Polar Frontier--When is enough, enough?

I recall when zoo's were disbanding the amusement parks that had been connected to their zoo's for decades, because of the public "perception". Then they found a compromise with "endangered species carousels". Now Klondike mining camps, cart and wagons(used by an animal when it was a beast of burden), Turkish bazaars, Hindu Temples etc. have all become the rage and "educational" justification from the east coast to the west coast, north to south. Columbus Zoo among others have built a replica of the place where Mercedes was almost shot, and had to be captured to tie in with the rest of their Polar Bear endeavor. I wonder what the folks "perceive?" When does having too much money, and wasting it needlessly become as awful as not having the funds, as did Edinburgh and had to wait for the army? Every zoo that has built some new elaborate "exhibit" in a effort to "keep up with the Jones" about 60% of it a total waste, has at least one exhibit at their zoo, sorely in need realistic repair/update.

Twenty years ago I was standing with a zoo director, view his facilities brand new multi million dollar "Wolf Wonderland" shaking my head. The gentleman asked, "what do you think?" I replied, "your old facility was very good for the wolves? What you should have done with all this money, was built something more suitable for your orangutans ." He sighed and said, "I agree with you, but the donor who was offering us four and a half million dollars is crazy in love with wolves, and she said she would only give us the money, if we used it to build a new wolf habitat better then the one such and such zoo built." It was 15 years before his orangutans had a suitable habitat, and the wolfs could not have cared less. Public "perception" is a hard thing to have to work with or work around.