CLS: Arnold “Skip” Oliver & Chris Appleton

This presentation will tell the story of the origin and rebirth of the Golden Rule, a peace vessel that set sail in 1958 to halt nuclear testing in the atmosphere and inspired the many peacemakers and peace ships that followed. Veterans for Peace has recovered and restored the original vessel, so the restored Golden Rule is voyaging once more, to show that a nuclear peace is possible, and bravery and tenacity can overcome militarism.

Arnold J. Oliver, Ph.D. – Dr. Oliver is a Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio where he taught for twenty years. He claims it was “the best job in the world.” His many articles on international affairs have been widely published, from Auckland to Argentina, and Kansas to Kurdistan. He is a US Army veteran, served in Vietnam and Germany, and later earned a Ph.D. at the University of Colorado. Convinced that either we abolish war, or it will abolish us, Mr. Oliver has been a long-time member of the Veterans for Peace and volunteered on their rebuild of the first peace vessel of the modern era – the Golden Rule, which ventured across the pacific ocean to halt atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons. The story of the Golden Rule is outlined here https://www.friendsjournal.org/the-golden-rule-shall-sail-again/

Chris Appleton was a high school English teacher for 19 years who recently retired as part of the “Great Resignation” to pursue a career in boating. He heard about the Golden Rule online last year and decided to volunteer as crew and captain from December ‘21 to March ‘22 as the boat went up and down the California coast. A licensed captain, Chris Appleton is currently working at a couple of boatyards in western New York, helping run boat tours on the Buffalo River, teaching sailing on Lake Erie, and keeping in touch with local and national peace activists. He has two children in Buffalo, NY, and is readying his own boat for a journey of his own next year.