Voice For Liberty

Category: Quick takes

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Tuesday January 18, 2011

    Education reformer to speak in Kansas. Next week the Kansas Policy Institute hosts education reform expert Dr. Matthew Ladner at several events in Kansas. In Wichita, he will speak at a free breakfast event on Tuesday January 25th. Information on that event and those in Topeka and Overland Park can be found at Kansas Policy Institute Upcoming Events. Ladner, of the Goldwater Institute, will speak on the topic “Good to Great — Lessons for Kansas from Florida’s education revolution.” Florida has been at the forefront of education reform in recent years, according to a study by EducationNext. Kansas, on the other hand, ranks very low in studies that look at education reform among the states. An invitation to the Wichita event is here. RSVPs are requested by January 20th.

    Wichita council candidate websites spotted. This is not a comprehensive list of candidates. Instead, these are city council candidates’ websites that have been noticed. District 2, currently held by Sue Schlapp, who may not run due to term limits: Steve Harris, Paul Savage, Charlie Stevens. … District 3, currently held by Roger Smith on an interim basis: Clinton Coen, James Clendenin…. District 4, currently held by Paul Gray, who may not run due to term limits: Joshua Blick, Michael O’Donnell. … District 5, currently held by Jeff Longwell: Jeff Longwell, Lynda Tyler.

    Schools’ funding claims questioned. “Much of the increase in state spending for schools since 2005 has accumulated in cash reserve funds rather than being spent in classrooms, according to an analysis of unencumbered cash reserves held by districts.” The Kansas Watchdog story by Paul Soutar continues: “Carryover cash in accessible district funds has increased by $306 million since 2005, the year the Kansas Supreme Court’s Montoy decision went into effect. Cash in these funds grew to about $743 in 2010, up $187 million since 2008. The carryover, or unencumbered cash, is money appropriated in previous years but not spent and with no claims against it for unpaid bills or other obligations. The cash accumulates in more than 30 distinct funds.” … The balances in these funds rise when money is not spent as fast as it is put in. School districts argue that they need some fund balances — and they do — but the growing balances, year after year for most districts, undermines the claims of school spending advocates.

    Kansas schools rated. “Kansas elementary and secondary schools rose one spot in a new national performance ranking, but are still below the U.S. average and many other states, the publishers of Education Week reported this week. The publication’s 15th annual ‘Quality Counts’ survey of how precollegiate schools are faring across the nation, ranks Kansas’ performance 37th in the nation, up one place from last year’s assessment, but still lower than the national average.” The Kansas reporter story mentions state school board member Walt Chappell and his concern that Kansas’ state-controlled student achievement scores — which show rapidly rising performance — may not be valid or reliable: “Even so, the Education Week rankings and others like them are important, said Walt Chappell, a state board of education member who in the past has expressed skepticism about claims of educational excellence that he believes don’t square with students’ college entrance exams or the state’s double digit high school dropout rates. At the very least, ‘here is another outside observer taking another look at our schools and telling us there is room for improvement,’ Chappell said.”

    Insurance costs on the rise in Kansas. From Kansas Reporter: “Health insurance premiums have gone up 5 to 7 percent in Kansas because of the federal Patient Affordable Care Act, an underwriters’ group official told lawmakers Thursday.” Mandates for increased coverage are seen as a cause.

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Monday January 17, 2011

    Kansas legislature website. While there has been some improvement to the Kansas Legislature website, major problems remain. Some calendars and journals are available, but not in time to be useful. … Documents like calendars and journals are presented in OpenDocument format. This is a document format that not all website visitors may be able to open on their computers. Generally, the ubiquitous Adobe pdf format is used for documents like these, as this is a useful format that nearly all computers, even mobile devices like an Iphone, can open and view. … Bills are presented in pdf format, although still in an unconventional viewing frame that reduces functionality and ease of use. … Some files are presented with file names like “sb1_00_0000.zip.odt” which might be an attempt to deliver an OpenDocument format file in zip format. If it is, the file is misnamed and can’t be handled by most computers in the usual fashion. It would be a silly exercise to compress such small files. … Contact information is still missing for many members. … The way the statutes are presented is unusable. … At this point it seems the best course is to bring back the old legislature website. That worked.

