Re-Gain

Currently DOGE has been a distraction so Trump may consolidate power.  However these destructive measures must be prepared for so we may restore improved governance. Creating a more efficient government requires profound scrutiny.  Also understanding the unattended consequences of such reforms is critical. For example, privatizing certain government services without proper management greatly impacts future taxpayers. The critical question is there is a firewall between how the government is both a market participant and also a regulator. There needs to be third party transparency whenever a regulator becomes a market participant. Wearing both hats at once can become a serious conflict of interest. Like privatizing Social Security without good oversight will escalate fraud. Also the very roots of waste and fraud point to our various corporate welfare tax structures and flawed ways of budgeting. Bottom line long term investment is discouraged. There is this seriously...

Thirty three years ago I was  fortunate to buy over four acres of beautiful forest land. Bordering the national forest my property contained four 120 year old oaks. Two have gone since I lived here. Increasingly many of my oaks, pines, ash and hemlocks are dropping. Trees in Virginia are rapidly dying due to pests, drought and disease. Also climate change exacerbates their demise by extreme weather events. Also this makes trees more susceptible to infection.  Spongy catepiller, emerald ash bore, dutch elm disease, anthracnose (a fungal disease harming oaks and sycamores) blights and other factors are depleting my woods.  Also dry weather, heavy storms and high winds have killed my trees. A few years ago I had a wind shear that took out a quarter acre of my red and white oaks downing nine roughly 80 year old trees. Old open-grown trees sequester far more carbon than a cluster of younger and smaller plantation trees. Open-grown trees also bring huge biodiversity benefits, t...