Because War is Morally Impossible

The Peace Boat has arrived in Portland! The beautiful wooden sailboat called “The Golden Rule,” sponsored by Veterans for Peace, is in Portland as a peaceful alternative to the militarism of Fleet Week. During this week, military battleships parade around the harbor bristling with guns and touting their nuclear capacities as part of the annual Rose Festival. 

This year for the first time, the graceful red sails of the Golden Rule will weave among the battleships and gunboats as a positive presence for peace and to invite people to question what militarism has to do with a Festival of Roses. I was privileged to be on the team who helped plan their visit, and here is Helen Jaccard, who is one of the crew and the CEO of the project. I blipped Helen and her husband back in February when they were here for a planning meeting, and this blip is Helen presenting the history and purpose of the Peace Boat to an audience in Portland.

Those of you in the Pacific Northwest who might like to see and support the Golden Rule can find a pdf of their itinerary, including points in Washington including Seattle and Bellingham, here. I am hoping to get down to the waterfront for a shot of the boat in action as soon as I can.