by RICK DANLEY // October 18, 2018 On the evening of July 13, 1992, former Texas Representative Barbara Jordan, suffering from multiple sclerosis, was wheeled on-stage at the Democratic National Convention in New York City, where she gave the night’s keynote speech. Jordan’s remarks emphasized inclusion, acceptance, diversity, grace. She urged those watching to reject … Continue reading Laura Kelly for Governor: The Wonk We Want*
by RICK DANLEY // June 18, 2018 PARSONS — Southeast Kansas’s GOP faithful poured into the Parsons Municipal Auditorium on Saturday for a forum featuring four of the top Republican candidates for governor. Current front-runners, incumbent Gov. Jeff Colyer and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, appeared alongside former state Sen. Jim Barnett and Insurance … Continue reading GOP in SEK: Debate Night
by RICK DANLEY // March 29, 2019 The United Methodist Church entered a new era in its long history when in late-February, after three days of fierce debate, the church voted to uphold its prohibition on both same-sex marriage and the ordination of gay and lesbian clergy. The controversial measure, which passed by a narrow … Continue reading ‘Think and Let Think’: UMC/LGBTQ
by RICK DANLEY // November 11, 2017 On July 25, 1946, at 8:34 a.m., 95 unmanned warships floated idly atop the aqua-blue waters of the Bikini Atoll, a secluded lagoon at the far reaches of the South Pacific. These were the target ships. Just beyond this flotilla, a ring of 150 support vessels, containing nearly … Continue reading Bikini Kaboom
by RICK DANLEY // October 21, 2017 It’s not a coincidence that Milton gave the devil the best lines in “Paradise Lost” or that of the three books in Dante’s “Divine Comedy,” the “Inferno” is the only one anyone still bothers to learn. Or that set next to the regal menace of a character like Darth … Continue reading Ella Reese & the Small-Town ‘Sex Problem’
by RICK DANLEY // March 10, 2017 It was an afternoon in late July of 2014. Aric Toler, living in Charlotte at the time and working in the corporate security division at Bank of America, was at home, scrolling through his Twitter feed. Toler was following the news coming out of eastern Ukraine concerning Malaysian Airlines … Continue reading Open Source
by RICK DANLEY // May 7, 2018 Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer, who took the executive reins from Sam Brownback just three months ago, made a brief appearance at the Iola Public Library Saturday evening, where he held a friendly 40-minute conversation with a dozen interested Allen County residents. Billed as a getting-to-know-you event, the conversation was … Continue reading Colyer for Gov.
by RICK DANLEY // September 21, 2016 One local gentleman, having shuffled off his mortal coil about a week ago, is doing more to influence county policy from the Great Beyond than he was ever likely to manage in his lifetime. Iola’s Feuerborn Family Funeral Service is in possession of a deceased individual whose sister is … Continue reading Bring Out Your Dead
by RICK DANLEY // June 16, 2018 Late last month Republican gubernatorial candidate and former state Sen. Jim Barnett took the unprecedented step of selecting his wife, Rosie Hansen, to be his running mate. In doing so, Barnett rejected the usual bits of political advice that suggest a candidate should choose a running mate based … Continue reading Love & Politics
by RICK DANLEY // April 24, 2018 There was a moment sometime after the close of the 2014 election when independent candidate Greg Orman, having just conceded a high-profile, tightly fought U.S. Senate race to longtime Republican Sen. Pat Roberts, fell into conversation with another of Kansas’ political veterans, Bob Dole. Orman recalled the exchange. “You … Continue reading Orman for Gov.
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