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CPP Membership CPP News CPP News

CPP Membership & Listserv

For membership information please contact CPP Treasurer Sanjay Lal (sanjaylal@clayton.edu)

To join the CPP listserv contact Barry Gan (bgan@sbu.edu)

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CPP Books CPP News CPP Newsletter Online V26.1

Philosophy of Peace Series Update by William Gay

Gay, Willilam, “Philosophy of Peace: Report from the Editor of the Special Series in VIBS (Value Inquiry Book Series) published by Rodopi,” Newsletter of the Concerned Philosophers for Peace Vol. 26 (Spring-Summer 2006)

Books under Contract:

Justice and Justification: The Relation between Justice and Peace, eds. Andrew Kelley and Deborah Peterson (presently being formatted under VIBS guidelines, but behind schedule)

Parceling the Globe: Philosophical Explorations in Globalization, Global Behavior, and Peace, eds. Danielle Poe and Eddy Souffrant (editors aim to send copy to me for review by Summer 2006; ahead of schedule)

Philosophical Perspectives on the ‘War on Terrorism.’ eds. Gail Presbey and Wendy Hamblet (editors aim to submit copy to me for review by Summer 2006; on schedule)

Problems for Democracy, eds. John H. Kultgen, Jr. and Mary Lenzi (manuscript has been completed; sample pages in pdf format were reviewed and approved by Rodopi Editor with only minor changes being required; once these changes are made and page numbers are added to the index, the camera-ready manuscript will be sent to Rodopi, probably by April, to put in their production line)

Savage Constructions: A Theory of Rebounding Violence in Indigenous Communities, Wendy Hamblet (monograph that is behind schedule)

Spiritual and Political Dimensions of Nonviolence and Peace, eds. David Boersema and Katy Gray Brown (editors aim to send copy to me for review in Spring 2006; on schedule)

Next Book Expected to Go Under Contract:

Rob Gildert and Dennis Rothermel are collecting manuscripts from our meeting California State University, Chico for an expected volume on Remembrance and Reconciliation (a contract may be issued as early as Summer 2006)

Professor William C. Gay was recipient of the 2005 Bank of America Award for Teaching Excellence at the University of North Carolina – Charlotte.

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CPP News CPP Newsletter Online V26.1

Barry Gan is president elect of CPP

Presbey, Gail. “CPP News,” Newsletter of the Concerned Philosophers for Peace Vol. 26 (Spring-Summer 2006)

Concerned Philosophers for Peace (CPP) had our annual conference in November 20005 at California State University, Chico, where member Ron Hirschbein was our host. The conference went very well. I would like to report the highlights of our Executive and General business meeting.

Members of the Executive committee include myself, Paul Churchill (President), Larry Bove (Past President), David Boersema (Treasurer), Bill Gay (PoP series editor), Ron Hirschbein (APA liason – Pacific division), Eddy Souffrant (APA liason – Eastern division), and Harry vander Linden (APA liason – Central division).

Dave Boersema reported that the funds available for CPP at that time were $4,016.71. These funds must cover costs of the newsletter, and are sometimes used to help defray costs of publishing a volume in our Rodopi series (no more than $500 per book). He noted that we had not yet collected dues for the 2005-06 academic year. We decided to send out a call for dues before the end of 2005, which we have done.

Included with the call for dues was a ballot for the re-appointment of the Executive Director (myself) and a vote for President of CPP for 2006-08 academic years. I can now add an update on this issue. The dues collection went reasonably well with our usual rate of about sixty paid members handing in their dues. As a result of the election, I was re-appointed Executive Director, and Bary Gan was elected president.

Also at the meeting we discussed the location of our next CPP conference, and its theme. We accepted Barry Gan’s proposal that we meet at St. Bonaventure University in Olean, NY. Since then he has updated us, announcing that the dates of the conference will be Oct. 19-22. The topic is “Peacework.” The keynote speaker will be Arun Gandhi, grandson of Mahatma Gandhi and lifelong peace activist. He will be speaking near the 100th anniversary of Gandhi’s first satyagraha action (which was in South Africa on Sept. 11, 1906).

