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Kansas State SAT Scores Continue a Gradual Decline
Read more: Kansas State SAT Scores Continue a Gradual DeclineIn the post titled State SAT scores continue a gradual decline, Kansas Liberty reports on the latest Scholastic Aptitude Test scores for Kansas college-bound students. The results? Scores are declining. The post connects the decline in scores to the Kansas Supreme Court’s 2005 mandate to increase spending on Kansas schools by a large amount. A…
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Carol Rupe, Kansas School Board Member, Speaks for the Wichita School Bond Issue
Read more: Carol Rupe, Kansas School Board Member, Speaks for the Wichita School Bond IssueIn a letter to the Wichita Eagle, Kansas school board member Carol Rupe makes the case for supporting the Wichita school bond issue. It’s not remarkable that a member of the public school bureaucracy would support increased spending on schools. Her letter is remarkable, however, in what it says, and what it doesn’t say. For…
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The Problem of Environmental Calculation
Read more: The Problem of Environmental CalculationOne of the things about radical environmentalists is that they seem to learn a lesson, only to fail to learn from it. What do I mean? Recently, New York Times writer David Pogue rehashed in a column titled The Bottom Line of the Eco Balance Sheet the “calculus of green” as it relates to the…
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Kansas Blog Roundup for August 29, 2008
Read more: Kansas Blog Roundup for August 29, 2008Kansas bloggers were hard at work again this week, covering a wide variety of topics. A Wichita blog that’s been around for a while but has recently undergone a change in direction is Wichita Art Directory. This blog contains wonderful images of the works of many Wichita artists. Also useful is an extensive list of…
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A Flood of New Wichita Public School Students: The Other Story
Read more: A Flood of New Wichita Public School Students: The Other StoryIn a letter to the editor in the August 28, 2008 Wichita Eagle, Wichitan Frank LaForge makes the case for voting for the Wichita school bond issue in 2008. While doing this he inadvertently makes the case for widespread school choice in Kansas and Wichita.
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Being Open and Transparent: A Sedgwick County Commissioner’s View
Read more: Being Open and Transparent: A Sedgwick County Commissioner’s ViewYesterday (August 27, 2008) I testified briefly at a meeting of the Sedgwick County Commission opposing the formation of a tax increment financing (TIF) district that will benefit a Wichita political insider. My concern that I wanted the commissioners to be aware of is was that the applicant, Wichita school board member Reverend Kevass Harding,…
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Wichita Mayor and City Council Prefer to Work Out of Media Spotlight
Read more: Wichita Mayor and City Council Prefer to Work Out of Media SpotlightIn a statement read at the August 26, 2008 meeting of the Wichita City Council (see City Council Acts on Arena Area Redevelopment), Wichita Mayor Carl Brewer expressed his concern that “The naysayers have gotten too much media attention while those who are engaged and do the hard work are too often ignored and criticized.”…
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Wichita School District Dodges TIF District Issue
Read more: Wichita School District Dodges TIF District IssueAt the August 25, 2008 meeting of the board of USD 259, the Wichita public school district, John Todd and I addressed the board members, asking that they exercise their veto power over the formation of a tax increment financing (TIF) district recently created by the City of Wichita. My remarks may be read in…
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Wichita School District: Don’t Give Up Your Tax and Revenue Base
Read more: Wichita School District: Don’t Give Up Your Tax and Revenue BaseOn August 5, 2008, the Wichita City Council greatly expanded an existing tax increment financing district. This board has 30 days from then to veto the city’s action. I want to explain why this board should do just that.
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Analysis of Kansas Wind Power Prospects
Read more: Analysis of Kansas Wind Power ProspectsIn the post Is Sebelius’ call for more wind-power all hot air? Kansas Liberty reporter Holly Smith provides excellent analysis of the current situation regarding additional wind power generation in Kansas.
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Kansas Blog Roundup for August 22, 2008
Read more: Kansas Blog Roundup for August 22, 2008In Kansas this week, some blogs are quiet, but others pick up the slack with some worthwhile posts. The Kansas Progress questions the actions of the Kansas Traditional Republican Majority in Actions by liberal group denounced by state GOP. The Kansas Republican Assembly blog has a two-part series of posts covering how Kansas has become…
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Kansas Can’t Do Much Locally To Counter Global Greenhouse Gas Emitters
Read more: Kansas Can’t Do Much Locally To Counter Global Greenhouse Gas EmittersA recent op-ed piece in the Wichita Eagle (Reader View: Give up on Climate Efforts?) makes the case that it is still important to fight climate change at the local level, here in Kansas. “When millions of people act, even in small ways, it has a cumulative effect on the planet.” The problem is that…