PETER CLACK: Plants are built almost entirely from atmospheric gases—living, complex architectures of carbon, oxygen and sunlight. No wonder that as children, we hug them, play and climb in them, or wander through their woods, hearing them sighing in the wind.

When we look at an oak, a sequoia, or a balsa tree in the Amazon rainforest, we're looking at solidified carbon and oxygen.

Trees do not obtain structural mass from the soil; it comes out of thin air. Plants are built almost entirely from atmospheric gases—living, complex… pic.twitter.com/JP7wPgyfoK

— Peter Clack (@PeterDClack) September 21, 2026

When we look at an oak, a sequoia, or a balsa tree in the Amazon rainforest, we're looking at solidified carbon and oxygen. Trees do not obtain structural mass from the soil; it comes out of thin air. Plants are built almost entirely from atmospheric gases—living, complex architectures of carbon, oxygen and sunlight. No wonder that as children, we hug them, play and climb in them, or wander through their woods, hearing them sighing in the wind. Around 90% to 95% of a tree's dry weight is carbon and oxygen, pulled directly from atmospheric carbon dioxide. Most people assume trees draw their body from the earth, yet the soil volume beneath a canopy remains unchanged as a sapling matures into a giant. Roots do not consume dirt to build branches; large trees leave no gaping holes in the ground. Instead, the root network is a mechanical anchor to hold the heavy tree structure upright, while absorbing water and a tiny fraction of soil minerals—nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. These are their biological multivitamins, accounting for less than 5% of final dry mass. Through photosynthesis, sunlight breaks apart carbon dioxide and water molecules. The plant releases oxygen back into the atmosphere and chains the remaining carbon and oxygen into glucose molecules, forming complex structural polymers like cellulose and lignin. Across the globe, an estimated 3 trillion trees hold roughly 500 billion cubic meters of wood. Every forest on Earth is in reality solidified atmosphere—hundreds of billions of tons of air trapped, structured and given physical form by living plants.

Mankind owes its survival to these friendly giants of the natural world. 

PETER CLACK: National sovereignty has been eroded by international trade agreements and unelected global boardrooms that restrict a nation’s ability to set its own domestic policy. Communities bypassed by these global shifts are left to deal with the resulting social tension, crime, poverty and economic stagnation.

When globalism moves in, the jobs move out. It's as simple as that.

The rise of globalism and hyper-connected world trade networks has delivered systemic and corrosive economic, social, and environmental damage across nations from all walks of life. At its core, globalism is… pic.twitter.com/2Gm2I1Xryi

— Peter Clack (@PeterDClack) September 21, 2026

When globalism moves in, the jobs move out. It's as simple as that. The rise of globalism and hyper-connected world trade networks has delivered systemic and corrosive economic, social, and environmental damage across nations from all walks of life. At its core, globalism is nothing more than an unemotional transfer of money, power, influence and trust. At its heart, it is the erosion of Western culture. Beyond domestic economies, hyper-globalised financial markets have left a deeply systemic fragility, ensuring that an economic crisis in one region triggers an immediate worldwide domino effect. Even that paragon of money, dreams and power, the United States, features decaying towns across its farming and manufacturing regions. The Rust Belt was once home to the heavy-hitting industrial hubs like Detroit, Gary and Pittsburgh, now more like ghost towns. The nation's rural towns were mainly based on agriculture. But while the agriculture remains, corporate ownership has moved in—and local dollars left on the first train out. Simultaneously, globalism has driven a profound loss of culture and local identity. Global brands and homogeneous media drown out regional uniqueness, erode indigenous practices, and force small communities to conform to commercial standards that favor mass-produced uniformity over heritage crafts. Relentless global demand for raw materials has also fuelled habitat destruction and reduces genetic variety in both agriculture and natural ecosystems—vividly illustrated by the loss of nearly a fifth of the Amazon Rainforest over the past half-century. National sovereignty has been eroded by international trade agreements and unelected global boardrooms that restrict a nation’s ability to set its own domestic policy. Communities bypassed by these global shifts are left to deal with the resulting social tension, crime, poverty and economic stagnation. The US survivors of globalism are in the big rowdy regional cities and state capitals. Once flourishing country towns have slid into long-term reruns of Sunday Morning Coming Down. This is Twilight Time for a lot of Western dreams, yet no one seems to have any answers to the relentless spread of globalism.

Perhaps, like Sinatra, it will be a last shot of Jack Daniel's Tennessee whiskey before switching the lights off.