New LGBT Buttons

 

This year, I added new buttons to my collection, and I reorganized sections of my collection that I showcased on Meticulous Musings earlier this year.

My new buttons include: a heart-shaped pin in the colors of the transgender flag, a rainbow button that reads, “Atheists for Equality,” a transgender dragon pin, and a black button that says, “Ban Bigots, Not Books.”

This article will showcase my new buttons and my reorganized collection.

 

 

 

LGBT Button Collection

 

I published an article about my LGBT Button Collection in March, which contains high-quality photos and detailed discussions about those buttons.

Here is what my LGBT Button Collection looks like with its recent additions. 

 

These are my buttons from high school.

 

 

 

 

Here are my pronoun buttons. 

 

 

 

 

 

The next row contains buttons with cool symbols, including transgender symbols and a colorful star. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are my pride flag buttons.

Here is a close up of my button that reads, “I Do Hot Girl Shit.”

Next, I have nine small buttons arranged in the shape of a square.

This brings us to my first new button. 

I obtained a heart-shaped pin in the colors of the transgender flag from a booth at the Little Apple Pride Festival in Manhattan, Kansas, in April.

In the center of my collection, I have several large buttons.

 

I obtained a button that reads, “Atheist for Equality” at the Kansas City Pride Festival in June. The button’s white text is set against a rainbow flag background.

I purchased an adorable transgender dragon pin from Lavender Minis on Etsy. The dragon holds a heart with the colors of the transgender flag.

I received the transgender dragon pin in the mail in early July.

My order came with a complimentary sticker of two dragons gazing lovingly at each other on either side of a transgender heart.

 

 

My transgender dragon pin is one of several medium-sized buttons on the left side of my pin board.

I have a pin for the Foon Mittens League, or FML, a popular sports league in the fictional land of Foon.

 

 

 

 

I also own a genderfluid dragon pin created by Lavender Minis.

 

 

 

 

 

Lavender Minis has created similar dragons pins that feature the colors of other LGBT pride flags.

This photo first appeared on the pride flag dragons Tumblr account.

 

 

 

On the bottom left, I have a button that reads, “We are the granddaughters of the witches you could not burn.”

I also have a button with pink, white, and blue wavy stripes.

 

 

 

In the bottom right, I have a large button with concentric hearts in the colors of the transgender flag.

Here is another look at the collection as a whole.

 

 

 

 

 

Classic Political Buttons

 

I also reorganized my collection of Classic Political Buttons. I discussed this section of my button collection on Meticulous Musings in June.

Here are my Eisenhower, Carter, and Mondale buttons.

I have two buttons from my childhood with my name on them.

The new button in this section is a black button that reads, “Ban Bigots, Not Books.”

In late July, I purchased the button from “On the Wild Side,” a store in Aggieville, which is a business district in Manhattan, Kansas.

Let’s take one more look at the collection as a whole.

Finally, here is the blanket I used as the background for the pictures shown above. The blanket features an image of an owl.

Thank you for joining me on a tour of my updated button collection. 

 

 

Stop the Flat Tax

 

Kansas Republicans want to replace the state’s progressive income tax with a flat tax, and give massive tax breaks to rich people. 

Republicans unsuccessfully tried to pass a flat tax in 2023 and 2024, and they have retaliated against Republican lawmakers who voted against these proposals.

After the Legislature failed to pass a flat tax this year, Republican lawmakers and Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly reached an agreement on a different tax cut bill.

 

 

 

A Failed Experiment

 

This isn’t the first time Kansas Republicans have tried to slash income taxes.

Under Gov. Sam Brownback, Republicans approved large income tax cuts, which wreaked havoc on the state budget. 

Among other things, the tax cuts meant the state had to subsequently cut funding for education and infrastructure.

Brownback’s tax policies failed to boost the economy, as their supporters said they would.

 

 

 

A Flat Tax Proposal

 

Now Kansas Republicans want to slash income taxes again, this time by replacing the state’s progressive income tax with a flat tax.

 

Earlier this year, Republicans tried to pass a flat tax that would have saved Kansas Billionaire Charles Koch $875,000 a year, according to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP).

