The Eagle editorial board took a stab at naming the 10 biggest local and state public policy/political issues of the year on today’s Opinion Pages. Note: These are political stories, not just news stories, so the capture and conviction of BTK doesn’t qualify. We also gave strong preference to issues that generated the most attention and public passion. As a result, the local war on porn made our list, even though it produced more heat than light, and Medicaid reform did not, though it is the biggest budget challenge facing the state. Here is our list:
1. Evolution. Scopes II hearings; State Board of Education vote; damage to state’s image; KU professor Paul Mirecki.
2. School funding. Showdown with Kansas Supreme Court; special legislative session; large funding increase; new cost study.
3. Iraq. Local deaths and deployments; Phelps protests at funerals.
4. Gay marriage. Constitutional amendment passes in landslide.
5. Economy. Local and state tax collections increased and aircraft orders are up, but demand for help from charities also increased; United Way fundraising and local attractions faltered.
6. Downtown redevelopment. Arena site chosen; new projects planned; WaterWalk off to rocky start; Boathouse controversy.
7. Expanded gambling. Talk of riverfront casino and a specific plan for a tribal casino in Park City. Sedgwick County decides not to hold nonbinding vote, but three area counties do.
8. GOP infighting. Rep. Jerry Moran flip-flops on governor’s race; state party chief Tim Shallenburger under fire; new moderate Republican group forms; Sens. Sam Brownback and Pat Roberts on national stage.
9. Abortion. Attorney General Phill Kline subpoenas clinic records, case before Kansas Supreme Court; legislative effort to regulate clinics; protesters at local high schools; death of patient at Wichita abortion clinic.
10. Pornography. Grand jury convened; Wichita City Council changes zoning; lawmakers considering skin tax.
Other top issues: Kansas mostly spared from military base closings; Wichita school district reviewing forced busing; Kline defends state’s death penalty law before U.S. Supreme Court.
What do you think of the list? Did we miss some big issues or get our ranking wrong?
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
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16 Comments
Story #11: the collusion of all members of our Congressional delegation with the Bush Administration’s attempt to overthrow the U.S. Constitution.
Just say IMMIGRATION you leftist coconuts!
Ian Santiago is right: we should send all Cubans back where they came from. Well, maybe not all: just the homophobic, racist ones.
CF’s list + Carlos Mayans
The world considers Israel to be the greatest threat to world peace.
Not the Arabs.
Not Al-Qaida.
Not Hizbollah.
Not “Terrorism.”
Not “Terrorists.”
How could Israel not be on that list?
A good story: What was on the list of demands?
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/663890.html
Are you the least bit curious?
There is a resolution being pushed by Bolton through the United Nations which states: “Any criticism against Israel, not matter how valid, will be deemed to be anti-Semitic.”
Is there a story there worth reporting, or should that be just swept under the rug?
Rachel Curry was crushed by a Zionist’s bulldozer. Her parents have been trying to get our State Dept. to do something. Rice seems to keep forgetting that when she sucks-up to AIPAC, where she is a regular speaker.
Witnesses at the scene of Rachel trying to stop the demolition of Palestinian homes { 17,000 } said she first yelled: “They’ve broken my back.”
Then, after the bulldozer backed-up, crushing her for the second time, there was only silence.
Would a story or a mention of the plight of Rachel’s parents to find justice through our State Dept. be anti-Semitic?
Oops, wrong spelling.
Rachel Corrie.
http://www.rachelcorrie.org/
{ Keep in mind that our wonderful State Dept will not act on this, so the parents have filled suit in Federal Court }.
Impact of Bush’s policy not on the “list?”How many Trillions?
http://archive.gulfnews.com/opinion/columns/region/10007976.html
“Congress to avoid any legislation that appears critical of Israel.”
On March 19, 2003, Richard Boucher, spokesman for the State Department, noted in reference to Rachel: “When we have the death of an American citizen, we want to see it fully investigated. That is one of our key responsibilities overseas, to look after the welfare of American citizens and to find out what happened in situations like these.”
In Congress, Representative Brian Baird of Washington state introduced a bill calling on the US government to “undertake a full, fair, and expeditious investigation into the death of Rachel Corrie.” Others warned that passage was unlikely because of strong sentiment in Congress to avoid any legislation that appears critical of Israel. Nevertheless, 56 House members have signed the bill.
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2004/03/18/seeking_answers_from_israel/
The United States and Israel rejected a UN proposal to send international human rights monitors there.
Rachel was an unarmed peace activist trying to prevent the demolition of the home of a Palestinian pharmacist, his wife, and three children. She believed that nonviolent direct action against the Israeli occupation would make Palestinians, and also Israelis and Americans, more secure. Rachel stood there to protect a home and family in Gaza because the United States and Israel rejected a UN proposal to send international human rights monitors there. International activists went instead. Rachel stood there protesting illegal home demolitions that the United States opposes on the record yet fails to stop — destruction that we support with billions in annual military aid to Israel for bulldozers, Apache helicopters, F-16s, and more.
Note: This is part of the Israeli way of creating “terrorists.” After all, you can’t have a good ole “war on Terrorism” without a goodly supply of “terrorists.”
Newsworthy?
Report: U.S. preparing NATO for possible strike on Iran
Looks like our soldiers aren’t through dying for Israel’s right to make “terrorists” just yet. Is this something which we Americans really want to do?
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/664518.html
Does Bush care if the price of gasoline becomes $5..$10…$15…
Iran says they have 1 million martyrs ready to blow-us-up.
Newsworthy?
Note: Wouldn’t it be easier to constrain Israel, form an Independent Palestinian State, thus making peace with the Arabs than to follow this crazy man Bush all the way to Hell?
Newsworthy?
The only reason that Abdel-Halim Khaddam would make statements likes those would be under a direct threat from the Mossad.
Abdel-Halim Khaddam would know that Syrians would come after him and kill him for such a treasonous act.
The Mossad probably had the antidote for the poison already in his system right there. They’ve done that before with an Egyptian and threatened Arafat’s wife not to have an autopsy done on Arafat to detect that poisoning. Arafat Billions would have been declared “Terrorist money” and she would not have received a dime. She declined to have an autopsy, and got the money instead.
Israel is determined to make trouble with Syria, to open the way for an eventual invasion of Lebanon.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200601/s1540173.htm
Ed, it may be too grim for humor, but I still thought you’d appreciate this:http://www.ucomics.com/rallcom/2005/12/22/
Rage, The sad part is that it’s so close to the truth. If Bush wasn’t a crazy man, all this nonsense about terrorism could be ended in a heartbeat. The Israelis need terrorism to keep their Zionist thing going, but the United States, if not lead by a madman, could secure both sides, Israelis and Palestinians, ending 60 years of killings, and bringing peace to the Middle East.
The PNAC plan is so deeply flawed, created by those so blinded by their lust for power, as not to be unable to see that there is no endgame.
The best parallel to those in the PNAC “think-tank” is Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood,” where neither of two killers was capable of the crime, but together they formed a third personality. That “personality” killed the entire “Cutter family.”
Somehow we create monsters like Bush and Sharon, and though disgusted by what they do, we seem so helpless, and have little power or will to stop them. I hate to think that we are becoming that third personality.