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Life-death wishes: It depends
Tuesday, April 5, 2005
It seems that everyone has an opinion about the Terri Schiavo case, and I am no exception. When it comes to the question of whether she should have lived or died, I answer unequivocally, "It depends."

Kansas needs taxpayer amendment
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
After reading two columns last month ("Legislative proposal troubling," Dec. 8) and ("State tax burden not out of line," Dec. 20) in which law professor Mike Hoeflich and economics professor Joshua Rosenbloom argue against a Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR), against lower taxes and say that state government spending is not out of line, I wonder whether they are using fuzzy math.

KU women can do the math
Thursday, February 3, 2005
Every few years the old canard about how women can't do math and science raises its ugly head. The most recent incarnation is due to Larry Summers, the president of Harvard. He could have looked at the atmosphere for women at his particular institution, which is comparatively unpleasant even in the elite old boy company it keeps. Down the street at MIT, for example, a woman is president. Instead he decided to raise such questions as whether women are less suited to these professions than men.

Caution needed on 'pharm' crops
Tuesday, January 4, 2005
A recent editorial implied that words of caution concerning the introduction of pharmaceutical or industrial use crops into Kansas was grounded in pessimism.

Alternative high school serves as asset for Lawrence district
Monday, December 6, 2004
When Lawrence Alternative High School closes at the end of this school year, the Lawrence educational system will lose a valuable asset.

Economic ranking oversells state
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
In May, business magazine Forbes proclaimed Kansas as the state with the greatest amount of economic freedom.

‘No one can tell me how to vote'
Thursday, October 28, 2004
Single-issue voting worries me. That a citizen would make an election decision based on one position expressed by a candidate, regardless of competence, credential, record and experience is dismaying. My concerns about these decisions were brought into focus last Sunday by a letter included with our church bulletin.

Parties should leave Nader alone
Tuesday, October 5, 2004
Democrats have accused Republicans of engaging in "undemocratic" rhetoric with GOP suggestions that a vote for John Kerry is a victory for the terrorists. But in their fight over independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader, both parties have shown contempt for the democratic process.

Heroes deserve our thanks
Monday, October 4, 2004
Heroes pass through our lives and provide glimpses of the grace and power in giving to others. I would like to talk about thanking three such heroes who "visited" my life.

Imagining a better world
Monday, September 27, 2004
Some 30 years ago, someone observed that we were facing not just a multitude of environmental crises but a crisis of crises. For a while there was enough recognition of this situation that a great deal of progress was made. Air pollution decreased, endangered species were protected, there were efforts to increase energy efficiency and so on. Now, however, in spite of much additional research, many successful programs, several international conferences and agreements, and unending efforts by numerous nonprofit and advocacy organizations, the problems are becoming ever greater.

Schools need longer days, later start
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Lawrence public schools opened on Aug. 11 this year. I think this date is simply too early for several reasons.

Take a stand: Global warming a natural cycle
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
Generally speaking, one would have to expect Leonard Krishtalka, director of the Kansas University Museum of Natural History, ("Environmental Family Values," Journal-World, Aug. 19) to be a source of wisdom and correct information.

Rush is right; Missouri is king
Tuesday, August 17, 2004
As a Lawrence resident and liberal Democrat who once attended Kansas University, I consider it an honor and a privilege to be hated by Rush Limbaugh.

City needs change in government
Friday, August 13, 2004
We have outgrown our current form of city government. Lawrence has had the ceremonial mayor and at-large commissioner form of government since 1950, when our population was 18,600. More than 50 years later and 60,000 more residents, this form of government is antiquated.

Take a stand: How about points for KU loyalty?
Wednesday, August 11, 2004
I received my basketball ticket order form in the mail yesterday and the new procedure is that we are to send in our money and wait to be told how many tickets we will receive and where we will sit. I called the Williams Fund and asked whether we can get a refund if we're not happy with our seating assignment. As you might guess, the answer was no.

Private schools play vital role
Monday, August 9, 2004
Recent letters to the editor and op-ed pieces addressing concerns about funding and enrollment of the Lawrence public schools have suggested that the various private schools of Lawrence -- Bishop Seabury Academy, Century School, Lawrence Catholic School, Raintree Montessori School, and Veritas Christian School -- are damaging our community. Perhaps the growth of these five schools has affected enrollment in USD 497 somewhat, but the decline in public school enrollment cannot be attributed solely to the non-public schools. More importantly, I submit that the nonpublic schools add value to Lawrence and Douglas County.

