Thursday’s thumbs

Could Cupid send arrows flying without them?

It’s St. Valentine Day, when the focus for many people will be on hearts, romance and love. Happy Valentine’s Day to all.

It’s also time for Thursday’s thumbs, our regular collection of likes and dislikes as represented by the lonely thumb. Some will tell us the thumb isn’t really a finger, but qualifies as a digit. But let’s not make it to feel excluded. We love our thumbs in all their opposition.

How, after all, would Cupid shoot arrows that inspire love if the winged baby archer lacked a couple of thumbs?

So yes, yes, Valentine’s Day is a day for thumbs, and so we offer these.

Imagine our excitement that Bella Vista is getting a sculpture called “Marilyn Monroe.” As soon as we heard about, we had visions it might have been inspired by that famous scene in The Seven-Year Itch, but with smoke bellowing up from a stump fire in a Bella Vista ravine rather than subway grate outside a showing of Creature from the Black Lagoon. This version of the mega-famous actress comes in welded, brushed aluminum. Doing what art does, it certainly makes one go “hmmm.” This piece is no candle in the wind. Indeed, it’s something substantial enough that people could cling to it when the rain sets in and be fine, except maybe if it’s a lightning storm. Oh, heck, now we’ve changed our minds. Let’s say a thumbs up for this art, because what’s a world without it. And if it seems different, then why not? Once upon a time someone — maybe her name was Norma Jean — said “If I’d observed all the rules I’d never have got anywhere.”

Anyone who catches C-SPAN coverage of minute speeches in the U.S. House of Representatives know they’re not usually going to grab national headlines. They’re often used for more parochial matters, and we think U.S. Rep. Steve Womack of Rogers used his minute wisely a few days back when he took to the well of the House to offer his praise for Dick Trammel. “He’s been the area’s most avid cheerleader,” Womack said, honoring Trammel’s recently announced retirement. “Nothing of importance in our area has happened in the last 40-plus years that doesn’t have Dick Trammel’s fingerprint on it.” Trammel’s public and charitable contributions have been amazing and deserving of accolades.

Another inspiration, in a very different and challenging circumstance, comes by way of Amy Harrison, who last week

faced in a Benton County courtroom the man who raped her 21 years ago at Rogers’ Tillery Elementary School, where she taught. The man, a former law enforcement officer, was tracked down by DNA evidence after his conviction in a murder case. “I know there was nothing I did to make this happen,” she told him. “I could not have done anything differently, and I definitely did not deserve to be raped. I was just choosing to do the next right thing in my life when you bumped into me.

“So, now I am going to use my free will to overcome the evil you did to me. I am going to walk out of this building with my family and friends and enjoy the fresh air before I go home. I hope that my story is an encouragement to all survivors who fight for justice.”

It is extraordinarily easy to recognize that it will be.

Back up to Bella Vista and that stump fire. We appreciate Sen. Tom Cotton for showing up a few days back to get a first-hand look at the underground blaze that has been fouling the area nearby for months. He said he wanted an upclose look at it before he speaks to officials with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency about providing some funding to help extinguish the pesky, some say unhealthy, blaze. Hopefully, if funding to the agency hasn’t been cut too radically under President Trump, there will be some dollars for Bella Vista’s environmental disaster.

The Arkansas Press Association is giving a big thumbs up to Rep. Mark Lowery of Maumelle, a former college instructor and holder of communication degrees from the University of Arkansas. He earned a 97-0 vote in the House for his House Bill 1231, which offers protections for journalism students at public higher education institutions with regard to their freedom of speech and guards against the institutions cracking down on student media advisers simply for protecting the rights of student journalists. He recognizes it’s pointless to instruct future journalism professionals while also keeping them under threat of discipline or retribution from the institution itself. Hopefully, the Senate will embrace the idea.