Talk:Kansas

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Kansas
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Contents

[edit] Kansas City MSA

The Kansas City MSA is NOT a part of the state of Kansas. While some suburbs do spill into the state of Kansas, Kansas Citians pride themselves as being culturally independent from the state of Kansas. 60 percent of the MSA is located in Missouri, the airport is in MO, the tall buildings (downtown) is in MO, the sports stadiums are in MO and overall the entire metro is anchored in Missouri. It is the second largest MSA in Missouri, and is not part of kansas really at all. This needs to be deleted. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.246.231.23 (talk) 05:16, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

^^ The above comment was made by me. I forgot to log in. Kansas City is ANCHORED IN MISSOURI. Actually, Wichita has a larger MSA in the state of Kansas than Kansas City would even if you counted the numbers. JoCo adds about 500 thousand and the dotte is about 100 thousand. According to the article on Wichita, there are 680,000 in their metro. Therefore, Wichita is larger in terms of metro strictly in KS (even though Kansas City's MSA is four times larger) Kansas City is a missouri metro not a Kansas one.

[edit] East-Central Kansas

I don't think there really needs to be an article dedicated to "East Central Kansas," for it really isn't a cultural region of the state. How about we make it Eastern Kansas in general, because Eastern Kansas is distinct from Western Kansas.

Burroughsks88 22:14, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Also here there definitely should be something in the Eastern Kansas section about Lawrence because it does have cultural highlights stemming from the University's influence. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.124.42.102 (talk) 07:43, 3 June 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Minor Change

The article stated that the Largest Hand Dug Well in Greensburg, Kansas had been destroyed in the tornado. This is not true. The building next to the well was essentially destroyed, the water tower next to the well was destroyed, and initial thoughts were that the well had collapsed in on itself, but the well is actually fine and will eventually reopen. 198.182.30.82 20:46, 20 July 2007 (UTC)

That's great news!--Paul McDonald 15:09, 21 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] indians

"For millenia, the land that is presently Kansas was inhabited by Native Americans." Is this accurate? I thought that the Indians that were displaced by the white settlers had only been in the area a few hundred years. Weren't they displaced tribes from the Eastern part of the country? Maybe this should be "centuries" instead of "millenia". Jayscore 18:35, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

indians from the east often displaced the indigenous tribes of the territories to which they were displaced, if the eastern tribe was stronger (or smallpox cleared the way first.) When white settlers arrived, they often found the decedents of eastern Native American tribes--sometimes with no real memory of who the "original" tribes were. At any rate, there is extensive evidence of ancient Native American activity in Kansas. For example, Clovis points have been found in several locations around the state[1], and small-scale mound builder activity has also been documented[2], to name a few. --Carboncopy 19:20, 12 June 2006 (UTC)
Should the text be expanded in this section? Just a thought. —Mike 02:34, 13 June 2006 (UTC)
More information about Kansas tribes is included in the article History of Kansas, though they probably deserve at least another sentence here. -- Carboncopy 03:12, 13 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Latitude, Longitude

1) What is the source for official State boundaries? 2) Currently Kansas and Colorado seem to overlap in Wikipedia. Maybe the Colorado number is rounded.

curious reader



—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 207.67.146.9 (talk) 18:57, 24 December 2006 (UTC).

[edit] Into paragraph: settlers from Massachusetts

To the anonymous user, please note that settlers from Mass. were not the very first to settle Kansas, and that they were not all abolitionists. They were Free-Staters, which is a more nuanced position. Also, to say that they sought to avoid the spread of slavery from neighboring Missouri sort of misstates the issue that arose from the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Kgwo1972 15:56, 19 May 2006 (UTC)

What does "width" mean vs. "length"? either way, isn't kansas more wide than ... long? or tall? or whatever the other axis might be called?

Full size flag of Kansas seems to be missing. I could not find a Flag of Kansas article, and the full detail link under the flag links to Flag of Missouri.

Didup 17:15 30 Jun 2003 (UTC)

[edit] drop English measurements in state table?

I've recently changed Template:US state to make the table more compact. Including the English measurements in addition to metric makes the table entries look awkward in the current version of the template. Missouri is the only other state article that includes English measurements. Anyone care if I delete the English measurements? An alterative might be to create a different version of the template that accommodates both English and metric (which I'd be willing to do if anyone strongly cares about preserving the English measurements). -- Rick Block 15:47, 10 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Because Americans don't normally use metric measurements, the English measurements should always be included, if not the default measurement. —Mike 05:29, Dec 13, 2004 (UTC)
I too believe that the English measurements should remain. The World would be better if everyone switched to metric. The fact of the matter is that they have not and English measurements still dominate the United States. As such, we ought to include the measurement system that is common to the locality. --Richss 14:06, Dec 13, 2004 (UTC)


Surely there were settlers before 1850. Can anyone clarify this? well u must know and figure it out yourself. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Broworker122 (talk • contribs) 02:23, August 22, 2007 (UTC).