Focus more on family, community
Saturday, July 17, 2004
Families with both parents working and single parents supporting a family by working outside the home are the norm from executive suites through middle management to the shop floor. Companies compete to attract workers with a low "drag coefficient," meaning that there are few obligations outside of work to compete with their employees' attentions and commitments.

Take a stand: VNA financially sound
Tuesday, July 13, 2004
We would like to assure the community of the financial soundness of the Douglas County Visiting Nurses Assn. and our commitment and ability to continue to provide home care services to the residents of Douglas County.

Juries deserve more respect
Monday, May 31, 2004
You're summoned for jury duty. How do you react? Do you think of your busy schedule and the inconvenience? Is your first thought about how to get out of it? Do you think, let someone else do it? Probably. "Yes," probably.

Mental health challenges remain
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Your newspaper has performed an exceptional public service over the past year by highlighting issues that profoundly affect individuals with disabilities and their families.

Public education a treasure
Sunday, May 16, 2004
In spite of predictable posturing and finger-pointing by many conservative members of our esteemed Legislature, it is painfully obvious that many of that group are very satisfied with the lack of action during this recent session in regard to school funding. The hidden agenda behind the lack of funding is their desire to soon promote vouchers in order to complete their devastation of public education.

Where did children go?
Saturday, May 1, 2004
Where have all the children gone? In 1999, there were 5,595 children in elementary schools in Lawrence. Last September, there were 4,886, a loss of 709 children.

Ryun responds on education funds
Monday, April 26, 2004
Our schools, but more importantly our children, deserve our support. I have had the opportunity to visit with students and teachers in over 60 schools in the 2nd District. I have seen firsthand how well our schools are doing.

Task force chair supports smoking ban
Tuesday, April 20, 2004
As chair of a Mayor's Task Force on Environmental Tobacco Smoke, I have, during the past year, accumulated and studied a large amount of information pertaining to secondhand tobacco smoke. My review of scientific research has convinced me that nonsmokers suffer a wide range of adverse health consequences due to the smoke exhaled from the lungs of smokers or from the end of lit cigarettes.

New rules will help clear air
Friday, April 9, 2004
The governors of 15 states recently agreed to challenge the Bush Administration's plan to ease pollution-control regulations for older coal-fueled power plants in the Midwest. They claim that stringent controls from the Clinton era are needed to force utilities and industries to limit airborne emissions.

Top taxpayers could afford more
Monday, March 22, 2004
Recent letters to the editor have taken the position that our upper-income earners are paying an unfairly high share of taxes. Please allow me to set the record straight.

Smoking 'studies' misleading
Saturday, March 20, 2004
It may come as a surprise to some folks that the information gathered from advocacy sites on the Internet may have a peculiar bias and not be a reliable source of wisdom or scientific knowledge. In the past year of service on the Mayor's Task Force on Smoking, I have spent between 300-350 hours of research, some of it studying the advocacy sites so prominently available to us through common search engines.

Haskell history reflects facts
Thursday, March 18, 2004
Any writer who attempts to report on historical events can expect some readers to disagree on the facts as recorded. Because I am the writer responsible for the text in the Lawrence 150th Anniversary Book, I knew what I wrote about Haskell might be controversial. It is, however, as accurate as my considerable research in the time allowed could make it. I relied heavily on information in old issues of the Haskell Leader, Haskell's own newspaper, and on other contemporary newspaper reports about the school.

Diversity not new in America
Friday, March 12, 2004
Local attention has been raised in the community that suggests that, if "Americans" do not prepare themselves for demographic transformations taking place here in Kansas involving Hispanics, the consequences could be dangerous. Some fear that the influx of Hispanic immigrants will threaten society by creating a "nation of two peoples, two cultures and two languages." Let me extend my apologies to those who view me or my children as a threat or danger to the Lawrence community.

