NEW YORK PEACE NETWORK Alert #177 EXTRA/title> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <link href="http://www.panys.org/alerts/2alerts.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"> <style>  </style> <link href="2alerts.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"> </head> <body> <OpenTracking/>   <table width=600 align=LEFT border=0 bgcolor="white" bordercolor="navy" CELLSPACING=4 CELLPADDING=2>  <TR> <TD WIDTH=600 ALIGN=LEFT>   <TABLE width=600 align=left border=0 bgcolor="white" bordercolor="navy" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0> <TR> <TD width=600 align=center>  <TABLE border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="600" > <tr> <td height=84 width=600 align=left background="http://www.panys.org/alerts/rightlogoPANYS.png" alt="THE NEW YORK PEACE NETWORK (origami dove) - Peace Action of New York State"> <div style="position:relative; z-index=9; width:200px; height:16px; left:400; top:50; font: 8pt Arial; color:white;" class="eventbig">Alert #177 EXTRA September 16, 2008 </div> <BR> </td> </tr> </TABLE>  <TABLE width="600" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td align=center valign=middle> <img src=http://www.panys.org/alerts/177extra.png alt="MANDATORY ROTC! CALL NOW!"> </td> </tr> </TABLE> </TD> </tr> </TABLE> </td> </tr>  <tr>  <td WIDTH=600px ALIGN=LEFT> <div height=5px width=600 align=right class=tiny>view this message online: <a href=http://www.panys.org/alerts/177extra.htm><em>http://www.panys.org/alerts/177extra.htm</em></a><BR> </div>  <TABLE NAME=BODY WIDTH=600PX ALIGN=left bgcolor=white border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0> <tr>  <td width=585 align=left valign=top>  <TABLE NAME=MESSAGE style="margin-bottom:10px" border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" width=585 align=left valign=top> <tr> <TD width="585" align=left valign=top class=bluetext8> <div align=justify class=margin10> <Greeting /> Dear Peace Advocate, <BR><BR>  If you have time,<strong> please take a moment now to act on something very important.</strong><BR><BR> The American Friends Service Committee has alerted us to a very threatening attempt by the Department of Defense to <strong>force JROTC military training on all public high schools under penalty of withholding federal funds. </strong><BR> <BR> The 2009 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is presently on the floor before the U.S. Senate. For the last three days, the U.S. Senate has been considering over 350 proposed amendments to this Act. One of these is <strong>Senator John Contryn (R TX)'s Amendment #5331</strong>, which would <strong>deny federal funds to any high school that refuses to allow a Jr. Reserve Officer Training Corps program. </strong>If this amendment is allowed on the bill, it will likely pass as a "package" with the other amendments - without any debate.<BR><BR> Currently, public schools may refuse JROTC programs without penalty. Many JROTC programs include rifle ranges, all use textbooks provided by the Pentagon and are highly effective recruitment programs for the military. <strong>This is a nightmare scenario for our counter-recruitment efforts.</strong> If we are asleep at the switch, it is not inconceivable that the majority of America's high schools will have military training in a few short years. This step is part of an overall plan by dangerous neocons to militarize our nation's youth. <BR> <BR> <strong>Please make a few phone calls. ACTION IS NEEDED TODAY, SEPT 16TH.</strong><BR> <BR> <strong>1. Call our Senators.</strong> Ask them to pressure <strong>Senator Carl Levin, Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, to strike #5331 from the NDAA.</strong><BR><BR> <strong>Senator Schumer: 202-224-6542. Senator Clinton: 202-224-4451 </strong> <BR><BR> <strong>2. Call Senator Levin: (202) 224-6221.</strong> He does not support Amendment 5331. The Dems are working now to get reduce all the amendments to six, and 5331 is not one of those. Thank Senator Levin for his opposition to this amendment and urge him to stay on guard against it. <BR><BR> Key talking points: <UL> <LI>This amendment would make a major social change. It should be debated openly, not passed in a package</LI> <LI>The history and social science elements of ROTC curricula are not objective. They push a very biased, pro-military view of the military's role in society and history that can border on fascism.</LI> <LI>ROTC instructors are often allowed to have little or no educational credentials or certification.</LI> <LI>There is often very litle or no educational supervision of what goes on in ROTC classrooms. </LI></UL> Thank you for going the extra mile! <BR><BR> John Bostrom <BR> Peace Action of New York State<BR> <a href=jb@panys.org>jb@panys.org </a> </div>  </td> </tr> </table> </td>  </tr>  </table>  </td>  </tr> </table>  <br clear="all" /> </body> </html>