Thumbs up, thumbs down

Thumbs up to efforts to stop wrong-way crashes on Connecticut highways. The state has seen a troubling rise in such incidents, which are especially dangerous because they’re so unexpected and happen so quickly. The state passed legislation this session aimed at increasing safety on our highways, and the Department of Transportation announced recently the installation of new high-tech Wrong Way signs at key access points for interstates. The DOT said it expects about 50 of the signs to be installed through the end of the year. Ultimately, however, the biggest issue driving wrong-way crashes is driver impairment, of the type that few road signs are likely to stop. People need to not drive impaired. Nothing could make us safer than that. Thumbs down to flat population figures for Connecticut. Despite an influx of new residents from New York, a large number of Connecticut residents departed for places like Florida over the past year, leaving our population numbers stagnant, according to a CT Insider look at IRS data. There are many factors at play here, and the lure of warmer weather has always been detrimental to the state’s growth. But while state officials had touted the idea of a large pandemicfueled in-migration to Connecticut, many are held back by a lack of places to live. The state has very little vacancy in its existing housing, and very little more is being built. If we want people to move in, they need a place to live. Thumbs up to millions of meals served over the summer. Last year, according to state officials, 72 meal sponsors offered free summer meals at more than 600 sites where more than 38,000 children were fed each day. That added up to 1.8 million meals served. Eligible meal sites are determined by the income levels in chosen communities and based on school eligibility for free or reduced-price meals. They can be offered in day programs, summer schools and camps. For children who depend on school meals to get them by during the school year, summer programs like this make all the difference. Information is available at End Hunger’s social media pages. Thumbs up to a Connecticut economy that continues to add jobs. With an estimated 5,000 jobs added in May, the state has now increased employment by some 18,400 positions since the start of the year, new figures show. Inflation, which had been a major drag on spending power, has continued to slow, according to the most recent figures, and with the summer tourism season just getting under way, there could be more good news to come as the weather heats up. Despite the good news, job openings in Connecticut remain elevated. The state needs to find more people to rejoin the workforce or move in to meet those needs.

Thumbs up to the continuation of telehealth. Remote doctor visits were made possible, and necessary, by the rise of COVID-19, which had patients understandably wary of trips to medial offices or hospitals. But they quickly became necessary even with the diminishment of worries about deadly viruses thanks to their convenience. With the end of the official COVID emergency, there have been worries that coverage for telehealth would end, as well, but most state policies that expanded telehealth in the wake of COVID will remain in place until July 1, 2024. That’s welcome, but not enough. Telehealth needs to be considered a necessity moving forward.

I disagree with the conclusion in a recent editorial about disciplining police officers. The editorial stated: "But there is a simple way for police officers to avoid this process: Just follow the letter of the law."

This supposes that every officer brought before the Connecticut Police Officer and Standards Training Council for decertification is guilty. Similar to our criminal justice system, not everyone charged is guilty. That is why we have due process and a presumption that defendants are innocent until proven guilty. The same standard should be extended to officers facing not just being fired, but the destruction of their careers. When POST removes an officer’s license to police it is almost certain that the officer will never be hired again in this state or any other.

Police chiefs usually bring officers before POST for decertification. Innocent or salvageable officers have been brought before POST. There are many fine police chiefs. There are also police chiefs who may be unenlightened regarding issues of race, gender, sexual preference, age, religion and criticism.

Rep. Steve Stafstrom and Sen. Herron Gaston helped pass the bill that adds two rank and file police officers to the POST council. While this is only two votes who might be viewed as favorable to officers, there are still 19 who are viewed as unfavorable. At least now officers can be assured that there is some rank-and-file voice in the judgment process. That adds to POST’s credibility.

Brian Anderson Legislative Director Council 4 AFSCME

Students entering colleges and universities this fall for the first time will face new and exciting times. They will also encounter challenges, such as stress and anxiety. Research shows that students who manage their time effectively reduce their stress and anxiety and earn better grades. Students who develop the habit of managing their time effectively will have an easier time adjusting to campus life.

Summer is the time for parents to teach college-bound children how to manage their time. A visual aid can assist students with this task. Students develop an Excel or paper chart with the seven days listed vertically down the left side and the hours of the day listed horizontally across the top.

Once students attend orientation sessions and have their class schedules, they will be ready to fill in their timemanagement charts. Students must plan to study approximately two hours for every hour spent in class. This may seem overwhelming in the beginning for many students. First, students begin by filling in the cells in the chart associated with the times their classes meet. Second, students fill in the cells associated with

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