Also at our business meetings, Bill Gay gave his report on the PoP series. I will let him write his own update for this letter. Let me close with a reminder that you will be getting your call for 2006-07 dues by the end of this spring, and although it may seem soon considering you only got the last call for dues at the end of December, this is due to our having been late with the last call. We will try to get on track with the next call for dues, so please prepare yourself to receive the announcement!

Gail Presbey is CPP Executive Director and Associate Professor of Philosophy at University of Detroit Mercy. She recently completed studies in India as a Fulbright Scholar.

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CPP News CPP Newsletter Online V24

CPP News by Gail Presbey (2004)

Presbey, Gail (Univ. of Detroit-Mercy). “CPP News” CPP Newsletter Vol. 24, No. 1 (Spring-Summer 2004).

Since the 2003 annual conference, CPP has been active, presenting panels at the Eastern, Pacific, and Central Divisions of the APA. I could not attend them all, but will report briefly on those I did attend.

Our CPP panel at the Pacific Division started with Kelly Candaele talking about Ireland’s “ripening” of the time for peace. Certain conditions were finally present which helped the transition to peace. Jerry Adams and others realized that they were at a military stalemate: neither side could win militarily. Sinn Fein then placed a greater emphasis on politics, and internationalized their support. Spirituality also played a role in helping break through a culture of pessimism. Wendy Hamblet followed with an analysis of perversions of democracy, reflecting on contemporary times in the light of Aristotle. She explained that in her analysis, “capitalist democracy” is an oxymoron. My paper followed, with an account of recently developed “technologies of surveillance” and how the Bush administration tries to fit them into narratives of meaning so that they will be acceptable. An attempt to pair “the good life” with surveillance was recently made in the Dean Koontz film “Black River” which was analyzed in the paper. This panel was organized and chaired by Ron Hirschbein, who added his witty commentary after each presentation.

Let me comment briefly on the larger context of the APA at Pasadena. There were several good panels looking at the War on Terror and questions of Just War. Lionel McPherson, Kai Draper, and Virginia Held were on one such panel. Eduardo Mendienta, Ronald Sundstrom and Tommy Lott addressed issues of racism and genocide. The main APA conference was immediately followed by a conference on Social Justice sponsored by the Journal of Ethics. Soran Reader, Larry May, Lisa Portness, and Tim Challens had an interesting panel on War, Criminal Justice, and military tribunals. J. Angelo Corlett was on a panel which scrutinized his recent book on terrorism. James Sterba, Dale Jamison, Robert Goodin and Thomas Pogge discussed global poverty. It is heartening to see so many philosophers turning their attention to these issues.

During the social justice conference, three CPP members were on a panel exploring non-violence as a means of social change. Greg Moses explored the writings of an early immigrant to “New Amsterdam” in 1658 named Plockhoy, who, while critical of Cromwell back in England, became concerned about the group’s need to defend itself against Native Americans. Ironically, the whole town was destroyed, not by Native Americans, but by the British army. Moses concludes that an America which is too concerned about its dark skinned enemies, doesn’t realize that their own built-up standing armies are actually their greatest threat. Jose-Antonio Orosco shared his paper on Cesar Chavez’s commitment to nonviolence, and his reasons for eschewing violence against property. I followed with a paper about the role of nonviolence in the South African struggle against apartheid, and the debate within South Africa on whether violence or nonviolence is to be given the credit for the struggle’s successes. Several of the philosophers present at the Social Justice conference showed interest in joining CPP, and we hope that they can join us at our upcoming conference.

