Heroes in hospitals

THUMBS UP: When Winston Churchill said “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few,” he was speaking of the Royal Air Force pilots who protected the skies over Great Britain from German bombers and warplanes. We could say that today about the health care workers who are battling the COVID-19 virus around the world today.

We are fortunate so far in southern Minnesota that the surge of coronavirus cases hasn’t grown to the proportions of New York and other hard-hit cities and nations around the world. But our health care workers are as prepared as any for increases that are sure to come. We urge federal and state goverments to make sure they have all the protective equipment and respirators they will need when the wave does hit.

In the meantime, we can help them by practicing the social distancing and stay-at-home rules that are in place to slow the spread of the disease.

Keep on trucking

THUMBS UP: We can all gives thanks, too, to the army of professional truck driers who are delivering everything we need to get through this health care crisis. The food in the grocery stores, the medicines for the pharmacies, the masks and medical supplies, even the toilet paper that is so rare today, are all delivered by truck drivers who are putting themselves out there instead of staying safe at home. We don’t say thank you often enough to these road warriors.

Helping others

POINTER: The COVID-19 restrictions we have all been living under have put unprecedented pressure on our economy, especially those businesses that have had to close down during the stay-at-home orders. There are things we can all do to help them survive — order take out food from local restaurants, buy gift cards for local stores that put cash in their tills now and can be redeemed later, even give a donation. We want everyone to survive this time of economic stress.