Republican senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham want the United States and its allies to bomb Syria in response to the massacre of 108 villagers in Houla.  “Maybe the kids will make the difference,” Sen.…

Kansas west of I-35 continues to shrink. According to a study by Wichita State University’s Center for Economic Development and Business Research, there may be as many as four western Kansas counties with fewer than…

When Gov. Sam Brownback signed his massive income tax reduction bill last week, a handout was distributed predicting that the tax cut would produce 23,000 new jobs in the state by 2020, over and above…

Four people died on Mt. Everest last Saturday. They were among 208 climbers on the mountain. A Nepalese mountaineering official called it a traffic jam. Climbers were stuck in what is called the death zone…

Dear editor, This is really a thank-you note to a lady whose name I do not know. Thank you for taking the purse you found in your car into the Walmart service desk. It seems…

A Wednesday news bit reported graduates in pharmacology, geophysics, astronomy and actuarial science not only had jobs when they were handed their degrees, but also could choose where they went to work.  The four graduates…

Dear editor, I would like to respectfully disagree with the editor’s May 16 article on “Gay Marriage and the 2012 Campaign.” Mr. Lynn asks, “Why take the trouble to understand what only nerds worry about…

Gov. Sam Brownback loves snappy phrases.  When he first ran for Congress from this district, he promised voters he would “get Uncle Sam off your back and out of your pockets.” Meaning, I guess, that…

Any conversation about Social Security reform must begin with hard facts: On the current track, U.S. federal income will be insufficient in 2025 — a mere 13 years from now — to pay for Medicare,…

Dear editor, Our family would like to convey our heartfelt thank-you to the community of Iola for the past five years. We were welcomed with open arms from the day we arrived. We are particularly…