Hubris

According to Wikipedia, which gave the best definition I could find, hubris means extreme haughtiness or arrogance. Hubris often indicates being out of touch with reality and overestimating one's own competence or capabilities, especially for people in positions of power.

And two of the best indications of hubris are going on in our little town right now.

Having been smacked down in District Court, the Whitefish City Council has hired an outside attorney to consider whether they should appeal the adverse judgment over the famous and, in my opinion, delightful sign at Mrs. Spoonovers.

This vendetta has gone on long enough. As the sign in her window says, "We won." She's right. She out-lawyered and out-logiced the city. The city council should represent wisdom and consider what is best for all its citizens and stop wasting their limited funds on harassing a lovely lady who happens to run a highly respected business.

The other grand exercise of hubris can be found in the school district board which, having been smacked down twice by the electorate in their grand plans to create a Taj Mahal High School, now has come up with some even more expensive plans to build/rebuild the high school. This for a school with declining enrollment and which has hemorrhaged students to Glacier High School.

I doubt if they have headed to Glacier High because of its food court or handicap accessibility. I suspect their parents have placed them there for a better education and fewer drugs and other distractions which plague our own school.

Hubris isn't confined to the elected officials in Whitefish — it can be often found in Helena and consistently in the White House. It can work for a while, but sooner or later the public gets tired of being force-fed unpopular views and being over-taxed. And when that happens, our "betters' are shown the door. For such is the beauty of our system of governance.

Back to Wikipedia again. "Quo usque tandem abutere, Catilina, patientia nostra" is a Latin phrase from Marcus Tullius Cicero's first speech against Catiline. It means, "How long, Catiline, will you abuse our patience?"

Some things just never seem to change, do they?

Cy Appel

Whitefish