At the Central APA in Chicago, Harry van der Linden organized a well-attended panel which discussed aspects of the Iraq War. Ann Cudden spoke of ways in which women in Iraq are suffering during the U.S. Occupation. In the 1980s, Iraq was one of the more progressive Middle Eastern governments. For example, women could run for elected office. Women’s rights began to be eroded throughout the nineties. Now, men, whose honor was wounded in war, want to regain their honor by lording over their women. There is a fight within the Iraqi Governing Council regarding the defense of women in the future Iraq constitution. James Sterba argued that the U.S. should pull out of Iraq immediately. Not only was the invasion not justified to begin with, but in addition, things are worse the longer the U.S. remains inside Iraq. Dick Peterson explored whether there could be a defensible neo-colonialism, in which occupied and occupier have some kind of reciprocity between them. Harry van der Linden argued that a justified humanitarian intervention may be followed by an unjust aftermath, or vice versa. He argued that the U.S. lacks occupational authority in Iraq. The audience participated in a lively question and answer session, despite the late hour.

Other Central APA sessions touched upon issues of peace in our world. One session organized by the APA Committee on the Status of Women was called “Making Peace in a Time of War.” One participant was CPP member Laura Duhan Kaplan, who analyzed the role that Jessica Lynch played in the media, and how Lynch herself did not want to be the media’s pawn. A panel on Sandra Bartky’s recent book Sympathy and Solidarity raised issues of conscience, guilt, complicity, and resistance to war, as Bartky referred to the slogan, “Not in my name,” to express a person’s ability to distance themselves from the complicity in their government’s wars. The Committee for International Cooperation hosted a two-part international dialog about challenges to peace in the Middle East. I would like to thank Laura Duhan Kaplan and Eddy Souffrant for organizing other CPP panels (at Eastern and Central) that I was not able to attend. I think the project of maintaining a presence at the APA meetings is important for CPP as an organization. It helps us to recruit new members, and engage a broader audience in the issues we raise. Please make a point, when you are attending an APA conference, to attend our CPP panels. Often they are in the evenings (the Group sessions are not at the most convenient times), but please make that extra effort to cut dinner short (or postpone sleep) and meet with other philosophers to analyze these important issues affecting peace in our world.

Having said that, I want also to emphasize that it’s important to come to the annual CPP conference as well. We can get lost in the bigger APA sessions, but the annual conference is where we can get together and find out what each other is thinking, give our feedback, and help to clarify our ideas. Please submit your paper ideas to the organizers at University of North Carolina-Charlotte for what promises to be a great gathering. And please remember to pay your dues and vote for a new President (see pages 22-23). We will be hearing a Presidential address from our winning candidate at the fall conference.

Booking Massai Dancers

Some of you may remember that two years ago at the CPP conference at Walsh University, there was a group from Kenya called the Simba Maasai Cultural Performers who shared some of their culture’s traditions with us. The group is particularly of interest to philosophers of peace, because the group addresses the peace-making aspects of their tradition. In fact, Francis and John ole Sakuda have created a “Peace Tree Museum” near their rural homes, where they document the role of plants and trees in peace-making rituals as well as medicinal uses. Francis has come annually to the U.N. Indigenous People’s forum, and is well-versed in the topic of the fight of indigenous peoples around the world for their rights. The group has been doing an annual tour of the U.S. each September and October. Please consider hosting them at your university. They perform traditional dances, songs and rituals, as well as lectures. They need travel expenses and housing covered, and an honorarium. Hopefully your university may have resources for such performances and lectures through a Student Activity fund. You’ll find that compared to local performers, their costs are quite reasonable. And, all of the proceeds they receive from their honoraria go straight to their nonprofit organization to further development in their area of Maasailand. If you are interested in hosting them this fall, please write me.

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CPP News CPP Newsletter Online V23

CPP News by Gail Presbey (2003)

Presbey, Gail (Univ. of Detroit-Mercy). "CPP News." CPP Newsletter Vol. 23, Nos. 1-2 (Spring-Fall 2003).

