Winter 2002-2003

Please note: changes have been made to the schedule for our March events. Please see "Calendar" for the most current schedule.
Also, see the separate link above for the Special Pull-out Section of this newsletter.

International Convergence at Boeing?

By Chrissy Kirchhoefer

In recent months the small town of St. Charles, Missouri has been attracting national and international press. What has drawn Tom Brokaw's CBS crew, the Canadian Broadcast Corporation, and a reporter from the Wall Street Journal to this community of 60,321 residents? They have all come to tour and report on the world headquarters of Boeing's Integrated Defense Systems- home of the "smart bomb" production. As the press is preparing for war, even receiving special treatment at Ft. Benning, GA, they are aware that the necessary ingredient for an intensified war with Iraq is being produced at this plant along the Missouri River.

Business is booming. The plant which employs 32 assembly line workers around the clock (24 hours a day / 7 days a week); is currently expanding their facility in order to keep up with the Pentagon's ever increasing contracts. On September 13, 2002, Boeing was awarded another multi-million contract, $378 million for an additional 18,840 Joint Direct Attack Munitions- JDAM kits. With the increased order for more "smart bombs" and the expansion of their facility, Boeing will be able to produce 2,800 JDAM kits by August of this year.

I find it difficult to keep up with all these numbers and make sense of their implications. By August, Boeing's Integrated Defense Systems, a $23 billion operation, will be able to produce 33,600 "smart bombs" a year at over $20,000 per JDAM kit. Still a little removed from this number and its implications to your life and community, no need to worry, there's a man at the Pentagon who has the exact number of "smart bombs" available for the military, updated on a daily basis in his pocket at all times. He presumably is keeping us safe from a truth average citizens could not quite comprehend. Yet it reminds me of that saying, when you have a hammer, all the problems look like nails; when you have the exact number of "smart bombs" in your pocket, countries look like targets, especially those aligned upon the "axis of evil."

This seemingly small, tucked away facility has been identified by the Pentagon as a potential terrorist target. The mechanisms of war and destruction seem to come full circle in St. Louis. We can not turn a blind eye upon this plant tucked away on the banks of the Missouri River; we cannot turn a blind eye to the people within our community whose basic needs go unmet, knowing that more will join their ranks with increased budget cuts. What if instead we insisted upon diverting $20,000 to 2,800 homeless households a month? What if, since no one is listening to our pleas of no intensified war in Iraq, we stopped paying for it and diverted the money ourselves? We would be closer to that great day "when our schools get all the money they need and the air force has to hold a bake sale to buy a bomber."

A Different Kind of Newsletter

Usually the SLECP Conversion News offers a number of researched articles on SLECP's priority projects, particularly on Boeing and their weapons, but this one will be a little different. This newsletter will update members on some significant changes happening at SLECP, some of our recent activities, and upcoming events. The newsletter also contains a guest commentary from SLECP member Francis Baumli, as a special pull-out section.

The usual format and information will be back in the next newsletter, which is due to appear in early spring 2003.

Not the Usual Suspects

Local media and perhaps some participants were taken by surprise at the large turn out for the Instead of War rally held last month. Crowd estimates ranged from 1000 to 2000 people. Both awareness and a willingness to speak out about an attack on Iraq is growing, not just here but across the country. On Jan. 13, public radio's Diane Rehm Show, uncharacteristically featured three guests from organizations working on peace issues, discussing increasingly vocal objections to the possible attack. On the program were Phyllis Bennis from the Institute for Policy Studies, David Corn from The Nation, and Bob Edgar from the National Council of Churches. According to the discussion, concerns about war with Iraq were being expressed by a wider slice of the American population, including voices from the right end of the political spectrum. Likewise, NBC News special report television broadcast segment 'The Road to Baghdad,' on Jan. 12, 2003, featured a significant portion on growing opposition to the war. Here are some local organizations involved in this area.

Instead of War Coalition
This organization is various community organizations working towards creating alternatives to war and deescalating the cycle of violence have formed the Instead of War Coalition (link www.insteadofwarcoalition.org). The coalition is open to all who want to invest in creative alternatives to war and have some thoughts about what we can be doing locally. The most recent monthly planning meeting was January 13th at 7:30 at Jerry King's residence at 830 DeMun (off of Clayton Rd.). The coalition has also announced that in the event of an expanded war in Iraq, on the day that it starts, we will gather in Kiener Plaza, in the center of downtown St. Louis, for a protest vigil starting at 7 PM.

