American Gandhi participated in planning the sesquicentennial of Mahatma Gandhi

To all who are interested:

I was invited to India for a planning meeting on May 2, 2018 by Prime Minister Narayan Modi. I was invited as a US citizen because I am called "American Gandhi" in India where I have received much media publicity since 2005 for portrayals yearly, giving Gandhi's message and principles in many locations. At least that is my assumption for the invitation. The planning meeting was set for 5:00 PM to prepare for the sesquicentennial of Gandhi's birth in 1869. It was quite an experience communicating with the India Embassy in Washington D.C. and with the Cultural headquarters in New Delhi. I received my first class ticket two days before departure on April 29.

I did not know what the agenda for the meeting was or what process would be used, so I wrote a draft outline of my ideas about what I think Gandhi would emphasize if he were speaking in 2018. Turns out that the meeting at the Presidential Palace was very short of 83 participants out of the 150 invited. I revised my comments downward twice as I learned the time limits: one or two minutes. Before leaving for India I wrote my main thoughts for myself:

• "Prime focus - TRUTH. Human created Destruction from Climate and by nuclear weapons - REAL Danger.
• "Gandhi -Law of Love of human species versus Law of Jungle
• "Teachings of Vedas, Gita Teachings of persons and Religions of spirit.
• "We must join together in spirit and in truth - abolish nukes; reverse causes of destruction."

I did have the opportunity as "American Gandhi" to speak about three minutes and covered the main two causes of the threats after briefly naming the above outline. I was the only participant who named nuclear weapons and climate destruction. After finishing I publicly gave Prime Minister Modi my two books which identify my insights into human motivation for violence, nuclear weapons, and activism, and my six scene one person act about Gandhi. Also, I gave him my attached draft notes, the last sentence of which names why we must immediately organize and urgent truth force to address the threats.

Only one other international person attended and spoke, Shang Quanyu from China, who teaches Gandhi in Latvia as Director of the Confusius Institute at the University of Latvia. He is an expert in Gandhi with a Ph.D. I shared a few meals with this delightful person.

I found it interesting that the trip was framed by climate at 42 degree Celsius on April 30th and a discussion about India on Democracy Now with Arundhati Roy on May 4th. https://countercurrents.org/2018/05/06/co2-levels-hit-record-april-temp-hits-record/