Tardy vehicle registration, tags lead to tax evasion. Drivers need to be accountable | Opinion

Tardy tags

If I’m correct, when purchasing a vehicle it is important (and the law) to promptly register it. Two very important things happen when that registration occurs:

• You pay state sales tax.

• It starts the clock on paying personal property tax on that vehicle.

While driving, it’s not unusual to see vehicles driving with temporary tags that expired months if not years ago. The other day, I saw temp tags that expired in 2021 and 2022.

If our cities and states are in need of tax dollars, why is this allowed? Dodging this personal responsibility will continue if nothing is done to correct it.

- Phil Smith, Kansas City

Reichs’ endings

On Monday, Donald Trump shared a video on Truth Social touting what the United States would become if he wins the election. One statement said that he would lead the “creation of a unified reich.”

I am sure there are some history buffs out there, like me, who are scratching their heads.

There have been three notable “reichs” in history, all German..

1. The first was called the Holy Roman Empire and was destroyed by Napoleon in 1806.

2. The second was the Hohenzollern monarchy, whose last leader was Kaiser Wilhelm II. He was on deck when Germany was destroyed at the end of World War I in 1918.

3. The third was the empire Adolf Hitler and his Nazis thought they were creating when they started World War II by attacking Poland. We all know how it ended in 1945. Hitler committed suicide in an underground Berlin bunker, while Russian tanks destroyed his capital city over his head.

So, what are the Trumpies saying here? We want to be a “reich” and get dumped on the trash heap of history, just like the others?

I wonder if any of his campaign staff has ever read a history book. What do you think?

- Graham Marcott, Fairway

Others’ views

I’m a part-time opinion columnist in eastern Iowa. Sometimes, I write analyses and opinions that anger people. Some even call for my termination. Luckily, my publication understands that certain perspectives shouldn’t be excluded from the public conversation just because some find them unpalatable.

That’s why I commend The Kansas City Star for running Peter Hamm’s May 19 commentary “The KC Chiefs should just hire someone who kicks like a girl,” (17A) even though I found his argument — that Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker should be fired over the content of a commencement speech he gave at a Catholic college and be replaced with a female soccer player — utterly absurd.

It seems this author does not value differing views. To him, certain perspectives apparently are so intolerable that even one of the most successful kickers in NFL history should not only lose his livelihood for publicly sharing them, but be replaced with someone far less likely to succeed, statistically speaking, as a form of “poetic justice.”

Butker should be challenged on the merits of his comments, not punished by taking what he has rightfully earned. If Hamm believes that sharing certain viewpoints makes one unfit for one’s profession, he should consider how his own reflects on the profession of journalism.

- Althea Cole, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Women’s plans

Harrison Butker is out of touch with reality, with a base salary this year of about $4 million. Not all women marry a star kicker of an NFL football team. Regardless, all women should be aware: A man is not a financial plan. Today, most women need to be prepared to contribute financially to the family’s income.

- Sharon Lockhart, Treasurer, Kansas National Organization for Women, Leawood

What’s wrong

I am trying to understand how people can be upset with Harrison Butker’s faith-based commencement address and not be concerned about Rashee Rice allegedly committing a felony by leaving the scene of an accident that caused injuries. And now there are two offensive linemen, Wanya Morris and Chukwuebuka Godrick, with marijuana possession charges pending in Kansas. (May 19, 6B, “Chiefs Morris, Godrick arrested on marijuana charges”)

We need to get our priorities straight. The NFL and Kansas City Chiefs must condemn acts that are illegal, not ones that are an individual’s opinion.

- Craig Slaughter, Kansas City

His words

Hey, Harrison Butker, be careful who you hate — it might be someone you love. What would Jesus do?

- Molly Mitchell-Danciger, Atlantic Beach, Florida (formerly of Leawood)

Royals’ repeat?

The Star published a letter from me last August about getting behind this team of Royals players despite their season record. Now it’s time to reiterate that message as the Royals have one of the best records in baseball since that time last fall.

They have a generational talent in Bobby Witt Jr., who is fast becoming the best player in baseball — and just like his counterpart across the parking lot, he seems to get better and better.

National media are finally catching on as this team is now 32-19 as of this writing, tied for the best 51-game start in Royals history — shades of 2014 as that team recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary at Kauffman Stadium.

Kudos to the ownership and management as the Royals continue to successfully navigate the new stadium waters. Get behind this team as the next few months are gonna be great fun as the Royals make their way back to the MLB playoffs.

- David Black, Olathe