The Illusions of Grander Epidemic

America’s focus in upon the Ebola disease and the damages it could do to this nation but there is a more damming and destructive force which has been running rampant in our communities for years and is only getting worse.  It is the “illusions of grander” disease and it has now become an epidemic.  This disease seems to effect those with a little bit of authority and holds a prominent position within our communities.  It’s a disease that medicine will not fix and can only to erased if given the proper attention from the public. If you are looking for an example, look no further than this article written by Zach Noble for the Blaze titled “Small Town Deploys ‘Military-Style Maneuvers’ to Collect 75-Year-Old Man’s Debt.”

The article reports that “the tiny town of Stettin, Wisconsin, is home to fewer than 3,000 residents, and one of those residents, 75-year-old Roger Hoeppner, has been engaged in a lengthy legal battle with the town over how he uses his land, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Saturday.  Hoeppner, a retired paper factory worker, runs a tractor- and pallet-repair business on the 20 acres of land he owns in Stettin, the Journal Sentinel reported, and for years the town has been trying to get him to clean up the parts and pallets strewn across his property.  On Oct. 2, Stettin obtained a writ of execution to collect the more than $80,000 Hoeppner owed, the newspaper reported, and the sheriff’s SWAT team made its move, bringing 24 armed officers and an armored vehicle, the Marathon County Response Vehicle — or MARV — to Hoeppner’s house.”  Now if the story can be believed, one has to think by what right did the judge have to order such a thing and what kind of sheriff would think that military gear is necessary.

Rumor has it that Mr. Hoeppner began working on tractors and pallet repair after he retired from his job at the paper factory and the land upon which he repairs these items belongs to him.  At what point is the rights of the many outweighed by the desires of the few.  Rumors say that all this occurred when the county rezoned but if Mr. Hoeppner had begun this business before that rezoning, why wasn't he grandfathered in like other businesses that exist before rezoning.  Could it be that the rezoning was done to force Mr. Hoeppner to comply with the rulers of the city?  We may never know because those who report the news never tells anyone the whole story and many times they don’t even care to get the whole story. 

Whichever way, it is clear that this epidemic is spreading and the symptoms are getting worse by the minute.  We need to find a cure against those who have a little bit of authority thinking and acting like they know what is best for all and will not let anything stand in their way of forcing their idea of how we should live down our throats.  When you see someone in authority begin to display these symptoms, the public needs to act and remove that person from that position if not for the sake of your community, for theirs.