thumb”¢nail (thum’nail’)
…2. anything quite small or brief,
as a small drawing or short essay
Thumbs up to all the runners who are participating in the Boston Marathon this year, and to those who are supporting them. It’s hard to believe it’s already been a year since the iconic race was marred by a bombing, which took the lives of three people and seriously injured 260 others. This has been a year of recovery and triumph over adversity for many of those people, especially those who lost limbs in the explosions. While the outpouring of support for these victims and their families has been inspiring, and the ceremonies commemorating the losses has been heartfelt, today is the day to reclaim the event and we’re glad to see it going on as scheduled so the City of Boston can move on.
Thumbs up to the work of nonprofit organization OneSight, which provides eye exams and glasses to students in need. This program travels around the country and the world with its van that provides an onsite lab to create lenses and measure students’ eye health. Good vision is an important component of being able to learn well, and students whose vision needs go undiagnosed are missing out on important lessons in school, so they may fall behind or be seen as less intelligent than they really are. We applaud the work of this organization, and all the local optometrists and other volunteers who took part in the Biddeford visit. Their dedication is helping children see more clearly, which will give them brighter futures.
Thumbs down to the wrangling in Augusta over a measure that would provide a life-saving drug for those who overdose on heroin or other opiates. This life-saving drug blocks the brain from receiving the opiates and allows the body to take in air. Gov. Paul LePage originally opposed making the drug, naloxone, more available, saying the state should instead focus on providing addicts with treatment to beat their addiction. He has since reversed course and said family members of addicts should be allowed to have emergency doses of the drug on hand. Now, the Democrat-led Legislature wants to allow first responders to the list of those who should have the drug on hand, as well as allowing health professionals to prescribe it to those who are at risk of overdose. LePage has said he would veto the bill with these additions. It’s terribly disheartening to see the Legislature playing politics with a life-saving drug. If anyone should have naloxone on hand, it’s first responders, who are the ones called when a person appears unresponsive due to an overdose. That goes without question. Should family members and/or addicts themselves have access, too? There are arguments against it, one of which being that having the drug on hand will give addicts a “false sense of security,” as LePage has said. But is that enough of a reason to deny them or their family members access? We don’t think so, and we hope the Legislature can come to an agreement on this soon. Access to life-saving medicine should not be beholden to politics, no matter how big the underlying problem has become.
Thumbs up to those who volunteer their time through the Senior Companion program, which operates under Senior Corps. This organization allows volunteers who are 55 years old or older to commit up to 40 hours a week helping the elderly. Locally, these people are offering life-sustaining support to those in need, whether it’s help with grocery shopping, a ride to an appointment, or a lively game of chess. Older people are usually retired and have more time than full-time workers to help out those in need. They’re also more easily able to identify with the elderly, since they are closer in age. These programs help build our communities, and we hope the federal government reconsiders its budget proposal, which would reduce funding for Senior Corps and other volunteer programs. Supporting the work of volunteers who offer such an important benefit to those in need is money well spent.
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