Our View: Thumbs up, thumbs down

Thumbs up

Bravo to Nathan Barta. He’s the Esko High School senior who took the time to come up with a plan for more equal county commissioner districts and then presented it to commissioners earlier this month. Wow. How many teenagers even bother to grasp the fact that county commissioners have districts, let alone come up with a plan to equalize them? We heard Barta also spoke up at a redistricting hearing in Duluth regarding state legislative districts. Well done.

Thumbs up

Kudos to Cloquet grad Luke Heine for bringing a free hackathon to the Northland. The virtual event offered kids valuable resources and, better yet, the opportunity to hang out and create. They could dip a toe into the world of computer science — which isn’t taught much here — and maybe make new friends. Heine said students from 20 schools attended the April 9 event and they had 10 prize winners. Hooray for the kids and Heine.

Thumbs down

Hiss to invasive insects. You’re not welcome in Carlton County, emerald ash borer and gypsy moth. But you’re here and we will do our best to slow your progression. People who enjoy the great outdoors need to be vigilant about not transporting any of these critters to untouched places, and that holds true for boat owners too. We live in a beautiful part of the country. It will take all our efforts to keep it that way.

Thumbs up

Hooray for Arbor Day and efforts to take care of trees and repair the damage that’s been done to the environment by human beings. Although it may just seem like window dressing, Cloquet’s designation as a Tree City comes with actual requirements that will be beneficial to trees on city properties in the long term. The 10,000 tree giveaway will add 10,000 trees to the area. Granted, they’re only 6 inches tall now, but in 20 years, they’ll soak up lots of carbon dioxide.

Thumbs up

Thundering applause for the Cloquet High School econ teams. Yes, we said teams. There are two of them. One is the new Minnesota state champion and the other would have come in third at state based on section scores, said coach Tim Prosen. That says a lot about our kids, and even more about the coach.

So, thumbs up to coach Prosen, too.