Opinion Line (Sept. 27)

House Speaker John Boehner is resigning from Congress at the end of October. He said that he does not want to become the issue. Good. When are the 534 other members going to join him? That government trough is hard to part with.

Was Boehner’s display of tears Thursday caused by his proximity to the pope or his proximity to his resignation?

Thank God that “Francis is no John Paul II.” Francis is a pope in touch with his mission and his constituency. A truly humble man, yet intelligent. How he ever got elected pope is a mystery.

If the views of the Vicar of Christ make you uncomfortable, just wait until you come face to face with his boss.

Republican presidential politics are like going to Baskin-Robbins. A couple of old flavors are always the most popular. Then there are a smattering of folks who like each of the other 29 flavors. The GOP’s true dilemma, however, is that the majority of Americans think Republican scoops are too small.

Once people came to our shores to be American, work hard and raise children to be good citizens. No more.

The Sedgwick County commissioners should not turn over Comcare to a private contractor. Comcare appears to be working well. Lives and community safety are at stake. What’s next – will they want to replace the Sheriff’s Office with security for hire?

Let’s ask the committee selecting the candidates for Wichita police chief to give us the three “best” candidates, regardless of political correctness. And if the three “best” candidates happen to all be black or white or male or female or whatever, so be it.

It’s pretty evident that Terri Moses shot her chances of being our new police chief by making the statement that some of the Hispanic community was not easy to work with. Maybe she had it coming by apologizing for making a statement of fact.

Kansans needn’t worry that the governor and Legislature are politicizing our courts. The appeals courts in Kansas have done a great job politicizing themselves.

Judges are “activists” when they rule against others’ causes. But they are the only persons left standing between the average Kansan and absolute, one-party rule. We may live in the heartland geographically, but we live on the fringes politically. Are our current officials so wise that they deserve absolute authority?

When fracking injected saltwater into disposal wells, Gov. Sam Brownback appointed a panel to study the cause of resulting earthquakes. He approved $3 million for a government efficiency study and now appoints a council to study poverty. We are paying dearly for a ringside seat to a state government economic circus.

It was reported that Wichita has 6,000 fewer people working than last year. Where is that Brownback sunshine we were all promised?

Since median household incomes in Wichita dropped 12 points compared to the national average in 35 years, someone explain to me why rents and home prices have steadily gone up during that time.

This story was originally published September 26, 2015 at 7:02 PM with the headline "Opinion Line (Sept. 27)."