By comparison, the middle 20% of Kansans would receive an average annual tax cut of $116, and the lowest 20% would receive an average annual tax cut of $58.

 

(ITEP Graph)

 

 

 

Republican leaders in the legislature even had the audacity to falsely claim the proposal would primarily benefit the poor.

The flat tax plan would have replaced the state’s three income tax brackets with a single income tax rate.

The bill would have reduced state revenues by $1.6 billion over the next three years, according to the Kansas Reflector.

 

 

The Kansas Legislature passed the bill, but Gov. Laura Kelly (D) vetoed it.

 

Kelly said she supported cutting taxes, but not in a way that primarily benefits the rich.

“I support responsible tax cuts, but I refuse to sign into law a reckless flat tax that would take us back to Brownback while doing next to nothing for the middle class,” Kelly wrote in her veto message.

“This flat tax experiment would overwhelmingly benefit the super wealthy, and I’m not going to put our public schools, roads, and stable economy at risk just to give a break to those at the very top,” Kelly continued.

“I am dead set on making sure working Kansans get a tax cut this year. That’s why I’ve brought together Republican, Democratic, and Independent legislators to champion a $1 billion tax cut over three years, all while maintaining our state’s strong fiscal foundation.”

 

 

The vetoed bill returned the Kansas Legislature.  

The Kansas House came three votes short of overriding Kelly’s veto.

The House voted 81 to 42 in favor of the bill.

80 Republicans and one Democrat, Marvin Robinson, voted for the bill.

37 Democrats and five Republicans voted against the bill.

The House Republicans who voted against the bill were Mike Dodson, Randy Garber, Trevor Jacobs, Mark Schreiber, and David Younger. 

Two Democrats, Dennis Highberger and Virgil Weigel, were absent for the vote. 

 

 

Kansas Republicans subsequently tried to pass a different flat income tax proposal.

That plan passed the Kansas Senate with a veto proof majority, before the plan was abandoned in the Kansas House. 

 

The Senate voted 29 to 11 in favor of the updated flat tax proposal.

28 Republicans and one Democrat, David Haley, voted in favor of the bill.

10 Democrats and one Republican, Robert Olson, voted against the bill.

 

 

 

Compromise Reached

 

Kelly and Republican leadership in the Legislature subsequently negotiated a bill that cut income and property taxes, which Kelly signed into law.

The bill created a two-tier income tax system.

The tax cuts were slightly less expensive than the Republicans’ original flat tax proposal.

The tax cuts Kelly signed into law will reduce state revenues by $1.2 billion over the next three years.

 

 

 

Retaliation

 

Republican leaders in the Kansas Legislature are known to retaliate against Republican lawmakers who buck the party line, and they have done so against Republicans who voted against the flat tax.

 

Republican leadership stripped Sen. Rob Olson (R) from a committee chairmanship after he voted against a flat tax proposal in 2023.

Olson chose not to run for reelection this year.

 

A bill designed to protect Kansas veterans disappeared from the House Calendar after Mike Dodson, a Republican member of the House, voted against overriding Kelly’s veto of the flat tax. Dodson previously voted in favor of the flat tax proposal.

Dodson supported the veterans bill.

The veterans bill would have addressed concerns about “claim sharks” who offer to help veterans navigate the Veterans Affairs claims process in exchange for a percentage of their benefits.

By contrast, the Veterans of Foreign Wars provides similar assistance for free.

The veterans bill would prohibit anyone from receiving compensation in exchange for helping veterans with their claims.

Carrie Rahfaldt, a spokesperson for House Republican leadership, didn’t respond to an inquiry from the Kansas Reflector about the fate of the veterans bill and the use of veterans for political purposes.

Dodson chose not to run for reelection this year.

 

 

 

Conclusion

 

I find it likely Republicans will continue to push for a flat income tax in the coming years.

If you would like to stop Republicans from passing a flat income tax, and punish Republican leadership for using veterans as political pawns, you can contribute to Democrats running in competitive legislative races in Kansas this year.   

 

This editorial relied heavily on reporting from the Kansas Reflector. 

If you're interested in following Kansas politics, I'd recommend checking out their work.