KANSAS CITY (AP) – Police in eastern Kansas City are investigating the fatal shootings of two people found blocks apart to see if they’re connected.
According to a news release, the first victim was found dead at 24th and Hardesty after police got a call at 8:19 p.m. The Kansas City Star reports the person was found in the parking lot of Jubilee Market, a gas station.
The second person was found dead a few blocks away.
Police didn’t immediately provide any additional information.
Agriculture is losing producers.No one will argue that point, but larger, more efficient producers are replacing those lost in this highly competitive industry.
While this is not necessarily a desirable trend, it is one that has continued for decades – maybe since the beginning of this noble profession. That said, it is also a trend that is not confined to agriculture but has affected nearly every sector of the U.S. and world economies.
Regardless of this ongoing change, care for the land continues to improve. Today’s farmers are increasing the amount of organic matter in their soil. With the advent of no-till and reduced tillage farming, farmers continue to build organic matter and improve the soil. There is no reason to believe this practice will be discontinued.
Today’s modern farmer is not exhausting the land. Just the opposite is true.
Without question scarce water is always a concern, especially in Midwestern states where rainfall is limited. Farmers constantly chart rainfall amounts and monitor weather conditions.
In Kansas, agricultural producers are aware of changes in the Ogallala Aquifer. They understand the navigable waters issue because of its wide-ranging impact on farmland and farming. They understand the importance of clean water and have long supported the need for clear jurisdictional lines and a common-sense approach to wetlands.
Farmers are very much tuned into water conservation. But agriculture has its naysayers.
Some are concerned about the potential of long-term climate change and its impact on food production.
Others believe crop yields will not keep up with population growth.
There is nothing to suggest yields will not keep up with population growth.
Even countries with marginal soil and more severe climates than our own are growing crops today. We have better yield potential and better food value today and with new genetics and technologies coming on line, there is no reason to believe the world won’t be able to feed itself in the future.
The United States farmer and rancher can compete with other nations, if they aren’t shackled by government regulations that cause production costs to soar.
Even the most efficient farmers in America can’t make it with regulatory restrictions. Any regulations must be science based and uniform across the board for producers around the world.
If there is equal opportunity for everyone, where all producers have the same health and safety restrictions, U.S. agriculture will compete. Give farmers and ranchers the same opportunity, as others around the world and bountiful, wholesome food will continue.
Winston Churchill said many years ago, “Give us the tools and we will get the job done.” The same can be said for agriculture in this country.
John Schlageck, a Hoxie native, is a leading commentator on agriculture and rural Kansas.
CHILLICOTHE – One person was hospitalized and two fled the scene after an accident just before 6 p.m. on Wednesday in Livingston County.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2013 Ford F 150 pulling a U-Haul trailer and driven by Richard D. Hillman, 57, Blair, NE., was northbound on U.S. 65 three miles south of Chillicothe.
The driver observed a 2000 Mercury Sable cross the centerline and swerve onto the north shoulder to avoid a collision. The Mercury struck the U-Haul trailer. The Ford rotated and stopped in the northbound lane of the highway.
Two of the five occupants of the Mercury fled the scene prior to officers arriving on the scene.
The driver of the Mercury Alexander D. Colclough, 19, Liberty, and s passenger Hezekiah L. Cain, 22, Kansas City, refused treatment.
Another passenger in the Mercury Tanen S. Gillahan, 21, Kearney, was transported to St. Luke’s on the Plaza.
Hillman was not injured.
The KHP reported the passengers in the Mercury were not wearing seat belts.
PITTSBURG, Kan. (AP) — Pittsburg State University and the city of Pittsburg have agreed to swap land in a deal designed to help both entities expand.
The trade was ratified Tuesday by the City Commission but must be approved by the Kansas Legislature.
The Joplin Globe reports the university agreed to give 72 acres to the city, which wants to use it for home building. In return, the city will give Pittsburg State one 25-acre site and another 5-acre site.
City manager Daron Hall says the trade does not involve any money. Hall says the city badly needs new housing developments.
University official Chris Kelly says the university has no immediate plans for its new land but it will be available for future development.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Lincoln judge has sentenced a Kansas man to nine years in prison for a scam he conducted that targeted elderly people.
