Local News

Hayes Drive Reopens - 4/27/2024

Ah, Hayes Drive, that little vein of life that connects the north side of town along with its neighborhoods, churches, parks, and trails, back to the center of this city. Now restored is the shortcut that makes it convenient to go to Menard's and the slew of other big box stores and fast food restaurants from the back of town. No more hustling it up to the steep T-bones that intersect Casement with Tuttle Creek Blvd. Others may have missed the inconvenience, but those on this side of town will tell you that its return has been long-anticipated.

We were told in October that it would be the middle of this year, and that a Spring opening was out of the question due to pandemic supply chain delays, shortage of labor, and a myriad of other excuses. Bill Heatherman must have gotten our message that we were not happy with that answer. So, here we are still early in Spring, and voila, the team came through. Thanks, Bill. Also, you have to consider the fact that this was a levee repair, not just a road job. We're talking Army Corps of Engineers type of work. Maybe we should be happy that they took their time and did this right, with more than just a few bulldozer loads of dirt like some smaller municipality might have chucked at it.

Whatever the final story, the project looks great. Grass has been planted, fresh concrete and new lines are everywhere, and we can all enjoy that zip down the little connector that I personally call Industrial Row. Those businesses affected on Hayes Drive must be tickled pink as well. Hopefully, they will see full traffic now and a return to their prior business level.

I don't think that I have ever been more excited about the completion of a road project. The Hayes Drive extension is a straight shot to Walmart for thousands of people in this town. Hats off to the City and the County for wrapping this up. Thank you.

Manhattan Mayor Succumbs to Alcoholism

We all know the details of last week's sudden downfall of Wynn Butler, our now former mayor. He crashed his car into the front of a liquor store. Police reported that his blood alcohol was above the legal limit. Boo-hoo, right? Just another drunk in the night causing trouble, is what most of us would say. Serves him right. But does it really? I am not going to make excuses for the mayor's irresponsible actions, but I can tell you from experience that being an alcoholic is no fun. An alcoholic does not drink for pleasure. They drink to survive. An alcoholic who has maintained high function their entire lives cannot suddenly quit cold turkey like with other habits. The withdrawal from alcohol is one of the deadliest things known to man, as blood pressure rises to a level that can push a person's teeth out of their sockets by a couple of millimeters. Trust me, I have felt it.

So goes the mental resolve of a person caught in the horrible nightmare of alcoholism, teetering between losing it all and just remaining calm long enough to get that next drink. You have heard it before: One drink is too many, and a thousand is not enough. The mind breaks down, along with the body. Only a desperate call for help, a stay in a hospital bed, and continued support can help a terminal alcoholic. And in the end, all alcohol abuse is terminal. In my case, something miraculous happened in the middle of the night when an angel visited me and broke the fever of my delerium tremens, commonly known as the DT's, an alcoholic's nightmare, literally. An alcoholic coming down off of alcohol is hit in the face with every problem they ever had in addition to dealing with the pain of the juice drying out from their tissues. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. I have not taken a drink since, and I plan never to again. I am coming up on 3 years sober.

Society is schizophrenic in it's way of handling alcoholism. If you don't drink, you are weird, overly zealous, and most likely a pussy. So, most people just keep on drinking to get along and go along, despite all the legal and personal issues that it causes. Quitters never win, goes the American gusto. So between being a casual drinker like all of your friends who seem unaffected by the substance, and being a raging drunk who stays up all night yelling at the top of their lungs, there really is not much wiggle room for alcoholics who do not face the problem head on and seek help. You cannot overly legislate alcohol consumption, as we found out during Prohibition. An alcoholic will find ways to make his punch in the toilet bowl. Plus, why should someone who can't "hold his liquor" spoil all the fun for everyone else?

As you may recall, and as explained on this website, I have proposed a municipal "Right to Buy" card which anyone seeking to purchase alcohol within Manhattan city limits will need to show when purchasing alcohol. It will be issued by the RCPD in coordination with the Kansas Department of Revenue, upon review of traffic records and criminal history. It's that simple. Some may say that you can't catch everyone committing a crime due to their intoxication, or before; and that may be true in the case of the former mayor. But it will eliminate a lot of the crime and injury to our community including Aggieville. If you set up clown town, the clowns will come. Card the clowns before they get drunk and create more bad news for us.

Of course, the liquor dealers will not be for it at all, along with the good ole boys at the ATF, but something has got to give. Other states have enacted fairly effective alcohol sales controls. Why should we allow hard liquor and other booze to be sold hand-over-fist like candy on every corner? That obviously was the brainchild of the liquor lobby. We should put people over profits now to ensure that the ass doesn't keep dropping out of Kansas. And that is what we are doing, flushing people down the toilet.