Regardless of who sits in the oval office, we must continue to beat the drums on behalf of people and the planet.

Rest. Take a breath if you must.

Now let’s get back to work.

Innocent men, women and children are dying – the madness must stop.

There are two important actions that must be taken now, before the dust settles, before the pomp and circumstance, and before our new President is installed into office.

#1) Join me in calling and emailing our Hawai’i Congressional delegation TODAY. Tell them to stop funding the killing of innocents in Gaza and through-out the mid-east and vote “YES” on Senator Bernie Sanders’ Joint Resolutions of Disapproval to block the sale of over $20 billion in offensive U.S. weaponry to Israel.

Senator Brian Schatz – (808-523-2061)
brian_schatz@schatz.senate.gov
Senator Mazie Hirono – (808) 522-8970
mazie_hirono@hirono.senate.gov
Representative Jill Tokuda – (808) 746-6220
jill.tokuda@congress.gov
Representative Ed Case – (808) 650-6688
ed.case@congress.gov

Yes, absolutely we must support Israel’s right to defend itself but we must vehemently oppose the use of U.S. weaponry and U.S. money – to support the retaliatory killing of tens of thousands of innocent civilians.

According to Reuters, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have killed over 41,500 people in Gaza alone, with the majority of identified victims being women and children.

The U.S. funding of this killing must stop.

U.S. law is clear: the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) require that arms transfers must align with internationally recognized human rights, promote U.S. interests, and avoid involvement in human rights abuses. The proposed weapons sale fails all three criteria.

#2) Please also let the our congressional delegation know you oppose the extension of U.S. military leases at Makua Valley, Kahuku, Kawailoa-Poamoho and Pohakuloa Training Areas AND ask them stop the bombing of Ka’ula which is just 23 miles southwest of Kaua`i County.

The U.S. has the largest military force on the planet. Here in Hawai’i we must lead by telling them – enough already.

As of September 2022, there were approximately 750 U.S. military bases with active-duty troops stationed across 178 countries. – In 2022 the U.S. spent $877 billion on defense/war – spending more than China, Russia, India, Saudi Arabia, the U.K., Germany, France, South Korea, Japan, and Ukraine combined. http://www.globalaffairs.org

The United States is the largest provider of weapons, has more troops, stationed in more bases, in more countries, than anyone else on the planet.

Do our U.S. Senators and Representatives support or oppose the continued U.S. funding of Israel’s military offensive operations and the IDF’s indiscriminate killing of civilians?

Do they support or oppose extending military leases at Makua Valley, Kahuku, Kawailoa-Poamoho and Pohakuloa Training Areas AND the bombing of Ka’ula?

Fair questions that deserve honest answers.

Readers – please help me out on this. Our combined energy, phone calls, and email – can make a difference.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s farewell address of January 17, 1961 – rings more true today than ever.

“Now this conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence—economic, political, even spiritual—is felt in every city, every Statehouse, every office of the Federal government…

“We must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex…

“Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together…”