U.S District Judge John Gerrard on Friday ordered 53-year-old Thomas Whitlow, of Kansas City, to pay $17,521 in restitution in addition to his prison sentence. Jurors found Whitlow guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in November.
Prosecutors say Whitlow had his wife scour online obituaries and search for phone numbers of the relatives of the dead. Authorities say he then called, claiming to be a family member in need of cash, and had the money wired to him on at least 12 occasions.
The Lincoln Journal Star reports that Whitlow has denied involvement in the scam. He says he plans to appeal the ruling.
Jefferson City -To ensure continuity of government operations, Gov. Jay Nixon today appointed John Watson as Missouri State Auditor. Watson has agreed to serve as the State Auditor until a permanent appointment by the Governor is made, immediately prior to which Watson will resign.
“The Missouri State Auditor’s Office provides a critical public service,” Gov. Nixon said. “John will serve as the State Auditor and carry out the important functions of the office until a permanent appointment is made, in accordance with state law.”
Under Missouri law, when a vacancy occurs in the office of the State Auditor, the Governor shall immediately appoint the Auditor to fill such vacancy.
“I have tremendous respect for the State Auditor’s Office, and I will carry out these duties in service to the people of Missouri,” said Watson. “I continue to keep Tom Schweich’s family and friends in my thoughts and prayers, and join them in mourning this loss.”
“I know that John Watson will perform these duties with the professionalism, integrity and independence the citizens of Missouri expect and deserve, and I am pleased that he has agreed to serve while I move thoroughly and expeditiously to select a permanent replacement,” saidGov. Nixon.
John Watson currently serves as Senior Advisor to the Governor. Previously, Watson served as Chief of Staff to Gov. Nixon from January of 2009 until December of 2014, and served as Chief of Staff to then-Attorney General Nixon from 1997 until his election as Governor. Watson also worked in finance at Emerson Electric in St. Louis and at the Department of Economic Development prior to attending law school. Watson, a Missouri native, earned both his bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Watson and his wife, Julie, live in Jefferson City with their three daughters.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon is canceling a trip to Cuba following the death of state Auditor Tom Schweich.
Nixon on Friday announced First Lady Georganne Nixon will take his place during the trip to the island country March 1-4.
The governor for weeks had been planning the trip in an attempt to build trade relationships with the communist country.
He canceled the visit days before his scheduled departure following the Thursday death of Schweich in what police say was an apparent suicide.
The first lady’s travel costs will be paid for by the Hawthorn Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to promote economic growth in the state.
JEFFERSON CITY (AP) – A memorial service for Missouri Auditor Tom Schweich is scheduled for Tuesday in his hometown of Clayton.
Schweich fatally shot himself Thursday in what police are calling an apparent suicide.
His spokesman Spence Jackson says the service will be held at the Church of St. Michael and St. George, an episcopal church where Schweich was a member.
The memorial will take place at 10 a.m. at the church, located at 6345 Wydown Blvd., near Schweich’s home.
A pastor from the church was present and said a prayer for Schweich when he was sworn in to office as auditor in January.
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) – Kansas State is becoming quite familiar with the SEC in football.
After wrapping up a home-and-home series with Auburn this past season, the Wildcats announced Friday that they have set up a series with Vanderbilt in addition to its previously scheduled home-and-home series with Mississippi State.
The Wildcats will head to Vanderbilt in 2017 with the Commodores returning the trip in 2020. The games bookend games against the Bulldogs in 2018 and 2019.
The moves should help beef up Kansas State’s non-conference schedule. The Wildcats are set to play South Dakota, Texas-San Antonio and Louisiana Tech next season, and Missouri State and Florida Atlantic the following season.
DETROIT (AP) — Fiat Chrysler is adding more than 467,000 Dodge and Jeep SUVs worldwide to a recall from last year to fix a potential stalling problem.
The company says it’s adding 2012 and 2013 Dodge Durangos and 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokees outside North America to a recall from September of last year. The Jeeps have diesel engines.
Chrysler says fuel pump relays can deform and cause the pumps to malfunction. That can cause unexpected stalling or prevent the engines from starting. The company doesn’t know of any crashes or injuries from the problem.
Dealers will install a new relay circuit. Chrysler says it will let customers know when they can schedule service.
The recall from last year covered 189,000 other Grand Cherokees and Durangos in the U.S.
