After purchasing the decrepit King Louie building and site two years ago and spending $1.6 million more to keep it from falling down, the Johnson County commissioners have come to their senses. Instead of spending an additional $10 million of the public's money to make it usable they're going to do what they should have done in the first place, nothing.
You would think an engineer and general contractor could have inspected and advised the commission of what they were getting into before the purchase. The purported purpose was to house a museum with minimal popularity currently based in an unsuitable building.
Undoubtedly someone was happy with the sale to the county in 2011. Let's look into that.
Bob Leonard
Overland Park ‘Parchment barrier’
The history of mankind’s various forms of governing show that the default system is one man-rule. These leaders have taken the names of pharaoh, emperor, king, czar and Fuhrer where the common man’s role is more subject than citizen, oppressed by arbitrary rules and whims.
The authors of the U.S. Constitution were keenly aware of this horrible history and clearly recognized the flaw in human nature that seeks control and concentration of power always resulting in reductions to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. To cage this beast and protect its citizens from mans default system of tyranny, the Constitution’s main core was a revolutionary system of checks and balances that if followed, would prevent dangerous concentrations of power.
This “parchment barrier” has been under assault since the early 1900s, but never before has the assault been so blatant, powerful and sustained as it has been under the Obama administration. Our servant, the federal government, is becoming our master.
Benjamin Franklin warned that the Constitution created “a republic, if you can keep it.” Unless the boundaries clearly defined in our “parchment barrier” are faithfully respected, we’ll lose our republic and revert back to wretched subjects of the realm.
Larry Seitter
Olathe Bragging Obama
Sadly, President Barack Obama continues to play fast and loose with the truth about his health care law. But while the campaigner-in-chief is busy covering his tracks, Americans suffer the painful consequences.
It is increasingly obvious to me that the well-being of the American people and Obama’s duty to the nation are less of a concern to this president than the constant trumpeting of his “crowning achievement.”
Joe Neuner
Olathe Funeral advice
Funerals are a subject that most of us don't want to discuss, but my recent experience illustrates the need to research funeral homes before the need arises. When my husband passed away, he was cremated at a well-known funeral home in Overland Park.
His cremated remains were given to me in a small, sandwich-like bag with a twist tie. They weighed 1.5 pounds and had no identification.
Since I had never seen remains, I assumed they were acceptable until my father died earlier this year. He was cremated at the same funeral home.
His remains weighed nine pounds, were in a heavy-duty plastic bag, placed inside a large plastic box and inside a velvet bag. When I saw my father's remains, I was shocked at the difference in the two remains.
That was when I knew something was terribly wrong with my husband's cremated remains. I contacted the funeral home about this problem.
They had no explanation for the lack of name tag or the much smaller amount of remains. When I asked whose remains I had, they had no answer.
They apologized for the mistake but have not reimbursed me for the cremation cost. Please learn from my heartbreaking experience.
Adult remains should weigh from 5 to 10 pounds and be identified with a metal name tag. Also, research the reputation of the funeral home.
You can contact the Kansas or Missouri board of mortuary arts, as well.
Jane Toliver
Leawood Obamacare polling
A recent poll was conducted by CBS showing that 16 percent of the respondents thought that Obamacare was not harmful and didn’t have a negative effect on the country. However, 84 percent of the respondents thought Obamacare was harmful to the country.
The main question I have is how did the pollsters find the 16 percent who thought it was not harming the country? How many times did they conduct the polling until they got to 16 percent?
Joe Lavender
Lenexa Teaching pressures
The attacks on teacher tenure, supposedly an attempt to rebuild the American educational system, have always been at the forefront of communities trying to minimize taxes for education.
Fifty years ago when I started teaching, I was warned that as my salary went up, there would come a point where I would be considered too expensive regardless of value. I watched as many a great teacher would be forced out of education by such means as changing assignments, decreasing planning time, moving them to a different school, taking away lunch periods, even one time taking away a woman's parking spot and relegating her to the street.
All of these people were in their 50s, with multiple advanced degrees, but having reached the top of the pay scale. Teaching is a true labor of love where one puts aside personal ambitions and focuses on the destinations of our young.
All who can read, write, think for themselves have benefited from a teacher. The pay is barely adequate, the rewards can be fantastic.
But as a career, it now seems in danger at the hands of the “tea party” tax dodgers.
John Nelles
Shawnee
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