Thursday, December 28, 2017

Clearing the Dead Wood

Donald Trump promised to drain the swamp and clear the dead wood when he was elected. Now he’s doing it:

White House to cut back magnolia tree planted by Andrew Jackson WaPo

Exclusive: Iconic White House tree to be cut down CNN

Although some want to give Melania the credit/blame:

Melania Trump Orders Large Portion Of Historic White House Tree Removed HuffPo

Melania Trump Orders Removal of Near-200-Year-Old Tree From White House Newsweek

dead wood visibleDead wood visible even to the untrained eye

Journalists seem to revere the Jackson magnolia tree more than the presidency itself these days:

The enormous magnolia tree stood watch by the South Portico of the White House for nearly two centuries. Its dark green, glossy leaves shaded politicians and heads of state. Its ivory flowers bloomed through times of peace and war. It is the oldest tree on the White House grounds, a witness to Easter egg rolls and state ceremonies, a resignation, a plane crash, all the tumult and triumph of 39 presidencies. - WaPo

Although lovely enough in bloom,

magnolia-flower-white-tree-flower-shutterstock-com_12302Whoops! The Jackson magnolia is WHITE! No wonder it has to go.

it has been propped up artificially for decades:

"The overall architecture and structure of the tree is greatly compromised and the tree is completely dependent on the artificial support. Without the extensive cabling system, the tree would have fallen years ago. Presently, and very concerning, the cabling system is failing on the east trunk, as a cable has pulled through the very thin layer of wood that remains. It is difficult to predict when and how many more will fail." – CNN

The same could be said of the media news system. Time to whack it back.

Linked By: Larwyn’s Linx on Doug Ross@Journal, and BlogsLucianneLoves, and Free Republic, Thanks!