Happy Kansas Day

Kansas’ 148th birthday finds the 34th state taking the economic bumps along with the rest of the nation and wondering how to pay its bills and seed its future. Fortunately, the moment bears no resemblance to the painful, bloody period that led up to statehood and made Kansas’ chosen motto, “Ad astra per aspera” (To the stars through difficulties), so apt. And Kansas’ past provides reason for optimism about its ability to rebound. As poet Harry Kemp wrote in 1912, “Kansas glories in her days to be, in her horizons limitless and vast. . . .”

14 Comments

  1. Political_mama
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 6:16 am | Permalink

    We’ll never rebound with republicans running the show in the legislature.

  2. Monkeyhawk
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 6:36 am | Permalink

    See, I never for the life of me figured out what “…and made Kansas’ chosen motto, “Ad astra per aspera” (To the stars through difficulties), so apt.”

    I don’t know what the hell it means!

    Let’s switch to astrology?

    Is Kansas a Capricorn or an Aquarius?

    The “Great American Desert” is a Water Sign?

    C’mon.

    Until George WMD Bush, most historians considered James Buchanan the worst president in American history. Part of his particular Reign of Error was admitting Kansas into the Union.

    ;^)

  3. mxyzptlk
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 6:48 am | Permalink

    Please Rhonda…let us know with your insightful wisdom what “Ad astra per aspera” (To the stars through difficulties) means.

  4. mxyzptlk
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 6:56 am | Permalink

    Let’s change the state motto to “Ad augusta per angusta “- To high places by narrow roads

  5. brian_nuevo
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 1:13 pm | Permalink

    Happy Birthday Kansas!

  6. Monkeyhawk
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 1:31 pm | Permalink

    “mxyzptlk” suggests –

    “Ad augusta per angusta “- To high places by narrow roads

    It probably should be:

    “Ad Augusta per Kelloggusta.” To Augusta by Hiway 54

    It pretty much encapsulates the world view of CONs who participate on WE Blog.

  7. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 1:36 pm | Permalink

    I still think “Kansas…as bigoted as you think” is the most accurate state motto.

  8. ANTI
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 1:45 pm | Permalink

    Some of us still like you Kansas

  9. brian_nuevo
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 1:47 pm | Permalink

    “Kansas…we love Jesus*

    *unless you are Jesus /hay-soos/ from Mexico, then we could care less”

  10. ANTI
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 1:53 pm | Permalink

    Kansas…if you don’t like it here, get the he11 out!

  11. Monkeyhawk
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 3:27 pm | Permalink

    Does no one here know about computer graphics technology?

    (It’s been in the papers.)

    If you have a phrase or a graphic you can send it to places like cafepress.com and get it on a t-shirt or coffee mug or button or key ring.

    A tidy little fundraiser for the Department of Motor Vehicles would be a cafepress.com approach to automobile tags.

    It’s simply one step of technology above vanity license plates. You could send up a basic Kansas plate but, where the state slogan usually is (a la “Iowa — Gateway to Nebraska”) you could imprint your own state slogan.

    No more of those silly legislative fights about “issuing” a special plate with a cross or a fetus or a bison on it; you simply provide the art work and your license plate can say “God H@tes F@gs” or “G@ys C@use C@ncer” or “It’s a Bison, not a Buffalo” or whatever you think best exemplifies Kansas-ness.

  12. parkay
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 4:49 pm | Permalink

    Happy Birthday, Kansas, the state that led the nation in the struggle to abolish the institution of slavery, the state that now leads the nation in profiting from illegal, post-viable abortions, treating living human babies as property for disposal for a dollar or a whim.

  13. Phantom
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 10:29 pm | Permalink

    If difficulties will take us to the stars, republicans will take us out of the universe.

  14. Phantom
    Posted January 29, 2009 at 10:29 pm | Permalink

    Or send us into a black hole.