Sam Brownback declares war on Kansas: This is how extremists gut a state — and democracy

This is a great article about the destruction of Kansas' Public Education by Governor Sam Brownback and his minions of hateful right-wing libertarians. He is out to destroy the entire public sector and all the important things it does for us, especially educating our young. He points out this is being done by  the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), Americans For Prosperity (AFP) and other libertarian / ultraconservative organizations, some of which are nothing more than front groups for the politics of the Koch Brothers, David and Charles. We need to act against these destructive forces and beat them back. The future of Kansas and a place many of us can actually live is at steak. - SJ Otto 

From Salon:

By MARCEL HARMON

It’s not uncommon to see developments named after what they displace or sometimes destroy. Subdivisions with names like Wild Creek Place likely contain neither a trace of the “wild” nor the remains of a creek. I guess more descriptive names such as Flat Asphalt Junction simply lack the same level of appeal.

I’ve come to see the names of Kansas legislative committees in the same manner. Under the legislature’s ultraconservative leadership, committees such as Education (House and Senate), Education Budget (House), Commerce, Labor and Economic Development (House) and Local Government (Senate), to name but a few, seem cruelly named after what the ultraconservatives have marked for displacement or destruction.

Gov. Sam Brownback’s march to zero income taxes, combined with legislation designed to weaken public services and wrest control away from local government, are hollowing out the very aspects of government these committees focus on. Public education certainly seems targeted to be greatly supplemented by, if not outright replaced by, private education.

For the rest click here.