Even with the damage of Sam Brownback’s failed tax “experiment” visible in the rear-view mirror, the Kansas Chamber and others have begun pushing for a “flat” (one-rate) income tax, significantly benefiting wealthy individuals and large multinational corporations at the expense of working-class Kansans.
Most people know that getting enough sleep is important for their health, but many do not realize that there are specific health benefits that come from getting a good night’s sleep. Getting enough sleep can improve your mood, help you maintain a healthy weight, and reduce your risk of chronic health problems like diabetes and heart disease.
Dear Doctors: I faceplanted while ice skating and got a big bruise on my chest. The skin on that part of my breast got puckered up, and my mom kind of freaked. She says it can be a symptom of breast cancer. Is that true? Should I be worried? The bruise and the puckering are both gone now.
As Congress rolls out its latest theatrical production concerning the “debt ceiling,” the same old lines from the same old script are enjoying new life. New York Magazine’s Jonathan Chait calls Republican noises about perhaps not just automatically supporting increased government borrowing “extortion” and a “blatant violation of democratic legitimacy” (because, as you no doubt learned in junior high civics class, even entertaining the idea of not voting in favor of Jonathan Chait’s priorities is forbidden by the US Constitution).
Legislative Session 2023 has started out rather slow but is now picking up steam. Monday, January 30th, was already day 22 out of the 90 day session. So far, conversations have been focused on water, particularly in Western Kansas and the Ogallala Aquifer, funding for private and parochial schools through school choice, the regulation of abortion at the local level, and a few constitutional amendments.
Dear Doctors: I live in Boston, and the news here seems to be f ixated on a brand-new COVID-19 variant. Omicron was all everyone talked about for a long time. Does this mean the new variant we are hearing about is worse? What are we supposed to do to protect ourselves?
It makes me tired just to think how many miles Glen Clopton and his colleagues spent behind the wheel of an automobile during their time on the Highway Patrol. In the early 1950s, for instance, Glen’s patrol car was due for overhauling. In 22 months, it had been driven 103,377 miles (70% of them by Glen), an average of 4,695 miles a month. Those cars, Ford DLs, used 13.3 miles per gallon and operating cost was 3.2 cents per mile. (I don’t know for sure what gasoline cost per gallon back then, but I’m sure that today’s prices would have boosted that operating cost by a bunch.)
This editorial is a very difficult editorial to write there is so much emotion attached to the issues and decisions that need to be made, difficulty is expected. Enrollment is shrinking in the public school system.
A trophy for everyone world I appreciated the “Credit for Breathing” column by John Richard Schrock in the January 26th edition of the Kansan. He hit the nail on the head regarding the plight of education in America.
Dear Doctors: I have shared my home with pets my whole life. I am now a 76-year-old widow, and my menagerie is down to two small dogs. I just saw on the news that pets keep you mentally sharp. Is that true? I’d like to be able to reassure my sons that my furry companions are a boon and not a burden.