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VOL. 43, NO. 11 An Independent Journal of Commentary JUNE 10, 2011 2011 Legislative Performances Ten Best & Ten Worst By Arnold Hamilton and Frosty Troy It was the best Legislature big mon- ma taxpayers that now will be spent ey could buy. in other states. With Republicans controlling all le- While some legislators embarrassed vers of state government power for the themselves and their state with breath- first time, corporate interests domi- taking venality and ignorance, others nated the 2011 session – unleashing distinguished themselves in an oth- an all-out assault on worker rights, erwise disastrous session. Herewith, further cutting income tax rates that the Best 10 and Worst 10 legislative disproportionately benefit the rich performances of 2011: and ensuring negligent doctors and businesses can’t be forced legally to House Best make whole those who are wronged. REP. DOUG COX, R-Grove: A true As hundreds of developmentally conservative in the Henry Bellmon disabled children remain on waiting mold, Cox deftly shepherded the hos- lists for wheelchairs, as public school pital provider fee through the Legisla- class sizes explode, as bridges and ture, ensuring some hospitals plagued highways crumble and as overcrowd- by unreimbursed indigent care will ed and understaffed prisons simmer, remain open. He also was the only Oklahoma lawmakers cried poverty House Republican to vote against the – blaming a half-billion-dollar budget dubious 20-week abortion bill, the hole on the worldwide recession. attack on Planned Parenthood and The truth is far less benign for a the elimination of the Human Rights legislative majority that served as Commission as a stand-alone entity. little more than lapdogs for the State REP. KRIS STEELE, R-Shawnee: Chamber. It was far from a perfect session for Lawmakers not only refused to de- the likeable speaker, who all too of- lay or abandon the quarter-percent- ten rolled over to the demands of age-point income tax cut [slashing the greedy State Chamber. But he state revenues another $120 million deserves high praise for his penal re- annually], but also declined to sys- form measure and his fair approach to tematically review nearly $6 billion redistricting, a stark contrast to the in tax breaks, credits and exemptions dragged to the Capitol to defend their than half the appropriated state agen- Senate’s highly partisan plan. – much of it corporate welfare that handouts. cies have absorbed cuts in excess of REP. SCOTT INMAN, D-Del City: amounts to a legalized looting of the Oklahoma voters, of course, have 20% over the last three years, accord- With only 31 seats, Democrats had no state treasury. no one to blame but themselves. Far ing to the Oklahoma Policy Institute. way to influence the session unless Why the reluctance? Their pluto- too many swallowed – hook, line and The wingnut caucus in both hous- they remained united and worked cratic masters fear what could happen sinker – the God, guns and gays dem- es only made things worse – Grover with disaffected Republicans. As mi- if the public gets a good look at nearly agoguery that asserts government is Norquist clones who want to starve nority leader, Inman deftly kept the $2 billion in taxpayer giveaways that evil and Democrats are un-Christian. government as much as possible, then Democratic caucus together, not only never created a single job. So the For them, the disconnect between tax- drown what’s left in the bathtub. They exposing GOP excesses but also de- legislative majority did what it often es and services is complete. browbeat Gov. Fallin and the legisla- feating the emergency clause that does – punt – promising to study the It won’t be for long. The budget-cut- tive leadership into abandoning plans would have enabled myriad Republi- incentives during the interim. Alas, ting frenzy since Republicans gained to accept a $54 million federal grant can bills to become law immediately. it would be an upset of biblical pro- the majority in both houses will take to help set up the state’s health insur- REP. FRED JORDAN, R-Jenks: Jor- portions if corporate titans ever were its toll soon enough – indeed, more ance exchange – money from Oklaho- dan emerged as a reasonably sane voice amid the corporatist-wingnut ca- cophony. He led the fight that defeated Rep. Sally Kern’s bid to force biblical creationism into science classrooms. And he fought [unsuccessfully] the speaker and State Chamber over the latest scheme to padlock the court- house door – a $350,000 cap on pain and suffering. REP. DAVID DANK, R-OKC. The House’s elder statesman, Dank is a pro-business, Chamber of Commerce See SESSION Page 19 Observations Put Up Or Shut Up Oilman and billionaire T. Boone while distorting other votes. Pickens thinks America should be “Just because the State Chamber powered by a natural gas revolution. has placed its stamp of approval on a But when asked about the dangers bill does not make that bill the ‘gold posed by gas drilling, especially the standard’ for economic growth legis- practice of fracking, Pickens scoffed. lation,” said Morrissette, D-OKC. “I Talking with Jon Stewart recently question any group such as the State on the Daily Show, Pickens denied Chamber that develops its agenda and there were any dangers from fracking: then proceeds to have a litmus test “I have never seen that happen ... I’ve determining who is ‘pro-business’ been here. I have fracked 3,000 wells and who is not.” in my life... I’ve never seen anything The State Chamber has launched damaged.” a web site that labels Morrissette as People from Pennsylvania to Texas one of the 10 most “anti-business” would disagree with Pickens – folks legislators at the Capitol. It was petty who have seen their water, homes and and vindictive. health ruined by fracking. Further, the site has been criticized A campaign is underway encourag- for posting false information on sev- ing Democracy for America members eral votes cast by more than one law- to call Pickens and ask him to volun- maker. tarily comply with the FRAC Act which Talk about egg on your face. When would require that all fracking opera- State Chamber CEO Fred Morgan pointments or abandons treatment. Havrilla spent four months working tions disclose the chemicals used in served in the Legislature, he opposed • Time employee is off work should for a man she alleges bit her neck, the process. the hospital assessment. Morrissette be reduced by employer being able pulled her into his bed, and grabbed “Energy independence cannot come voted for it and it’s now the law, sav- to ask for an independent doctor to her butt and waist – on a daily basis. at the expense of clean water and ing rural hospitals and shoring up determine if employee still cannot When, on the last day of her deploy- Americans’ health,” says Kaili Lambe, Medicaid. work. ment, she alleges she was raped by a campaign manager for DFA. Morgan is as phony as a three dollar • Freezes maximum permanent par- soldier she considered a friend, it was, Vice President Dick Cheney ex- bill, a lapdog for big business and a tial impairment or disability [PPI] rate she says, “the icing on the cake.” empted fracking from the Safe Water disgrace to the State Chamber. at $323 for four years. This is 10% be- It’s far past time to hold the mili- Drinking Act in the 2005 Energy Bill low the 2010 PPI rate. tary accountable for its unspeakable and since then the natural gas indus- • Prevents the possibility of a judge crimes against women. They are as try unleashed a massive 34-state drill- This Is Reform? awarding more than 100% permanent much of a soldier, sailor or Marine as ing campaign. impairment if latest injury is non-sur- the guys who have junk. Now, six years later, the facts are Republicans finally got their chance gical. stacking up how fracking is poison- to virtually destroy Workers Comp. To • Limits discretion of judges by ing drinking water and contributing begin with, SB 878, signed into law by putting more decision-making in the God And Money to climate change. Republican Gov. Mary Fallin, cuts the hands of medical experts which can If fracking, and the myriad toxic maximum time to draw weekly tem- be appointed on ANY issue at ANY Churches can’t contribute directly chemicals that are used in the pro- porary total disability [TTD] benefits time. to political parties or elected mem- cess, is really so safe then let’s have from six years to three years. Other • Eliminates survivors’ benefits bers – but freshman Congressman Pickens [and all the other gas drillers changes in a law that was working for permanent total disability benefi- James Lankford seems to have found out there] let us know what’s in their well: ciaries if injured employee dies of a a way around the prohibition. fracking fluid. • Employee cannot draw TTD if re- cause unrelated to his injury. According to official records, Lank- ceiving unemployment or short term • Relieves employer from providing ford, who was Falls Creek director, disability benefits provided by- em lifetime prosthetic devices if such de- made $22,105 in 2010 mostly from False Attack ployer. vice or the same part of the body is speeches – principally, the speaking • Automatic termination of TTD if subsequently injured. fees came from churches. We agree with state Rep. Richard employee is incarcerated. • Limits consequential injuries. A Now candidates are free to speak Morrissette who said the State Cham- • Employee cannot draw TTD if he “consequential” injury is strictly de- before churches but not for money. ber’s recent “anti-business” attacks refuses light duty offer from employ- fined to require causal connection It is clearly a conflict of interest that on lawmakers deliberately exclude er. Who is to say? between the original injury and con- the IRS will want to examine. His fees many pro-business measures he and • Automatic termination of TTD if sequential injury. range from $200 to $4,000. other Democrats have supported employee misses three medical ap- Heaven help the injured worker Lankford also had to pay himself as long as Republicans control state from his campaign account to pay his government. bills. This is from the man who bragged he didn’t have any paid staffers on his Overdue Lawsuit campaign. www.okobserver.net Had it not been for the churches cir- At last a landmark lawsuit filed al- cumventing contribution limitations, FOUNDING PUBLISHER • Helen B. Troy [1970-2006] PUBLISHER leging that the military’s repeated fail- Lankford would not have been able to [ISSN 0030-1795] Beverly Hamilton ures to take action in rape cases cre- The Oklahoma Observer [USPS 865-720] is published survive the campaign process as his the 10th and 25th of each month, except July 25th and Dec. [email protected] ated a culture where violence against GOP opponents would have eaten him 25th, by AHB Enterprises LLC, 13912 Plymouth Xing, P.O. Box 405.478.8700 women was tolerated, violating the alive over the fact that he would have 14275, Oklahoma City, OK 73113-0275. Periodicals postage plaintiffs’ Constitutional rights. needed to pay himself from his cam- paid at Oklahoma City, OK 73125. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Oklahoma EDITOR “There are three types of women paign account for the entire duration Observer, P.O. Box 14275, Oklahoma City, OK 73113-0275. Arnold Hamilton in the Army,” says Rebecca Havrilla, of the campaign instead of just at the SUBSCRIPTIONS: 1-Year [22 issues] $40. Send check to [email protected] a former sergeant and explosive-ord- end of the general election. The Oklahoma Observer, P.O. Box 14275, Oklahoma City, OK 405.478.8700 nance-disposal technician. “Bitch, 73113-0275. Online: Visit www.okobserver.net to use a credit Even if it proves to be legal, it is card. dyke, and whore.” highly unethical – especially for a UPDATE ADDRESSES: Please notify us at least two weeks FOUNDING EDITOR During the four years that Havrilla Southern Baptist. before your move to ensure uninterrupted service. E-Mail to Frosty Troy was on active duly, she was called all [email protected] or mail to P.O. Box 14275, Oklahoma City, OK 73113-0275. [email protected] three – by fellow soldiers, team lead- LETTERS TO EDITOR: E-mail to [email protected] or 405.760.1843 ers, even unit commanders. Observer Family, mail to P.O. Box 14275, Oklahoma City, OK 73113-0275. Once, during sexual-assault preven- OUR MOTTO: To Comfort the Afflicted and Afflict the Comfort- SPEAKERS BUREAU: To book Founding Editor Frosty Troy tion training, the 28-year-old South for your Chamber banquet, convention or other gathering, and able. Take Note for rates and availability, call 405.760.1843. You also may sub- OUR CREDO: So then to all their chance, to all their shining Carolina native claims, she watched a Founding Editor Frosty Troy’s e-mail mit your request via e-mail to [email protected] or by U.S. golden opportunity. To all the right to love, to live, to work, fellow soldier – male – strip naked and address is now [email protected]. mail to P.O. Box 53371, Oklahoma City, OK 73152-3371. to be themselves, and to become whatever thing their vision dance on top of a table as the rest of To invite Editor Arnold Hamilton to address your civic and humanity can combine to make them. This seeker, is the His old e-mail account – ftroy@fullnet. club, students or political gathering, contact him directly at promise of America. the team laughed. net – has been closed. 405.478.8700 or at [email protected]. - Adapted from Thomas Wolfe While deployed in Afghanistan, THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 2 Observerscope

Oklahomans had at least one win- Laurel: To a U.S. Rep. Dan Boren, D- ner in the GOP sweep – Attorney Gen- OK, for taking on campaign finance eral Scott Pruitt, holding that new reform. He would restrict donations State Superintendent Janet Barresi il- to persons living in a Senate or House legally hired two staffers, paying them district. from private funds. Lawsuits to fol- low? Washington isn’t the only seat of government enriching outside inter- Laurel: To the U.S. Senate Ethics ests. More than $47 million in Okla- Committee for nailing Sen. Tom Co- homa state government legal work burn for his part in ending an affair of has gone to private firms since 2005 Sen. John Ensign. Of course, Coburn – $8 million a year. So why have an says everyone is wrong but him. Attorney General’s office?

If you have a progressive bone in Dart: To Gov. Mary Fallin for signing your body and you’re doing business House Bill 2139, creating an educa- with AT&T, know that they are one of tion czar in new State Superintendent America’s leading donors to the Re- Janet Barresi. The State School Board publicans. will eventually serve at the pleasure of Fallin. Dart: To Sen. Mike Mazzei, Tulsa Re- publican, busy revamping the state’s Oklahoman Reporter Paul Monies pension systems – $16.5 billion in the did a little digging into college and hole. One change requires new teach- university revolving funds at the same Laurel: To Wallace Collins, winning Sen. Jim Reynolds, R-OKC, has giv- ers to wait until 65 to retire. A teacher time tuition is going up. OU Health the Democratic Party chairmanship. en up his seat to serve as Cleveland can work 35 years then wait another Sciences Center sits on $93.4 million, He’s a tough guy and will work hard to County treasurer. A special election five years for his or her pension. UCO $41 million. OSU has less than bring cohesion to a badly splintered will be held in October to fill the va- $6 million. party. cancy. Average medication in America is 118 times higher than other major Laurel: To House Minority Leader How ironic. Two legislators, Repub- Dart: To those Tea Party Okies who countries in the world. While there is Rep. Scott Inman, who summed up licans Gary Stanislawski and Glen were serious about Donald Trump for a law against it, many Americans go the session perfectly: “This is the Mulready, who were on the winning President. He’s filed for bankruptcy online to get drugs from Canada. darkest legislative session in the his- side of returning to the Feds $54 mil- twice and now he’s out of the race tory of the state for working folks and lion to set up an insurance exchange, since President Obama produced a Laurel: To Sen. Bill Brown, R-Bro- the poor. Never have so many rights will now head an interim study on the birth certificate. ken Arrow, who told the Senate not to been on the chopping block at one issue. include consolidation of state insur- time.” Oklahoma has a Ten Command- ance companies but Senate Leader Dart: To the Legislature and Gov. ments monument scheduled on the Brian Bingman, R-Sapulpa, persisted Not a single bill was introduced to Mary Fallin, underfunding the Depart- north side of the Capitol but no slab and it will probably raise rates 15%. do something about $2 billion in tax ment of Human Services. That $38 foundation was included in the be- credits yet to create a single job. Gov. million hit especially harms more quest of the Cecil B. DeMille founda- Don’t expect Oklahoma Indians to Mary Fallin urged reform in her State than 222,000 children. tion. vote Republican any time soon. The of the State message but her GOP leg- Legislature abolished the Indian Af- islative colleagues ignored her. Ed Schultz of MSNBC was suspend- Laurel: To OSU graduate Sheryl fairs Commission. It also failed to ed for a week without pay for calling Tucker named dean of Oklahoma pass a $40 million bond issue to fin- Dart: To the Republican Legislature, radio talk show host Laura Ingraham State University’s Graduate College. ish the OKC Native American Cultural closing seven state parks that more a rightwing slut. He apologized on air She will also be a tenured professor Center and Museum. than pay for themselves. Five just the following day. of chemistry. Her salary: $165,000. happened to be in Democratic dis- Dart: To the GOP Legislature for tricts. It would have cost $567,000 to Laurel: To state Sen. Constance Just when you thought you’d never passing a bill mandating letter grades keep them open. Johnson, D-OKC, elected to head the hear the name Michael Brown again, for all schools, a meaningless gesture. Legislative Black Caucus. A former up he pops with a book Deadly Indif- If we had to give the 2011 session a The GRDA Board was gutted by the Senate staffer, she brings 30 years of ference. An ex-Okie, he was the guy letter grade it would be “F.” state Senate. Insiders thought Rep. experience to the job. who made such a mess of New Or- Dan Sullivan, R-Tulsa, would be the leans after the hurricane. It was a great day for sanity in a new CEO. Oops! Speaker Kris Steele, Oklahoma is now home for 65,000 crazy Republican Legislature when R-Shawnee, refused to allow the bill to people here illegally. In 2010 the cost Dart: To visiting state District Judge that GOP immigration deform [yes, be heard. Kevin Easley resigned, mak- in education, emergency medical care Paul Woodward for banning TV cam- deform] bill failed to pass. ing way for a new CEO. and incarceration topped $250 mil- eras from public hallways outside an lion. – Pew Research Center. Oklahoma County courtroom. Can you spell p-o-w-e-r t-r-i-p? Dart: To Oklahoma, one of 15 states being sued over foster care children. State Rep. Eric Proctor, D-Tulsa, In Oklahoma the caseload averages says $110 million of the Quality Jobs 50 but experts say it should not ex- fund has gone to employers who have ceed 15. Oklahoma has spent $4 mil- outsourced jobs overseas. Repub- lion defending the lawsuit filed by licans who control the Legislature Children’s Rights. won’t let him amend the law to ex- clude such companies. Despite pleas from 29 CareerTech superintendents, guns may now be Oklahoma stands to lose $3.8 bil- stored in vehicles in CareerTech park- lion in economic impact, including ing lots by persons with concealed $80 million in net state revenue, as a gun permits. Sen. Steven Russell said result of the Republican Legislature’s it’s NRA-backed. Know how easy it is failure to finish the American Indian to break into a vehicle? A hefty rock Cultural Center and museum with a will do it. $40 million bond issue.

