Revival covers constitutional arguments, role of vaccinations in autism

By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2021/09/21/kansas-foes-of-covid-19-vaccinations-push-for-political-protection-from-mandates/">Kansas Reflector</a>

LENEXA — Sen. Mark Steffen won’t take no for an answer in a quest for
 a special session of the Kansas Legislature to pass bills blocking 
workplace COVID-19 vaccination mandates and removing barriers to 
off-label use of ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine in wake of the 
lingering pandemic.

The Hutchinson Republican said during the Freedom Revival in the 
Heartland that he gave up begging for the special session to work with 
Rep. Tatum Lee of Ness City on an attempt to force the issue. They plan 
to gather signatures from two-thirds of the 40-member Senate and 
125-member House to trigger a special session. The idea is to convince 
enough lawmakers of the need to convene before scheduled start of the 
next session in January. The agenda would feature bills appealing to 
conservative, faith-based activists attending the church revival who 
were troubled by government’s commitment to a vaccination solution to 
COVID-19.

“The people who aren’t willing to sign this paper saying we’ll come 
back, we’re going to let the grassroots know. Between now and January, 
we’re going to sic ’em,” said Steffen, who is an anesthesiologist.

The state senator argued the current Republican leadership of the 
House and Senate appeared too soft. The same might apply to Attorney 
General Derek Schmidt, who became the frontrunner for the GOP nomination
 for governor after former Gov. Jeff Colyer dropped out of contention, 
he said.

It’s likely Schmidt will meet Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly in the November 2022 general election in Kansas.

Steffen said it was important a deal be struck to guarantee the right
 wing of the Kansas GOP placed one of their own as the lieutenant 
governor candidate on the ticket with Schmidt. His top choice would be 
Sen. Mike Thompson, a Johnson County Republican and former television 
weather forecaster.

On heels of Steffen’s remarks in the Lenexa sanctuary, Thompson chose
 not to address the call to make him lieutenant governor. He did assure 
an audience of hundreds that he was profoundly skeptical of the COVID-19
 vaccine and committed to adoption of state laws forbidding people to be
 forced by government to wear a mask or get shots.

Thompson, a frequent critic of Kelly’s handling of the pandemic that 
has killed more than 5,900 Kansans, said local government officials had 
bungled their jobs as well. City and county leaders should have put an 
end to all the requirements and mandates long ago, he said.

“The local guys have not been handling this. The public health 
officials have not been handling this. They don’t want to hear the 
facts. It is purely about control. It is purely about money. I’m sick 
and tired of it,” he said.

The daylong program sponsored by the anti-vaccination organization 
Kansans for Health Freedom offered a concentrated sample of activists, 
politicians and health professionals with a keen interest in minimizing 
government’s role in dictating individual health decisions, especially 
about vaccines. Very few participants wore face masks. The large church 
served to encourage speakers to express their faith in God.

Many drawn to the gathering believed that science demonstrated 
vaccines mandated by government had the potential to trigger autism in 
children. This has been disputed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
 and Prevention, National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of 
Pediatrics and the UK’s National Health Service.

Kelly Stewart is the Wichita mother of a 7-year-old daughter, Maggie.
 Stewart said the girl was healthy until receiving a vitamin K shot as 
an infant. Maggie went into respiratory distress and was flown to a 
neonatal intensive care unit. Maggie is autistic and grapples with 
sensory and speech processing challenges.

Physicians and scientists who advocate mass vaccination of children 
should bear responsibility for harm done to young kids, she said.

“They’re supposed to be there to provide and protect us,” Stewart said. “They told us the shots were safe and effective.”

Kris Kobach, a Republican candidate for Kansas attorney general, said
 the pandemic revealed the strength of anti-vaccination freedom fighters
 as well as the “inner authoritarianism” of government officials who 
relished the idea of issuing edicts, commands and orders.

He predicted President Joe Biden would impede international travel by
 U.S. residents by requiring travelers from other nations to have proof 
of vaccination for COVID-19 before entering the United States. It’s 
likely other countries will reciprocate by denying entry to unvaccinated
 Americans, he said.

Kobach, a former secretary of state who lost campaigns for governor 
and U.S. Senate, said he would be the type of attorney general making 
certain Kansas was first in line to file lawsuits against the Biden 
administration opposing federal COVID-19 mandates. Biden has ordered 
federal employees to get vaccinated or be subject to regular testing. 
The president also proposed companies with more than 100 employees 
compel personnel to be vaccinated.

“The federal government has no authority whatsoever under the United 
States Constitution to impose a vaccine mandate,” Kobach said.

Kobach, who taught constitutional law at University of 
Missouri-Kansas City, said Kelly would have a difficult time sustaining a
 vaccination mandate in Kansas because of constitutional liberties 
related to religious freedom and due process.

The Democratic governor has said repeatedly she wasn’t interested in 
advancing a vaccine mandate. She has been a consistent proponent of 
vaccinating eligible youth and adults to minimize spread of COVID-19 and
 help keep businesses, schools and other entities open.

“Even though our current governor would probably love to mandate we 
all get the vaccine, you haven’t seen it yet because we have a lot of 
constitutional arguments,” Kobach said.

He said opponents of vaccine mandates were on shaky ground when it 
came to private companies requiring employees to be vaccinated against 
coronavirus. It’s harder to challenge a business relationship with 
employees than to challenge government intrusion, he said.

“Pass the tofu,” Kobach said. “That’s where we’re headed right now.”

Del Bigtree, who worked on the CBS show “The Doctors” and produced 
the vaccine awareness documentary “Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to 
Catastrophe,” said physicians should be placed on trial for crimes 
against humanity for their flawed work during the pandemic.

“With all the medical malpractice you’ll hear about today, with all 
the denial and argument about hydroxychloroquine (and) putting people on
 ventilators — killing nine out of 10 of them on ventilators — the 
gravest destruction ever to happen in a hospital … they could still only
 push this virus to a death rate of less than a quarter of 1%,” Bigtree 
said. “This was a Nothingburger.”

igtree worked on the 2016 documentary film with Andrew Wakefield, who
 lost his medical license in the United Kingdom based on allegations of 
fraudulent research on a link between vaccines and autism. He published a
 report in The Lancet purporting to show a connection in 1998, but that 
research article was withdrawn in 2010. Wakefield and Bigtree argued in 
the documentary there was evidence the CDC manipulated or destroyed 
evidence of a tie between autism and vaccinations for measles, mumps and
 rubella.

Lee Merritt, an orthopedic surgeon from Iowa, told the revival that 
taking the COVID-19 vaccine was a bigger risk than being infected by the
 coronavirus. She also said wearing masks was an occult symbol of 
submission.

She speculated COVID-19 could be associated with implementation of 5G
 technology, which some believe could harm human health. A more likely 
explanation for the pandemic, Merritt said, is that COVID-19 was 
formulated as a bioweapon that appeared extremely deadly before settling
 into something akin to a psychological operation.

“If you think we’re fighting a virus, you’re going to be a victim,” 
she said. “If you understand that we’re fighting a war, then you have a 
chance at survival.”

Ben Tapper, a chiropractor from Nebraska, said Americans needed to 
wake up to the reality that many of their health problems stemmed from 
poor life choices and contributed to chronic disease such as cancer, 
obesity and heart disease. Americans need to quit placing pharmaceutical
 drugs and vaccinations on a pedestal, he said.

He pushed back against the Center for Countering Digital Hate’s 
inclusion of him among a dozen prolific distributors of anti-vaccination
 misinformation and conspiracy theories on the internet. He declared 
censorship of ideas online as the work of tyrants.

“Evil and tyranny doesn’t sleep,” Tapper said. “We can no longer choose comfort and convenience. We need good people to rise.”

Karladine Graves, a family medicine physician in Kansas City, 
Missouri, said the COVID-19 pandemic was an opportunity to do God’s work
 by engaging in a faith battle for health freedom.

“Each and every one of you have been called to be a warrior. Not a 
spectator,” she said. “We are in the greatest war this earth has ever 
seen.”

She urged the audience not to be intimidated by physicians or 
pharmacists reluctant to confront coronavirus in a manner that respected
 views of true believers. If headed to a hospital, she said, be prepared
 to demand certain baseline tests. She warned the crowd no to let 
medical professionals deny access to medications such as 
hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin. Don’t be afraid to hire an attorney 
to advance demands, she said.

“We are on a quest to save humanity,” the doctor said. “Don’t let them take your reasoning. Don’t be intimidated by the enemy.”

Doug Billings, host of “The Right Side” podcast, focused on the 
campaign to upend political moderates in the Democratic Party. He said 
the Republican Party’s adherents weren’t the kind of people who 
responded to adversity by damaging property and rejecting God.

