Crude futures prices held fairly steady Friday after a big sell-off Thursday. Cash crude on the Nymex went for $57.87 per barrel Thursday, down $3.53 per barrel. The near month contract for light sweet crude was going for $57.92at mid-day Friday. London Brent was up 18 cents at $67.94 per barrel.
The world’s insurers are getting skittish about underwriting oil tankers heading to or from the Persian Gulf, as tensions build in the region. A new report from Bloomberg notes that the “Joint War Committee” of the Lloyd’s Market Association in London will expand it’s so-called “listed areas” to include the Persian Gulf. That means the group believes the region poses a greater risk for shipping, and potentially warrants higher insurance costs. The last time the entire region held that designation was a period that ended in June 2005 and encompassed the most recent Iraq War. The classification comes after the committee met to discuss the sabotage of four tankers at a port in the United Arab Emirates.
Wednesday’s government reports showed domestic weekly production up slightly to of 12.177 Million barrels per day. EIA said crude oil inventories were up 4.7 million barrels from the previous week. Imports averaged 6.9 million barrels per day last week, down by 669,000 barrels per day from the previous week.
In the words of one market analyst, imports of Russian crude oil by refineries in the U.S. is “on steroids.” In reporting published on the Web site “seeking alpha dot com,” Russ Dallen of Caracas Capital Markets said Russian exports to the U.S. are set to triple. According to the report, those numbers directly negate a Saudi strategy to reduce U.S. stockpiles. The report suggests that members of the so-called “OPEC plus” agreement face a major crossroads at their meeting next month, as they try to prop up prices by cutting production and inventories.
Independent Oil & Gas Service reported three active drilling rigs in eastern Kansas, up two for the week, and 23 west of Wichita, which is down three. Operators were drilling at one site each in Barton, Ellis and Stafford counties. Baker Hughes reported 983 active rigs for the week nationwide, down five oil rigs and up one searching for natural gas. New Mexico reported a drop of four rigs.
Operators received 19 permits for drilling at new locations across Kansas last week, nine of them east of Wichita, and ten in Western Kansas, including one in Barton County, two in Ellis County and one in Stafford County. Regulators have approved 358 new drilling permits so far this year.
Independent Oil & Gas Service reported 46 newly-completed wells across Kansas for the week, including two in Barton County and one in Ellis County. There were 30 new completions east of Wichita, and 16 in Western Kansas.
Colorado officials say they have no plans to stop energy companies from drilling for oil and gas while regulators overhaul state rules to prioritize health, safety and the environment. Some environmentalists and community activists have demanded the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission stop issuing permits until those new rules are complete. The commission is part of the state’s Department of Natural Resources, and the chief executive of the DNR said it was never the intent of the Legislature to pause their work. The newly reconstituted Commission held its first meeting Tuesday as the agency starts a massive rewrite of regulations in the patch. After a series of court rulings and ballot initiatives, a new law requires the commission to emphasize public safety and the environment ahead of energy production. The new law gives local governments some authority over the location of wells and changes the commission makeup to dilute industry influence.
Just about 4,000 years ago, Chinese writings explained the medicinal powers of what is now called cannabis or marijuana, describing its properties to help arthritis, gout, malaria, nausea and psychological stress. In the 1500 and 1600s the Spanish and English brought cannabis to the new world for medical purposes and it became a huge commercial crop for making rope. In the 1920s cannabis emerged in jazz clubs as a recreational drug. At the time, it was thought of as a better alternative to alcohol since cannabis users didn’t seem as disruptive to the community.
During the prohibition era of the 1930s, the U.S. Bureau of Narcotics considered cannabis as addictive and they made it illegal along with alcohol. Further, the U.S. Controlled Substance Act of 1970 defined cannabis as a ‘Schedule 1’ drug putting it in the same category as heroin and LSD, claiming there was a high abuse potential and no medicinal use. Although these claims have changed, the U.S. law remains on the books. During the Obama administration, the Department of Justice was directed to relax prosecution of cannabis rule-breakers while allowing state rules to supersede the U.S. law. The Trump administration has made very little change since.
Questions about cannabis remain since scientific experimentation for medicinal use has been limited due to legal restrictions. However, strong evidence points to legitimate medical uses for cannabis. Cannabidiol or CBD, one of the chemicals derived from hemp, helps those with chronic pain syndrome, children with uncontrolled seizures, those with glaucoma and finally enhances appetite stimulation and reduces nausea and malaise in cancer patients.
We know there is abuse potential with cannabis, just like with alcohol. Driving intoxicated with cannabis increases crashes, even if only half as much as alcohol. Also, we know excess cannabis has potential to dull and injure young and undeveloped minds. Some suggest that legalizing cannabis would allow better laws and enhanced regulation, lessening underage use.
Consider the tragedy of 70,000 deaths per year (and rising) from the overdose of legal and illegal opioids while there are almost no reported deaths from cannabis use, despite quite extensive consumption in the U.S. Most opioid abuse seems to stem initially from efforts to reduce chronic pain syndrome, and this condition seems to be potentially helped with medicinal doses of cannabis.
It is time to allow medicinal use of cannabis. It might help us reduce the deaths from opioids.
