Thank You Jim

Okay, it’s been nine days now and we’ve all had a chance to cool down. Good thing too. If I’d tried to write this column last Wednesday after hearing about Cumulus Radio firing Jim Cates, I probably would have said something stupid like, hey Spike Santee and Cumulus Radio, how about you kissing my butt! I probably would have called them names like scum sucking pigs or something like that. Good thing I didn’t go there, huh.
I’ve had a couple of interesting phone calls this week about a certain local politician deciding that “local talk radio” was out of control in Topeka and needed to be reigned in. Surely that couldn’t happen here. Well it sure as hell did. From what I’ve been told, Cumulus wanted Jim to discontinue his open lines policy. It wasn’t necessarily Jim they were trying to shut up. It was us. Unless we wanted to talk about something positive, they didn’t want to hear it anymore. They didn’t want us talking about the helicopter anymore. Looks like we weren’t supposed to question anything going on at city hall. They didn’t want us talking about our county commissioners. I’m sure it really got to them when someone had the nerve to disagree with the Governor or the Attorney General. Wow, maybe I was part of the problem.
I guess it doesn’t really matter, does it? Jim’s gone and nothing I say here is going to change that. So instead of wasting a lot of time ranting and raving about it I’m just going to say thank you Jim. Thank you for all the help, encouragement, and support you’ve given me over the last couple of years in getting this column off the ground.
Thank you for introducing me to your friends. People like Marge and Ralph. Man I loved those two. I had the honor of meeting Marge at one of your remotes a while back. Very classy lady. Marge, there were a lot of times I had no idea what you were talking about but your calls always made my day.
I’m going to miss Vince, ol’ Bill and Jake. I’m going to miss the words of wit from Gene the liberal. And hearing from Cheryl the cabbie, another very cool lady. What would a day be without Myron plugging his web-site. Does anyone know why Dave Menely just stopped calling in? I always put a lot of stock in what he had to say. I’m going to miss Don from Wamego and Dee From Maple Hill. I’ll miss hearing you and Steve from Silver Lake going toe to toe. Then there’s John Clooney. Man, that guy can talk. I had the privilege of meeting John last Friday. John, I’m very glad to know you.
I’m going to throw out a special thanks to three people I’ve met through your show and have a great deal of respect for, Kim Borchers, Thomas Lessman, and Paul Degener for spreading the word about the rally in front of Cumulus last week and I’d like to thank everyone who showed up for it. Maybe we didn’t change their minds but they sure as hell knew we were there.
Jim, I don’t know what your plans for the future are but I think you ought to consider writing your own column and it just so happens that I know the editor of a really cool local newspaper that might be willing to give you a shot. Let me know, I’ll see what I can do.
And Jim, just so you know. There were many, many days that as a result of listening to your show my day was just a little bit brighter. Thank you for everything.
Oh yeah, Spike Santee and Cumulus Radio. Calling you guys scum sucking pigs probably would’ve been out of line but you can still kiss my butt.
Kevin McGinty can be reached at: kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

