Letters: KC readers discuss Chiefs euphoria, WyCo elections and COVID ‘personal choice’
Historic replay?
New Year’s Day, 1967, the Kansas City Chiefs were greeted by “one of the wildest demonstrations ever to take place at the Municipal Air Terminal,” according to the next day’s Kansas City Times. “Airport officials and city police tried to hold the crowd back, but it was useless,” read the story.
An estimated 12,000 Chiefs fans swarmed Municipal Airport to welcome home the Chiefs, who had defeated the Buffalo Bills to win the AFC championship, leading the team to face the Green Bay Packers in the first Super Bowl.
According to The Times story, so many fans swarmed the airport tarmac that the Boeing 727 carrying the Chiefs could not reach the gate. Once authorities pushed fans back, the jet reached the gate, but players could not exit because people blocked the exit steps.
I was among those 12,000 fans. I have a front-page Times photo picturing me in the middle of the mass.
Fifty-four years later, we return to the Super Bowl. We won’t face the Packers, but the Buccaneers instead. Who cares? It’s the Super Bowl. And we’re there again with back-to-back trips. Go Chiefs!
- Ron Fugate, Overland Park
We must see
Wyandotte County voters are at a critical juncture with the retirement of Election Commissioner Bruce Newby, appointed by former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach. Newby, spurred into action late in the recent election cycle, found himself in the spotlight when The Star illuminated his lack of preparation for advance voting. (Oct. 15, 2020, 10A, “Where are the ballot drop boxes in Wyandotte County?”) Until then, there was a woeful lack of ballot boxes and voting sites.
Only after media reporting and pressure from community groups did the number of drop boxes increase from two to five. A paltry three advanced voting sites with early closing hours remained, leaving working voters at a disadvantage.
Thus, the selection process for a new election commissioner holds critical relevance for Wyandotte County voters. Unfortunately, the process is closed to public participation. Secretary of State Scott Schwab’s website outlines a cursory process with an application review committee that forwards finalists. We don’t get to see essential information about committee members or candidate evaluation criteria and credentials.
It is the secretary of state’s job to select an election commissioner in the best interests of the voters. Public input would advance the will of the voters. Transparency would help ensure a fair and unbiased selection.
- Connie Brown Collins, Kansas City, Kansas
A new attitude
What a difference a day makes. Sure, there is much division in this country and much to overcome. But we now have a president who knows how to be presidential, and we are sharing memes of Sen. Bernie Sanders bundled up in mittens at the inauguration, laughing with him, not at him.
This is such a relief from former President Donald Trump’s poisonous tweets and vindictiveness. A weight has lifted.
- Cynthia Kunz, Overland Park
Beyond his choice
Missouri state Sen. Andrew Koenig, who recently tested positive for COVID-19, reveals one of the main reasons so many Americans have contracted the virus and so many have died. “It’s my choice if I want to risk getting COVID,” he said. (Jan. 24, 11A, “Senator who said risking COVID is ‘my choice’ tests positive for virus”) The selfishness revealed in this assertion is staggering.
He is right that it was his personal choice to engage in activities that led to his contracting COVID-19. However, his personal choice has led to others, who did not choose to engage in risky behavior, to self-quarantine or, even worse, to contract the coronavirus. Second, though his symptoms are mild, health care workers must be in contact with him to make sure he does not become sicker. His personal choice leads to more stress on our overstressed health care system.
To get back to normal, we must stop thinking about our personal desires and remember that we live in a community. Our personal choices affect all the people around us, and those people have no choice in dealing with the bad choices some of us make.
It is very unfortunate state Sen. Koenig does not understand this simple fact.
- Bob Yates, Kansas City
This story was originally published January 26, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Letters: KC readers discuss Chiefs euphoria, WyCo elections and COVID ‘personal choice’."