Cheer

Let’s not overlook a sterling moment last week for Butler police officers Anthony Fatta, James Hollobaugh and David Villotti. For the sake of public safety, they looked death in the eye and refused to blink.

Responding to a domestic dispute at an apartment in the 700 block of South Main Street, the officers came face to face with an 18-year-old man who had beer on his breath and a deer rifle in his hands.

Their own service pistols drawn, Fatta ordered the man to drop his weapon. He refused. Several times.

“It was pretty tense there for a while,” Fatta said afterward.

But 18-year-old Dominic J. Ernst eventually dropped the rifle and was arrested. The rifle, it turned out, was not loaded.

The incident could have ended worse: much worse. Nobody can assess this particular case — and thank heavens we won’t have to. But in general, police have the legal authority to use deadly force when a suspect is believed to be an immediate danger to other people, including the officers.

Police train rigorously to abide by this rule, but the intensity of an armed confrontation is more about trained instinct than it is about analytical judgment.

These officers are to be commended, not only for their courage but also for their good judgment under duress.

Jeer

Cast your vote or pay a fine.

Compulsory voting would become state law under a proposed measure about to be introduced by state Sen. Anthony Williams, a Philadelphia Democrat. According to a news report by a Philadelphia TV channel, Williams’ legislation would require all Pennsylvanians of voting age to vote or pay a fine.

It’s an insane idea.

“It’s a violation of our rights as citizens,” says state Rep. Rick Saccone, a Washington, Pa. Republican. “The government shouldn’t force us to vote. That’s our choice and by not voting that’s also our choice.”

But Williams, who has logged 30 years in the Legislature, seems intent. He cites a statement by President Obama that “If everybody voted, then it would completely change the political map in this country.”

Elections measure more than just the numbers for and against a candidate or ballot issue. They also measure the intensity or apathy of an electorate. It’s a candidate’s ideas and values that should muster votes, not a government regulation.

Since Williams’ proposal has no chance of passage, maybe he would consider an amendment: adding a “none of the above” option to every ballot item.

Cheer

The Department of Veterans Affairs just made it a little easier for some veterans and their immediate families to get medical care. For the massive, bureaucracy-ridden VA, that’s a noteworthy accomplishment.

Responding to pressure from Congress and veterans groups, Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald announced last week the department is relaxing a new rule to make it easier for veterans in rural areas to prove they live at least 40 miles from a VA health site.

The 40-mile rule is important. The Veterans Choice Program, which went into effect in early November, allows veterans living more than 40 miles away from a VA center to get medical treatment closer to home, at the VA’s expense.

The VA originally interpreted the rule to mean 40 miles as the crow flies. The new policy is to measure the driving miles — the way they’re measured by the likes of Google Maps and other GPS programs.

The rule change is expected to roughly double the number of eligible veterans. More than 45,000 medical appointments with private providers have been scheduled since the Choice Program went into effect in early November, McDonald said.

Veterans are entitled to timely health care delivered as conveniently as possible. The change is just and reasonable.