The Richly or Poorly Show - Show Transcript

The Richly or Poorly Show
Show Transcript
shdawson-20260331.mp3
Episode 03/31/2026
03/31/2026

Hello! Welcome to The Richly or Poorly Show!

My name is Dr. Stephen Dawson, and I am your show host.

Thank you for joining me.

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The show's motto is unmistakable: RICHLY IS GOODLY!

Please consider how you define the term good as we journey through life together in your pursuit of defining the term richly in your life.

The plan for my presentations to you was to first establish a foundation of shared understanding between you, the listener, and me. Then, proceed to build on that foundation with subsequent episodes. I recommend that you review the nine episodes between December 2nd, 2025, through January 27th, 2026, as you see fit to help you remember the foundation of our shared understanding as we proceed through each episode you hear in the coming weeks, months, and years.

Last week, I presented on the topic of fear. I presented some world history for context, and current events from both physical and monetary views that could easily cause a person to be concerned for their safety, with the intent to deliver tangible actions for how to deal effectively with fear.

Today, I will present on the topic of morality as a commodity. I will address recent events that connect to the February 3rd, 2026, episode. Finally, I will share an example of a company in Japan that is about to launch a new product, highlighting morality as a commodity.

The term commodity is a singular term. It is a noun. A noun states an attribute of a person, place, thing, or idea. A commodity is an article of trade or commerce, especially a product as distinguished from a service.

I presented on February 3rd, 2026, about the Tennessee Valley Authority. One of my suggestions to listeners in that episode was to spend about five minutes looking on the Internet to get a grasp of the Tennessee Valley Authority. Recent current events with the TVA are relevant to the presentation today on morality as a commodity.

Bill Renick has been TVA's executive director since June 2022. He is scheduled to serve as CEO until May 2027. The TVA board of directors announced on February 24th, 2026, that Renick had resigned as board chair, the leader of the board of directors. The resignation was made public in TVA's March 2nd filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The filing does not include who among the current directors will take Renick's place and does not provide information about what prompted his departure from the role. Renick resigned as TVA chairman after less than a year serving in the role. The future of Renick as TVA CEO is unclear. The filing also said Jeremy Fisher was no longer working as TVA's chief business officer as of March 2nd, 2026. He will leave the utility in late March 2026. The board thanked both Renick and Fisher in the March 2nd filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Now, here is the oddity. Why are two critical positions becoming vacant with neither a notice of change nor any reasons for why either vacancy occurred?

My presentation on February 3rd, 2026, about the Tennessee Valley Authority shared several pivotal events for energy production in the United States occurring between now and the next seven years. It is reasonable to conclude that there was either an unwillingness to serve on the part of either Renick or Fisher, or both, or they were each removed due to the inability of the TVA board of directors to have confidence in the decision-making processes of Renick and Fisher. The absence of a public statement from either Renick or Fisher supports the likelihood that they were each removed due to the inability of the TVA board of directors to have confidence in the decisioning processes of both Renick and Fisher.

The exits of Renick and Fisher are each huge in the picture of energy production today, based on the fall of Iran's government. Iran has been a leading fossil fuel producer for decades. The future of energy production is not fossil fuel but nuclear energy. Please review the February 3rd, 2026, episode as you see fit to understand the impact of TVA in energy production today. Concisely, the impact of the recent events in Iran with regard to living life more richly is huge. However, the center of the events in energy production today is Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

The acronym SMR identifies the small modular reactor. The SMR is a smaller version of a nuclear reactor that generates electricity. SMRs are designed to be factory-fabricated and transported to the installation site as prefabricated modules, allowing for streamlined construction, enhanced scalability, and potential integration into multi-unit configurations.

The Tennessee Valley Authority is the first organization the Department of Energy has licensed to operate an SMR on the national electrical grid. The Tennessee Valley Authority is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States that produces electricity for electricity distribution companies, being the local power company, for anyone who wants to purchase electricity. The SMR license was issued on December 2nd, 2025. The site of the first SMR is Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

The impact on you as a listener as a member of my intended audience is simple. The combined events I present in the episode today form an investment opportunity for you. The investment opportunity is to identify the companies that are involved with the technologies used in the SMR and purchase some form of ownership in one or more of those companies. It is not my place to serve in The Richly or Poorly Show as an investment advisor. It is my place to help you as a listener in my intended audience to live your life more richly by you being able to use all we have covered in our time together. The investment opportunity I share with you now is only as a research suggestion and not an investment recommendation.