[edit] People From Kansas...

Just wondering what the denizens of Kansas are called... As in, Utahns are from Utah, etc.

Kansans. :) Cookiecaper 22:44, 29 May 2005 (UTC)

Jayhawkers as well - me

Why do famous people from states like Kansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Arkansas, leave and dont come back, Bill and Hillary Clinton are from Arkansas, after they got to the White house they are in New York, I wonder why...:)

Well, Hillary Clinton is a senator from New York, so she kind of has to live there and in Washington... As for other "famous" people like the Hollywood movie stars... well, they go to where they make... y'know... movies. And we don't have too many movie studios in Kansas.--Paul McDonald 18:59, 6 March 2007 (UTC)

I like to call myself a Kanzanian, but I can't seem to get anyone else to go for it. Kansan is what I have heard the most, though that is pretty easy to confuse with the Native American tribe. Jayhawker works, too, though it's more specifically either an anti-slavery irregular from the Civil War era or a student or alum of the University of Kansas. And, no, we don't answer to "hick," "flatlander," "backward-state-dwelling anti-evolutionist," or anything else like that. Oh, and, by the way, the real reason that people from states like Kansas, Mississippi, etc. leave and don't come back is because, once they've gone to New York or Los Angeles, we don't want them back. Kansas; our state motto: "Yes, we've heard that joke before, too." --Raulpascal 18:48, 24 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Hightest point in infobox

Since the highest point in Kansas has its own Wikipedia page (Mount Sunflower), should a link to Mount Sunflower be given in the infobox? N0YKG 20:30, 28 September 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Location of Kansas

Right now, the article says: Located in the heartland of the country, Kansas is home to the geographical center of the contiguous United States..

I would like it to say: Located in the Midwest, Kansas is home to the geographical center of the contiguous United States.

Any comment? unknown user

Both are acceptable, but the second is preferable. Jon 20:50, 25 May 2006 (UTC)

I object (like that's got any clout!) to referring to Kansas as in the "Midwest" ... look at a map of North America. I realize that some people think that Ohio is in the "Midwest" but the "Middle of the West" really starts at Colorado and goes to Utah or maybe Nevada. Anyway, those are my thoughts.--Paul McDonald 04:56, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

I wonder why they call the plains area the midwest? Wrad 05:06, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

Same reason they call the Southeast "the South". The whole nomenclature is fairly East-coast centric, and in my opinion, quite goofy. I don't agree with it, but that's what popular culture calls it. And since that's what most of your sources are going to say, that's what we ought to say. ----Steve 20:15, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

I agree. Wrad 23:41, 3 May 2007 (UTC)


I have been reading the discussion thread about Kansas and would like to make a couple comments regarding its status as a "Midwestern" state. I was born and raised in Kansas and now live in Dallas, TX. My wife is originally from Michigan and lived a number of years in Chicago. I have a number of cousins that are from places in the southwestern portion of Kansas (Liberal & Dodge City). My point to this autobiography is that people in Liberal, Dodge City, Michigan, Dallas, and often times Chicago do not view Kansas as the Midwest. To not distinguish it as Missouri is ("It is a state with both Midwestern and Southern cultural influences, reflecting its history as a border state between the two regions") as culturally different from almost the entire Midwest is highly missing the point. Kansas has many Southern cultural aspects such as Jazz, Foods such as Bar-B-Que and Biscuits & Gravy, Political Conservativism, a Bible-Belt consciousness (no gambling), love of sports such as NASCAR, even the large oil & natural gas industry that no other "Midwestern" state claims, you name it Kansas has a bit of it. I am not trying to say that it is not in anyway a "Midwestern" state but I think that is too narrow of a term to use considering its vast influence from Southern culture and industries that make it a border state. --Posted by an anon.


Liberal and Dodge City have been western and mid-western. I think you are confusing KCMo with KCK (+ Kansas) in ... The NASCAR, maybe the few true "Kansas" items you listed, in KCK is rather recent ... J. D. Redding 23:27, 9 May 2007 (UTC)

I think it definitely has influences of both regions. The midwest is noted for its grain production, farms, constant conservatism, etc. I have also seen a lot of the south. Dialect-wise, as well, Kansas is mostly midwestern, but has a large southern dialect representation. I'm almost tempted to copy and paste the description you say Missouri has. Wrad 18:53, 8 May 2007 (UTC)

That's interesting that you think Kansas and Missouri are very much alike. Don't tell the residents that, they'd likely argue!--Paul McDonald 20:14, 8 May 2007 (UTC)

I just took out the midwest part of the intro. The Midwest article shows that this designation varies by source. We should, however, mention this debate further down in the article, I think. Wrad 20:35, 8 May 2007 (UTC)

