A rose to all the ghouls and goblins, witches and wizards, mummies and monsters, princesses and pirates and various other costumed creatures as Halloween approaches. Since Halloween falls on a Tuesday this year, many of the organized events sponsored by churches, businesses and other groups will be held this weekend. Of course, trick-or-treaters will be out in full force on Tuesday evening, so be prepared, homeowners. Halloween has suffered from the perpetuation of myths that suggest the day is a time when sadists prey on innocent children. Joel Best, a professor of sociology and criminal justice at the University of Delaware, investigated alleged “Halloween sadism” between 1958 and 2012 and found that in all years but two, there were either one or none reported. Professor Best concluded, “the data offers no justification for the claim that Halloween sadism stands as a major threat to U.S. children.” The “vast majority” of the reports of such acts were either proven to be hoaxes or unconfirmed claims. So relax, parents. There is nothing scary about Halloween aside from a candy-induced tummy ache.
A rose to city of Columbus officials and volunteers who have joined efforts to pick up abandoned tires throughout the city. On Saturday morning, volunteers from “Pick it Up! Possum Town” joined with city workers to collect abandoned tires in each of the city’s six wards while other volunteers delivered tires directly to the WastePro location in the city. Tires are one of the items not collected by regular garbage pick up. They are often abandoned along the city’s streets and, in time, can become so numerous as to become a real eyesore. We thank the city and volunteers for their efforts to address this problem and want to highlight the fact that WastePro accepts up to 30 tires per Columbus household at no charge at their 12th Avenue South location.
A rose to the West Point Rotary Club, which is using its 100th anniversary celebration to serve the community, something that is essential part of the Rotary Club’s mission. Partnering with Team Smile, a charitable dental organization from Kansas City, the Rotary will sponsor a dental health clinic on Friday at the UFCW Local 1529 Union Hall to provide the city’s elementary school students with free services, including oral health education, screening and treatment To facilitate this event, the Rotary Club has enlisted the services Dr. Summer Lowery of Ascent Dental in Columbus and Dr. Stephen Sullivan from Batesville. In addition to their efforts, the University of Mississippi Dental School will be sending nearly 70 people to assist, The clinic expects to service 250 to 300 children. We salute the Rotary Club and volunteers from the dental profession for providing this wonderful service.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.