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Election season is upon us. Not here in the United States, where we haven’t even begun winnowing the massive field of presidential contenders, but over on the other side of the world, where India just wrapped up its national elections after six weeks of voting. It takes a while when you’ve got 900 million people participating. Closer to home, European Union (E.U.) parliamentary elections run May 23-26.
Both of these elections showcase the new and prominent role social media plays in the democratic process. It’s a crucial source of political news and information for voters — and a potential vehicle for misinformation that can be used to influence their votes.
The E.U.’s elections have only just begun, but a report from online activist group Avaaz indicates that networks of fake Facebook pages and groups have been extensively spreading divisive, white-nationalist, and anti-immigrant content and have amassed three times as many followers as the pages of the main European far-right and anti-E.U. parties. Another study from the University of Oxford analyzing recent tweets and Facebook posts related to the E.U. parliamentary elections found that anti-immigration and Islamaphobic stories from “junk news” sites received more engagement than stories from professional media sources.
Some E.U. officials suspect that Russia is behind the spread of this type of content, but as Giles Portman, head of the taskforce dedicated to exposing these attempts said, “From what we’ve seen of the European election campaign so far, it looks at the moment less sensational than some of the attempts we’ve seen [in the past]. What we can see at the moment is this continuation of a message that Europe is collapsing, that the elites aren’t paying attention to ordinary people and that Europe’s values and identities are under threat.”
Messages about threatened identity were prevalent during the Indian election as well, with much of the misinformation targeting religious minorities, but the way that it spread was fundamentally different. Whatsapp reigns supreme in India, with 230 million users. The platform consists of private group chats, making it notoriously difficult to fact-check the content that’s shared on it. WhatsApp attempted to stem the tide of misinformation by capping the size of its groups, limiting how many times messages could be forwarded and making it harder to forward images, audio clips and videos.
Facebook, which owns WhatsApp, has a huge presence in India in its own right and partnered with Indian fact-checking sites to debunk fake news stories on its platform and to shut down fraudulent pages and accounts. But India presents special challenges to aspiring fact-checkers: as Bloomberg reports, social media platforms “are discovering the harsh reality that disinformation and hate speech are even more challenging in emerging markets than in places like the U.S. or Europe. A new category of users, recently digital, believe almost whatever they receive — especially if it comes from family or friends. Hundreds of millions read in languages the American tech giants haven’t even begun to monitor.” India has 23 official languages; Facebook hired contractors to verify content in 10 of them.
Pallavi Mishra has seen the scale of the challenge first-hand. The manager at Vishvas News, Facebook’s largest Indian-language fact-checking contractor, spent two weeks recently talking with internet users in small cities. She found most people are so new to social media they have no clue about bogus content. They share stories indiscriminately, with stupefying speed. “Being the ‘first’ to share things in their circles gave them a rush,” she says.
“Disinformation is spreading like wildfire in these parallel digital universes,” said Bharat Gupta, chief executive officer of Jagran New Media, which runs Vishvas News. “It’s a dark space that nobody talks about.”
Unlike in the U.S. and E.U., where much of the focus has been on misinformation being disseminated by foreign actors, the fake news surrounding Indian elections was home grown, driven by the political parties themselves. According to a report from the University of Oxford, a quarter of the content shared by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was junk news, as was one-fifth of the content shared by the main opposition party, Indian National Congress. The parties were also very effective at spreading this content, particularly the BJP, which created an app for Prime Minister Narendra Modi called NaMo, preloaded it in free Android phones and used it to promote posts from fake-news accounts users didn’t have the option of unfollowing.
All of this should drive home that there’s no single “best” way to combat misinformation, because the very nature of misinformation varies widely depending on where you are. Each country and region of the world has its own prejudices, fears and favored platforms. Like some hellish version of “It’s A Small World” during election season, we get to see them all.
Lata Nott is executive director of the First Amendment Center of the Freedom Forum Institute.Contact her via email at [email protected], or follow her on Twitter at @LataNott.
Numerous historical figures come to mind when considering the continuous movement towards gender equality in the United States.
Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton fought for women’s suffrage. Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. Harriet Tubman led more than 300 slaves to their freedom through the Underground Railroad. These women not only left a permanent and distinct mark on history, but inspired future women to challenge societal expectations and reach their full potential.
In the field of journalism, Nellie Bly is still a renowned historical figure known for her undercover time in a mental institution and her writings on her experience. While she remains one of the United States’ most famous journalists, her work also inspired a young Kansas native to become the first woman accredited as a war correspondent.
Henrietta Eleanor Goodnough Deuell was born December 30, 1889 in Bennington, Kansas, and grew up in Marysville. She began to go by ‘Peggy Hull’ after she wed her first husband, George Hull in 1910. Peggy was a rambunctious child who had sparse interest in the typical ‘feminine’ activities expected of a young lady at the time. She much preferred the company of the boys in her community.
