Golden Rule Sails Mission for Peace Around the Bay

“’Peacemaking is hard!’ said Stephen, at the helm of the Notorious C.O.W. (Cal 20 #624, Can o’Whoopass, as we beat up the east side of Angel Island. The rest of the Peace Flotilla, a worthy group of sailors determined not to be cowed by current federal government activities, had gone ahead of us to be at our first destination, Alcatraz (the island ex-prison, not the Florida concentration camp), when the boats departing from points other than Richmond arrived.”

“The summer breeze, which was a predicted 8–10 knots, had broken through the high-pressure bubble, and while quite warm, was winding up into the high teens as we neared Point Blunt. My usual racing crew Rachel and I, dear friend and great sailor Stephen, and a very fit 70-year-old Berkeley kayaker Julie, who had agreed to sail with us, were likely to be very wet by the time we got to Alcatraz. The VHF chatter from the two lead boats, the gaff ketch Golden Rule and the catamaran Hokahey, spoke of gusts in the higher ranges at Alcatraz, and boats from Alameda and Emery Cove were having trouble making way. We chose prudence, and made for the north corner of Angel Island.”

“We were not there to be perfect, just to show that certain sailors and their guests believe that ‘Never Again’ applies to the state of Israel, as well as the history of Germany. That democracy is fragile, and needs to be given a shot of nutrients every now and then. That people who migrate don’t do it for fun (would you leave your birthplace for a dangerous, uncertain future for fun?), and are as human and worthy of respect as any other being. That energy from heaven (the sun, and its effects on atmospheric fluid motion) is better than energy from down below, and that it’s hard to envision wars being fought over sunlight. And that a single nuclear detonation in furtherance of a national policy choice is certainly a step toward a preventable Armageddon.

“So we rendezvoused off Southampton Shoal platform — SVs VFP Golden Rule, Hokahey, Amatheia, and the Notorious C.O.W. — and oozed north with the new flood to wave our freak flags at the largest West Coast refinery of energy from below, then, faced with said flood, motored back to our berths.” – Richard vonEhrenkrook, captain, Cal 20 #624, Can o’Whoopass.

Golden Rule is a 34-ft wooden ketch; a national project of Veterans For Peace. It sailed into San Francisco Bay on August 20 with a mission to lead a flotilla of Bay Area boats around Alcatraz and on to the Chevron oil refinery in Richmond, displaying signs for peace and justice. “We will sail for peace and humanity. We will sail for an end to nuclear weapons and support for the U.N. Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons,” Veterans For Peace (VFP) had written in a preceding news release.

The ship has spent the month of August visiting Bay Area ports and sharing the message “No more nukes. No more war. The future is ours to reclaim” through public sails, peace actions, community dialogues, and film screenings. On August 22, the historical anti-nuclear peace boat arrived at Pier 40, South Beach Harbor, where a large crowd welcomed the crew alongside champion lion dancers and the powerful voices of the Comfort Women Justice Coalition. Guests joined two sailing sessions on the Bay, followed by a standing-room-only program at ANSWER Coalition’s Mission Street office. The day included a screening of the new documentary Golden Rule: The Journey for Peace (directed by Nolan Anderson), followed by an impromptu gathering for a meal across the street at Los Panchos. Here they were joined by journalist and political analyst KJ Noh. The following day the ship and her crew sailed to San Mateo, where they were welcomed by the Raging Grannies and joined an afternoon “Vigil for Gaza” at Coyote Point Marina.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, August 26, the Golden Rule crew will take part in a community gathering and film screening of Golden Rule: The Journey for Peace. The evening includes presentations by speakers including Gerry Condon, Veterans For Peace, Golden Rule committee chair, raised in San Mateo, and Dr. Dylan Spaulding, senior scientist, Global Security Program and Union of Concerned Scientists, who will help crew Golden Rule back to Humboldt Bay at the end of the month.

Golden Rule has been sailing across the US to raise awareness about nuclear disarmament, militarism and justice. Its Bay Area voyage comes at a time of global crisis, from the 80th anniversaries of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to ongoing genocide in Gaza, the National Guard on the streets of cities in the United States, and the ever-growing risks of nuclear war.

“Golden Rule carries a message for all generations: that peace, disarmament, and justice must be charted together,” said project manager Michelle KanoeLehua Marsonette.

You can learn more about Veterans For Peace and the Golden Rule Project here and on
Facebook: @VFP Golden Rule Project