Why the Long Faces?

We received dispatches from distant capitals this week bearing good news on the recovery front.

Our own Iowa Legislature gave final approval to Cedar Rapids-inspired legislation that could provide dollars for flood protection and mitigation measures in communities across Iowa. Getting a bill through the legislative labyrinth still bearing some resemblance to its founding notions is no small feat, folks.

Our local leaders deserve credit for pulling it off, with bipartisan support, no less, and for sparking an idea that may leave a positive mark on our flood-prone state, pending Gov. Terry Branstad's signature.

We also heard from Washington, D.C., that the city will get $13.8 million for flood damage to the hydroelectric dam that was originally pledged and then denied by FEMA officials. That's money that may now be used on some other recovery project or projects, pending federal approval.

Good news.

And yet, these days, I feel a little like the bartender when the horse walked into the tavern. I look at some of our local leaders lately and wonder, why the long faces?

It's been a month since the sales tax extension for flood protection failed. And trust me, behind the scenes, the seething and sulking continues in full force. I get it. I really do. It was frustrating. Flood protection is a very big deal. And pointing fingers after a defeat has been a proud American tradition since the domestication of scapegoats.

But let's look at the scoreboard. On the vast majority of big decisions on the course of flood recovery, what I would call the Corbettarian wing of local politics has been victorious. Take a good brisk walk around the city core and you'll see the evidence, from the Convention Complex to the amphitheater to infill housing projects to New Bo to the library. In terms of the sports metaphors the mayor loves, it's been a blowout.

And yet, there are times I wonder whether the folks who made it happen can see it. It seems like all they can see are the few painful setbacks. All they can hear are the voices of their most vicious and unreasonable critics. Someone is wrong on the Internet, and they can't get past it.

It's like backward day. People who have basically been routed on nearly every issue are claiming some sort of new clout. People with clout who have won victory after victory are venting and lamenting. What gives?

Yeah, I know it's no fun to get beat up. But I thought the goal was to replace the culture of delay with a culture of action. You did it. You took action. And your payoff is accomplishment, not affection.

That's better anyway. Flowers wilt and candy melts and cheers fade. You put a mark on a city. You're building stuff that will last. Cheer up already.