Government Reassigns Itself

In an unprecedented move, the Tokyo Stock Exchange sent letters to any company trading below book value to ask for a concrete plan to reverse this valuation.

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The best car salesman in history offers simple advice “People want a fair deal from someone they like.” When questioned about his actions to get people to like him, he simply says, “I tell them that I like them.”.

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Jon Keeley, a scientist for the U.S. Geological Survey, said that a “high-intensity fire in Southern California” is a “normal event” historically. What has changed is human settlement patterns.

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Government Reassigns Itself

--"We’re over-politicized in this country. People go to politics for a sense of belonging, for a sense of righteousness. You should go to your friends for those things.

You’re asking more of politics than politics can bear."--David Brookes

--Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has been 7,400 miles away in Africa attending the inauguration of Ghana’s president while wildfires have been raging in Los Angeles. Many have criticized Bass for the ongoing disaster after it was revealed that she cut $17.6 million from the Los Angeles Fire Department’s budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year.

Brooks and Bass highlight a significant issue in the American governmental system: politicians appear less willing—or able—to address the fundamental issues their roles demand. Instead, they seem more focused on symbolic or fleeting positions with little chance of being realized or connected to their primary responsibilities.

Politicians seem more focused on topics like equity and climate change—issues that are often uncertain and debatable in terms of government responsibility—rather than addressing crime, public safety, fire management, and water resources. We have developed a political class that finds it more rewarding to proclaim their virtues than to tackle the practical challenges at hand.