Laurel: To Rep. Steve Vaughan and Dr. Don Betz will replace W. Roger Sen. David Myers, both of Ponca City, Webb as president of the University for the new law that favors Oklahoma of Central Oklahoma, ending specula- sub-contractors instead of using out tion that former Gov. Brad Henry was of state firms. angling for the post. THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 3 Letters Editor, The Observer: violent history lesson I pray won’t be Fashionable politics these days de- repeated! scribe Social Security and Medicare Although the two black men who as “entitlements” as if these benefits were with Antwun Parker didn’t put a are solely due to the largess of the bullet in his body, they both received federal government. Not true. life in prison, so where’s the outrage Last time I looked, I contributed over their sentences … oops, they’re to Social Security for 45 years and black! to Medicare for 35 years. In addition There’s a request by these rac- to my contributions, my employers ist whites for the Pardon and Parole kicked in a similar amount. Taking Board to pardon Jerome Ersland, a into account six-fold inflation over cold blooded murderer! the past five or six decades and the There’s a request by these white simple index appreciation of even very racists for Republican Gov. Mary Fal- conservative bond values covering lin to pardon Jerome Ersland, a cold that same time, it appears to me that blooded murderer! my so-called “entitlements” are actu- And now, Jerome Ersland’s white ally my own money, at least so far. attorney, Irvin Box, wants to move Congressmen have squandered my the July 11 sentencing date to June money by feeding the “pigs at the 3 because Ersland’s back is hurting. trough,” who in turn feed their con- Bull hockey! I believe Irvin Box is stir- gressional shills with campaign con- ring up the “hate fires,” playing to the tributions. A partial roster of those sympathy of Jerome Ersand’s deeply at the “trough” are: defense contrac- bigoted, deeply racist, consumed with suggestiveness, that somehow we ily. Indeed it is the new “talk about tors who provide countless, often ferocious, blinding hatred of black must be radical and subversive. And the weather.” useless, exotic weapons at grossly folks base! I think, yeah, that’s the Mayflower I But what does one do when the inflated prices, the health care “in- Nobody short of the oversight/in- know and love! And why not be radi- woman in the doctor’s waiting room dustry” [especially “Big Pharma” and volvement of our federal government, cal and subversive, in the way Jesus begins this barrage of hate, some- the HMO monopolies] who boost our Department of Justice, can stop this was radical and subversive? times bordering on treason, to extri- health care costs to double the prices “mob of hell bound white racists” At its formation, Christianity was cate oneself from this hellish din, and paid by other western democracies, from shredding our Constitution and both radical and subversive. It is how in a civilized manner? And where does Big Oil which gouges us daily at the making a mockery of justice for all … Jesus lived, taught and inspired. Rad- all this come from. Where did those pump, and the propping of a plethora including justice for Antwun Parker! ical in that he changed the way we crocodile tears come from in that dear of despots worldwide who guard the Attorney General Eric Holder, those think. Subversive in that he offered soul who worried over the soul of a investment interests of virtually all of us who believe in the rule of law us a new covenant. It is why his words Muslim child because it “would never the aforementioned entities. desperately need your help in Okla- still inspire today. know Jesus”? Our ridiculously bloated defense homa. In the sentiment of that coura- As you go about your business why I think I may have an idea. I think budget is in big part necessary to keep geous drum major for justice, the Rev. not lean towards a little radical Chris- that the anti-Obama rhetoric might the props under “friendly despots” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Why We tian subversion. Challenge yourself to have some part in it; I think the [see Yemen, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Can’t … It’s about the fierce urgency speak out on issues of social justice preachers, ministers – Chauceresque Saudi Arabia and, until very recently, of now …” and human rights. Become a social “Pardoners” – have stirred up their Egypt just to name a few.] Rev. Loyce Newton Edwards activist. Jesus was the most radi- share of it. Preaching these devilish While I am grateful for the security Oklahoma City cal social activist that ever lived. He doctrines from mega-pulpits. Making and peace of mind that Social Secu- spoke for those who were oppressed; elderly ladies panic over non-Chris- rity and Medicare provide me, I do not Editor, The Observer: for those who had no rights; for those tian children. Adding homophobia, yet consider them “entitlements.” The wind in Oklahoma often gives who were outcasts from society. That Obama-phobia and the-needs-of-the- Frank Silovsky new meaning to the term “lean into was a very radical and subversive poor-phobia as new articles for the Oklahoma City it.” Sometimes that is the only way thing to do, but it did not matter, be- Apostles Creed. Getting innocent you can remain perpendicular to the cause he knew it was the right thing people in touch with their hatred and Editor, The Observer: ground. It can be quite unsettling at to do. calling it the Holy Ghost. And the list An open letter to U.S. Attorney Gen- times, not unlike the turbulent times We are living in a time when people might go on and on. eral Eric Holder: in which we are living. are being denied their rights, being Well, let me say for the record that I If you don’t want a repeat of the We are in a time of financial crisis oppressed and marginalized. Speak- have no doubt that our president is as 1921 Tulsa Race Riot in Oklahoma and a redistribution of wealth from ing out about the wrongness of this is American as apple pie, and at least as on your watch then you need to be the bottom up that is almost unprec- a subversive and radical thing to do, Christian as most frail human beings closely monitoring the thousands of edented. In many ways it mirrors the but it is the right thing to do. trying to follow Jesus’ law of love. I white racists who want to overturn chaotic time in which that Jewish We should all go forth and do jus- think the right just can’t stand it that the lawful first-degree murder convic- Rabbi from Nazareth, Jesus Christ, tice, speak out for those in our so- he brought in bin Laden after the tion of white [OKC pharmacist] Je- was born. A time when to speak out ciety who are being marginalized; former administration bragged and rome Ersland. Their reasoning defies against the oppression and tyranny of spread peace, love and compassion in brayed that they were going to. logic, but what mob actions were ever the empire was to be considered sub- a Jesus inspired radically subversive And when he did bring in this ter- formed based on logic? versive and radical. Christian way. At my church we have rible terrorist, he showed proper re- I fear that their vigilante injustice, When I am asked what church I at- long been radical practitioners of the spect and reservation for the grave hell bent on “jury nullification,” for tend and I reply Mayflower Congrega- Jesus Way; so in that context and in situation that it was. Some presidents Jerome Ersland will be just the ex- tional Church, people often respond the context of what Jesus taught, let might have taken this as an opportu- cuse the racist whites here need to to my answer by rolling their eyes and us continue to go forth and spread nity to pull out their Colt Peacemak- go on a killing spree of blacks, if the saying, “Oh, that church!” Their man- the word. ers and dance around firing them into racists don’t get what they want. It’s a ner and tone of voice fairly drips with If you are already a practicing radi- the air. cal Christian, then continue the good None of this is funny, of course ... work you are doing; if not then go but it is to laugh or it is to cry. I just Frosty Troy’s forth and have what good Baptists call wish our state and our country would “A come to Jesus moment” and get support our president, and one anoth- What’s Right About Oklahoma your radical Christian subversiveness er, and thank our higher power that going! It is the right thing to do! we live in a land where all people are Bob Bearden supposed to be welcome, and one can Oklahoma City have an immigrant background and Want a pungent, humorous speech yet be a natural born citizen. from one of America’s best speakers? Editor, The Observer: Our president, I believe, is a Chris- Obama Bashing – i.e. insulting, tian – but even if he weren’t, I would Frosty covers 50 years of Oklahoma’s blaming, hating, mocking – seems still respect him as the president of crazy political scene. to be of such fervor that it might be the United States. So let England keep called a kind of “sporting event.” If so, the fox hunt ... we have the pardoners this sporting event has the fervency and the bashers and haters, and the Call Frosty at 405.760.1843 to book a speech. of devotion in Oklahoma as does The evangel of “xenophobia” ... I rejoice Fox Hunt in England to the Royal Fam- See LETTERS Page 19 THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 4 Frosty Troy’s Notebook A Nun’s Story It was my good fortune to answer the phone when Judith Tate O’Brien called. Would I be in- terested in seeing a book she had written? I get a lot of calls like that and I always warn them sending it does not mean an automatic review. Wow! Crossing A Different Bridge is a mere 81 pages written in ordinary prose, inter- spersed with poetry, and what a story! It’s a tale of growing up in Oklahoma and becoming a Benedictine nun. I was Benedictine-educated so my curiosity was aroused. It was late evening but I couldn’t put the book down. In many ways it parallels my life. I chose a newspaper career due to the encouragement of Sister Mary Andrew, a Bene- dictine nun. Judith grew up in the oil patch, was sent off FROSTY TROY to Catholic boarding schools, ended up in the Founding Editor convent and then a teaching career in Catho- lic schools – including St. John’s in McAlester, my hometown. In case you think I’m excited about the book because of the coincidences, drudgery. Poverty never felt ugly.” guess again. It’s the first time I have read anything about a nun’s journey. I can relate to that. Being one of nine kids during the Depression, my father My folks are in Oklahoma by way of Michigan – my Grandfather had two sisters and mother both worked day and night. I think of those days as the happiest of who were Sisters of Mercy dispatched to Indian Territory. He gave up the posi- my life. tion of associate dean of medicine at the University of Michigan because he was Judith found as many questions as answers, which I think is a living definition touched by their alarm over the lack of medical care in the Territory. of faith. Beware the person who has all the answers, the faith healers slipping Judith’s grandparents were from Michigan, worked in the oil patch in Texas. into your purse on the pretext of slipping you into heaven. Her mother had eloped. Her parents worked in various oil boomtowns. Her moth- She began a teaching career – “a honey and vinegar” occupation. She enjoyed er fell ill and died when she was nine. teaching but missed the monastic life. It was while teaching that she learned that She was off to St. Joseph’s Boarding School in Chickasha. Then, in the ninth some nuns were dreadful to the students. I had that experience, too. grade, she believed she had lost her faith in Catechism. It happened when Mon- Penniless, her father died and was buried on the monastery grounds. Sister Ur- signor Monoghan, superintendent of Catholic schools visited. sula had kept up a correspondence with Jennifer Jones, a former Monte Cassino He instructed the student to forget the catechism and use their imaginations. student who starred in the movie,The Song Of Bernadette. Jennifer paid for her Her class fell silent. It was the first time she questioned her faith. dad’s tombstone. She and two friends swiped the boarding school’s money and ran away to Okla- When she taught three years at St. John’s in McAlester she learned that stu- homa City. dents were natively musical. Students also came from Krebs and many were Ital- After a brief love affair she entered the boarding school at Guthrie – a new ian. I know because my brother married one of the Italian girls. building. Thirty years later it would house the Job Corps, which, coincidentally, June 1955, she was 27 years old. She was teaching at Bishop McGuinness was where I visited and did a story. High in Oklahoma City. She entered the convent her senior year. The nuns voted by beans whether to In 1967, at 39, she left the Order. She married and at 80 today, she is as sharp let her in. She wrote that she won by a bean or two. as a razor. She went on to author three collections of poetry and retired as a Mar- The convent was a humbling place – crowded chapel, cleaning chickens, a riage and Family Therapist. single oscillating fan. The book is trim, the price is $14 from Mongrel Empire Press. I can’t imagine There’s a wonderful quote when she was a novice: “To me, labor never felt like anyone interested in Oklahoma’s history missing it. State’s Huge Return On A Pitiful Investment By Claudia Swisher “We can’t throw money at schools.” dents nor teachers are being tossed reflected in our classrooms. shorter than the average school year. We often hear this sanctimonious any money to help produce that qual- • 9th in the nation in the total What did this recent session of pronouncement as an excuse for ity product, a good education. number of teachers who are National the Oklahoma Legislature do toward underfunding public schools. Poli- Add to the money the state does Board Certified Teachers. increasing their commitment and ticians talk about failing schools, not invest in schools, the money the • 8th in the nation in the number investment? Not much. Kris Steele, shaking their heads sadly, so fiscally state does not invest in its children. of new NBCTs. House Speaker, in the final press re- responsible, so concerned about the My own research shows we tie for • And coming in on top: we are No. lease of the 2011 session, said, “The children attending these “soul-suck- 35th in the nation for protecting our 1 – first in the nation – in the number breadth of the accomplishments by ing factories.” children from the effects of poverty, of four-year-olds attending public the Legislature…is remarkable.” I They sadly decry the fact that the with 22% of our children living in school programs. One of only 12 am forced to agree, but my meaning public is not getting a “quality prod- poverty. states in the nation meeting at least of “remarkable” is purely ironic. uct” for its “investment” in public Our state is leaving children be- nine of the 10 early childhood quality The lack of support for children education. Let’s ignore for the mo- hind before they ever get to school. standards. and schools is, indeed, remarkable. ment the business model implied in They come to school hungry, sick, I see a huge return for the pitiful Breathtaking. these phrases. Let’s look at the facts tired. They come with no dental care, investment. I see Oklahoma schools Child poverty wasn’t addressed. of public education in Oklahoma. no eyeglasses. They come to us with excelling across the nation. Some But more sanctions and mandates According to the Tulsa World, Okla- no support. cynics have pointed out that since to already-beleaguered schools are homa ranks: So that’s the investment in public we do all this with so little support now in place, under the guise of the • 46th in the nation in per-pupil ex- schools and in the lives of public from the politicians, those policy- Legislature’s moves to “… improve penditure – $7,615, with the national school children. Not quite a stellar makers expect we will continue to student reading skills and place average of $9,963, and the regional commitment in my mind. create positive results for very little more accountability on schools and average of $8,870. What does Oklahoma get for its money. Oklahoma teachers and stu- teachers.” • 43rd in teacher salaries: $43,551, investment? Again from the Tulsa dents are working together to create We will now be forced to retain compared to the national average of World: miracles. children who do not read at third or $52,308 and the regional average of • 23rd overall in Education Week’s At the same time, our state legisla- fourth grade levels, according to one $45,172. Quality Counts report, based on re- tors are the 11th highest paid legisla- test, one day. That does not improve So, the claim that the state in- form indicators; tors in the country, $38,400 for the skills; that punishes children and vests in education is not supported • 22nd in the country in high Legislative session, before their $122 removes parental rights to make by these numbers. That’s not ex- school graduation; per diem. They have certainly looked decisions about their own children’s actly throwing money at Oklahoma • 10th in the nation for state cur- after themselves generously, consid- lives. schools, would you say? Neither stu- riculum, the PASS standards that are ering their legislative session is even See SCHOOLS Page 7 THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 5 From The Editor’s Desk ‘A Great State As Long As You Fit The Profile’ It’s a traditional session-ending rite for those fact that Oklahoma is home to 39 federally-recognized tribes and the nation’s in power to sing the praises of their work. second largest Native American population. It’s our responsibility to set the record Even Republican Rep. Paul Wesselhoft’s proposed compromise – that the state straight. create a cabinet secretary for Indian affairs in the governor’s office – was reject- The 53rd Legislature’s first session was ter- ed, a sign of how little we really value the relationship between state and tribal rible for many middle-class and poor Oklaho- governments. mans – but it was especially disastrous for mi- Perhaps the worst example, though, of this callousness toward minorities norities. involved the defeat of a proposal that would have added cyber-bullying to the From attacking affirmative action to disband- state’s definition of bullying and required school districts to establish a bullying ing the Indian Affairs Commission, the state’s policy. elected leadership sent a less-than-welcoming Talk about a no-brainer, especially after the death last year of 11-year-old Per- message to an outside world that is increas- kins resident Ty Fields, whose parents believe he was driven to suicide because ingly pivotal to Oklahoma’s economic well-be- of bullying. ing and success. The bullying proposal was defeated because lawmakers claimed it was an “un- Not only did lawmakers disband the Human funded mandate” on public schools and that additional training to identify and Rights Commission as a stand-alone entity, but deal with bullying was unnecessary. state Rep. Sally Kern also recycled her venom, But there’s another reason the bill didn’t survive. As it wound through the leg- this time with a tirade against blacks and