Celebrate safely

THUMBS UP: The 4th of July is here, and if you aren’t ready to celebrate after the year we’ve all just been through, go back to bed.

Last year, 4th of July celebrations were stifled by the coronavirus. Big gatherings were verboten and family picnics were a lot less fun with people wearing masks and standing six feet apart.

This year we can afford to relax and celebrate. That being said, let’s celebrate safely. Please don’t blow your fingers off with cherry bomb, and let’s all drive safely. And that means don’t drink and drive.

Let’s celebrate our country’s birthday and have a great holiday weekend.

Upper Midwest Classic

THUMBS UP: One great way to celebrate the 4th of July is with the great American pastime, baseball. Thank goodness we have a chance to watch some good baseball being played right here in New Ulm, with the Upper Midwest Classic. Legion teams from around the state, and even out of state, are competing at our local ballfields, and we’re glad they are here. Especially when you compare them with the woeful brand of baseball being played up at Target Field.

The Minnesota Twins are just not having a good season, and it’s expected that soon they will be starting the selloff of high-priced but not terribly productive players in a bid to rebuild for next year.

Before they do, head down to Johnson Park, grab a beer and a hot dog and enjoy some entertaining baseball.

Hitting 70%

THUMBS UP: Gov. Tim Walz announced Thursday that the state has reached the 70% mark for COVID vaccinations before the 4th of July, as President Joe Biden had asked all states to do. It is a credit to Minnesotans who understand that getting vaccinated protects not just the individual, but lots of other people as well. With 70% of the populace vaccinated, the virus has fewer hosts to infect, and we’ve seen the number of new cases falling statewide, and especially in Brown County, where there were just five new cases in the whole month of June.

Congratulations to all who have the vaccine, and we hope others will join in as well.