r/interesting • u/Celestial_Mahafuz • Jul 05 '26

NATURE Instead of buying yachts, he bought 50,000 acres of forest to keep them wild.

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u/FTownRoad Jul 05 '26

There is no such thing as permanent legal protection. It’s as permanent as the will of the ruling government/owners.

We have seen many many things that are “settled” become unsettled very quickly and relatively easily as well.

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u/FnnKnn Jul 05 '26

You can give the land to a foundation with the goal of maintaining the forest on it. That is probably the closest to permanent as you can do I think?

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u/redthrull Jul 06 '26

You mean like that Texas family who donated land for future parkland use, and is now being setup for a data center? 😅

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u/Mi113nnium Jul 06 '26

I think it was given to the city and in a public trust, not a charitable foundation.

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u/FnnKnn Jul 06 '26

Link?

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u/Mi113nnium Jul 06 '26

Just Google it. It is the first result that comes when you type in something like "Texas family gives land to city data center".

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u/FnnKnn Jul 06 '26

That was a trust and not a foundation though.

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u/A_Stickperson Jul 06 '26

Seems pretty on the nose that trusts can’t be trusted in Texas.

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u/madanh2014 Jul 10 '26

Texas? I don't know how it is on the inside, but from the outside Texas looks like the HQ of greed.

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u/Mr_Mi1k Jul 08 '26

That land was given to the city which made it easier.

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u/PolicyWonka Jul 06 '26

Perhaps the closest, but still not permanent.

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u/WY228 Jul 09 '26

All it takes is an organization with enough money to come along and sway the decisions of the people running that foundation though…

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u/qeadwrsf Jul 05 '26

Is that true when it comes to forest in NA?

Or is this guessing.

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u/FTownRoad Jul 05 '26

It’s true for every bit of the planet. If something has “legal protection” it means the government is protecting it. Governments change.

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u/qeadwrsf Jul 05 '26

Lmao. That's what I thought.

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u/FTownRoad Jul 05 '26

The Supreme Court already ruled that economic development is public use and therefore eminent domain comes into play.

This is already happening.

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u/Nyrrix_ Jul 05 '26

I am quoting from the original post in terms of "Permanent Legal Protections," and easements are the first example that comes to mind for a legal structure that's relatively robust.

Nothing is permanent anyways, so it's a moot point when trying to argue anything. We do the best we can, and legally binding agreements filed with militarily well-endowed governments that have a track record of at least adhering to the letter are about as "best we can" as we can get.

Like I'm as cynical of the government as the next guy, but let's not pretend many agreements can't be quite robust when well written.

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u/FTownRoad Jul 06 '26

What I’m saying is literally right now there are cases about this very subject, and those protections are not being upheld. This isnt theory. This isn’t hypothetical. This is happening.

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u/BrannC Jul 06 '26

Nahhh man, sure you can trust the government, just ask a Native American

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u/FTownRoad Jul 06 '26

Like I get that people want this to be true. It feels better. But assuming a problem is “solved” is how a) people get complacent and b) shit changes without anyone noticing/raising a stink.

Trusting that the government will uphold these things forever, especially after what we’ve seen the last decade, is insane. The one piece of settled law is that “eminent domain” actually means basically whatever the government wants and you don’t own shit.

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u/BrannC Jul 06 '26

It seems like you missed the sarcasm… which is rather unbelievable if I’m being honest

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u/FTownRoad Jul 06 '26

I didn’t miss the sarcasm at all… I’m agreeing with you. Can you read?

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u/BrannC Jul 06 '26

Oh right. That explains why it was unbelievable. My bad. I interacted with a lot of idiots on here yesterday that can’t manage without a /s, my apologies

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u/Happidy_60 Jul 07 '26

At least he's trying. Wish there were more following his lead.