Author Archives: Ed Fallon

Biden didn’t need to do this to me

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Even for those of us who’ve decided who we’re going to support, there’s value in attending other candidates’ events to further elevate the climate conversation. That was my intent at Joe Biden’s “block party” on Sunday. After long answers to a handful of pre-arranged questions, Biden invited attendees to come up front for a photo and a brief question.

Sam Kuhn, Shaun Ahern, Kathy Byrnes, and I accepted his offer. I wanted to ask Biden about his stated opposition to new pipelines even as he supports replacing older existing pipelines. Those two positions are incompatible, and I wanted to know where he really stood.

Click on the image to check out our interaction, which is disturbing on a number of levels. Biden doesn’t even attempt to address my concern. All he says is that serious climate action by 2030 isn’t realistic. Continue Reading →

Who’s the worst presidential candidate on climate?

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That’s easy: Sen. Amy Klobuchar. Climate activists also have reservations about Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg, but hands-down, Klobuchar is the worst. She claims to want to address climate change, but emphatically supports the continued build-out of fossil fuel infrastructure.

Sorry, Senator. You can’t be pro-fracking and pro-pipeline and say you’re going to address the climate crisis. Since the corporate media have ignored Klobuchar’s track record, it’s up to us to get the word out. Continue Reading →

Climate Crisis Parade Could be Huge

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The Climate Crisis Parade planned for February 1st in Des Moines is shaping up to be a major event. As of today, a coalition of 55 organizations has signed on as co-sponsors. The primary focus of the multi-faceted event is to challenge the media to do a better job covering the worsening climate crisis.

Every four years, Des Moines is “media central” during the days leading up to the Iowa Caucuses. To act on this unprecedented opportunity for national and international coverage, the coalition is inviting participants to meet at Cowles Commons to hear influential climate voices make the climate connections the media is ignoring. Continue Reading →

Vote Twice!

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Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate announced last month that nine Iowans voted twice in the previous election. Ouch. Bad voters. Everyone knows that voting twice — or even once if you’re deceased — is always wrong. Except when it comes to …

… the Iowa Caucuses! That’s right. On February 3rd, Iowa Democrats who cast their support for a candidate who receives less than 15 percent of the vote get to vote a second time.

Is this a great state, or what! Continue Reading →

My endorsement(s) for president

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While every Democrat running for president takes the climate crisis seriously, only one instills complete confidence that climate will be their top priority. That candidate is Tom Steyer (read on to see who is my second choice, which matters a lot in the Iowa Caucuses). Tom constantly assures voters that climate is the first item he’ll tackle as president. He also has the strongest track record, pumping his money, time, and energy into climate activism for over a decade. Continue Reading →

Steyer, COP25, and DAPL

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Regardless of who you’re supporting for president, check out my interview with Tom Steyer. It’s encouraging that Steyer’s top priority is climate change and that he’s had a strong track record over the past decade working to mobilize Americans to take action.

My second guest on this week’s program is Thomas Linzey with the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund. More and more cities are passing local ordinances protecting their communities and natural resources against polluters. But what happened in Florida recently is the first time a political party has adopted a resolution protecting the “rights of nature.” Continue Reading →

Climate Crisis Parade challenges mainstream media

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A coalition of 37 organizations just announced a major climate initiative, to be held a couple days prior to the Iowa Caucuses. Scheduled for Saturday, February 1 at 12:00 noon, the Climate Crisis Parade calls out the mainstream media for ignoring the urgency of the climate crisis.

Here are three things you can do:
1. Join the effort on Facebook and share it with others.
2. Sign-up to participate through Eventbrite and we’ll keep you posted with updates.
3. If you’re with a group that would like to join the coalition, email communications@climatemarch.org or call 858-35-MARCH (858-356-2724). Continue Reading →

Court fails to understand urgency of climate crisis

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Last week, a Polk County District judge ruled against the Climate Defenders Five, finding us guilty of misdemeanor trespass in our protest against President Trump’s abject denial of climate science during the president’s visit to West Des Moines in June.

With all due respect, the Court completely failed to understand the growing urgency of the climate emergency, and thus the necessity justification of our defense. My fellow defendants, Channing Dutton (our attorney), and I feel pretty strongly that the Court erred. Will we be filing an appeal? Hell yes! Stay tuned. Continue Reading →

Did a climate champion emerge from last night’s “debate?”

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During the fifth Democratic “debate,” Big Media again reminded us why it is culpable in enabling humanity’s blind rush toward climate chaos. As was the case in the previous three debates, climate got short shrift.

Despite that, several candidates found opportunities to highlight the urgency of the crisis, inserting it into non-climate questions. Continue Reading →

Paradise, CA one year after the fire

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Kendra Walters is a friend from western Iowa who has spent many summers in Paradise with her family. A year ago, the worst wildfire in California history devastated Paradise. Kendra has shared with me her family’s perspective on that trauma, and regularly updates me. Here’s a bit of what she’s shared:

“‘Then traffic stopped. The fire was so bad that both sides of the road were fully ablaze and covering the road with flames. I touched my window and the glass was so hot it burned my fingers. I called my boyfriend in case it was the last time I heard him talk. He tried to keep me calm, but I could hear he was scared, too. I screamed for traffic to move and honked and begged the drivers to start moving. I sobbed as I sat in the flames and realized I might not make it out. Continue Reading →