Paul, I was a resident for nearly 26 years and grew up in the City of Shawnee 15 miles from Missouri. Many of my friends lived in MO and attended KS private high schools and visa-versa. I have never heard anyone that would not draw some comparisons between the two states. They share a football team, baseball team, and allow in-state tuition for both MU and KU to residents along the border. If you visit the Lake of the Ozarks in MO they actually have a Kansas side to the lake. Wrad if you look up the definition of South Central United States it actually lists KS in that category. I believe there are similarities between the two states but my point was not to compare them to one another, rather to illustrate my point that like MO which is a border state, Kansas also has a Southern cultural influence. As far as dialect I goes, trust me I have been teased by my wifes friends that have heard me say y'all (without the drawl obviously) and things like huntin', fishin', runnin', etc. that I never noticed before I met her. Now I notice it in my friends back home and though it is slight there is a distiniction between Kansas and most of the Midwest in dialect.38.114.50.26 20:57, 8 May 2007 (UTC)Michael

Wrad, rather than saying, "Sometimes called the Heartland", you may want to put something like, " an area often referred to as the Heartland". Just a suggestion.

I made a change, I think it's better now. Kansas is definitely like the south in a lot of ways. Sometimes I look around and wonder if I'm talking in the same drawl as everyone around me, but when I go to other parts of the US, nobody says anything about it. Wrad 22:19, 8 May 2007 (UTC)

Kansas is definitely like the south in a lot of ways? How? Missouri (and Missourians) may be like the south in a lot of ways, but not the Kansans I know. J. D. Redding 23:23, 9 May 2007 (UTC)

Apparently someone changed it and added Midwest back. I really think we should at least qualify that. People from Michigan and Ohio don't think of Kansas as the Midwest, just as we Kansans don't think of them as the midwest. The page on the Midwest also shows that defining Kansas as a midwestern state is not totally agreed upon, but varies by source. I'm a Kansan, and I think of myself as a midwesterner, but if we don't qualify it, some Hoosier or Buckeye may edit it out. I think we should deal with that now. Wrad 18:22, 9 May 2007 (UTC)

I've always heard Kansas referred to as the mid-west (and the "heartland"). Not sure if there is anything to dispute. I have lived in KCK and Emporia, Kansas. Most of the people I know in Kansas think of themselves as being in the mid-west. J. D. Redding 23:23, 9 May 2007 (UTC)

That's what we're trying to say. People in Kansas think of themselves as in the midwest, but people outside don't always do so. Just take a look at the midwest article and its sources. Wrad 23:26, 9 May 2007 (UTC)

Midwest as shown by U.S. Census Bureau official map from regdiv.pdf
Midwest as shown by U.S. Census Bureau official map from regdiv.pdf

Let me go back to this again, a lot of people in Kansas don't see themselves as in the midwest as well. Yes, there are a number of people in Kansas that do see themselves as in the midwest. You are making your assumption that living in KCK the upper most northeast portion of Kansas you represent those that live in Baxter Springs, Liberal, Dodge, Kanorado, etc... Like Wrad said, look at the definition of Midwest and South Central United States and you will notice we are questionable in the Midwest and clearly a part of the South Central United States. Why is the term midwestern so important to have there it's not like you calling it the South instead. I find it much more of interesting place to be from because it doesn't fit soundly in any one category, why not embrace that fact? At least if you are going to put that there make sure you add that there are many things that distinguish Kansas a part from the Midwestern states, culturally, economically (i.e. oil, natural gas, etc.) as well as in dialect. If you spent some time in Emporia then you would have certainly heard people from places like Baxter Springs and Pittsburgh that certainly have a different dialect than KCK. If you look into the economic growth of Hutchinson and Wichita you will see it established itself in the natural gas and oil markets, give me another midwestern state that can claim that. With those industries large numbers of people from Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana have moved into the area over the last couple of generations.70.250.176.54 03:42, 10 May 2007 (UTC)michael

I would proposition that those in the extreme SW and SE (eg Baxter Springs, Liberal, Dodge) of the state may identify with the south or southwest ... but the majority of ppl in the state of KS and ppl in the US gov would call it a western to midwestern state. The ppl of Kanorado would, IMO, identify with colorado, a more western state. J. D. Redding 15:19, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Whats wrong with saying, Kansas is a state located in the Central United States that shares both Midwestern and Southern cultural influences which makes it truly unique. Or something like that. Interesting as well that Kansa means, "people of the South Wind".70.250.176.54 03:42, 10 May 2007 (UTC)michael

The U.S. Census Bureau official map states that it's Midwest. It'd be alright to mention later in the article the things that distinguish Kansas from other Midwestern states, but also include things that are alike too. I have never really considered Kansas part of the South Central United States. Maybe western ... definitely midwestern. J. D. Redding 15:13, 10 May 2007 (UTC) (ps., KS has always been the border state ... oh, sweet bleeding Kansas ...)

