NASHVILLE |FROM: LATHUM NELSON/MITCH SCHNEIDER
STEVEN SEAGAL
SHOWS HOW TO DISMANTLE A NUCLEAR BOMB;
HOSTING “ FULL CIRCLE ” CEREMONY JULY 16 IN SAN FRANCISCO
TO RETURN “ATOMIC FLAME” FROM HIROSHIMA TO
TRINITY TEST SITE IN NEW MEXICO
Actor and life-long musician STEVEN SEAGAL will lead the way as the first individual to personally sponsor the disarming and disposal of a nuclear missile. SEAGAL will dedicate the entire $100,000 necessary to remove and destroy a “High Risk” Russian nuclear weapon.
SEAGAL will mark the event by hosting the “ Full Circle ” ceremony Saturday, July 16 near San Francisco ’s Pier 39 where the “Atomic Flame” will arrive from Japan aboard the Japanese tall ship Nippon Maru. The “Atomic Flame” was kindled from the burning embers of Hiroshima 60 years ago, after the world’s first atomic bomb was dropped on the city to end World War II.
Protected by Zen Monks, that original flame still burns today and has become a symbol of hope for peace and a reminder of the horrors of nuclear weapons. Joined by Native Americans, War Veterans and peace groups from around world, the Zen Monks will walk 1600 miles from San Francisco to the Trinity Test Site in Alamogordo , New Mexico , location of the first Atomic Bomb detonation. Once returned to its origin, the “Atomic Flame” will be extinguished, closing a 60-year circle of fear.
A long-time resident of Japan , SEAGAL says, “I have been blessed to know many individuals who survived the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki . It is their example of spirit and strength that drives my determination to make this world a safer place.” He continues, “There are 30,000 nuclear weapons in the world today, many of which are 100,000 times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped during World War II. I feel it’s the responsibility of every global citizen to rid the world of this imminent threat.”
“These weapons remain on high-alert and are integrated into an automatic response system whereby if one launches, or a false alarm occurs, all may launch in response,” says Dr. Bruce Blair of the multi-national Center for Defense Information in Washington , DC . “In the age of cyber terrorism, as terrorists continue efforts to hack into Strategic Command launch systems, this makes the reality of an unintended nuclear exchange a stone-cold possibility.” Dr. Blair is considered by many to be the world’s foremost authority on the subject of “accidental nuclear war” and is a former Minuteman-II launch officer.
According to Mikhail Margelov, chairman of the Russian Federation Council (Parliament’s upper house) international affairs committee, the idea of a global fund to help accelerate the destruction of nuclear weapons has been well received inRussia , where they are now considering a challenge to other Nuclear Weapons States to participate in the disarmament process. “I think it’s a great idea. It gives the Russian government an opportunity to show their leadership and commitment to disarmament issues.”
The Nuclear Weapons Abolition Alliance is the non-governmental organization formed to administer the fund, and is sending an official delegation to Russia next month to begin talks about scheduling the first weapon to be destroyed by the GND Fund.
For more information on the Global Nuclear Disarmament Fund visit: www.GNDFund.org.
Singer, songwriter and guitarist STEVEN SEAGAL will issue his debut album SONGS FROM THE CRYSTAL CAVE in early 2006 in the U.S. The music encompasses blues-inflected rock and pop, “incorporating singer-songwriter elements, dance-hall and Indian instrumentation,” according to the Los Angeles Times (5/29/05). The disc, which features such self-penned songs as “Don’t You Cry,” “War,” “Better Man” and “My God,” was released in France and will be available in Asia in September.
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For press information on STEVEN SEAGAL, please contact:
MSO
818 380 0400
Lathum Nelson (ext 227): lnelson@msopr.com
Mitch Schneider (ext 235): mschneider@msopr.com
For press information on “ Full Circle ” and the GND Fund, please contact:
Matt Taylor: (415 378 8408): mtaylor@gndfund.org