“The other side, the liberal left, doesn’t know what we’re talking 
about when we talk about overcoming adversity, challenges and 
tragedies,” Billing said. “Then, you have a generation of people who 
will burn and topple cities and statues and try to crucify Jesus in the 
public square.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632246828089.png" alt="Sen. Mark Steffen, a Republican, said he was working to force a special legislative session to consider bills blocking mask and vaccine mandates for COVID-19 and to open up use of off-label medications during the pandemic. He spoke Monday at the Freedom Revival in the Heartland at City Center Church in Lenexa. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Sen. Mark Steffen, a Republican, said he was working to force a special legislative session to consider bills blocking mask and vaccine mandates for COVID-19 and to open up use of off-label medications during the pandemic. He spoke Monday at the Freedom Revival in the Heartland at City Center Church in Lenexa. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Revival covers constitutional arguments, role of vaccinations in autism</h2>By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2021/09/21/kansas-foes-of-covid-19-vaccinations-push-for-political-protection-from-mandates/">Kansas Reflector</a>LENEXA — Sen. Mark Steffen won’t take no for an answer in a quest for
 a special session of the Kansas Legislature to pass bills blocking 
workplace COVID-19 vaccination mandates and removing barriers to 
off-label use of ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine in wake of the 
lingering pandemic.The Hutchinson Republican said during the Freedom Revival in the 
Heartland that he gave up begging for the special session to work with 
Rep. Tatum Lee of Ness City on an attempt to force the issue. They plan 
to gather signatures from two-thirds of the 40-member Senate and 
125-member House to trigger a special session. The idea is to convince 
enough lawmakers of the need to convene before scheduled start of the 
next session in January. The agenda would feature bills appealing to 
conservative, faith-based activists attending the church revival who 
were troubled by government’s commitment to a vaccination solution to 
COVID-19.“The people who aren’t willing to sign this paper saying we’ll come 
back, we’re going to let the grassroots know. Between now and January, 
we’re going to sic ’em,” said Steffen, who is an anesthesiologist.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632246899486.jpeg" alt=" Sen. Mike Thompson, of Johnson County, said he was convinced of the need to call a special session of the Kansas Legislature to thwart attempts to compel businesses to order employees be vaccinated for COVID-19. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> Sen. Mike Thompson, of Johnson County, said he was convinced of the need to call a special session of the Kansas Legislature to thwart attempts to compel businesses to order employees be vaccinated for COVID-19. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>The state senator argued the current Republican leadership of the 
House and Senate appeared too soft. The same might apply to Attorney 
General Derek Schmidt, who became the frontrunner for the GOP nomination
 for governor after former Gov. Jeff Colyer dropped out of contention, 
he said.It’s likely Schmidt will meet Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly in the November 2022 general election in Kansas.Steffen said it was important a deal be struck to guarantee the right
 wing of the Kansas GOP placed one of their own as the lieutenant 
governor candidate on the ticket with Schmidt. His top choice would be 
Sen. Mike Thompson, a Johnson County Republican and former television 
weather forecaster.On heels of Steffen’s remarks in the Lenexa sanctuary, Thompson chose
 not to address the call to make him lieutenant governor. He did assure 
an audience of hundreds that he was profoundly skeptical of the COVID-19
 vaccine and committed to adoption of state laws forbidding people to be
 forced by government to wear a mask or get shots.Thompson, a frequent critic of Kelly’s handling of the pandemic that 
has killed more than 5,900 Kansans, said local government officials had 
bungled their jobs as well. City and county leaders should have put an 
end to all the requirements and mandates long ago, he said.“The local guys have not been handling this. The public health 
officials have not been handling this. They don’t want to hear the 
facts. It is purely about control. It is purely about money. I’m sick 
and tired of it,” he said.The daylong program sponsored by the anti-vaccination organization 
Kansans for Health Freedom offered a concentrated sample of activists, 
politicians and health professionals with a keen interest in minimizing 
government’s role in dictating individual health decisions, especially 
about vaccines. Very few participants wore face masks. The large church 
served to encourage speakers to express their faith in God.Many drawn to the gathering believed that science demonstrated 
vaccines mandated by government had the potential to trigger autism in 
children. This has been disputed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
 and Prevention, National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of 
Pediatrics and the UK’s National Health Service.Kelly Stewart is the Wichita mother of a 7-year-old daughter, Maggie.
 Stewart said the girl was healthy until receiving a vitamin K shot as 
an infant. Maggie went into respiratory distress and was flown to a 
neonatal intensive care unit. Maggie is autistic and grapples with 
sensory and speech processing challenges.Physicians and scientists who advocate mass vaccination of children 
should bear responsibility for harm done to young kids, she said.“They’re supposed to be there to provide and protect us,” Stewart said. “They told us the shots were safe and effective.”<h2>Constitutional lecture</h2>Kris Kobach, a Republican candidate for Kansas attorney general, said
 the pandemic revealed the strength of anti-vaccination freedom fighters
 as well as the “inner authoritarianism” of government officials who 
relished the idea of issuing edicts, commands and orders.He predicted President Joe Biden would impede international travel by
 U.S. residents by requiring travelers from other nations to have proof 
of vaccination for COVID-19 before entering the United States. It’s 
likely other countries will reciprocate by denying entry to unvaccinated
 Americans, he said.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632246927127.jpeg" alt="Kris Kobach, a Republican running for attorney general, said the most difficult challenge to anti-vaccination forces was finding a way to block private businesses from requiring workers get a COVID-19 shot. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Kris Kobach, a Republican running for attorney general, said the most difficult challenge to anti-vaccination forces was finding a way to block private businesses from requiring workers get a COVID-19 shot. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>Kobach, a former secretary of state who lost campaigns for governor 
and U.S. Senate, said he would be the type of attorney general making 
certain Kansas was first in line to file lawsuits against the Biden 
administration opposing federal COVID-19 mandates. Biden has ordered 
federal employees to get vaccinated or be subject to regular testing. 
The president also proposed companies with more than 100 employees 
compel personnel to be vaccinated.“The federal government has no authority whatsoever under the United 
States Constitution to impose a vaccine mandate,” Kobach said.Kobach, who taught constitutional law at University of 
Missouri-Kansas City, said Kelly would have a difficult time sustaining a
 vaccination mandate in Kansas because of constitutional liberties 
related to religious freedom and due process.The Democratic governor has said repeatedly she wasn’t interested in 
advancing a vaccine mandate. She has been a consistent proponent of 
vaccinating eligible youth and adults to minimize spread of COVID-19 and
 help keep businesses, schools and other entities open.“Even though our current governor would probably love to mandate we 
all get the vaccine, you haven’t seen it yet because we have a lot of 
constitutional arguments,” Kobach said.He said opponents of vaccine mandates were on shaky ground when it 
came to private companies requiring employees to be vaccinated against 
coronavirus. It’s harder to challenge a business relationship with 
employees than to challenge government intrusion, he said.“Pass the tofu,” Kobach said. “That’s where we’re headed right now.”<h2>Big fat ‘Nothingburger’</h2>Del Bigtree, who worked on the CBS show “The Doctors” and produced 
the vaccine awareness documentary “Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to 
Catastrophe,” said physicians should be placed on trial for crimes 
against humanity for their flawed work during the pandemic.“With all the medical malpractice you’ll hear about today, with all 
the denial and argument about hydroxychloroquine (and) putting people on
 ventilators — killing nine out of 10 of them on ventilators — the 
gravest destruction ever to happen in a hospital … they could still only
 push this virus to a death rate of less than a quarter of 1%,” Bigtree 
said. “This was a Nothingburger.”<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632246957918.jpeg" alt="Ben Tapper, an Omaha, Nebraska, chiropractor, said opponents of government-mandated vaccinations must get off the couch and bring their activism to bear in the political process or risk uncomfortable COVID-19 orders. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Ben Tapper, an Omaha, Nebraska, chiropractor, said opponents of government-mandated vaccinations must get off the couch and bring their activism to bear in the political process or risk uncomfortable COVID-19 orders. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>igtree worked on the 2016 documentary film with Andrew Wakefield, who
 lost his medical license in the United Kingdom based on allegations of 
fraudulent research on a link between vaccines and autism. He published a
 report in The Lancet purporting to show a connection in 1998, but that 
research article was withdrawn in 2010. Wakefield and Bigtree argued in 
the documentary there was evidence the CDC manipulated or destroyed 
evidence of a tie between autism and vaccinations for measles, mumps and
 rubella.Lee Merritt, an orthopedic surgeon from Iowa, told the revival that 
taking the COVID-19 vaccine was a bigger risk than being infected by the
 coronavirus. She also said wearing masks was an occult symbol of 
submission.She speculated COVID-19 could be associated with implementation of 5G
 technology, which some believe could harm human health. A more likely 
explanation for the pandemic, Merritt said, is that COVID-19 was 
formulated as a bioweapon that appeared extremely deadly before settling
 into something akin to a psychological operation.“If you think we’re fighting a virus, you’re going to be a victim,” 
she said. “If you understand that we’re fighting a war, then you have a 
chance at survival.”Ben Tapper, a chiropractor from Nebraska, said Americans needed to 
wake up to the reality that many of their health problems stemmed from 
poor life choices and contributed to chronic disease such as cancer, 
obesity and heart disease. Americans need to quit placing pharmaceutical
 drugs and vaccinations on a pedestal, he said.He pushed back against the Center for Countering Digital Hate’s 
inclusion of him among a dozen prolific distributors of anti-vaccination
 misinformation and conspiracy theories on the internet. He declared 
censorship of ideas online as the work of tyrants.“Evil and tyranny doesn’t sleep,” Tapper said. “We can no longer choose comfort and convenience. We need good people to rise.”<h2>Warlike perspective</h2>Karladine Graves, a family medicine physician in Kansas City, 
Missouri, said the COVID-19 pandemic was an opportunity to do God’s work
 by engaging in a faith battle for health freedom.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632246999241.jpeg" alt="Doug Billings, host of the podcast “The Right Side,” said the United States was the battleground of a spiritual war. He urged people to reject vaccine mandates in the workplace, wait to be fired and file a lawsuit against former employers. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Doug Billings, host of the podcast “The Right Side,” said the United States was the battleground of a spiritual war. He urged people to reject vaccine mandates in the workplace, wait to be fired and file a lawsuit against former employers. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>“Each and every one of you have been called to be a warrior. Not a 
spectator,” she said. “We are in the greatest war this earth has ever 
seen.”She urged the audience not to be intimidated by physicians or 
pharmacists reluctant to confront coronavirus in a manner that respected
 views of true believers. If headed to a hospital, she said, be prepared
 to demand certain baseline tests. She warned the crowd no to let 
medical professionals deny access to medications such as 
hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin. Don’t be afraid to hire an attorney 
to advance demands, she said.“We are on a quest to save humanity,” the doctor said. “Don’t let them take your reasoning. Don’t be intimidated by the enemy.”Doug Billings, host of “The Right Side” podcast, focused on the 
campaign to upend political moderates in the Democratic Party. He said 
the Republican Party’s adherents weren’t the kind of people who 
responded to adversity by damaging property and rejecting God.“The other side, the liberal left, doesn’t know what we’re talking 
about when we talk about overcoming adversity, challenges and 
tragedies,” Billing said. “Then, you have a generation of people who 
will burn and topple cities and statues and try to crucify Jesus in the 
public square.”