    Federal health care reform costs. Timothy P. Carney in The Washington Examiner: “In fighting against Obamacare repeal this week, Democrats portray their health care law as a money saver, claiming Republicans would add to the deficit by abolishing the legislation. But in their franker moments, the bill’s authors admit that ‘reform’ could be something of a time bomb that will cause exploding health care costs down the line. One top Senate aide plainly stated last summer, ‘This is a coverage bill, not a cost reduction bill.’ The time-bomb nature of Obamacare was presaged by Mitt Romney’s health care bill in Massachusetts, which also expanded health insurance coverage by mandating that all individuals buy insurance, prohibiting insurers from dropping customers, and subsidizing the insurance of those with difficulty affording it.” Carney goes on to draw on the lessons of Massachusetts. … Most people seem to forget that the fiscal score of Obamacare uses ten years of taxes to pay for six years of benefits.

    This week at Wichita City Council. There will be no meeting this Tuesday. It’s not a holiday, but the day after a holiday, so the council won’t meet.

    This week at Sedgwick County Commission. Wednesday’s meeting of the Sedgwick County Commission features two grant applications. One is from the Kansas Department of Transportation for a public transit assistance program. The second is also to KDOT for a rural general public transpiration program. From a quick look at the applications — they are lengthy — both require a local matching share. From a public policy perspective, this is the way governments control the levels of government below them: they tax, and then send back the tax money to be used for specific programs, while requiring that even more money be spent. … Also several appointments to boards such as Greater Wichita Economic Development Coalition will be made, marking a transition away from commission members who favor a free market approach to economic development to those who favor increased government activism in this area.

    Eisenhower on military industrial complex. President Dwight D. Eisenhower was concerned about the military industrial complex for two reasons, writes Christopher Preble in Eisenhower’s Lament. First, there was the opportunity costs of military spending. Then, there are the political and social costs of the U.S. becoming a “garrison state.” In conclusion, Preble writes: “But I suspect that the permanence of the MIC would be most disturbing to President Eisenhower, were he with us now. Twenty years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Americans today spend more on the military than at any time since World War II, and more than twice as much — in inflation-adjusted dollars — than when Ike left office. The general-president clearly failed to convince his fellow Americans of the need to limit the military’s growth. For all practical purposes, the MIC won.”

    Rasmussen last week. “Support for repeal of the national health care law passed last year remains steady, as most voters continue to believe the law will increase the federal budget deficit.” See here. … A huge margin think that federal health care reform will cost more than official estimates. See 75% Think Health Care Law May Cost More Than Estimated. … Most don’t feel politics was motive for Arizona shootings. See here. … Few say stricter gun control laws would prevent such shootings; see here.

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Sunday January 16, 2011

    Wichita swoons over Boston attention. The self-congratulatory back-patting by a group of Wichitans over attention paid by a Boston Globe travel writer is starting to be embarrassing for us. The Wichita Eagle article on this topic mentions chicken-fried steak and biscuits and gravy in its opening sentence, a sure sign that the article will attempt to draw a contrast between our image and our purported reality. Which is, if I understand, mostly street statues, the Old Mill Tasty Shop, and Exploration Place. … As it turns out, Geoff Edgers, the writer, has a financial motive in his praise of Wichita. On his initial visit: “Festival directors put up Edgers, his wife and two small children at the Hotel at Old Town.” Now Wichitans are raising money to help the writer, who is also a filmmaker, get his movie on television, and “the Wichita groups offered to raise money to help Edgers’ get his film shortened and syndicated for public broadcasting. … If he raises $2,500 while in Wichita next month, Edgers intends to include a ‘thank-you’ to Wichita in the credits of his syndicated film.”

    Harm of expanding government explained. Introducing his new book Back on the Road to Serfdom: The Resurgence of Statism, Thomas E. Woods, Jr. writes: “The economic consequences of an expanded government presence in American life are of course not the only outcomes to be feared, and this volume considers a variety of them. For one thing, as the state expands, it fosters the most antisocial aspects of man’s nature, particularly his urge to attain his goals with the least possible exertion. And it is much easier to acquire wealth by means of forcible redistribution by the state than by exerting oneself in the service of one’s fellow man. The character of the people thus begins to change; they expect as a matter of entitlement what they once hesitated to ask for as charity. That is the fallacy in the usual statement that ‘it would cost only $X billion to give every American who needs it’ this or that benefit. Once people realize the government is giving out a benefit for ‘free,’ more and more people will place themselves in the condition that entitles them to the benefit, thereby making the program ever more expensive. A smaller and smaller productive base will have to strain to provide for an ever-larger supply of recipients, until the system begins to buckle and collapse.” … Phrases like “smaller and smaller productive base” apply in Wichita, where our economic development policies like tax increment financing, community improvement districts, and tax abatement through industrial revenue bonds excuse groups of taxpayers from their burdens, leaving a smaller group of people to pay the costs of government.

