Attention all Minnesota and Wisconsin Residents

I know that this time of year there will be lots of Minnesota and Wisconsin folk headed south for the holidays. I'd like to suggest that when you plan your stop after 8 hours of driving, you consider staying in Emporia, Kansas.

As a former Minnesota resident, I can tell you that prior to moving to Emporia, we stopped here often for the night because of the easy on and off interstate access on our way to visit family in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Emporia is also the junction of I-35 and I-335 so it's a great place to stop and get ready for the rest of your trip to South Texas and points beyond.

In addition to the hotels and chain restaurants along the "I," you will find the best barbecue, Asian cuisine as well as home-grown Mexican food all within a mile of your hotel location. There are also specialty shops as well as historical venues to visit while you are here. Emporia is considered the gateway to the Flint Hills. You may want to spend an extra day here to explore the history of the city who founded Veteran's Day, visit the National Teacher's Hall of Fame or tour the home of William Allen White. Also you may want to drive out to the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve.

Feel free to visit the Chamber web site for more information. Empoia is only 90 miles west of Kansas City on I-35, 50 miles south of Topeka on I-335 and 70 miles north of Wichita on I-35.



Emporia is a great place to visit and stay. I hope you will consider visiting us the next time you head south.

Leadership Emporia

I was fortunate to be invited to be one of the day chairs for Leadership Emporia last Thursday. Representative Peggy Mast was kind enough to invite me to assist her with the instruction of the day that centered on students learning how to advocate for their ideas or new concepts.

It was an enjoyable day.

Teddy Says

Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.


Theodore Roosevelt

Murrow Says.....

Just because your voice reaches halfway around the world doesn't mean you are wiser than when it reached only to the end of the bar.
Edward R. Murrow

Carry On

I was reading a posting from Joel Osteen today.

"In the Bible, David had all kinds of challenges. People lied about him, accused him, and tried to kill him."

In Psalm 59 he says, "My enemies are coming against me like vicious dogs trying to destroy me. But as for me, what am I going to do? I will sing about Your power. And I will shout for joy for You are my refuge, my place of safety in my day of distress."

Despite the best effort of my enemies, I will overcome because of the power and joy provided by God.

Lost Child Found.

This link takes you to a Fox News article about an abducted child at age 11 who was found 18 years later living in a storage shed in the back yard of the couple who apparently abducted here. And the crux of the situation is the man involved is a life-time convicted sex offender.

This story just underscores the need to better track and deal with sex offenders.

Driving While Texting Will Kill You

Here's a great video from the UK posted on Youtube.

Please Don't drive distracted especially with a handy aka cell phone.

Letter from FBI Director

I've attached the letter written by FBI Director Mueller in reference to the recent release of a terrorist connected to the Lockerbie crash.

I'm pleased that Director Mueller took this opportunity to speak for other law enforcement officials and the families of the victims of this terrible terrorist event. Having watched the return of the terrorist in Libya I am even more convinced that Director Mueller is correct.

Real Change

I watched Gangsters Paradise again tonight. Ironically after 15 years Coolio still does a better job than the politicians, case workers, do gooders, and all the self-proclaimed experts on youth violence and drugs can.

I figure I have the battle scars having survived the Northfield inquisition for speaking out on behalf of kids. I've spent the better part of my life trying to advocate for kids and do something other than sit on committees, sit on my rear or write feel good articles. I've seen change in real kids lives both good and bad. I've seen and smelled the death associated with the worthlessness of the loss of a young life for absolutely no good reason. It IS time to stop it NOW.

The clock keeps ticking but nothing changes. Too much political correctness and too much concern about making someone or something look bad and while everybody frets and points fingers, kids keep turning up dead.

How about investing some of those trillions of dollars into something that really means change Mr. President?

Watch the video folks, really watch it and listen to it...then get mad and then get busy.

There are good teachers, cops, youth workers and just plain caring folks out there just waiting for the opportunity to make real change. Stop counting numbers, using them for your sound bites and get busy.

Most truths are so naked that people feel sorry for them and cover them up, at least a little bit.
Edward R. Murrow

An Officer's Character

I'm going to let this photo speak for itself.

I think is speaks volumes about this officer's character at the so-called "beer summit."

Anybody Notice How Bad TV Is?

I thought it was just me until I got this email message from Jack Welch:

Worst part of (still) being stuck in hospital is realization that only 2 news stories on TV involve a bizarre beer summit + MJ's last hours

Maybe the best reform for our health care system would be the need to get well to avoid watching the kind of TV Mr. Welch described above.

National Night Out

National Night Out is August 4th. If you haven't scheduled your block party or neighborhood activity yet, please do so ASAP. Help give crime a going away party!

Shame on the President

President Obama made a reckless comment at his news conference on Wednesday evening regarding the actions of the Cambridge Police Department's actions in the arrest of an individual who happens to be a friend of the President. Unfortunately, the President was correct when he said he didn't have all the facts. Police reports indicate that the resident who was arrested had verbally assaulted multi-racial officers at the scene with racial epithats and created a disturbance. Could they have cited him rather than do a custody, maybe but I'm not gonna arm chair quarterback. What the President did was reckless and very counter-productive. If he wants to have a serious discussion about the issue of policing in this country, he needs to follow up on his promise and convene a national council on law enforcement. Below, is a letter from the current IACP President. (International Association of Chiefs of Police)

Statement from IACP President Russell B. Laine

Police chiefs understand that it is critically important to have all the facts on any police matter before drawing conclusions or making any public statement. For these reasons, the IACP was disappointed in the President’s characterization of the Cambridge Police Department during last night’s press conference. Thanks to the hard work of dedicated law enforcement professionals we have made remarkable strides in policing in recent years. As a profession, we are not willing to accept any substandard law enforcement practices and we continually strive to do everything we can to maintain a trusting and confident relationship with all of our citizens in every part of the country.

Each and every day, more than 800,000 law enforcement officers in the United States work hard and sacrifice themselves in order to protect individuals of all races, colors and creeds. Their profound commitment and dedication to protecting the lives and property of their fellow citizens is both remarkable and commendable. Despite their daily efforts establishing and maintaining a safe community is difficult at the best of times.

When the bond of trust between a police agency and its community is strained, the task becomes almost impossible. Our recent success in reducing crime has been possible because leaders in both law enforcement and the community realized that law enforcement officers cannot simply patrol a community, they must be part of the community.

Conversely, members of the community must be active participants in law enforcement efforts, willing to step forward and assist officers and their departments when necessary. We must continue our efforts to move past the difficulties and recriminations of the past and work together to forge stronger and safer communities.

The President’s comments serve to underscore the need for a “National Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice” that the IACP has advocated for more than 20 years--a proposal that was endorsed by the President during last year's presidential campaign.

A National Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice would be empowered to give close examination to many of the issues that arise in this incident.

It is needed and long overdue.
Sincerely,

Chief Russell B. Laine
President, IACP

I just learned that Walter Cronkite, long time anchor for the CBS Evening News has passed away. As someone who grew up with "Uncle Walter," the news is bittersweet.

I didn't always agree with his positions but did respect the fact that he considered the news as news and not entertainment.

Godspeed!