Kan. foes of COVID vaccinations push for protection from mandates

WASHINGTON (AP) —Several progressive lawmakers on Tuesday introduced a bill that would reimpose a nationwide eviction moratorium at a time when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-health-pandemics-united-states-coronavirus-pandemic-c15d5c6dd7ece88d0832993f11279fbb">deaths from COVID-19</a>&nbsp;are running at their highest levels since early March.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., said the bill would direct the secretary of Health and Human Services to implement a ban on evictions in response to the COVID pandemic. It would also amend a section of the Public Health Service Act to grant permanent authority to Health and Human Services to implement an eviction moratorium to address public health crises.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-courts-pandemics-coronavirus-pandemic-daa34fb48a04dc9f3ddad94fb6b4cbb2">Supreme Court’s conservative majority</a>&nbsp;at the end of August allowed evictions to resume across the United States, blocking the Biden administration from enforcing a temporary ban that was put in place because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“This pandemic isn’t over, and we have to do everything we can to protect renters from the harm and trauma of needless eviction, which upends the lives of those struggling to get back on their feet,” Warren said in a statement. “Pushing hundreds of thousands of people out of their homes will only exacerbate this public health crisis, and cause economic harm to families, their communities, and our overall recovery."

Bush, who pressured Biden to extend the moratorium until the end of August and was once evicted herself, said the delta variant-fueled surge makes a moratorium critical.

“As the delta variant continues to force individuals to quarantine, close schools, and stifle businesses, we must do all we can to save lives. That starts with keeping every person safely housed,” she said. Three dozen other lawmakers supported the bill.

Eviction filings have begun to tick up since the moratorium was lifted but most advocates said a surge in actual evictions is still weeks away. Nearly 3.7 million people in the U.S. as of Aug. 30 said they face eviction in the next two months, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey. That is slightly higher than the numbers early in August.

Many tenants at risk of eviction are counting on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/lifestyle-business-health-coronavirus-pandemic-us-supreme-court-172517788bd2d5974c245627086ca6f8">emergency rental relief</a>&nbsp;to keep them housed. But that money has been slow to reach them so pressure has increased to reimpose a moratorium.

The Treasury Department said last month that just over $5.1 billion of the estimated $46.5 billion in federal rental assistance — only 11% — has been distributed by states and localities through July. This includes some $3 billion handed out by the end of June and another $1.5 billion by May 31.

The prospects for the bill remain unclear but housing advocates said a moratorium was the best way to ensure more people are forced from their homes.

“The federal eviction moratorium was a lifeline for millions of renters, and the last federal protection keeping many of them stably housed as they wait for emergency rental assistance to reach them,” said Diane Yentel, CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition. “Without the moratorium in place, families will be pushed deeper into poverty, communities will struggle with increased spread of COVID-19, and our country will have a harder time containing the virus.”

Landlords, who have long opposed the moratorium, said it would only saddle renters with debt they can't pay.

"Instead of responsibly addressing the crisis at hand, moratoriums leave renters strapped with insurmountable debt and housing providers left to unfairly hold the bag," said Greg Brown, a senior vice president for government affairs at the National Apartment Association. “Ultimately, any effort to pursue additional moratoriums will only balloon the nation’s rental debt ... and exacerbate the housing affordability crisis, permanently jeopardizing the availability of safe and affordable housing.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632242311950.png" alt="During the Tuesday news conference, Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo. and&nbsp;Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. said the bill would direct the secretary of Health and Human Services to implement a ban on evictions in response to the COVID pandemic.-photo office of Rep. Cori Bush" />
 <figcaption>During the Tuesday news conference, Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo. and&nbsp;Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. said the bill would direct the secretary of Health and Human Services to implement a ban on evictions in response to the COVID pandemic.-photo office of Rep. Cori Bush</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —Several progressive lawmakers on Tuesday introduced a bill that would reimpose a nationwide eviction moratorium at a time when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-health-pandemics-united-states-coronavirus-pandemic-c15d5c6dd7ece88d0832993f11279fbb">deaths from COVID-19</a>&nbsp;are running at their highest levels since early March.Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., said the bill would direct the secretary of Health and Human Services to implement a ban on evictions in response to the COVID pandemic. It would also amend a section of the Public Health Service Act to grant permanent authority to Health and Human Services to implement an eviction moratorium to address public health crises.The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-courts-pandemics-coronavirus-pandemic-daa34fb48a04dc9f3ddad94fb6b4cbb2">Supreme Court’s conservative majority</a>&nbsp;at the end of August allowed evictions to resume across the United States, blocking the Biden administration from enforcing a temporary ban that was put in place because of the coronavirus pandemic.“This pandemic isn’t over, and we have to do everything we can to protect renters from the harm and trauma of needless eviction, which upends the lives of those struggling to get back on their feet,” Warren said in a statement. “Pushing hundreds of thousands of people out of their homes will only exacerbate this public health crisis, and cause economic harm to families, their communities, and our overall recovery."Bush, who pressured Biden to extend the moratorium until the end of August and was once evicted herself, said the delta variant-fueled surge makes a moratorium critical.“As the delta variant continues to force individuals to quarantine, close schools, and stifle businesses, we must do all we can to save lives. That starts with keeping every person safely housed,” she said. Three dozen other lawmakers supported the bill.Eviction filings have begun to tick up since the moratorium was lifted but most advocates said a surge in actual evictions is still weeks away. Nearly 3.7 million people in the U.S. as of Aug. 30 said they face eviction in the next two months, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey. That is slightly higher than the numbers early in August.Many tenants at risk of eviction are counting on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/lifestyle-business-health-coronavirus-pandemic-us-supreme-court-172517788bd2d5974c245627086ca6f8">emergency rental relief</a>&nbsp;to keep them housed. But that money has been slow to reach them so pressure has increased to reimpose a moratorium.The Treasury Department said last month that just over $5.1 billion of the estimated $46.5 billion in federal rental assistance — only 11% — has been distributed by states and localities through July. This includes some $3 billion handed out by the end of June and another $1.5 billion by May 31.The prospects for the bill remain unclear but housing advocates said a moratorium was the best way to ensure more people are forced from their homes.“The federal eviction moratorium was a lifeline for millions of renters, and the last federal protection keeping many of them stably housed as they wait for emergency rental assistance to reach them,” said Diane Yentel, CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition. “Without the moratorium in place, families will be pushed deeper into poverty, communities will struggle with increased spread of COVID-19, and our country will have a harder time containing the virus.”Landlords, who have long opposed the moratorium, said it would only saddle renters with debt they can't pay."Instead of responsibly addressing the crisis at hand, moratoriums leave renters strapped with insurmountable debt and housing providers left to unfairly hold the bag," said Greg Brown, a senior vice president for government affairs at the National Apartment Association. “Ultimately, any effort to pursue additional moratoriums will only balloon the nation’s rental debt ... and exacerbate the housing affordability crisis, permanently jeopardizing the availability of safe and affordable housing.”

Lawmakers attempt to revive nationwide eviction moratorium 

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a Sept. 1, shooting and after asking for the public help have identified a suspect&nbsp;as Adofo-Julius J. Smith, 19 of Topeka.&nbsp;

He is a person of interest in the shooting that occurred on September 1 in the 1300 block of SW Huntoon Street in Topeka. Just after 7:30p.m. that day, officers arrived at the scene and found an adult male suffering from gunshot wounds. He was transported to a local hospital with life threatening injuries.

TPD is asking for the public’s help in locating Smith. If you see Smith, call 911 immediately. Anonymous tips regarding Smith’s whereabouts can be made by calling Shawnee County Crime

Stoppers at 785-234-0007. You can also make anonymous tips online at www.p3tips.com/128. 

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting and asking the public for help to identify suspect.

Just after 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, police&nbsp; were dispatched to the 1300 Block of SW Huntoon Street in Topeka in reference to a shooting, according to Lt. Edward Stanley.

Officers arrived and found an adult male suffering from gunshot wounds. He was transported to a local hospital with life threatening injuries.

Police are attempting to identify the suspects as seen on security cameras.&nbsp; Anyone with information is asked to call police at 785-368-9551 or email telltpd@topeka.org.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1630680788404.png" alt="Photo Topeka Police" />
 <figcaption>Photo Topeka Police</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a Sept. 1, shooting and after asking for the public help have identified a suspect&nbsp;as Adofo-Julius J. Smith, 19 of Topeka.&nbsp;He is a person of interest in the shooting that occurred on September 1 in the 1300 block of SW Huntoon Street in Topeka. Just after 7:30p.m. that day, officers arrived at the scene and found an adult male suffering from gunshot wounds. He was transported to a local hospital with life threatening injuries.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1630579814551.png" alt="Police on the scene of the shooting investigation photo courtesy WIBW TV" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the shooting investigation photo courtesy WIBW TV</figcaption>
 </figure>TPD is asking for the public’s help in locating Smith. If you see Smith, call 911 immediately. Anonymous tips regarding Smith’s whereabouts can be made by calling Shawnee County CrimeStoppers at 785-234-0007. You can also make anonymous tips online at www.p3tips.com/128. ---------SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting and asking the public for help to identify suspect.Just after 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, police&nbsp; were dispatched to the 1300 Block of SW Huntoon Street in Topeka in reference to a shooting, according to Lt. Edward Stanley.Officers arrived and found an adult male suffering from gunshot wounds. He was transported to a local hospital with life threatening injuries.Police are attempting to identify the suspects as seen on security cameras.&nbsp; Anyone with information is asked to call police at 785-368-9551 or email telltpd@topeka.org.

Police ID suspect in Kan. shooting, ask for help to find him 

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — President Joe Biden used his first address before the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-general-assembly-health-china-coronavirus-pandemic-africa-3284c8ff8739dd7cfaf78db214098403">U.N. General Assembly</a>&nbsp;on Tuesday to declare that the world stands and at an “inflection point in history” and must move quickly and cooperatively to address the festering issues of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and human rights abuse.

<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?514742-1/president-biden-world-leaders-address-un-general-assembly&amp;live&amp;vod">Click here to watch </a>a replay of President Biden's comments.

Amid growing China tensions Biden also declared the U.S. is “not seeking a new Cold War.”

Without mentioning China directly, Biden acknowledged increasing concerns about rising tensions between the two nations. But he said, “We are not seeking a new Cold War or a world divided into rigid blocs.”

The president noted his decision to end America’s longest war last month, in Afghanistan, and set the table for his administration to shift U.S. attention to intensive diplomacy with no shortage of crises facing the globe. He said he is driven by a belief that “to deliver for our own people, we must also engage deeply with the rest of the world.”

“We’ve ended 20 years of conflict in Afghanistan,” Biden said. “And as we close this period of relentless war, we’re opening a new era of relentless diplomacy of using the power of our development aid to invest in new ways of lifting people up around the world.”

Biden, who arrived in New York on Monday evening to meet with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres ahead of Tuesday’s address, offered a full-throated endorsement of the body’s relevance and ambition at a difficult moment in history.

