Sunday, January 19, 2014   Hubris: -Noun 1. Excessive pride or
self-confidence;arrogance  Chris Christie's recent difficulties
with respect to the George Washington bridge lane closure
scandal are yet another example of Hubris in our political
system and in our politics.   The story is not new for New
Jersey nor for this country.  I went and saw American Hustle
last night, which was a stylized account of the Abscam sting
operation in the late 1970's and early 1980's which netted a
series of New Jersey politicians in a bribery and corruption
scandal.  It got me thinking about Mr. Christie and the notion
of political leaders abusing their power in general.  Mr.
Christie is a leader.  Of that there can be no doubt. He swept
into office in 2009 running as a conservative Republican in one
of the bluest Democratic states in the country.  He was of
course helped by the feckless and questionable practices of his
predecessor, John Corzine, but nonetheless, won. He and his team
proceeded to implement the policies he ra