Kansas.com: Opinion

Letters to the editor on hate crimes law, evolution, abortion, haircut costs

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 06:49 CST

Crimes against gays already illegal

I found Mary Sanchez's column "Hate crimes law no threat to religious liberty" (Nov. 3 Opinion) to be sarcastic and mean-spirited. Her choice of words seemed to put down and mock Christians: "pious folks," "they remain free to demonize the immoral or ungodly," "the squalling of some preachers," "preaching that 'God hates gays' is protected speech," "preaching 'let's kill gays.' "

Does Sanchez's respect and tolerance apply only to homosexuals? It appears so from reading her column.

Kansas Views

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 06:46 CST

Tax increase —No one wants to see taxes raised or restored, but neither can the state afford to cripple important budget areas that may help lead it out of the current recession. Economic development efforts are still vital, as is maintaining the quality of the state's public schools and higher education system. Providing some level of service to people who are struggling in the current economy is both humane and an investment in the state's safety and security. The challenge, of course, is to balance the state's financial needs against the taxpayers' needs. We can't afford to cripple state government, but we also can't afford to pass taxes that will cripple businesses that provide tax revenue and jobs in the state.— Lawrence Journal-World

What is most needed in the halls of the Kansas Capitol is a change in attitude. Rather than starting from the assumption that Kansas government must go backward, GOP leaders should wake up tomorrow morning determined to create the best combination of tax adjustments their keen minds can craft to meet the basic needs of Kansans. That is what their oath of office requires of them.— Iola Register

Leonard Pitts: There's no honor in 'honor killing'

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:10 CST

We don't know why Faleh Hassan Almaleki came to this country in the mid-1990s, and it's unlikely he'll be able to tell us anytime soon. He's in jail in Maricopa County, Ariz., at this writing, in lieu of a $5 million cash bond. It hardly seems far-fetched, however, to suppose he emigrated from his native Iraq for the same reason immigrants typically seek these shores: America promises opportunity and freedom.

But one wonders if he truly knew the meaning of the words.

Almaleki is the 48-year-old Glendale, Ariz., man who stands accused of using his Jeep Cherokee to run down his 20-year-old daughter, Noor, and another woman, Amal Edan Khalaf. Khalaf, said to be the mother of Noor's boyfriend, is expected to survive the Oct. 20 attack in the parking lot of a state government building. Noor was less fortunate. She died last week.

Jonah Goldberg: The end of a liberal era that never began

Jonah Goldberg — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:07 CST

It's all so terribly sad.

To listen to liberals and the White House spin election results, you'd think all was well with the world. Barack Obama is still personally popular! The evil right-wing extremists lost in New York's 23rd Congressional District and a Democrat (who was arguably more conservative than the Republican nominee) won. Virginia was always a red state (no matter what we all said about it turning blue with Obama's victory), and the election hinged on local issues. Defeated New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine was personally unpopular (let's all forget that the White House tried to turn the race into a referendum on Obama's agenda).

In short, the White House spin is: "There's nothing to see here, folks. All is well."

Opinion Line (Nov. 9)

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 06:46 CST

Obviously, we should ban all guns from the military. The only reason those shootings at Fort Hood occurred was because personnel had guns. If we ban all guns from the military, shootings like this just wouldn't happen. Oh — wait a minute.

* * *

Until we the people can find a common path to walk with tolerance, it doesn't matter who can buy a presidency.

Opinion Line Extra (Nov. 9)

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:07 CST

If Kansas wants to consolidate school districts, it would be more logical to combine Wichita and Derby and Goddard and Maize, rather than pick on several schools out west located 50 to 60 miles apart.

* * *

I have to laugh when I read the nonsense that President Obama has taken the country away from Americans. George W. Bush spent eight years giving it away to huge multinational corporations. Quit complaining about Obama and go talk to George Bush.

Reforms still needed

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:07 CST

The following is an excerpt of remarks made by FDIC Chairwoman Sheila Bair at Kansas State University's Alfred M. Landon Lecture Series last week in Manhattan:

We're tackling the aftermath of a financial and economic crisis that has done as much, if not more, damage to our country than a Kansas tornado.

How will we weather the crisis?

Opinion Line (Nov. 8)

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:54 CST

The article "Top clunker trade's mileage isn't much better" (Nov. 5 Eagle) showed the government's inability to administer even the smallest programs.

* * *

If you think about it, Cash for Clunkers was a huge success: It got rid of 90 percent of the Obama bumper stickers.

Trudy Rubin: U.S. needs strategy for handling Karzai

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:54 CST

The re-election of Afghan President Hamid Karzai creates new headaches for the Obama administration. But it also presents opportunities to be seized.

The August election was rigged; the dragged-out recount was a farce. A runoff scheduled Saturday was canceled after Karzai's opponent withdrew, saying the process was too corrupt.

But Karzai's victory by default offers the Obama administration an opening to do something it should have done months ago: devise a strategy to prevent Karzai from wrecking any chance of stabilizing Afghanistan.

Prevent another financial debacle

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 03:20 CST

The usual indicators of economic well-being remain on a roller coaster. Any hopes raised by the third quarter’s 3.5æpercent growth dipped with Friday’s news of the

10.2æpercent unemployment rate in October — the nation’s 22nd-straight month of job losses and the first time the rate has reached double digits since 1983.

Obama administration officials had to flinch at the number, having forecast early this year that the jobless rate would peak at 8æpercent before decreasing this fall.

