Opinion

The U.S. Surgeon General’s Office released a “Healthy People” report in 1979.

Recent pauses in government grant funding — which helps food banks buy food from local farmers — have left many growers facing tough challenges. Growers had purchased machinery and planted crops in anticipation of a profitable harvest; they had purchased equipment to help them process the crops such as freezers and cool storage; some had taken out loans on buildings and vehicles to distribute their products.They began this in anticipation of funding that suddenly vanished.

After an election cycle in which virtually every legislative leader in Topeka admitted that property taxes was “the” issue, the Kansas Legislature’s response was much like Marie Antoinette’s response to starving peasants during the French Revolution: “Let them eat cake.”No systemic change was adopted to the current Kansas property tax regime that is based upon “comparable market value.” This approach allows yearly spikes in taxes tied to increased valuations which under current law can increase taxes at unlimited rates. All of this in the face of the public outcry that many Kansans are being squeezed out of their homes.

Kansas Farm Bureau is fully engaged in the process of developing policy for members’ consideration at our annual meeting in December. The Resolutions Committee has received your ideas from issue surfacing and we have started developing proposals for the full delegation to consider.We all know that we live in interesting times, and it is even more critical that we hear from all of our members and gather as many opinions as we can.

I recently read a letter to the editor in one of my woodworking magazines in which the writer worried about the rising costs of lumber and whether it might diminish the woodworking hobby across the country. He mentioned plywood, but he also showed concern for hardwood prices as most of us use hardwoods to make fine furniture and other projects.There is no doubt that hardwood prices keep going up and I suggested in a recent article that you should consider joining a group like the Kansas City Woodworkers’ Guild to at least save tons of money on equipment which has purchase and maintenance costs as well as a need for a place in which to use it.We all know that costs are based on supply and demand.

We do not elect kings in Kansas or the United States.We do not dole out justice through lynch mobs or popularity contests either.Yet there U.S. Rep.

Underpaid for years, Kansas legislators finally received a substantial pay increase this year. Instead of a paltry per diem (per day) allowance, they now receive $43,000 per year and remain eligible for KPERS benefits.Normally, I would argue in favor of this.

Imagine starting your week heading to a huge festival where you have VIP tickets, and you enter the venue and are greeted like a king. What an amazing way to spend your week.

After the fatal shooting of a priest in Seneca two weeks ago, I searched online to learn more. On YouTube, I found a video covering the shooting with three times as many views as any other reporting.