WHEREAS:	It is in the interests of every single person on this planet to work towards the abolition of weapons that have the capacity to sweep away tens of millions of lives within a matter of moments; and
WHEREAS:	So long as weapons of this nature exist, they will contribute towards an environment of fear and brinkmanship between the nations of the world.  Furthermore, these highly destructive weapons may be misused, they may malfunction, or they may fall into the hands of those who would purposely use them for sinister purposes; and
WHEREAS:	In ratifying the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1970 and in signing the Non-Proliferation Treaty Extension in 1995, the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, and China committed themselves to reducing nuclear weapons globally, and ultimately to eliminating them.  Nevertheless, nuclear weapons continue to threaten all life on earth, and developing and maintaining nuclear arsenals is costly and diverts resources from human needs such as health care, education, and protecting the environment; and
WHEREAS:	In 2008, the U.S. Conference of Mayors voted unanimously to urge the President to negotiate a verifiable treaty to abolish nuclear weapons, inspired in part by the realization amongst the mayors that there is no adequate municipal response in the event of a nuclear attack; and
WHEREAS:	President Barack Obama has asked for our support in his effort to rid the world of nuclear weapons, and the more vocal civic leaders are in expressing that support, the more likely it is that these efforts will ultimately be successful; now therefore be it
RESOLVED:	That the Cambridge City Council go on record as fully supporting the efforts of President Obama and Massachusetts Peace Action to rid the world of nuclear weapons; and be it further
RESOLVED:	That Her Honor, the Mayor, forward a suitably engrossed copy of this resolution to President Obama in support of ridding the world of nuclear weapons on behalf of the entire City Council.