The winners and the losers

Winner: There was something odd about a Pew Charitable Trusts study this week about the states in which people have the best opportunity to move up the economic ladder. The eight states that scored highest are all bunched in the Northeast and Michigan, except one — Utah. USA Today quoted an expert who said people tend to do better for themselves in states where people are well-educated and the economy is dynamic. Count this as one more piece of evidence that Utah is doing well.

Winner: The Utah Office of Tourism deserves credit for having found a creative way to grab the attention of busy folks in San Francisco. An eye-catching mural of Delicate Arch that takes up virtually all of a tunnel at the Montgomery Street Station, and has a 3-D effect when seen from a certain perspective, seems to be waking people out of their daily commuter funk. At the least, they'll learn something about Utah's unique beauty. At best, they'll load their organic suitcases into their hybrids and pay a visit.

Loser: What do you do with a police officer assigned to a high school who drops his pants at a birthday party for an administrator, in front of students and employees? You fire him, which is exactly what the Provo Police Department did this week. Chief Rick Gregory called the officer's actions "unbecoming of a police officer." Actually, it's pretty much unbecoming of just about anyone in any job.

Loser: Apparently, the Sunburst Market in Murray was selling more spice than just the kind on the spice aisle. Police say they confiscated 300 jars of spice — the illegal drug — as well as 12,000 tablets of Ephedra, a banned decongestant used in making methamphetamine, from the market this week. They allege customers could walk in and ask for the substances, which were kept hidden near the checkout counter. It goes without stating that the folks asking for these things were not interested in adding flavor to their cooking or in relieving a cold.

Loser: Young people don't seem to be getting the message about skin cancer. A new survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that about half of adults under 30 have been sunburned within the last year. Even worse, nearly a third of white women ages 18-21 had used an indoor tanning salon during the past year. Most troubling of all is that this represents an increase in both categories over previous surveys. Given the long-term damage such behavior can cause, by the time these folks discover their own mortality it will be too late to un-tan the suntan.