wom- ARNOLD HAMILTON islative process, it included language that would have added sexual orientation en on the House floor that landed her an offi- to the state’s anti-bullying statute along with learning disabilities and physical Editor cial reprimand. appearance. Even first-year Gov. Mary Fallin got in the act by terminating gubernatorial eth- Hamilton, the Cimarron Alliance leader, worked with other groups, including nic advisory councils that helped weave Hispanics, Arab-Americans and Asian- Tulsa’s Children’s Consortium, to get the legislation passed – but somehow his Americans into the fabric of Oklahoma’s civic culture. group wasn’t notified of meetings to discuss the measure. “What year is this?” asked Scott J. Hamilton, executive director of the Cimar- “It was always, ‘Oh, we forgot to call you,’” he said. ron Alliance Foundation, the state’s premier LGBT organization. “Sometimes I A clerical error or evidence of homophobia? Either way, Oklahoma’s children feel like I’ve been plopped into an old movie somewhere.” were the losers. And so was Oklahoma’s image. Our state’s future depends on One of the few bright spots this session was when lawmakers rejected the giving everyone – regardless of race, creed, color, faith or sexual orientation – an latest anti-immigrant screed, an effort to out-Arizona Arizona’s demand-their- equal shot at the table. papers approach to what is, and always will be, a federal problem. • But the mere fact that legislators gave serious consideration to such mean- Earlier this month, the Cimarron Alliance launched a new campaign – “And spirited legislation fuels a knee-jerk perception that Oklahoma isn’t as accom- I am a Gay Oklahoman” – aimed at introducing Oklahoma to its 365,000 gay modating to other cultures, faiths and races as other states. neighbors and offering encouragement to LGBT who are struggling, particularly There are clearly more than a few Oklahomans who don’t view this as a prob- in rural areas where isolation can be especially acute. Check out the poignant lem, so convinced are they that this state has the corner on [divinely inspired?] videos at www.cimaronalliance.org. The campaign will include billboards and wisdom. commercial TV ads in the near future. But the truth is, despite the GOP leadership’s crowing, the 2011 Legislature did Oklahoma no favors. Many of the decisions that led to closing ethnic and minority agencies or pan- els were couched in financial terms – a $500 million budget hole required spend- ing cuts, period. But the Daily Disappointment gave an editorial glimpse of the real issue: “ … these councils were of questionable value. One of them offered a state-funded platform for members to spew offensive statements about the views of average Oklahomans on immigration policy.” The Insight And Analysis You’ve Come To Expect ... Aha! The problem was that people who may look, sound and – gasp! – think ... Now Delivered The Way You Want differently about public policy were afforded a platform to “spew offensive state- ments about the views of average Oklahomans.” IN PRINT As state Rep. Mike Shelton, D-OKC, put it, during the debate over affirmative - OR - action, “Oklahoma is a great state – as long as you fit the profile.” ON-LINE If giving someone a platform to “spew offensive statements” is verboten, then Kern deserved much worse fate than a slapped wrist. She should have been ex- SUBSCRIBING pelled from the House. Or to carry the paper’s logic to its Neanderthal extreme, TO perhaps a public flogging was in order. This is not to suggest that debating the merits of the Oklahoma Human Rights THE OBSERVER Commission or Indian Affairs Commission is out of bounds. But these agencies IS AS EASY AS – as well as the governor’s ethnic advisory councils – need to be considered in a larger context: 1-2-3 What message are we sending to the greater world? How will it affect our ability to be serious players in the global marketplace? Is eliminating them – or, as in the case of the Human Rights Commission, folding it into the attorney general’s 1. TOTAL ACCESS Only $60 for a full year office – worth the cost to a state already battling image problems? The state will still spend about $600,000 a year on the Human Rights Com- Unlimited access to The Oklahoma Observer mission, even though it will be under the AG’s purview. Eliminating the Indian on-line and in print. Affairs Commission will save nearly $200,000 a year – but it seems to ignore the One-year subscription includes 22 issues of our award-winning print edition sent to your mailbox, on-line Oklahoma Chapter of access to each issue as it becomes available and on-line access to our AMERICANS UNITED FOR SEPARATION OF CHURCH-STATE national columnists and special features. invites you to a Spring Dialogue $2.50

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THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 6 Law Aimed At Ex-Felons Counterproductive By Gene Perry Chris Linder was sworn into office recently as mayor of Pawnee, but he may not be allowed to serve. In 2000, Linder was convicted of a felony in Arizona for his role in a drug deal and gun battle. He served five years in prison and three years of probation. After completing his sentence two years ago, Linder moved to Pawnee with his wife. He bought a local restaurant, volunteered with the Chamber of Commerce and as a baseball coach, and joined the First Baptist Church. He was elected mayor in April, beating out the incumbent and another former mayor. The felony became public during the campaign, but a plurality of voters believed he was the right person to lead the city anyway. What they didn’t know was that Oklahoma law prohibits anyone convicted of a felony from holding a public office for 15 years after their sentence is completed. Linder applied for a pardon after learning about the law, but Arizona turned him down. BARRIERS TO EX-FELONS The problem is not unique to public officials. Oklahoma law puts up barriers to ex-felons pursuing a long list of professions, even when the job has no con- nection to their crime. Professions requiring a state license in Oklahoma include cosmetologists, funeral directors, athletic trainers, pawnbrokers, and marital and family therapists, among others. For all of these, a state-appointed board can deny a license to anyone with a felony conviction, regardless of what their crime was or how long ago it was com- mitted. Sen. Harry Coates, R-Seminole, sponsored a bill last year that would have In Linder’s Case, changed the restriction to only apply if the crime “substantially relates to the practice” of the profession or poses a reasonable threat to public safety. It was initially approved in both the House and Senate but in the end not taken Follow The Money up by the House Conference Committee. Did money factor into Pawnee’s refusal to permit Chris Linder to serve as mayor? OKLAHOMA ESPECIALLY HARD HIT Observer contributor Richard L. Fricker takes an extensive look at the case, noting, Even for jobs not restricted by the state, the situation is little better. An inves- for example, that Pawnee’s mayor is paid $70,000 – an astounding amount for a town tigation by the National Employment Law Project found numerous companies of 2,150. [By contrast, Tulsa Mayor Dewey Bartlett is paid $105,000 to lead a city of applying blanket exclusions against workers with a criminal history. nearly 400,000]. Other key city officials receive similarly large salaries, including the Oklahomans are especially affected since our state has one of the highest in- city clerk [$67,000]. By comparison, Fricker reports, the per capita income for Paw- carceration rates in the nation, and 8.5% of all Oklahomans have a felony convic- nee is $16,006 with a median income of $26,189. Moreover, the city lost nearly 10% of tion. its population in 2005 and currently has an unemployment rate of 8.3% compared to Rev. Tony Zahn, executive director of The Education and Employment Minis- 5.7% statewide. Check out Fricker’s fascinating report at www.okobserver.net. try [TEEM], said the need for jobs among ex-felons is so great that even felon- friendly employers “don’t necessarily like to be included on a felon-friendly list,” because they will be inundated with applicants. tenced to three years or 30. This is counterproductive for several reasons. First, if a person commits a As Julie DelCour wrote in the Tulsa World, “is it fair to exclude an applicant crime and completes their full sentence, we should want them to find a way to from being hired to work, say, the airline ticket counter because he or she was support themselves and rejoin society. They will be less likely to re-offend and convicted of shoplifting at 18?” more able to contribute their talents to the economy. We made good progress this year with some initial corrections reforms, and IRRATIONAL JUSTICE SYSTEM House Speaker Kris Steele says that “this is only the first step.” As we consider Just as it is undemocratic to not allow the voters of Pawnee their choice for those next steps, giving ex-felons a fair chance at decent jobs should be high on mayor, it is contrary to free markets to prevent a qualified person who is not a the list. threat to public safety from taking a job. – The author is a policy analyst for Oklahoma Policy Institute. An earlier It is also counter to a rational justice system, where punishments should fit version of this essay appeared on the OKPolicy blog. You can sign up for OK the crime. A blanket prohibition makes no distinction between someone sen- Policy’s e-mail alerts and daily news digest at http://okpolicy.org SCHOOLS From Page 5 Accountability for schools and Back-door vouchers were created a double windfall: they can donate sessment, not to inform instruction, teachers? There were plenty in place to give rich families an extra $5,000 money to their private school, receive but to punish and rank and evaluate? before this session. Now teacher to attend private schools, and corpo- a tax credit and a scholarship for How long before our policymakers evaluations will include student rations up to $100,000 in tax credits their children. Corporations just got start to care about the children of performance on that same one test, at the public’s expense. another great tax credit as well. our state? one day. Don’t let the name of the bill fool How long will it be before this good – The author teaches at Norman Schools will be graded according to you: Opportunity. There is no op- news about Oklahoma schools with- North High School. She is a National that one test, one day. portunity here for poor families to ers under the disdain and deliberate Board Certified Teacher, a former This legislative session has led to lift themselves out of poverty. There neglect of our state leaders? How Teacher of the Year for Norman overwhelming misuse of standard- is no opportunity for middle-class long before we lose a generation of schools, a finalist for State Teacher ized tests, which are only designed families to truly choose. Tuition at children to the ravages of poverty? of the Year and a winner of the to predict performance on future two metro private schools is $16,000- How long before education buckles Foundation for Excellence Medal for standardized tests. These tests were $18,000 per year. That $5,000 under the weight of mandated as- Excellence for Secondary Teaching. never designed to label children, scholarship will be useless to most evaluate teachers, grade schools. But families. our Legislature has decided they’ll There is no opportunity here for do all that and more. anyone but the rich. This bill, now The Truth Hurts An older couple is lying in bed one morning. They had just awakened from a good Look again at our top ranking in law, was designed with cynicism to night’s sleep. early-childhood education support, enrich the already rich. He takes her hand and she responds, “Don’t touch me.” because that’s about to disappear. I end with the metaphor from the “Why not?” he asks. The Legislature is looking for ways opening lines. Who’s getting money She answers, “Because I’m dead.” to cut funding to that stellar pro- thrown at them? Not public schools. “What are you talking about?” the husband says. “We’re both lying here in bed gram, all in the goal of not throwing Not public school children. Not pub- together and talking to one another!” money at public education. lic school teachers. “No,” she said, “I’m definitely dead.” Who did profit from this session? Look back at the numbers: legisla- He insisted, “You are not dead. What in the world makes you think you’re dead?” Private schools will receive a tors threw some cash their own way; “Because I woke up this morning and nothing hurts.” windfall through a new “opportunity rich families who already send their – Thanks to Darla Reynolds Sparks for this gem scholarship” program. children to private schools just got THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 7 Capitol Of The United States Of Non Sequitor By Robin Meyers

Editor’s Note: This speech was states, we are also the Capitol of the given as the keynote address at the United States of Non Sequitor. We are Oklahoma Democratic Party’s 2011 the Mecca of non sequitur. We are an Carl Albert Awards Dinner, held May unspoiled red-dirt paradise of non 13 at the National Cowboy and West- sequitur – and we should probably ern Heritage Museum in Oklahoma charge admission for those who want City. to come from far away to study the I want to thank you for the privi- rare but potent species of “America- lege of addressing you at this impor- nus Non-sequitus” – those who wor- tant and difficult time for Democrats ship fervently at the altar of: it does in the state of Oklahoma. I am a long not follow. suffering Democrat, but around here I want to share 10 examples of the what other kind is there? I am also non-sequiturs that are destroying the a minister, which really confuses state and the nation. Democrats and people. Because in Oklahoma it is Republicans need to know them all. just assumed that one is either a Let’s begin with my favorite – NON Christian or one is a Democrat – but SEQUITOR NUMERO UNO: It does sure not both. not follow that all problems in life And yet the Bible has taught me can be solved by the magic of the more about why I am a Democrat marketplace. I believe this is the than anything else. First, it teaches simplest way to understand the dif- me the redemptive power of suffer- ference between a Republican [who ing, and second, I counted up the believes it, or pretends to], and a number of verses in the Bible that Democratic [who doesn’t]. Now, does concern the poor and how we should this mean Democrats don’t believe treat them, and there are over 2,000. in free enterprise or capitalism? Of Then I counted up the references to course not. But despite what we are homosexuality and there were six or often accused of – being naïve – we seven [none of them uttered by Je- saying that, “he did not mean to be see the benefits of public works. A are ones who know something about sus, of course]. So I did the math and speaking factually about the matter.” thought: what a strangely Democratic human nature, who are in fact not decided it’s biblical to be a Demo- Well, of course not, he’s just a U.S. idea! being naïve about the capacity of crat. I mean, if one is going to take senator. So please, please, please let’s not human beings to do evil in pursuit of the Bible seriously and be obsessed I’ve had my differences with Hill- mess it up by becoming both the material wealth. about something, it’s better to be ary Clinton, but about one thing she miracle city and a national embar- Who can deny that free enterprise obsessed with helping the poor than was absolutely correct: there really rassment at the same time. Let’s not has given western democracies the with condemning gay people! is a vast right-wing conspiracy, and use the legislative process to fight highest standard of living in the Besides that, I’m wondering how it deals in lies, and yet claims the the culture wars, but to make life world? But even the most ardent long it will be before the women in mantle of family values and Chris- better for everyone. Let’s not scape- defender of free enterprise knows this country revolt over not being tian morality. But Jesus said let your goat undocumented workers and that without adequate regulations trusted – trusted with their own speech be a simple yes or no for all let’s not pass ridiculous laws to pro- and without an appropriate social bodies and their own decisions. I’m else comes from evil. tect us from the non-existent threat safety net, human beings will self- married to a strong woman and have Now that the Oklahoma Democratic of Sharia law – when what you really destruct in a downward spiral of raised a strong daughter, and so of Party is in complete exile [bibli- mean to say is that Muslims are not anything goes so long as I get mine. course I’m a Democrat. For their cally speaking], we are strangers welcome here. Not only is this mean, The church used to call it greed, one sake I’d rather not return to the good in a strange land, one of your most but again, dare I say it, it is un-Chris- of the seven deadly sins. When was old days. important jobs in the days ahead is tian – for how we treat the stranger the last time you heard a sermon on These are the best of times and to be “fact-checkers.” Nothing is ap- is the measure of how seriously we greed in your church? the worst of times. The election of parently stranger these days than the take the gospel. Yet every cycle of American eco- Barack Obama was, and will always truth. I teach a course at Oklahoma City nomic history proves the same thing be, one of the most remarkable And while we’re at it, may I say that University called Critical Thinking, – regulators always have to clean achievements in the history of this having been born in Oklahoma, and and in that course we learn that up the mess made after the reign country. It was glorious to feel excit- having lived here now for 25 years, I not all ways of thinking are equally of deregulators. Tax cuts will work ed and hopeful again, and then sober- feel qualified to say that I continue sound. We spend a good deal of time only up to a point to stimulate the ing to see what politics has become to be deeply perplexed by something. talking in class about what are called economy – after which they threaten – a completely non-functional form of Why do so many Oklahomans con- logical fallacies – including a whole to destroy it with an unsustainable gridlock where the opposition party tinue to believe that there is some- group of fallacies which fall under level of disparity between the haves would rather kill a bill the country thing endearing about ignorance? the category of Non sequitur, or Latin and the have-nots, not to mention needs than allow the other party to Ignorance is not endearing, it is for “it does not follow.” In formal unmanageable deficits. get credit for it. And although politics dangerous. logic, this is an argument or group of The economic meltdown of two has always been a dirty business, we Over the last 15 years I have arguments in which the conclusion years ago which brought us to the have entered into a kind of political watched this city transform itself, does not follow from its premise. It’s precipice of a second Great Depres- twilight zone where it is now possi- oddly enough by a continuously re- most common usage is to describe a sion was the result of 30 years of ble to watch Fox News all day and be newed sales tax with which we have statement in which the premise and supply side economic thinking that fed a steady diet of pure propaganda collectively remodeled Oklahoma the conclusion are totally unrelated has run its course and has now run and outright lies for which there are City. It is the elevation in quality of but which is used as if they were. the country off the road and into the apparently no consequences. life that has begun to bring a smarter For example: “If I buy this cell ditch. It does not follow that more When I was a kid and told a lie, my and more sophisticated work force to phone [premise], all people will love money thrown at the top will trickle mother washed my mouth out with a place that is much more attractive me” [conclusion]. Well, of course, it down. Most of it, as Ross Perot soap. She did not give me my own ra- to live in than it was when it was run does not follow that a cell phone, no quipped, “stayed up there.” dio talk show. Just a few weeks ago, by stupid people. matter how cool it may be, will result After years of living by the man- during the effort by Republicans to I was in the Greensboro, NC airport in everyone suddenly loving me. tra of the magic of the marketplace, eliminate funding for Planned Parent- a few weeks ago after giving a lecture, They might even resent the fact that the premise that the government is hood [which prevents far more abor- and on CNN there was story about I thought that becoming popular was always the enemy, and regulations tions than it performs], Sen. John Oklahoma City, which they were call- as easy as purchasing a product, and always stifle and never protect, the Kyl, R-AZ, stated that abortion is 90% ing “the miracle city.” A revitalized may now think of me as a material- Republicans put roosters in charge of of what Planned Parenthood does. downtown, art and culture and an ist – or a jerk with a new cell phone! the henhouse, and everyone on Wall After a little fact-checking, it turns NBA franchise, low unemployment by Whatever, but the logic is fundamen- Street knew that nobody was mind- out that it is only 3% – or just an 87% comparison to other cities, and they tally flawed. ing the store. The grand larceny that mistake, his staff issues perhaps did it, the commentator said with After living most of my adult life we have all lived through was breath- the strangest statement in recent a special one-cent sales tax which in Oklahoma, I am now convinced taking in its scope, and the final American politics. They excused him, they continue to renew because they that we are not just the reddest of all See NON SEQUITOR Page 17 THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 8 ‘Republican Lite’ Is A Futile Strategy By David B. Carr