Great Road Trip

Hey, thanks for stopping by today. Pull up a chair and sit down, I’ve got a story to tell you about a trip my wife and I made earlier this week. It was a trip that started in the present, went into the past, and on the last leg of our journey we were propelled into the future.
Okay, maybe it wasn’t that dramatic. Still a pretty cool though. We left Topeka early Sunday morning headed to Greensburg. Because of my job, I’ve been able to go through there probably 10 or 12 times since last years tornado. But this was the first time my wife’s had the chance to see how much our little home town has changed since we left there almost 19 years ago.
We spent about an hour just driving around town. We found the places we used to live. For a while we rented a house across the street from the Big Well. The only thing left is the sidewalk, the basement, and that big old tree in the back yard. The house was gone. So was the house next door, and the one next to it. And the one across the street is gone too. In fact, it was all gone.
They’re rebuilding though. I’d guess that so far they’ve built a couple hundred houses or so. The school is up and running. Churches are rebuilding. They’re going to be the “greenest” city in the world I guess. I’ve poked a lot of fun at the ’Greenies.” And I’m really tired of everything “green.” But you know what? I’m not convinced it’s really such a bad thing. How about naming it something else though? How about just calling it “energy efficient?” But hey, if calling it green helps Greensburg rebuild their town, go for it.
We left Greensburg to meet up with our friends, Eric and Ronni, who because of the tornado now live in Haviland. Eric took my wife and I back down to devils corral. My wife wanted to see the initials we carved in the rocks I told you about a few weeks ago. We headed southeast from there across the Anchor-D, Longhorn Ranch, toward Belvidere. We stopped by the old abandoned school house I’ve talked about. It was built sometime in the 1880’s, and I have no idea how long ago it was abandoned, but it’s such a cool place. Like most country schools, this one consisted of one classroom. And like classrooms even today it had a blackboard on each end of the room. There’s no more chalk or erasers, the blackboards themselves are both long gone, but both frames are completely intact and in pretty good shape. If you stood there long enough you could almost make out a young kid named Johnny writing something over and over again.
We had to leave before we got Johnny into more trouble with his teacher so we headed towards the big hill behind Belvidere. From the top of this hill you can see for miles and miles. On a clear night you can see the lights from Medicine Lodge, Pratt, Greensburg, and even Dodge City. I remember one night after consuming 25 or 30 beers I even saw Denver. We spent a little time there just looking and remembering some of the earlier trips we’ve taken to that same spot. But it was time to go. We headed back to Eric and Ronni’s place for supper, then headed out for Pratt for the night.
We left Pratt the next morning intending to head northwest toward Larned because we both wanted to visit “Fort Larned” but we hadn’t decided on any particular route to take and decided to see if we could make the entire 60 mile trip using only county roads. So off we went. Most of the roads were paved and in pretty good shape. Others weren’t. It took us a little more than 2 hours to make the trip but was well worth the effort. We got to see things we’d have never seen from the highway. Things like 20 or 30 pheasants, 2 snakes, it seemed like we had hawks watching us the whole way. Outside one town we saw 6 or 7 buzzards eating something. We saw several roads that had had water over them in the last few days. We passed a lot of small, family farms long the way. If someone was outside they were quick to smile and wave. A lot of these farms had an American flag flying in the front yards. We saw a crew setting up a rig to drill for oil.
We finally got to Fort Larned and yes, it was everything we’d hoped it would be. But time was running short and we had to get going. It was time to hurry up. Time to head toward Ellsworth so we could catch I-70 and hurry on home.
We had just reached I-70 when I realized we’d been propelled into the future. There’s a wind farm along I-70 a little west of Salina. These windmills are the real thing too. They’re huge and there must be a couple hundred of them. If you get the chance, you ought to drive out there to see them for yourself. Very cool.
Looks like the Governor has decided we don’t need any more coal-fired power plants in Kansas and that our future is blowing in the wind. Governor, I just hope you’re right.
Kevin McGinty can be reached at: kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

Lisa Montgomery and Phill Kline

Because of recent rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court, it’s full speed ahead with the Death Penalty again. Good! I mean that’s what these people deserve for what they’ve done, right?
How do you guys feel about the death penalty? Do you believe, like I do, that someone like Lisa Montgomery deserved the death sentence she was given? If you remember, she was the woman from Melvern who traveled to Missouri to kill a young woman named Bobby Jo Stinnet so she could steal the child the young woman was carrying.
Some will argue that Lisa Montgomery was emotionally unstable and shouldn’t be held responsible for her actions. They’ll argue that we as a society, don’t have the right to condemn anyone to death. And that two wrongs don’t make a right. You know, that kind of stuff.
Personally, I believe Lisa Montgomery got what she had coming. Do I believe justice was served? Maybe, maybe not. It’s hard to say. No, putting her to death won’t bring Bobbi Jo back. It won’t restore any of the damage she’s inflicted upon the lives of so many people. So what’s the point? I don’t know, maybe it’s revenge we‘re after.
Call it justice, call it revenge, call it whatever you want. Lisa Montgomery was given the sentence she had coming. But what about someone who’s been wrongly accused, convicted, and sentenced to die. What about those guys? What do you do if you put the wrong person to death? Do you just say oops, sorry about that? How do you make it right?
Think it can’t happen? Think again. I’m not sure of the exact number, I think it’s somewhere around 130 people, who, because of DNA testing have been exonerated of the crimes they were condemned to die for. How do you make that right?
You can’t. How many more people are there out there sitting on death row waiting for the day to come when they pay the ultimate penalty for a crime they didn’t commit?
If Lisa Montgomery does indeed pay for her crimes with her life, so be it. But until the day comes when we can remove all doubt about someone’s guilt, I think we need to put a halt to the death penalty in the United States. But that’s just my opinion.
I realize most of you reading this column today are well aware of my pro-life beliefs. And maybe some of you are tired of me going on about it so I won’t dwell on the subject today. But because Phill Kline has been in the news so much lately I do have a few comments I’d like to make. Why are there so many people out there today who’ll seemingly go to any length to make sure the laws concerning late-term abortions in Kansas are ignored. Why?
Some of you act like Phill Kline is the devil himself. You’ve called him every name in the book. You yell that he’s on a personal crusade and should be silenced. You’ve fallen for the patient privacy excuse Tiller and Planned-Parenthood have used to obstruct his investigation. You cry that he’s trying to change the law. You accuse him of violating the separation of church and state principals of the law. You scream that his investigation of the abortion clinics is unconstitutional.
Here’s the way I see it. Phill Kline doesn’t need to change the laws. Late-term abortions have been outlawed in the State of Kansas, the only exception to this law is if an abortion is necessary to save the life of the mother, period. Tiller boasts of performing more late-term abortions than anyone in the Western Hemisphere, somewhere around 2,800 from the way I hear it. Do you really believe these are all on the up and up? No, you don’t believe it. But you don’t care either.
Mr. Kline, I don’t know how you keep going. But I do want you to know there are some of us out here who support you in your efforts. Keep up the good work.
Kevin McGinty can be reached at: kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

