R.J.'s Retort

06/04/2020

A lot has changed since Susan Wagle first bottled up every bill even remotely related to Medicaid expansion. Given what has happened since, was it the right decision?

07/01/2020

New podcast--please share!

The late Ross Perot had it wrong about that giant sucking sound-- it wasn't coming from Canada and Mexico, but from the mass of 2020 Democratic presidential candidates.

27/12/2019

26/12/2019

More about our 12/26 topic...

Our willingness to share content without thinking is exploited to spread disinformation

26/12/2019

New podcast! Please share.

All of a sudden, if you're educated, you are an elitist. I don't think I resemble that remark.

10/12/2019

New podcast! Please share.

Part 2 of my conversation with Dr. Tanisha Ranger, some ideas on a Call Center Bill of Rights, and remembering the late Kansas Senate leader Jerry Karr.

30/11/2019

https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackfriedman/2019/11/25/student-loan-forgiveness-mistake/

If you want student loan forgiveness, don't make these three huge mistakes.

30/11/2019

https://www.blackenterprise.com/fed-black-student-loan-debt/

Economic researchers have found the main factors in student loan debt weighing heavier on black students as opposed to white students.

28/11/2019

28/11/2019

New podcast! Please share.

Studies in 12 countries around the world show a link between call center work and disorders such as depression and anxiety. It's time to take action.

23/11/2019

Things I should have said dept:

By BURDETT LOOMISTo better represent Kansans, we citizens should press for better pay for our lawmakers. This is a simple statement, an

21/11/2019

The loss of local news coverage in much of the United States has frayed communities and left many Americans woefully uninformed, according to a new report.

20/11/2019

An Arm and a Leg, is a podcast, entering its third season this month, about something on people’s minds—the rising cost of health care.

19/11/2019

New podcast! Please share:

Too many members of the Kansas Legislature don't want to hear any ideas from constituents because they say they're going to be too busy with Medicaid expansion in the 2020 session. The Legislature was designed to handle many issues at once in a 90-day session. So why don't they?

06/11/2019

Some final thoughts after the results became final:

A live feed following the final results of Wichita local elections.

05/11/2019

https://facebook.com/senatorsanders/videos/464148927528643/

01/11/2019

New podcast! Please share:
https://anchor.fm/rj-dickens/episodes/Election-2019--Every-vote-counts----and-speaking-of-counting-e8ghq8

Some final thoughts on Election 2019--every vote counts... and speaking of counting.... answering your questions about the census amendment, an issue near and dear to my heart.

28/10/2019

Kansas Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning announced his Medicaid Expansion plan... it's better than we thought, but not as good as we need it to be. Plus, we update the neverending story of the Wichita Mayor's race.

21/10/2019

Special Edition! Please share:

We had to do this special edition because, well, you-know-what happens--and in a Wichita mayoral race, lots of it.

18/10/2019

15/10/2019

New podcast! Please share.

Party like it's 2005! We have another write-in attempt to try and throw a monkey wrench into the November vote with three weeks left. Don't be fooled!

07/10/2019

Kansas is the 17th oldest state in the country, yet we are 46th in the protections afforded older workers. Since we'll never be a magnet for young people, we need to fix this.

02/10/2019

If this doesn't prove how out of touch Mayor Longwell is, I don't know what does.

30/09/2019

Our newest podcast! Please listen and share!

Supporters of Wichita Mayor Jeff Longwell are trying to turn this non-partisan election into a partisan fray by making himself a victim of Trumpian proportions. Don't fall for it.

23/09/2019

We're up to 29 plays of our six podcasts to date.
We need 971 more listeners to reach the magic 1000!

21/09/2019

Too many cities and counties across America are too dependent on traffic fines to pay for local government. The ACLU reports that it takes people 13 times longer to pay a traffic fine if your license is suspended--and there's a 51% chance it will cost you your job. It's time to stop this Jim Crow-er...

20/09/2019

Suspending driver’s licenses for unpaid fees buries poor people in debt.

20/09/2019

https://anchor.fm/rj-dickens/episodes/Leave-Me-A-Loan-e5bho8

What the "experts" who never attended college don't know about the student loan crisis from a Kansas perspective.

20/09/2019

https://anchor.fm/rj-dickens/episodes/R-J-s-Legislative-Agenda--Part-2-I-Hate-the-70s--Traffic-Stop-Edition-e567qk

With nearly every law enforcement officer having access to either body cam or dash cam video, it's time to update our traffic laws to reflect the technology of 2019... not the attitudes of 1974.

20/09/2019

https://anchor.fm/rj-dickens/episodes/Casualties-of-Cold--Uncivil-War-e54dbr

It's easy to demonize someone like the late David Koch. It's harder to keep in mind that to others, he was a brother, father, colleague, and friend. Even in the real Civil War, people on both sides could take time out for events like weddings and funerals.

20/09/2019

https://anchor.fm/rj-dickens/episodes/R-J-s-Legislative-Agenda--Part-1-Rage-Against-the----Algorithm-e52no7

Artificial Intelligence is not making our lives better. At best, it's a gigantic pain in the ass; and at worst, it's a growing nightmare that has the potential to ruin people's lives. This week, R.J. revives his proposal for a "real person" law to address these abuses.

20/09/2019

https://anchor.fm/rj-dickens/episodes/GiveToSomething-e4v3pa

Groups on our side of the aisle are being plagued by people who just sit around and do nothing... and their inactivity has reached crisis proportions.