The president, in brief remarks at the start of his meeting with Guterres, returned to his mantra that “America is back” — a phrase that’s become presidential shorthand meant to encapsulate his promise to take a dramatically different tack with allies than predecessor Donald Trump. In his remarks, he declared the United States was “back at the table.”

“We will lead not just with the example of our power but God willing with the power of our example,” Biden said Monday night.

But the president was facing a healthy measure of skepticism from allies during his week of high-level diplomacy. The opening months of his presidency have included a series of difficult moments with friendly nations that were expecting greater cooperation from Biden following four years of Trump’s “America first” approach to foreign policy.

Eight months into his presidency, Biden has been out of sync with allies on the chaotic ending to the U.S. war in Afghanistan. He has faced differences over how to go about sharing coronavirus vaccines with the developing world and over pandemic travel restrictions. And there are questions about the best way to respond to military and economic moves by China.

Biden also finds himself in the midst of a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-business-france-new-york-paris-a3098023771399baea74520cf8adaa7f">fresh diplomatic spat with France,&nbsp;</a>the United States’ oldest ally, after announcing plans — along with Britain — to equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines. The move is expected to give Australia improved capabilities to patrol the Pacific amid growing concern about the Chinese military’s increasingly aggressive tactics, but it upended a French defense contract worth at least $66 billion to sell diesel-powered submarines to Australia.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Monday there was a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-business-france-new-york-paris-a3098023771399baea74520cf8adaa7f">“crisis of trust”</a>&nbsp;with the U.S. as a result of the episode.

Biden downplayed the tensions with France. Asked by a reporter as he arrived at the U.N. on Tuesday how he planned to repair relations with the French, Biden responded merely, “They’re great.”

Before Biden’s arrival, EU Council President Charles Michel strongly criticized the Biden administration for leaving Europe “out of the game in the Indo-Pacific region” and ignoring the underlying elements of the trans-Atlantic alliance — transparency and loyalty — in the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the announcement of the U.S.-U.K.-Australia alliance.

Despite such differences, Biden hoped to use his address to the General Assembly as well as a series of one-on-one and larger meetings with world leaders this week to make the case for American leadership on the world stage.

“There are points of disagreement, including when we have disagreed with the decisions other countries are making, the decision points of when countries have disagreed with the decisions we’re making,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. “But the larger point here ... is that we are committed to those alliances, and that always requires work from every president, from every global leader.”

In an interview before his meeting with Biden, Guterres&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-general-assembly-china-climate-united-states-health-f1186707bee7f8376b0be5523496ddca">told The Associated Press&nbsp;</a>that he was concerned about the “completely dysfunctional” U.S.-China relationship and that it could lead to a new cold war. Psaki said the administration disagreed with the assessment, adding that the U.S.-China relationship was “one not of conflict but of competition.”

The secretary-general did not back off his concerns about the U.S.-China tensions as he addressed leaders at the opening of Tuesday’s gathering. “It will be impossible to address dramatic economic and development challenges, while the world’s two largest economies are at odds with each other”

Biden put a heavy emphasis on a need for world leaders to work together on the COVID-19 pandemic, meet past obligations to address climate change, head off emerging technology issues and firm up trade rules.

“We will choose to build a better future. We, you and I, we have the will and capacity to make it better. Ladies and gentlemen, we cannot afford to waste any more time. ... We can do this.”

The Biden administration on Monday announced plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-easing-foreign-travel-restrictions-requiring-vaccines-5d78d14dab51389b02fd70228a5b55b9">ease foreign travel restrictions</a>&nbsp;to the U.S. beginning in November. The U.S. has largely restricted travel by non-U.S. citizens coming from Europe since the start of the pandemic, an issue that had become a point of contention in trans-Atlantic relations.

The new rules will allow foreigners in if they have proof of vaccination and a negative COVID-19 test, the White House said Monday.

Biden planned to limit his time at the United Nations due to coronavirus concerns. He was to meet with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison while in New York before shifting the rest of the week’s diplomacy to virtual and Washington settings.

At a virtual COVID-19 summit Biden is hosting Wednesday, leaders will be urged to step up vaccine-sharing commitments, address oxygen shortages around the globe and deal with other critical pandemic-related issues.

The president is also scheduled to meet with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday at the White House, and invited the prime ministers of Australia, India and Japan — part of a Pacific alliance known as “the Quad” — to Washington on Friday. In addition to the gathering of Quad leaders, Biden will sit down for one-on-one meetings with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632235233386.png" alt="President Biden, arrived in New York on Monday evening to meet with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres ahead of Tuesday’s address. photo courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>President Biden, arrived in New York on Monday evening to meet with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres ahead of Tuesday’s address. photo courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>UNITED NATIONS (AP) — President Joe Biden used his first address before the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-general-assembly-health-china-coronavirus-pandemic-africa-3284c8ff8739dd7cfaf78db214098403">U.N. General Assembly</a>&nbsp;on Tuesday to declare that the world stands and at an “inflection point in history” and must move quickly and cooperatively to address the festering issues of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and human rights abuse.<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?514742-1/president-biden-world-leaders-address-un-general-assembly&amp;live&amp;vod">Click here to watch </a>a replay of President Biden's comments.Amid growing China tensions Biden also declared the U.S. is “not seeking a new Cold War.”Without mentioning China directly, Biden acknowledged increasing concerns about rising tensions between the two nations. But he said, “We are not seeking a new Cold War or a world divided into rigid blocs.”The president noted his decision to end America’s longest war last month, in Afghanistan, and set the table for his administration to shift U.S. attention to intensive diplomacy with no shortage of crises facing the globe. He said he is driven by a belief that “to deliver for our own people, we must also engage deeply with the rest of the world.”“We’ve ended 20 years of conflict in Afghanistan,” Biden said. “And as we close this period of relentless war, we’re opening a new era of relentless diplomacy of using the power of our development aid to invest in new ways of lifting people up around the world.”Biden, who arrived in New York on Monday evening to meet with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres ahead of Tuesday’s address, offered a full-throated endorsement of the body’s relevance and ambition at a difficult moment in history.The president, in brief remarks at the start of his meeting with Guterres, returned to his mantra that “America is back” — a phrase that’s become presidential shorthand meant to encapsulate his promise to take a dramatically different tack with allies than predecessor Donald Trump. In his remarks, he declared the United States was “back at the table.”“We will lead not just with the example of our power but God willing with the power of our example,” Biden said Monday night.But the president was facing a healthy measure of skepticism from allies during his week of high-level diplomacy. The opening months of his presidency have included a series of difficult moments with friendly nations that were expecting greater cooperation from Biden following four years of Trump’s “America first” approach to foreign policy.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632234956890.png" alt="Biden put a heavy emphasis on a need for world leaders to work together on the COVID-19 pandemic, meet past obligations to address climate change, head off emerging technology issues and firm up trade rules.-photo courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Biden put a heavy emphasis on a need for world leaders to work together on the COVID-19 pandemic, meet past obligations to address climate change, head off emerging technology issues and firm up trade rules.-photo courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>Eight months into his presidency, Biden has been out of sync with allies on the chaotic ending to the U.S. war in Afghanistan. He has faced differences over how to go about sharing coronavirus vaccines with the developing world and over pandemic travel restrictions. And there are questions about the best way to respond to military and economic moves by China.Biden also finds himself in the midst of a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-business-france-new-york-paris-a3098023771399baea74520cf8adaa7f">fresh diplomatic spat with France,&nbsp;</a>the United States’ oldest ally, after announcing plans — along with Britain — to equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines. The move is expected to give Australia improved capabilities to patrol the Pacific amid growing concern about the Chinese military’s increasingly aggressive tactics, but it upended a French defense contract worth at least $66 billion to sell diesel-powered submarines to Australia.French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Monday there was a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-business-france-new-york-paris-a3098023771399baea74520cf8adaa7f">“crisis of trust”</a>&nbsp;with the U.S. as a result of the episode.Biden downplayed the tensions with France. Asked by a reporter as he arrived at the U.N. on Tuesday how he planned to repair relations with the French, Biden responded merely, “They’re great.”Before Biden’s arrival, EU Council President Charles Michel strongly criticized the Biden administration for leaving Europe “out of the game in the Indo-Pacific region” and ignoring the underlying elements of the trans-Atlantic alliance — transparency and loyalty — in the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the announcement of the U.S.-U.K.-Australia alliance.Despite such differences, Biden hoped to use his address to the General Assembly as well as a series of one-on-one and larger meetings with world leaders this week to make the case for American leadership on the world stage.“There are points of disagreement, including when we have disagreed with the decisions other countries are making, the decision points of when countries have disagreed with the decisions we’re making,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. “But the larger point here ... is that we are committed to those alliances, and that always requires work from every president, from every global leader.”In an interview before his meeting with Biden, Guterres&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-general-assembly-china-climate-united-states-health-f1186707bee7f8376b0be5523496ddca">told The Associated Press&nbsp;</a>that he was concerned about the “completely dysfunctional” U.S.-China relationship and that it could lead to a new cold war. Psaki said the administration disagreed with the assessment, adding that the U.S.-China relationship was “one not of conflict but of competition.”The secretary-general did not back off his concerns about the U.S.-China tensions as he addressed leaders at the opening of Tuesday’s gathering. “It will be impossible to address dramatic economic and development challenges, while the world’s two largest economies are at odds with each other”Biden put a heavy emphasis on a need for world leaders to work together on the COVID-19 pandemic, meet past obligations to address climate change, head off emerging technology issues and firm up trade rules.“We will choose to build a better future. We, you and I, we have the will and capacity to make it better. Ladies and gentlemen, we cannot afford to waste any more time. ... We can do this.”The Biden administration on Monday announced plans to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-easing-foreign-travel-restrictions-requiring-vaccines-5d78d14dab51389b02fd70228a5b55b9">ease foreign travel restrictions</a>&nbsp;to the U.S. beginning in November. The U.S. has largely restricted travel by non-U.S. citizens coming from Europe since the start of the pandemic, an issue that had become a point of contention in trans-Atlantic relations.The new rules will allow foreigners in if they have proof of vaccination and a negative COVID-19 test, the White House said Monday.Biden planned to limit his time at the United Nations due to coronavirus concerns. He was to meet with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison while in New York before shifting the rest of the week’s diplomacy to virtual and Washington settings.At a virtual COVID-19 summit Biden is hosting Wednesday, leaders will be urged to step up vaccine-sharing commitments, address oxygen shortages around the globe and deal with other critical pandemic-related issues.The president is also scheduled to meet with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday at the White House, and invited the prime ministers of Australia, India and Japan — part of a Pacific alliance known as “the Quad” — to Washington on Friday. In addition to the gathering of Quad leaders, Biden will sit down for one-on-one meetings with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.___

🎥  Pres. Biden declares World at 'inflection point' amid crises

BY LINDA DITCH <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2021/09/21/feeling-singled-out-female-students-protest-high-schools-dress-code/">For the Kansas Reflector</a>

School dress codes have often been lightning rods for student discontent. But are they sexist?

