Today's Opinions

There was a mysterious presence in the air over Shelby County last week.
It hovered over neighborhoods, flew low from one end of the county to the other, and landed in the field on the back of a farm, separated from homes only by groves of mature trees.
It seemed to hang in the air like one of Tiger Woods’ tee-shots used to do, and then sort of drift along the horizon like some oversized dragon fly.
It drew people from their homes and toward those trees and fields. It lit up the phone lines and fired up Facebook.

Shelby County Fiscal Court is moving quickly this week to close the Who Da Thot It Bridge – commonly called Jail Hill Bridge – that historic span connecting downtown Shelbyville north from 5th Street. In fact, even as you read this, the bridge already may be closed.

Shelby County Judge-Executive Rob Rothenburger cited a recent inspection of the bridge by the state as his basis for asking magistrates on Tuesday morning for an executive order to close the bridge immediately as a matter of public safety.

There was a woman with whom I once worked who had a phenomenal phobia about bridges, which, living in Florida as we did, was something not easily managed.

She had a Golden Rule about bridges: Don’t go unto them, and they can’t do unto you. She would drive to great lengths to avoid a span of any size greater than, say, a 2-lane culvert-crosser.