That sounds all right. Just as long as we explain it. I was just thinking the same thing about Bleeding Kansas. Wrad 15:18, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Kansas is not a Southern state in any sense of the term. I hate to harp back to the slavery issue, but Kansas was established as a Free State. Look at the Political history of Kansas. Kansas was a solid Republican state, as was MA, PN, CT, etc. Kansas never voted with the solid south. I would dispute that Kansas is as "conservative" as everyone on here has been claiming. Republicans that dominate Kansas are by and large moderate (save for Brownback). Look at Dole, Kassebaum, Graves, etc. I've lived in Kansas since I was 5 years old, and I have never heard anyone refer to the state as anything but Midwestern. Burroughsks88 03:02, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

I doubt that it's as clear-cut as you say, but certainly most of this discussion has been speculation. None of it will be added without a source. Wrad 03:10, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

I'll also add, how many states with "southern cultural influences" have a mural of John Brown in their state capitol? Burroughsks88 03:36, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Learned today that Kansas has the 1st John Brown memorial statue in the country in Quindaro [sp?] in KCK. Went to the Argentine Carnegie Library .... and found that out ... J. D. Redding 01:46, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

Seriously, I never in this entire discussion thread argued that Kansas is a "southern state". I agree that Kansas is a Midwestern state for the most part and would never call it a "southern state". There is a large difference between stating Kansas is unique with some southern influences and arguing that it is a southern state. You are arguing a position that nobody ever made a counter claim to. Your right don't go back to the slavery issue because it was a free state however it also moved to ban blacks from immigrating to the state all together. Don't white wash history to make it looker prettier than it really was. Many whites didn't want to compete with slaves for jobs as they moved down wages and the plantations moved up land prices. As far as saying you don't think it's as conservative as people say, I don't know who you are talking about. The Kansas I grew up in sold no booze on Sundays, had the third highest church going rate in the country, is classified as being in the Bible Belt, put a gay marriage ban in it's state constitution, wanted Darwinism banned, brought executions back, and voted almost 5 to 1 for George Bush. Sure its thankfully not Mississippi conservative I but it sure as heck isn't Nebraska, Illinois, Iowa, or Minnesota either. The only point I was making is that Kansas is more than just a Midwestern state but one culturally influenced by its geographical position.38.114.50.26 19:54, 16 May 2007 (UTC)Michael

You could always try the neutral phrase "Kansas is a great plains state...", because the great plains area includes some states in the south (like Oklahoma), and some midwest states (like Nebraska). Ks0stm (talk) 20:42, 31 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] odd paragraph deleted

"As it is the central state in the Union, it is difficult to classify Kansas within one of the standard geographical regions of the nation, but it is generally included in the Midwest. The southwestern part of the state is sometimes included in the Southwest, since the area once was part of Spain, Mexico, and the Republic of Texas, while the rest of Kansas was not."

The style used is wrong for the topic; it's in British English ["as" used instead of "because"], which shouldn't be used for an article about an American state. Plus I'm not aware of anyone in the US ever disputing Kansas being considered part of the Midwest or refering to any portion of the state as Southwestern. Jon 20:50, 25 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Overland Park/Olathe

In the Important Cities and Towns section, OP and Olathe are listed as suburbs rather than in the > 100,000 category. While it's true that they are suburban areas, it's also true that they exceed 100,000 population -- and Overland Park is actually larger than the city it's listed as being a suburb of, and has been since the mid-90s! I'd suggest that at the very least Overland Park, if not also Olathe, be moved up to the 100,000 section. JFMorse 18:23, 8 June 2006 (UTC)

Given a choice, I would rather do away with the whole greater than thing and instead have them grouped in some other way. For example, group by metro area and then sort within each grouping by population (and display the most recent estimated population). —Mike 02:32, 13 June 2006 (UTC)
That's not going to change much, though; all of the suburbs are KC Metro, and all of the other cities are their metro area, essentially. If you're talking about just folding the whole mess into one list, with the populations noted, and the KC Metro Area cities grouped, then I think that would indeed be a good idea. If nobody raises an objection soon, I can take a crack at that. JFMorse 14:53, 13 June 2006 (UTC)
I would also question any of these being suburbs of Kansas City, Kansas. Having lived in the area for 20 years, I can tell you that people consider these towns to be suburbs of Kansas City, Missouri. Or maybe a better term would be the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Jayscore 18:43, 12 June 2006 (UTC)
I agree Jayscore. I certainly wouldn't consider OP, Olathe, Lenexa, etc. to be suburbs of Kansas City, KS. I've spoken with three friends that grew up in KC, KS and they feel that if they are to be listed as suburbs it should be under Kansas City, Missouri. Perkins5622 03:50, 16 June 2006 (UTC)

Olathe, OP, and Lenexa are all in Kansas. It would be idiotic to list them in a state that they do not exist in. I grew up in Olathe, KANSAS, not Missouri. I think the only reason that they are considered suburbs of KCKS is because you really cannot tell where one ends and another beings while driving through them. It is pretty much just one long, continuous sea of people. I would tell people that Olathe is a suburb of Kansas City because it is only a 30 minute drive from the outskirts of Olathe to downtown KC. Besides, Olathe, OP, Lenexa, etc. all have that suburban feel to them anyway, that it would be difficult for someone to say that they were not intentionally planned to be suburbs. (Kansans hate to be confused with Missourians, by the by.) Tragicomic 04:41, 12 July 2006 (UTC)