Although she applied for a reporting job at the Junction City Sentinel at the age of 18, she was offered a typing job on the condition that she would not worry about her fingernails.[1] Peggy excitedly accepted the job and relocated to Junction City knowing she might work her way up to be a reporter. In an attempt to move West, Peggy took a job at the Chronicle-News in Colorado only to move to the Denver Republican shortly after she made the acquaintance of the owner’s brother. This seems to be a theme throughout Peggy Hull’s life. Her charisma and determination were strong tools used to help her career and even get herself out of sticky situations.
Peggy Hull (Photo courtesy Peggy Hull Deuell Collection, Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas Libraries)
Peggy moved to Cleveland, Ohio in 1916 where she attempted to obtain funding to report on the Ohio National Guard in New Mexico. Almost a year prior to the United States officially joining World War I, Peggy witnessed the training of officers at Camp Willis in Columbus, Ohio. It was there that Major Harold Bush, the commander of the artillery camp told Peggy, “A military camp is a matter of war – not friendship – and it’s no place for a woman.”[2] The unique challenges she experienced as a female at the military camp only further motivated Peggy to continue on and tell the world of her adventures.
One of her greatest tests of will came as she convinced a commander to allow her to join 20,000 soldiers on a fifteen-day hike into New Mexico. She later recalled, “I had a terrible time convincing him I could stand the hardships. When I finally gained his consent, I knew my military career depended upon [that] hike.”[3] Despite a myriad of physical and mental obstacles, Peggy powered through by imagining all the “women of [her] profession envying [her] trip”.[4] Impressed by her sheer will and determination, she received a promotion to the rank of first lieutenant.
Once the United States officially entered World War I, Peggy asked to be sent to France as a war correspondent, to which her editor exclaimed, “How perfectly ridiculous!”[5] Peggy was determined and persuaded her editor to sponsor her Paris travels. She was able to get a passport and visa despite the disbelief of those around her. As she was in route, Peggy knew her “whole future was staked on that trip to England”.[6] She received a good deal of attention for the work she was doing, and her columns were incredibly popular.
By 1918, Peggy had set her sights on full accreditation as a war correspondent. Peggy was met with opposition by men who believed a woman would never become accredited. Captain Carl Ruth was flabbergasted when Peggy presented a letter from a past acquaintance, General Peyton C. March, who demanded that Peggy not be denied accreditation due to her gender. She officially became the first woman accredited by the War Department as a war correspondent and headed to Siberia.
Peggy Hull continued to face setbacks during her time as an accredited war correspondent, but nothing could take away from the fact that she was the first woman to be accredited in a male dominated field. She was expected to fail numerous times throughout her career, and through hard work and determination, she changed the game for female journalists. In an article published in the Cleveland Plain Dealer in 1944, Peggy reflected on the unique challenges women often face saying, “Our presence in various fields is bitterly resented by the men we compete with. Overwhelming obstacles are frequently set up to prevent us from working and yet, odd though it may seem, women must live.”[7]
After divorcing her first husband later in life, Peggy married an Englishman in Shanghai, which nearly resulted in the loss of her United States citizenship. She lobbied against this law that targeted women who married non-United States citizens and managed to avoid deportation. A few years later she divorced the Englishman and married her third and final husband, Harvey Deuell, a longtime acquaintance from her early reporting days. She decided to retire from journalism only to return as a war correspondent during World War II. She struggled continuously with alcoholism and died of cancer at the age of 76.
Despite her accolades, the name ‘Peggy Hull’ is practically unknown today. Regardless, her impact on journalism paved the way for future women in the field. She proved to the men throughout her life that she was not one to be underestimated.
Peggy Hull is included in the Kansas mural painted by Hays artist Dennis Schiel on display outside the office of the Kansas Lieutenant Governor.
Peggy Hull’s picture and a brief description of her accomplishments can be viewed in the Lieutenant Governor’s office in the Kansas Capitol. There hangs a massive 10-panel mural, painted by Hays artist Dennis Schiel, complete with historical events and figures with Kansas origins.
Peggy Hull, born and raised in northern Kansas, paved the way for women in journalism and has forever left her mark on Kansas history. In a letter written in 1937, Peggy expressed her early motivations in the journey to become a war correspondent, writing, “I did not go to war because I liked the excitement or what my colleagues sometimes erroneously refer to as the glamour. I went because I was not a man and could not carry a gun and do something for my country.”[8]
From the rambunctious child who rose above what was expected of her as a young lady, to the first accredited female war correspondent, Peggy was the epitome of a strong woman. Just as Nellie Bly had once inspired a young Peggy Hull, her accomplishments will one day inspire numerous young girls to not allow themselves to be limited by their gender.
Caitlin O’Toole is a 2019 Legislative Intern for Sen. Elaine Bowers, Senate District #36. O’Toole graduated from St. Teresa’s Academy in 2016 and currently is a junior at KU majoring in Political Science and Communication with a History minor. She will be applying to law school next fall.
The Kansas Legislature Internship program is open to any student who is enrolled in a secondary or post-secondary education institution. Interns are required to attend a minimum of 12 days during the legislative session, attend the intern orientation, submit an evaluation of their internship and complete an evaluation of their legislator. One additional requirement is to submit a project assigned by their legislator. This year’s project was a research paper on a Kansan from the Senate District.
Ron Wilson is director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University.