The Letter

I called home early last Saturday morning from Guymon Oklahoma to let my wife know I was headed her way. It gives her something to look forward to! I do the best I can to keep the old girl going, and it gives her time to get the house cleaned up and have a nice supper ready when I get there. I know how important these things are to her.
Okay, maybe that’s not exactly the way it went. She told me in her usual sarcastic way that it was about time I decided to come home. The bathroom sink was backing up and the yard needs mowing. She then informed me we were going out to eat when I got there. So much for that home cooked meal. She called me an old fool, told me to keep it between the ditches and she’d see me when I got there. Just before we hung up, she said, oh yeah, you got a letter from Melissa today.
Oh, just so you know, Melissa is one of my nieces. Like most old guys, I still think of my nieces and nephews as kids. That’s not exactly the way things work though. Melissa’s now a grown woman. She’s married to a good guy named Brian, they have two kids of their own and she teaches school in Houston. I spent most of that 400 mile trip home trying to figure out what her letter could be about. That and passing people. I finally got home that afternoon and opened the letter. In it was a picture I hadn’t seen in at least 25 years. I was sitting on the couch holding Melissa and my daughter, Misty in my arms with my other niece, Michelle was sitting on my shoulders. Michelle’s the oldest and I’d guess she was about 3 years-old in the picture. Yeah, that was a good day.
She said she came across the picture and just had to send it to me. She wrote, here’s a picture of you and your girls. We put you through a lot didn’t we? There were the leeches in Greensburg, then the teenage years. She seemed pretty sure I missed those years the most. Yeah right!
It cracked me up that she remembered the leech story. They weren’t exactly in Greensburg. Do you remember the story about Rosa Smith? She’s the girl who was buried out in the middle of nowhere back in 1884. If you head east from her grave just over the next hill is a small, winding creek. On this creek is a really cool beaver dam. In the process of building their dam, the beavers created a small oasis of sorts. The pond they created is small. Probably only 25 feet at it’s widest point. But the ground surrounding the pond is a little like a small swamp. The grass is beautiful. Wild flowers, cat-tails, and Cottonwoods thrive. It’s one the best places I know of to watch the sun go down. Okay, that’s the story about the beaver dam.
I’ve told you about Sunday picnics we used to take. One of those Sundays I decided since both my sister-in-laws and most of the nieces and nephews were spending a little time with us it would be good idea to share my beaver dam with them.
It was. We spread the kids out on blankets with their peanut butter sandwiches and potato chips or whatever they had that day. I got busy packing stuff up in the back of the truck while the rest of them roamed the area. It wasn’t long before someone asked me if I thought it would be okay if the kids got in the creek. Sure, I told them. It’s a natural spring, you won’t find more pure water anywhere. With that assurance, one by one the kids all got into the water.
I was sitting on the tailgate of my truck watching what them have the time of their lives. Three mother hens and their kids. The water was probably up their bellies. They were laughing and splashing each other. I was watching what could be described as a “Norman Rockwell” moment when it all fell apart. Once the girls climbed out of the creek it took all of about two seconds to realize they were all covered with big, fat, leeches.
There was Misty, Michelle and Melissa, Josh and Katie screaming at the top of their lungs. Their moms, Donna and Karen were about to lose it. And there was my wife giving me that look.
Hey guys, sorry about that. My bad. And Melissa, thank you so much for the memory. You made my day.
Kevin McGinty can be reached at: kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

Racism, Guns, and The Governor

And once again, racism rears it’s ugly head. Last week one of our distinguished 501 school board members, Betty Horton showed us who she really is.
Once again, things didn’t go her way and she had another one of her now famous, hissy fits. This time her target was fellow board member, Patrick Woods. I guess in Betty’s way of thinking, because Woods and Horton both happen to be black he was supposed to automatically agree with her on every issue that came their way.
When asked to comment on her confrontation with Woods, Horton said, “all I know is he think’s he’s white. That’s it. Print it.” She went on to say that on the issues, Woods “whited out.”
That’s a hell of a thing for you to say Betty but I am glad you did. Your words expose you as the racist you are. Hey, I hear your position will be up for re-election next year. Good luck with that.
Oh well, that’s enough of that for now. I wanted to talk about a couple bills that have made their way to the Governor’s desk over the last few days. She signed a bill into law that makes it possible for average citizens to own things like machine guns and silencers. Hey, I’m all for the right to keep and bear arms. I’m all for citizens having the right to carry a concealed weapon. I’ve got no problem with that. In today’s world you never know when you’re going to run into the path of some nut case out there. I get it. But a machine gun? How cool is that?
Backers say the bill was necessary to make it legal for Kansas police departments to buy things like sawed off shot guns, machine guns, and silencers. Hmm, maybe it’s just me. But I don’t really feel that comfortable with the cops being able to cut someone in half with a machine gun equipped with a silencer from 1,000 yards out. Yeah, it’s probably just me. Besides, everyone knows there’s no reason to believe any our officers would resort to using excessive force. Don’t we?
Oh yeah, the other bill I wanted to talk about is the yearly abortion bill. You know, the one Sebelius vetoed the other day. The bill would have required abortion providers to report suspected under age, sexual abuse cases. Late-term abortions are illegal in Kansas. The only exception to this law is to save the life of the mother. The bill would have required abortionists to provide the specific life-threatening medical condition that existed making the abortion necessary to save the mother‘s life. It would have also provided women having an abortion the opportunity to view a sonogram image of the baby, who’s life she’s contemplating ending.
In her veto statement Sebelius, said she was concerned the bill was likely unconstitutional or even worse, it could endanger the lives of women seeking an abortion. Whatever Governor.
Mary Kay Culp of Kansans for Life said the Governor has vetoed a very reasonable bill with very unreasonable excuses. And Julie Burkhart, executive director for the pro-choice group, ProKanDo said that law makers wasted their time writing this bill in the first place.
Julie, this is the first time I’ve ever agreed with any thing you’ve ever said. Sebelius has vetoed every abortion bill that’s crossed her desk since taking office. To think she wasn’t going to do the same with this one was just wishful thinking. And as long as we continue to elect people like her into office nothing will ever change.
Governor, I’m not sure who offends me the most. You or Betty Horton. I’m just glad you’re both on your way out of office.
Kevin McGinty can be reached at: kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

