Chad Frey

Rural America has always been inhabited by optimists.

For the last 18 years I have worked in conflict settings all around the world.

If reviving rural Kansas were a simple task, someone would have done it already.Sadly, rural areas throughout our nation have struggled for decades, as cities and suburbs grew and attracted talent.

While the Ku Klux Klan in Kansas, like elsewhere across the country, purported to support decency, the family and white supremacy, it was also a vehicle for attacking business rivals and members of the Catholic Church.

According to data published by the Pew Charitable Trusts, an affiliate of the Pew Research Center, Kansas ranks dead last in the country on the share of state revenue that comes from federal funds.Across the country, the percentage of state revenue from federal funds ranges from about a quarter to more than half of state revenue and according to Pew, a higher or lower percentage does not necessarily indicate a problem for state budgets.The highest and lowest ranked states vary greatly — and perhaps challenge some partisan stereotypes about federal spending.