Page 12 RAIN Oct./Nov. 1982 secutes for war tax resistance if it can get the diverted taxes in other ways), and that many resisters go unchallenged year after year. Reagan's new tax measures may make it tougher on resisters in the future, but, as Joshua told the Israelites, we need to choose whom we will follow, and "as for me and my family, we will follow the Lord." — Bruce Borquist "A Talk with Louis Harris," by Jamie Kalven, The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Aug/Sep 1982, $2.50 + $.95 postage/ copy from; Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists 5801 South Kenwood Avenue Chicago, IL 60637 Americans are "genuinely frightened" these days says pollster Louis Harris in this issue of The Bulletin. "Frightened in an activated way as opposed to a passive way" — by the perception that "the leaders of the Soviet Union and the leaders of the United States are heading toward a From: Guide to War Tax Resistance nuclear confrontation." As director of one of the most respected polling organizations in the country, Harris, more than most p>eople, is in a position to tell us what Americans think. He has discovered some widely held fears and hopes among Americans concerning nuclear weapons and the threat of nuclear war. A few of his recent findings . . . — A large majority (73 to 23 percent ) would like every country that has nuclear weapons to ban the production, storage, and use of those weapons. — An even larger majority (81 to 16 percent) wants the United States and the Soviet Union to agree not to produce any new nuclear weapons, provided both have a rough equivalence of such weapons today. — 56 percent of the voters say they would vote against a candidate for Congress who favored escalation of the nuclear arms race, even if they agreed with him on almost every other issue. — By 74 to 22 percent, Americans say they want all coimtries that have nuclear weapons to destroy them. — 66 fjercent think it is immoral for any country to produce more nuclear weapons. In view of these findings and others, Harris offers some advice to the peace movement: Ifyou want to be effective on this issue, you must zero in on it. The movement is much stronger on a straight-forward, simple basis. I don't think it's an oversimplification simply to say: "We demand that this potential scourge ofhumanity be halted andfinally ended." The more you diffuse the issue with a whole series of other issues, the more you weaken the movement. Harris's poll results, and his interpretation of them, describe a nation of people who see and fear an escalating arms race that jeopardizes our safety more each day. Nuclear freeze advocacy would appear to be a political position bringing broad support from voters in the upcoming elections. Let us hope and ensure that it is a widely discussed issue. — Jim Springer The Plutonium Culture: From Hiroshima to Harrisburg, by Jim Garrison, 1981, 224 pp., $14.95 ha^cover from: The Continuum Publishing Coip. 18 East 41st Street New York, NY 10017 There have been a number of books on the technology of nuclear power and weapons. Jim Garrison's book moves beyond the technical and into the psychological, moral and emotional asp>ects of our nuclear society: from the bomb, to power, to proliferation. The personal stories of Hiroshima's hibakusha (Japanese idiom literally meaning "explosion-affected person"), those of people in the surrounding communities of Harrisburg, and of the employees of jiuclear facilities, strike a frightening chord — the Plutonium Culture is all around us. Garrison's exploration of the psychological effects of our relatively short nuclear history, however, does not rely solely on pulling your heartstrings. He includes detailed accounts of the bombing of Hiroshima, the "event" at Three MUe Island and the death of Karen Silk- wood. Also included is an in-depth explanation of the effects of high and low-level radiation, fallout, the nuclear fuel cycle and the enrichment process. It could be, in many ways, a terrifying, depressing book. But Garrison concludes with both a chapter on soft energy alternatives and on non-violent responses to the mjclear industry. This last chapter on non-violence is particularly insightful, stressing the importance of non-cooperation with the nuclear evil and of the need for forgiveness. Drawing on Thomas Merton and Gandhi, Garrison points out Federal Funds Outlays by Function (Fiscal Year 1982) 567* TOTAL MlLriARY S284 Billion past military $98 B or 197o veterans benefits (S24 B) 807« interest on debt ($74 B) present military $186 or 37V# Dept, of Defense ($181 B) Dept, of Energy (military) (SS B) preaenl military spending general government, etc. international affairs science justice general government 20V> interest on debt $49 B or lOVe 44Vo TOTAL NON-MILITARY $222 BUlion physical resources and envir. agriculture commerce & housing credit transportation community & regional develop. $51 B or lOVo human resources health income security general purpose fiscal as: education, training, etc. $122 Bor 24V« 100% TOTAL FEDERAL FUNDS $506 BUlioii
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc4NTAz