Although there were two nominations for president at the 2003 business meeting, both have since withdrawn their candidacies. Please submit nominations via e-mail by Dec. 15 to CPP Executive Director Gail Presbey: presbegm at udmercy dot edu

Treasurer’s report, Jerry Richards: CPP operating budget account has $4,884.88. This is the account out of which comes the funds to pay for the newsletter. We have around 64 dues paying members. The account is in good shape, with dues covering basic expenses. Rodopi PoP budget: $343.92.

New Treasurer: Jerry Richards is retiring from his university at the end of this academic year. So, the Executive Committee met and decided upon a new treasurer, who has agreed to serve. That person is Dave Boersema, and we are grateful for his taking on this important position. Dave will take over from Jerry on Jan. 1, 2004.

Next conference: University of North Carolina at Charlotte will host the next CPP conference. The theme is: “Globalization and its discontents: Implications for War, Peace, and Justice.” Subthemes include: competing definitions of globalization; the rich-poor dichotomy; NAFTA: U.S. – U.N. relations; Global ethics; movements against globalization; world music and culture.

Also, members should be thinking about whether they would like to host the next CPP conference in 2005 at their university.

Website: Dave Koukal has agreed to be CPP webmaster. He will be working on updating the CPP website.

PoP series with VIBS and Rodopi: Starting Jan. 1, 2004, Bill Gay will be the editor in charge, and both Joe Kunkel and Judith Presler will be assistant editors.

Papers from last year’s conference (2002, Walsh University) will be combined with papers from this year into a Rodopi PoP volume. The co-editors are Wendy Hamblet and Gail Presbey.

CPP at APA: Laura Duhan Kaplan has organized two CPP panels for the Eastern APA: one on War, Religion and Ethics; and one on World Federalism.

Ron Hirschbein is organizing a panel for the CPP at the Pacific Division; and Harry van der Linden is working on a panel for the Central Division. See the preview on page 15.

–News submitted by Gail Presbey, CPP Exec. Dir.

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CPP News CPP Newsletter Online Past Conferences V11.2

CfP: CPP Fifth National Conference

Newsletter of the Concerned Philosophers for Peace, Vol. 11.2 (Fall 1991)

The fifth annual conference of the Concerned Philosophers for Peace will be held in Charlotte, NC on October 16-18, 1992. The theme of the conference is “Power and Domination.” Papers which reflect the conference theme are strongly encouraged, but papers which discuss other topics related to peace and war are welcome. Papers on the conference theme may discuss the phenomena of power and domination operating at any of a variety of levels: international politics, national politics, interpersonal relationships, gender issues, race and class issues, ecology and institutional politics within such institutions as families, schools, peace groups, military organizations, prisons, etc. Papers on the conference theme may discuss how power and domination (or our conceptions of them) work and/or how power and domination (or our conceptions of them) may be transformed. Presentation time for papers will be limited to twenty minutes. Papers are due July 1. Please send three copies of the paper and one copy of an abstract of no more than 150 words to: Laura Duhan Kaplan, Department of Philosophy, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC 28223.

________________________________________________________________________________
Concerned Philosophers for Peace
Department of Philosophy
The University of Dayton
300 College Park Avenue
Dayton, Ohio 45469-2260

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CPP Books CPP News CPP Newsletter Online V11.2

The CPP Series: ETHICS, VIOLENCE AND PEACE

Series Editor: Kenneth H. Klein

Issues in War and Peace (1989)
Editors: Joseph C. Kunkel & Kenneth H. Klein

In the Interest of Peace (1990)
Editors: Kenneth H. Klein & Joseph C. Kunkel

Just War, Nonviolence, and Nuclear Deterrence (1991)
Editors: Duane Cady & Richard Werner

Longwood Academic
Hollowbrook Publishing
Wakefield, New Hampshire

Details on the Most Recent Volume

JUST WAR, NONVIOLENCE, AND NUCLEAR DETERRENCE
Philosophers on War and Peace

Duane Cady and Richard Werner (eds.)

