More Militarism and War = More Guns But Little Butter

Michael Eisenscher

April 15, 2012

Sunday April 15, 2012 Michael Eisenscher will discuss the economic consequences of a militarized foreign policy and economy. He will describe how a decade of militarism and war has contributed to the economic crisis and how continuing to prosecute the “war on terror” will prolong and deepen that crisis, while actually undermining national security. He will report on the emerging Bay Area and national movement for “new priorities” – which seeks to redirect revenue from the bloated military budget to create jobs, repair the social safety net, protect the environment and meet a host of other urgent social needs – and will suggest what is required for a transition to a peace economy.

 

Humanist Community Forum (2012-04-15): More Militarism and War = More Guns But Little Butter (Michael Eisenscher) from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

 

Peace Building from the Personal to a U.S. Department of Peace

Lorraine Norby

April 8, 2012

Lorraine Norby from the Northern California Campaign for a Department of Peace will discuss their efforts to advance peace in our country.

 
 
 
 
 

Humanist Community Forum (2012-04-08): Peace Building from the Personal to a U.S. Department of Peace (Lorraine Norby) from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

 

World Peace Education Project

April 1, 2012

Many diverse ideas related to the goal of world peace and security, free of nuclear weapons, have been proposed in   numerous books and articles. But what ideas have national governments already agreed to? And what progress have they made so far? Using information from the United Nations and national governments related to this goal, Humanists Tim Lee,  Alex Havasy, Sena Havasy, Dianne Jacobsen, and Bob Gauntt will discuss the World Peace Education Project (founded by Bob in 2010 — see www.WorldPeaceEd.org) aimed at increasing public awareness of these issues.

 

Humanist Community Forum (2012-04-01): World Peace Education Project from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

 

Counting votes — Which Flawed System Do You Prefer?

Dr. Keith Devlin

Mar. 25, 2012

The elections in San Francisco last fall highlighted once again the thorny issue of how votes are counted, with the poll results being counted on that occasion using the ranked-choice system. Is that the best method? On the face of it, you’d expect mathematics to provide the answer, as it does on so many occasions.  Unfortunately, when it comes to the democratic process, the one thing mathematicians are sure of is there is no perfect method. Dr. Keith Devlin, Executive Director, H-STAR Institute, Stanford University, and “the Math Guy” on National Public Radio, will explain some of the flaws of all the systems.

 

Humanist Community Forum (2012-03-25): Counting Votes — Which Flawed System Do You Prefer? (Dr. Keith Devlin) from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

 

Thorium Nuclear Power

Dr. Alex Cannara

Mar. 18, 2012

Dr. Alex Cannara will review the three key reasons for nuclear power, summarize key reactor design choices, and discuss (a) why Thorium is important, (b) key legislation being drafted, and (c) what citizens & groups can do. Dr. Cannara has years of experience as an engineer and professor, and is the lead developer of a proposal on safe nuclear power for the 2011 MIT CoLab Competition now being judged.

 

Humanist Community Forum (2012-03-18): Thorium Nuclear Power (Alex Cannara) from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.