Yesterday I had coffee with my buddy Mike who runs a little shop on Main Street. He was telling me how he's been cutting back hours for his staff because of the new rules from D.C. They say they're doing this to increase diversity, but let me break this down.

First off, nobody is going to tell you this on CNN or MSNBC. These folks are in the big city and don't understand what it's like running a shop out here where we need flexibility to grow and hire people as our business picks up. The real story is that small businesses have been hit hard since the start of the Biden era.

Now, I've been watching this stuff for years. Every time they roll something new out you can bet it's going to hurt folks who are already struggling. And guess what? They revised these numbers on a Friday afternoon when everyone is heading home from work and won't pay attention. The buried number—the one that nobody talks about—is the real killer.

So why do they do this? Well, here's the thing: it doesn't actually help the little guy at all. It only benefits the big corporations who have armies of lawyers to figure out how to game these rules. Meanwhile, you and I are left holding the bag.

Let me be clear, though—the real impact isn’t just lost hours for employees; it's about losing that sense of community we've built up over years. When a small business can't hire more people or give raises because some bureaucrat in Washington decided it was time to make things harder, something has gone terribly wrong.

So what can you do? First off, protect yourself and your family. Figure out how to weather this storm—maybe that's cutting back on luxury spending, maybe it’s finding new markets for your products. But one thing is certain: don’t wait around for Washington to save you because they aren't going to.

Keep an eye out for those buried numbers and never let them fool you into thinking everything is okay when it isn't. And if you're feeling like you can't take another hit, remember that there are still some places left where folks care about real people over red tape.