Machine tool industry is also something to look into

Town with a backup well.

I want fluoride in my water, but also want water if town isn’t working.

I’m so hopeful for my child, and our collective children’s sake we fucking drop this obsession with growth and think about how we can responsibly exist in this world.

Well, as the sea levels rise and people continue to obsess over growth and ignore what scientists are screaming about…we can examine what ecosystems to disrupt to put up billboards in the name of growth.

Continuing to follow the path we’ve been on as a collective species is just a path of insanity, arrogance, and ultimately destruction.

I asked the same question and got downvoted.

Our society is self-obsessed, and output-obsessed.

Year-over-year growth is bad for the planet. We can’t just keep growing and expect the planet to sustain our “way of life.”

It’s neocapitalist bullshit.

Ethical capitalism is possible, and we need not be obsessed with growth.

Your very first words are, “Vermont needs to grow…”

Why does Vermont need to grow?

What is the obsession western society has with growth?

New Hampshire has a small slice of sea coast which is a non-trivial part of its earlier commerce and growth. Vermont's largest population center (Chittenden County) used to be pretty geographically isolated with the mountains on one side, and the lake on the other. This is why Montpelier became the capitol and not Burlington, because dignitaries and diplomats wouldn't have to traverse the mountain roads.

Vermont is just poorly located for most industry, but southern Vermont used to be one of the machining capitals of the world. We had some of the best engineers and machinists that could make just about anything, including the machines that made things.

Nearly all of that industry was outsourced to east Asia to cut costs. Had Vermont (and the United States as a whole) been able to keep things in-house, Vermont would be known for a lot more than tourism/skiing/maple syrup these days.

Oof. What a thing to live with…

Well...I've been here all my life...and I have to have a lot of trust in whatever I'm driving to pass, and I have to feel the road. That said, it also takes serious weather for me to feel unsafe behind the wheel. There is also a difference between feeling unsafe, and doing something that puts other people at risk, too.

I grew up with people in my immediate orbit referring to the road as being "Greasy" or not. Because sometimes the roads feel that way. The car doesn't do what you want it to, regardless of how good your tires are, or how good of a driver you are, and your job is to keep it under control.

It doesn't matter if you have studs or not, if physics is against you. Studs work best when they can bite the pavement, if the only thing under your tire is snow+ice, take it slow if you have to be out. Studs help you go, they don't necessarily help you stop.

All that said....I pass sometimes. I also reserve the right to attempt a pass, and nope back into the more-travelled lane. Especially if my wife and kid are in the car.

Precious cargo changes how everyone drives (unless they are negligent). When I was driving my '94 Chevy as a college kid, I certainly drove that car a lot differently (and more recklessly...passing constantly on the highway, blowing donuts in parking lots, etc.) than how I drive now with my only car, with my only wife, and only child in it.

The stakes get higher when you realize what you have to lose. It is unlikely (unless in an emergency) that whatever you're trying to get to is so important that you must get there faster. You should have planned better if you're running late.

I grew up with stairs like this. Sand and salt were commonly used and the stairs don’t last.

I wish there was a low-key way to heat them like the rear window of a car.

Did you all know that one shitty software and tax company has a monopoly on all of the towns in Vermont? They are the only game in town, and they actually have a lot of power over what happens in towns. Every town clerk with only a few exceptions uses their shitty software to run their towns.

Side note, anyone ever heard of Victory Vermont?

If only we could harness all of the potential energy of things we have access to…like the sun!

Too bad the way we use that energy is so inefficient. Less that 30-40% of that gallon of fuel burned is actually put to use, and the rest is lost to byproducts of combustion.

Yeah…oil is expensive. I am in Burlington so we have gas heat.

Our last place was in E. Montpelier and was Oil forced hot air.

Could look into more efficient heating options, but the retrofit might be expensive.

When is the last time your furnace was serviced?

How old is the furnace?

Refrigerate after opening.