In marriage and life, equal is equal
Thursday, February 19, 2004
So, 38 states have now passed laws making marriage between two people of the same gender unlawful. The president and Kansas lawmakers are considering constitutional amendments barring same-sex marriages. I just can't figure out why it is still OK in this country, where "all are created equal," to legislate oppressive policies toward other citizens who are not in the majority -- people different than "us," whoever "we" are.

Schools put athletics in their place
Friday, February 6, 2004
In 1954, the presidents of eight schools entered into an agreement to improve and foster intercollegiate athletics while keeping the emphasis on such competition in harmony with the educational purposes of the institutions. Three years later, the conference they created held its first athletic events.

Quality care still a state priority
Tuesday, January 27, 2004
As a Kansas state representative and as a nursing facility administrator, I was involved in garnering legislative and executive support for a move of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) nursing home survey responsibility, the Bureau of Adult Care Facilities, to the Kansas Department on Aging (KDOA).

U.S. can't force its values on others
Friday, January 23, 2004
Our leaders keep talking about our war on the terrorists as if we are chasing the Jesse James Gang. We have been led to believe there is a mean little group out there who want to destroy democracy. It is not a small group, or a mean gang; it is whole nations of people, whole nations of people who consider Americans arrogant bullies. They don't hate democracy or freedom; they hate our politicians who are totally insensitive.

Partisan stand defies logic
Monday, January 5, 2004
Enough already! It's probably a bad idea to respond to yet another partisan screed while the smoke is still coming out of the ears. But "The case for party loyalty" was just too much for me.

The case for party loyalty
Thursday, January 1, 2004
Forty years ago, as a college student, a professor in my introductory political science course taught us that one should always vote a straight-party ticket, as opposed to voting for any individual candidate. He theorized that any single elected official could seldom accomplish any real good, but was definitely capable of a great deal of harm. The philosophy of the party, for efficient function, was more important than any individual. This appears prophetic today when I reflect upon the dismal state of partisan politics and yet another upcoming presidential election.

Tax abatements not effective
Monday, December 22, 2003
The editorial "No Guarantees" (Journal-World, Dec. 14) argues against returning to the use of "but for" analysis as part of the city's tax abatement policy. There are multiple meanings to the concept of "but for" analysis.

New company gets helping hand
Saturday, December 20, 2003
Imagine trying to establish a new start-up pharmaceutical company anywhere in the United States over the past 12 months. We have many friends and colleagues who have bemoaned the national economic downturn in the biotechnology sector during 2002-03. Their efforts to start or grow new companies on either the East or West Coast have been met largely with disappointment and the inability to raise sufficient working capital.

Honesty marked Burroughs' work
Tuesday, December 16, 2003
William S. Burroughs' books are not for everyone, that's for sure. But he and his works are known and admired the world over, by literally millions of fans.

Center is heart-warming, heart-wrenching place
Saturday, December 13, 2003
A couple of months ago, while I was visiting my mom, her next door neighbor, Marceil Lauppe, popped by for a few moments. Marceil and her husband, George, have been our family's friends and neighbors since we moved to Lawrence in 1975. Marceil mentioned that the Community Drop-In Center had a couple vacancies on the board and invited me to attend the next board meeting.

Schools need parents' attention
Saturday, November 15, 2003
I was recently involved in the planning of a meeting, which took place last week, to address the No Child Left Behind legislation and program. Early on, it was decided that our focus group would include parents, teachers, staff, and community members. The idea was to get very basic information together and out to these stakeholder groups of our school district. My particular duty was to connect with each site council and PTA/PTO in each of our schools.

Uneasy parallels to Vietnam
Wednesday, November 12, 2003
Last week, Marine veterans met at the Dole Institute of Politics to celebrate the Marine Corps birthday. However, the ceremony this year was more subdued with a different feeling, a somber mood, not celebratory as before. The veterans were aware at the very moment they were celebrating in Lawrence, other young Marines were fast becoming combat veterans and casualties in another war in a far off land, an extension of America's political process.

Day honors veterans' sacrifice
Tuesday, November 11, 2003
I find it disheartening that some Americans actually complain about Veterans Day activities and, within themselves, feel no appreciation of their meaning. It indicates that they cannot relate our existing freedoms to the sacrifices that enable them or why we recognize these brave men and women. We have heard it before "Freedom isn't free."