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Wednesday January 12, 2011

    iPhone screen

    New Kansas Legislature website. The Kansas Legislature website is now online. But important parts don’t work, and other parts of it are a move backwards in functionality. … Journals and calendars are not available. There are links, but they don’t work. These are very important documents. … The text of some bills are available, but not for all. For the bills that are available, the pdf opens in an unusual and non-standard frame. At least in my testing, the window can’t be resized or maximized for easier reading. … In the list of bills, resolutions appear, but only the number appears, without a caption. … The search feature that is supplied doesn’t seem to reach into the text of bills. … The roster of members is inconvenient. Instead of a list of 125 House members in which you can scroll rapidly to find a member, now there is an interface where the members are listed on 11 separate tabs. Which tab would I click on to find a representative whose name started with “S”? … On the page for each member, their hometown is missing. The old system had links to maps of the members’ districts and another link to demographic information. Not so for the new. … Finally, I can’t find a link to the audio of the House and Senate sessions. … Dave Larson, Director of Legislative Computer Services, was apologetic in a telephone call. He said consultants are working hard on bringing important parts of the website online, and he listened to my opinion as to which sections are most important.

    Few states, including Kansas, have good charter school laws. In a press release, the Center for Education Reform says: “Only 11 states and the District of Columbia have charter school laws that do not require significant improvements in order to allow for the effective creation and growth of these innovative school options, according to a new study and legislative blueprint released today by The Center for Education Reform (CER). Of the rest, 14 states received a grade of ‘C’, and 15 a ‘D’ or ‘F’ for their laws governing charter schools in CER’s Charter School Laws Across the States.” Kansas receives a grade of “F” and its charter school law is ranked fourth weakest among the 41 states that have such laws. More information is at charter schools laws across the states.

    Will on Tuscon shootings. “It would be merciful if, when tragedies such as Tucson’s occur, there were a moratorium on sociology. But respites from half-baked explanations, often serving political opportunism, are impossible because of a timeless human craving and a characteristic of many modern minds.” Indeed. More from George Will on this matter at Charlatans Rise To Explain Unexplainable.

    Public safety director at Pachyderm. Bob Lamkey, Director of Sedgwick County Division of Public Safety, will speak this Friday (January 14) at the Wichita Pachyderm Club on the topic “An Overview of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC).” This group is studying overcrowding at the Sedgwick County Jail. … As a bonus, from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm Lamkey will take interested Pachyderm Club members and guests on a tour of the Sedgwick County Emergency Operations Center and 911 Center located in the Sedgwick County Public Safety Center building at 714 N. Main. … The public is welcome and encouraged to attend Wichita Pachyderm meetings. For more information click on Wichita Pachyderm Club.

    Kansas state sovereignty rally. This Friday (January 14) it’s the third annual Kansas state sovereignty rally in Topeka. Speakers include Senator Dick Kelsey, Secretary of State Kris Kobach, Kansas Policy Institute President Dave Trabert, and Jeff Lewis of the Patriot Coalition. There is transportation from Wichita. For more information, click on third annual Kansas state sovereignty rally.

    AFP Kansas podcasts. The Kansas chapter of Americans for Prosperity launches its first podcast. Click on AFP Kansas podcasts.

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Tuesday January 11, 2011

    Legislature website still down. Last week visitors to the Kansas Legislature website were greeted with a message indicating that an upgrade would be forthcoming. As of this moment, that message is replace with a generic error message and the site is not working. In a phone call yesterday, a clerk said the site would — hopefully — be available yesterday afternoon. The legislature’s site needed an update, as parts of it were frustrating to work with. But with it not working at all, Kansans are missing out on vital information. For example, it is not possible to remotely retrieve the Legislature’s calendars and journals.

    Treasurer to ask for more information. In an effort to return more unclaimed property, new Kansas state treasurer Ron Estes will ask the legislature to allow him to obtain contact information from other state agencies. See Treasurer wants more data so office can return property.

