Courage we should all learn from

There is no point in crying about it. That will do nothing at all. In a couple of short, simple sentences, Sam Hubble explains how it is to lose a leg and adapt to life with an artificial limb.

What makes his words special is that this amputee is not some battle-scarred soldier or middle-aged smoker.

Sam Hubble is 12. He lost his leg in a car accident five months ago.

No-one would blame him if he sank into a spiral of rage and self-pity.

Instead, he is determined to get on with his life and even continue with his favourite sport, kickboxing.

If our region produced only one hero like Sam Hubble every year we would be proud enough.

But as we report today, there was a whole room full of heroes at the Local Heroes Awards.

Seven-year-old Anton Turner, terribly burned in a gas-fire accident, was hailed by his mother as “an inspiration to us all”.

So are they all, from the soldier rescuing an officer under fire in Iraq to the Halesowen fence-makers saving a pensioner from a blaze.

In an uncertain, crime-ridden world we sometimes despair of human nature. The Local Heroes Awards are a reminder of the better side of life.

Here, in a single room, we see the qualities of courage, fortitude and self-sacrifice that not only reassure us but make us question our own character.

How would we react in sudden peril? How would we cope with the sort of trauma faced by little Anton Turner and Sam Hubble?

Seeing their plight puts our own troubles into perspective. We count our blessings. We salute their courage.

Budget statement just full of hot air

As the dust settles, Chancellor Gordon Brown’s pre-Budget statement is revealed as just another smoke-and-mirrors illusion.

We have seen it so many times before. A grand announcement is made in the Commons. A few days later, the small print reveals a very different picture.

On Wednesday, Mr Brown promised new environmental taxes. Now it emerges that his “carbon neutral” homes , to be exempt of all stamp duty, are virtually impossible to build.

His massive investment in education turns out largely to be old money, re-spun and re-announced.

And in the fine print is the shocking news that some money inherited from personal pensions could be taxed at a wicked 80 per cent.

The bald truth is that Mr Brown’s measures will cost most families hundreds of pounds extra per year and make not a jot of difference to the environment.

If Mr Brown wants to reduce emissions, he should cut out this sort of hot air.