Letters to the editor: Gietzen repairs, 'tea party', health care, consolidation, Veterans Day, road signs, freedom, H1N1

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:54 CST

House repairs not city's problem

Regarding "Ex-mayor urges city to help Gietzen" (Nov. 4 Local & State): Am I missing something? Mark Gietzen claims $96,000 in structural damage to his house that he and former Mayor Bob Knight think the city should pay, after two dismissed court cases and a fine for filing frivolous motions got him nowhere. Not to mention that the incident allegedly happened 10 years ago and a two-year statute of limitations has run out. Wichita city attorney Gary Rebenstorf says it's not the city's responsibility. Vice Mayor Jim Skelton visited Gietzen's house five years ago and saw no clear signs of structural damage.

So just because Knight and others assured Gietzen in 2000 that any damages to his house would be fixed, taxpayers should pay for what two court cases, a fine, the legal opinion of the city attorney and a personal visit from a City Council member rebuked?

Kansas farmers would gain from cap-and-trade

Tom Vilsack — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:07 CST

Throughout history, America's farmers and ranchers have embraced the opportunities presented by science to improve productivity and make our country the breadbasket of the world. Today, rural America has the opportunity to once again embrace science and lead efforts to build a clean-energy economy, achieve energy independence, and combat global climate change.

The community of Greensburg is doing just that with support from the Obama administration. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced a $17.4 million loan to help build 10 wind turbines near Greensburg that will supply renewable energy, create green jobs and support the local economy. Greensburg stands out as an example of the promise and potential for farming and ranching communities across rural America to embrace the clean-energy economy.

I know America's farmers are concerned about how climate-change legislation will impact their bottom line. That's why we had top economists at USDA prepare an analysis of the costs and benefits to American agriculture. The centerpiece of the legislation is the creation of a market that will offer opportunities for nonpolluting sectors, such as agriculture, to sell offsets to industries that emit greenhouse gases.

Opinion Line Extra (Nov. 8)

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:07 CST

President Obama has pulled funding for a nuclear waste site at Yucca Mountain in Nevada that already has cost taxpayers billions of dollars. If this doesn't convince you that Obama is trying to take the United States down with his arrogance, nothing will.

* * *

The name of the USA should be changed to CHINACO. We all need to learn Chinese and Spanish and get ready for the takeover.

Letter to the editor on tea party, Shriners, lung cancer, organ donation, film festival, postal workers, kind strangers

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:53 CST

We can't take back what we don't own

I am getting tired of all the "tea party" people saying they want their country back. I have news for them: President Obama did not take their country.

As to who took "their country": It is and always will be rich white men. Obama may be president, but this country is owned by rich white people. If you do not have any money in this country, you don't own or run anything.

Dr. Bill Roy: Need to get everyone in health care system

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:53 CST

I have slowly realized that the fiasco going forward in Washington, D.C., under the rubric of health care reform is severely handicapped by the failure of the people of this nation to decide whether of not everyone has a right to health care.

Congressional Republicans do not seem to care how many people are left out of the system, and Democrats have a tolerance for leaving about 20 million on the outside looking in. And no one has the courage to do anything about costs doubling every nine years.

So I was delighted to read an interview with Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger in the Topeka Capital-Journal. Praeger is a Republican and chairwoman of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners' health care committee.

Opinion Line (Nov. 7)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:53 CST

With our central location and strong health care and manufacturing industries, Wichita should become a center for vaccine manufacturing. Then the United States wouldn't have to rely on foreign countries for vaccine.

* * *

To all you Obama supporters: Scrape off the bumper sticker, put down the cigarettes, get off public assistance, and become productive members of society so that I don't have to continue to support you.

Opinion Line Extra (Nov. 7)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:07 CST

I'd bet at least half the people complaining about the possibility of the tanker deal going to an American-European company are driving cars made by Japanese-American or Korean-American companies.

* * *

Financial freedom is a pipe dream. I want off this planet.

Letters to the editor on Boeing hypocrites, school time, corporate rule, professors

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:09 CST

Boeing backers are hypocrites

I've spent a good bit of time trying to understand why Boeing and its political supporters have spread false rumors and are such hypocrites. They falsely claim that the people of Alabama do not have a work force that is qualified to build the high-tech air-refueling tanker. They also complain that we will be purchasing parts from around the world, even though Boeing has partnered with companies in South Africa and purchases many parts from around the world.

Now Reps. Todd Tiahrt, R-Goddard, and Jay Inslee, D-Wash., bring up the World Trade Organization issue facing the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co., yet they have not mentioned the greedy executives in Boeing who once tried to secure a lease on aircraft by pumping up profits for Boeing ("Backers want WTO ruling in tanker deal," Nov. 3 Business Today).

Good luck with school consolidation

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:07 CST

In general, state Rep. Jason Watkins, R-Wichita, is correct: The people of Kansas don't "buy into the argument that this is the way we have always done it so we have to keep doing it."

But when it comes to school consolidation — which was what Watkins was referring to — getting the people and their lawmakers to agree to change has seemed next to impossible.

Significant school consolidation last occurred in Kansas in the 1960s. Several studies of school consolidation have been completed since then, including a 2001 consultant's report.

Jonah Goldberg: Conservatives tired of moderating

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:50 CST

If there's one thing liberal pundits are experts on these days, it's the sorry state of conservatism. The airwaves and opinion pages brim with more-in-sorrow-than-in-anger lamentations on the GOP's failure to get with President Obama's program, the party's inevitable demographic demise and its thralldom to the demonic deities of the right — Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin.

Such sages as author-editor Sam Tanenhaus and New York Times columnist Frank Rich insist that the right is out of ideas. After all, the religious dogmatism and "market fundamentalism" of the Bush administration were entirely discredited, leaving the GOP with its intellectual cupboard bare.

"During the two terms of George W. Bush," Tanenhaus declares in his latest book, "conservative ideas were not merely tested but also pursued with dogmatic fixity."