The Carl Albert Awards Dinner elevating corporations to the status was a wonderful evening. Deserving of revered humans while degrading people were honored and held up as all life to a commodity whose only role models. And the speeches from value is its profit potential. Dr. Robin Meyers and Donna Brazile Conservatives have hidden behind were inspiring and brought everyone a radical social agenda that alleges to to their feet. It seemed everyone en- protect life, a more radical economic thusiastically supported the princi- agenda that has brought us to the ples set forth by the two speakers. brink of the great depression and The next day a motion was made degraded working people to the same at the convention to include in the level as a paper clip. agenda a by-law change, authored by Any Democrat who bent to the con- Tulsan Brad Byers, that would set the servative agenda is complicit in this party on a course to uphold the prin- degradation of life. ciples so enthusiastically applauded It’s long past time for the Demo- night before. When it came to walk- cratic Party to again take its stand as ing the walk, the delegates soundly the protector of the people who do rejected not only the path, but any the real work in America rather than discussion of it. the corporations, financial institu- Where was the support for the tions and the wealthy. Those princi- principles of the night before? There ples made America great and aban- seems to be a real disconnect in the doning those principles brought us party. the quagmire that far too many hard The by-law changes are as follows: working Oklahomans live in today. Proposed Amendment to Article IX, The conservative talking point of Section 4 of the Oklahoma Democrat- “Deregulate and cut taxes” sends the ic Party Bylaws. Wording to be added message that you can do what you is in italics. No part of the Section is want and we’ll give you the money omitted. to do it with. No one would give that Section 4: Democratic Candidate message to their children and that Qualifications – The Oklahoma message is just as catastrophic to Democratic Party shall not require the state of Oklahoma and the people any candidate for public office in the who struggle to make a life and living State of Oklahoma to take any test of here. membership or oath of loyalty to run I hope anyone who agrees with this as a Democrat; however, the Central will contact their county, district and Committee shall establish guide- election to support the Democratic have are Republican or Republican state party officers to make them lines for the distribution of available Party’s nominee. Lite. aware of your support. Also spread funds and other campaign support This by-law change and the Demo- The platform of the Democratic the word to any disenfranchised on a priority basis to those candi- cratic Values resolutions, lines 14-23, Party as the protector of the working progressives you know that now is dates who meet the requirements of presented to 2011 Oklahoma Demo- man is an honorable platform that the time to get active and make their the Party Constitution for support- cratic Party Convention need to be provides the safety nets necessary to voices heard. The liberal agenda ing the principles of the State and adopted. the working people in Oklahoma. The played very well in the reddest dis- National Democratic Party; and the The 2010 election starkly pointed fallacy of trickle down economics trict in New York state. It can play State Chair shall solicit a written out running as conservatives against taking care of the people who do the just as well in Oklahoma. We have pledge from all candidates who file as conservative Republican opponents real work to make America great is to bring that to the attention of the Democrats for public office in races is fruitless. It disenfranchises far too the biggest hoax ever perpetrated on party officers. where there is a Democratic primary many Democrats. The choices they Oklahoma. It has succeeded only in – The author lives in Tulsa Funding For State Debts Not In New Budget State Rep. Joe Dorman blasted a bill to provide supplemental funding for ad “By adding in an additional $5 million right now – an amount reportedly still valorem reimbursements that did not include the full amount needed to cover remaining in on-hand dollars that could be appropriated this year – we can ease the obligation this year. the burden to local schools right now,” said Dorman. “It’s almost like some peo- He said he was also disappointed that the general appropriations bill lacked ple at the Capitol hope some of these schools will shut down if we don’t provide the full funding owed for previous disasters. the money to them required by law.” SB 972 provides $10 million to secondary schools and $1.4 million to career Dorman has also worked for several years to fully fund the emergency man- technology schools affected by the shortfall in the ad valorem fund, along with agement dollars owed to various entities as required by federal law when receiv- $10 million to Higher Education for building projects. ing FEMA dollars for disaster reimbursement. At the end of this appropriations The Oklahoma Tax Commission has certified the need for an additional $6.2 cycle, the state of Oklahoma still has an obligation of $28 million to various enti- million to cover the obligation this year. ties ranging from cities to counties and electric cooperatives. “I understand it’s a tough budget year, but we are talking about $6.2 million “We too often see disasters strike our local communities, and I’ll say we are that is owed to our schools,” said Dorman, D-Rush Springs. probably better prepared than any state in the nation to deal with tragedy,” said “This obligation to the schools will still be there next year, and it could be Dorman. “What is disappointing is that the state neglects to pay out the 12.5% even more, so I don’t see why waiting on this additional funding is so important, match owed by federal law in a timely manner.” especially as there is about $5 million remaining on the table which could be Efforts by several legislators have been made over the last several years to find appropriated this year. a direct revenue stream to pay for disasters even when the Legislature is not is “The House passed a budget bill earlier allocating around $6.5 billion to vari- session and avoid the need for the senators and representatives to be called back ous entities, so I do not see the problem with spending a little of the remaining in to fund an emergency. dollars, especially on an obligation owed by the state to our school children that The Federal Emergency Management Agency requires affected communities re- is much more worthy than some of the items we funded,” he said. ceiving federal disaster recognition to pay 12.5% of the estimated damage costs, In the 1980s the Legislature initiated ad valorem tax breaks to certain indus- the state to pay another 12.5%, while the federal government assists with the tries in an effort to boost the economy after the oil bust. The Ad Valorem Reim- remaining 75% of the costs. bursement Fund was created to offset the lost property tax revenue due to the “I would like to see us tie a portion of reimbursements for disasters to the counties that support local schools. The primary effect on schools in Dorman’s Rainy Day Fund to give immediate relief to communities trying to rebuild so we district comes from the Blue Canyon Wind Farm in Caddo County. never will see procrastination by the Legislature on these payments again,” Dor- Many legislators have criticized this arrangement because money in the ad man said. valorem reimbursement fund has been insufficient to reimburse claims since “Until we find a way to do an ‘off the top’ funding or some type of direct alloca- 2003, and reimbursement dollars that are allocated have often arrived late, in tion, I fear communities will constantly wonder when they will receive the funds many cases only after the school’s fiscal year has ended. due to them.” THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 9 BOOKS Ehrman Is A One-Man God Fraud Squad By Anneli Rufus Not, as motivates modern forgers, for money or fame. Ancient “books” weren’t FORGED: WRITING IN THE NAME OF GOD Why The Bible’s Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are mass-produced, thus couldn’t become bestsellers. By Bart D. Ehrman While forgery wasn’t illegal then, it was frowned upon. Forgers, if exposed, HarperCollins Publishers faced public shame. 320 pages, $26.99 Yet some braved that risk as a means of hawking their agendas: doctrine that the devout would devour if declared by Matthew or Luke but dismiss if pro- Nearly half of the New Testament is a forgery, according to a world-renowned pounded by a random guy named Flavius. Bible scholar whose new book fingering the forgers is making evangelical Chris- It’s relatively easy to fool illiterate hordes. tians as mad as – well, hell. STYLISTIC ANALYSIS “Bart Ehrman has waged war on Christianity for years. This is just his latest “If people are literate, they can recognize writing styles. But if you can’t read salvo,” snaps a FreeRepublic commenter. or write and you can only listen to writings read aloud” – which was mainly how “Bart himself is a forgery. More of his usual tragic, groundless, infantile, big- Christianity was practiced in its first few centuries – “it’s hard to do the kind oted narcissism enslaved to the father of lies, mammon ... a willful subtle pre- of stylistic analysis” that scholars employ when comparing suspected forgeries varicator ... a disgusting, arrogant hack. God have mercy on his benighted soul,” with their alleged authors’ known works, searching for inconsistencies in gram- rages another at the Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth blog. mar, diction and dogma. While some ancient impostures are deft, in other cases “it’s like you’re reading HE’S USED TO CRITICISM Ehrman is used to it. The University of North Carolina religious studies profes- Mark Twain and then all of a sudden you’re reading T.S. Eliot,” Ehrman says. sor stoked evangelical ire with his previous bestsellers The Lost Gospel of Judas Forging holy books in an effort to save souls “is in one sense a noble cause, Iscariot: A New Look at Betrayer and Betrayed and Misquoting Jesus: The Story See FORGERY? Page 11 Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why. He’s doing it again with Forged: Writing in the Name of God – Why the Bible’s Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are. “When Bart D. Ehrman and all his so called ‘scholar’ friends are long gone, Jesus Christ will still be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords to whom EVERY KNEE will one day bow. Friends – repent,” pleads a Daily Mail commenter. Ehrman knows where they’re coming from. He used to be one of them. STUDYING THE BIBLE As an undergrad at Chicago’s Moody Bible Institute in the mid-1970s, Ehrman was “an extremely zealous, rigorous, pious [self-righteous]” evangelical who fol- lowed the school’s draconian rules – no smoking, drinking, card-playing, danc- ing, movies, or beards – because Bible verses seemed to support them. Unlike most college students, unlike nearly all young Americans, Moody stu- dents didn’t question authority. When you take the Bible literally, you don’t sub- vert dominant paradigms. Such bullet-proof belief “was comforting,” Ehrman says now, “because we thought we had a corner on the truth and that we were right and everybody else was wrong. And these were eternal truths, so they were going to bring us eternal life and everybody else was going to hell. It’s very comforting to think you’re always right.” SEARCHING FOR THE TRUTH Studying for his PhD a few years later at Princeton Theological Seminary, por- ing over each part of the New Testament in its original Koine Greek, the born- again young scholar remained “passionate about my studies and the truth that I could find.” But what he found instead were errors. Contradictions. Self-defeating argu- ments. Historical inaccuracies. And worse. “The New Testament [not to mention the Old Testament, where the problems are even more severe] was chock full of discrepancies. ... I wrestled with these problems, I prayed about them. ... Eventually I came to realize that the Bible not only contains untruths or accidental mistakes. It also contains what almost any- one today would call lies.” NOT FACT-TWISTING Lies. Not just fact-twisting fabrications but the composition of entire books by obscure authors who claimed to be the Apostles Peter and Paul and other spiri- tual celebrities but weren’t. According to Ehrman, individuals falsely claiming to be Paul wrote Ephesians, 2 Thessalonians, and the Epistles to Timothy and Titus. Equally bogus, Ehrman charges, is the premise that the Apostle Peter wrote the Epistles of Peter or anything else in the Bible – or anywhere, ever, because as a poor hick fisherman raised in rural Palestine, Peter was almost certainly illiterate. Researchers estimate the literacy rate of Roman-era Palestine at only 3%. Eh- rman surmises that in rural areas, where most residents “would scarcely ever even see a written text,” it might have been as low as 1%. “Peter probably didn’t write anything. Paul, on the other hand, was educated. Unlike Peter, he didn’t come from some one-horse town in Galilee.” Thus, Eh- rman says, seven of the 13 epistles attributed to Paul “were probably written by Paul.” WHO WERE THE AUTHORS? WHY WAIT? Who wrote the rest? And who’s behind the Bible’s other forgeries, which Eh- rman estimates at a whopping 12 of the New Testament’s 27 books? And that Now you can subscribe to The Oklahoma Observer doesn’t even include oodles of counterfeit apocrypha. Ehrman says these mate- rials were not merely discovered unsigned way back when and then mistakenly, at the Full Circle Books checkout counter well-meaningly, attributed to saints: and receive your free book certificate on the spot! “The books we are talking about are by authors who lied about their identity in order to deceive their readers into thinking that they were someone they were IMPORTANT RESTRICTIONS To take advantage of this offer, visit Full Circle Books, where you can subscribe to The Oklahoma Observer at the checkout counter not. The technical term for this kind of activity is forgery.” and receive your free book certificate immediately. You also may subscribe to The Observer using the coupon on page 3 of this issue Writing painstakingly with reed pens on papyrus scrolls, ancient sneaks signed or by visiting our web site www.okobserver.net. You then will receive via U.S. Mail a certificate from Full Circle Books for a free book [$20 limit]. The certificate is not transferable and must be presented in person at Full Circle Books in order to receive your free book. the fruits of their labor with other men’s names, leading Christendom to base its No facsimiles, printouts or photocopies will be accepted as a substitute for the original Full Circle certificate. This book offer is for new beliefs and behaviors on these fibs for the next 2,000 years. But why? subscribers only. Not valid with any other offer. THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 10 Selfish Ayn Rand And The Tea Party By Megan Gibson If Ayn Rand were alive today, would she be a member of the Tea Party? The controversial writer – whose philosophy, Objectivism, advocates the “vir- tue of selfishness” – has long been something of a literary hero to American conservatives, and the rise of the rightwing populist movement has only worked to increase Rand’s popularity. Tea Party members can’t get enough: references to the writer’s works appear on their protest signs; political favorites such as Rand Paul namedrop her; and they seem staunchly devoted to promoting the first installment of the three-part film adaptation of her epic tome,Atlas Shrugged. OPENED ON TAX DAY The conservative grassroots group Freedomworks took the helm in promoting the film, sharing the online trailer with its mailing list and hyping the movie’s opening day – April 15th, America’s tax day. The low-budget movie with its cast of nobodies received resolutely scathing reviews – it garnered a dismal 7% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes – yet, through conservative support, it still managed to pull in enough revenue to justify ex- panding the film to more screens. Despite the buzz, rigorous devotees of Objectivism aren’t likely to appreci- ate Atlas’s big screen treatment. For the uninitiated, Atlas Shrugged depicts a dystopian U.S. where irrational government officials work with greedy socialist corporate heads to impose draconian regulations and taxes on