Welcome to another edition of “We’re all thumbs,” in which the editorial staff of Current Publishing picks proverbial winners and losers, heroes and villains from recent news stories:

• Thumbs UP to all the student-athletes participating in regional finals and state championships this month. We are particularly impressed by record-setters such as Lake Region High School’s Kate Hall and South Portland’s Dan Guiliani making household names of themselves. Equally impressive are the teams that bind together to form a unit so finely tuned that they think and act as one. Students who learn early how to persevere either as an individual or team will go far in life.

• Thumbs DOWN to Gov. Paul LePage. His ability to confound the constituency with ever-more-bizarre behavior is becoming the stuff of legend. Now he’s vetoing all Democrat-sponsored bills until the Legislature approves his request for putting his proposal to eliminate the income tax to referendum. Maine government is not only gridlocked, it’s being held hostage.

• Thumbs UP to the Maine Blues Festival, which occurs this weekend in Naples. This is becoming one of the best music events in Maine with local storefronts, restaurants and outdoor venues overflowing with people and the sound of saxophones, guitars and soulful lyrics. And it’s all in a beautiful lakeside setting on the Causeway. Can’t beat that.

• Thumbs DOWN to everybody who didn’t rock the vote, as MTV would say, at last Tuesday’s election. Voter turnout was anemic, even for a June election. There were important items on just about every ballot in our coverage area, from school and municipal budget hikes to ballot measures. Maybe national news coverage of the Presidential primary race is already causing people to tune out? We hope not, because local concerns are just as, if not more, important.

• Thumbs UP to the sweet treats on or near Main Street in Westbrook. Catbird Creamery, purveyor of artisanal small-batch ice cream, has reopened, and Black Dinah Chocolatiers is opening a production facility and retail shop. Our sweet tooths couldn’t be happier. The family-owned, niche establishments are another sign that Westbrook’s culinary scene is getting better and more diverse.

• Thumbs DOWN to Maine’s recent ranking by the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis as 47th in the country for economic growth. At 0.2 percent in 2014, that’s a full 2 percentage points lower than the national average. Seems to us our governor has taken hostage not only all the bills and bonds in the state, but also our economic vitality.

• Thumbs UP to the Shaw Bros. company in Gorham, which is working to buy a large swath of property along Mosher Road from ecomaine. The company has a vision of a working farm and public trails, and we feel this is an admirable public service. Maine companies have a long history of offering up their land for public use, especially lumber companies. It’s really a Maine tradition that the successful Shaw family is perpetuating. It’s always nice to see private individuals and corporations giving back to the community when possible.

• Thumbs DOWN to the Boston Red Sox, which seems to have a team this year that is full of big names and big salaries but can’t get hitters across home base. We propose that the team management offer the Scarborough girls softball team an all-expenses-paid trip to Boston. A dominating force this season, the girls can consult the Big Leaguers on how to play as a team. If given a chance, we bet the Red Stormers could teach the Red Sox a thing or two about teamwork before the season is totally lost.

• Thumbs UP to the Inn by the Sea in Cape Elizabeth for teaming with the Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland to allow pets to stay at the inn so the pets can potentially find their forever homes. The program has already seen a half-dozen dogs placed so far, and we praise the staff of both establishments for the program’s ingenuity. There are so many pets needing placement, and the ARL always goes to great lengths to find them new homes.

• Thumbs DOWN to the retailers who think it’s just fine to build ugly, oversized, warehouse-style metal buildings. Windham Historical Society member Linda Griffin has said enough’s enough and is urging the Windham Planning Board to demand a more aesthetic building from a dollar store seeking to build on Route 302 in Windham. We dislike the idea of design standards, in which towns enforce a particular type of building design, but if these companies continue to build ever-uglier metal boxes, we might change our mind. Until then, the marketplace (i.e., the almighty consumer, Griffin being one) is right to demand better commercial design.

-John Balentine, managing editor