Lone Tree Incident

I was headed out to Liberal a couple of weeks ago. Nothing special, I’ve made the trip several times lately. I like to take highway 50 from Emporia through Hutchinson then out to Pratt and jump on 54 the rest of the way. I like this route because there are a lot of passing lanes and as I’m blasting along at 80, I mean 65 mph., I hate having to disengage the cruise control because I get stuck behind someone doing the speed limit. Come on man, I’m making good time and you’re slowing me down.
We blast down the highways in our air conditioned and heated vehicles as fast as we want while talking on our cell phones. We have technology to tell us the way. We have GPS systems to track every move we make. Locking your keys in your car is no longer a problem. All it take is a phone call and presto, you’re in. We entertain the kids with built-in DVD players, and video game systems. If that doesn’t satisfy them, break out the lap top. We’re in such a hurry to get there, if we do stop to eat it’ll probably be at a drive through at some fast food joint along the road.
We’ve all sped by those “Kansas Historical Markers” along the roads to wherever we’re headed. You know the one’s. They’re the one’s we usually look at in our rear view mirror and wonder what historical event could have taken place in that spot making it worthy of a marker. On this particular trip curiosity finally got the best of me and I stopped at the one I’d noticed along highway 54 just west of Meade for a quick look. Wow! I had no idea. The marker told a story called the Lone Tree Incident.
It was August 24, 1874. It seems that six men working for a surveying company in the area were ambushed by a band of renegade Cheyenne Indians led by Chief Medicine Water who was leading his warriors in attacks against the white settlers in the area. Some 27 settlers had been killed and many farmsteads had been burned to the ground. On this day the Indians had seen the survey crew coming and hid out of sight waiting for their chance to catch them by surprise. The men of the survey company did their best to out run their attackers that day. But in the end, they were only able to make about three miles before the Indians killed the oxen they were using to pull the heavy wagons loaded down with their equipment. In the end all six men were killed and three of them were scalped. Their bodies were found a few days later and were temporarily buried underneath a lone Cottonwood Tree about five miles south of the marker.
The attack that day became known as The Lone Tree Incident. And I’m sure it gave future settlers a special kind of creepiness as they passed through the area to wherever they were headed.
No, it wasn’t exactly the story I expected to read about that day as I pulled off the road for that quick look. But it did make me stop for a few minutes. I shut my truck off and just sat there listening. Listening to the wind blowing across the plains and wondering about the events of that day almost 180 years ago.
I’m glad I stopped by that marker outside of Meade that day for a couple of reasons. First, it was a fascinating story about some of the things people had to endure in those days. But mostly It made me glad I didn’t live back then.
I can live without an onboard computer to tell me the way, I know how to read a map. I’m not into the built-in DVD players and such. But I love blasting down the road at 80, I mean 65 mph. And if putting up with people driving the speed limit is the worst thing I have to deal with while I’m out on the plains of western Kansas, I’ll be probably be okay.
Kevin McGinty can be reached at: kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

The Wreck

Do the names Jennifer Longfellow, Julia Alcala, Victoria Dowell, Myranda Mason, or Veronika McDaniel mean anything to you? They were five young 15 and 16-year old high school girls. Friends, they grew up together. Two of them were involved in high school sports, two of them were cousins and for the most part all of them were inseparable.
The girls had mothers, fathers, grandparents, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles. Like most young kids, they had friends, a lot of them. They had hopes and dreams. They probably had boyfriends, and were looking forward to some upcoming dance or something. They talked non-stop on the phone and they knew things about each other no one else would ever know. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. They were young and had their whole lives ahead of them.
The five of them left Ulysses high school in Jennifer’s car for lunch a couple weeks ago. It turned out to be the last thing they‘d ever do.
I don’t know what happened that horrible day. I don’t know if the sun was shining in Jennifer’s eyes. I don’t know if she was distracted and just didn’t see the tractor-trailer coming.
What I do know is this was the last time they’d ever see each other. Jennifer, the driver, was horribly injured but somehow managed to survive. Her friends, Julia, Victoria, Myranda, and Veronika weren’t so lucky. They didn’t make it.
The deaths of these young girls will effect so many people. Never again will their moms hear those beautiful words “mom, I’m home.” Their dads will never get the chance to watch the little girls they used to bounce on their knee grow up. And the brothers and sisters won’t be able to say they’re sorry for snooping through their stuff. There’ll be no more high school football games. There’ll never be another test to take. No more high school proms to worry about. No more boyfriends or weekend plans to make. In the blink of an eye none of that mattered anymore, they were gone.
As a dad, I can’t imagine how bad the day of the memorial service was. No matter what, life will never be the same. The thing the families needed most that day was respect. People needed to respect their right to privacy and give them the space they needed to cope with the loss they were suffering. They needed the support of family, friends, and the community of Ulysses, which they received without condition.
The last thing they needed that day was to come out of the Ulysses community center to find the freaks from Topeka’s Westboro Baptist Church with their sickening signs thanking god for dead kids. I guess in their twisted view, because God hates fags he also hates Kansas, the unholy, ungrateful land of the sodomite and sent the semi to kill the girls for our sins. Whatever.
If we’re going to thank God for anything, we should thank him for sending the brave men and women of the Patriot Guard. This group of about 150 motorcycle riders came from all over southwest Kansas to act as a human shield to stand between the protesters and the grieving families . They rev up their engines to drown out the name calling the Phelps’ are so famous for. And once the protesters move on so does the Patriot Guard, allowing the families to grieve in peace. Is this too much to ask for?
The only reason we even know the names of the girls is because of the wreck in Ulysses that day. I wish we’d never heard of them. And to the families and friends of the girls, I’m sorry for the horrible loss you’ve suffered and I’m sorry you had to witness the worst Topeka has to offer.
Kevin McGinty can be reached at: kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net