A few years ago local business leaders from 17 companies, including Sprint and Hallmark Cards, wrote to Jay Nixon, the governor of Missouri, and Sam Brownback, his counterpart in Kansas, to warn them that the rift was harming the area.

几年前，包括来自Sprint和Hallmark Cards在内的当地17家公司的总裁们向密苏苏里州长杰·尼克森联同肯萨斯州州长萨姆·布朗巴克写信警告这种裂痕正危害着这个地方。