I grew up in Overland Park, and I hate people claiming OP is a suburb of KCKS more than the idea that it's a suburb of KCMO. OP is bigger than KCKS, which was the point of my original suggestion here. JFMorse 21:38, 12 July 2006 (UTC)
Obviously Kansas City (Kansas and Missouri) is really the suburb of Overland Park...they just don't know it yet. ;) —Mike 22:55, 12 July 2006 (UTC)
Hmmm... this seems to me to be a "state line war" of some type. Maybe this should be put under "bleeding Kansas" ... nah. But seriously, I think that the idea of "suburbs" in Kansas really does not apply. For example Schaumburg, Illinois is a very large city but is considered one of many, many suburbs of Chicago. The "suburbs" of the KC Metro Area are much, much fewer in number. Does that matter? I think so. Let's discuss!--Paul McDonald 18:55, 6 March 2007 (UTC)
Overland Park, Shawnee, Mission, Kansas City, KS, Merriam, Olathe, etc. should all considered to be suburbs of Kansas City, MO. The same trend can be found in most, if not all, major cities in the United States. jwadeo 02:23, 9 May 2007 (UTC)
Some of these are satellite cities. Some are suburbs. J. D. Redding


Paul, this was never about whether Overland Park is a suburb of KCMO. It was about whether Overland Park is a suburb of KCKS, which I feel it can't very well be considered anymore, what with Overland Park having more area and more people than KCKS... JFMorse 15:13, 29 May 2007 (UTC)

See, I tend to the opinion that Overland Park, KCK, KCMO, Shawnee, etc. are all suburbs of my home town of Mission. I'm willing to accept that this is a minority opinion, of course. --Raulpascal 18:53, 24 May 2007 (UTC)

Hmmm... Mapquest puts Olathe at 22 miles from KCMO. That's only 20 miles more (albiet double) the distance between Baltimre, MD and Washington, DC. Yet I wouldn't consider Washington and Baltimore to be suburbs of each other. Another example is San Francisco and Oakland, which mapquest puts 12 miles apart (half the distance). Niether is really a "suburb" of the other.
Further, Olathe and the other Johnson County cities declared are two counties (and one state) away from KCMO. The term Kansas City Metropolitan Area is likely much more appropriate.--Paul McDonald 15:30, 25 May 2007 (UTC)
Two counties? Johnson County is adjacent to Jackson County, Missouri. JFMorse 15:13, 29 May 2007 (UTC)
I would say that Kansas City, KS is to Kansas City, MO what St Paul is to Minneapolis. So is St Paul a Suburb of Minneapolis? No. Neither is Kansas City, KS a suburb of Kansas City, MO. Together the two cities form the original urbanized core that has expanded into what is now the greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Thus Overland Park and Olathe are both suburbs of The Kansas City, KS / Kansas City, MO metro. The fact that Overland Park's population and economy now surpasses that of the original urban center of Kansas City, KS and perhaps one day may even surpass that of the much larger Kansas City, MO is immaterial to it's status as a suburb of Kansas City KS/MO. However; as is the case with so many suburbs; Overland Park and Olathe have grown so large, both by population and economy, that they can be considered to be simultaneously a suburb of the Kansas Cities and a City in their own right. Justin8216 01:39, 4 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] State Government

Does anyone know how the state government is set up? I heard Nebraska is the only state with one legislative body. How many state senator and legislators are there? How long is their term?

Just thought someone out there would know.


[edit] Important Cities

The Important Cities section seems lacking and a bit onesided to JOCO.:( Maybe some editing or addtion of cities could help this section out! --buzlink 02:53, 28 June 2006 (UTC)


Also, it lists Salina as having 85,000 people. The page for Salina, though, cites that it has a population of something like 46,000. I never thought that Salina was more populous than, for instance, Lawrence, but could I be wrong?

I fixed it. It was done by an anon user in October. —Mike 03:07, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] African American Settlers

Whoever is editing out the parts about African American settlers and calling it "drivel" needs to do a reality check. African American settlers were far more important to Kansas State history than many realize. StudierMalMarburg 21:07, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] A picture is worth quite a few words

Came here looking for a few nice photos of Kansas, to get a general overview of the state. There are zero photos on the page. Vranak 04:03, 17 December 2006 (UTC)

True, it could be better, but you might want to start over in Commons:

[edit] New proposed WikiProject

There is now a proposed WikiProject to deal with the state of Kansas at Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Proposals#Kansas. Any parties interested in taking part in such a project should indicate as much there, so that we can know if there is sufficient interest to create it. Thank you. Badbilltucker 16:56, 20 January 2007 (UTC)

I'll join up... who else? ----Steve 21:47, 7 March 2007 (UTC)

Sure NapalmSunday 22:59, 10 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Buffalo vs Bison

Ok, given that the 'technical' term is American Bison. The official source from the KS Govt lists it as the American Buffalo. So which should it be?

