In this episode, we examine a proposed shift at the Environmental Protection Agency that would change how the costs and benefits of air pollution rules are calculated—specifically by excluding or minimizing key health benefits such as avoided asthma attacks, hospitalizations, and premature deaths tied to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and ozone exposure.

Change the math, and you change the outcome. If the financial value of protecting human health is excluded from regulatory analysis, pollution appears cheaper to tolerate. The likely result: weaker standards, dirtier air, and heavier burdens on communities living near highways, ports, and industrial facilities.

We explore how cost-benefit methodology shapes environmental policy, why measurement frameworks matter as much as the rule itself, and what it means when economic models sideline human impact.

Methodologies can evolve. Transparency can improve. But zeroing out the value of human life is not innovation. Technology should reduce harm—and policy should measure that harm honestly.

In this episode, we head to the field—where a $900,000 combine goes silent under a darkening sky because of a software lockout.

John Deere’s precision agriculture tools can reduce seed, fertilizer, and fuel inputs with remarkable plant-by-plant accuracy. The efficiency gains are real. But when centralized software control prevents a farmer from restarting critical equipment as a storm rolls in, the value proposition changes fast.

We unpack the tension between high-tech farming and high-stakes dependency. Who owns the machine—and who controls it? That question fuels the broader right-to-repair debate spreading from tractors to EVs and other software-defined products.

Ownership, we argue, must include access to diagnostics, the ability to fix urgent failures, and timely remote resets when minutes matter. Because when harvest windows close, there’s no software update that can bring the crop back.

In this episode, we get hands-on with the 2026 Honda Passport Trailsport to separate substance from styling.

Bold on the outside and refreshingly calm inside, the Passport pairs a proven 3.5-liter V6 with a 10-speed automatic and drive modes tuned for real-world terrain—not marketing buzzwords. The details matter: General Grabber all-terrain tires mounted on 18-inch wheels signal this SUV is built for actual trails and reasonable replacement costs, not just showroom swagger.

With 5,000 pounds of towing capacity and a genuinely cavernous cargo hold, it delivers the confidence and versatility families expect from a midsize SUV. But we also call out where it falls short—its fuel economy, which should be stronger in today’s market.

The 2026 Passport Trailsport is a case study in where rugged meets reasonable—and why capability still wins when it’s grounded in practicality.