Much is right with local schools
Friday, October 10, 2003
Let's take a look at how the Lawrence public schools have performed in recent months: Post-secondary attendance for Lawrence graduates is at 82 percent. Our students far exceed state targets in attendance, graduation, state reading and math assessments. Our district met Adequate Yearly Progress as required under the No Child Left Behind Act.

Lawrence driving families away
Sunday, September 28, 2003
Randy Weseman, superintendent of public schools, announced Monday evening that, for the fourth year in a row, elementary enrollment has fallen in Lawrence. Despite building new schools and closing older schools, the elementary school population is now below the level of 1990.

LMH responds to report
Tuesday, September 23, 2003
During the past week a report was made public on established guidelines that provide one measure of evaluating the quality of care individuals receive for several diagnoses. The report focused on 25 Kansas City area hospitals that voluntarily chose to provide information. Lawrence Memorial Hospital, in our commitment to continual quality improvement, chose to participate in the report in order to provide ourselves another opportunity to evaluate our organization's performance.

Public deserves access to information on chase
Thursday, September 11, 2003
What is Police Chief Ron Olin hiding from the Journal-World and citizens of Lawrence concerning the high-speed chase that ended with the death of a fellow citizen, Judith Vellucci?
City Manager Mike Wildgen and Olin have declared that officers pursuing a 19-year-old man suspected of traffic violations followed procedures and acted properly.

Is benevolent capitalism real?
Monday, September 8, 2003
We were having dinner with friends. We had talked about lots of stuff and got to talking about the movies. We were talking about "Seabiscuit." I proposed that "Seabiscuit" demonstrated an ideal, a form of balanced and benevolent capitalism. My more cynical friends thought the idea a bit optimistic. I argued the movie was an allegory, that the owner, though interested in profit, was balanced by a desire to achieve some altruistic good.

Kansas, Utah projects parallel
Saturday, September 6, 2003
Naturalist Terry Tempest Williams believes the South Lawrence Trafficway travesty closely resembles Legacy Parkway in Utah. Gov. Mike Leavitt wants that parkway built through Great Salt Lake wetlands. Williams loves the wetlands like a member of her own family. Road-builders and developers dismiss such feelings as mere sentimentality. In her book, "Refuge" (1991) Williams describes how she felt as both her mother and her beloved wetlands faced death. Anyone doubting Native American claims that the Haskell-Baker Wetlands are a part of their family might comprehend this cultural gulf better after reading "Refuge."

Research serves unseen future
Saturday, August 30, 2003
In an editorial column published in Tuesday's Journal-World, President William Walker of Auburn University called for research that will "demonstrably promote economic development." This attitude is particularly dangerous to our country's future, for it may cause us to reduce funding for that which will bring new technologies.

Living wage is justified
Tuesday, August 19, 2003
As the City Commission's hearing on the living wage ordinance draws near, the volume of the debate has risen. Critics have made harsh allegations. The Kansas Chamber of Commerce and Industry, for example, accused the Living Wage Alliance of being a stalking horse for a national "big labor" campaign to harm Kansas business, seeking to "double, triple or quadruple" the minimum wage.

Trump cards in public policy?
Tuesday, August 12, 2003
With increasing frequency, Douglas County residents too emotionally charged or intellectually lazy to offer better are using God or the flag as a trump card to win political debates, subverting the democratic process they claim so much to love. In the groundswell of button-popping declarations of pride, rational thought and public decency are lost.

Training is the key to higher wages
Sunday, August 10, 2003
There is much discussion and effort being expended by both proponents and opponents of the living wage ordinance. Past and present news articles demonstrate how contentious, emotional and complicated the issue has become.

Abused children need care
Tuesday, July 29, 2003
Many children in foster care are not victims of abuse or neglect. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius recently announced that the child abuse and neglect hot line was being brought "in-house" starting Aug. 19. This is good news for children who are victims of abuse or neglect. But what if the "house" is full? That is, what if there are not enough foster homes to provide a safe home for these children because the Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services uses so many of these homes for children who are not victims of abuse or neglect?

