Ashland Center for Nonviolence: ‘The Cost of War’ Fall Symposium
8/14/12 ASHLAND, Ohio - The Ashland Center for Nonviolence’s Fall 2012 Symposium will take an in-depth look at the assumptions about war and the cost of war. In three programs, speakers will explore the accepted belief that war is inevitable; ask why people are willing to bankrupt themselves preparing for war but not for peace?; and ask what budget trade-offs are people making as they consider war, domestic spending and the national debt? All three programs are free and open to the public.
On Thursday, Sept. 6, at 7 p.m., Paul Chappell, a 2002 West Point graduate, will present “War is NOT Inevitable” in the Hawkins-Conrad Student Center Auditorium on the Ashland University campus. His presentation is part one of the 2012 “The Cost of War” Symposium, sponsored by the Ashland Center for Nonviolence at Ashland University.
Chappell served in the army for seven years, was deployed to Baghdad in 2006, and left active duty in November 2009 as a captain. He is the author of “Will War Ever End: A Soldier’s Vision of Peace for the 21st Century”; “The End of War: How Waging Peace Can Save Humanity”; “Our Planet, and Our Future, and Peaceful Revolution: How We Can Create the Future Needed for Humanity’s Survival.”
He lives in Santa Barbara, Calif., where he is serving as the Peace Leadership Director for the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation (www.wagingpeace.org). He is working on his fourth book, “The Art of Waging Peace: A Strategic Approach to Improving Our Lives and the World.”
Archbishop Desmond Tutu spoke about Chappell’s presentation saying, “Captain Paul K. Chappell has given us a crucial look at war and peace from the unique perspective of a soldier, and his new ideas show us why world peace is both necessary and possible in the 21st century." A book signing and a question-and-answer session will follow the presentation.
Part two of the series will feature speaker John Mueller, who will present “Code Red: The Cost of Fear,” on Tuesday, Sept. 18, at 7 p.m. in the Ronk Lecture Hall of the Schar College of Education on the Ashland University campus.
Mueller is senior research scientist and Woody Hayes Chair of National Security Studies Emeritus at the Mershon Center for International Security Studies, and professor of political science at The Ohio State University, where he teaches courses in international relations. He is also an award-winning author who is currently working on terrorism and particularly on the reaction (or over-reactions) it often inspires.
The focus of his presentation will center on one of his books, “Overblown: How Politicians and the Terrorism Industry Inflate National Security Threats, and Why We Believe Them” (Free Press, 2006). The New York Times called the book “important” and “accurate, timely, and necessary.”
The final fall presentation will focus on “A Nation in Debt: How Can We Pay the Bills?” on Thursday, Oct. 4, at 7 p.m. in the Hawkins-Conrad Student Center Auditorium on the Ashland University campus.
This is a public forum on the national debt. This program is a nonpolitical community forum for citizens to deliberate possible solutions to the national debt. A short video, researched and developed by National Issues Forum, will explain three potential solutions. Louise Fleming will moderate a discussion on the benefits and trade-offs of each solution. Judy White will record comments, which will be available online and will be sent to Ashland’s legislators. Come prepared to participate!
The Ashland Center for Nonviolence at Ashland University, located on the Ashland University campus, seeks a world in which human conflict at all levels can be resolved without resorting to violence and in which social justice can be realized. For more information about this event, or to learn more about the Ashland Center for Nonviolence, please call 419-289-5313 or visit the website at www.ashland.edu/acn.
Ashland University, ranked in the top 200 colleges and universities in U.S. News and World Report’s National Universities category for 2012, is a mid-sized, private university conveniently located a short distance from Akron, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. Ashland University (www.ashland.edu) values the individual student and offers a unique educational experience that combines the challenge of strong, applied academic programs with a faculty and staff who build nurturing relationships with their students. ##
