Opinion
Kansas Supreme Court justice resigns as teacher after KU protests antigay speaker. Bless his heart.
Kansas Supreme Court Justice Caleb Stegall had his feelings hurt. Students and administrators at the University of Kansas questioned whether the campus Federalist Society should have invited an anti-LGBTQ speaker. Despite protests, the talk from Jordan Lorence of the Alliance Defending Freedom went forward as planned. Stegall outlined the situation and his claims in a […]
Ballooning Evergy spending plans raise questions, prove need for public hearings in Kansas
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Glenda DuBoise is the state director for AARP Kansas. She has previously worked in both large and small companies and nonprofit organizations across Kansas and beyond, most […]
With same-sex marriage vote, U.S. Senate says families matter. Including mine, here in Kansas.
The U.S. Senate took a momentous step Tuesday, passing a same-sex marriage law that offers a vital backstop for LGBTQ folks in Kansas and the nation. While the Respect for Marriage Act falls short in some ways, it shows how far we’ve come over the past few decades. In 1996, after all, President Bill Clinton […]
Election results show Kansans willing to converse — but not take decisive action
The Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. David Norlin is a retired Cloud County Community College teacher, where he was department chairman of communications/English, specializing in media. I walked doors this election. I talked […]
Kansas legislators block good policy every session. It’s time to give voters a powerful new voice.
If Kansans could vote today on the issues, they would expand Medicaid, legalize marijuana and control access to deadly weapons. Already this year, they showed up at the polls in overwhelming numbers to support abortion rights. But lawmakers at the Statehouse have opposed or blocked these measures in the past, and the upcoming legislative session […]
Reflection, celebration and fond memories should mark Thanksgiving season in Kansas
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Mark McCormick is the former executive director of The Kansas African American Museum and a member of the Kansas African American Affairs Commission. My recent call to […]
Congress knows how to slash child poverty. It just needs to do it.
The Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Juan Carlos Ordóñez is the communications director of the Oregon Center for Public Policy, as well as the host of the podcast Policy for the People. […]
For Kansas City area fans, sports wins feel inevitable. Let’s appreciate them.
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. Sunday night, I sat on the couch, a cocktail […]
This Thanksgiving, your friendly Kansas opinion editor needs to get some gratitude off his chest
Many holidays thin and fray from familiarity. A relentlessly secularized Christmas too often marks commercial transactions, while the silly spookiness of Halloween has given way to adults parading around in superhero costumes. Thanksgiving, oddly enough, has been spared the worst of this, perhaps because the point of the holiday is right there in the name. […]
With Kansas election season winding down, consider the benefits of being a mugwump
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Ron Smith is a fifth-generation Kansan, a native of Manhattan, an attorney practicing in Larned, a grandfather several times over, a Vietnam veteran and a civil war […]
Heart and roots: How a theater performance in the Flint Hills told the story of a Kansas community
The Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Jenny Towns is an artist, educator and communications professional. She is a school choir director and is pursuing her master’s degree in music education at Kansas […]
This architect of Kansas’ tax policy failure mocks our state. Leaders can’t ignore recent history.
For the better part of a decade, Kansas government has been consumed by tax policy. Residents first endured former Gov. Sam Brownback’s “experiment,” which resulted in yawning deficits, budget cuts and credit downgrades. Teachers fled. Prisoners rioted. State agencies crumbled. Arduous years of rebuilding followed, under the guidance of Gov. Laura Kelly and a more […]