Columnar Cacti

Hello Friends,

Per Google Lens and an online search, ... "Clumping columnar cacti are popular desert plants known for growing multiple vertical stems from a single base, creating a stunning, dense structural look. They thrive in bright direct sunlight, well-draining soil, and require deep but infrequent watering. Popular varieties range from bright blue-silver to hairy."

I took these shots at a garden in Long Beach, one of four yards included in the Long Beach Garden Tour two weekends ago. Quick note, tomorrow Sunday morning from 10am to noon there's the Bluff Heights Garden Tour 2026, which will include six gardens. Info at https://www.bluffheights.org/events.

Just when you think Trump and company couldn't get become more blatantly corrupt, this past week demonstrated there are no limits to how far he's willing to go, and in plain sight. Amid Trump's continued dropping popularity from his handling of the Epstein files, Iran war, inflation, attacks on immigrants, and his obsession with a White House ballroom and a massive triumphal arch, this past week was a doozy.

First it was revealed that he made thousands of stock trades on companies with specific knowledge of how government decisions were about to affect their worth, at times even publicly pumping stocks just after buying them. This alone would've been enough to bring the walls crashing down in any other administration.

Bigger and uglier is the "settlement" Trump made with acting attorney general Todd Blanche, previously his personal lawyer, in which it was determined that around 1.8 trillion taxpayer dollars are to be allocated to an "Anti-Weaponization Fund" controlled by a board appointed by Blanche and Trump to pay people who were victimized by the government. It's in essence a slush fund to provide a payoff to Trump supporters, including those who attacked the capitol and police officers on January 21, 2021 to prevent the proper government turnover. So first he pardonned them en masse, and now they're getting a payday.

Strangely, there is a bright side to this. Has Trump finally gone too far? What is clear is that several senators and representatives are not willing to support Trump's anti-weaponization fund, and along with it his policies toward ICE and the Iran war. Rather than allow discussion and votes in the senate, senators were sent home early befor this holiday weekend. What will happen when they return to Washington D.C. is anyone's guess.

Wishing for better,

Barry Rothstein

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