Dear Friends,
Kathy and I’ve been busily prepping for Birds & Bees Urban Farm‘s big annual bash. We’ll have finger-foods from the farm (one of them prepped by French-chef Alban Blot), beverages from Gateway Market and Lua Brewing, farm tours, and music with Anna and Elaina Steenson.
If you’re part of our central Iowa audience, we hope you’ll join us. And …
I’ll announce a month-long action I’m planning for October!
Yes. A whole month. Five weeks, actually. Stay tuned. I’ll need your support, encouragement, and engagement.
*******
Here’s the link to this week’s radio program and podcast.
A recurring theme you hear from me is that our democracy is in jeopardy and we must act decisively to save it.
I double down on that theme in this week’s program, asking my friends on the Left to avoid demonizing people who voted for Trump. Labeling Trump voters as stupid or racist is not only inaccurate, it’s counterproductive.
Given the murder of Charlie Kirk this week, I need to weigh in even more strongly against some of the comments being posted in my Facebook feed:
“Finally a political hack paying his dues!”
“He made his bed now he’s lying in it!”
“[W]e thank him for giving the ultimate sacrifice to support/protect the 2nd Amendment.”
These comments are neither kind nor helpful. Now, more than ever, if we’re going to rebuild a sense of unified purpose in America, non-violence must be our creed and our method.
This week’s program is also an appeal to my friends who voted for Trump. I will never fault them for the decision they made last November. Most of us have cast votes we regret.
That said, maybe you don’t regret your vote for Trump. But I challenge you to look deeply at what Trump has done over the past eight months with an eye to how other nations, past and present, have succumbed to fascism.
On the program, I run through ten reasons why it’s clear to me that Trump is a fascist. I won’t list them here. And to be clear, that’s the short list.
Calling Trump “fascist” isn’t name-calling. Name calling is inconsistent with a commitment to nonviolence — and if I ever slip up, please hold me accountable. “Fascist” is a legitimate description of who Trump is. Step by step, he is seizing control of all implements of the federal government. At the same time, he’s undermining the independence of universities, the media, cultural institutions, and city governments.
Again, check out this week’s program. Let me know if you agree or disagree.
I harp on this a lot because, as a student of history and as one who respects academic leaders whose work focuses on fascism, it’s clear to me where Trump is leading our country.
While some have given up hope, I haven’t. I’m convinced we can stop the slide toward full-blown fascism. But it won’t happen with violence. Murdering Charlie Kirk, for example, only gives Trump another reason to double down on oppression.
The way forward lies in “satyagraha,” a term coined by Mahatma Gandhi to define his strategy of nonviolent action. The term means truth force, and indeed, a commitment to understanding and abiding by truth is essential in any sincere effort to resolve differences nonviolently.
We’ll never arrive at truth through shouting, blaming, and refusing to listen to those we disagree with. As Gandhi said, “an eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind.”
Thank you for reading, listening, and taking action.
Ed Fallon
*******
In addition to our PODCAST, listen to the Fallon Forum on these affiliates:
– KHOI 89.1 FM (Ames, Iowa)
– KICI.LP 105.3 FM (Iowa City, Iowa)
– WHIV 102.3 FM (New Orleans, Louisiana)
– KPIP-LP, 94.7 FM (Fayette, Missouri)
– KCEI 90.1 FM (Taos, New Mexico)
– KRFP 90.3 FM (Moscow, Idaho)
– WGRN 94.1 FM (Columbus, Ohio)
— WJLQ 99.7 FM (Muskegon, Michigan)