Seventh Annual Barton County 4-H Winter Classic

The Seventh Annual Barton County 4-H Winter Classic hosted over sixty 4-H members from nearby counties. Members participated in air rifle and archery competition to prepare for the upcoming state 4-H Shooting Sports Competition to be held April 16th at the Expo Grounds west of Great Bend.

Credits that can pay you at tax time

The IRS is reminding everyone not to overlook credits that can reduce their tax bill. "A tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar reduction of taxes owed," said IRS Spokesman Michael Devine. "Some credits are refundable, which can mean a refund rather than owing any taxes." Here are some of the credits he said should not be overlooked. The Earned Income Tax Credit is a refundable credit for workers who earned income less than $48,362 from wages, ...

Justice overcomes the idiotic

By his own testimony, John Ditullio is a hateful neo-Nazi who despised his next-door neighbors in New Port Richey, Fla. - a white woman with an African-American friend and a son who was openly gay.

Vote for Allison is vote for the future

Dear Editor, To the Great Bend voters: I am Jim Thurman, former mayor of Great Bend. I know what it takes to serve as the mayor of Great Bend. Many people though I did a commendable job. I want you to reelect Mike Allison as our mayor of the future. Why? Because he is smart, intelligent, hard working, experienced and well acquainted with the job. I have talked with many city personnel and they are ...

We don't really want to cut spending -- Friedeman

During the 2008 presidential campaign, Phil Gramm, one of John McCain's chief economic advisers, made the statement that "we are a nation of whiners." He, of course, took a lot of flak for that and eventually backed down from his statement.

President? What president? -- Argus Hamilton

LA JOLLA - God bless America, and how's everybody? President Obama went on ESPN Wednesday and announced his NCAA tournament's Sweet Sixteen picks. He loves sports. The closest he came to mentioning Japan was when he predicted that the Albuquerque Isotopes will win the Pacific Coast League this summer. Japan's earthquake shut down Toyota's Prius plant in northeastern Japan last week until further notice. It hit Al Gore pretty hard. The Prius is so environmentally ...

MARCH SADNESS: PULLEN’S FINEST HOUR STILL LEAVES HIM IN TEARS

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - Kansas State's Jacob Pullen won the individual matchup of marquee point guards, scoring anywhere and everywhere while Wisconsin's Jordan Taylor clanged one shot after another.

Walker rains in 33 points to lead UConn over Cincinnati

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Big East finally found a way to get a team into the round of 16 - by beating up on itself.

WILDCATS' SEASON CLOSES

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - Jordan Taylor couldn't hit a thing, missing open shots and contested ones from just about everywhere on the court.

KU’s Self faces former team in NCAA Tournament

TULSA, Okla. (AP) - Bruce Weber once held a mock funeral to lay Bill Self's memory to rest once and for all at Illinois.

KU’s Self faces former team in NCAA Tournament

TULSA, Okla. (AP) - Bruce Weber once held a mock funeral to lay Bill Self's memory to rest once and for all at Illinois.

BCC baseball team’s games rescheduled

The Barton Community College baseball games at Pratt scheduled for Saturday and Sunday have been moved back a day.

Six Pack

The 12-year-old volleyball team, Six Pack, traveled to Topeka for a tournament and placed second out of 10 teams. The team only lost two out of 13 games.

Great Bend Stealers

The Great Bend Stealers, a fifth- and sixth-grade basketball team, claimed first place in the Hays MAYB basketball tournament on March 5. Their overall record this season was 17-4.

Bonds trial begins Monday

When Barry Bonds walked into the federal courthouse in San Francisco on Dec. 4, 2003, his career total stood at 658 home runs, baseball had yet to institute drug testing with penalties and the Giants were nearly a half-century removed from their last World Series title.

Panther Bands Spring Concert recognize seniors, parents, accomplishments

Panther Band members will present their Spring Concert at 7 p.m. on May 13 in the GBHS Gym. The band seniors and their parents will be recognized, as well as all of the band student's achievements during the year.

Do We Still Need the Department of Education?

When executives of corporations are caught aiding and abetting criminal behavior of their employees, the executives are prosecuted and the businesses are destroyed.

Kansas Academy of Mathematics and Science prepares to honor 3rd graduating class

The 27 members of the 2013 class of the Kansas Academy of Mathematics and Science will walk across the stage at Commencement beginning at 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 11, in the Fort Hays Ballroom on the second floor of the Memorial Union.

Pecked

Lots to Celebrate in May

Happy Mother's Day to all of the moms out there! The month of May has arrived and that means a frenzy of activity for families who are celebrating Mother's day today and graduations now or in the weeks ahead. I am truly blessed to have my mother-in-law, daughter, and granddaughters close by. It is a joy to spend time together at a moment's notice. Hopefully your weekend plans include some good family time with plenty of hugs.

Prides of Kansas Lions To Wichita Convention

The annual Kansas Lions State Convention in Wichita, May 30 - June 1, 2013, will take on an international significance as the Kansas Lions host Lions Clubs International President Wayne Madden and wife Linda at the Airport Hilton Convention Center.

MILC, SURE, and NAP will restart on May 8

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency (FSA) Administrator Juan M. Garcia announced today that farm payments, which had been temporarily suspended due to sequestration, are scheduled to resume today, May 8th. This includes payments for the 2011 Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program (SURE), the Noninsured Crop Assistance Program (NAP) and the Milk Income Loss Contract Program (MILC).

Why Does It Matter?

This is finals week at Barton and many of the other colleges around the state. For instructors it's time to evaluate what students learned over the last semester. For students it's time for that one last push to maintain or raise their grades. While faculty see testing as a method to evaluate learning and adjust accordingly, students often see testing as a way to be tortured. Students focus on the grade while faculty focus on ...

Play safe on the farm

The dream of many young farm boys and girls is to ride on a tractor. For a youngster, the mammoth tractor epitomizes raw power, responsibility and coming of age.

“Celebrate Wheat” Quilt Block Challenge announced

The theme for the 2013 Barton County Fair quilt block challenge is "Celebrate Wheat." Coordinated by members of the Central Kansas Thread Benders quilt guild, the contest is open to anyone who sews. Kits are available for pick up for $3 at the Barton County Extension Office, 1800 12th Street in Great Bend. Each kit contains two fat eighths of fabric. Each of these fabrics must be used in the final block as well as ...

Pacers put down Knicks for 2-1 series lead

INDIANAPOLIS - Roy Hibbert had 24 points and 12 rebounds and Paul George had 14 points, eight rebounds and eight assist to lead the Pacers past New York 82-71 Saturday night in Game of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Pirates topple Mets

NEW YORK - Francisco Liriano struck out nine and pitched into the sixth inning to win his debut with Pittsburgh and help the Pirates beat the New York Mets 11-2.

Pettitte, Yankees edge Royals 3-2

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Andy Pettitte finally stopped beating himself up long enough to look at video of his past couple of outings, subpar efforts by any stretch and certainly his own lofty standards.

Lady Panthers to play Hays

The Great Bend High School girls' soccer team travels to Hays on Tuesday to play an opening-round game of a Class 5A regional tournament

Oilers capture third place at state tourney

HILLSBORO - Central Plains High School brought a young team, but the Oilers came through for a third-place finish at the Class 3-1A state tennis tournament on Saturday to take home some hardware.