those who have achieved success through hard work and natural talent. SAVING THE COUNTRY The novel’s heroine is Dagny Taggart, an ambitious railroad executive, who American Right, has said, today’s conservative pundits have found that they teams up with Henry Rearden, an innovative metal manufacturer, to set out to “can use the parts of Rand they want to use and not engage the rest.” save the country from being crushed by the collectivist government. Which is where one of the most glaring incongruities between Tea Partiers and Along the way, they partake in rambling diatribes about the glory of achieve- Rand’s philosophy appears: Rand, almost above all else, championed the indi- ment and the nobility of pursuing greatness. It’s rousing stuff – the first time, vidual over the collective. anyway – until it’s belabored again and again throughout the novel. Sound famil- The notion that a populist movement is using her name and economic philoso- iar? phies to mobilize their broader political goal is laughable. During her life, Rand The sections of the book that made it into Part 1 certainly seem written directly was outspoken in her disgust for Republicans, feeling that they were soft on for current conservative interests, namely that a small section of the population individuals’ rights. Today, it is only Randians who can argue that her philosophy must fight against the oppressive restrictions and heavy taxation of a socialist is being inadequately promoted. government. PALTRY INTEREST TRITE PLOT However, there is a silver lining for Rand purists: while the movie’s publicity Yet, probe beyond the triteness of Rand’s plot and the fragmented rendering of has managed to stir up paltry interest among movie-goers, it has succeeded in her philosophy, and striking discrepancies between her Objectivism and conser- awakening a larger interest in the literary work. vative sentiment become apparent. Rand’s novel has sold around 100,000 copies a year in the U.S. since its pub- Yes, Rand was a staunch advocate of capitalism and limited government. She lication, and since the financial crisis and the rise of the Tea Party, that number was also a staunch advocate of abortion rights and sexual hedonism, and an has increased five-fold. atheist to boot, which her conservative admirers have largely ignored. The movie’s publicity has only propelled sales yet higher – on opening week- Rand and her characters maintained that morality wasn’t something that could end, for example, the book version of Atlas Shrugged shot to the No 4 spot on be imposed by outside institutions, rather should be a consequence from indi- Amazon’s bestseller list. viduals acting in their own rational self-interest. Which, obviously, steps way So, while the Tea Party’s promotion of Rand has made a splash, Objectivists out of line with the thinking of the Tea Party, which encompasses the religious can take comfort knowing that the impact has largely been on book sales. right. If one has to delve into Randian territory, it’s better to go straight to the mas- VERY SELECTIVE ter’s words rather than a choice interpretation of them or convenient sound- As Jennifer Burns, the author of Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the bites. FORGERY? From Page 10 money. It’s because these people had something they thought was worth hear- say is our own good. Parents assure their children that people are kind. Spouses ing. It’s just sad that they had to lie about it. And some of these forgeries are re- never confess those one-night stands. Is it sometimes OK to lie? In Forged, Eh- ally dangerous, which is a good reason to point out that they’re probably forged. rman argues that hearing the truth might be a human right. Their ramifications are devastating.” “Maybe children have the right to know what parents honestly believe. ... May- For example, the First Epistle to Timothy – attributed to Paul, although Ehrman be it is better for our elected officials to come clean and tell us the truth, rather insists it’s forged – forbids females from becoming pastors or even speaking than mislead us so as to be authorized to do what they desperately want,” he aloud in church. wrote in a passage that he says was inspired by “George Bush and this whole “Because of what happened in the Garden of Eden, First Timothy says women business of the war in Iraq with Colin Powell telling one lie after another.” are easily deceived, so they should stay silent and submissive and pregnant.” He wasn’t the first and won’t be the last. NOW AN AGNOSTIC “From the first century to the 21st Century, people who have called them- This dictate is still followed today by conservative evangelical congregations selves Christians have seen fit to fabricate, falsify, and forge documents, in most who believe that Paul wrote it, “when in fact it was a forger writing under Paul’s instances in order to authorize views they wanted others to accept,” Ehrman name 20 or 30 years later — someone who was tired of hearing women speak up writes. in church.” If both the Old and New Testaments are full of fibs and forgeries, then what of When Ehrman attended Moody Bible Institute, female students weren’t permit- other so-called holy books? ted to take classes in preaching. Those classes were male-only, thanks to First WHAT ABOUT OTHER HOLY BOOKS? Timothy. “People always ask me that question about the Koran,” Ehrman says. “Out of Ehrman’s no longer a born-again. He’s now an agnostic. concern for my personal safety, I don’t say a thing.” “My evangelical faith couldn’t hold up to rational inquiry. I stayed a Chris- However, he doesn’t hesitate to say: “The Book of Mormon is completely made tian for many years, but a liberal Christian. The story of Christ was something I up.” wanted to live by. By whom? “When I became an agnostic 15 years ago, it wasn’t because of all the scholar- “Joseph Smith, I assume. Whether he was completely self-deceived or crazy or ship. It was because of the problem of suffering, and the question of how a pow- just a lying bastard, I don’t know. It’s one of those three, probably.” erful God could exist in a world like this.” Maybe someday he’ll take that up with Glenn Beck. Faked scriptures warning us to speak the truth: Some liars lie for what they © Alternet THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 11 Claiming Moral Authority Admist Hypocrisy By Alexander Cockburn Was there ever a nation so mari- and violent crime, as many expected. nated in hypocrisy as America? At Attempts to prove the efficacy of home and abroad, President Barack harsh codes of imprisonment and Obama trumpets Uncle Sam’s virtues sentencing speedily collapse under and dispenses patronizing homilies the weight of rationally assessed to other nations on how to behave statistical data. themselves and honor freedom and America’s prison population and democracy. Recently, it was Europe’s treatment of citizens and immigrants turn to hear these self-righteous trapped in the judicial system are preachments. foul blots on our society and political A couple of weeks ago, Secretary of culture – but not ones that Obama State Clinton attacked China, con- has shown the slightest interest trasting untiring efforts by the U.S. to in confronting. Indeed, his Justice encourage human rights around the Department is intent on adding more world, at a time when the Chinese “mandatory minimum sentences” to “are trying to stop history, which is a the sentencing guidelines. fool’s errand. They cannot do it. But These days, it’s conservative gov- they’re going to hold it off as long as ernors reeling in the face of budget- possible.” draining mandatory sentencing laws A week earlier, Obama signed an who are trying to shift resources into expanded trade pact with Colombia, treatment programs and so forth. In where in 2010, 51 Colombian labor this context, Reason cites Perry of organizers were murdered, many Texas and Sanford of South Carolina of them by government-sponsored before he left office and reports that death squads. As Richard Trumka, “in the first few months of this year, head of the AFL-CIO remarked, he Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama and doubted the trade agreement would population, are almost half its 2.3 prisoners into the system, many of Oklahoma have all hopped on the be moving forward if 51 CEOs had million prisoners; and Latinos, about them under the three-strikes law, reform bandwagon. None of these been killed. one-sixth of the U.S., are more than which hands out 25-year sentences states was carried by Barack Obama If there’s one state in the Middle a quarter of those locked down. In for a third offense as trivial as steal- in 2008.” East where the U.S. surely has clout, America today, more than 7 million ing a $2 pair of socks. In California, As for Obama, how much more it’s Bahrain, which just happens to people are under correctional super- at any given time, about 140,000 are pleasant it is to lecture other na- be the base for the U.S. Fifth Fleet. vision. out on parole, which can be – and is tions, while running on a re-election While Clinton was wagging her finger At the start of last week, the U.S. often – revoked for the most trivial of platform currently based on dis- at China, details were surfacing of Supreme Court ordered the state reasons, swelling the prison popula- patching a government death squad the ferocious repression of Bahrain’s of California to reduce its prison tion once more. halfway round the world to Abbotta- Shiite majority by Bahrain’s Sunni population, currently running at America’s penal conditions make bad on a lawless mission of revenge? rulers, backed by Saudi troops. 143,335, by more than 30,000. The a mockery of the Constitution and – Alexander Cockburn is co-editor Masked squads raid Shiite villages state’s prisons, at anything even re- foster crime, all against a backdrop with Jeffrey St. Clair of the muckrak- at night. At least 27 Shiite mosques motely approaching standards not in of statistics – the FBI dispensed an- ing newsletter CounterPunch. He and religious meeting places have so violation of the Eighth Amendment, other batch last week – showing that is also co-author of the new book far been wrecked or bulldozed flat. If forbidding cruel and unusual punish- crime rates have been steadily falling Dime’s Worth of Difference: Beyond this were Libya, Clinton would trum- ment, can accommodate 80,000. to levels unseen for a generation or the Lesser of Two Evils, available pet the repression as further justifi- Not for the first time, the ghastly more. America’s current depression through www.counterpunch.com. cation for NATO’s onslaught. Not so conditions of California’s prisons has not seen a surge in robberies © Creators Syndicate in Bahrain. have been unsparingly described: As my brother Patrick Cockburn people with terminal cancer in reported here a couple of weeks spaces the size of telephone booths ago: “Facing little criticism from the left to die without treatment or even ‘Republican Rapture’ U.S., otherwise so concerned about painkillers, convicts crammed three human rights abuses in Libya, the al- tiers high in prison gyms ... Califor- Khalifa family is ruthlessly crushing nia rarely executes prisoners in San Vindicates Camping opposition at every level ... al-Jazeera Quentin on death row. Informal exe- In what some fundamentalist preachers are calling a “partial Rapture,” all credible revealed ... that the Bahraini po- cutions are a different matter. A Cali- candidates for the 2012 Republican nomination have mysteriously vanished from lice has been raiding girls’ schools, fornia court found that “an inmate in Earth. detaining and beating school girls, one of California’s prisons needlessly While this seemingly Biblical phenomenon has been developing over the past and is accused of threatening to rape dies every six or seven days due to several months, the disappearance of Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels over the weekend them.” constitutional deficiencies.” confirmed what many apocalyptic prophets had been predicting: a partial Rapture Amid Obama’s grandiose eloquence Everything awful about Califor- was underway. about freedom, he has effectively nia’s prison system is duplicated in For Rev. Harold Camping, the minister who made headlines by predicting that the excluded Palestinians from his sup- other state penal systems across the entire world would end on May 21, the partial Rapture offered some measure of vin- portive embrace, and amid meaning- country. One million of the 2.3 mil- dication, he said. less verbal froth collapsed yet again lion prison population are inside for “The world really did end, Republican-wise, when Daniels dropped out of the race in the face of Israeli intransigence non-violent offenses, predominantly on May 22,” he said. “So I was only off by one day.” and the lobby here. U.S. diplomacy related to drugs. More than 800,000 According to Camping’s prophecy, Republicans with a shot of winning the White and strong-arming, supervised by are arrested each year for marijuana House have completely vanished from the face of the Earth while a series of sure- Obama and Clinton, will of course be alone. Prison rape across the country fire losers have been “left behind,” including Herman Cain, the former chairman of dedicated to efforts to hold back his- is a given – at least 216,000 in 2008. the Godfather’s Pizza chain, who announced his candidacy – significantly, Camping tory and strong-arming the U.N. into Most of the rapists [according to the notes – “on May 21.” attempting to do the same. libertarian magazine Reason, which As for the Biblical prophecy that those left behind after the Rapture faced “five Wearisome though these exhibi- recently published an excellent spe- months of Hell on Earth,” Camping said, “That’s a pretty clear reference to what Newt tions of the U.S.’s double standards cial issue on the U.S. penal system] Gingrich has in store.” abroad may be, they pale before the aren’t other prisoners but correc- – Andy Borowitz macabre spectacle of Obama and tions officials. Clinton extolling the moral creden- Gov. Jerry Brown has suggested tials of a country with a vast gulag nonviolent prisoners be sent from Read of some 2.3 million behind bars the state prisons to local jails, but – some 743 prisoners per 100,000 California has no money to beef up THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER ON-LINE population, compared to Russia’s these hoosegows to accommodate By subscribing 580, China’s 186, England and Wales’ the flood of prospective inmates. @ www.okobserver.net 154 and India’s 32. African-Ameri- Meanwhile, policies deriving from the cans, who are one-eighth the nation’s ‘90s and before feed more and more THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 12 PUBLIC FORUM What Americans Really Want By Sharon Martin I caught a lot of flak in 2002 when to health insurance and preventive I spoke out against the invasion of care. We could see the doctors of our Iraq. I may have been wrong about choice. The government would nego- the outcome; they might eke out a tiate prices with the drug companies democracy yet. But at what cost? so we could afford our meds. Better We spent thousands of lives and yet, we could support research so limbs and a trillion dollars, money that the resulting products were in we’re now scrambling to save by the public domain. slashing programs that benefit the I’d fund state and federal cam- taxpayers and even the soldiers who paigns so the peoples’ voices could served. be heard. I would ban huge contribu- I still think the decision to invade tions by lobbyists and corporations, was immoral, but my taxes helped including those that I support. fund that war. I don’t mind paying Our National Guard would be fully taxes, but we should have a voice in funded, and our policemen and fire- how our money’s spent. Voting for men and teachers wouldn’t have to our representatives should give us worry about their pensions being that voice, but my senators and con- taken to fund some politician’s pet gressman are not listening to me. project. That got me to thinking, what if we I would not support the invasion of had an IRS checklist? any country who didn’t invade us or With all the tax credits and hidden an ally. fees it would run like 10,000 pages. What do you want from this gov- Definitely not practical! But what if? open to every three- and four-year ma’s program, would be available to ernment of the people, by the people, My own good-for-the-people old. College would be available for any student who met the attendance/ and for the people? It’s your country. checklist starts with one main idea: those who are willing to put in the behavior/work criteria. I’d fund Read- It’s your money. What would be on healthy, well-educated folks can work. Perhaps we could pay for four ing Is Fundamental and the National your checklist? make it on their own in the world. years of college for four years of ser- Writing Project, education programs – The author lives in Oilton. More In this land that promises equal vice, civil or military. with a track record of success. of her essays can be found at www. opportunity, Head Start would be Career Tech, modeled on Oklaho- Every citizen would have access okobserver.net There Are Better Ways To Spend The Summer By Norm Rourke As the television season comes to for almost every city: New York, Mi- lingo for arrest], she’s not buying it. off. a close, shows claiming high viewer- ami, LA; the list goes on. Why aren’t Every show ends with this gaggle Unsure if I’ll rejoin the force next ship and allegedly high ratings are there any CSIs for Wichita or Okla- of people gathered around the din- season if there is one. Even Selleck dishing out their season finales. The homa City or Green Bay, WI? ner table [who cooks all this food?] seems bored. Not too much original- gut wrenching emotions and actions Maybe there aren’t enough actors yammering about their day and such. ity here. of these last shows of the season with little dangly hair wisps hang- Older cop son in his usual style is Summer offerings are the usual are enough to make you wish for the ing over their brow like that red either flying in or out of the room idiotic tripe. I can’t deal with a ding- Green Hornet, Inner Sanctum and haired guy in CSI: Miami. And finding hot on a case. Rookie cop son is a-ling bachelorette faking a broken Stella Dallas of the old radio days. enough shades to hide behind as he moody and introspective. Daughter heart and sobbing because she didn’t Premier episodes as producers does could be a problem. is reminding everyone of the Miranda snag some hunk on steroids. like to call them have fresh and crisp Being a long time Tom Selleck fan, rights and blathering something I’ll settle for Agatha Christie and writing providing sharp dialogue and I hooked up with Blue Bloods. In this about the Constitution. At opposite Rex Stout my Kindle e-reader, thank often equally good acting. But as the cop show, Selleck is the New York ends of the family dinner table Sell- you. season slogs on so do the shows. police commissioner. He’s a widower eck is pontificating as Grandpa nods – The author lives in Beggs OK, so they’re just a TV show, not and his father, who was also a biggie a Broadway production. I know that. in the NYPD before retiring, lives with And yes, I know TV is only a vehicle him. Selleck has two sons who are to peddle products from cars to pills cops and a daughter who is some Debt