At 6,643 feet, Clingmans Dome boasts the highest point in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park…On clear days, visitors may see as far as 100 miles…At the end of Clingmans Dome Road is the parking area, a visitor’s center and the trailhead to the summit. The trail to reach the park’s highest point is paved and only measures one-half mile…during the short hike, you will gain 332 feet, which makes the climb gradient almost 13%! The Clingmans Dome hike does feature several benches along the way if you need to catch your breath during the ascent.
https://smokymountains.com/park/hikes/clingmans-dome-hike/
On the only pretty day in the Smoky Mountains last week, my friend Bill and I sauntered to the observation tower atop the dome. Other mature adults made the leisurely walk, too. Then, a horde – actually a band – of teenagers came roaring up the path, talking, laughing and trotting (because a teacher told them not to run). Some jogged backwards up the slope so they could talk to their friends.
The teens – in Gatlinburg for the Smoky Mountain Music Festival – from William H. Farquhah Middle School in Montgomery County, Maryland were uniformly (and, in uniform) friendly, respectful and happy.
Straggling behind came their teacher. A generation younger than me (and easily still in his third decade) he may have seen TV ads for gyms but, well, just past the halfway point the perspiration made his black dress shirt shiny and coated his striped tie. A nice couple suggested that he rest a bit on the next bench. He shook his head and trudged, panting, upward. Red faced enough to guide aircraft.
Now, I was very aware that most of the earth’s oxygen was below me. I pushed my limits a bit yet listened to my body. That teacher, meanwhile, seemed an even money bet for a final face plant to the asphalt.
That made me think of Missouri Governor Eric R. Greitens.
The governor promotes his youthfulness and relishes recklessness. He ran into Capitol politics thinking rules don’t apply to him. He treated state senators as inferiors [ http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article129761784.html ], routinely attacked ‘career politicians’ [ https://themissouritimes.com/41115/greitens-attacks-career-politicians-special-session-rally/ ] without admitting that as governor he’d become one, and, now refuses to bow to the reality that bad actions cause serious consequences. He forgets that a steep mountain can kill.
Except that the view depends on where you stand on that mountain. Governor SEAL sees small pockets of friends and believes himself invincible.
As Melinda Henneberger from the Kansas City Star heard while visiting Nevada, Missouri during the governor’s visit, “We love that Eric Greitens, though.” [Kansas City Star blog, 4/30/18] As Mike Buehler, the Vernon County clerk said, “We want to see Greitens stay in there. He admitted his wrongdoing, so why do they keep going after him? He’s our governor, just like our president is still our president.”
Perhaps the greatest sin of youth is belief in personal invincibility.
Governor SEAL still shares that sin. He ignores what he doesn’t want to believe, yet, no matter what happens in a St. Louis courtroom this month, he cannot survive nor can he govern. When the inevitable hits, expect state troopers with handcuffs and stun guns to remove Eric Greitens from the Governor’s Office. That won’t be good for him. It will be horrible for the people of this state.
The adult thing to do? Walk away with that last touch of dignity. The political thing to do? Negotiate a free ride for agreeing to leave the mountain.
Oh, that sweaty teacher did make it to the to the observation tower atop Clingmans Dome. By the look of him, it was a near thing. He told the kids they had four minutes to get down the mountain and to the bus…He shuffled after them. It took him a lot longer than four minutes to get down the path. I think he made it: my friend and I passed him and left the parking lot before he got to the bus.
Submitted by Glenn Koenen, WCD Member