Missouri Peace Coalition
A statewide meeting was held in Columbia, MO on Saturday December 14, 2002 to bring together various organizations working towards peace in order to form a statewide coalition. The daylong meeting was very successful and invigorating; we were able to reach consensus upon a name, Missouri Peace Coalition, the organizational structure as well as the decision making process we will utilize. We also created a mission statement: The Missouri Peace Coalition is a network of groups throughout the state to promote peace with justice. The Missouri Peace Coalition will endeavor to coordinate activities to share resources and provide mutual support for nonviolent activities to promote a peaceful future for all. If you are interested in viewing the minutes from the initial meeting or if your organization is interested in joining the coalition, you can email Chrissy Kirchhoefer at chrissykone@yahoo.com. There will be more opportunities to join in statewide meetings and gatherings in the near future.

SLECP UPDATES

With the input of over 90 people and a lively after dinner discussion, members and the board of SLECP decided to change the name from SLECP (St. Louis Economic Conversion Project) to PEP (Peace Economy Project). With the kind generosity of Paula and Andy Ayers, Riddle's Penultimate Cafe hosted a benefit to help sustain the work of "the organization formerly known as SLECP" and continue in the 25 year tradition of working towards local disarmament. As a result of our members' contributions and participation in an enjoyable evening, the board accomplished two long held goals. Not only did we decide upon a new name, we also were able to raise over $2,400 in order to hire our new staff member, Catherine Marquis-Homeyer.

Thanks to everyone for such a spectacular evening, and if you missed the dinner, you did miss out on the fine cuisine of Paula and Andy Ayers. You can find out what they have a-brewin' by going to Riddle's. (www.riddlescafe.com)

The St. Louis Economic Conversion Project (SLECP) is now the Peace Economy Project (PEP). The new name reflects the changes that SLECP has undergone and a renewed focus on issues surrounding peace, with a particular emphasis on tracking the actions of Boeing, whose missile manufacturing plant is based in the St. Louis area. During the next year, we will be in transition to the new name, and you will be seeing both names for a while.

The Peace Economy Project now has a website. Thanks to a technology development grant from the Racine Dominican Mission Fund, SLECP/PEP was able to develop a website that was launched in late 2002. Our new website is:

http://stlouis.missouri.org/ peaceeconomyproject

The website is hosted by the City of St. Louis' Community Information Network. Web designer Joe Angert worked hard to build the site and will continue to fine-tune it in the next few months. The site offers information ranging from a brief history of SLECP/PEP to the latest news and a calendar of upcoming events. The website will be updated on a regular basis by staff, and it will become the first place to check for new information and research between newsletters.

Along with the new website and new name, there are other changes at PEP. Catherine Marquis-Homeyer was hired as Co-coordinator - Researcher/writer for the organization, and will be handling the publication of the quarterly newsletter and updating the new website. A molecular biologist by training, she also has a background in publishing and a long-standing interest in peace issues. Chrissy Kirchhoefer, who rejoined the staff earlier in 2002, will serve as Co-coordinator - Organizer for the members and volunteers.

UPCOMING SLECP EVENTS

Charlie King & Karen Brandow Concert

Tegler Hall, St. Louis University, 3550 Lindell Blvd.

Doors open 7:00 pm with a silent auction

Tickets for the concert-$15.00 in advance, $18.00 at the door

Annual Benefit Concert for the organization formerly known as SLECP, now the Peace Economy Project (PEP)

As with each year, Charlie and Karen eagerly look forward to seeing all their good friends in St. Louis just as much as we enjoy hosting them; hearing all the old favorites as well as discovering new songs that always seem to capture current topics like no other duo could. So come on out for a guaranteed good time! Bring a friend and make some new ones. For more details about tickets and special deals for groups call: 314-726-6406

1st Annual Midwest Regional Resistance March 21st- 24th

St. Louis will host a weekend of teach-ins, roundtable discussions, and nonviolence training; culminating in two days of direct action at local weapon production plants

Friday March 21
5 PM - Welcome Dinner at St. Louis Catholic Worker
7:30 PM - Karen Brandow and Charlie will hold a workshop presentation on the 50th anniversary of Sacco and Vanzetti

Saturday March 22
10AM - 3 PM - In-depth Nonviolence training in the morning
8 PM- And after a full day, we'll have a sing along with Charlie and Karen

Sunday March 23
- Early afternoon gathering at Boeing's 'smart bomb' plant in St. Charles (exact time to be determined soon). Plan to caravan from Christ Church Cathedral after attending your congregation's morning service. We will break bread (have lunch available) before caravanning to Boeing.

Monday March 24
10 AM - Nonviolent Direct Action at Monsanto corporate headquarters in Creve Coeur
Evening - Final Gathering Celebration

For more information, contact PEP at 314-726-6406 or by email at slecp@yahoo.com