Ceiling Debate: that prevent gas. [Actually some sort of prosecutor. He had another commercials are more entertaining cop son who was killed by dirty cops. and creative than the shows they But we don’t find this out until the What Could Happen? sponsor.] season is about over, of course. Very By Edwin E. Vineyard As the season winds down, teasers emotional, lots of guns pointed at the about finale episodes are shown ev- dirty cops as Commissioner Selleck This is quite a worrisome, but to- volved spending more than income. ery 15 minutes. “Doctors” are yelling comes in and learns who killed his tally unnecessary and inappropriate, So, the budget included additional at “nurses” and “nurses” are going son. political gamesmanship problem with borrowing to cover the bills. Now, through catastrophic emotions none Older cop son is constantly run- potentially disastrous consequences. the GOP House, in its backwards of which have anything to do with ning around like the proverbial The obstructive stubbornness of and contradictory fashion, proposes patient care. Nope, they’re yelling chicken, flashing his shield [cop GOP leaders, in obeisance to their not to allow borrowing the money it and emoting because they’re fool- lingo for badge] and generally look- Tea Party faction, threatens to bring already authorized to be spent and ing around with each other or each ing like a one-man Keystone Kops. the walls and roof down on the U. S. reneging on promises already made. other’s significant other. I’d hate to His female partner is a looker and government. Call this flip-flopping, call it irre- be on the surgical table waiting to isn’t a Nervous Nellie like her one- There are several things we need sponsible, call it playing the dead- have a heart transplant while the man SWAT team partner. She does to understand about the debt ceiling. beat, or call it GOP style politics. It medical team that’s supposed to be all the work [naturally] while he acts Normally, it has not been an issue, amounts to fraud and amoral behav- working on me is arguing about who important. because most people in Congress ior on the part of any congressman slept with whom? Younger son is a Harvard law were responsible and somewhat sen- who votes against the debt ceiling. It’s prime time soap opera. school grad who wanted to be a sible people. First, Congress votes to This is true no matter how he/she Then there are the cop shows. Cop street cop [yeah, right] like the fam- approve a budget, and commitments voted on the budget. It is true no show finales usually end with the ily. He’s put under the guidance of are then made under that spending matter what excuses are offered. discovery of something that should a sergeant who has a corny over- plan. The various agencies of govern- If the budget was legally adopted, have been discovered during the worked Brooklyn accent. This kid is ment then go about their business, then we have legal bills to pay. This course of the season. And CSI cop moody and introspective. spending up to the level budgeted. is too serious for game playing and shows are everywhere. They must Daughter is the letter of the law That congressionally approved political posturing. franchise these things. There’s a CSI sister. If it’s not a clean collar [cop budget, or spending plan, has in- See DEBT Page 16 THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 13 Creeping Ignorance Threatening America By Stephen Pizzo I am old enough to remember the days when what Americans were told to fear most was “Creeping Communism.” There were even hearings. There was a blacklist. There were arrests and even a couple of executions. In the end all communism turned out to be creeping toward was its own extinc- tion. We may not be as lucky with the new creep we’re facing today: Creeping Igno- rance. As a story from AlterNet put it, “3/4ths of Senate GOP Doesn’t Believe in Sci- ence: The Tea Party and its allies had made it unacceptable to the GOP base to be anywhere except pandering to the anti-science crowd.” The Right, which hated and feared commies and their [largely imaginary] infil- mean, I remember the time, not so long ago, when it was held as a matter of na- tration into government, not only don’t seem to care about creeping ignorance tional policy that “a mind is a terrible thing to lose.” in government, but have come to embrace this new breed of government infiltra- It seems to me it’s reached epidemic levels in federal and state government. tors. Shouldn’t someone hold hearings? Isn’t wanton ignorance among those we trust RIGHT’S CHERISHED FICTION with nuclear policies, war, famine, jobs, the national debt and more, a concern? The explanation for this embrace is as simple as the minds of the infiltrators: QUIZZING ON CIVICS science, and for that matter any other factual analysis, tends to flatly contradict If there were hearings they could begin by taking a page from the popular Jeop- many of the Right’s most cherished fictions, such as: ardy quiz show: • The more you cut taxes the more tax revenue flows into federal coffers. Question: “They were the first major documents enshrining human rights • History proves America is a Christian nation. since the Magna Carta.” • Climate change is either not happening at all or, if it is happening, it has noth- Answer: “What’s the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights?” ing to do with our use of fossil fuels. [“I personally believe that the solar flares Question: “The U.S. Civil War was fought over it.” are more responsible for climatic cycles than anything that human beings do. Answer: “What was slavery?” ...” – Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, WI] Question: “A process used by researchers to prove theories.” • Slashing regulation of business and high finance is good for business, good Answer: “What is the scientific method?” for the nation and good for the American public. Suspects should be put under oath and asked directly: • If the rich are allowed to keep more of their earnings they will share it with “Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of any group that believes, or everyone else [trickle down]. claims to believe, such things as that the U.S. government was behind the 9/11 • School science classes should be “fair and balanced,” like Fox News, when attacks or that President Obama was born in Kenya?” teaching the origins of life on earth by teaching the biblically-inspired “creation- CERTIFIED IGNORANT ist” version alongside Darwin’s scientific theory of evolution. And so on. Each suspect would be grilled until it could be established that this • President Obama “may not have been born in America” as he claims. member of Congress was or wasn’t a certified ignoramus. • President Obama is “a secret Muslim.” Now, I’m plenty glad that Creeping Communism turned out to be a – excuse the THE LIST GOES ON AND ON pun – red herring. But I am not at all convinced that Creeping Ignorance will be And the list of Creeping Ignorance goes on and on, growing longer with each as benign a threat to the U.S. passing month. Michelle Bachmann believes that the founding fathers “didn’t For the nation that has, for a couple of centuries, been not only a beacon of rest until they put an end to slavery.” freedom, but also a beacon of knowledge and science, Creeping Ignorance at the She also believes the first shot “heard around the world” that started our war heart of our government threatens to turn us into a nation only Glenn Beck, of independence was fired in New Hampshire. It wasn’t. Did she care? Nope. Sarah Palin and Ann Coulter, et al, could love: one big festival of stupidity. Pointing out that it was fired in Massachusetts was, to her and her kind, just – Stephen Pizzo is the author of numerous books, including Inside Job: The further proof of how the mainstream media picks on conservatives. Looting of America’s Savings and Loans, which was nominated for a Pulitzer- So, where are the hearings on Creeping Ignorance in the halls of Congress? I Prize. There’s Nothing Merry About Old King Coal By Jim Hightower If some predator were stalking propagandists simply tout as “black report issued last month on Massey “An accident waiting to happen,” fourth-graders in your community, gold.” Energy, a $3.4 billion coal giant that says the report, showing that the there’d be a mighty uproar to make This printed “educational pack- is the most dominant in Appalachia. corporation “operated in a profound- the predator get away and stay away age” has been distributed to 66,000 It is also among the most reckless ly reckless manner.” By disregard- from your schools. fourth-grade teachers, potentially of corporations, earning hundreds of ing safety in the pursuit of another But what if the stalker is the coal putting its perverted view into the mine safety citations every year. almighty dollar, executives illegally industry, dressed in an academic out- heads of more than a million chil- In 2010, its notoriously unsafe allowed an intolerable level of explo- fit in order to get into fourth-grade dren. Another 82,000 teachers of Upper Big Branch Mine exploded, sive coal dust to accumulate, carry- classrooms and brainwash the kids? fourth-graders were asked to down- killing 29 miners. Massey’s care- ing the blast through the mine to kill Unbeknownst to most Americans, load the package online. less honchos rushed out to declare men far from the first detonation. grade-schoolers are being targeted by Of course, the coal giants could total innocence: couldn’t have been Massey also built “a culture in the American Coal Foundation with a not have entered so many schools predicted, much less prevented, they which wrongdoing became accept- propaganda package stealthily titled, on their own, so they bought ac- insisted. able,” say the investigators. Worker “The United States of Energy.” cess to our kids through Scholastic, Even the Brothers Grimm could safety complaints were met with It’s not mentioned in the materials, a $2-billion-a-year corporation that not have come up with a fairy tale as intimidation, safety inspectors were but Big Coal paid big bucks to Scho- says it places its books and materi- fanciful – or as grim – as the one con- cast as “enemies,” and Massey used lastic Inc. to develop this shameless- als in nine out of 10 U.S. classrooms. cocted by these executives. Accord- campaign contributions to keep pub- ly distorted promotion of the dirtiest Indeed, Scholastic’s InSchool mar- ing to them, the blast was caused by lic officials from cracking down. fuel on earth. The package fills little keting division brags of its ability a giant ball of methane that mysteri- Meanwhile – more than a year after minds with the joys of having 600 to “promote client objectives” by ously bubbled from the ground and the 29 men were killed – Congressio- friendly, coal-fueled utilities generat- targeting teachers and students with blew up the men. Goodness gracious, nal Republicans and a few coal-state ing electricity 24 hours a day. classroom packages that “make a dif- great balls of fire! Democrats are still blocking reforms Not a peep is made about any of ference by influencing attitudes and What a fantasy. to stop the murderous malfeasance coal’s long litany of negatives – in- behavior.” Now for the grim reality. In an un- of corporate powers like Massey. To cluding toxic waste, air and water How sweet. Friends of the Earth usually blunt report commissioned help break their stranglehold, and pollution, mine explosions, black calls Scholastic’s coal whitewash the by the state, an independent team of to honor those men who paid with lung deaths, mountaintop destruc- “worst kind of corporate brainwash- mining experts puts the blame for their lives for coalfield greed, contact tion, greenhouse gas emissions, po- ing.” the West Virginia disaster directly on Council for Occupational Safety and litical corruption and other decidedly For a less saccharin take on the Massey Energy’s bosses and inves- Health: www.coshnetwork.org. unfriendly aspects of what industry industry, check out a West Virginia tors. © Creators Syndicate THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 14 Rightwing Evangelical Pastor Sees The Light I was a Liberty University-trained of knowing what is best and that evangelical pastor. I was sure that I because of this you should be ruled was right and that every other person over. not of my faith was going to burn in You should also know they do hell forever. not believe that even centuries-old I was taught that we as Christians Christian communities [Catholics, should take this nation back, only to Anglicans, Greek Orthodox, etc.] are find out later that we never had it to “saved,” only those who think like begin with. they do. After five years of teaching this ho- You might be thinking that a mophobic, divisive message that has minority fundamentalist group of hurt so many millions of people in zealots can’t really take over the di- our world, I went through a divorce. rection of a society. Just look at Iran, The Southern Baptist Convention or the countless other places where will not let you remain in the minis- people have allowed this to happen. try after a divorce, so I had to think Are you all really going to sit back of something else to do with my life. and watch this happen? After several years of selling cars, They will begin to attack all sourc- I decided to become a truck driver es of accurate information. Public – you know, see America and all that radio was first, next will be museums jazz. and then science books. Well, I did see America, and the Just listen to them argue against country I saw was very different from the scientific facts about the peril the one I was taught about by Jerry our planet is facing, because it does Falwell and my mentors at Florida not fit in with their ideas. They rep- Bible College. What I found was that resent a clear and present danger to this nation is filled with people from our union. all walks of life, and from every differ- If I told you that the Amish in ent culture. Pennsylvania were running for public I met thousands of people, from the office in record numbers with the beautiful forests of Washington state intention of outlawing electricity and to the bayous of Louisiana. I found forcing others to act, dress and think that these folks are not the wicked like them, you would not believe it. sinners I was taught about. It was a great second education. has been methodically planned and Well, that is exactly what is hap- They are just good-hearted Ameri- I decided to return to Alabama and is being carried out with the utmost pening in America, only it is not the cans from all faiths and cultural work to help all of the people of my vigilance. Amish, it is the fundamentalists. It is backgrounds, trying to pay their great state, and to protect them from In accordance with their worldview, not outlawing electricity, it’s placing bills, care for their families and have the oppression I was once a part of my old friends do not in the least limits on being a human with free a few good times with their friends propagating. care about what you think. They will. and lovers. I want you to know that the funda- are against democracy, and they are Enjoying art and music, loving I began to notice a change in me as mentalist political movement is the seeking to end the rule of the major- the person of your choice, dancing well. I started reading a lot of books beginning of a cultural revolution ity in our great country. – the things that fundamentalists that were not on the seminary read- that will take our nation to a very They truly believe that if you have call “sins” – are a big part of what it ing list and listening to NPR as I was dark place. not been “saved,” you are living means to be a human. driving 10 hours a day. You have to understand that this under a curse and are incapable – Anonymous Stop The Granny Bashing! Seniors In Trouble By Joshua Holland “We lived very well,” said Norma Hair, 71, over a shaky table at the small piz- cated, and the two women couldn’t afford to pay for the surgery out-of-pocket. zeria she runs in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, with 68-year-old Carol Schmidt, In other words, Carol Schmidt owes her life to the relatively threadbare social her wife and partner of over 30 years. safety-net that their country of birth provides. “In 1979, Carol was making $33,000 per year, which was a lot of money back MILLIONS ARE STRUGGLING then. Then I rose to the position of supervisor of accounting in a company. So, They are two among millions of older American struggling to get by. our combined income [in the early-1980s] was probably about $60,000.” “One out of three seniors in the United States is economically insecure,” How- The two women are sharp, with bright, youthful eyes and a slightly wicked ard Bedlin of the National Council on Aging told journalist Paul Kleyman. “Yet sense of humor. But their bodies betray their years. the public perception is that seniors are doing fine and not struggling.” “The reason we have nothing,” says Hair, “is because we spent everything we Budgets aren’t just sheets full of numbers, they’re ultimately a reflection of could on medical to keep Carol alive when we were in the United States.” Both our priorities. women suffer from chronic heart problems in addition to other ailments. The GOP may lose control of the House as a just reward for passing Paul CHANGING CITIES Ryan’s draconian budget – one that would replace the popular single-payer Medi- “Hospitals have to treat you for life-threatening illnesses,” explains Hair. “[Car- care system with vouchers the elderly would then fork over to private insurance ol] got two lifesaving surgeries for nothing. But it was getting harder and harder, companies [assuming they’d cover them]. so I decided that it was easier if we traveled to different cities.” It’s somewhat of a political mystery why they’d touch that third rail given that So they did. They sold their home, bought an RV and toured the nation’s emer- the measure has no chances of passing the Democratic-controlled Senate, much gency rooms. “We were on the road for three and a half years,” says Schmidt, less surviving Obama’s veto pen. I’ve argued that it was the result of a party be- “just so we could go to a new ER each time and they wouldn’t be suspicious – oh, lieving its own spin. you’re back again?” THE REAL AMERICA? The two have lived in Mexico since 2002, in part because of their love for For years, the American Right has portrayed itself as representing “real Amer- the country, but also because they can live well on their combined income of ica,” as Sarah Palin put it. They’ve long characterized the U.S. as a “center-right” $2,200 per month – Social Security, a little money from a self-published book nation full of people who hate “big government,” and they’ve portrayed popular and Schmidt’s small pension. social safety-net programs as somehow being foreign, if not unconstitutional HEALTH CARE IS CHEAP signs of “creeping socialism.” The health care is cheap, too – Schmidt had what she described as an “atrial Last year, when they swept into control of the House, they convinced them- fib situation” a few weeks before our interview, and an overnight stay atthe selves that the American public had enthusiastically handed them a mandate. hospital cost them $45. The ambulance ride required only a “donation,” and the Editors Note: House Republicans couldn’t be more wrong. Poll after poll shows