In this new anthology, contemporary philosophers turn their attention to the issues of war and peace. Using their skills in political and social philosophy, ethical theory, and critical analysis, they debate the morality and logic of nuclear deterrence, the applicability and viability of just war theory, and the ethics and practicality of non-violence. Many perspectives and viewpoints are represented, including those of feminism, political realism, pacifism, and just war theory.

Several of the contributors are well-known for their previous books and articles on war and peace. The contributors include Sheldon Cohen, William Gay, Robert Holmes, Douglas Lackey, Steven Lee, Sara Ruddick, Ronald Santoni, and James Sterba. Most of the articles appear here in print for the first time.

Editor Duane Cady is chair of the philosophy department at Hamline University and is the author of the book From Warism to Pacifism. He presently serves as president of Concerned Philosophers for Peace. Co-editor Richard Werner is chair of the philosophy department at Hamilton College. He presently serves as eastern divisional representative for Concerned Philosophers for Peace.

ISBN: 0-89341-675-4 cloth $37.50 ISBN: 0-89341-676-2 paper $18.50 304 pages

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CPP News CPP Newsletter Online V11.2

Report from Knoxville

Kunkel, Joseph. “Report from Knoxville,” Newsletter of the Concerned Philosophers for Peace, Vol. 11.2 (Fall 1991)

CPP’s fourth annual conference was held October 25-27, 1991 in Knoxville, TN. We met on the campus of the University of Tennessee Friday and Saturday, and at the Knoxville Hilton Sunday morning. At the plenary sessions we heard addresses from Henry Shue, Karen Warren, Linda Forcey, and Duane Cady. The theme was “Nationalism and Regional Conflicts.” Sheldon Cohen is to be congratulated for arranging this stimulating conference.

At the business meeting several issues were discussed. The first concerned some difficulties encountered by Duane Cady and Richard Werner in the publication of CPP’s third volume entitled Just War, Nonviolence, and Nuclear Deterrence: Philosophers on War and Peace. The book is a selection of revised papers from the 1990 conference held at the University of Notre Dame. The camera-ready manuscript was submitted to Longwood this past summer. Although the book was not printed in time for distribution at the Knoxville meeting, it is now availble. Meanwhile, Laurence Bove and Laura Duhan Kaplan agreed to begin the editing of the Knoxville papers.

William Gay reported on the progress of the joint venture he is editing for CPP with Tatjana Alekseeva of the Institute of Philosophy in Moscow. The seven American essays have been chosen after a blind reviewing process that involved a number of CPP members. Each submitted essay was reviewed by two to four reviewers. The final selection was made from these reviewers’ comments by an editorial board consisting of Richard Werner, R. Paul Churchill, and Bill Gay. The Soviet essays have been collected by Tatjana and are in the process of being translated into English. If all goes well the English edition will be sent to the publisher Rowman & Littlefield by this Spring.

Next year’s CPP conference will be in Charlotte, NC, with the University of North Carolina at Charlotte acting as host. Laura Duhan Kaplan has agreed to chair the program and make the local arrangements. The conference theme will be “Power and Domination.” (See p. 16 for an early announcement with various subthemes.)

A report on IPPNO was given by Howard Friedman of the University of Conn. at Waterbury. John Somerville has resigned as USA Chair. In his place Ronald Santoni was appointed as USA President and Howard as USA Executive Secretary. Thomas Daffern continues as International Coordinator. The IPPNO name is presently being retained, but with a subtitle of “Philosophers for Global Concerns.” Howard made a strong pitch for cordial relations with CPP. He is hoping to begin an international journal on philosophy and peace, by using computer diskettes instead of paper bindings. IPPNO will also organize a philosophy of peace section at the World Congress on Violence and Human Coexistence meeting in Montreal in July, 1992 (contact Ron at Denison for more details), and at the World Congress of Philosophy meeting in Moscow in 1993.

