Letters on revenue shortfall, Roberts robocall, storm shelters, gun sanity

How will state replace revenue?

Gov. Sam Brownback says he will bring 100,000 jobs to Kansas, but half of them probably will be so low-paying that the workers won’t pay taxes and will need state help to survive. This is to replace the revenue lost because 190,000 businesses now pay no state income taxes.

If that happens, how does the state get money to make up what was lost from the income tax cuts? What taxes will the state use to make up the lost money?

The possibilities are, of course, increases in property taxes or sales taxes.

Texas taxes gas and oil. Nevada has gambling. Florida has tourists. What do we have to replace the lost income? What taxes will be used to replace that money?

Bad news: There is no good fairy that will magically replace that money. It must come from some form of tax.

Send a message

I was surprised recently to receive a robocall from Mitt Romney soliciting my vote for Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan. It would appear that a great deal of money is being spent on the national level in order to shore up support for this state candidate. Are the conservative Republicans running on their record, or are they running scared?

I hope Kansans will educate themselves about what is happening in our state and then go to the polls demanding a change that can send a strong message. Kansans will no longer abide candidates who vote only party line, resulting in stalemates, rather than making decisions in the interest of their constituents.

Safe from storms?

Weather in the Midwest is serious business. Greensburg. It’s the stuff meteorologists dream of, and fear. Andover. They sweat bullets to deliver accurate, timely information to a citizenry well-versed in expressions like “wind shear,” “hook echo” and “gust front.” Hesston.

Kansans get comfortable with weather maps reminiscent of colorful preschool art projects. Haysville. Yet citizens still lack access to adequate storm shelters, especially apartment residents. Parkersburg, Iowa. So in the midst of an unpredictable and often deadly milieu of weather phenomena, people scramble for safer places, sometimes by car. Oklahoma City. Clearly this approach is less than ideal and should be relegated to the days of the weather balloon. Joplin.

The skies above us, first termed “Tornado Alley” by a 1952 research study, are indeed a busy place. Baxter Springs. On the evening of the 2012 Oaklawn tornado, Kansas meteorologists juggled warnings all night, to the tune of 42 confirmed tornadoes. Hoisington. It’s not too late for lawmakers and landlords to address this issue before severe storms return to Kansas in spring. Moore.

If not, I’ll have to take cover in the “safety” of my own bathtub, directly beneath my upstairs neighbor’s washer and dryer, with my bicycle helmet on. Kansas.

Restore gun sanity

A 9-year-old girl shoots her gun instructor with an Uzi. Children are massacred at Sandy Hook Elementary School. There is extensive proliferation of all sorts of firearms.

What do these three things have in common? They all were based on fear-fueled gun industry greed.

Shooting ranges profit from unwary parents who let their children shoot assault weapons there. The National Rifle Association uses mass shootings to frighten people into buying more guns. Gun makers then are able to flood the market with guns that often result in death and injury, including many guns that are stolen and are easy to sell on the street.

The NRA uses its abundant resources to bribe lawmakers with donations that protect gun profits and prevent any reasonable legislation.

So how can gun sanity be restored? It won’t be easy, but knowing the actual motives and methods of the NRA and the gun industry is a start.

This story was originally published September 21, 2014 at 7:07 PM with the headline "Letters on revenue shortfall, Roberts robocall, storm shelters, gun sanity."