women offered 200 pesos – about $18 dollars. nearly 80% want Congress to keep its hands off Medicare. Yet our four Repub- They’ve also got Medicare in the U.S. to fall back on. lican House members voted to privatize Medicare. Don’t try looking that up in “I had a serious operation in 2003, and I did go back,” says Schmidt. “My sur- most of the Oklahoma media. For the record: Among the Oklahoma delegation, geon told me, ‘I’m going to operate or you’re going to die.’” only Democrat Dan Boren voted against it. Even inexpensive health care can add up when the procedures are compli- © Alternet THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 15 Ten Worst States To Be A Woman By Amanda Marcotte In a time of war and record unemployment, the GOP is sending a message: fer- tile women are the country’s No. 1 enemy, and their freedoms must be quashed at all costs. State Republican [and some Democratic] legislators have introduced nearly 1,000 laws restricting women’s reproductive health access on the state level, and this is on top of decades of reproductive health policies that have made women second-class citizens in many states. Here are 10 of the worst states to be a woman between puberty and menopause: 1. MISSISSIPPI. Mississippi has been such a bad state for women for so long it rarely even gets noticed in the news anymore. Legal and cultural harassment has reduced the number of abortion providers in the state to two, making the abortion rate in the state four times lower than the rest of the country. basically accused President Obama of not being a real citizen on no real evidence besides his appearance and in which it’s now the law for the police to harass 2. TEXAS. Thirty-five percent of women in their childbearing years- areun insured in Texas, making the need for subsidized family planning services es- Hispanic citizens for their papers. pecially strong in the state. Republican lawmakers responded to this need by Of course, Arizona ignores the real problems facing women of its state – 23% slashing family planning funding, while leaving untouched the money the state of women of child-bearing age are going without insurance coverage; the state spends on crisis pregnancy centers, even though these centers offer no real ser- has the third highest teenage pregnancy rate in the country; and 23% of Arizona vices women need. children live in poverty. In light of all this, the safe assumption is race-based abortion laws are about making it that much harder for women of color to get 3. SOUTH DAKOTA. Anti-choicers in South Dakota tried to ban abortion in 2006, but the non-misogynist population turned up at the polls and beat the ban abortions, which makes these laws not anti-racist, but just plain racist. back. But searing hatred for ovulating women will not be thwarted so easily! The 10. LOUISIANA. Louisiana has a ban on abortion on the books in case Roe v. state then passed a law requiring women to wait 72 hours and subject them- Wade is overturned, as well as a host of other restrictions on abortion that have selves to a hectoring lecture at a crisis pregnancy center before they can get an reduced the number of providers to seven in the state. Despite this, a Louisiana abortion. Surprise! It turns out that no crisis pregnancy centers have applied to legislator has introduced a bill to ban abortion, apparently on the theory that if be official counseling centers. you pass the same illegal law over and over, it might just take. In addition, Gov. Jindal has indicated support for laws that would put addi- 4. INDIANA. Not to be outdone by South Dakota, Indiana has gone a step fur- ther and moved toward attacking both contraception and abortion access. Gov. tional restrictions in place for women of color seeking abortion, modeled on the Mitch Daniels recently signed a law banning abortions after 20 weeks, and cut- abortion law in Arizona. ting off all federal funding for family planning. Lawmakers claimed they only – The author co-writes the blog Pandagon. She is the author of It’s a Jun- wanted to attack clinics that also provide abortions, but because of federal non- gle Out There: The Feminist Survival Guide to Politically Inhospitable Environ- discrimination policy, the law basically means an end to all federal funding of ments. contraception, as well as STD testing and treatment. 5. OKLAHOMA. Oklahoma legislators looked at how Indiana Republicans are using the specter of abortion to cut off contraception and thinking of ways they DEBT can expand on that for brand-new ways to punish women for having working From Page 13 uteruses. Why stop at attacking women not giving birth, when you have women Now comes the question: “What such. It may be announced that So- who have babies to punish, as well? happens if Congress does not raise cial Security checks will be reduced With this in mind, the Oklahoma House passed a bill that would eliminate in- the debt ceiling now?” or suspended, and that recipients dependent contractors from administering Women, Infants and Children [WIC], a Of course, the fact is that Congress will have to make arrangements to federal program that distributes nutrition vouchers to low-income women with has already defaulted, and our execu- borrow from their bank until fund- children [the legislation eventually died in conference committee]. As usual, tive branch has already been moving ing is put back on a normal level. Planned Parenthood was cited as the reason, with the GOP claiming the organi- money and utilizing creative ac- The same could happen to Veterans’ zation is so evil that it’s better to starve babies than allow Planned Parenthood counting so that the interest on our benefits. Medicare could cease pay- to receive government funding. In practice, the result is one more punishment in- debt and our current bills continue ing hospital and doctor claims, or flicted on women, this time for having the nerve to have babies who need to eat. to be paid in full. cut these in half to reduce the outgo 6. KANSAS. Kansas went from being a pretty bad place to be a woman to a hell- But what happens this summer of money. Federal workers could be hole rapidly, between the murder of Dr. George Tiller in 2009 and the recent elec- when these background adjustments laid off, as well as state and corpo- tion of devout misogynist Sam Brownback as governor. The murder emboldened will no longer work? Will we then rate employees dependent on grants the radical anti-choice movement, as it resulted in the closure of Tiller’s clinic default on our debt payments and or contracts. Our military pay could and proved to them that terrorism does work. Because of this, anti-choicers in send the world financial and cur- be delayed by 20%. Courts could the area moved to terrorizing Dr. Mila Means, a Kansas family doctor who was rency markets into chaos? Yes, this be jammed with suits, yet close the discovered receiving training to provide abortion. is possible. doors. 7. MINNESOTA. So much for “Minnesota nice.” The much-ballyooed unwilling- But some see a different scenario, Indeed not paying one’s regular ness to be confrontational was shoved aside by Minnesota legislators who are one that nobody will like, and one bills is tantamount to not paying all too willing to simply ignore court rulings that restrain misogynist legisla- with widespread grave consequences one’s debts. The difference is the for- tion. Legislators sent a big F-you both to the supreme courts of the nation and – stressful but short of world chaos. mality and legalities between bonds their own state by passing two laws that have already been deemed illegal by the If the Republicans continue their and bills. And neither is a good thing. courts. One, a ban on abortions after 20 weeks, violates the Supreme Court’s obstinate position, then the presi- Yes, these and other action ex- ruling that abortions can only be banned after viability. The other, a law banning dent may well make a choice be- amples could become necessary if public funding of abortion, violates the Minnesota Supreme Court ruling that tween paying the interest on the debt the irresponsibility of GOP members found that such a ban violates women’s right to equal treatment under the law. and paying the bills and salaries to of Congress continues. Of course, Minnesota Republicans may not confront you on most things, but they’re willing run the government. blame for any such necessary ac- to take it to the mat to deprive women of basic equality. We may well hear a televised Oval tions would be unceremoniously laid 8. GEORGIA. Last year, reproductive justice advocates beat back a bill that Office talk which reminds us that at their political feet. would require doctors to “screen” women of color having abortions for some the administration has put forth a If the GOP members are politically kind of pressure to abort because of race. By inventing a non-existent problem responsible plan for reducing debt dumb enough to vote for an austere (women of color aborting because of racism) legislators would have put doctors over time through cuts in spending budget bill that includes killing Medi- in a position where providing abortion to any woman of color could result in jail and raising income. The President care, then they may well be dumb time, which could make the service only available to white women. The bill didn’t will explain that because of Republi- enough to allow all this to begin to pass, but it did end up kicking off a nationwide frenzy of anti-choicers attack- can intransigence, he must now take happen before hostile voters descend ing the reproductive rights of women of color specifically while pretending to be necessary steps to cut expenditures upon them in anger to force the is- concerned about racism. so as to neither exceed the existing sue to be properly resolved. In reality, Georgia is a terrible place for women of childbearing age, especially limit nor stop interest payments on How long will the public stand for women of color. The state has the highest maternal mortality rate in the country, the debt. such obvious chicanery from one po- and maternal mortality disproportionately affects women of color. Real concern These steps can include almost litical party in tying up government for the well-being of women of color would start with doing something about the anything. with such unnecessary and irrespon- maternal mortality rate, not feigning concern about their reasons for abortion. All grants for various community, sible tactics? 9. ARIZONA. Race-based abortion restrictions may have failed in Georgia, but health, educational, or scientific – The author, AKA The Militant unfortunately, such a law recently passed in Arizona, a state that can’t even pre- purposes may be suspended, in- Moderate, lives in Enid. More of his tend that it’s not run by a bunch of wild-eyed racists. The “concern” for women cluding community grants, highway essays can be found at www.okob- of color aborting because of racism is laughable in a state where the Legislature funds, college student aid, and all server.net THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 16 NON SEQUITOR From Page 8 insult was our government to subsidize criminal behavior with our tax dollars. arguing that every child should receive an equal share of the pie, whether they “Too big to fail” and free enterprise are mutually exclusive concepts. Now we live in Edmond or Gotebo – since the purpose of “common” education is to treat live in a world in which for the economic elites, profits are privatized and risks all children the same. The move to equalize all funding of public school should are socialized. If they win, they win. If they lose, you lose. That’s called corpo- be called One Child, One Dollar, and if we must reduce administrative pay and rate socialism. shrink the bureaucracy, so be it – the kids should come first. And no school can NON SEQUITOR NO. 2: It does not follow that the word liberal is evil. For call itself a school which doesn’t have an art teacher, and a music teacher, and one thing, no two people will define that word the same way, and throughout a drama teacher, and a full range of offering in the arts. We are not just trying to history, as a description of a governing philosophy, it has changed meanings so raise workers in Oklahoma. We’re trying to raise human beings! many times as to be maddening. But it used to be one of our grandest words, NON SEQUITOR NO. 5: It does not follow that single-payer national health and central to this remarkable experiment in liberal democracy, where rights care is socialized medicine. And so what if it is? Doesn’t a single sick human and freedoms were liberally granted, and where students were educated in the being also fall under the category “too big to fail?” During the summer of our liberal arts. discontent over health insurance reform, people on Medicare [a single-payer na- A word that means “open minded, tolerant of divergent opinions, and exceed- tional health insurance plan] actually condemned socialized medicine while de- ingly generous,” among other things, has been turned into an all-purpose epithet manding that the government not touch their government run health care! in Oklahoma and much of the country. We are told continually that we have the best health care system in the world, When I first came to Mayflower church, way back in 1985 and Reagan was just but fewer and fewer of us can access it, or afford it. What’s more, we are the only beginning his second term, I told the search committee that I wanted to build western industrialized nation left on earth that exposes all its citizens to person- a liberal Protestant church in Oklahoma City. An older woman pulled me aside al bankruptcy because of illness and disease. It does not matter how carefully after the interview and said, “I wish you wouldn’t use that word . . . you know, the you have provided for your family, or how much you have saved. One serious one you used.” “What word is that?” I said, pretending not to know. “You know illness requiring a long hospital stay can wipe out everything you have. Remem- ... that word ... the L-word.” ber when Republicans were trying to scare people by talking about government Having been raised to believe that it was a great word, I replied, “What word “death panels.” Those are a present reality. Health care is denied every day to would you prefer that I use to describe your church?” And she said, without maximize profits that results in the deaths of thousands of Americans. Forty- hesitation: “conservative.” five thousand die every year because they have no insurance at all. When President Obama speaks of a new relationship between government and It does not follow that if you say again and again that you are pro-life, but al- the people, which is exactly what this crisis has given us the chance to forge, low a medical system as broken as ours to continue, where children die from an he speaks of a blend of classical constitutional and modern egalitarian liberal- abscessed tooth, you are following the example of Jesus [who healed for free, ism. Governments and markets both have their place in a decent society, while by the way, which may have been one reason he was such a threat to the estab- people in covenant for what we used to call “the common good” have both rights lishment]. Martin Luther King Jr. did not just have a dream about integration. and responsibilities. We should have both all the freedom we can handle and all He talked a lot about economic justice, and said once that “there is no greater the government we need. This is classic liberalism – the heart and soul of the injustice than inequality in health care.” And remember, all Americans have ever Democratic Party. wanted is exactly what their elected representatives enjoy – single payer compre- NON SEQUITOR NO. 3: It does not follow that even if you are the world’s only hensive health insurance. superpower, all problems have a military solution. The United States is in the NON SEQUITOR NO. 6: It does not follow that if you hate homosexuals they midst of a crisis with regard to its all-volunteer military force. During the rule of will disappear from the planet. Thanks to the ranting of [state] Rep. Sally Kern President Bush, the world was divided [as it is in his own Manichean mind] into [R-OKC], who called homosexuals the biggest threat facing America, more dan- forces of light and forces of darkness. There is only one way to win the battle gerous than terrorists and radical Islam, and who has identified the mysterious over the evil-doers, you kick their evil-doing you-know-what until they suddenly “gay agenda” [which like the threat to marriage that same-sex marriage consti- turn into democracy-loving, family-values Republicans. You have to hurt them tutes no one can find or describe], we continue to send people to the Oklahoma first, because “no pain, no gain.” Diplomacy and face-to-face conversation with House of Representatives who do really, really embarrassing and foolish things. the enemy is considered a form of capitulation and weakness. Dear Democrats and Progressives. Do not, I repeat, do NOT allow Republicans Whenever Democrats are reluctant to use military force except as a last resort, to use homosexuality as a wedge issue any longer. We do not all have to be of one they are always being charged with being weak or guilty of appeasement. But mind about this issue to know that discrimination is wrong, it is un-American, most of the neo-cons who ran the State Department and the Pentagon in the run and it appeals to the Karl Rove school of politics – the disastrous policy of divide up to our disastrous war in Iraq and our never-ending and ultimately futile war in and conquer. Our gay and lesbian sisters and brothers are not freaks of nature; Afghanistan are what veterans call “chicken hawks” [men who have never seen they are a constituent of creation. They are our sons and daughters, aunts and combat and therefore do not have first-hand experience with the simple truth uncles, nieces and nephews, brothers and sisters, and nothing could be more that war is hell], but who knew how to talk tough and make threats to send other un-Christian than to use them as scapegoats for personal or political gain. people’s sons and daughters off to die. Recently, I heard a member of the Christian Right give the same tired argument As you know, war is outsourced now like everything else, and the coffins bear- against the full inclusion of gays into the life of our nation or the full sacramen- ing our dead soldiers come home in the dead of night so that Americans will do tal hospitality of the church. He said, “God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and the patriotic thing and keep on shopping, oblivious to the damage being done to Steve.” Whereupon I stood to ask a follow-up question: I said, “So who made countless families, both now and in years to come. In Oklahoma we place sol- Steve?” diers on a pedestal and refer to them as heroic warriors, but we are not nearly as NON SEQUITOR NO. 7: It does not follow that if you lock up more people and careful about defining and defending a mission worthy of the ultimate sacrifice throw away the key we will become a safer, more law-abiding nation. Cognitive they are being asked to make. Those of us who opposed the war in Iraq from be- Linguist George Lakoff should be required reading for all Democrats, because he fore it started were accused of not supporting our troops, but