    Wichita CID proposals delayed. Proposals for two Community Improvement Districts in Wichita have been delayed from consideration at today’s Wichita City Council meeting. More information about these two proposals is at In Wichita, two large community improvement districts proposed. Today’s action would have simply accepted the petitions, setting a public hearing and approval — or not — for a future date. … In editorializing against these CIDs, the Wichita Eagle’s Rhonda Holman wrote: “As it was, insufficient time had been allowed for staff vetting of the proposals and thorough consideration by the council and public.” Time and time again, city staff assures the public that they have thoroughly vetted developers and projects, but here is another example of why citizens need to be wary of city hall bureaucrats. … In summary, Holman writes: “The council needs to treat the CID designations as the hidden tax hikes that they are — and use them only where and when they are mission critical, such as to implementing the Goody Clancy downtown master plan.. … By that standard, these two proposals don’t even come close.”

    Longwell on citizen knowledge. My reporting on Wichita City Council member Jeff Longwell and his attitude towards citizen knowledge reminded me of a similar incident from the past. Recently, Longwell spoke in favor of signs telling shoppers that they’re about to enter a store that relies on Community Improvement District financing. But the signs would not tell shoppers how much extra tax they would be paying. Longwell said “So having something on the front door that says we are financing this with a CID tax, where they’re made well aware that it’s collected there, I think to try and include a percentage might even add some confusion as we collect different CID taxes around the city.” In other words, giving citizens too much information will confuse them. … In 2008, when a matter was rushed through the council with little time to study the issue, Longwell was quoted in The Wichita Eagle as saying: “It’s unlikely many residents would read the full contract even if it had been made public earlier.” … It doesn’t take many residents to read it. Just a few will usually be enough. … Not surprisingly, the matter Longwell wanted to rush through concerned taxpayer-funded welfare for Wichita theater owner Bill Warren. This is another example of how Longwell has been captured by special interests.

    State of the State tomorrow. On Wednesday, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback will deliver the State of the State Address. It will be carried in Wichita on KPTS channel 8 at 6:30 pm.

    This week at Sedgwick County Commission. Tomorrow’s meeting of the Sedgwick County Commission has a light agenda. It will be the first meeting for commissioners Richard Ranzau and Jim Skelton. At the end of the meeting, commissioners will elect a new chairman and chairman pro tem. Karl Peterjohn has been the chair for the last year. The chairman conducts the meetings and signs official documents. Speculation is that Dave Unruh, who is just starting his third term, has the inside track for election.

    Changes to Kansas campaign law recommended. Washburn University’s Bob Beatty writes about two “common sense bills” bills that the Kansas Legislature will consider this year, and which he recommends be passed “in order to help clarify for voters what they’re seeing when the political ad season begins anew.’ … The first measure would ban state officeholders from appearing in public service advertisements for a 60-day period before elections. The second would require candidates to state their approval of an advertisement. More at Fine-tuning political ads.

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Saturday January 8, 2011

    This Week in Kansas. This Sunday on This Week in Kansas, host Tim Brown produces a double-length show. The first 30 minutes will be an interview with outgoing Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson, and then a second show immediately following will feature incoming Kansas Governor Sam Brownback. This Week in Kansas airs on KAKE TV channel 10, Sunday morning at 9:00 am.

    Tax cuts are not a cost to government. In an article in the Lawrence Journal-World discussing the possibility of repealing the Kansas statewide sales tax increase, reporter Scott Rothschild makes the same error that most media outlets do: he says that cutting taxes is a cost to government: “Repeal of the levy would cost state government another $300 million per year.” The only way tax cuts constitute a cost to government is if you believe that our property — all of it — belongs first to government. Instead, taxes are a cost that people and business pay, and reducing them is a savings for the parties that really matter. How about writing this instead: “Repeal of the levy would reduce revenues to the state by an estimated $300 million.” And if the Journal-World wanted to be accurate, it could add “This action would leave those funds in the productive private sector rather than transferring them to the wasteful and inefficient public sector.”

    Sedgwick County officeholders to be sworn in. On Sunday January 9, three Sedgwick County Commissioners and a new county treasurer will be sworn in. New commissioners Jim Skelton and Richard Ranzau and returning commissioner Dave Unruh will participate. New treasurer Linda Kizzire will also be sworn in. The time is 2:00 pm, in the jury room of the courthouse. Enter on the north side.

