Thursday’s thumbs

Principle of Supreme Court decision welcome

It’s spring in Northwest Arkansas and thousands of our neighbors are putting their green thumbs to use in gardens and landscaping throughout the region. We appreciate those efforts, which help to beautify our already beautiful neck of the woods and produce food and flowers in the process. Our thumbs are of the more ink-stained variety, though, so we’ll put them to use with today’s version of Thursday’s thumbs.

File this away in the agreewith-the-principle-but-notthecategory: The U.S. Supreme Court the other day ruled that Congress went too far in passing a 1992 law that barred states from authorizing sports betting. It’s not that we’re thrilled with the prospect that Arkansas and other states might be tempted to legitimize (then tax) the practice of wagering on sports — give me $25 on the Razorbacks! No, but the court’s recognition that the states are not just extensions of the federal government is welcome. “The legislative powers granted to Congress are sizable, but they are not unlimited,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the court. “Conspicuously absent from the list of powers given to Congress is the power to issue direct orders to the governments of the states.” Look for state lawmakers to start exploring what new areas of regulation or deregulation they might be interested in. Beyond sports betting, the ruling could give state legislatures more authority over legalization of marijuana, involvement in immigration enforcement, gun laws and environmental regulations. This doesn’t mean federal laws are weakened, but Congress won’t be able to burden states with decisions made in Washington quite so easily. For those who believe states are or ought to be the stronger level of government, this week’s Supreme Court ruling was a win.

Some may be tempted to apply the logic of the Supreme Court’s decision this week to state government’s relationship to cities in Arkansas, such as with State Rep. Bob Ballinger’s legislation to bar cities, like Fayetteville, from passing civil rights ordinances to protect people from discrimination or other laws. The Legislature passed a law that reserved to itself the power to determine which characteristics deserve protection from discrimination. Sexual orientation or preference isn’t among those state-protected characteristics, but it is within Fayetteville’s ordinance. Can cities claim the same kind of autonomy the states asserted in the sports betting case? It’s unlikely: In Arkansas, cities are entirely creations of the state Legislature, so the state maintains significant authority in what powers its creations can exercise.

It seems in these days of click-bait, every website or publication conjures up lists or rankings designed to draw readers in and keep them busy looking at page after page online. But we’ll give

U.S. News and World Report credit: They’ve been compiling key rankings for years. In one of their most recent rankings, the public or public charter high schools of Northwest Arkansas performed quite nicely, taking six of the top nine spots. Haas Hall Academy tops the list, followed by Prairie Grove (4th), Bentonville (5th), Rogers (6th), Arkansas Arts Academy in Rogers (8th) and Fayetteville (9th). Kudos to the devoted educators who power these educational institutions and deliver results for their students.

Folks caught in threatening weather near the Evansville Community Center have improved odds for safety with the recent opening of a 240-square-foot community storm shelter. Residents of the unincorporated, southwest Washington County community that’s felt the brunt of tornadoes and other storms sought the help of county government. Washington County came up with a $9,749 match to a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant of $29,246. County Grants Administrator Sharon Lloyd said the approach is one the county would like to replicate with other rural communities. We’re glad to see Washington County give needed attention for rural areas that historically have faced dangers from storms rolling out of Oklahoma. Here’s the trick for residents, though: Storm shelters only work when people get inside them during storms, so it’s time to form a new practice.

Our thumbs aren’t quite as fast as many of the button-pushing contestants on the brainy game show Jeopardy!, but we’ll turn one up anyway for Huntsville teacher Jake Allen. He joined host Alex Trebek for the show’s 10-episode teachers tournament and rose to play as a semifinalist before missing an answer in Final Jeopardy. The educator of gifted and talented students can cross an experience off his bucket list. He represented Arkansas well to the nation of Jeopardy! watchers.

Come on, motorists. You can do better than this. The Arkansas Department of Education on Wednesday released results of an annual one-day survey in which bus drivers across the state reported more than 850 instances in which motorists illegally passed school buses. You know what those are, right? They’re the big yellow vehicles with bright flashing lights and stop signs flipped out to the side when they’re loading or unloading students. The saddest news is the trend from the last few years is more, not fewer, instances of such dangerous driving. Get off your phones, people. This isn’t just a warning about what the law is. More importantly, imagine what the rest of your life will be if, heaven forbid, you managed to careen your 2-ton vehicle into a child, simply because of a lack of attention. School will be out soon, but there’s no time like the present to adjust one’s practices. A stopped bus with lights flashing means approaching motorists must stop. Plain and simple.