Fasching invasion
THUMBS UP: The Journal was invaded by suspicious looking masked characters Friday afternoon. The Narren had once again kidnapped Mayor Joel Albrecht and were parading him around town, declaring that everyone was to take the day off and start celebrating Fasching.
We ignored their directive. After all, if Congress can make no law abridging freedom of the press, neither can the Narren. Besides, who would put their picture in the paper if we all took the day off?
We hope the city will take a sterner stance with the Narren than in the past. The City Council should refuse to negotiate with kidnappers of public officials. Whatever ransom the Narren demand for the mayor should be denied. They've got him, and they can keep him.
In the mean time, happy Fasching and Bock Fest to all.
Someone knows
THUMBS DOWN: Some vandals broke into Sleepy Eye High School early Wednesday morning, wrecked some stuff and set a fire in the locker room.
That's a shameful act, and its not the first case of vandalism in Sleepy Eye in the recent past.
The incident is, of course, under investigation. We hope that those who know something about this will come forward. And we are sure that someone does know about this. Those who perpetrate this kind of destructive act have a penchant for letting people know about it. They want attention. They probably bragged to their friends, maybe even took some cell phone photos and messaged it to others.
We hope they are caught and prosecuted.
Golf cart concern
THUMBS UP: We're glad the New Ulm City Council is taking a careful and deliberate look at the issue of allowing golf carts to be used on city streets. While it might be a sensible and eco-friendly idea in some parts of town and some times of year, there are a lot of concerns to be considered.
One of the first and most important is safety. Mixing golf carts and regular size autos isn't a good idea. If people think a collision between a compact car and an SUV is a mismatch, consider what would happen if a golf cart and an SUV occurs. Even a Cooper Mini would be an overwhelming favorite over a golf cart. The average golf cart provides scant protection to its passengers in the case of a crash.