Higher education officials say concealed carry on campus probably inevitable in the future

Why would a concealed carry permit holder feel the need to remain armed once he or she enters onto a state university campus? Our universities have long had in place some rather sophisticated security setups, plus they've got state-certified uniformed law enforcement officers on duty who openly carry firearms. Openly carry.

For the benefit of those who may have forgotten, an open carry law enforcement officer is legally pre-cleared to blow away with lethal gunfire violence, if necessary, any person or animal that is threatening to cause imminent death or serious bodily harm to a student, staff member or university grounds visitor?

When university security departments need help, they radio for it. And then lots more state-certified help shows up quick, fast and in a hurry.

Concealed carry on campus. Right. Okay, can we please now re-focus on the threat to university students soon to be done by the legislature having removed income taxation from the state's business owners, some of whom are multi-billionnaires?

May 15, 2013 at 11:37 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Crown auto dealership wins Lawrence business of the year award

Great to see Crown Toyota win this award. They deserve it. Their service department crew recently found and corrected an aggravating engine problem, a malfunction that was caused by haphazard maintenance work performed by an independent shop. Now my 10-year old paid-for truck runs like a factory new rollout, and if you think that's not a huge relief then you haven't looked at new vehicle sticker prices lately.

May 9, 2013 at 9:11 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Letter: Coach’s error

That tournament loss to Michigan was not Elijah Johnson's fault, or anybody else's fault. Every player we had on the floor that game missed a few shots, or a free throw, or committed a turnover, a foul, some mental mistake. Things like that happen every game to every player, yet still KU almost won that game.

A painful loss for us, to be sure. But consider: KU went deeper into the tournament than the other Big 12 conference teams. And KU got beat fair and square, in overtime, by a Michigan team that's playing for the championship Monday night. So the loss to Michigan wasn't one of those deals where KU got beat by a bunch of chumps who were just lucky enough to have a good night. Michigan's good.

I'm very grateful for the exciting wins this season. Many of those wins would never have happened if not for Elijah Johnson's excellent play. His coming here was a blessing to KU.

April 7, 2013 at 10:28 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

‘At fertilization’ declaration gives some pause

The irony of anti-abortion law that declares "life begins at fertilization" is that, if it's enforced, it prevents many women whose fetuses could only have been created with help from *in vitro fertilisation* from delivering a planned-for, live birth baby by means of natural childbirth.

During one of the pre-implantation steps used in *in vitro fertilisation*, multiple eggs are surgically harvested from the female, then after being fertilized by sperm the eggs are microscopically studied by laboratory technicians, to determine which of the eggs have developed normally (because some don't, and are not fit candidates for implanting in the woman's uterus).

Point being, each one of these "candidate eggs" was fertilized, thereby achieving the anti-abortion crowd's definition of being a "living human with full citizen rights". But when the IVF laboratory disposes of those unwanted eggs in order to improve the odds that the female will give birth to a healthy baby 9 months later, the IVF lab is -- in the eyes of anti-abortionists -- commiting a technical act of murder on a human being.

So yes: if our state's politically ambitious governor signs this bill into law with this phrase still intact, the entire law will be challenged in court immediately, and great public expense will be incurred by Kansas taxpayers when that happens, and then we'll see yet another prejudiced, scientifically ignorant anti-abortion law struck down.

April 7, 2013 at 9:55 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Do you think preschool is important for childhood development?

Sending kids barely past toddler stage to pre-schools before enrolling them in Kindergarten is more important now than ever before. The way Governor Brownback and conservative Republican legislators are cutting public education funding, our very youngest kids need all the early education they can get since, academics-wise, the 6th Grade could soon end up being their senior year.

March 25, 2013 at 11:17 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Public to ask school bond questions at town hall meeting

I'm trying to understand why a group that calls itself "Americans for Prosperity" supports the Kansas legislature's persistent de-funding of public education at the state level, yet feels the need to visit Lawrence and speak in opposition to our city's local effort to increase school funding.

Mr. Mullins, the AFP's designated speaker, must be extremely careful not to accuse Lawrence and Douglas County of having an unfair advantage in potential funding sources compared to smaller school districts across the state. Because by making a statement like that, the AFP's speaker will not only be telling the truth, he'll be using the exact same line of argument against Brownback's education cuts that Democrats and moderate Republicans make.

Is the audience allowed to eat popcorn at this town hall meeting?

March 23, 2013 at 10:07 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Legislature sends proposals to repeal corporate farm limits to further study

From the story: “We look forward to continuing to work with our partners in agriculture and in the Kansas Legislature to ensure questions are answered and that we are ready to repeal the state’s corporate farming laws in the 2014 Kansas legislative session,” he said.

In the interest of accuracy, Secretary Rodman ought to have said, "We look forward to continuing to work with our partners in corporate giant agri-business companies and the radical Republican Kansas Legislature..."

March 23, 2013 at 9:44 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Opinion: Perry Ellis picks perfect time to turn up aggressiveness

It's always great to see KU playing well because of contributions by players recruited from in-state schools. This year's NCAA tournament has barely started and already I'm itching to see KU play next year. Perry Ellis and Conner Frankhamp, both from Kansas, both from the same city. Both fine players. How cool is that?

And speaking of players in this year's tournament who hail from in-state Kansas schools, did anyone else happen to watch the New Mexico-Colorado State game last night? Lawrence product Dorian Green (plays guard for Colorado State) made life miserable for New Mexico, hitting on something like 26 points. Colorado State won the game.

It was my first time ever seeing Green play ball. Wow, he's got game. Colorado State plays Louisville next, and that'll be a good one to watch.

March 22, 2013 at 11:54 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Letter: Due process?

Apart from the mix of technologies available to the opposing forces, there's no real difference in lethality between today's U.S. drone strikes against insurgent ground targets, and insurgent's remotely-detonated IED strikes against their enemy U.S. ground targets. In both cases, soldiers identify targets and set up the strikes, and soldiers who push buttons cause remote explosions that kill people. The killing is done without physically battling an enemy who was just blown to pieces.

I don't know if this represents the "new humanity". But it certainly is a new era of warfare that humankind increasingly wages, and it's warfare that horrifically mimics the violent fantasies of electronic video game brutality. The only thing pulling our eyes away from the colorful screen action are the wounded coming home, the dead who require burial, the constant drain on our national wealth, and the profits gained by weapon makers.

March 22, 2013 at 10:49 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Another push made to repeal limits on allowing corporate farming

If the Brownback administration succeeds in repealing the current restrictions on corporate farming, corporate farming operations can move into any county they like, anytime they choose. And they'll move in deliberately ignoring the commonsense safety, public health and water supply concerns expressed by local officials.

By pushing so hard for this quick de-regulation measure, Gov. Brownback is trying to lay the whole state wide open to "loot and pollute" abuse by distant corporate boards and stockholders who, bottom line, don't give a damn whether the Kansas environment is profitable, or even habitable, for generations to come.

March 22, 2013 at 9:12 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )