ELLIS — What a beautiful Monday morning! I hope you were all able to take advantage of a great weekend, lots of sunshine and a little wind. It just wouldn’t be Kansas if we didn’t have a little wind.

I have to do a short recap of yesterday’s Easter Cantata. To say the least, it was beautiful! Fritz Kramer and his musicians were awesome. The program was very entertaining and the singers and instrumentalists did a fantastic job. Ben, Emily, Shawn, Chris, Lois, Diedre, Ginny and Ione — thank you for a beautiful job well done! I sure hope we get to see another of Fritz’s productions.  I know he says he’s retiring, but maybe just one more.

Spring sports are getting underway with a bang. EHS JV Track will run today at Ness City at 4 p.m. EHS will host their Invitational Track Meet Tuesday at 3 p.m., and the EJH Quad Track Meet is Thursday, also beginning at 3 p.m.  The Railer Baseball and Softball teams will see action at home on Tuesday against the Larned Indians. Games begin at 4 p.m. The Golfers will travel to Hoisington on Thursday and Friday will see the Baseball Team host Leoti here at 4 p.m., and the Lady Railer Softball Team heads to Ellinwood.

It’s that time of year—Prom Season! The EHS Prom will take place Saturday, with pictures beginning at 5:30 p.m. Head to the High School and snap a picture of your favorite couple dressed to the Nines!  It is sure to be a great photo for the memory books!

Here’s something for your calendar! Mark down April 26 and plan to be in Ellis. There will be an Obstacle/Glow Run & Dance to help support the Beisner Family, as they are battling Parkinson’s disease. Kelly Beisner was diagnosed in 2004 and the disease is progressing.  The funds raised from the event will help defray medical and travel costs. Come on out and get your GLOW on! Email [email protected] for more info and to register early.

The community-wide garage sale will be June 7.  Whether you’re hunting for bargains or cleaning out the closets, Ellis is the place for you! Maps will be provided with garage sales listed and some of their treasures so you can find things quickly. If you want to have a sale, call the Chamber office and get signed up.  The cost to be listed on the map is only $8 and we advertise our sales from Hays to the Colby area, and North to the Nebraska area.  You can also find sign up cards at the Ellis Community Thrift Shop.

Riverfest will take center stage on June 14.  This year, we are having the Battle on Big Creek! For those that have a short string of crazy in them, I invite you to jump with us. That’s right, skydive! Jumping out of a perfectly good plane! Go Diving for Dollars and help support a local non-profit organization. Diving for Dollars is sponsored by the Community Foundation of Ellis. Diving for Dollars is a game where if you can hit the target on the football field, you help decide which nonprofits share in the pool of money donated by the Community Foundation of Ellis. I’m jumping for the Chrysler Home, who are you jumping for? No one to jump for? Never fear! I have a list of nonprofits that would love to share in your crazy for a day!

As always, if you know something that I don’t, please let me know so I can spread the word!  You can email me at [email protected] or call (785) 726-2660.

Dena Patee is executive director of Ellis Alliance.

Remember the hue and cry last fall when a Tennessee teacher told a fifth-grader that she couldn’t write about God as the person she admired most?

Well, members of the state legislature didn’t forget. Even though school officials quickly corrected the teacher and apologized to the family, lawmakers seized on the incident to push for a bill designed to protect student religious expression in public schools.

Last week, the “Religious Viewpoints Anti-discrimination Act” passed both houses of the Tenn. legislature by huge margins and now awaits the governor’s signature.

Sometimes all it takes is one bad story.

Tennessee’s new legislation is the latest of a series of almost identical laws pushed nationwide by conservative Christian groups in recent years. Texas, Mississippi and South Carolina have already enacted this legislation and bills are pending in Oklahoma, Georgia, Alabama and other states.

The ostensible aim of all these laws is to protect the right of public school students to express their religious views in class, assemblies and graduation ceremonies. As the Tenn. bill puts it, schools “may not discriminate against the student based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise permissible subject.”

Actually, this is nothing new. The U.S. Department of Education issued guidelines in 2003 outlining the religious rights of students — guidelines that are quoted verbatim in these state laws. Much of what is in the USDOE guidance tracks what is allowed under current law, according to most legal experts.

It is widely accepted, for example, that students have the right to express their religious views in homework, artwork, and class discussions — as long, of course, as they fulfill the requirements of the assignment and their comments are relevant to the subject under consideration. No new law is needed to make this clear.

What is disputed, however, is where to draw the line on student religious expression before a captive audience at school-sponsored events. We know from various Supreme Court decisions that public schools may not promote religious beliefs at school events — even if they select a student to deliver the religious message.

But the USDOE and the state “religious viewpoint” laws assert that when students are given the opportunity to speak without school officials controlling the content of the speech, then such expression is not school sponsored and may not be restricted because of its religious content. Call it a “free speech” moment during which a student can talk about faith or even offer a prayer.

Critics contend that the USDOE guidance (and the state laws that echo it) go too far because lower courts are divided about where school officials may draw the line on student religious speech before a captive audience. Moreover, they argue, speech at school-sponsored events remains school-sponsored even when school officials don’t review the content of student speeches.

Turning the podium over to students, of course, can be a risky business. Although the “religious viewpoint” laws would not require school officials to allow speech that was profane, sexually explicit, defamatory or disruptive, the student speech could include political or religious views offensive to many.

Conservative Christian groups promoting these laws appear willing to take that risk, gambling that religious speech they like will be heard far more often than religious (or anti-religious) speech they don’t like.

In fact, lawmakers in Tenn. and other states are hedging their bets by requiring schools to create a pool of “student leaders” — student council officers, football team captains and the like — from which the school-event speakers will be chosen. Even if limiting the selection process in this way is constitutional (and that remains an open question), it surely signals that the “open forum” isn’t so open after all.

The bigger problem with these laws, however, is not so much the content but the potential for abuse. In communities where one religion dominates, school officials may view these laws as a doorway to promote the majority faith — doing through students what the school may not do itself.

If public schools would actually let all students (not just the designated “leaders”) speak freely at school events, then free speech, religious and non-religious, might be well served.

But as written, these laws appear aimed at encouraging student religious expression that will be popular in states like Tenn. and Texas. After all, in most of these school districts people aren’t too worried about what the football captain will say (or pray).

Charles C. Haynes is director of the Religious Freedom Center of the Washington-based Newseum Institute. [email protected]

Groucho Marx once said that anyone can get old, all you have to do is live long enough! But growing older is more than merely marking time. Several Extension educational programs in April will explore what it means to age and provide helpful information on these issues for older adults and their families.

The regional Full Circle Aging Expo will be held on Friday, April 25 from 9:15 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Messiah Lutheran Church in Hays.

The keynote speaker is Jeff Burnett from Fort Hays State University speaking on “Being Realistic About Your Health At Any Age.” Angel Shaver, 2013 Miss Wheelchair Kansas, will be the closing speaker on “Maintaining an Attitude of Gratitude.”

The agenda includes a choice of breakout sessions throughout the day on topics such as elder fraud, long-distance care-giving, avoiding estate planning mistakes, and using new technology. A resource fair will also be available for participants.

The cost is $25 per person or $40 for two family members. Registration is due April 17. Contact the Ellis County Extension Office at (785) 628-9430 for a registration brochure or see www.ellis.ksu.edu.

An added feature of the Full Circle Aging Conference is an educational track for professionals who can earn up to 6 CEU’s for participation. The brain-focused training agenda includes information on balance and gait, traumatic brain injury, types of dementia and psychotropic medication reduction. Cost for the full-day professional training is $85. More information is available at (785) 462-6281 or register online at www.northwest.ksu.edu/fullcircle.

The program “AgeSense: Adapting to Life’s Changes” is scheduled for Wednesday, April 9, over the noon hour at the Extension Office Meeting Room, 601 Main Street in Hays. Enter the rear door from the north parking lot.

This free Extension program provides a balanced understanding of what it means to age, as well as seeing aging as another stage in life’s journey. Participants will examine their own beliefs about aging and explore the dual ideas of loss and opportunity in aging. Donna Krug, Barton County Extension Agent, will be the speaker.

Bring a lunch to enjoy during the program if you wish. Beverages will be provided. Call the Ellis County Extension Office at (785) 628-9430 to register. A minimum attendance is required to hold this program.

Many believe the myth that it is normal for people- as they age- to become weak, to slow down and stop doing some of the things they once enjoyed. The good news is that it is not difficult for most people to maintain or recover their functional ability and live an active, independent life. A few minutes of physical activity each day can help.

Learn more at the free Extension program “Let’s Live a Little- Physical Activity for Fun and Fitness” on Monday, April 14, noon, at the Extension Meeting Room, 601 Main, Hays. Jennifer Milhon, FHSU graduate student, will be the guest speaker. Bring a lunch to enjoy during the program if you wish. Beverages will be provided. Pre-register at the Extension Office at (785) 628-9430.

We’ll close the month of April with a program on funeral planning and end of life issues on Wednesday, April 30, 6 to 7:30 p.m., at the Extension meeting room. Local experts will share information to ease difficult family discussions and decisions on these topics. If you’d like to receive more information about this program as it becomes available, pre-register at the County Extension Office, (785) 628-9430.

More information on all these aging topics is available at the Ellis County Extension Office. We hope you will join us for these important and informative programs.

Linda K. Beech is Ellis County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences.

Even though calving season is winding down for some and in full swing for others in Kansas, the spring breeding season is just around the corner. Now is the time to make sure your bulls are ready to perform when the trailer gate opens and they’re dumped out to pasture.

What should I be doing to make sure my bulls are ready?

There are several key components to making sure that your bulls are ready. First let’s talk about breeding soundness exams. Breeding soundness exams should be conducted 30-60 days before the start of breeding. The practice of conducting a breeding soundness exam provides personal insurance that your bulls are fertile and capable of breeding.

A breeding soundness exam includes a semen evaluation for semen motility and semen morphology (the structure and form of the sperm cells), detailed examination of the reproductive tract itself, and a physical examination including structural soundness and scrotal shape and size. Remember, a breeding soundness exam does not observe the bull’s libido, only his ability to breed. Due to the extreme cold spells this winter, examination for frostbite on the bull’s scrotum should be included. Frostbite can reduce bull fertility.

With the increasing cases of Trichomoniasis, it is important to make sure you Trich test non-virgin bulls at the time of the breeding soundness exam as well. Trich is a venereal disease which causes fetal loss in cows. It can be catastrophic to cow herds. In order for the test to work, the bulls must be sexually rested for 14 days prior to testing.

Another thing to focus on with bulls is their nutritional status. Just as we do in cows, it is important to body condition score your bulls. On a scale of 1-9, (1 emaciated-9 obese) the optimum body condition score for bulls is 6. Included in nutrition is making sure an adequate vitamin and mineral package is provided. Pay close attention to Vitamin A. Vitamin A is a major influencer of spermatogenesis, the building of sperm cells.

It is also important to stay up to date on vaccinations for your bulls. According to Dr. Larry Hollis, K-State Research and Extension Veterinarian, producers should pay attention to diseases that will not only affect the bull, but the cows’ reproductive statuses as well. These include Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR), Bovine Viral Diarrhea (BVD), Vibrio, Lepto and Blackleg. Vaccinations should take place at least 61 days ahead of turn out. Reason being in that it takes 61 days for sperm cells to develop from start to finish so we don’t want anything to affect that process.

Don’t forget to pay attention to your bull-to-cow ratio. A general rule of thumb for yearling bulls is one cow per month of age of the bull (15 month old bull = 15 cows). Mature bulls can cover anywhere from 25 to 50 cows.

Bulls are a critical part to every cow calf producer’s operation. It is important that they are taken care of properly to ensure their best performance when it becomes “game time”. The cost of breeding soundness exams and Trich tests are far cheaper than the cost of open cows. Remember, just because your bull performed last year, does not mean he will do the same this year. With proper nutrition and timely vaccinations, you are setting your bulls up for success.

Furthermore the BSE can reveal how many if any bulls need to be bought this year before the bull sales are all over, which can ease some stress load later scrambling to find a bull after all of the sales are over.

Visit our website at www.ellis.ksu.edu and follow us on Facebook at: “K-State Research & Extension – Ellis County.”

Stacy Campbell is Ellis County agricultural agent with Kansas State Research and Extension.

By RON WILSON
Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development

Getting the mix just right. That’s vital, whether one is a cook, a chemist, a cattle feeder, a basketball team – or a business. Today we meet a Kansas company which has become a national leader in making mixers for livestock feed and more.

Mike Hilderbrand is president of Roto-Mix, a company with deep roots in rural Kansas. Mike has degrees from Southern Illinois University, Keller Graduate School, and a certificate in management from Harvard, plus years of experience in manufacturing. In 2011 he became president of Roto-Mix.

The company’s beginnings go back to Ben Neier, who was farming in the 1950s near the rural community of Mullinville, population 267 people. Now, that’s rural. Ben started a feedlot and was looking for a better way to mix feed.

“Nutrition of feeder cattle is very important,” Mike said. “Or maybe Ben just got tired of shoveling feed.”

Anyway, Ben Neier devised an auger system for mixing feed for his cattle. It worked very well. He started a company and built a building in which to manufacture these mixers in Dodge City.

“It was the birth of an industry,” Mike said. “Other companies followed his lead.”

During the turbulent economic times of the 1970s, the company’s ownership went through transitions. Ben Neier left the business. Then he learned about a British company that had a patent for a new type of mixer which operated with a central rotor. He acquired the rights to this design and, with a friend named Bill Pullen, began a new company to manufacture these rotary mixers in 1984. The company would ultimately be named Roto-Mix.

In 1988, the company needed more manufacturing space and bought a building in Dodge City. Ben Neier knew the building well. It was the very same building where he had begun manufacturing his auger mixers two decades previously. The business continued to grow. Ben’s son Rod Neier joined the company and became CEO in 2011, when Mike Hilderbrand was recruited as president.

Roto-Mix is a leader in the manufacturing of processing and mixing equipment for beef cattle and dairy feeding, plus waste disposal and compost mixing operations “Our focus from the beginning was beef cattle feedlots and that is our core business,” Mike said. “Now we are growing our business in the dairy cattle industry, which requires new products because of the high hay content of their ration. Interestingly, that has had extra benefits because those products are also attractive to cow-calf producers.”

Another element of the company’s business is the compost mixing operations. “This is the green side of our business,” Mike said. As more state and local governments and others do increased recycling, this segment of the Roto-Mix business has grown. “Our mixers can take almost any kind of organic scraps or waste and mix into compost,” he said. For example, a pair of Roto-Mix machines was recently placed in Los Angeles.
In addition to the plant in Dodge City, the company has locations in Scott City and Hoisington. Back in the 1990s, Roto-Mix contracted with the city of Hoisington and remodeled an old railroad building into a manufacturing facility. “It has the tall ceilings which we need for our equipment,” Mike said. “We were able to save a 100-year-old building and generate 50 jobs.”

Roto-Mix has grown to 125 employees. The company’s products are sold coast to coast and to 38 countries. The company was even named the Kansas Exporter of the Year. More information can be found at www.rotomix.com.

“This company knows its customers very well,” Mike said. “We have a core of long-term employees. We manufacture our products with high efficiency, but we’ve also tried to remain something of a job shop so we can customize products to meet customer needs. This is American manufacturing at its best.”

Getting the mix just right. That’s vital for success. We commend the Neier family, more recently Mike Hilderbrand, and all those involved with Roto-Mix for making a difference by building a business with high quality mixing equipment. In the discussion of the best manufacturers in Kansas, this company is definitely in the mix.

Dear Dave,
Is it possible to book a hotel room without a credit card?
James

Dear James,
Absolutely, it is. Just use a debit card.

I don’t have a credit card. When it comes to finances, the only pieces of plastic you’ll find in my wallet are two debit cards—one for my business, and the other for my personal account.

A Visa or Mastercard-branded debit card can be used anywhere credit cards are accepted. And the best part is that you’re not borrowing money when you use one. The funds come directly from your checking account. Some hotels might put a temporary hold on your account for the amount in question, so you need to make sure you actually have the money in the bank. But that just makes sense, doesn’t it? You shouldn’t be traveling without money in the first place.

If you’re too broke to travel, then you need to stay home. Pretty simple!
—Dave

Dave Ramsey is America’s trusted voice on money and business. He has authored four New York Times best-selling books: Financial Peace, More Than Enough, The Total Money Makeover and EntreLeadership. His newest book, written with his daughter Rachel Cruze, is titled Smart Money Smart Kids. It will be released April 22nd. The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 8 million listeners each week on more than 500 radio stations. Follow Dave on Twitter at @DaveRamsey and on the web at daveramsey.com.

Tornadoes in Kansas this spring?

No, but there’s snow in the forecast again.

Here it is the first of April and that white stuff continues to fall from the sky. While many consider this a cruel April Fool’s joke, don’t become too excited about the wild weather Mother Nature serves up in our state. There’s still plenty of time.

Seven short years ago on May 4, 2007, the town of Greensburg, in Kiowa County, was all but wiped off the face of the earth.

The tornado that hit the small Kansas community of 1,500 killed 11 people and injured dozens more. Ninety percent of the town was destroyed including 961 homes and businesses. Another 216 received major damage. Wind speeds of more than 200 miles per hour accompanied this storm.

Other killer tornadoes occurred that day with a death in Pratt County and another in Stafford County. Some of these monster twisters were nearly two miles wide. Eleven tornadoes occurred May 4.

The next day another 36 tornadoes were reported in Kansas, falling just short of the all-time record of 39 tornadoes in one day set in June 1992. Fourteen tornado-related fatalities were reported last year, including 82 injuries, according to the National Weather Service in Topeka. Thirteen of these fatalities occurred during the May 4-5 outbreak.

In stark contrast to this tornado onslaught of 2007, Kansas recorded the longest tornado drought in 24 years during 2009. Not until April 22, 2010 did the first tornado touch down in the Sunflower State. Prior to this tornado, the last twister reported in Kansas was back on Aug. 2, 2009. This resulted in 262 days without a reported tornado in Kansas.

Fifty-six tornadoes were reported in Kansas last year, while 2013 was the quietest season since 1994 when 42 tornadoes were reported. In 1976, only 14 tornadoes dropped down in Kansas – the fewest on record.

Last year’s tornado season lasted 128 days, ranking it as the 7th shortest season. Forty-one of the 56 twisters (73 percent) occurred during an 11-day period in mid to late May.

Now that’s the kind of quiet tornado season most Kansans like although few care for tornadoes at all. Let’s hope this season remains calm as well.

Still there will be tornadoes. This is Kansas after all. You know – Dorothy, Toto and tornadoes. When it comes to tornado safety, the bottom line remains the same: tune in, stay informed and keep an eye on the sky.

Remember pay attention when you hear a tornado watch because this means severe thunderstorms and tornadoes are possible over a wide area. Tornado warnings are issued when Doppler radar indicates tornadoes are forming or a trained weather spotter has sighted a twister. This warning will tell the location, and if possible, movement, estimated speed and the towns in the tornado path.

Seems like every year the National Weather Service provides us with ample warning when tornadoes are likely to occur. There are seven National Weather Service offices that serve portions of Kansas including Goodland, Dodge City, Wichita, Topeka, Hastings, Neb., Pleasant Hill, Mo. and Springfield, Mo.

Each office is staffed 24 hours each day, seven days a week and 365 days a year with meteorologists and technicians.

Think ahead during this upcoming severe weather season. Listen to forecasts daily, check the weather app on your smart phone and key into local weather conditions in your area. Know where your nearest shelter is and remember when a tornado threatens, immediate action may save you and your loved ones’ lives.

John Schlageck, a Hoxie native, is a leading commentator on agriculture and rural Kansas. Born and raised on a diversified farm in northwestern Kansas, his writing reflects a lifetime of experience, knowledge and passion.

Yes, Mom was right. She told you to eat your fruits and vegetables. She may not have known the full details of what modern nutrition science says about fruits and vegetables, but she was definitely on the right track.

Everything from cancer to heart disease to diabetes to obesity can be improved or delayed by eating plenty of fruits and vegetables. Yet, according to surveys done by the Centers for Disease Control and Kansas Department of Health and Environment, only about 19 percent of Ellis County adults eat enough fruits and vegetables — which is at least five servings (or 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 cups) a day.

That means 81 percent of adults in Ellis County are lacking adequate intake of these important foods. In fact, low fruit/vegetable intake is listed as one of this area’s leading risk factors for premature death.

Fruits and vegetables are filled with all the vitamins and minerals you need for a healthy body, plus they contain thousands of phytochemicals that offer even more health benefits. Some of those phytochemicals are found in the pigment of the fruit or vegetable, so eating a variety of colors will help you get an even bigger variety of health benefits.

Fruits and vegetables are rich sources of vitamins. The B vitamins are necessary for normal function of the brain and nervous system and may help keep the cardiovascular system healthy. Vitamin C keeps your immune system working and keeps your skin and connective tissue strong. Vitamins A and E are antioxidants which protect cells from damage and are important for normal vision. Vitamin K helps with blood clotting and strong bones.

Fruits and vegetables also contain many of the minerals you need, including calcium and iron that are found in dark green leafy vegetables. Calcium is vital for strong bones and teeth and iron helps transport oxygen to body cells. The magnesium and potassium in fruits and vegetables helps regulate blood pressure and keep muscles working.

Fruits and vegetables also supply dietary fiber, which is often deficient in a typical western diet. You need high-fiber foods to keep your digestive system working normally and to help regulate cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Eating high fiber foods also helps keep you feeling full, which is good for losing or maintaining weight.

Science shows eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables correlates with a healthier heart, lower risk of cancer, better brain function and a longer life. But results are much less impressive when researchers look at individual vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals taken as dietary supplements. So, don’t rely on pills to give you the nutrients you need! Instead, fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables at every meal.

For more information, refer to the fact sheet “More Plants on the Plate” from K-State Research and Extension. Ask for it at the Ellis County Extension Office, 601 Main, (785) 628-9430, or find it online at www.ksre.ksu.edu, click on Bookstore, and then use the search function to locate the publication by title.

Linda K. Beech is Ellis County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences.

The recent Kansas Supreme Court decision in the Gannon school funding case is driving practically all of the discussion in Topeka these days, as legislators work toward a solution to the issue of equity of funding.

The court has ordered that such a solution must be in place to provide equity for all Kansas students and school districts prior to July 1, with serious consequences should the legislature fail in that quest.  Incredibly, some legislators seem to want to call the bluff of the court, daring them to follow through with the sanctions that were ordered in the Gannon ruling.

That is a very risky approach, with a very unpredictable outcome.

Fortunately, it appears that is a minority attitude, and most legislators are actively engaged in negotiations to craft a legislative solution that will pass muster with the court and deliver true equity to all Kansas schools. The current proposal in the House would make adjustments to a few weightings in the school finance formula in an attempt to provide part of the funding for the equity mandate while refining the weightings.

However, I have seen a computer run for that proposal, and if it were enacted fifteen rural school districts would be left with less state funding with no opportunity to make up the loss through increased local effort. Three of those school districts are in my legislative district. I am skeptical that an initiative to address equity of educational opportunity, and which will require over $93 million a year in new school funding, truly delivers on that promise if some school districts end up as net losers.

Additionally, there has been a major push to “bundle” a number of education policy items in the same bill that provides the equity funding. I am not a fan of such an approach, as represents an effort by someone to include policy items that do not have enough support to stand on their own merits.  They are included in the bill in an attempt to muscle them through with the funding which everyone agrees must be addressed. That is a bad legislative practice, and it can lead to the enactment of significant policy which actually lacks majority support in the legislature. Fortunately, the most egregious of the policy items have been negotiated out of the bill, and I am now at a point that I can accept those items that remain.

Our objective during the time we have left should be to craft the best possible solution to the issue of equity of school finance. We definitely have a major conversation ahead of us regarding how to define and insure adequacy of funding, but that discussion is best left for the interim and the 2015 legislative session. The court put no deadline on the adequacy issue, and in fact the three-judge panel will be wrestling with that issue for some time to come.

It is helpful and very significant that the Supreme Court stated in the Gannon decision that all funding that goes toward education should be counted toward adequacy, but that outcomes, rather than dollars, are the most appropriate yardstick for measuring adequacy. It will take a great deal of discussion, research and reflection to appropriately address adequacy, and we must not rush that decision during the remainder of the 2014 session.

Time is now running short. The Legislature is scheduled to reach first adjournment in less than a week.  We will return on April 30 for the veto or “wrap-up” session, which is currently scheduled to conclude during the first week of May. However, if the Legislature cannot reach agreement on the school funding issue this week, we will be leaving a great deal of work to be resolved during the veto session.

I doubt anyone wants to see us drawn into an extended session like we experienced last year, when the session was 99 days long, and we finally adjourned on June 1.

Rep. Don Hineman, R-Dighton, represents the 118th District in the Kansas House of Representatives.

Let’s see, it’s June, the weather is nice, the kids are out of school and you have read enough about candidates in Kansas that you decide to switch parties so you can vote for (or actually against) a candidate you like (or don’t).

Enjoy that month of June decision-making, because it’s your last one.

That’s the new law.

Republicans, who like their primary elections to be just among themselves, passed and Gov. Sam Brownback signed into law this session a bill that prohibits change of party affiliation — but not first-time party  affiliation as a new voter — after the candidate filing deadline. Previously, party affiliation could be changed about a couple weeks before the August primary.

The new bill doesn’t become effective until July 1, and the candidate filing deadline this year is June 1, so you have a month to consider whether you want to dabble in the other party’s primary election.

For the 2016 elections, you’ll have to decide which primary election you want to vote in before you know for sure who’s running.

If you’re a Democrat—and there aren’t many Democratic primary election jousts in Kansas—you might well decide that you’d rather have your local representative or senator as moderate as they come, and register Republican to tilt the vote toward the moderate. If it works, the Democratic candidate runs against a moderate Republican, and the damage to your psyche on election night isn’t as great as it might have been.

That happened in 2012, when enough Democrats changed party affiliation in at least one Senate race—moderate Sen. Vicki Schmidt, R-Topeka, vs. conservative Rep. Joe Patton, R-Topeka—to make Schmidt the winner of a close Senate primary race. The Democrat in the race? Terry Crowder, a solid Democrat in a highly Republican district. He lost, but for most purposes Democrats preferred Schmidt to Patton.

Republicans might also switch party lines to vote in Democratic primaries, but there aren’t many of them, and culturally…well, it’s difficult for Republicans to make even that brief party switch.

So, this is the last election cycle where voters are likely to learn something about who’s on the ballot before they have to settle by June 1 on which primary they want to vote in.

Or…the shut-down of party switching might just create a new majority of light-footed unaffiliated voters, who will be able to declare a party affiliation at the polls, signing up and getting a ballot.

That might become a more popular option for many Kansans who figure that they want to construct a general election with candidates who overall are more likeable to them, one in which the candidates are closer to the general election voter’s philosophies, whichever one wins.

Except, remember, after you choose a party—it doesn’t matter in the general election of course—you have to switch back to unaffiliated status sometime before the candidate filing deadline of the next election to have that late-deciding option restored.

Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver’s Capitol Report. To learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit www.hawvernews.com.

When it rains, it pours. Quite frankly, the deluge in “Noah” starts long before the flood does. I’m not entirely sure what I was expecting out of “Noah,” but it’s not what I got.

“Noah” tells a very long, very sprawling tale that goes far beyond the “animals came two by two” bit. The marketing for this picture completely skips the parts of the story that stray too far from “common knowledge.” They’re not necessarily the more religiously controversial parts, they’re simply the parts that may have been off-putting to potential viewers. Appropriately, director Darren Aronofsky is a weird dude and somehow managed to add his own special brand of weird frosting on to this already odd cake.

The technical aspects of “Noah” are impressive. The visual effects are often spectacular and the performances are strong, although not exceptional. All that said, I found it hard to enjoy any particular piece of the film because I was constantly playing catch-up. There’s a joke to be made about poorly edited action films where henchmen appear out of nowhere – that mixed feeling of slightly humorous frustration was increasingly present the further that “Noah” delved into scriptural literalism.

Ironically, the third act of “Noah” felt like it ran roughly 40 days and 40 nights. I was hoping for more time to spent in the construction of the ark. That’s what the movie pitched, and that’s where a real gem could have been found.

In truth, “Noah” succeeds in many areas that it had no right to succeed in. For one, it does its action scenes very well — they were never compelling, but they did serve the film. All in all, “Noah” is a strong effort and should be commended for its bravery to make a film in such uncertain waters.

4 of 6 stars

James Gerstner works at Fort Hays State University Foundation.

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Dear Dave,
I’m considering a career change and becoming a financial adviser. It would mean a 45 percent cut in salary for three to four years, and I’d have to take on debt in order to survive the cut. Is this a smart move?
Travis

Dear Travis,
No, it’s not. You didn’t give me a lot of details about what kind of “financial adviser” you’re thinking about becoming, but there are all kinds of people who put themselves in the category of financial adviser. A little voice in my head tells me you’re actually talking about life insurance sales. If that’s the case, then there are some things you need to understand. One, you wouldn’t be a financial adviser; you’d be an insurance salesman. And two, there’s about an 80 percent fallout in that world. Eighty percent of the people who start as insurance salesmen don’t make it in that line of work.

Now, you could be making $200,000 right now. And if that were the case, you’d still be making good money while this new career takes root. Still, I’m not going to send you into debt for a career change. There’s got to be a way around that, whether it’s delivering pizzas at night or beginning your career change on a part-time basis before making the jump.

Travis, I want you to live your dream. I also have no qualms about you going into the financial world if it’s what you really want to do with your life. But I’m not going to tell you it’s okay to go tens of thousands—maybe even hundreds of thousands—of dollars into debt to make it happen. Going deeply into debt to become a financial adviser sounds pretty oxymoronic to me. Doesn’t it to you?

Don’t do something really dumb with money in the name of advising other people on their finances. That just seems wrong.

—Dave

Dave Ramsey is America’s trusted voice on money and business. He has authored four New York Times best-selling books: Financial Peace, More Than Enough, The Total Money Makeover and EntreLeadership. His newest book, written with his daughter Rachel Cruze, is titled Smart Money Smart Kids. It will be released April 22nd. The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 6 million listeners each week on more than 500 radio stations. Follow Dave on Twitter at @DaveRamsey and on the web at daveramsey.com.