Hubris: Two Rich/ Famous Tennesseans Who've Embarrassed Themselves---Reese Witherspoon and Pilot Oil's Jim Haslam

UPDATE:  PILOT PUTS SOME SALES STAFFERS ON LEAVE AND ANNOUNCES AN INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATOR

WE'VE ALL READ OR HEARD THE STORY of Reese Witherspoon's very unbecoming behavior in Atlanta several nights ago when she and her new husband Jim Toth encountered a policeman on Peachtree Street because Toth was weaving in traffic.  In the wee hours of Friday morning, Jim and Reese had clearly had too much to drink before he was pulled over and arrested for a DUI.  That was bad enough though certainly not uncommon. Yet it was Reese's unruly and disorderly conduct during Toth's arrest that added fuel to the flames and made the story an international spectacle.

When some 'famous' person starts spouting off and throwing their weight around, as in asking if the  policeman  knows who  she is and he'll be sorry for this, it's almost the kiss of death as far as I'm concerned.  It's like saying, Look Bud,  we're famous, rich etc.  We're above the law, so back off and leave us alone to do whatever we want so nobody gets hurt. We're way too big for you to tangle with.

To add insult to injury, Reese had the gall to accuse the policeman of being an impersonator. When told to sit her butt down in the car and stay there, she jumped out and declared I'm an American citizen and have a right to stand on U.S. soil whenever I please.  They were both taken for a short time to the Atlanta jail and  booked before being released to their own arrogant recognizance. But the saga is far from over.

Bad acting and cringe-worthy behavior to say the least. I would certainly not like to be her right now no matter how she spins it from here out.

To Reese's and her agent's credit,  she has graciously apologized today, claiming she's deeply embarrassed about this drunken episode,  as she should be.

It's the least she could say to begin to redeem herself.  Still the Legally Blond girl-next-door from Nashville, Tennessee has forever tarnished her squeaky clean image with hubris the size of the Hollywood Bowl.  I'm embarrassed for her and hope this is the last time something like this happens.....

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If Reese Witherspoon's episode over the weekend was bad and embarrassing, then the hubris of  Knoxville businessman Jim Haslam---head of Pilot Flying J Truck Stops, brother of Tennessee governor Bill Haslam, owner of  the NFL's Cleveland Browns and best friend to US Senator Bob Corker---is downright shocking and maybe even tragic.

Last week Pilot's corporate headquarters in Knoxville were suddenly descended on,  raided and impounded by a  federal SWAT team of FBI and IRS agents. Evidently Pilot has been defrauding trucking companies---especially the ones that were 'too unsophisticated' or 'lazy' to understand their rebate statements---to the tune of tens of millions of dollars since 2008 with the knowledge and approval of upper management. Because an inside informant secretly taped some of upper management's recent meetings detailing the fraud and laughing about it, they've been caught red-handed,  with their pants down.  It's altogether possible that besides many heads rolling at Pilot, some of the top brass---including Jim Haslam unless he exonerates himself---will go to federal prison after they've paid back boatloads of back-rebates to trucking companies that have lost money and  trust in business dealings with Pilot.

 Pilot's good reputation and balance sheet may be ruined. It may be the beginning of the end of the largest truck stop company in the country. Trucking company executives and drivers are outraged by Pilot's alleged fraud and greed.

Hubris, thy name is Reese Witherspoon and Jim Haslam.  None of us are without hubris, greed and pride at times, but these current examples sure take the cake and are a cautionary tale.  Stay tuned.