Thumbs up, down from the Yuma Sun

• Thumbs up to successful Halloween celebrations across Yuma County! It was exciting to see kids and parents alike out in force, enjoying the holiday festivities!

• Thumbs up to the approval of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children between the ages of 5-11! This is great news in the battle vs. COVID-19, which will help reduce cases in our schools and our community!

• Thumbs up to the Yuma Elementary School District One for its efforts to incorporate social emotional learning into the classrooms. School is about more than the ABCs, and District

One is taking that to heart, helping children grow emotionally as well.

• Thumbs up to Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, which recently held a HAZMAT training exercise as part of its readiness efforts. Such trainings help keep the base safe, and also help prepare the Marines to help within our community as well – and that’s a win-win.

• Thumbs up to the Atlanta Braves! The team won the World Series this week, defeating the Houston Astros in six games. Congrats!

• Thumbs up to our local high school athletes who are advancing on to the postseason. From the Yuma Sun team, we wish you the best of luck!

• Thumbs down to the trees in the area that are overgrown to the point they are blocking stop signs. There are several stop signs in the city of Yuma that are not visible until the driver is on top of the sign, creating a dangerous safety hazard. If you have such a tree on your property, please – cut back those branches.

• Thumbs down to the rash of violence in the Mexicali Valley lately, including six shootings on Sunday, including four near Los Algodones. That’s happening too close to home, and is yet another reminder that officials need to get some control in the region.

• Thumbs down to back-to-back school threats of violence made over social media locally, impacting Cibola High and Centennial Middle School. In this day and age, every threat must be taken seriously, and it’s truly scary to think of the possible implications.

• Thumbs down to the rapid appearance of Christmas in our stores. Nov. 1? Really? It’s amazing how quickly Halloween was swept away, only to be replaced by faux pine trees and Santa accessories.

Thumbs Up and Thumbs Down are compiled by the Yuma Sun editorial board, based on recent events, happenings and activities around Yuma County and the nation, and will appear on Fridays in the Yuma Sun.