I would go with "Buffalo" because that is what the average person from the area calls the animal. If you want to be specific, you could list "Buffalo (Bison)" but I think that would be overkill. A link to the Bison page should clear up any questions.--Paul McDonald 15:08, 11 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Global warming info

Well User:Jcam removed my contributions to the article with the note, removing POV (cited political source in climate section):

Global warming is predicted to have a destructive effect on Kansas:
Wheat farming in Kansas, for example, would be profoundly affected by the loss of ice cover in the Arctic. According to a NASA Goddard Institute of Space Studies computer model, Kansas would be 4 degrees warmer in the winter without Arctic ice, which normally creates cold air masses that frequently slide southward into the United States. Warmer winters are bad news for wheat farmers, who need freezing temperatures to grow winter wheat. And in summer, warmer days would rob Kansas soil of 10% of its moisture, drying out valuable cropland.[3]
Hotter, dryer conditions in Kansas would approximate the conditions that led to the dust bowl years in the 1930's, when the state was largely uninhabitable.

But this was not POV, but scientifically documented projections, and should be respected as such, not even Bush and Exxon question that global warming is happening anymore, the only argument is what causes it and what to do about it, so the likely effects on Kansas should be restored to the article.... //// Pacific PanDeist * 21:30, 20 February 2007 (UTC)

Interesting stuff. Shouldn't have been point-of-view data, methinks... but it doesn't exactly belong in the "Kansas" article. There's no section called "stuff that hasn't happend but might" ... HOWEVER, I could see an article on the potential effects of global warming, or an article on "effects of potential disasters for Kansas" might be kind of fun too... so I think it should have been removed from this article and placed in another, but not for the reason given.--Paul McDonald 03:44, 21 February 2007 (UTC)
Why do you say it doesn't belong in the Kansas article? It's in the climate section - the climate of Kansas is not particularly different from the climate of Nebraska or Oklahoma, but each article has its own section on climate.... as long as we're going to say what the climate of Kansas is, we should be able to say what the climate of Kansas will be (the quote is Kansas specific).... and this is not a "potential disaster" this is what is already happening, and what the best scientific evidence tells us will continue to happen!! //// Pacific PanDeist * 06:46, 21 February 2007 (UTC)
Harumph. "Why do you say it doesn't belong in the Kansas article?" ... because it doesn't belong in the Kansas article.
The "climate" section is used to speak specifically about what the climate is, not what it might be sometime maybe in the future. And it's not "already happening" because the quote you gave states what would happen if the polar ice caps completely melt. They are a long way from that (at least, they tell me... haven't been there to check myself).
I encourage you to make a separate article about the potential and projected effects of global warming on Kansas climate. You can then link to that article from this one.--Paul McDonald 17:51, 21 February 2007 (UTC)
I disagree. I don't think one paragraph is enough to warrant a separate article. And the Climate section is about the climate--not just the current climate. It should be ok to add any sourced info on how the climate has changed since the last ice age or scientific projections of how the climate may change in the not too distant future. (But leave out any pure speculations.) If the section gets too big, it can be expanded into another article and summarized here. —Mike 23:51, 22 February 2007 (UTC)
I would think that a "history of Kansas Climate" paragraph would belong in the Kansas History page. But HEY that's why we have discussions!--Paul McDonald 20:29, 23 February 2007 (UTC)
I tend to view the History section as the human or cultural history, more than the geographic or climate. —Mike 23:26, 24 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] A recent edit:

I removed the following:

Kansas is known as the sunflower state.
4% of the USA is planes and 3% of planes are in kansas.

The first line was redundant, as the nickname "the Sunflower State" is given in the state info box. The second line made no sense whatsoever, had no reference, and was grammatically incorrect.--Paul McDonald 23:01, 22 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Geography

Its sounds redundant to state Kansas is home to the geographic center of the lower 48 states twice. Especiall when thy are stated a few lines from each other. Of course it just my opion on the matter and if one does change it back please say why. Natural number is e 16:29, 14 March 2007 (UTC)

Ok, I fixed it. Apparently it is the geodetic and Geographic center, but someone messed up. Easy mistake to make. I had no idea about geodetics. Wrad 18:00, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Climate section organization

I tried to organize the Climate section into less of a list and more of prose. It is better now, but not that good as prose should be, really. Do we want to divide it into three or four sections? The weather seems to divide into west, east, and south groups, so maybe a paragraph about each and then one about the state as a whole? As it is now, it could really be more coherent. Wrad 18:04, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Demographic info

I've run into a paradox with the demographic section. The rural decline sections seems to say the population of Kansas is dropping, while the census infobox says it went up 8% at the last census. Can anyone who knows the source of the rural decline section clarify this? Wrad 18:45, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Economy