&nbsp;A recent <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/04/us/politics/mask-dress-code-protest.html">article in the New York Times</a>
 highlighted a 2020 study that found most dress codes analyzed targeted 
female clothing choices far more than male ones. Some clothing was 
prohibited simply because it was seen as sexy.

This concept came to light recently 
at Washburn Rural High School, just south of Topeka in Shawnee County. 
On Sept. 3, female students protested the dress code by wearing 
prohibited clothing. Most wore tank tops, some with sayings such as, “My
 body, my choice.” As they walked into the building, staff sent them to 
the auditorium.

Junior Mackenzie Smith shared her experience while speaking at the Auburn Washburn USD 437 school board meeting <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFThSprj7mg">the following Tuesday</a>.
 She noted about 30 students were brought into the auditorium and 
threatened with detention. Her boyfriend, Christian Ryan, gave her a 
sweatshirt to put on, but she was still detained. He told the board that
 some young men also protested by wearing prohibited clothing such as 
pajama pants and crop tops, but he only heard of one being reprimanded.

“I personally believe that it’s not 
fair to cherry-pick women as we walk into the school and be treated 
unfairly in such a way,” Smith said.

The portion of the dress code causing
 the most significant issue states, “The final determination as to 
whether clothing is acceptable or not will be made by the 
administration. The basis for this judgment is if the clothing is deemed
 to be a distraction from the educational environment.”

The young women protesters felt 
singled out because staff judged their clothing to be distracting to 
male students and male staff members.

“I do believe that there needs to be a
 dress code,” Smith said to the board. “I believe the written form of 
our dress code is very professional. I think there are a few wording 
mistakes, but that can be revised. My question for you today is, how are
 you going to prevent another thing like Friday from happening? We need 
to protect our girls. We need to inform them, and we need to make sure 
they are comfortable going to high school every day.”

Principal Ed Raines said a few days 
after the board meeting that staff members are posted at the entrances 
each morning to ensure students comply with the mask-wearing mandate. He
 was told 25 to 30 students participated in the protest out of a total 
student body of 2,000. By the time he got to the auditorium, all but 12 
had returned to class.

“It’s not unusual for us, as kids are
 coming into the building, to make mention of dress code violations that
 we see,” he said. “The vast majority of conversations we have with 
students about dress code are informal. A lot of them never get entered 
into our student management system because we’re able to resolve the 
vast majority of them pretty easily.”

Students who break the dress code receive the option of changing into something else.

They can choose from clothes 
available in the office or have someone bring them clothing from home. 
Raines dug into the student management system and found 18 disciplinary 
incidents, 14 for males and four for females, primarily due to 
noncompliance. But he also understood the perception of singling out 
female students.

“The language in the dress code has 
largely been the same since I arrived at Rural 15 years ago,” Raines 
said. “It’s often through these kinds of situations that we end up 
evaluating policy to see whether or not it’s still relevant. I do think 
one of the unfortunate words we use in our policy is ‘distraction.’ 
Because really, it’s not so much about that as it is about setting a 
tone about what a more formal environment like a school needs to be in 
terms of dress.”

All Kansas school districts need to 
take a closer look at inherent sexism in their dress codes. The first 
step should be an open conversation with students to forge a policy 
acceptable to the entire school community.

Perhaps we should look to the words of Christian Ryan, who also addressed the school board about the Washburn Rural dress code.

“I think it’s belittling to the men 
of Washburn saying that we can’t control ourselves and making it the 
young women’s problem,” he said. “They shouldn’t have to comply so us 
young men can control ourselves.&nbsp; If it’s really a problem, then the 
administration should have a discussion with young men about how they 
should compose themselves. … I think it’s really important that we 
instill a sense in these young men that they need to protect one another
 and their female peers.”

Linda Ditch has been a freelance writer for two decades. The focus of her work is primarily food, travel, education, home improvement, natural health, and pet care topics. Her articles have appeared in the Topeka Capital-Journal, Concord Monitor (New Hampshire), Boston Globe and Dallas Morning News, as well as KANSAS!, Topeka Lifestyle, Topeka, Shawnee, and CatFancy Magazines. She also created The Iconic Dishes of Kansas and Topeka City Guide for the Food Network’s website. Before entering the freelance world, she was senior editor at Taste for Life magazine.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632234930564.png" alt="Washburn Rural High School Junior Mackenzie Smith speaks to the Auburn Washburn USD 437 school board meeting on September 7. (YouTube capture/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Washburn Rural High School Junior Mackenzie Smith speaks to the Auburn Washburn USD 437 school board meeting on September 7. (YouTube capture/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY LINDA DITCH <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2021/09/21/feeling-singled-out-female-students-protest-high-schools-dress-code/">For the Kansas Reflector</a>School dress codes have often been lightning rods for student discontent. But are they sexist?&nbsp;A recent <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/04/us/politics/mask-dress-code-protest.html">article in the New York Times</a>
 highlighted a 2020 study that found most dress codes analyzed targeted 
female clothing choices far more than male ones. Some clothing was 
prohibited simply because it was seen as sexy.This concept came to light recently 
at Washburn Rural High School, just south of Topeka in Shawnee County. 
On Sept. 3, female students protested the dress code by wearing 
prohibited clothing. Most wore tank tops, some with sayings such as, “My
 body, my choice.” As they walked into the building, staff sent them to 
the auditorium.Junior Mackenzie Smith shared her experience while speaking at the Auburn Washburn USD 437 school board meeting <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFThSprj7mg">the following Tuesday</a>.
 She noted about 30 students were brought into the auditorium and 
threatened with detention. Her boyfriend, Christian Ryan, gave her a 
sweatshirt to put on, but she was still detained. He told the board that
 some young men also protested by wearing prohibited clothing such as 
pajama pants and crop tops, but he only heard of one being reprimanded.“I personally believe that it’s not 
fair to cherry-pick women as we walk into the school and be treated 
unfairly in such a way,” Smith said.The portion of the dress code causing
 the most significant issue states, “The final determination as to 
whether clothing is acceptable or not will be made by the 
administration. The basis for this judgment is if the clothing is deemed
 to be a distraction from the educational environment.”The young women protesters felt 
singled out because staff judged their clothing to be distracting to 
male students and male staff members.“I do believe that there needs to be a
 dress code,” Smith said to the board. “I believe the written form of 
our dress code is very professional. I think there are a few wording 
mistakes, but that can be revised. My question for you today is, how are
 you going to prevent another thing like Friday from happening? We need 
to protect our girls. We need to inform them, and we need to make sure 
they are comfortable going to high school every day.”Principal Ed Raines said a few days 
after the board meeting that staff members are posted at the entrances 
each morning to ensure students comply with the mask-wearing mandate. He
 was told 25 to 30 students participated in the protest out of a total 
student body of 2,000. By the time he got to the auditorium, all but 12 
had returned to class.“It’s not unusual for us, as kids are
 coming into the building, to make mention of dress code violations that
 we see,” he said. “The vast majority of conversations we have with 
students about dress code are informal. A lot of them never get entered 
into our student management system because we’re able to resolve the 
vast majority of them pretty easily.”Students who break the dress code receive the option of changing into something else.They can choose from clothes 
available in the office or have someone bring them clothing from home. 
Raines dug into the student management system and found 18 disciplinary 
incidents, 14 for males and four for females, primarily due to 
noncompliance. But he also understood the perception of singling out 
female students.“The language in the dress code has 
largely been the same since I arrived at Rural 15 years ago,” Raines 
said. “It’s often through these kinds of situations that we end up 
evaluating policy to see whether or not it’s still relevant. I do think 
one of the unfortunate words we use in our policy is ‘distraction.’ 
Because really, it’s not so much about that as it is about setting a 
tone about what a more formal environment like a school needs to be in 
terms of dress.”All Kansas school districts need to 
take a closer look at inherent sexism in their dress codes. The first 
step should be an open conversation with students to forge a policy 
acceptable to the entire school community.Perhaps we should look to the words of Christian Ryan, who also addressed the school board about the Washburn Rural dress code.“I think it’s belittling to the men 
of Washburn saying that we can’t control ourselves and making it the 
young women’s problem,” he said. “They shouldn’t have to comply so us 
young men can control ourselves.&nbsp; If it’s really a problem, then the 
administration should have a discussion with young men about how they 
should compose themselves. … I think it’s really important that we 
instill a sense in these young men that they need to protect one another
 and their female peers.”Linda Ditch has been a freelance writer for two decades. The focus of her work is primarily food, travel, education, home improvement, natural health, and pet care topics. Her articles have appeared in the Topeka Capital-Journal, Concord Monitor (New Hampshire), Boston Globe and Dallas Morning News, as well as KANSAS!, Topeka Lifestyle, Topeka, Shawnee, and CatFancy Magazines. She also created The Iconic Dishes of Kansas and Topeka City Guide for the Food Network’s website. Before entering the freelance world, she was senior editor at Taste for Life magazine.

OPINION: Female students protest Kan. high school’s dress code

SEDGWICK COUNTY —The jury trial of a man charged in a fatal DUI crash that killed a longtime radio host and Wichita State basketball announcer is underway, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

Ray Watkins, 44, is charged with involuntary manslaughter&nbsp;while driving under the influence in the April 29, 2020 crash that killed&nbsp; 70-year-old Don Hall.

 Police said they believe Watkins ran a red light before the crash. He had minor injuries, but Hall died at the scene. Watkins was originally arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder.

An affidavit released in the case against Watkins said he had a 0.243 blood alcohol on the day of the crash.. The legal limit in Kansas is 0.08.

