Thumbs up, thumbs down

August 15, 1997

To the Mercersburg, Pa., Lions Club, whose annual fair will raise more than $18,000 to maintain and improve the town's park and fund other public-service projects.

To Aaron Hendrickson, a 17-year-old Clear Spring youth with spina bifida who nevertheless won two weight-lifting prizes at the National Junior Wheelchair Championships. He also won medals for javelin, discus and shotput!

To Irene Rhodes of Martinsburg, W.Va., for founding a child-care program that allows working parents to drop off children as early as 6:45 a.m. so that they can commute to work.

To U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Cornelius Blackshear, for agreeing to allow a company owned by Meshulam Riklis to purchase 159 McCrory stores, in a deal that leaves unsecured creditors, including vendors, with nothing.

To the Hagerstown City Council, for agreeing to spend $5,000 to renovate the clubhouse at the old fairgrounds as a headquarters for the Police Athletic League youth sports group.

To Jefferson County, W.Va. officials for not coming up with a way to help residents of the Shannondale subdivision upgrade roads there. Must an ambulance or a fire engine get bogged down in the mud before someone acts?

To the Hagerstown Council, for threatening to sue CSX over deteriorating rail crossings. Suing wastes cash; let city crews do the work and put a lien on CSX property until the bill is paid.

To Kimberly Young, a University of Pittsburgh psychologist, for saying Internet addiction should be taken as seriously as drug abuse. Just what this country doesn't need - another group of "victims" seeking sympathy and tax dollars.

To all Washington County officials who still haven't realized the Hagerstown Suns' deadline for a "yea" or "nay" on a new stadium is Oct. 1. Say yes or no, but say something.

To Berkeley County officials for wondering if a federal grant to hire two new deputies is worth a 25 percent local match. The crime rate is up; if the feds want to help cope with that, then why hesitate?

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