More powerful force will trump high court decision on beaches

 When the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments over beach restoration, cheers arose from both sides of the issue.

While such court decisions are often met with such initial reaction, reality eventually sets in and often that reality turns cheers into jeers, sometimes from those on both sides of the issue.

Such could be the case once the high court renders a decision in this case.

Both camps seem confident their collective voice will be the voice of reason. Their voice and arguments will sway enough of the justices that the opinion handed down will declare them victorious. At the end of the day, they will stand as winners while thumbing their noses - either literally or figuratively - at their opponents.

But at this point we would caution both camps to put a damper on their enthusiasm. As many who went before them will attest, the high court can be completely fickle at times and too often their opinions go counter to what even the brightest legal minds predict.

It would not surprise us if neither side of the issue feels like they've won anything when it's all said and done. And frankly that will likely be the case.

But when it comes to our beaches, Mother Nature will always, always have the final say as she laughs at our attempts to tame her. She couldn't care less about the opinions of a bunch of old coots.