By RON WILSON Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development
Block22. That sounds like part of a play call in football. In this case, Block22 is the name of a redevelopment project which is helping transform a historic downtown in a key southeast Kansas community.
Heather Horton is an entrepreneur and owner of a small business located near the district known as Block22 in Pittsburg, Kansas. Heather grew up in the nearby rural community of Girard, population 2,789 people. Now, that’s rural.
In Girard, her high school sweetheart was Roger Horton whom she would later marry. Heather earned a bachelor’s degree in commercial art and a master’s degree in communications from Pittsburg State, while Roger studied at Fort Scott Community College.
“We would walk around downtown and enjoyed looking at the old buildings,” Heather said. However, as in many communities, the downtown area was suffering. In 2006, Heather co-founded the Pittsburg ArtWalk, a semiannual event which showcases local artists, musicians and more in downtown Pittsburg.
One downtown landmark, the historic Colonial Fox Theatre, was decaying and was likely headed for demolition in 2007. Local citizens, including Heather Horton and many others, rallied to save the old structure. The Colonial Fox Theatre Foundation, of which Heather was a founding member, was formed and is remodeling the building.
In 2017, a partnership developed between the city of Pittsburg, Pittsburg State University, and a private investor named the Vecino Group. The goal was to further improve the downtown while adding student housing. Together, these organizations created this remarkable project known as Block22.
Block22 takes its name from the city’s founding. According to the Pittsburg State website, the city’s forefathers originally platted Pittsburg into 51 blocks. Block number 22 included a historic opera house which is located in the area that was redeveloped.
Block22 now refers to the four historic buildings which are a part of this $18 million redevelopment project. These buildings now offer nearly 100 student residential units for Pittsburg State students, plus more than 16,000 square feet of innovation space. A shuttle service operates between downtown and the Pittsburg State campus.
“I think Block22 is going to be transformational for the community,” said Marty Beezley, chair of Pittsburg’s Economic Development Advisory Committee, as shown in a Pittsburg State video. The area is described as “a unique, mix-use, living-learning community in Downtown Pittsburg that features residential, commercial, dining, and entertainment spaces.”
“Our goal is to create a living, learning community that is an anchor for the growth that’s going to occur throughout this entire city, not just downtown,” said Dr. Shawn Nacarotto, chief strategic officer at Pittsburg State.
“The downtown is your heart,” Heather Horton said. “If your heart is not pumping correctly, the rest of your body is not going to function.” After graduation from Pittsburg State, Heather opened her own business downtown where she and Roger now live.
“When we decided to purchase our building in 2007, the heart of Pittsburg, downtown, was bare,” Heather said. “Fast forward 12 years and it’s more vibrant than ever, with tons of boutiques, two coffee shops, a bright night life and fun festivals. To see the hustle and bustle happening, people in this area walking around, watching the progress go on, that’s pretty cool.”
In 2017, Heather and Roger were recognized with the President’s Award from the Pittsburg Area Young Professionals. That same year the Pittsburg Area Chamber of Commerce honored Heather as a Woman of Distinction for her work to preserve the arts as well as being a successful small business owner, and in 2018, named her business its Small Business of the Year.
For more information about the downtown district, see www.block22psu.com.
Block22. It’s not a football play, but a remarkable downtown redevelopment project in Pittsburg. We salute Heather and Roger Horton, Marty Beezley, Shawn Nacarotto, and all those who support this project for making a difference with an innovative approach to providing student housing and rebuilding downtown. They are part of the building blocks for their community.
And there’s more. What is Heather’s business? We’ll learn about that next week.
To say that we have had a wet spring would be an understatement to say the least.
This can be a concern for homeowners and their landscapes. I found a few pieces of advice from Ward Upham, K-State Research and Extension’s horticulture department to share with you this week that address a few concerns you may have. As always, if you have any questions, you can call me at 620-793-1910.
Too Wet to Mow the Lawn
What do you do when the lawn can’t be cut because of constant rain? The best thing to do is to set your mower as high as possible and bring it down in steps. It is always best never to take more than one third of the grass blade off at one time. If more is taken, the plant reacts by using stored energy reserves to quickly send up new growth.
This reduces the amount of energy available for the plant to deal with stress or damage done by insects or disease. However, sometimes it is just not possible to keep the “one-third rule.” In such cases, cut as high as possible even though it may mean you are cutting off more than one third of the blade. Bring the height down gradually by cutting more often and at progressively lower heights until you reach the target height.
Trees in flood
Trees differ markedly in their ability to withstand flooding. Some trees have mechanisms in place to provide oxygen to the roots of plants with water saturated soils and others do not. However, most trees will maintain health if flood waters recede in 7 days or less. It also helps if water is flowing rather than stagnant. If the roots of sensitive trees are flooded for long periods of time, damage will occur including leaf drop, iron chlorosis, leaf curl, branch dieback, and in some cases, tree death. Another danger of flooding is the deposition of sediment. An additional layer of silt 3 inches or more can also restrict oxygen to the roots. If possible, remove deep layers of sediment as soon as conditions permit.
This is especially important for small or recently transplanted trees. Try to avoid any additional stress to the trees this growing season. Ironically, one of the most important practices is to water trees if the weather turns dry. Flooding damages roots and therefore the root system is less efficient in making use of available soil water. Timely waterings are vital to a tree’s recovery. Also be diligent in removing dead or dying branches that may serve as an entry point for disease organisms or insect pests.
Alicia Boor is an Agriculture and Natural Resources agent in the Cottonwood District (which includes Barton and Ellis counties) for K-State Research and Extension. You can contact her by e-mail at [email protected] or calling 620-793-1910.
Graduation weekends are upon us. This is a time of year to celebrate the hard work and dedication of students and teachers and congratulate those we know who have succeeded at earning a degree and advancing into their next phase of life. For some that can mean going on to college, technical school, or a higher degree. And while these are worthy pursuits, the reality is they usually come with a pretty big price tag attached.
Paying for college is a big endeavor for most, but with some planning and foresight, it doesn’t have to be impossible. The State of Kansas offers some very simple solutions for getting a jumpstart on college savings, and the sooner you get started the better. Here’s a brief summary of a couple of very easy options and how they work:
529 Accounts: These are investment savings accounts you as a parent or grandparent can contribute to, tax-deferred. Put a little bit in automatically from each paycheck or set aside something each month to contribute. Large or small, these investments earn dividends over time and you get to choose how and when to contribute. With regular contributions to this kind of investment, you can watch your money grow into an amount that could fund your child’s future educational goals, at accredited higher education institutions anywhere in the United States. These funds can be used for qualified expenses at 2- or 4-year college, vocational school, technical college, graduate school, and even K-12 education institutions. The state of Kansas also allows you to take an annual tax deduction of up to $3,000 in 529 contributions if you’re single or $6000 if you’re married.
K.I.D.S. matching grants: The State of Kansas wants college to be achievable for all students. For families that may struggle financially to come up with the money to fund a child’s higher education goals, K.I.D.S. matching grants are a wonderful option to grow your money faster than you could on your own. You must live in Kansas and earn an income less than 200% of the federal poverty level. With these qualifications you can open a 529 account with any amount you wish and the state will match whatever you contribute, up to $600/year.
Year after year there are success stories of students graduating whose parents and grandparents took the time to think ahead on their behalf, putting away a little at a time and watching that money grow into a debt-free college experience for their new graduate.
Elaina was one such student. Her grandmother, Guadalupe Martinez started an account for her when she was little, contributing $25 per paycheck whenever she could. Upon Elaina’s graduation from high school, her grandmother presented her with a check that brought Elaina to tears. It was enough to get her through college debt free, which she did.
This is not an uncommon tale.
Kids across Kansas have been blessed with the opportunity of education because of the wise planning of someone in their life who cared enough to think ahead and save. Whether it is one of the above options or another kind of savings vehicle, I challenge Kansans during this special time of year to think ahead for someone they love and find a way to save. Every little bit adds up, and investing in a child’s future education now is one of the best gifts you can give them.
While Georgia, Alabama, and Missouri just passed strict abortion bans, the Kansas Supreme Court has taken a completely different tack. In Hodes & Nauser v Schmidt, the court ruled that the Kansas Constitution protects a woman’s right to have an abortion, except in cases of a narrowly tailored state interest.
Michael A. Smith is a Professor of Political Science at Emporia State University.
Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle quickly denounced the decision. Making little reference to the court’s reasoning, Wagle instead used a fiery op-ed to denounce the decision as out of touch with Kansas values, criticize other states that have passed laws protecting abortion access, and even invoke the draconian phrase “culture of death.” Wagle and her allies demand a legislative fix, most likely a constitutional amendment, to the ruling.
Listening to the rhetoric, one could hardly guess that the number of abortions provided in the U.S. is already falling dramatically—but it is. According to the Center for Disease Control, the number of abortions dropped from over 852,000 in 2006 to about 638,000 in 2015. There is nothing in the data indicating that the drop is due to tough state restrictions on abortion. Instead, during the period studied, new methods of birth control–particularly reversible implants–became more widely available and commonly used, resulting in fewer unplanned pregnancies and fewer abortions. We should build on this progress.
If Wagle and her allies succeed in criminalizing abortion here, then women who are able will simply travel to other states to have abortions. Granted, Georgia’s brand-new law include penalties for state residents who have abortions in other states, but this provision blatantly violates the U.S. Constitution’s Privileges and Immunities Clause. It is not likely to survive even the most conservative court. Unfortunately, this is not the end of the story. Kansans women who suffer from rape, incest, poverty or some combination of these would now face even more challenges. Some of those affected are children themselves. Ominously, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s birth statistics include a category for babies born to girls ages 10 to 14. There were only 22 of these in 2016—but that is 22 too many, and not a number we want to see on the rise.
The best way to make abortion obsolete is comprehensive, affordable birth control along with sex education that has an opt-out provision for families having religious objections. As the CDC data show, better contraception means a steep drop in the number and rate of abortions, and this is something to celebrate. Sex education also needs to empower young women, letting them know it is okay to say “no” until they are ready and providing emotional support, along with a clear, safe pathway for reporting sexual abuse and insuring that the reports are followed up upon.
Even if we do make the right choices and make unplanned pregnancies rare, the state’s foster care, adoption and child service systems will still need attention. Social services received a funding boost this year but they remain overwhelmed. In just the past week, there have been new reports of children sleeping in state offices because they have nowhere else to go. Medicaid expansion would help, too, by funding pre-natal care for those who choose to keep their pregnancies. Also, adoption in Kansas remains expensive and complicated for prospective families, many of whom resort to international adoptions instead. Finally, the legislation could streamline the expensive bureaucratic hurdles faced by grandparents and other relatives who raise these children.
Criminalizing abortion is a self-defeating political stunt. Instead, the Kansas Supreme Court’s decision offers Kansas the chance get it right– reducing abortions the right way, empowering young women and providing compassionate care for all. Now, will state legislators listen?
Michael A. Smith teaches Political Science at Emporia State University.
Donna KrugIt is an exciting time at the Cottonwood Extension Offices in Great Bend and Hays.
You see, on June 3rd we will be welcoming two new Extension Agents to our team.
Michelle Beran will be taking over the leadership of the 4-H and Youth program in the Great Bend office. Michelle has been in the same position in the Midway district the past three years so will be traveling a different direction when she heads to work from her home east of Odin. Michelle will be coming on board just in time to load up the counselors for the Heart of Kansas camp and head to Rock Springs Ranch. Of course with the Barton County Fair just over a month away, the pace will be fast with all of the preparations. Michelle has a passion for making a difference in young peoples’ lives which is really the most important part of her job.
June 3rd is also the day that Lauren Walz will be joining us as the Cottonwood District Horticulture Agent. Since Lauren is a recent graduate of Kansas State University, with a degree in Horticulture, her first few days will be spent on campus for orientation. I know she plans to meet the Master Gardeners in Hays on June 6th and the Master Gardeners in Great Bend on June 12th. Lauren impressed me in her interview with her passion for helping others find answers to their horticulture questions. Her internship was working with a landscaping firm in Atlanta. It proved to her that she preferred living and working in Kansas so she moved to Hays.
We’re planning some welcome events during both the Barton and Ellis County Fairs for Michelle and Lauren. I’ll share those dates a little closer to the events. In the meantime, I hope you will call or come by our offices and meet Michelle and Lauren.
A couple of other helpers you will meet if you drop by our Extension offices are our summer interns. Mikey Hughes, who will be a Senior at K-State in the fall, is getting a taste of an Extension career as she works in the Great Bend office. Kory Ridnour, who will be a Senior at Fort Hays State University, is excited to be helping out in the Hays office. Both of these young ladies have a strong background in leadership so we are looking forward to getting them involved in projects that will benefit our youth.
It feels good to be fully staffed so that we can meet the needs of the residents of the Cottonwood District and provide research based information on a wide range of topics. We look forward to seeing you soon!
Donna Krug is the District Director and Family & Consumer Science Agent in the Cottonwood Extension District. You may reach her at: (620)793-1910 or [email protected]
Life is ever changing, sometimes throwing you too much to handle at once.
Unfortunately, the pets in our life sometimes take the brunt of it. In the panic of what to do, people will tend to do things for the right reason but not in the right way. Case in point; there has been a wave of people trying to rehome or sell their pets by any means they can. The latest trend is “I need (x amount) of money or the animal will be put down.” As much as this upset me more than you know, we are seeing more of this “hostage” situation. It is this that has prompted me to write this and hopefully bring some clarity on what can and can’t be done.
First and foremost, we need to look at the whole picture of things and stay calm about them. Social media can be a blessing and a curse. Keeping one’s feelings in check as we sit behind our computer screens is hard.
The priority is to make sure that the animal is safe and is going to the best situation it can. There are more agencies and people in Hays there are here to help than you think.
The Humane Society of The High Plains is a good place to start. Keep in mind, it is a non-profit no kill shelter which means it’s going to be full most of the time. They run strictly on donations and fundraisers. Betty (Hansen) has worked there for many years and has brought the Humane Society to be a no kill shelter. No kill means that an animal will stay there until it is adopted. Also understand, if an animal is picked up by Animal Control and it is deemed too sick or injured, yes, an animal will be humanly be euthanized.
As much as we would all like, we can’t save them all.
The Humane Society will put you on a waiting list if they are full and will get back to you when they can take your pet. There is a small fee of $25 to surrender your pet. This is to help defer their expenses. They are also there to help with food for people who are in need. We all fall on hard times and just need a little help to make it through the month. If they are not able to take your pet in, they may have people on their list of volunteers that can help. Remember, they can only help so much if they are full and kindness goes along ways.
The veterinarian clinics are another useful place to contact. Remember, they are not an intake facility but, in some cases, they do have a list of rescues or contacts of people that can help. They are a great source of information.
There are several reputable rescues in this area. Most rescues try to concentrate on abused and death row animals and all of them are nonprofit organizations and rely on volunteers and foster homes. Being this type of organization, they are also extremely full.
There is also a handful of people in Hays that are also willing to help. We are the people that will try to help you keep your pet in the home if we can. Keep in mind, we are doing this out of our own pockets, and we can only do so much. The Humane Society and veterinary clinics have our numbers.
This brings me to the most important point.
A pet is a lifelong commitment. When getting an animal, please take into consideration the cost of that pet. There is the upfront cost of shots and spaying and neutering. All animals in the city limits need to be registered with the city each year. Of course, there are going to be the unexpected events that come up such as illnesses and injuries.
We all want to see every animal find a great home, but we also need to be responsible about it. Check out the people you are surrendering your animal to. We may be a small town but there are people out there that do not have your pet’s best interest at heart.
Also remember, while Animal Control and the Police Department are there to help, there are some things that are beyond their control.
While we may not agree with how some people choose to handle their pets, they are only following the laws that are in place. If you do not agree with the laws or the lack of them, the Humane Society of the United States/Kansas would welcome you to help fight for the rights of animals in Kansas.
If you have a love for animals and would like to help, please contact your local shelter or animal rescue; they are always looking for people to volunteer their time.
Here is a list of agencies that are here to help with properly rehome your pets:
By KIM BALDWIN McPherson County farmer and rancher
We’re beginning to notice small changes in our wheat crop. The short green fields are growing tall. Before long, the wheat will begin turning from the vivid greens to the golden hues signaling the nearness of summer harvest.
While driving into town for school with my son recently, the topic of summer came up. For many kiddos, summer means sleeping in, swim lessons, drive-in movies or summer camps.
When I asked my boy what his plans were for this summer, his answer included swimming, fishing, riding his bike, playing baseball, visiting a museum and going on a trip.
“But we have to harvest the wheat first, Mom,” he concluded matter-of-factly.
My boy knows how we kick off summer on our farm.
For many families, once school is out, vacations, barbecues, a slower pace and freedom are all imminent.
Once classes are over for my family, our days consist of finishing up the planting of our corn, soybeans and sorghum, rushing to get ready for wheat harvest and then racing storms to get the crop out of the fields. It’s the busiest time of the year, and it’s a family affair that both of my children have always been a part of.
During harvest my son helps with delivering meals, riding in the combines next to his dad and grandpa, and helps deliver the grain to our local elevator. He takes his harvest jobs very seriously. The jobs require a lot of time, so we try not to schedule a lot during this period.
Swim lessons and afternoon fishing trips are often substituted by playing with a water hose in the front yard and practicing casting techniques off the front porch after coming in for the evening. Sleeping in generally doesn’t happen because we want to utilize the coolness of the mornings before the heat rolls in to accomplish other tasks on the farm. Drive-in movies just don’t work because we are either out harvesting late into the night or are too tired to stay awake for a show.
Simple pleasures like campouts in the living room, popsicles, taste testing freshly baked cookies for our harvest crew and running through the sprinklers when the opportunity presents itself are the norm for my children during the summer harvest. Although they are simple, they are thoroughly enjoyed and embraced by my kids. It’s all part of being a farm kid during the summer months.
My boy knows wheat harvest is what we do first before we can start checking off our other fun summer activities from our to-do list.
I always find it interesting how he accepts our crazy schedule. I suppose it is because it’s what he has always known. I’m still thankful he recognizes the importance of getting the wheat harvested while also finding ways to enjoy his summer.
“Insight” is a weekly column published by Kansas Farm Bureau, the state’s largest farm organization whose mission is to strengthen agriculture and the lives of Kansans through advocacy, education and service.
What pure joy it is to shake the hand of every student who crosses that commencement stage! Did you know I preside over five ceremonies: the Kansas Academy of Mathematics and Science Completion Ceremony, two FHSU ceremonies in Hays, one at Sias International University in Xinzheng, China, and a final ceremony at Shenyang Normal University in Shenyang, China. That is several thousand handshakes!
These newly conferred academic degrees offer our most recent alumni opportunities for new beginnings. These new beginnings are so full of promise and hope. And it was with both pride and confidence that I conferred degrees.
The pride comes from valuing the hard work and the many accomplishments of our students. Confidence emanates from the knowledge that FHSU is truly a student-centered institution. Yet as hard as our students work, it is often the faculty and staff, who care so deeply about our students, who drive that effort. Our faculty and staff inspire the dreams of our students, help them discover their talents, and fuel their passion to complete this segment of their life’s journey.
According to research by Gallup Education, a deep ethic of care is correlated with long-term career and life success. Gallup’s research indicates that graduates who strongly agree they had the following six experiences as students performed better on every measure of long-term success compared with graduates who did not share these experiences:
1. A professor who made them excited about learning
2. Professors who cared about them as individuals
3. A mentor who encouraged them to pursue their goals and dreams
4. Worked on a long-term project
5. Had a job or internship where they applied what they were learning
6. Were extremely involved in cocurricular activities
Bingo! These “Big Six” serve at the center of who we are as a community. Here are just a few stories students have shared with me:
A professor who made you truly excited about learning: Dr. Lexey Bartlett has been an incredibly inspiring and encouraging professor and mentor to me. She has challenged and pushed me to work harder in various classes I’ve had with her. As the director of the Writing Center, she has always been available and taken the time to listen to my worries and questions about interviews and class projects and my future and all sorts of things. She has truly inspired and encouraged me every day.
– Alexis-Athena Wyatt, Colorado Springs, Colorado, senior majoring in English
A professor who cared about them as persons: The professors are amazing at FHSU and I am not saying this just to flatter. Their doors are always open for you to visit them in their office and if you can’t reach them physically, you can always send an email or call and they respond as soon as possible. They have made the academic life less overwhelming especially been an international student, coming from a different educational system.
– Precious Ohanson, Lagos, Nigeria, majoring in nursing
A mentor who encouraged them to pursue their goals and dreams: Professor Angie Howard in the Psychology Department has been such a help to me this semester. On top of her feedback that helped me develop my thinking and plans for my future career as a high school counselor. She also looked over a job listing for me and gave me so many great tips, advice, things to research, and possible interview questions to prepare for.
– Courtney Morgan, Dallas, Texas, senior majoring in psychology
Worked on a long-term project: Being a virtual student, I always longed for more interactions with my peers, and that desire was answered this year. As a scholar in the FHSU Leadership Department’s VALUE Program, I met weekly with six other students as we gained advanced leadership abilities through the completion of a project. My project saw me conducting research on undergraduate students working to complete group projects, and Dr. Brent Goertzen spent a great amount of time mentoring me on this project.
– Jonathan Jett, Prattville, Alabama, senior majoring in organizational leadership
Had a job or internship where they applied what they were learning: Last summer, I had the opportunity to work as a grain merchandising intern for Bartlett Grain Co. I was able to apply my base understanding of the commodity markets, basis, market spreads, and critical thinking abilities to work within the agricultural industry. I gained valuable insights into this industry and was very grateful for the opportunity to apply what I was learning in the classroom to real world situations.
– Rachel Anliker Kropp, Garden City senior majoring in finance
Were extremely involved in co-curricular activities: I was very involved in various work experience from Student Support Services to Admissions. I held various leadership roles including serving on a regional board of directors and president of the National Residence Hall Honorary. All of this experience lead me to find the field of student affairs and wanting to pursue it as a career. – Jessica Conklin, Hays senior majoring in higher education student affairs
As I look out at the commencement audiences, it is more than symbolic for me to see the faculty and staff seated among the graduates, because it is through their direct efforts that our students experience the “Big Six.” And it is why FHSU delivers more than a degree – it provides a passport so that our students thrive, not only in college, but also in their careers and lives.
It’s going to be a week before we find out whether Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is actually going to get her wish of putting the state back in a fiscally sound posture.
And that wait will come when the House votes sometime around noon May 29 on the governor’s veto of a whittled-down income tax bill that Kelly says the state can’t afford now and might or might not be able to afford next year when the entire Legislature stands for reelection.
She, or rather, she and the calendar, won her first veto battle over a giant income tax-cut (some say tax relief) bill passed in the regular session of the Legislature. That earlier tax bill, which would have cost the state coffers more than $500 million over the next three years, was a Kelly/calendar victory because the Legislature was on spring break when it got her veto message and couldn’t vote on overriding that action.
This new tax bill, which legislators received in time for a veto consideration during its final adjournment day on May 29, is the real test of the governor and count on it…there will be a vote on override.
The three-year, $238 million reduction in taxes—call it a tax cut or a tax maintenance bill because it pays down some of the increase that the December 2017 federal income tax bill triggered for mostly corporations doing international business which saw more of their income subject to state taxes—is the issue.
It’s the biggest test for a new Kelly era because a majority of Republicans in the House and Senate want to pare taxes for Kansans, both the corporations which make millions of dollars of campaign contributions to Republicans and to upper-income candidates who are also heavy donors to GOP campaigns.
Win the veto battle? That means Kelly has the chance to maintain revenues that her administration will spend on social services, education, management of the state and infrastructure which means largely smoother roads.
Lose the battle? That means less money for those projects.
Oh, and it also means that members of the House and Senate next year will likely not be able to offer up that election-year candy, brand new and voter-targeted income tax cuts that would be at the top of their campaign literature, a demonstration that they—not some challenger who doesn’t have a track record—should be sent back to Topeka for the winter.
Kelly plans to assemble a tax advisory committee this summer that will outline just what sort of tax cuts she believes the state can afford in terms of lost revenue and that Kansas voters will actually enjoy. Oh, and one that will undoubtedly include some genuine reduction in sales tax on food, likely to be returned to grocery buyers in a manner that will improve their living standards, not just a dime or a quarter every time they go to the store.
Can she see her veto sustained?
That’s the tough one. That tax bill that was sent to her during the veto session passed the House—where the first vote on overriding the veto will be taken—on a vote of 83-41, with a likely pro-tax cut representative not present. That’s one vote shy of the 84 needed to override the veto in that chamber and send it to the Senate where it was approved in the veto session on a 27-13 vote. Key there is that 27 votes are needed for an override, which means if nobody changes their mind, the veto will be overridden.
That’s when we find out who the political winner is. Because, frankly, who in November 2020 is going to still be euphoric over a smaller tax bill they paid in April 2020?
Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver’s Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com
By JOHN P. TRETBAR
