Daily Archives: Sept. 9, 2007

Open thread 9/9

Sept. 9, 20071:05 a.m.

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Open thread | Comments (199)

FEMA getting it right in Greensburg

Sept. 9, 20071:04 a.m.

Considering all the abuse heaped on the Federal Emergency Management Agency for its shoddy response to Hurricane Katrina, it’s worth noting that FEMA is getting high marks from Greensburg residents for the agency’s quick response to the tornado disaster, according to an AP article.
FEMA has moved supplies quickly into place and gone the extra mile to cover cleanup expenses. One elderly resident received a temporary mobile home, fully furnished, the day after requesting one.
Granted, the Greensburg disaster is on a much smaller scale than Katrina, but it’s good to know that FEMA is able to do something right.
Posted by Randy Scholfield

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Health and safety | Comments (20)

Smoking ban issue not blowing over

Sept. 9, 20071:03 a.m.

A possible statewide smoking ban drew a yawn from an interim legislative panel recently, but at least one lawmaker is going to push the issue anyway. State Sen. Roger Reitz, R-Manhattan, a physician, said he’ll introduce a bill to ban smoking in public places, with no exceptions. “It may not be the time to do this, because it’s an election year,” Reitz said, “but it’s my take that we’re seeing the desire for this issue to be addressed at the state level. I’ll see how it sticks in people’s craws, but we should at least debate it. If it’s a bad bill, it will die on its own merits. But to dilute it is to make it unfair.”
It was interesting to read in last Sunday’s Eagle that the owner of the venerable Town & Country on West Kellogg, which allows smoking throughout the restaurant, “secretly wishes the city would pass a no-smoking ordinance and solve the problem for him.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Health and safety | Comments (47)

How long can Brownback keep this up?

Sept. 9, 20071:01 a.m.

Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback missed a comparatively few two of 16 Senate votes last week, slightly lowering his missed vote total for the year to 38.5 percent. He told the Washington Times that he tries to be in Washington, D.C., during the middle of each workweek or for close votes but has found it “very difficult to balance” his Senate job with his presidential bid — no surprise to Kansans. “It’s both tough and frustrating because if you’re going to run for president, you’ve got to be out talking to people about the topics,” he said. “And being in the House or Senate, you’ve got to be there voting on the topics.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Presidential race | Comments (57)

Mountain lions? Why not in Kansas?

Sept. 9, 20071:00 a.m.

Ron Klataske, executive director of Audubon of Kansas, is the latest Kansan to claim he has proof of a mountain lion in Kansas. Critics were quick to point out flaws in Klataske’s evidence (a fuzzy photograph, plaster casts that could have been taken anywhere). But Klataske, a trained biologist, insists he has the goods.
Perhaps. It stands to reason that cougars are coming through Kansas, at least periodically, since there has been recorded proof of the big cats in all four states surrounding Kansas.
The larger question is: Are they staying here and reproducing?
Despite the many anecdotal sightings, there’s still no real proof that cougars have made Kansas home. But just knowing they could be here is exciting and makes our state seem a bit wilder.
Posted by Randy Scholfield

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Science | Comments (53)