Opinion

THE POSTSCRIPT, Carrie Classon

We are heading into the holiday season — already.

This year it seems like I have been running and racing and making it to places in the nick of time all year. I tend to overschedule — although I’d like to point out that my sister crams far more activities into less time than I would ever attempt.

Just when I think she couldn’t possibly do another thing, she’ll say, “I’d like to try weaving.” Weaving! That sounds like an activity I would be sentenced to do if I had committed some kind of crime.

GUEST COLUMN, Dan Crippen, former CBO Director

Earlier this year, when the administration proposed deep cuts to the National Institutes of Health, lawmakers from both parties swiftly and rightly pushed back. Slashing medical research funding, they recognized, would jeopardize the discovery of breakthrough treatments that patients desperately need.

That's why it's baffling that many of the same lawmakers who voted to protect NIH funding are now cheering President Trump's plan to impose "most favored nation" price controls on drugs, a policy that could cause greater harm to innovation.

At first glance, MFN may sound reasonable. It would link U.S. drug prices to the lowest prices paid in other wealthy countries. Supporters argue this would bring down prices at home and encourage drugmakers to raise prices abroad, easing the burden on American patients who pay more than their international counterparts. It's fair to expect other nations to contribute more.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR, Reita Isaacs, Liberal

It’s hard to believe so much time has gone by since I presented my personal opinions about the life, assignation, coverups, and possible associations of others.

No sense going over the old opinions as Tyler Robinson is as innocent today as he was that day, same for his “furry” friend Lance Twiggs. Strange thing how this person doesn’t show up anywhere in the family history he’s supposed to belong to, plus the fact all trace of him has disappeared since the event. Did he ever exist? If he did, it would be a safe conclusion that he no longer does.

GUEST COLUMN, Dave Trabert, Kansas Policy Institute

State education administrators often say,  “It’s all about the kids,” yet their actions suggest it’s more about protecting adult reputations than improving student outcomes.

They all want students to do better, but not if it means adults changing their behavior to make it happen. The most recent example of this is lowering the bar on proficiency standards to make it appear that achievement is improving.

Each state offers a rationale that strains credibility, reminiscent of the illusion the crooked weavers tried to pull off in The Emperor’s Clothes.

The Illinois Department of Education says that the state has been “misidentifying students as being ‘not proficient’… due to misaligned cut scores established several years ago.”