Hall was a morning show co-host at KEYN Radio in Wichita, and radio station KNSS reported he had worked for more than 45 years in radio in Kansas, including stations KWBW in Hutchinson and Wichita radio stations KAKZ, KKRD and KZSN. He also had been the voice of Shocker men’s basketball since the 1983-84 season

-The Associated Press Contributed to this report

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/4/1588158119316.png" alt="First responders at the accident scene -photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>First responders at the accident scene -photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —The jury trial of a man charged in a fatal DUI crash that killed a longtime radio host and Wichita State basketball announcer is underway, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/4/1588182421819.png" alt="Watkins photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Watkins photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>Ray Watkins, 44, is charged with involuntary manslaughter&nbsp;while driving under the influence in the April 29, 2020 crash that killed&nbsp; 70-year-old Don Hall. Police said they believe Watkins ran a red light before the crash. He had minor injuries, but Hall died at the scene. Watkins was originally arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder.An affidavit released in the case against Watkins said he had a 0.243 blood alcohol on the day of the crash.. The legal limit in Kansas is 0.08.Hall was a morning show co-host at KEYN Radio in Wichita, and radio station KNSS reported he had worked for more than 45 years in radio in Kansas, including stations KWBW in Hutchinson and Wichita radio stations KAKZ, KKRD and KZSN. He also had been the voice of Shocker men’s basketball since the 1983-84 season-The Associated Press Contributed to this report-----

Trial underway in DUI crash that killed longtime Kan. radio host

LONDON (AP) — Johnson &amp; Johnson released data showing that a booster dose to its one-shot coronavirus vaccine provides a strong immune response months after people receive a first dose.

J&amp;J said in statement Tuesday that it ran two early studies in people previously given its vaccine and found that a second dose produced an increased antibody response in adults from age 18 to 55. The study’s results haven’t yet been peer-reviewed.

“A booster dose of the Johnson &amp; Johnson COVID-19 vaccine further increases antibody responses among study participants who had previously received our vaccine,” said Dr. Mathai Mammen, global head of research and development at J&amp;J. The company previously published data showing its one-shot dose provided protection for up to eight months after immunization.

J&amp;J said it is now in talks with regulators including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Medicines Agency and others regarding using booster doses of its vaccine.

J&amp;J’s vaccine is approved for use in the U.S., across Europe and there are plans for at least 200 million doses to be shared with the U.N.-backed COVAX effort aimed at distributing vaccines to poor countries. But the company has been plagued by production problems and millions of doses made at a troubled factory in Baltimore had to be thrown out.

The J&amp;J vaccine has been considered critical by numerous health officials to ending the pandemic because it requires only one shot, but fears about the easier-to-spread delta coronavirus variant have prompted numerous governments to consider the use of booster shots for many approved vaccines.

Last week, experts at the FDA recommended people 65 and older get a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine made by Pfizer-BioNTech while Britain previously authorized booster shots for people 50 and over in addition to priority groups like health workers and those with underlying health conditions. Other countries including Israel, France and Germany have also begun offering third vaccine doses to some people.

The World Health Organization has urged rich countries to stop administering booster doses until at least the end of the year, saying vaccines should immediately be redirected to Africa, where fewer than 4% of the population is fully immunized. In a paper published last week in the journal Lancet, top scientists from the WHO and FDA argued that the average person doesn’t need a booster shot and that the authorized vaccines to date provide strong protection against severe COVID-19, hospitalization and death.

LONDON (AP) — Johnson &amp; Johnson released data showing that a booster dose to its one-shot coronavirus vaccine provides a strong immune response months after people receive a first dose.J&amp;J said in statement Tuesday that it ran two early studies in people previously given its vaccine and found that a second dose produced an increased antibody response in adults from age 18 to 55. The study’s results haven’t yet been peer-reviewed.“A booster dose of the Johnson &amp; Johnson COVID-19 vaccine further increases antibody responses among study participants who had previously received our vaccine,” said Dr. Mathai Mammen, global head of research and development at J&amp;J. The company previously published data showing its one-shot dose provided protection for up to eight months after immunization.J&amp;J said it is now in talks with regulators including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Medicines Agency and others regarding using booster doses of its vaccine.J&amp;J’s vaccine is approved for use in the U.S., across Europe and there are plans for at least 200 million doses to be shared with the U.N.-backed COVAX effort aimed at distributing vaccines to poor countries. But the company has been plagued by production problems and millions of doses made at a troubled factory in Baltimore had to be thrown out.The J&amp;J vaccine has been considered critical by numerous health officials to ending the pandemic because it requires only one shot, but fears about the easier-to-spread delta coronavirus variant have prompted numerous governments to consider the use of booster shots for many approved vaccines.Last week, experts at the FDA recommended people 65 and older get a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine made by Pfizer-BioNTech while Britain previously authorized booster shots for people 50 and over in addition to priority groups like health workers and those with underlying health conditions. Other countries including Israel, France and Germany have also begun offering third vaccine doses to some people.The World Health Organization has urged rich countries to stop administering booster doses until at least the end of the year, saying vaccines should immediately be redirected to Africa, where fewer than 4% of the population is fully immunized. In a paper published last week in the journal Lancet, top scientists from the WHO and FDA argued that the average person doesn’t need a booster shot and that the authorized vaccines to date provide strong protection against severe COVID-19, hospitalization and death.

J&J: Booster dose of its COVID shot prompts strong response

BELLE PLAINE, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas gamer whose online dispute with another player sparked a deadly hoax call will have to face a jury after violating the terms of a diversion deal he made with prosecutors. U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren granted on Monday the government’s motion to resume prosecution of Shane Gaskill of Wichita and set a jury trial for Oct. 5. 

Gaskill is charged with conspiracy, wire fraud and other counts in connection with a series of events in 2017 that culminated in the fatal police shooting of 28-year-old Andrew Finch at his family’s home in Wichita.

The death drew national attention to “swatting,” a form of retaliation in which someone reports a false emergency to get authorities to descend on an address.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/6/1592601982960.png" alt="Police body camera view of the home on the night of the deadly response to the hoax 911 call- image Wichita Police" />
 <figcaption>Police body camera view of the home on the night of the deadly response to the hoax 911 call- image Wichita Police</figcaption>
 </figure>BELLE PLAINE, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas gamer whose online dispute with another player sparked a deadly hoax call will have to face a jury after violating the terms of a diversion deal he made with prosecutors. U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren granted on Monday the government’s motion to resume prosecution of Shane Gaskill of Wichita and set a jury trial for Oct. 5. Gaskill is charged with conspiracy, wire fraud and other counts in connection with a series of events in 2017 that culminated in the fatal police shooting of 28-year-old Andrew Finch at his family’s home in Wichita.The death drew national attention to “swatting,” a form of retaliation in which someone reports a false emergency to get authorities to descend on an address.

Gamer in deadly Kan. hoax 911 call violated diversion deal

Kansas Corporation Commission&nbsp;

TOPEKA&nbsp;–&nbsp;The start of a new school year is an expensive time for families.&nbsp; If you are struggling to pay for phone and internet service while navigating back to school costs, help is available.

The Kansas Corporation Commission encourages Kansans in need of assistance to apply for Lifeline and the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB). Both programs help low-income families and individuals stay connected so they can access healthcare, attend classes, find jobs, and call for help in an emergency. Anyone who qualifies for Lifeline also qualifies for Emergency Broadband.

Lifeline provides federal and state discounts up to $17.02 per month on phone service (wireless or residential) and broadband. The $3.2 billion federal Emergency Broadband Benefit, launched last May in response to the pandemic, provides a $50 per month broadband discount. Participants also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers. Both programs offer additional discounts for subscribers living on tribal lands.

To be eligible for Lifeline, your household income must be at or below 135% of the poverty level or you receive one or more of the following benefits:

To qualify for EBB, your household must meet one of the following requirements:

Kansans can apply for both programs directly through one of many&nbsp;<a href="https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDIsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsImJ1bGxldGluX2lkIjoiMjAyMTA5MjEuNDYyNDczODEiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL2RhdGEudXNhYy5vcmcvcHVibGljcmVwb3J0cy9Db21wYW5pZXNOZWFyTWUvRG93bmxvYWQvUmVwb3J0P3V0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1nb3ZkZWxpdmVyeSJ9.FaEzSGb2TnexA3rqZ-gPOAC9vvlKzRqXXPSIKedISYI/s/1510802675/br/112669567665-l">participating providers</a>&nbsp;in the state. More information is also available on the&nbsp;<a href="https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDMsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsImJ1bGxldGluX2lkIjoiMjAyMTA5MjEuNDYyNDczODEiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL2tjYy5rcy5nb3YvdGVsZWNvbW11bmljYXRpb25zL2xpZmVsaW5lP3V0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1nb3ZkZWxpdmVyeSJ9.58xEEz_G6Lro8GiLsq2MaKwEXnBFMNjC__RcUwQ1eP8/s/1510802675/br/112669567665-l">KCC website</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/1/1578753970104.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Kansas Corporation Commission&nbsp;TOPEKA&nbsp;–&nbsp;The start of a new school year is an expensive time for families.&nbsp; If you are struggling to pay for phone and internet service while navigating back to school costs, help is available.The Kansas Corporation Commission encourages Kansans in need of assistance to apply for Lifeline and the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB). Both programs help low-income families and individuals stay connected so they can access healthcare, attend classes, find jobs, and call for help in an emergency. Anyone who qualifies for Lifeline also qualifies for Emergency Broadband.Lifeline provides federal and state discounts up to $17.02 per month on phone service (wireless or residential) and broadband. The $3.2 billion federal Emergency Broadband Benefit, launched last May in response to the pandemic, provides a $50 per month broadband discount. Participants also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers. Both programs offer additional discounts for subscribers living on tribal lands.To be eligible for Lifeline, your household income must be at or below 135% of the poverty level or you receive one or more of the following benefits:<ul>
 <li>Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)</li><li>Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI)</li><li>Federal Public Housing Assistance (FHPA)</li><li>Veterans Pension &amp; Survivors Pension Benefit</li><li>Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance</li><li>Tribally Administered Temporary Assistance for Needy Families</li><li>Head Start Tribal Programs (only those meeting its income qualifying standard)</li><li>The Food Distribution Program on Tribal Lands.</li>
 </ul>To qualify for EBB, your household must meet one of the following requirements:<ul>
 <li>Meet the criteria for the Lifeline program</li><li>Receive benefits under the free and reduced-price school lunch program or the school breakfast program, or did so in the 2019-2020 school year.</li><li>Received a Federal Pell Grant during the current award year.</li><li>Experienced a substantial loss of income due to job loss or furlough since February 29, 2020.</li><li>Meet the eligibility criteria for a participating broadband provider’s existing low-income or COVID-19 program.</li>
 </ul>Kansans can apply for both programs directly through one of many&nbsp;<a href="https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDIsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsImJ1bGxldGluX2lkIjoiMjAyMTA5MjEuNDYyNDczODEiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL2RhdGEudXNhYy5vcmcvcHVibGljcmVwb3J0cy9Db21wYW5pZXNOZWFyTWUvRG93bmxvYWQvUmVwb3J0P3V0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1nb3ZkZWxpdmVyeSJ9.FaEzSGb2TnexA3rqZ-gPOAC9vvlKzRqXXPSIKedISYI/s/1510802675/br/112669567665-l">participating providers</a>&nbsp;in the state. More information is also available on the&nbsp;<a href="https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDMsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsImJ1bGxldGluX2lkIjoiMjAyMTA5MjEuNDYyNDczODEiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL2tjYy5rcy5nb3YvdGVsZWNvbW11bmljYXRpb25zL2xpZmVsaW5lP3V0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1nb3ZkZWxpdmVyeSJ9.58xEEz_G6Lro8GiLsq2MaKwEXnBFMNjC__RcUwQ1eP8/s/1510802675/br/112669567665-l">KCC website</a>.Cover photo courtesy Pixabay

