Of all the details we have reported about the economy, it’s worth restating this one: 90 percent of all St. Joseph businesses have fewer than 20 employees.

We are a community with several large, brand-name employers — including such prominent ones as Heartland Health, American Family Insurance and Triumph Foods. But the numbers remind us that thousands of workers locally and in the nearby region rely on much smaller enterprises for their livelihoods.

And when those businesses are hurting, the rest of us are, too. An estimated one-third of such businesses have cut jobs during the recession. An economic recovery will not be fully under way and appreciated here until our small firms return to their historic patterns of profitability and growth.

That’s why we strongly support policies that lead to an easing of the credit crunch, make small businesses competitive with large firms when it comes to providing affordable health insurance, and emphasize using stimulus funds to encourage more start-up ventures.

Wear your red

We don’t see enough evidence of Red Ribbon Week anymore to give us hope that everyone who needs the message is getting it. But we still applaud the Youth Alliance in St. Joseph for trying to get this word out.

The short version: This is a national observance that aims to engage both youth and adults in promoting a “substance-free” lifestyle. By “substance,” organizers mean illegal drugs, alcohol and even otherwise legal products that can be abused.

The program literature wisely encourages parents to ask their children about what they know about drugs and living a drug-free lifestyle; suggests they get involved with local prevention and awareness efforts; and urges them to model positive behaviors.

If your passion is to protect kids from dangerous choices, wear a red ribbon prominently this week and prepare to explain why.