Readers share views on the Kansas budget, free speech and cartoonists
Kansas budget
The school finance system in Kansas, while not perfect, was working well with no huge shortfalls. Giving to the schools and taking away after budgets have been formed and contracts let makes no sense.
Given that the Kansas Supreme Court ordered the Legislature to fund the education shortfall last year, this year’s funding should be left alone. The same can be said for all other state programs and departments.
Gov. Sam Brownback’s tax-cutting program hasn’t worked and won’t work.
We all like to drive on safe roads and bridges. We want to see our children educated well in order to compete in the world market. We certainly like to live in safe cities and towns, which mean good police and fire protection.
That means we all need to pay taxes, including businesses and corporations, local or national.
If you can’t provide a good place for people to live and raise their families, how can you expect anyone to be around to use your business? If the roads are unsafe, how do you expect someone to come to your business?
Restore funding cuts across the board.
Bill Mace
Overland Park
Freedom of speech
Most of the world has been shocked at the continued bloodshed caused by religious fanatics.
I have paid a lot of attention to the news, articles, etc. Nowhere do I see from any government the attempt to fix part of the real problem, which stems from allowing the religious clerics who preach hatred and violence in the name of Muhammad to continue their practices in the U.S., France, the United Kingdom and other countries.
By allowing these clerics the protection of a friendly country and laws to teach hatred is beyond my understanding. In my opinion, these individuals, if they are not citizens, need to be deported to where they came from. If they are citizens, then we face all sorts of issues such as freedom of speech.
I remember when taking a class in constitutional law a phrase that may work here, “Freedom of speech does not extend to shouting fire in a crowded theater.”
Doug Bragg
Lee’s Summit
Cartoonists’ message
Some letters suggest that religion should be off-limits as a topic to ridicule or criticism and say that such criticism is the same as yelling “fire” in a crowded theater.
But is it? If someone falsely yells “fire” in a crowded theater, that would cause a panic. He would have done immediate harm to others. There are laws that cover such imminent danger.
But when cartoonists use irony, sarcasm, mockery, ridicule or scorn, there is no immediate harm other than causing embarrassment by pointing out hypocrisy. The intent of cartoons is to expose flaws, whether the subject is government or religion.
Saying we should never ridicule religion is wrong.
My Catholic faith has been the subject of scathing ridicule. An argument could be made that the priest-sex abuse scandal might have gone on longer if such criticism had been censored. My church was forced to change.
While we are constantly trying to figure out why terrorists kill, when will we demand that Muslim countries teach tolerance of our values, our freedom to use irony and sarcasm to elicit change without fear?
Cartoonists speak the truth fearlessly. And their message has multiplied exponentially.
Bernadine Kline
Liberty
Plan for I-70 traffic
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has suggested instituting a toll on Interstate 70 between St. Louis and Kansas City. The majority of Democrats, Republicans and independents don’t seem to like this idea.
It appears that the Missouri legislature can only do the same things the same way over and over again but somehow expect different results.
About six months ago, Nixon and 46 other governors were presented with the solution to this very problem, but for some reason it has been brushed aside.
The solution was called the Transcontinental Automobile Transportation System.
The system has the capability of moving drivers and their vehicles from St. Louis to Kansas City and back to St. Louis on absolutely no fossil fuel, at a cost of 10 cents per mile. The system would decrease the number of automobiles on I-70 by about 65 percent and make it safer for large trucks moving from city to city.
This new system moving across I-70 would no doubt be expensive, but supporters say it could pay for itself in less than nine years while generating more than $218 million in new tax revenue every year as well as create 186,000 jobs.
John Grandbouche
Kansas City
Obama haters
It seems like a day doesn’t go by that a right-wing nut doesn’t complain about President Barack Obama. To the complainers: “Get over it. You lost twice and big.”
Vicki Bronson
Overland Park
Brownback’s Oz
I think I may have had a senior moment the other day. I was watching our DVD of “The Wizard of Oz,” which I hadn’t watched for, let’s see, maybe four years.
It was as I remembered until the end. I was really enjoying myself until Dorothy was supposed to click the heels of her red shoes and return to her beloved Kansas.
Alas, she said she did not want to return to the place she dearly loved. It was not the same.
She also did not say, “There’s no place like home (Kansas).”
I was taken aback. Then I remembered the election slogan: “Anyone who votes for a Democrat votes for (President Barack) Obama.”
How sad. Poor Dorothy.
Richard Tussel
Overland Park
Changes in Jordan
A year ago, my husband and I visited Petra and Amman in Jordan. I asked our Jordanian guide, who was a Coptic Christian, whether he was worried about being a Christian in Jordan.
He said no, adding that Jordan was stronger than the Muslim Brotherhood and that Jordan would protect them.
We didn’t know about the Islamic State at the time.
A year later, Jordan is attacking the Islamic State over the horrendous burning death of its airman, and our guide is trying to get a visa for his family to come to the United States.
Janet Price
Overland Park
Disabled worker
I am a 61-year-old stroke survivor. As an older worker, I applied for Social Security Disability Insurance.
My deficiencies include difficulty speaking for more than a few minutes, difficulty processing new information at a normal speed, a foot that still drags despite therapy and a balance problem that has led to several serious falls. Other issues are residual effects of a serious brain injury.
Why are Republicans punishing those of us who suffered catastrophic medical events because the GOP thinks some are abusing disability?
I underwent cognitive tests that showed my deficiencies. But there is no way the system can review 11 million cases in one year.
I am not a freeloader or a fraud as some officials determined I must be. I paid into FICA (Federal Insurance Contributions Act) for 45 years.
If officials running the system think there is abuse, they should find it and eliminate it. Don’t just treat all of us beneficiaries as criminals.
I was a productive American member of society until I just couldn’t be anymore.
Why must the system demonize me for something that was out of my control?
Patty Nolte
Kansas City
Pathetic pet owner
To the owner of the beautiful black and white long-haired cat who was in So-Ko-Par Park recently scavenging for food, shame on you.
Did you let him/her out? Did he/she escape through an open door or did you just get rid of him/her?
I tried to cajole that poor thing into coming to me, to no avail.
Its pitiful meowing was heartbreaking. I couldn’t get close enough to catch it, even though I went to Hen House for cat food.
It was so close to the street. I only hope the cat doesn’t try to cross the street. It’s so busy.
At first I was sad that I couldn’t catch the poor thing. Now I’m just mad.
Where were you?
Amy Rebel
Overland Park
This story was originally published February 11, 2015 at 9:00 AM with the headline "Readers share views on the Kansas budget, free speech and cartoonists."