Next Sunday, February 23, our local Veterans For Peace Chapter 183 will be participating in a Global Day of Action to Close Military Bases. Sponsored by World Beyond War, the event will call attention to "the thousands of military bases, both foreign and domestic, around the world [that] are a critical piece of the war machine that must be dismantled. Closing bases is a necessary step to shift the global security paradigm towards a demilitarized approach that centers common security — no one is safe until all are safe." 

The VFP-Central Ohio action will also be protesting Anduril Industries, a defense technology company specializing in artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous systems, and data integration software. A month ago today, the company announced that it would be building a drone warfare complex just outside of Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Pickaway County, Ohio. (See article: Anduril announced their Arsenal-1)

Any guesses who is behind Anduril Industries? Peter Thiel, the founder of PayPal and data analytics company Palantir. He is a partner in Founders Fund, a venture capital firm that is funding Anduril and has also funded Elon Musk’s SpaceX. AI technology innovators are in the business of capturing the lucrative “defense” market. Hey, war is profitable! 

Event Details

Day and time: Sunday, February 23, 2025, 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Location: Rickenbacker National Guard Base, 7370 Minuteman Way #875, Lockbourne, OH 43137 (This is outside the gate. Do NOT enter the base.)
Speakers will include Mike Ferner, VFP's former Executive Director
Global Day of Action link: https://youtu.be/Uuazp4tUjno?si=m1Zbm9cFN4kct5Mt