Editorial: Thumbs

To high school graduates.

In this day and age when there is so much emphasis on students advancing to college, the reverence for a high school diploma has diminished. But we want high school graduates to know that getting a diploma truly is a great achievement, not to be taken for granted. Be proud. Many young people in America today do not make it. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 74.9 percent of students who were freshmen in 2004 graduated from high school on time in 2008. That means one in four students in America do not accomplish what you have accomplished. Hold your head high, for even if you go no further in your education and go straight into the job market, you have crossed quite a hurdle. Cheers to you.

To Delta Company and other Minnesota National Guard units headed to Kuwait.

We thank you for serving your country with pride. Delta Company is the unit that operates out of the Albert Lea Armory. It is going to Kuwait for a year as part of the draw-down of soldiers in the Iraq War. Delta Company is part of the 2nd Battalion, 135th Infantry headquartered in Mankato. Other units are going too. They are Alpha Company out of West St. Paul. Bravo Company of Rochester, Charlie Company of Winona and Owatonna and the 1135 Combat Support Company of Austin. The people in the 2nd Battalion come from 178 communities throughout Minnesota and even seven other states. The Albert Lea unit isn’t just Albert Lea people. And Albert Lea people serve in units outside of Albert Lea, too. In fact, 16 soldiers from Albert Lea are spread throughout the battalion. Only Mankato, Rochester, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Austin have more. Owatonna is tied.

Thank you to our troops. We look forward to your safe return in a year.

To driving off with other people’s pets.

A story Thursday about a local woman who found her dog through the Internet mentioned how a man found the dog in Alden. The pet had a collar. The man tried to call the phone number, but it didn’t work. So he took the creature to Rochester.

Common sense says that a dog with a collar belongs to someone, even if the phone number doesn’t work. The owner probably just forgot to update the collar’s tag or perhaps the phone line was down that day or something. A sensible person would make a better effort at returning the dog, by either asking neighbors in the neighborhood or contacting the local police. Fortunately, someone in Indiana helped the local woman get her dog back.