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Friday January 7, 2011

    Education’s money. The Hutchinson News recently carried an op-ed by Jack Mace of Hutchinson titled “Education’s Money.” It starts with this: “So-called ‘conservatives’ have built a straw man; 85 percent of Kansas general funds go to education. Well, du-uh!” There is a glaring error here, so much so that I’m surprised that newspaper would print this piece without some basic fact checking. According to Kansas Fiscal Facts published by the Kansas Legislative Research Department, for fiscal year 2011, spending on all education in Kansas was 66.7 percent of general fund spending. K through 12 spending was 55.2 percent. … Other than this, Mace says that the legislature is responsible for funding education adequately but has no responsibility to determine what “adequate” means. He relies on the Kansas Constitution as the authority for requiring spending 85 percent on “adequate” education, but the actual language is: “The legislature shall make suitable provision for finance of the educational interests of the state.” … It should be noted that Mace, according to a Hutchinson News article from last year, is a teacher: “[Mace] said he is a third-generation teacher/trainer, teaching for six years in the 1980s at Hutchinson Correctional Facility. He holds a Master of Divinity degree from Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, Ind., and currently is a substitute teacher in local and area schools.” Hopefully he prepares his classroom lessons with more regard for facts than he does for his newspaper op-eds.

    Kansas websites to be presented. On Monday January 10 Americans for Prosperity is presenting an event where several Kansas websites focused on public policy and news will be presented. James Franko, Communications Director for the Kansas Policy Institute will introduce KansasOpenGov, an open window on Kansas government, giving Kansans a clear look at how their state and local tax dollars are spent. … Then Paul Soutar will present Kansas Watchdog and discuss how this news outlet is pursuing the investigative role that mainstream media has relinquished in the part few years. … Finally, I will join the group discussion on how a community activist can effectively use resources like KansasOpenGov and Kansas Watchdog. … For more information on this event contact John Todd at john@johntodd.net or 316-312-7335, or Susan Estes, AFP Field Director at sestes@afphq.org or 316-681-4415.

    Constitution. In its criticism of conservatives and their love for the Constitution, the Center for American Progress sent this message to supporters: The Constitution clearly grants Congress the authority to enact the law through the ‘Commerce Clause,’ which allows Congress to regulate the national economy, and the ‘Necessary and Proper Clause,’ which grants Congress the power ‘to make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution’ this power to regulate the economy.” This, of course, gives government the power to do almost anything, which fits right in with CAP’s goal: “Progressives recognize that the Constitution sees ‘We the people’ as the source of political power and legitimacy, and that it grants the federal government broad powers to better the nation, separates church and state, enshrines basic human and civil rights, promotes free and fair markets, and broadly protects the right to vote.” It’s laughable to see this organization pretend to be in support of “free and fair markets.”

    Constitution thought to be more than 100 years old. Leftist writer Ezra Klein, appearing on MSNBC, thinks the Constitution is confusing because it’s old: “The issue with the Constitution is not that people don’t read the text and think they’re following it. The issue with the Constitution is that the text is confusing because it was written more than a hundred years ago.” … Others have poked fun at Congressional Republicans for the reading, saying it has no binding action or affect on Congress. Others have criticized the cost of the reading.

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Thursday January 6, 2011

    State GOP chief to speak in Wichita. This Friday (January 7th) Amanda Adkins, who is Chair of the Kansas Republican Party, will speak at the Wichita Pachyderm Club. The topic is “Conservative Leadership Now — 2020: Building Long-term Political Infrastructure for the State of Kansas.” The public is welcome and encouraged to attend Wichita Pachyderm meetings. For more information click on Wichita Pachyderm Club. Upcoming speakers include Bob Lamke, Director of the Sedgwick County Division of Public Safety on January 14th, and Ed Flentje, Professor at the Hugo Wall School of Urban and Public Affairs at Wichita State University, will be discussing a book he co-authored titled “Kansas Politics and Government” on January 21.

    Kansas budget under more stress. The gap in the Kansas budget for fiscal year 2012 is now estimated at $550 million. In context, the general fund budget is around $6 billion, so the gap is about none percent of the budget. Fiscal year 2012 starts on July 1, 2011, and is the budget year the legislature will be working on when the session starts next week — although usually the real work on the budget is delayed until near the end of the session. It’s important to remember that the gap is the difference between projected revenues and desired or forecast spending. There’s nothing that says we have to spend what past plans call for.

    Education and Medicaid spending protected. Governor-elect Brownback said this week that education and Medicaid will be protected from budget cuts. Furthermore, there will be no tax increase. But these two budget items are such a huge portion of Kansas spending, it’s difficult to see where the governor will find room to create a balanced budget.

