"Janet Baraclough" wrote in message
...
The message
from Ann contains these words:

I can cut down any tree I want on my property. As I should be able
to. You go ahead and live in your controlling environment, I promise
I won't move next door to you. And thankfully most of New England
feels as I do.

I suppose that depends whether you view yourself as the sole owner
the land you bought, or just the latest in a long line, the current
custodian who will one day hand it on to another by death or sale or
inheritance.

What if the tree is many hundreds of years old, or a "champion" of its
species, or an extreme rarity, or a special landmark of the
neighbourhood? Does someone who pays a mortgage on the tree's patch of
soil for a few years, acquire an inalienable right to remove something
very rare or special?

Stop it. You're being too logical.