James Sterba reported for the elections committee on two nominees for CPP president. They are Robert Holmes and Steven Lee. Joseph Kunkel was nominated to run unopposed for Executive Secretary. The ballots will be sent out in the extra January mailing that includes the annual dues request.

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CPP News CPP Newsletter Online V11.1

1991 Announcements

Gay, William, “1991 Announcements,” Newsletter of the Concerned Philosophers for Peace, Vol. 11, No. 1 (Spring 1991).

CPP President. Duane Cady has been elected CPP President for 1991. He succeeds James Sterba, who served in 1990.

Papers for October Conference. The fourth annual conference of CPP will be held in Knoxville October 25-27, 1991. Our host is the Univ. of Tennessee, with Sheldon Cohen in charge of local arrangements. For the first time we have a theme, namely, Nationalism and Militarism in Regional Conflicts. Henry Shue of Cornell University’s Prog. on Ethics and Public Life, and tentatively Michael Klare, Assoc. Prof. of Peace and World Security Studies at Hampshire College, will be our invited speakers. Papers on aspects of the conf. theme are preferred, but other war and peace issues are not excluded. Papers, limited to 20 minutes reading time, can be submitted in duplicate to Laurence Bove (Walsh College, 2020 Easton St., N.E., N. Canton, OH 44720) by July 1st.

Call for Papers. William Gay is seeking papers for a joint American-Soviet volume on philosophical reflections for the 21st century. The perspective is social political philosophy, with an emphasis upon issues of war and peace. Seven North American essays will be included along with seven Soviet essays. The coeditors are William Gay for Concerned Philosophers for Peace and Tatjana Alekseeva for the Institute of Philosophy in Moscow. Both an English (Rowman & Littlefield) and a Russian (Politizdat) edition will be published by 1993.

Essays may be submitted on any of the following topics: Post-Perestroika Ethical Views of Nuclear War and Deterrence; Political Realism, Morality, and the Future of the Nation-State; Nonviolent Alternatives to War; Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy in the 21st Century; Feminist Views on Conflict and International Relations; Peace and Justice from a North-South Perspective; and Ethics and Environmental Concerns. All American essays will be selected by blind review. The text should not exceed 25 double-spaced pages. Papers are to be sent in duplicate to William Gay (Department of Philosophy, UNC at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC 28223).

Longwood Series. You should have received an announcement of the publication of the papers of CPP’s second annual conference in 1989. The book was issued in October by Longwood Academic in Wakefield, NH under the title of In the Interest of Peace: A Spectrum of Philosophical Views, eds., K. Klein and J. Kunkel. Longwood has recently agreed to publish a series of volumes consisting of selections from future CPP conferences. Kenneth Klein has been named the General Editor for this series. The next volume will be the 1990 Notre Dame papers which are currently being selected and edited by Duane Cady and Richard Werner. This volume is expected to be out in the fall.

Nominations for CPP Officers. If you know someone who might like to serve as a CPP officer during the coming years please submit her or his name to Joseph Kunkel. The office of President is an annual position. The Executive Secretary is a three-year term beginning in 1992. And the two representatives from each of the three APA divisions overlap with two-year terms. Concerned Philosophers for Peace can only be vibrant with your continued support.

CPP Meeting at Central Division of APA. CPP will conduct two sessions in Private Dining Room no. 6 of the Palmer House in Chicago on April 24, 1991. From 7:15 to 8:15, John J. Mearsheimer (University of Chicago) will speak on the topic “Why We Will Miss the Cold War” and from 8:30 to 9:30, a panel composed of Tomis Kapitan (Eastern Carolina University),Robert Holmes (University of Rochester), and R. Paul Churchill (George Washington University) will address the topic “War and Peace Issues in the Middle East.” A CPP business meeting will follow from 9:45 to 10:15.