Maine Veterans For Peace- Chapter 001

10/05/2026

This is not about politics. That's why the Trump-Epstein Bookmobile & Reading Room is free & open to all - link in bio to RSVP.

09/28/2026

Several VFP chapter members pitched in to support tabling in the Political Action tent this past weekend, which saw a record number of attendees on Friday. ( Our "lobby" was expanded this year to provide visitors' shelter in the anticipated Nor'easter on Sunday. )

Fortunately, the weather ranged from ideal, clear seasonal to seasonal overcast without the dreaded downpour.

Many thanks to our volunteers and our friends who stopped to chat.

09/22/2026

We Are Your Neighbors: Maine Stories in Challenging Times
By Mechanics' Hall (Maine)

Mechanics' Hall
519 Congress Street
Portland, ME
Monday, October 19 • Starts at 6:30 PM

Overview
Join Third Act Maine and Mechanics’ Hall for an evening of “moth style” storytelling and community.

Hear from Mainers whose lives and work connect them to some of the challenges facing our communities today - - from housing and health care to immigration, veterans’ services, the environment, and small business.

The personal stories invite us to transcend political divides and unite in our shared humanity. A reception with food and beverage will follow the program, offering an opportunity to reflect and connect with neighbors.

Monday, October 19 at 6:30 p.m. (doors open to the public at 6:00 p.m.). Free to the public, registration is required.

STORYTELLERS INCLUDE:

Phaedra Bond
Mary Chapman
Matthew Dalby
Alessia Gaspar-da Silva
Emma Lombardo
Peace Mutesi
Doug Rawlings

ABOUT THE PARTNERS

Third Act Maine is a group of Maine elders committed to stopping all new fossil fuel investment and development. We also work to protect democracy. Our mission is accomplished through the joyful practice of nonviolence, uplifting youth and developing community.

Funding generously provided by Oil & Gas Action Network.

PARKING & TRANSPORTATION

The Greater Portland Metro’s Congress & Casco Street Stop is directly in front of our building, served by routes 1, 7, 8, and 9B.

Street Parking: Available on Congress, Casco, Cumberland, Free Street, and nearby streets. Pay by meter or the Passport Parking App. Free after 6 PM, on Sundays, and between Parris and Alder Street. Some blocks may vary — look for posted signs.

Garages: The Arts District Garage (41 Brown St) has 250+ spaces, is open 24/7, and accepts credit card only, with entrances on Brown, Cumberland, and Casco. The Elm Street Garage (21 Elm St) is conveniently near the Portland Library. The Spring Street Garage is three blocks away at 45 Spring St.

ACCESSIBILITY

To enter our building, patrons will need to navigate a single step or use a modular ramp. Please note that the wheelchair ramp has a steep incline.

A wheelchair-accessible elevator is available. The elevator is 60" deep, 48" wide, with a 32" door opening. There are four wheelchair-accessible bathrooms on the third-floor level, adjacent to the Ballroom.

If you have a wheelchair or need accessibility accommodations/questions, please contact us at [email protected] or 207-773-8396.

09/22/2026

The Destroyer That Failed Is About To Return, USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) sits on the land-level transfer facility at Bath Iron Works in Maine, years before she ever fired a shot. Hull number 1000 stretches across her bow, the first of what was supposed to be a 32-ship revolution in naval warfare.

The Navy built three.

Zumwalt was designed around two 155mm Advanced Gun Systems, meant to bring precision long-range gunfire back to the surface fleet for the first time since the battleships retired. The guns worked fine. The am******on didn't. Each precision-guided shell climbed past $800,000, then toward $1 million. No one was buying shells at that price, so the Navy simply stopped. Two of the most advanced naval guns ever built sat on deck with nothing to fire.

The math on the rest of the program was just as brutal. A class once priced around $1.4 billion a hull ballooned into a program the Government Accountability Office now values at roughly $10.6 billion per ship, more than $31 billion total for three destroyers. Few shipbuilding programs in Navy history have cost this much to deliver this little.

The Navy did not scrap the ships. It rebuilt them.
Both Advanced Gun Systems have been stripped out of Zumwalt, their turret housings gutted to make room for four missile tubes, each holding three Conventional Prompt Strike hypersonic weapons. Twelve missiles in place of two guns that never fired in anger. The range tells the real story: the old gun system topped out around 63 miles. The hypersonic missiles replacing it are built to strike past 1,700 miles, at more than five times the speed of sound.

Zumwalt is expected back at sea this month after
nearly three years in dry dock at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Mississippi, the first U.S. Navy surface ship ever built to carry hypersonic weapons. She'll sail with the tubes empty at first. The missile itself is still finishing testing.

A ship declared a failure is being asked to be revolutionary one more time.

09/18/2026

09/16/2026

Samantha Smith Way in South Portland! Read/listen about it - https://www.pressherald.com/2026/09/11/who-was-samantha-smith-and-why-is-a-south-portland-on-ramp-named-for-her/ Thank you, Don Kimball for your advocacy and for sharing this picture!

09/15/2026

09/13/2026

Portland Sea Dogs - Fan Appreciation Day

vs Binghamton Rumble Ponies - September 12th

( Sea Dogs victorious 1- 0 on a delightful evening )