I am astounded by the lack of common sense being taught to the children of Tonganoxie. I grew up in the Tonganoxie area and if we had done the things children do today it would have resulted in punishment.

I stood outside my home on a recent evening and watched as five teen and preteen children stood in the street. One held a dog on a leash, one bounced a basketball and one was perched on a bike. Three were off to the side and two were in the middle of the street. Even though you could see as well as hear the approaching car, which was slowing to a stop, the two in the middle of the street did not move until the car was alongside them. A car that approached from the opposite direction was met with the same nonchalance.

I have seen kids on foot and on bikes run or ride out in front of oncoming traffic, and a young boy run out from between parked cars in front of my car. Thankfully I was able to stop in time. The child’s family was standing on the opposite sidewalk and not one of them was paying attention to what the boy was doing.

Even though a lot of drivers don’t obey speed limit laws — which is going to get someone hit — children should know they must be responsible pedestrians and bicyclist.

I really don’t want to be the one to have to call 911 for a child. Parents, please talk to your children and remind them of the common sense they should be using while walking or riding on the streets. I won’t even start on their being out on bikes and skateboards after 9 o’clock at night.

I am very concerned for their safety. Please don’t wait until it’s too late to prevent a tragic accident.

Julia Carter,
Tonganoxie.

Sidewalk connection

To the editor:

The city proposed a sidewalk from Chieftain Park to downtown and Badd Jack’s restaurant closed. The city then proposed a sidewalk from the new middle school down Pleasant Street and Lenahan’s Hardware closed. The city then proposed a sidewalk from east Tonganoxie along Fourth Street to downtown and Phillips 66 closed.

The city is going to be the demise of downtown. Keep Tonganoxie downtown.

Steve Crupper,
Tonganoxie.

Attorney general’s race

To the editor:

I am writing in response to a recent article that appeared on the Mirror’s Web site on Thursday, Oct. 19, “Moderates Flee the Kansas GOP” from the Washington Post. It is very interesting to see the liberal media only cover certain aspects of the Kansas attorney general’s race and consistently getting the facts wrong.

The article built up Morrison stating he is “… a career prosecutor who specializes in putting killers behind bars and has the rugged looks of a law and order Republican…” Then when speaking of Attorney General Kline the liberal bias comes out when this description was used: “… Phill Kline, an iconic social conservative who made headlines by seeking names of abortion clinic patients and vowing to defend science standards that challenge Darwinian evolution.”

Never mind Kline’s work before the U.S. Supreme Court where he appeared twice and won a victory defending Kansas law. Never mind his work against child molesters by putting them behind bars. Never mind Kline’s defense of the legislature against an activist court. No, only medical records and evolution were mentioned. And the facts are wrong on those issues as well!

Attorney General Phill Kline has always believed in the privacy of medical records unless a crime is involved. He must defend the law or policies established by government entities like the state board of education. That is his job as our attorney general.

Mike Stieben,
Rural Tonganoxie.