The Good You Can't See

The Thread — Issue #5 | June 1, 2026The Good You Can't SeeIn a year of mostly bad headlines, here are three things that are quietly, measurably going right in America — homicide at a modern low, cancer survival transformed, lives lengthened — plus the abundance hiding in plain sight. This issue is about why the good news is so hard to see, and what that invisibility costs the institutions doing the slow work.Chapters (estimated — will refine after audio QC)0:00 — Open0:20 — What I'm pulling at1:30 — The good you can't see: homicide, cancer, longevity5:30 — The abundance that doesn't reach you8:30 — Why you can't see it10:30 — The cost of not seeing13:30 — The common thread14:20 — Close and disclosuresSources and further readingThe good you can't seeCouncil on Criminal Justice — Crime Trends in U.S. Cities: Year-End 2025 Updatehttps://counciloncj.org/crime-trends-in-u-s-cities-year-end-2025-update/Stateline — US crime rates fell nationwide in 2024https://stateline.org/2025/08/08/us-crime-rates-fell-nationwide-in-2024-fbi-report-says/Congressional Research Service — early-1990s crime wavehttps://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF12281ABC News — US poised to end 2025 with the largest one-year drop in homicideshttps://abcnews.com/US/us-poised-end-2025-largest-year-drop-homicides/story?id=128646976National Cancer Institute, SEER Program — survival, all cancers combinedhttps://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/all.htmlAACR Cancer Progress Report 2025https://cancerprogressreport.aacr.org/progress/cpr25-contents/cpr25-cancer-in-2025/CDC National Center for Health Statistics — life expectancyhttps://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db521.htmThe abundance that doesn't reach youFederal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED) — real GDP per capita, series A939RX0Q048SBEAhttps://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/A939RX0Q048SBEABureau of Labor Statistics — productivityhttps://www.bls.gov/productivity/Why you can't see itGapminder — Rosling "Factfulness" knowledge quizhttps://upgrader.gapminder.org/The cost of not seeingFinancial Crisis Inquiry Commission reporthttps://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GPO-FCICKFF — opioid overdose deaths, national trendshttps://www.kff.org/mental-health/opioid-overdose-deaths-national-trends-and-variation-by-demographics-and-states/Congressional Research Service — 737 MAX certification reformhttps://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF12843Washington Post — 2018 stress-test rollback for mid-sized bankshttps://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/04/03/silicon-valley-bank-stress-test/IQVIA — prescription opioid volumes down 60% from 2011 peakhttps://www.iqvia.com/newsroom/2020/12/prescription-opioid-use-in-the-us-has-declined-by-60-from-2011-peak-according-to-new-report-from-theCDC — statement on provisional 2024 overdose deathshttps://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2025/2025-statement-from-cdcs-national-center-for-injury-prevention-and-control-on-provisional-2024.htmlFederal Reservehttps://www.federalreserve.gov/Read the full piece[Issue #5 Substack URL — add on publish]About The ThreadThe Thread is a biweekly briefing that connects the biggest economic and political stories — the ones actually shaping what you pay, what you earn, and what you can afford — and follows them back to what's really going on underneath. Hosted by Matthew Davis, co-founder of Sherwood Financial Partners, a fee-only RIA in California. Authoritative about the facts. Curious about what they mean. Never alarmist, never partisan. A calmer way to stay informed.DisclosuresMatthew Davis is the co-founder of Sherwood Financial Partners, LLC ("Sherwood"). Sherwood is a registered investment adviser. This platform and this briefing are solely for informational purposes and do not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investing involves risk and possible loss of principal capital. The information contained herein is not intended to convey or constitute legal or tax advice. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Comments by viewers or third-party rankings and recognitions are no guarantee of future investment outcomes and do not ensure that a viewer will experience a higher level of performance or results. 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