There is a problem with the Petroleum paragraph. It states that the production of oil is on a steady decline, but then says that it has been fairly level since 1999. This, if not contradictory, is ambiguous. Could someone familiar with the sources clear this up? Also, in the notable employers paragraph, there may be a need for a clear list of maybe the ten biggest employers in Kansas, with citations, rather than a lump of big companies. Those that don't fit on the list could then be placed on regional pages. I may have time to do this myself, but if anyone wants, jump right in. Also, if you have other suggestions, go ahead. Wrad 21:13, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

Production has experienced a steady, natural decline as it becomes increasingly difficult to extract oil over time. Since oil prices bottomed in 1999, oil production in Kansas has remained fairly constant, with an average monthly rate of about 2.8 million barrels in 2004.
It isn't really that ambiguous. The first sentence says "over time" (meaning the long-term trend), and the second says "since 1999". —Mike 02:27, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

I found a top ten list and edited. Here is what it was before, in case anyone wants to use it (I hate to lose information). if yu can work more of this into the new form somehow, go for it.

Major employers in Kansas include the Sprint Nextel Corporation (with operational headquarters in Overland Park), Embarq (with national headquarters in Overland Park), Learjet Inc. (Wichita) , Hallmark Cards (Topeka, Lawrence & Kansas City), Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company (Topeka), Applebee's (Overland Park), Payless Shoes (National headquarters and major distribution facilities in Topeka), Koch Industries (Wichita), Department of Defense (Ft.Riley/Junction City and Fort Leavenworth) and Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems (Wichita).

I realize that the list of the top ten may look better as a table, maybe with the number of employees listed on the side, but I don't have time for now. Wrad 21:33, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

Confused by Top 10 employers list -- shows a larger number of employees for the #2 than for the #1 listed company? DeSales 00:49, 20 August 2007 (UTC)

It was a typo. Fixed. Wrad 00:58, 20 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] In fiction

Somebody posted this on the main page:

Why no mention of Clark Kent?

It was clearly a joke, but it got me thinking. Maybe we should have a section about Kansas in literature, popular culture, film, etc. It would be interesting. Wrad 00:22, 14 April 2007 (UTC)

Check out the Category:Fictional characters from Kansas link below--Paul McDonald 14:11, 17 April 2007 (UTC)
Sweet, is this worked into the main article at all? Wrad 16:43, 17 April 2007 (UTC)
I have removed the inclusion of this page in the category "fictional characters in kansas" (it screws with the categories). For future reference, to link to a category put a : in front of the link (this works with images as well). So for instance the syntax [[:Category:Fictional characters from Kansas]] produces: Category:Fictional characters from Kansas. As a result, this page will not be included as a page in that category. Happy editing. --best, kevin [kzollman][talk] 01:29, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Cleanup?

Should the list be in paragraph form? J. D. Redding 01:02, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

Maybe that in combination with a listing of only major landmarks. Other landmarks can be listed on city or county pages. Wrad 01:18, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

I took out what I considered to be the less notable landmarks. A lot of them need to be moved to city or county pages:

If you want to put any of them back, just say why on your edit summary, or discuss it here. Wrad 06:41, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

Maybe a list of Kansas landmarks could be possible. maybe? maybe not ... J. D. Redding 07:25, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Abusive User

User 72.241.132.152 has made several entries that the "governor of Illinois" is actually the "governor of Kansas" -- I have rv for vandalism twice, one other Wiki editor has also done the same thing. Third time... how do we stop this?--Paul McDonald 04:30, 12 June 2007 (UTC)

Report him to WP:AN/I, I geuss. Wrad 21:32, 12 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Possable Link on Top

Would it be possable or just plain apporperate to add a link on the top along with the disembigation to the Kansas (band) entry? Tazz 18:22, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

It wouldn't be appropriate. Just put it on the Disambiguation page. Wrad 03:23, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kansas Someone has added an abusive nickname for the state of Kansas... It is The Sunflower State —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.81.37.44 (talk) 04:59, 6 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Largest Metro Area

I changed the largest metro area from Wichita to Kansas City. I looked at both MSAs and it appears that the Kansas side of the Kansas City MO-KS MSA is larger by population then the entire Wichita MSA. This can be viewed in the following article Kansas_census_statistical_areas

unregistered user 01:03, 10 November 2007

[edit] Kansas as a border state

I'm not debating that the Civil War pretty much started in Kansas. What I am debating is your use of the term border state. Border states were states that permitted slavery but didn't join the confederacy. Kansas as a state never permitted slavery. I would also debate your use of "southern cultural" influences. Kansas has never been considered southern, not even in the sense that Missouri or Oklahoma are.