Now, about the concept of morality as a commodity.

The exiting of both Renick and Fisher without a public statement from either of them means the TVA board of directors lost confidence in the morality professed by Renick and Fisher. The loss of confidence in the morality professed by a person means there is a loss of confidence in either the worldview, the ethics, or both of the person. The TVA board of directors is declaring a morality statement with the vacancies of Renick and Fisher because there was no notice of change and no reasons for why either vacancy occurred. The TVA board of directors has arrived at a clear decision that the success of the SMR operating on the national electrical grid is of paramount importance to the welfare of TVA, the United States, and all other countries that will use the SMR technology on their national electrical grids.

This action by the TVA board of directors emphasizes how important leadership is to the success of any project. It is my strong belief that the relationship between a leader and a follower can never be taken for granted. This is a relationship by choice, not force. I know of no effort in the life of anyone, personally or professionally, where the wilful choice to follow a leader is considered unimportant. There is always something else a person can do with their choices. The act of following another person for the intent to accomplish any form of work is an act of humility.

Now, let's look at the commodity aspect of morality to connect this TVA matter I address today.

The source of morality as a commodity is from a leader who holds the worldview and ethics that match the desired form of morality. I have presented extensively on the topics of worldview, ethics, and morality in previous show episodes.

I identify that accumulating money will dominate the outcry over morality, until money no longer solves the problems. The events of September 2001, September 2008, and January 2020 provide context. The most in-demand commodity as of February 28, 2026, and the foreseeable future, is morality. Moral leaders will be more valuable than leaders who prioritize cash accumulation. Moral leaders will be scarce to source as they will already be employed. The absence of moral leadership will cause a company to enter insolvency. The simplest move is to employ a leader who holds the desired morality now, before it is too scarce to locate the desired leader.

So, where is an example of moral leadership?

The company SkyDrive is located in Japan. SkyDrive is spelled as one word. I encourage you to search the Internet to see their web site to get a grasp of their product offering. The government of Japan has established locations in the air over Japan for the flying taxi products from various manufacturers to travel within Japan. SkyDrive has produced a flying taxi that is battery-operated. They have tested their product with the Toyota Motor Corporation research laboratories. They have produced the airframe of their product with the Suzuki Automotive Corporation. They completed milestone test flights in late February 2026. They are close to product launch.

The connection between the topics presented today is that morality is needed to move successfully from fossil fuels to electric vehicles of any type, such as a flying taxi. There has been a missing piece in the work of the past to accomplish the activities of buying and selling oil, producing energy, and producing transportation. Almost every part of life is impacted substantially by the combination of energy and transportation. The TVA board of directors eliminating the chair of their board, and their chief business officer, at the same time, illustrates the importance of energy and transportation today.

It is my considered position that the topic of energy production will become dominant in the year 2026, beyond the price of gasoline we pay to fill our gas tanks. We will see that energy production is based on the topic of morality more than the topic of money. The outcome of this emphasis will help calm many problems we face today into manageable business processes.

How do I know this is true? Two reasons. First, the price of crude oil only increased a few dollars a barrel after the fall of Iran's government. It is clear to many people that the bigger picture with energy does not have crude oil as the deciding factor. Second, the TVA board of directors removed two key leaders at the same time while also having the Department of Energy license to operate an SMR on the national electrical grid. If the Department of Energy had a loss of confidence in the TVA board, then the Department of Energy would have revoked the license to operate an SMR on the national electrical grid. Summarizing, these are all good events for those who have reached a point of being sick and tired of being sick and tired of not being able to live their life in a way that they define as more richly.

So, what can you do with all of this material I have presented today?

First, I hope you will breathe easier about your desire to live your life more richly. The costs associated with energy and transportation are about to decrease for everyone.

Second, you now have some significant reasoned information from me about you doing your research about the investment opportunity of identifying the companies that are involved with the technologies used in the SMR and purchasing some form of ownership in one or more of those companies.

Third, you now have the understanding that morality is also a commodity. You now understand that you are looking to follow a moral leader by first understanding the worldview and ethics that align with your desired form of morality.

Finally, you are empowered to spend some time searching the Internet about the SkyDrive corporation and how their product will, not may, but will benefit you as either an additional investment opportunity, as a passenger in their flying taxi, or both options.

Well, that's it for today.

RICHLY IS GOODLY!

Thank you for joining me for this episode of The Richly or Poorly Show!

I have enjoyed presenting to you today.

Until the next episode, I hope you will be safe and join me next week.

Until then.

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