The drama continues

This just keeps getting more interesting, doesn’t it? At the annual Pete Ricketts “Steak Fry” north of Fremont on Sunday, Gov. Pillen casually dropped the news that he’ll hold an opening ceremony at the former Work Ethic Camp on Friday.

That was news to us, and naturally, the governor’s communications staff can’t comment on it. They are, after all, the governor’s communications staff — under no particular obligation to communicate.

What makes this truly intriguing is that the second hearing on the Appleseed/McCook 13 injunction request is scheduled for 9 a.m. the same morning. While the governor is not expected to be at the hearing, the timing of the announcement suggests his office is fairly confident of the outcome.

The governor won’t be alone. He’ll be joined by none other than U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem. There’s been no word on whether she’ll be stopping by the Humane Society for a photo op, but one can always hope. What we can count on is that with a cabinet member in town, security will be tight and McCook will again make national news. Of course, those reports will carry that familiar moniker so many find distasteful. As long as it isn’t called “the McCook Clink,” we’ll take the lesser of evils.

The lawsuit itself adds another layer of irony. It revolves around the separation of powers and allegations of gubernatorial overreach. Living in a small town, we know most of our neighbors, including the McCook 13. Of the 13, few seem the sort to stay up nights pondering the fine points of constitutional authority between the governor and the unicameral — yet that’s precisely the basis of the legal challenge filed on their behalf. Who knew they were so passionate about the Nebraska Constitution? We expect a TED talk when this is all over.

As we endure the civil theatrics, let’s remember that complaining parties are operating squarely within the law and exercising their rights to question authority. We can’t help but admire their moxie, however transparently political their efforts may seem. It remains our collective right to make some noise now and again, even if only symbolically.

The good news, or at least the more human side of this story, is that the Appleseed folks that our neighbors have hooked up with appear to be sincere humanitarians. They’ve been doing this kind of work since the mid-1990s. Yes, a few among their number may have only discovered their passion for humanity on Jan. 20, but there are far worse ways to channel anger.

Though their worldview often tilts left of Southwest Nebraska sensibilities, humanitarian organizations serve a purpose. They remind us that the displaced — however necessary that displacement may be — are human beings. However heinous some crimes, there are always innocents caught in the crossfire.

True humanitarian organizations don’t just posture against whoever is in office. They keep human consequences of government actions in public consciousness — or, at the very least, allow us to outsource our guilt.

Then there’s the red meat in the stew. Few names predictably raise conservative blood pressure quite like “George Soros,” who is at least a minor contributor to Nebraska Appleseed. Soros is notoriously tied to many far-left causes and is known to back progressive prosecutors, which adds further political intrigue to the lawsuit.

For now, the best we can do is adopt our trademark Midwestern stoicism. We’ll get through this weekend’s protests, contain the chaos behind the concertina wire and see whether any of those $30 million in federal dollars actually trickle down to Norris Avenue.

This, too, will pass. It usually does, and if we can’t laugh a little along the way, we’re probably taking ourselves too seriously.