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OOH…Here’s One Thing
by Jim Johnsen,
Managing Director, Johnsen, Fretty & Company
Happy Belated 4th to y’all. As you know, music is big for me, and selecting the right tune to capture the 250th anniversary of this outrageously good Country is not an easy task. So Johnsen, why the hell would you pick a Scottish band for the honor then? Well, other than the fact that they drank Boston dry during the World Cup…give it a listen and tell me it doesn’t scream of the freedom we each enjoy every day?
https://youtu.be/657TZDHZqj4?si=jxNoHn2DVEeXdG7e
“In a big country dreams stay with you
Like a lover’s voice fires the mountainside
Stay alive, here we go…
But I can live and breathe.
And see the sun in wintertime
In a big country dreams stay with you
Like a lover’s voice fires the mountainside…
So take that look out of here, it doesn’t fit you
Because it’s happened doesn’t mean you’ve been discarded
Pull up your head off the floor, come up screaming
Cry out for everything you ever might have wanted…
I’m not expecting to grow flowers in the desert
But I can live and breathe
And see the sun in wintertime
In a big country dreams stay with you
Like a lover’s voice fires the mountainside” Big Country
An old friend of mine, Richard Cole, who ran Alabama Outdoor for a hot minute, used to say to me, ” Hey, put your mind in neutral. So…
I just finished a great read called Giants of the Earth. Giants in the Earth (novel) – Wikipedia You ever have one of those moments when you know the Universe is talking to you? I discovered it by chance while flipping through a cocktail-table book on the history of the Norwegian American Lines in the lobby of the Amerikalinjen Hotel in Oslo—free advice: much better to wait in the lobby when a beautiful woman is primping.
Piercing glimpse into the obvious, but it turns out that the demand for one product can sometimes give birth to another great business. Think vinyl and ratchet straps. In this case, the product was America (aka the promised land), and the side hustle was figuring out how to get Norwegians there efficiently, inexpensively, and, most importantly, without killing them. Enter Norwegian American Lines. But I digress. Giants of the Earth is about a small band of Norwegians who first immigrated to Minnesota, only to find dire conditions, then heard about the recently passed Homestead Act and decided that the Dakota Territory was the place for them. If you want to find a deep, personal account of the hardships our forefathers endured to deliver the bread we now put on our table without a second thought, this book is for you. Remember “Amber Waves of Grain” (hint: “America the Beautiful”)? It may have started here.
After finishing this book, I decided to dive into When the Stones Speak. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/culture/article-854088 Perhaps a bit one-sided, but also fascinating as all get out. It details the recent findings just south of the walls of “Old Jerusalem,” which, with pretty good certainty, prove the existence of the City of David and of King David. Big deal? Not really unless you are trying to demonstrate your Jewish birthright to the land of Israel (or Palestine, depending on your view) to the rest of the world.
Wow, Johnsen, my mind is in neutral, but it is definitely overheated. What’s the point?
As the great-grandson of a Norwegian immigrant, on the 250th anniversary of this great home country I am so thankful for, birthright is an incredible concept to ponder. Do I have birthright? Do I need birthright? Do I give a shit about birthright? How about all of those indigenous tribes we mowed down to push westward and lay our claim? Could we argue that their birthright should allow them to bear arms and take some of it back? Whether it’s Israel or it’s the U.S., I certainly can not claim to have the right answer, nor even an informed opinion. All I can say is, when I turn to the Declaration of Independence, it gives me some relief:
“WE hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness — That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it and the institute new Government…”
As does George Washington’s farewell address:
“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports”
“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to
political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports”
I get it. Too much for a Monday morning. Apologies. I will leave you with a modern, practical analogy. Lease jumping. To some, a four-letter word. To others, a misnomer. “Hey, we live in a free country. Who says I can not approach a billboard landlord whose lease has come to term with a proposition better than his status quo? After all, I am “helping the landlord, right?”…”Bullshit, I developed (or acquired) that asset, I own the landlord relationship, and by the way, I have the permit. Instead of stealing my shit, why don’t you use your conniving brain to go develop your own stuff?”
“Hey, we live in a free country. Who says I can not approach a billboard landlord whose lease has come to term with a proposition better than his status quo? After all, I am “helping the landlord, right?”…”Bullshit, I developed (or acquired) that asset, I own the landlord relationship, and by the way, I have the permit. Instead of stealing my shit, why don’t you use your conniving brain to go develop your own stuff?”
I am sure I touched a nerve somewhere. Would love to have you light me up like a Christmas tree. Wishing you all a peaceful and productive week.
JJ
jfco.com
Securities transacted through StillPoint Capital Member firm FINRA/SiPC
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