Broadband, phone discounts available for Kan. students, families

KANSAS CITY (AP) —A federal appeals court on Tuesday will consider whether Missouri can implement a sweeping law aimed at limiting abortions.

The law adopted in 2019 would ban abortions at or around the eighth week of pregnancy. It also would prohibit abortions based on a Down syndrome diagnosis.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis isn't expected to rule for several weeks.

In June,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-and-politics-courts-michael-brown-1ec915d56429b8273af7f9c9d7e0a51d">a three-judge 8th Circuit panel&nbsp;</a>upheld an injunction from U.S. District Judge Howard Sachs prohibiting Missouri from enforcing the provisions.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/down-syndrome-health-abortion-us-supreme-court-st-louis-c846b5b33db75b2f81a9163d40e5ca80">Most of the discussion</a>&nbsp;at the panel's hearing centered around the provision banning abortions because the fetus is diagnosed with Down syndrome.

But the full court then decided to hear the case, a decision that Yamelsie Rodríguez, president and CEO of Reproductive Health Services of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region, called “another troubling signal in a long line of threats to our reproductive freedom.”

The Missouri attorney general’s office is defending the law.

Sachs said in his 2020 ruling that he thought Planned Parenthood and the ACLU would likely succeed in their lawsuit challenging the law as unconstitutional. Similar laws have been struck down in North Dakota and Iowa.

Legislators who helped draft the Missouri law said it was meant to withstand court challenges. It included a provision stating that if the eight-week ban was struck down, a series of less-restrictive abortion limits would kick in at 14, 18 or 20 weeks. But courts have blocked enforcement of all of those limits thus far.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mo-state-wire-us-supreme-court-michael-brown-courts-government-and-politics-344893393ca2259cbe6d5b234ace9715">Attorney General Eric Schmitt</a>&nbsp;wants the U.S. Supreme Court to decide the case. In a court filing in July, Schmitt, a Republican, said the Supreme Court should consider whether Missouri’s restrictions are “reasonable regulations on abortion."

Schmitt also said the High Court should use the case to decide whether to overturn its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which established a nationwide right to abortion at any point before a fetus can survive outside the womb, which is roughly around the 24th week.

The appeals court case over the Missouri law comes weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-health-texas-courts-dallas-ac56b654f88471753b22e19587956c29">Texas law</a>&nbsp;that bans abortions once medical professionals can detect cardiac activity, which is usually around six weeks into a pregnancy.

The Supreme Court also has agreed to consider allowing the enforcement of a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-abortion-us-supreme-court-mississippi-57342eb0af27efe5c7cda5062105bd7f">Mississippi law</a>&nbsp;that would ban abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, which could dramatically alter nearly 50 years of court precedent on abortion rights.

Missouri is among several conservative states that have passed abortion restrictions in the hopes that the increasingly conservative Supreme Court will eventually overturn Roe v. Wade.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/7/1562964750524.png" alt="Photo Planned Parenthood&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Photo Planned Parenthood&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY (AP) —A federal appeals court on Tuesday will consider whether Missouri can implement a sweeping law aimed at limiting abortions.The law adopted in 2019 would ban abortions at or around the eighth week of pregnancy. It also would prohibit abortions based on a Down syndrome diagnosis.The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis isn't expected to rule for several weeks.In June,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-and-politics-courts-michael-brown-1ec915d56429b8273af7f9c9d7e0a51d">a three-judge 8th Circuit panel&nbsp;</a>upheld an injunction from U.S. District Judge Howard Sachs prohibiting Missouri from enforcing the provisions.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/down-syndrome-health-abortion-us-supreme-court-st-louis-c846b5b33db75b2f81a9163d40e5ca80">Most of the discussion</a>&nbsp;at the panel's hearing centered around the provision banning abortions because the fetus is diagnosed with Down syndrome.But the full court then decided to hear the case, a decision that Yamelsie Rodríguez, president and CEO of Reproductive Health Services of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region, called “another troubling signal in a long line of threats to our reproductive freedom.”The Missouri attorney general’s office is defending the law.Sachs said in his 2020 ruling that he thought Planned Parenthood and the ACLU would likely succeed in their lawsuit challenging the law as unconstitutional. Similar laws have been struck down in North Dakota and Iowa.Legislators who helped draft the Missouri law said it was meant to withstand court challenges. It included a provision stating that if the eight-week ban was struck down, a series of less-restrictive abortion limits would kick in at 14, 18 or 20 weeks. But courts have blocked enforcement of all of those limits thus far.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mo-state-wire-us-supreme-court-michael-brown-courts-government-and-politics-344893393ca2259cbe6d5b234ace9715">Attorney General Eric Schmitt</a>&nbsp;wants the U.S. Supreme Court to decide the case. In a court filing in July, Schmitt, a Republican, said the Supreme Court should consider whether Missouri’s restrictions are “reasonable regulations on abortion."Schmitt also said the High Court should use the case to decide whether to overturn its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which established a nationwide right to abortion at any point before a fetus can survive outside the womb, which is roughly around the 24th week.The appeals court case over the Missouri law comes weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-health-texas-courts-dallas-ac56b654f88471753b22e19587956c29">Texas law</a>&nbsp;that bans abortions once medical professionals can detect cardiac activity, which is usually around six weeks into a pregnancy.The Supreme Court also has agreed to consider allowing the enforcement of a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-abortion-us-supreme-court-mississippi-57342eb0af27efe5c7cda5062105bd7f">Mississippi law</a>&nbsp;that would ban abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, which could dramatically alter nearly 50 years of court precedent on abortion rights.Missouri is among several conservative states that have passed abortion restrictions in the hopes that the increasingly conservative Supreme Court will eventually overturn Roe v. Wade.

Missouri's abortion law going before a federal appeals court

COVID-19 has now killed about as many Americans as the 1918-19 Spanish flu pandemic did — approximately 675,000.

The U.S. population a century ago was just one-third of what it is today, meaning the flu cut a much bigger, more lethal swath through the country. But the COVID-19 crisis is by any measure a colossal tragedy in its own right, especially given the incredible advances in scientific knowledge since then and the failure to take maximum advantage of the vaccines available this time.

“Big pockets of American society — and, worse, their leaders — have thrown this away,” medical historian Dr. Howard Markel of the University of Michigan said of the opportunity to vaccinate everyone eligible by now.

Like the Spanish flu, the coronavirus may never entirely disappear from our midst. Instead, scientists hope it becomes a mild seasonal bug as human immunity strengthens through vaccination and repeated infection. That could take time.

“We hope it will be like getting a cold, but there’s no guarantee,” said Emory University biologist Rustom Antia, who suggests an optimistic scenario in which this could happen over a few years.

For now, the pandemic still has the United States and other parts of the world firmly in its jaws.

While the delta-fueled surge in infections may have peaked, U.S. deaths are running at over 1,900 a day on average, the highest level since early March, and the country’s overall toll topped 675,000 Monday, according to the count kept by Johns Hopkins University, though the real number is believed to be higher.

Winter may bring a new surge, with the University of Washington’s influential model projecting an additional 100,000 or so Americans will die of COVID-19 by Jan. 1, which would bring the overall U.S. toll to 776,000.

The 1918-19 influenza pandemic killed 50 million victims globally at a time when the world had one-quarter the population it does now. Global deaths from COVID-19 now stand at more than 4.6 million.

The Spanish flu’s U.S. death toll is a rough guess, given the incomplete records of the era and the poor scientific understanding of what caused the illness. The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-pandemic-h1n1.html" target="_blank">675,000 figure</a>&nbsp;comes from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The ebbing of COVID-19 could happen if the virus progressively weakens as it mutates and more and more humans’ immune systems learn to attack it. Vaccination and surviving infection are the main ways the immune system improves. Breast-fed infants also gain some immunity from their mothers.

Under that optimistic scenario, schoolchildren would get mild illness that trains their immune systems. As they grow up, the children would carry the immune response memory, so that when they are old and vulnerable, the coronavirus would be no more dangerous than cold viruses.

The same goes for today’s vaccinated teens: Their immune systems would get stronger through the shots and mild infections.

“We will all get infected,” Antia predicted. “What’s important is whether the infections are severe.”

Something similar happened with the H1N1 flu virus, the culprit in the 1918-19 pandemic. It encountered too many people who were immune, and it also eventually weakened through mutation. H1N1 still circulates today, but immunity acquired through infection and vaccination has triumphed.

Getting an annual flu shot now protects against H1N1 and several other strains of flu. To be sure, flu kills between 12,000 and 61,000 Americans each year, but on average, it is a seasonal problem and a manageable one.

