Foley doesn't understand locals

I recently read a letter to the editor from Robert Foley, son of Bill Foley, with regards to the graffiti sign. I do not agree with graffiti in general, and the statement by my daughter about it being great was a complete misinterpretation of her comment.

However, it seems that Bill Foley, despite his infinite wisdom of a name change, has in fact made many in the town of Whitefish a bit angry at his nonchalant attitude while purchasing up most of our little town. His son seems to believe that he will take our mountain away from us like a toy if we don't clean up our room.

Arrogance will get you nowhere when you bite the hand that feeds you. If Robert Foley doesn't think that we "locals" appreciate our mountain, he hasn't paid too much attention to what the graffiti sign meant. It's like most things had a face and a value, nothing more.

I feel that Robert Foley's statement on how all of the locals are going to have a bad name because of one person's desire to inappropriately express their feelings through use of graffiti is a case in point. I find that to be quite generalized, which is the way he seems to see all of us "locals" anyway.

There is a reason we are upset at the changes, and it stems from a lack of understanding of why we are here in the first place. Clearly, Bill Foley continues to disregard the regulations on the lake, as his lawn has continued to grow in size despite there was an agreement upon purchasing the property to not do so. Apparently he likes the taste of fertilizer in his water. Who cares what the neighbors say?

Granted, we all wish for success, but not at the expense of those of us who made this town and the mountain's reputation what it is today. Bill Foley will never get credit for what Big Mountain Ski Resort is today, so quit trying to reinvent the wheel. If Bill Foley thinks "we" don't appreciate the mountain, he should step outside his bubble and take a look at the lawn he has growing on the shoreline.

Many of us have worked hard on that mountain for 15-20 plus years, and I find his comments about lack of appreciation quite offensive. Without "us locals," Bill Foley wouldn't be interested in having the controlling share of a ski hill.

We "locals," the townspeople, families, business owners, workers of all types and most certainly the skiers and snowboarders that moved here to have a quality of life, "we" are what made it a great mountain to take your family.

By the way, I would like an explanation on the comment (threat) of our mountain not being there in the future.

If it's just a ski hill he wants, why not Snow Bowl? It had to be cheaper.

Kelly Mull

Whitefish