Burroughsks88 (talk) 08:54, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

And, for what it's worth, the border state article does not list Kansas. Cheers Geologyguy (talk) 14:52, 21 December 2007 (UTC)
Yeah, Kansas doesn't really fit in that category. Wrad (talk) 16:51, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

I would think Kansas is easily defined as a "border state". In fact, if you look at the border states page and look at the map on the right side of the page Kansas has its own distinction. As for whether or not Kansas had slaves as a state, I think it is obviously all on how you word your arguement. Kansas did have slaves within its borders, Thomas Johnson for whom Johnson County is named after was a slave holder (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Johnson_%28Kansas%29). The Lecompton Constitution (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lecompton) also called for slavery and it was only after three different constitutions and the inevitable war ahead that Kansas was adopted as a free state. Geographically, Kansas is also listed on the south central united states page on wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Central_United_States) and on the federal aviation page (http://www.fly.faa.gov/flyfaa/scmap.jsp). I don't see how you could possibly be occasionally classified in the south central united states, have states that were slaves states on two sides and not be a border state. Kansas was so important leading up to the Civil War because it was a border state. If it had been Nebraska it wouldn't have been. In addition, I would argue being from Wichita that Kansas does have aspects of "southern cultural" influences. For instance, highly Repbulican (unlike most states considered Midwestern), identified as being in the Bible Belt of the US, has pushed against evolution in schools, has banned gay marriages,is a right to work state (like most southern states) and has a large oil and gas sector, etc. I think most people would identify these cultural aspects to be more Southern than Midwestern. I think it is really easy for people to generalize the whole state based on Kansas City (which is much more Midwestern) than taking into account the rest of the state. Personally, I think the way you all had it before showed the unique historical and current cultural aspects of Kansas. Robert —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.11.160.69 (talk) 23:44, 26 December 2007 (UTC)

After some thought, I think that my revert to re-insert the term "border state" here was probably in error. I didn't realize the term had specific meaning in the context of the Civil War. We were certainly a state on the border, culturally as well as on the battle lines, but the term of art "border state" seems to exclusively mean states who officially allowed slavery but remained in the Union. (ESkog)(Talk) 05:51, 27 December 2007 (UTC)

I would keep the term "border state" however I would not link it to the civil war definition page. Kansas is a border state in about every context, it borders historical and current southern states, midwestern states, and even states considered western or southwestern(colorado). I would then agree you should re-insert the text "Kansas is a state with both Midwestern and Southern cultural influences reflecting its status as a border state".Robert —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.11.160.69 (talk) 16:01, 27 December 2007 (UTC)

I still really don't want to say border state. It just has too much of the Civil War connotation even without the link. Wrad (talk) 17:44, 27 December 2007 (UTC)
I also disagree that Kansas has a "status as a border state". As a native I don't think of Kansas bordering anything in the modern context. Yes, it is a cultural cross-roads, and yes, it has influences from different parts of the country, but no, I doubt it would be considered a border state by most people. —Mike 17:59, 27 December 2007 (UT

If the term "border state" still bothers for some reason then leave it out. I was merely trying to expand the conversation and add facts to back up my arguement. I would however add the previous line you had before that "Kansas has both Midwestern and Southern cultural influences". As a Kansas naitive myself I don't think you can argue this point. Robert

I thought you had good points. I just think that its "borderness" is better communicated in what you just quoted. It has both southern and midwestern influences. You may want to join the conversation we had on that further up on this page. Wrad (talk) 03:47, 28 December 2007 (UT

I am not sure what conversation you are refering to further up the page? I would agree with you though that the quote about its cultural difference is sufficient. I hope that someone will add that sentence to the Kansas page. Robert

After adding the statement, "Kansas's history and geographical location attributed to its unique blend of midwestern and southern culture". It was erased by someone obviously with no explanation as to why, despite the conversations above. It seems to me that this topic discussion board is useless. Arguements above made with links and references are disregarded for personal preference. The three threads above were used to show conflict for the term "boarder state" which was resolved by adding a simple statement showing cultural differences. This apparently was to much for someone and therefore it was erased to put Kansas in a pigeon hole. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.11.160.69 (talk) 17:27, 29 December 2007 (UTC)

Does mentioning Kansas City is referred to as the eastern most western city bother anyone's sensibilities? After reading y'alls discusstions here, it seems that unless its calling Kansas a "midwestern" state y'all dont put much else in. I was in Kansas until I was 15 and always thought the eastern most western city was an unsual distinction. Jayhawk23 (talk) 02:39, 31 December 2007

[edit] Statement with no references ?

Form the Article: "Although Kansas is considered to be one of the most Republican states in the nation, there has been a long-running feud between the socially moderate (or "mainstream") faction and the socially conservative faction of the party. This battle is so heated that it is often said that there are three parties in Kansas--Democrats, moderate Republicans and conservative Republicans. It is possible for a Democrat to win by winning the support of moderate Republicans and a few registered independents. Thus, recently, Kansas has been warming to Democrats, re-electing a Democratic Governor, Kathleen Sebelius in 2006, with 58% of the vote. Democrats also picked up" ... This does not sound encyclopedic, nor are there any references: "often said", "faction", "feud", "warming", "picked up" 50MWdoug (talk) 01:03, 1 April 2008 (UTC)