Climate change along with the growing threat of nuclear war are existential threats that the US government along with a people’s movement must address and diffuse. One of the most important aspects of these existential threats is the reality that both of these crises can be overcome if we take action immediately.
I mention these crises together because they are connected. As the world drifts closer to resource scarcity, mass migrations and other impacts of climate crisis, intensifying geo-political instability is inevitable, heightening the likelihood of war and the potential for a nuclear war.
As a father of two young children and as a publisher, I have spent an inordinate amount of time studying the history of US nuclear weapons development, policy, and the industry. I understand the potential terminal gravity of the climate crisis and the nuclear threat and as US Senator my intention is to serve in a self-sacrificial capacity, that is to make the gravity of these threats known and to do everything in my power to lead in the US Senate in a campaign to take the strongest possible action to mitigate the climate crisis and nuclear weapons crisis. If that means being a one term Senator, so be it.
We also need to be able to bring people together on this issue by reminding each other that throughout our Republic’s history peacemakers and climate change advocates have come from both sides of the aisle.
It is our moral duty to ensure that our planet can support life. All economic, social, political and financial goals follow after this first principle and goal. In reality it is just common sense. There is no economy, politics, market or society on a dead planet. This means that we first must speak truthfully about the irreversible state of the planet, the massive decline in biodiversity over the last 40 years, oceanacidification, sea level rise and what this means in terms of the changes we must enact. Even if this is scary, even if these conversations are off-putting, we have to have them. The truth is the first way out of this crisis.
My experience in publishing and public interest journalism will enable me to help dramatically increase public understanding, optimism and the will to ensure our policies are in consistent with ecological priorities.
Our societies for generations to come and, of course, protect the natural wonders of California, which we all know and love. Beyond our duty to future generations, we must come to understand that, no matter the form the damage may take, the pollution of concentrated industry, and the burning of fossil fuels, have lasting health effects on all of us. Each human being deserves clean water sources, toxin-free air, and clean public spaces. This issue is not debatable and should not be argued between those with compassion and scientific understanding.
Climate change is the greatest threat facing the future of not only our nation but the whole world. We must take the initiative to act now, as many of our brightest environmental scientists warn that it is already too late to stop the positive feedback loop of global climate change and rising sea levels. We must now react to a changing environment, and learn to minimize the ongoing impact of our global society.
As Americans and Californians, we are privileged to have the economic and social power to affect global change. I know that with unification and determined leadership, California, and the United States at large, can lead the international community in tackling the mounting challenges of climate change.
Beyond simply restoring international dialogue, let us hold large-scale polluters such as the auto and fossil fuel industries accountable. We must demand that these industries be held fiscally and morally responsible for the environmental damage and the damage to human life, which they have wrought, and not pin the blame on individuals in our society. Consumption requires production. Consumption generates revenue for the producer, but not the consumer. Thus, the obligation is on producers to address the problems caused by what and how they produce their goods.
To these ends, I support the strengthening of the EPA and its power to incentivize positive change, greater investment into the expansion of our renewable energy sector, and the return of our nation to the Paris Climate Accords. Let us look forward to a brighter future, where the problems of climate change no longer need be at the front of our minds, and each and every Californian, American, and human being, has clear skies, clean rivers, and a healthy planet to call home.