Before COVID-19, the 1918-19 flu was universally considered the worst pandemic disease in human history. Whether the current scourge ultimately proves deadlier is unclear.

In many ways, the 1918-19 flu — which was wrongly named Spanish flu because it first received widespread news coverage in Spain — was worse.

Spread by the mobility of World War I, it killed young, healthy adults in vast numbers. No vaccine existed to slow it, and there were no antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections. And, of course, the world was much smaller.

Yet jet travel and mass migrations threaten to increase the toll of the current pandemic. Much of the world is unvaccinated. And the coronavirus has been full of surprises.

Markel said he is continually astounded by the magnitude of the disruption the pandemic has brought to the planet.

“I was gobsmacked by the size of the quarantines” the Chinese government undertook initially, Markel said, “and I’ve since been gob-gob-gob-smacked to the nth degree.” The lagging pace of U.S. vaccinations is the latest source of his astonishment.

Just under 64% of the U.S. population has received as least one dose of the vaccine, with state rates ranging from a high of approximately 77% in Vermont and Massachusetts to lows around 46% to 49% in Idaho, Wyoming, West Virginia and Mississippi.

Globally, about&nbsp;<a href="https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations" target="_blank">43% of the population</a>&nbsp;has received at least one dose, according to Our World in Data, with some African countries just beginning to give their first shots.

“We know that all pandemics come to an end,” said Dr. Jeremy Brown, director of emergency care research at the National Institutes of Health, who wrote a book on influenza. “They can do terrible things while they’re raging.”

COVID-19 could have been far less lethal in the U.S. if more people had gotten vaccinated faster, “and we still have an opportunity to turn it around,” Brown said. “We often lose sight of how lucky we are to take these things for granted.”

The current vaccines work extremely well in preventing severe disease and death from the variants of the virus that have emerged so far.

It will be crucial for scientists to make sure the ever-mutating virus hasn’t changed enough to evade vaccines or to cause severe illness in unvaccinated children, Antia said.

If the virus changes significantly, a new vaccine using the technology behind the Pfizer and Moderna shots could be produced in 110 days, a Pfizer executive said Wednesday. The company is studying whether annual shots with the current vaccine will be required to keep immunity high.

One plus: The coronavirus mutates at a slower pace than flu viruses, making it a more stable target for vaccination, said Ann Marie Kimball, a retired University of Washington professor of epidemiology.

So, will the current pandemic unseat the 1918-19 flu pandemic as the worst in human history?

“You’d like to say no. We have a lot more infection control, a lot more ability to support people who are sick. We have modern medicine,” Kimball said. “But we have a lot more people and a lot more mobility. ... The fear is eventually a new strain gets around a particular vaccine target.”

To those unvaccinated individuals who are counting on infection rather than vaccination for immune protection, Kimball said, “The trouble is, you have to survive infection to acquire the immunity.” It’s easier, she said, to go to the drugstore and get a shot.

By CARLA K. JOHNSON, Associated PressCOVID-19 has now killed about as many Americans as the 1918-19 Spanish flu pandemic did — approximately 675,000.The U.S. population a century ago was just one-third of what it is today, meaning the flu cut a much bigger, more lethal swath through the country. But the COVID-19 crisis is by any measure a colossal tragedy in its own right, especially given the incredible advances in scientific knowledge since then and the failure to take maximum advantage of the vaccines available this time.“Big pockets of American society — and, worse, their leaders — have thrown this away,” medical historian Dr. Howard Markel of the University of Michigan said of the opportunity to vaccinate everyone eligible by now.Like the Spanish flu, the coronavirus may never entirely disappear from our midst. Instead, scientists hope it becomes a mild seasonal bug as human immunity strengthens through vaccination and repeated infection. That could take time.“We hope it will be like getting a cold, but there’s no guarantee,” said Emory University biologist Rustom Antia, who suggests an optimistic scenario in which this could happen over a few years.For now, the pandemic still has the United States and other parts of the world firmly in its jaws.While the delta-fueled surge in infections may have peaked, U.S. deaths are running at over 1,900 a day on average, the highest level since early March, and the country’s overall toll topped 675,000 Monday, according to the count kept by Johns Hopkins University, though the real number is believed to be higher.Winter may bring a new surge, with the University of Washington’s influential model projecting an additional 100,000 or so Americans will die of COVID-19 by Jan. 1, which would bring the overall U.S. toll to 776,000.The 1918-19 influenza pandemic killed 50 million victims globally at a time when the world had one-quarter the population it does now. Global deaths from COVID-19 now stand at more than 4.6 million.The Spanish flu’s U.S. death toll is a rough guess, given the incomplete records of the era and the poor scientific understanding of what caused the illness. The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-pandemic-h1n1.html" target="_blank">675,000 figure</a>&nbsp;comes from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The ebbing of COVID-19 could happen if the virus progressively weakens as it mutates and more and more humans’ immune systems learn to attack it. Vaccination and surviving infection are the main ways the immune system improves. Breast-fed infants also gain some immunity from their mothers.Under that optimistic scenario, schoolchildren would get mild illness that trains their immune systems. As they grow up, the children would carry the immune response memory, so that when they are old and vulnerable, the coronavirus would be no more dangerous than cold viruses.The same goes for today’s vaccinated teens: Their immune systems would get stronger through the shots and mild infections.“We will all get infected,” Antia predicted. “What’s important is whether the infections are severe.”Something similar happened with the H1N1 flu virus, the culprit in the 1918-19 pandemic. It encountered too many people who were immune, and it also eventually weakened through mutation. H1N1 still circulates today, but immunity acquired through infection and vaccination has triumphed.Getting an annual flu shot now protects against H1N1 and several other strains of flu. To be sure, flu kills between 12,000 and 61,000 Americans each year, but on average, it is a seasonal problem and a manageable one.Before COVID-19, the 1918-19 flu was universally considered the worst pandemic disease in human history. Whether the current scourge ultimately proves deadlier is unclear.In many ways, the 1918-19 flu — which was wrongly named Spanish flu because it first received widespread news coverage in Spain — was worse.Spread by the mobility of World War I, it killed young, healthy adults in vast numbers. No vaccine existed to slow it, and there were no antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections. And, of course, the world was much smaller.Yet jet travel and mass migrations threaten to increase the toll of the current pandemic. Much of the world is unvaccinated. And the coronavirus has been full of surprises.Markel said he is continually astounded by the magnitude of the disruption the pandemic has brought to the planet.“I was gobsmacked by the size of the quarantines” the Chinese government undertook initially, Markel said, “and I’ve since been gob-gob-gob-smacked to the nth degree.” The lagging pace of U.S. vaccinations is the latest source of his astonishment.Just under 64% of the U.S. population has received as least one dose of the vaccine, with state rates ranging from a high of approximately 77% in Vermont and Massachusetts to lows around 46% to 49% in Idaho, Wyoming, West Virginia and Mississippi.Globally, about&nbsp;<a href="https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations" target="_blank">43% of the population</a>&nbsp;has received at least one dose, according to Our World in Data, with some African countries just beginning to give their first shots.“We know that all pandemics come to an end,” said Dr. Jeremy Brown, director of emergency care research at the National Institutes of Health, who wrote a book on influenza. “They can do terrible things while they’re raging.”COVID-19 could have been far less lethal in the U.S. if more people had gotten vaccinated faster, “and we still have an opportunity to turn it around,” Brown said. “We often lose sight of how lucky we are to take these things for granted.”The current vaccines work extremely well in preventing severe disease and death from the variants of the virus that have emerged so far.It will be crucial for scientists to make sure the ever-mutating virus hasn’t changed enough to evade vaccines or to cause severe illness in unvaccinated children, Antia said.If the virus changes significantly, a new vaccine using the technology behind the Pfizer and Moderna shots could be produced in 110 days, a Pfizer executive said Wednesday. The company is studying whether annual shots with the current vaccine will be required to keep immunity high.One plus: The coronavirus mutates at a slower pace than flu viruses, making it a more stable target for vaccination, said Ann Marie Kimball, a retired University of Washington professor of epidemiology.So, will the current pandemic unseat the 1918-19 flu pandemic as the worst in human history?“You’d like to say no. We have a lot more infection control, a lot more ability to support people who are sick. We have modern medicine,” Kimball said. “But we have a lot more people and a lot more mobility. ... The fear is eventually a new strain gets around a particular vaccine target.”To those unvaccinated individuals who are counting on infection rather than vaccination for immune protection, Kimball said, “The trouble is, you have to survive infection to acquire the immunity.” It’s easier, she said, to go to the drugstore and get a shot.___

COVID has killed about as many Americans as the 1918-19 flu

KANSAS CITY (AP) — Even after his death, a Missouri police officer has helped a fellow officer in a time of need.

Independence Officer Blaize Madrid-Evans, 22, graduated from the police academy just two months ago and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/police-shootings-missouri-independence-fc64c40422116aab7eb0cdd55f6aae5b">was fatally shot by a suspect on Wednesday</a>. The suspect also died in the shootout.

Madrid-Evans was an organ donor and Springfield Officer Mark Priebe needed a new kidney. Priebe was paralyzed after being intentionally struck by a vehicle in June 2020. His kidneys began to fail in June and he began dialysis in July.

Priebe's family learned on Friday that they were a match, and the transplant was performed Saturday in St. Louis.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1631787288577.png" alt="Blaize Madrid-Evans-photo courtesy Independence Police" />
 <figcaption>Blaize Madrid-Evans-photo courtesy Independence Police</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY (AP) — Even after his death, a Missouri police officer has helped a fellow officer in a time of need.Independence Officer Blaize Madrid-Evans, 22, graduated from the police academy just two months ago and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/police-shootings-missouri-independence-fc64c40422116aab7eb0cdd55f6aae5b">was fatally shot by a suspect on Wednesday</a>. The suspect also died in the shootout.Madrid-Evans was an organ donor and Springfield Officer Mark Priebe needed a new kidney. Priebe was paralyzed after being intentionally struck by a vehicle in June 2020. His kidneys began to fail in June and he began dialysis in July.Priebe's family learned on Friday that they were a match, and the transplant was performed Saturday in St. Louis.Priebe said he is “forever grateful” to Madrid-Evans, though he noted that it is difficult to comprehend "why I am allowed to continue to live, and this young, brand new officer had to pay the ultimate sacrifice. I hope that I can honor him and his family by the way I live my life.”