    Kansas school spending, constitutional issues discussed. Last Friday (New Years Eve) the Kansas 9.12 and Kansans for Liberty groups held an educational event and I made a presentation on Kansas school spending and ideas for reform. Video of my presentation is available at Vimeo. Other speakers included Larry Halloran on The Year Ahead, David Losey on states’ nullification rights, and Richard Fry on Article 3 Original Jurisdiction.

    Low interest rates and saving. Thomas A. Page, President of Emprise Bank in Wichita, recently wrote a letter to the Wichita Eagle in which he explained how government intervention in the economy has negative — and surely unintended — consequences: “Much has been written about the efforts of various federal agencies, specifically the Federal Reserve, to maintain interest rates at unprecedented low levels. The most frequent argument for these rates is that they will cause consumers and businesses to borrow more money, which will stimulate the economy by increasing demand. It’s not working — for many reasons. What has been ignored is the impact on the economy of lowered incomes for America’s savers, particularly retirees. Their incomes have been devastated and, consequently, so has their purchasing power.”

  • Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Monday January 3, 2011

    This week at Wichita City Council. Roger Smith will be sworn in to take the place of Jim Skelton. Smith’s term will end in April, when the voters will select a permanent member of the council from district 3. Of course, Smith could be that person. … The council will hear from an independent fact-finder regarding the firefighters. See Wichita Eagle Wichita firefighters union stresses staffing in contract requests with city. … Also improvement of two south Wichita intersections will be considered. See Wichita City Council to consider $4 million in street work on S. Broadway.

    Last meeting for two commissioners. This Wednesday will be the last meeting for two members of the Sedgwick County Commission, Gwen Welshimer and Kelly Parks. New members will be sworn on this Sunday.

    Legislators to hear from citizens. The South-Central Kansas Legislative Delegation will be taking public comments Tuesday January fourth from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm in the Jury Room of the Sedgwick County Courthouse, 525 N. Main in Wichita. (Use the north entrance to the courthouse). This is your opportunity to let local legislators know your wishes on issues that will be considered during the 2011 legislative session. In the past, each person wishing to talk has been limited to between three and five minutes depending on the number of people wishing to speak.

    State GOP chief to speak in Wichita. This Friday (January 7th) Amanda Adkins, who is Chair of the Kansas Republican Party, will speak at the Wichita Pachyderm Club. The topic is “Conservative Leadership Now — 2020: Building Long-term Political Infrastructure for the State of Kansas.” The public is welcome and encouraged to attend Wichita Pachyderm meetings. For more information click on Wichita Pachyderm Club. Upcoming speakers include Bob Lamke, Director of the Sedgwick County Division of Public Safety on January 14th, and Ed Flentje, Professor at the Hugo Wall School of Urban and Public Affairs at Wichita State University, will be discussing a book he co-authored titled “Kansas Politics and Government” on January 21.

    Repeal of sales tax. Many of the new members of the Kansas House of Representatives ran on opposition to the statewide sales tax increase that took effect in July. I had speculated in an appearance on This Week in Kansas that the House would entertain a bill to repeal the sales tax, while another — more experienced, I might add — observer of Kansas politics felt that leadership would tamp down such an effort. Today David Klepper of The Kansas City Star takes a look at the prospects for legislative action on this issue. Some would like to repeal the sales tax right away, while others say that repeal needs to be part of a broader, long-term look at Kansas tax policy. Senate Vice President John Vratil — not a supporter of limited government and economic freedom — is quoted as saying tax reform is a “multi-year project.”

    Net neutrality advances. Almost lost in all the congressional activity before Christmas was the fact that the Federal Communications Commission voted to pass new rules on net neutrality. Writing in The Wall Street Journal, John Fund says: “The Federal Communications Commission’s new ‘net neutrality’ rules, passed on a partisan 3-2 vote yesterday, represent a huge win for a slick lobbying campaign run by liberal activist groups and foundations. The losers are likely to be consumers who will see innovation and investment chilled by regulations that treat the Internet like a public utility.” Fund explains the radical political views of those behind the net neutrality campaign. He also explains that President Barack Obama is ignoring the will of Congress and court rulings, seeking to impose internet regulation through the executive branch.

    Wichita noticed in Boston. A writer from the Boston Globe visits Wichita and writes on his tourist experiences. It follows a predictable template: First, put away the Toto jokes and overlook the city’s problematic reputation. Then — I found public art, lattes, and a restaurant! Wow! Who would have figured?