jets" this Friday, October 2. There are 23 actions across the country. We are protesting outside of their Member of Parliament's offices and delivering letters. We will respect public health orders to wear masks and be physically distant.

  1.  WATERLOO: Outside MP Bardish Chagger's office from 12-1 p.m. at 100 Regina Street in Waterloo
  2.  KITCHENER: Outside of MP Raj Saini's office from 12-1 p.m. at 209 Frederick Street in Kitchener
  3.  CAMBRIDGE: Outside MP Bryan May's Office from 3:30-4:30 p.m. at 534 Hespeler Road in Cambridge

Last year, the Trudeau government launched a competition for a fleet of 88 new fighter jets for a cost of $19 billion not including life-cycle costs. It is the second most expensive government procurement in Canadian history. The defence contractors submitted their bids at the end of July. In the competition are Boeing's Super Hornet, SAAB's Gripen and Lockheed Martin's F-35 fifth-generation stealth fighter. The federal government stated that it would select the winning bid in 2022. We do not want the government to buy any new fighter jets claiming that they are unnecessary, harm people and exacerbate the climate crisis. We want investment in social and environmental needs. We want green jobs and a just recovery. See the "No New Fighter Jets" VOW web page: https://vowpeace.org/nofighterjets/

(2)
WEBINAR: Challenging Canada's $19 Billion Warplane Purchase
Thursday, October 15, 2020 at 7:00 PM (EDT)
Please join the The Canadian Foreign Policy Institute & World Beyond War for our upcoming event with Green MP Paul Manly, NDP MP  Leah Proud Lakota Gazan and activist Tamara Lorincz challenging Canada's $19 billion fighter jet purchase. October 15th at 7PM EDT. Don't miss! #NoNewFighterJets #Demilitarize #Decarbonize Save your spot by registering here: https://actionnetwork.org/events/challengingfighterjets?clear_id=true&fbclid=IwAR0r6E8Cn4c8XAzuKN6Hdi_foejFugCdj_W0x4X7Vj3yC-et9oxEcuhNaz4

(3)
READ: "Peace activists to protest as Canada plans to spend billions on new fighter jets"
Redaction Politics
Scott Costen, September 29
https://redactionpolitics.com/2020/09/29/peace-activists-to-protest-as-canada-plans-to-spend-billions-on-new-fighter-jets/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

(4)
LISTEN: Yesterday, CBC radio played this important lecture/interview with retired U.S. Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson. He talked about U.S. militarism and said "We are the merchants of death for seven billion people." We have to stop the Canadian government from buying new fighter jets. September 29.
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/massive-military-spending-is-turning-american-into-a-warfare-state-warns-ex-u-s-army-colonel-1.5738677?fbclid=IwAR0oM1_hl0zlJH-tL0f9vPmQkcvnNkf-XVB0wxk9X_jzHeJRuveA000GwXE

(5)
READ: "Canada does not need more warplanes"
There are numerous reasons Canada should not spend $19 billion on a fleet of warplanes, starting with the colossal cost
Bianca Mugyenyi / September 29, 2020
Canadian Dimension
https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/canada-does-not-need-more-warplanes?fbclid=IwAR2jsrDBktoTonTvF1XHTw2ASjqbBRvKLv0_bIECXymNrFDPw6nImU5hHW0

(6)
WEBINAR: Global Network leaders discuss 'Space domination' during Keep Space for Peace Week
October 8, 2020 on Zoom
10am (EST), 3pm (BST), 6pm (KST), 12midnight (AEST)
How can we confront the rapidly increasing militarisation and possible weaponization of space?
When the US Space Force was established last year President Trump said that it marked "a big moment" and that there was "going to be a lot of things happening in space. Because space is the world's newest warfighting domain."
A new generation of space weapons - Episode 2 of Reagan's Star Wars - is in the cards. The U.S., Russia, China and India have extensive military space programmes and tested Anti-satellite weapons (ASATs) and the UK, France, NATO, Japan and South Korea have either established or are working towards their own military Space Forces.
Keep Space for Peace Week gives us an opportunity to focus on the challenges presented by the rush to exploit space.
GN Convenor Professor Dave Webb introduces a panel of GN experts: Professor Karl Grossman (U.S.), Tamara Lorincz (Canada), Sung-Hee Choi (South Korea), Denis Doherty (Australia) and GN Coordinator Bruce Gagnon (U.S.) to discuss ways in which we can face these challenges.
Register for the meeting here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_wOxEQ4elRCGbfi0G8ZfHew

2nd Zoom event
As part of the  "Space Education and Strategic Applications Conference"
This 2-day conference is organised by the Policies Studies Organization and will be entirely virtual around the time of "Keep Space for Peace Week" (October 3-10)
More details and program here: http://www.ipsonet.org/conferences/space-education-and-strategic-applications/sesa20program
On October 15th from 12:50-2:00pm EDT (5:50-7:00pm BST) the Global Network will be holding a panel on "Campaigning to Keep Space for Peace", introduced and chaired by Professor Dave Webb (UK) with Professor Karl Grossman (US), Tamara Lorincz (Canada), Dr Aruna Kammila (India) and Bruce Gagnon (US).
The panel members will discuss different aspects of the problems associated with the continuing militarisation of space and creating a global resistance to Keep Space for Peace.
Each panel member will speak for 10-15 minutes and then questions will be taken from the audience and discussed by the panel members.
Please join us - you can register for the conference here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/space-education-and-strategic-applications-conference-tickets-94856172365

(7)
WEBINAR: Annual Conference for Peace with Amb. Bonnie Jenkins and Maj. Danny Sjursen
Maj. Danny Sjursen is a US Army strategist and former history instructor at West Point. He served tours with reconnaissance units in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has written a memoir and critical analysis of the Iraq War, Ghostriders of Baghdad: Soldiers, Civilians, and the Myth of the Surge. He lives with his wife and four sons near Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
His writings: https://www.thenation.com/authors/danny-sjursen/
Sunday, November 15, 2020 * 1:30 PM
Webinar: https://peacecoalition.org/events/1119-annual-conference-for-peace-with-amb-bonnie-jenkins-and-maj-danny-sjursen.html