The main point of our editorialtoday was to urge the Wichita City Council and Wichita school board to get past the impasse on continued funding for the 22 school resource officers. But some readers reacted strongly to our statement that "taxpayers may be wondering why these two governing bodies seem so proprietary about money that all comes from the same place — taxpayers’ pockets." That point applies to most Wichita residents and, arguably, all Kansas taxpayers. But the readers, among those who live in both the Wichita city limits and the Goddard school district, suggested that Wichita’s USD 259, especially with its recent increase in state funding, should be able to cover half or more of the cost of its own security officers. As for the school board’s insistence on paying half of the cost for just the nine-month school year: "You can’t just pay for something just for when you’re using it, because that’s not the only cost involved," said reader Roy Richter. What do bloggers think?
Posted by Rhonda Holman
I’d like to see Al Gore’s face when he hears this: Some respected scientists sayone good way to combat global warming is with more pollution.
At a U.N. conference on climate change in Kenya, Nobel laureate Paul J. Crutzen was among the scientists who said a layer of pollution deliberately spewed into the atmosphere could act as a "shade" from the sun’s rays and help cool the planet.
While Crutzen advanced the idea to emphasize the need for less controversial measures, supercomputer simulations have shown that his plan — involving huge balloons bearing sulfates into the stratosphere — could actually help cool the planet.
Well, maybe. But to this nonscientist, banning Hummers seems like a better place to start.
Posted by Dave Knadler
Democrats in Congress are firm about wanting a timetable to withdraw troops from Iraq. The question is how to close the distance between their position and the view from the ground that Gen. John Abizaid, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East, expressed Wednesday to the Senate Armed Services Committee: that a timetable would be too inflexible for forces and would actually increase violence. “It seems to me that the prudent course ahead is to keep the troop levels about where they are,” Abizaid said, even suggesting that some levels may need to rise to facilitate training of Iraqi military units.
Meanwhile, columnist Cal Thomas outlined a scary redeployment scenario on Wednesday’s Opinion pages in which there is “just enough time for American troops to leave before al-Qaida murders the elected leadership and takes over Iraq.” If the United States takes this path, he predicts, what comes next is that “al-Qaida announces that weapons of mass destruction have been placed in key American and European cities” and demands the United States stop protecting Israel. “After capitulating on the installment plan, who will have the political or moral capital (or military capacity) to stop Armageddon?” he asks.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
It’s nice to be noticed and all, but it would be nicer if the national media would lose the cliches when it discusses Kansas. This week has seen both the Washington Post and USA Today assure readers that Rep.-elect Nancy Boyda isn’t in Kansas anymore. At least in evoking the oft-quoted line “What’s the Matter With Kansas?” on Wednesday, a New York Times editorial headlined “What’s Right With Kansas” had only good things to say, especially about the “resounding defeat of Attorney General Phill Kline, an anti-abortion zealot who gained national notoriety by misusing his office to further his ideology.”
All in all, the Times editorial concluded, “Kansas — lately considered the reddest of red states — emerged from the election as a bastion of moderation.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Speaking of national attention, Kansans should expect less for a while. Because of the political exits of such newsmaking conservatives as Attorney General Phill Kline, state Sen. Kay O’Connor (in photo) and State Board of Education member Connie Morris, “we’re almost guaranteed we’ll have a quieter next couple of years,” Bob Beatty, a political science professor at Washburn University, told the Topeka Capital-Journal.
But be advised that O’Connor, who made her own headlines in 2001 for what she says was a false report that she didn’t support women’s suffrage, told the newspaper she wants to ready more social conservatives to run for office. “It may take two years to train up another group,” she said. “But it’s my goal to send back 10 Kays.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
While the discourse on WE Blog is invariably civil and high-minded, that’s not always the case in South Korea.
The BBC reports on what appears to be a trend toward cyberbullying, where posters are not content to merely demonize those they disagree with: They also form online mobs to pass around the victim’s home address, place of employment and other details.
The problem of net defamation has gotten so bad that all of Korea’s police stations now have cyberterror units to help deal with it. Starting next year, the BBC says, a new law will force Koreans to reveal their name and ID number before they share their opinions online.
Could it happen here? Unthinkable. But it’s something to consider the next time you’re tempted to deploy expletives instead of arguments.
Posted by Dave Knadler
A pandemic flu outbreak isn’t getting much media attention anymore, but it remains a serious threat that could quarantine thousands for weeks, if not months. It’s smart to be prepared, and Sedgwick County is trying to do its part. Its Web site has a “tool kit” for potential business disruption, updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization, and information for consumers.
Posted by Angie Holladay
