DODGE CITY, Kan. - Did you ever wonder what shapes people's opinions about their country, their politics, or their world? I suspect that, for most of us, the answer is, "It's what we watch, listen to, and read." For others, it may be simply whatever their parents, family, or friends believe. For those with the latter choice, one probably can't do much to change their outlook. For the others, it might be interesting just to ask people you meet, "What do you watch, listen to, and read?" I'd be interested in what is read, watched, etc. by the folks who read Kansas Free Press.

For openers, I'll tell you some of my choices. On TV, I watch MSNBC, you know: Countdown, Rachel Maddow, etc. Of course they "lean left" (only I call it "practice progressive thinking"), but I get so fed up with the so-called liberal media, which it is NOT. I listen to NPR with All Things Considered to get the real news and I like to watch The News Hour with Jim Lehrer on Public TV.

DODGE CITY, Kan. - Yesterday I attended a luncheon of a local civic group. At our table were seated six women, four of whom were certified, blue-blood Republicans and the other two were another wise Democrat and me.

An R asked who had heard the shocking news that Obama had won the Nobel Peace Prize. Of course, all of us had. Four of the group were properly stunned and sure that this must have been some kind of political trickery. One asked if any of us knew how winners were selected and by whom. I suggested that perhaps the selection happened because of all his potential for what he might do for the world with our new outlook.

They remembered suddenly that I was - Oh, Horrors! A Democrat! So, now they reminded each other, that this Democrat had been a "good" Democrat and that they had all voted for me when I was in the Kansas House. Thank goodness, I wasn't like all those OTHER Democrats. I responded that I was very proud of being a member of the Democratic Party, the Party of the People. So the subject was changed.