Dear Editor: We are better than this

Dear Editor,

I’m not going to name any names or go into any details, but once again, we have witnessed the lengths that some people will go to in order to soothe their own wounded ego. I’d like to think most people have a good reason for treating others the way they do. But really, there’s no excuse for bad behavior. As a human being, my first reaction is to name names, share the details of the situation with anyone who will listen, and get in someone’s face. Then I realize - that’s my own ego talking!

I was talking to an old friend of mine at the post office the other day, on a related subject. In yesteryears someone’s word was as good as gold, especially in places like rural Montana. These days, even with a written contract, you might still get raked over the coals. One might wonder if the two situations aren’t somehow related.

The scenario mentioned above has unfortunately become an almost every day occurrence. In fact, sadly for some, it seems to have become a way of life. The new “normal!” This should not be. WE ARE BETTER THAN THIS! Just because this kind of behavior has become the accepted, even acceptable, ‘norm’ doesn’t make it right. There is no other way to say it than to call it what it is: JUST PLAIN WRONG! Jesus might have said it best when He said, ‘Do unto others as you wish them to do unto you.’ Fortunately, there are still some people who live by this mantra!

Charles Haddon Shank

Whitehall, Montana