Everyone is a watchdog for local police
Sunday, July 27, 2003
We have to be our own watchdogs. Recently, the ACLU publicly suggested the formation of a citizens group in Lawrence to watch the police. My initial reaction was that it wouldn't do any harm. Then, on Sunday, July 13, the J-W proposed that if such a group were formed it should include broad, citywide representation. That's when it struck me that the whole thing is a bad idea.

Slavery, race were separate issues in early Kansas
Sunday, July 13, 2003
As a professor of U.S. history, I applaud every effort to visit the past anew, asking and trying to answer questions with honesty. I believe one of the traps to be avoided is oversimplification, which often manifests itself as unthinking celebration. For this reason, I believe Rita Napier does a service to the people of Kansas and to the study of the past with the new collection of essays she has edited. ("Kansas and the West: New Perspectives")

Parents: Be wary in Lawrence
Thursday, July 10, 2003
A few weeks ago, my 17-year-old daughter and I were visiting Lawrence to attend a wedding. Saturday evening, after the festivities concluded, we strolled down Massachusetts Street to window shop and soak up the atmosphere. Since she was considering attending KU, I thought it would be a good idea for her to see for herself the fun that goes on -- the street musicians, the cafes and the friendly atmosphere for which Lawrence is known. After a while, I decided to return to the hotel and leave her to explore for an hour or so on her own.

You and I aren't much different
Tuesday, July 8, 2003
I am not proud to have lived for 10 years in a house whose rent has been partially paid by government subsidies. Neither do I live there completely by choice.

Kansas athletics joins the big time
Sunday, July 6, 2003
Jayhawks fans need a reality check. I am a Florida grad who, by marriage and current address, has become a huge fan of Kansas University. I'm a fan of all KU sports, but right now the Williams Fund men's basketball season ticket issue needs to be addressed.

Investigation incomplete, former student claims
Sunday, June 29, 2003
I am writing to share my disappointment with KU's "investigation" of Professor Dennis Dailey's teaching methods in classes relating to sexuality. I was Sen. Susan Wagle's intern during the legislative session and was also enrolled in Human Sexuality in Everyday Life.

Provost responds: Dailey charges baseless
Sunday, June 29, 2003
My monthlong investigation of Sen. Susan Wagle's complaint against KU Prof. Dennis Dailey was thorough and objective. I reviewed class documents, Dailey's qualifications to teach the course, his response to the allegations, testimonials from students who had taken the class and Dailey's teaching evaluations for the past five years. I interviewed Jessica Zahn and reviewed the McGraw-Hill textbook and audiovisual materials used in the course.

Retiree affirms choice of Lawrence as home
Sunday, June 22, 2003
Retirement isn't for everyone. Some can. Some can't. Many don't want to. If you happen to be an Eskimo or a yak herder in Tibet there isn't much choice. You don't retire, and you don't move to Sun City. You keep on working or you live with family until you die.

Tolerance is community job
Wednesday, June 18, 2003
The recent incident in Lawrence in which a young man with disabilities was beaten by a group of teens as he walked home alone has wounded many people in our community. For the young man, Josh Graves, it is a cruel lesson that having a disability can provoke a physical assault. It was also a physically and emotionally painful way to begin his summer vacation.

Tax could meet local needs
Sunday, June 15, 2003
I was tempted to make this about sports. But it's not about sports, not really. Sports have been important in my life; football provided me with a college education, the first in my family. Though it's tempting to extol the virtues of athletic competition, this isn't about sports; it's about public education.

Tax for sports not justified
Sunday, June 15, 2003
When on Saturday, May 31, the Lawrence Journal-World front-paged the news of a request for the city to pay $1.4 million to take over the Lawrence school district's extracurricular sports program, I thought it a possible hoax or joke.

Schools fuel soda-pop trend
Thursday, June 12, 2003
At 6 p.m. Friday, Bryan Thompson of Kansas Kids Health.org will be host of a panel of concerned experts at a town meeting at the Topeka Statehouse, Room 313, concerning the increasing prevalence of childhood obesity. One of the things that Bryan mentioned in his radio broadcast on KANU this past week was concern about the prevalence of soda pop and its link to the increase of childhood obesity.

ROTC a vital training tool for U.S. military
Sunday, May 25, 2003
The day after Kansas University's annual commencement, in a ceremony in the Kansas Union Ballroom, 18 special young men and women were commissioned as officers in the armed services of the United States.