nothing could be has properly identified the ways in which Republicans and Democrats see the further from the truth. It does not follow that opposing a war means opposing the world differently, and therefore hardly understand one another, much less know troops [which is what we call in the logic business a false dichotomy]. how to talk to one another. In fact, it can mean exactly the opposite. All of us who lived through Vietnam Republican ideology is built on what Lakoff calls Strict Father Model. He is the know this bitter lesson. Blind acceptance of wars which should never have been moral leader of the family and is to be obeyed. The family needs a strict father fought in the first place costs us the precious and irreplaceable lives of our sons because there is evil in the world from which he must protect the family. The and daughters. You can support the troops by wanting to bring them home as family needs a strict father because it’s a dog-eat-dog world and he must win the soon as possible. battle every day to support the family. You need a strict father because kids are NON SEQUITOR NO. 4: It does not follow that talking about the value of edu- born bad, and will only know right from wrong if they are punished strictly and cation all the time will, by itself, lift Oklahoma out of the educational basement painfully when they do wrong – that will give them an incentive to do right and of the United States. If the Democrats are looking for an issue to put at the top avoid punishment the next time. of their political agenda, it should be this one. We have among the lowest paid That is how children build internal discipline, which is needed to do right and teachers in the land, even as recent studies show that good teachers, and espe- not wrong. With that discipline, they can enter the market and become self-reli- cially the occasional great teacher, make more of a difference in the educational ant and prosperous. As mature, self-disciplined self-reliant adults, they can go experience of a child than anything else. off on their own, start their own families, and become strict fathers in their own One in four Oklahoma children now live in poverty [is that the much-heralded households, without any meddling by their own fathers or anyone else – includ- “Oklahoma spirit”?], and our dropout rate is shameful. We can either invest in ing the government. This is why conservatism is concerned with authority, with our children now, or pay to lock them up later. And parents must do their jobs, obedience, with discipline, and with punishment. too, since I’ve witnessed in my lifetime some of the worst parenting on the planet. Oklahoma fails its young people on so many levels, and then gets tough with Forty percent of children born in Oklahoma last year were born out of wedlock, them when they get into trouble. Punishment, incarceration, and surveillance and 90,000 are being raised by grandparents. It does not follow that if you say represent the new face of governance. Oklahoma is fourth in the per capita lock- nice things about children being the future, or gush warm and fuzzy sentiments up of men, first in the nation for locking up women. We are second only to Ne- about how cute they are that you have actually done anything to make their braska in the number of children in custody. future better. If Democrats are looking for a good campaign slogan for the years Democrats and progressives, on the other hand, are described by Lakoff as em- ahead may I suggest this: building a world fit for children. bracing the Nurturant Parent Model. We see life as the business of the nurturing Between you and me, I think Democrats and progressives should challenge of children by two parents, with equal responsibilities. They are to be nurtured the constitutionality of the ad valorem tax funding of public schools in the state, See DEMOCRATS Page 18 THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 17 A Pair Of Idiots Navigates Ice Fishing A guy buys a new Lincoln Navigator for $42,500 with monthly payments of $560. The two men swallow, blink, start waving their arms and, with veins in their necks He and a friend go duck hunting in upper Wisconsin. It’s mid-winter and, of course, swelling to resemble stalks of rhubarb, scream and holler at the dog to stop. all of the lakes are frozen. The dog, now apparently cheered on by his master, keeps coming. These two guys go out on the ice with their GUNS, a DOG, and of course the new One hunter panics, grabs the shotgun and shoots the dog. The shotgun is loaded NAVIGATOR. They decide they want to make a natural looking open water area for with #8 bird shot, hardly big enough to stop a Black Lab. the ducks to focus on, something for the decoys to float on. The dog stops for a moment, slightly confused, then continues on. Another shot, Now, making a hole in the ice large enough to invite a passing duck, is going to and this time the dog, still standing, becomes really confused and of course terrified, take a little more power than the average drill auger can produce. So out of the back thinks these two geniuses have gone insane! of the new Navigator comes a stick of dynamite with a short 40-second fuse. The dog takes off to find cover, UNDER the brand new Navigator. Our two Rocket Scientists, afraid they might slip on the ice while trying to run away The men continue to scream as they run. The red hot exhaust pipe on the truck after lighting the fuse [and becoming toast, along with the Navigator], decide on the touches the dog’s rear end. He yelps, drops the dynamite under the truck and takes following course of action: off after his master. Then KABOOOOOOOOOOOOM! They light the 40-second fuse; then, with a mighty thrust, they throw the stick of The truck is blown to bits and sinks to the bottom of the lake, leaving the two idiots dynamite as far away as possible. standing there with “I can’t believe this just happened” looks on their faces. Remember a couple of paragraphs back when there was mention of the NAVIGA- The insurance company says that sinking a vehicle in a lake by illegal use of explo- TOR, the GUNS, and the DOG ... ? sives is NOT COVERED by the policy. And he still had yet to make the first of those Let’s talk about the dog: A highly trained black Lab used for RETRIEVING; espe- $560 a month payments. cially things thrown by the owner. The dog is OK ... doing fine. And to think you thought all rednecks lived in Okla- You guessed it. The dog takes off across the ice at a high rate of speed and grabs homa. the stick of dynamite, with the burning 40-second fuse just as it hits the ice. – Thanks to Darla Reynolds Sparks for sharing this fanciful tale DEMOCRATS From Page 17 so that they can grow up to nurture others. This involves learning to be empath- heaven down to earth. Christianity has all but abandoned this world in favor of ic, responsible for oneself and others, and having the strength to carry out those reserving spots in another one, and nothing could be stranger to Jesus. responsibilities. This is not indulgence, which is to think only of oneself, but Since it is a belief system and not a way of life that imitates the radical the opposite. Discipline is positive, not punitive, and restitution is preferred over nonconformity and compassion of Jesus, we are not only not made better by punishment. If you do something wrong, do something right to make up for it. conventional Christianity, but often we are made worse. Often our view of God The job of parents is protection and empowerment of their children, and a dedi- is simply a projection of our own desire for vengeance and control. Instead of cation to community life, where people care about and take care of each other. unconditional love, we preach and teach a God that sanctifies violence as the I don’t need to tell you what you already know: the Strict Father model has ultimate Strict Father. dominated American politics since Ronald Reagan, and has been helped along Oh we do love Jesus around here. But if he came back we’d crucify him again by draconian laws that fill private prisons, which need clients just like a hotel – too soft on crime; too tolerate of diversity; too committed to helping the poor needs customers. We have become the incarceration capitol of the world. That instead of blaming them for being poor. system has failed, and we have the opportunity to say it loud and clear. Not In my 25 years as a minister, I have come to believe that fundamentalism is every kid needs a good whipping. Some of them just need a good mentor. the enemy of the future, and Oklahoma is saturated by Christian fundamental- NON SEQUITOR NO. 8: It does not follow that if we had more guns we ists. It’s my way or the highway. It’s my god or no god. It’s turn or burn, baby. would be safer. The National Rifle Association has succeeded in perpetrating And that means that I am chosen and everyone else is an infidel. That way of one of the grandest fallacies in American life: an armed citizenry makes a safe thinking has fueled the darkest chapters in human history, from the crusades society. By quoting only the second half of the Second Amendment, and forget- to the inquisition, to the Holocaust. ting that the premise, if you will, was predicated upon the need for a well-regu- In Oklahoma we have allowed the Republican Party to claim that it’s the party lated militia before we had civilian law enforcement and standing armies, we of Jesus. Shame on us. Ours is the party of inclusion and compassion, of jus- have replaced the worship of God with the worship of Guns. tice and reform, of multiculturalism and diversity. Ours is the party that gave Now the police are out-gunned by the criminals, and statistics prove repeat- the world the eight-hour workday and the weekend, Social Security, the mini- edly that if you have a gun in your home, you are 42 times more likely to use mum wage, the G.I. Bill of Rights, the Marshall Plan, NATO, the Peace Corps, it against someone you love, or to kill yourself, or to have it taken from you in Medicare and Medicaid, Operation Head Start, Women’s Rights, Civil Rights, a break-in and used against you than you are to use it successfully to defend and now Gay Rights, clean water and clean air, the first man on the moon, work yourself – all that “make my day” rhetoric not-withstanding. place safety and compensation, unemployment compensation, rural electri- Republicans allowed the assault weapons ban to expire, and yet even after fication, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the federal student loan the shooting in Tucson we couldn’t even get a ban on high-capacity bullet program, the Securities and Exchange Act, family and medical leave, the school clips which allow for mass carnage and are easier to get than a driver’s license. lunch program, the motor voter act, more police on the streets, and the last bal- Democrats also cower before the NRA. I’m not a hunter but this much I know: anced budget at the end of a presidential term! nobody needs a machine gun to go hunting, and the most impeccable logic So don’t tell me that you can either be a Democrat or a Christian but you offered in this matter came from Sarah Brady, who asked, “If more guns would can’t be both. I shudder to think of this country without the accomplishments make us safer, wouldn’t America already be the safest nation on earth?” of the Democratic Party. NON SEQUITOR NO. 9: It does not follow that capital punishment deters So just remember this: we don’t ever have to agree on everything. But we can crime, provides closure for victim’s families, and costs less that life in prison all agree on this: life is too short to live by illusions and our country is too pre- without parole. These are the top three reasons given why the state has argued cious to be governed by idiots. that it should kill people for killing people. The only problem is that not one Our kids matter too much to give them anything less than the best we can reputable study exists to prove that any of these things are true. To the con- give them. Our faith is too important to be left to charlatans, and people are trary, states with capital punishment have higher crime rates, victim’s fami- more important than corporations. In fact, despite the recent disastrous Su- lies report little in the way of closure after they witness the execution of the preme Court ruling, corporations are not actually people, and therefore do not perpetrator, and it is cheaper to keep someone in prison until they die than to actually have first amendment rights. execute a person on death row. Guess what, Oklahoma, you can believe in God and in evolution. You can I do believe there are some people who are so dangerous that they must be support soldiers but question wars. You can be kind and gentle and patient kept in prison and never released. But I believe that the state loses its moral and forgiving – for that should be the true Oklahoma spirit – or you can just be authority when it kills another human being as a form of punishment. The mean. world is not made right. The scales of justice are not balanced. There is simply If the odds seem long, and the road seems steep, just remember that as the one more family with an empty chair at the table. minority, we are in good company. The great cultural anthropologist Margaret As for quoting “an eye for an eye,” that passage is not only notoriously Mead said once: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citi- misunderstood, but it has a companion passage in the Sermon on the Mount, zens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” where Jesus of Nazareth directly cites it for reinterpretation, saying, “You have And don’t forget – don’t ever forget – what we accomplished in the last elec- heard it said an eye for an eye, but I say to you, turn the other cheek” . . . do tion. Standing in line to vote early on that historic day in early November 2008, not return evil for evil . . . the cycle of violence must be broken. I met an elderly black woman who had her eyes on the prize. She said to me, Finally, my favorite non sequitur of all, which is why I have saved it until the “Robin, Rosa Parks sat down so that Martin Luther King Jr. could walk. Martin end of this DECALOGUE [the 10th non-sequitur]: It does not follow that if walked so that Obama could run. Obama ran so that our children could fly.” more people would just accept Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior, the God bless you all . . . and God bless the United States of America! world would necessarily be a safer, happier, healthier place. – Dr. Robin R. Meyers is senior minister of Mayflower UCC Church in Okla- This must sound strange, coming from a minister, but Christianity, as it is homa City and professor of rhetoric in the philosophy department at Oklaho- commonly understood today is a set of beliefs meant to get you into heaven ma City University. He is the author of six books, most recently, Saving Jesus rather than a way of life committed to peace and justice in this world. Lots of from the Church: How to Stop Worshiping Christ and Start Following Jesus. He people are trying to get us into heaven, but precious few are trying to bring can be contacted at [email protected]. THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 18 SESSION From Page One guy who actually cares about rank- a loon. They’re searching for a prima- crease the Department of Human Ser- SEN. CLARK JOLLEY, R-Edmond. and-file Oklahomans. He worked tire- ry challenger and have indicated pri- vices budget, he won a bill requiring Jolley must think of himself as a one- lessly to force public scrutiny of bil- vately they’d prefer to lose the seat in DHS to come up with a plan for the man state Senate, authoring 30 bills, lions of dollars in corporate welfare the historically Democratic area than rundown Resource Centers at Enid riding herd on other members, tout- – hoping to begin hearings as early to risk further embarrassment. and Pauls Valley, serving the devel- ing an income tax cut that will cost as this month. And he did the House REP. MIKE RITZE, R-Broken Ar- opmentally disabled and profoundly the treasury $120 million a year. He proud when he publicly dressed-down row: Ritze is the state House version retarded. The waiting list stands at was, in effect, the Senate leader since fellow Republican Mike Reynolds of U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, a physician more than 6,000. Pro Tem Brian Bingman, R-Sapulpa, for behavior unbecoming a publicly- who ought to stick to doctoring. His was seldom on the floor. elected leader. incessant attacks on the judiciary Senate Worst SEN. STEVEN RUSSELL, R-OKC. – often because he disagrees with a SEN. TOM ADELSON, D-Tulsa: Adel- Russell co-authored the bill that per- House Worst judge’s ruling – suggest he needs to son missed a whopping 481 votes, mits keeping guns in locked cars at all REP. LEE DENNEY, R-Perkins: take a remedial course in government, including 59% of the votes taken on CareerTech parking lots. CareerTech Denney emerged as the leading tool of exploring the concept of separation the Senate floor. His wasn’t a matter leaders begged the Legislature not to the anti-public education crowd. She of powers. He sits next to Reynolds, of health – it was incompetence. His pass the bill. This guy is a walking, bleats incessantly that she’s devoted often following his lead – the path to Senate District deserves better than talking billboard for the NRA. He also to kids, but she championed legisla- legislative oblivion. wisecracks or fruitless amendments. never misses an opportunity to criti- tion that siphons money from already SEN. JOHN FORD, R-Bartlesville: cize education in all its forms. underfunded public schools – the tax Senate Best Ford chaired the Senate Education SEN. ANTHONY SYKES, R-OKC. credit scheme that funds so-called SEN. JIM WILSON, D-Tahlequah. Committee, reporting out anti-public Sykes authored the bill that gutted “opportunity scholarships” for poor Democrats held only 16 of 48 Senate education bills in droves. He made workers compensation, reducing ben- kids. Actually, a family of four earning seats but that didn’t stop Wilson from the State Superintendent an educa- efits by 50%, winning praise from the more than $122,000 a year will be eli- repeatedly pointing out with wit and tion czar and eliminated collective Daily Disappointment. He authored gible for the scholarships. Poor kids, fact the hypocrisy of the Republican bargaining for teachers. They now the $350,000 hard cap for pain and our a--. agenda, claiming “reform” when they serve at the pleasure of the district suffering. If you are in a vehicle crash REP. MIKE REYNOLDS, R-OKC: served only the affluent – including board of education. No more appeal to and you end up a quadriplegic how far Reynolds is one of the smartest, hard- another $120 million tax cut for the District Court. will $350,000 take you? est working legislators – one of the rich in a year in which the Legislature few who reads every bill. But he is so was $500 million in the hole. abrasive, so self-absorbed and so cer- SEN. BRIAN CRAIN, R-Tulsa: Crain tain of the righteousness of his world- was not afraid to challenge his own LETTERS From Page 4 view that he’s a pariah. Too bad. He party’s bills. He is the living embodi- could be a real force if he ever learned ment of the late great Henry Bellmon that I am an American – but I am sad Congressmen John Sullivan, Frank to play well with others. Instead he’s whose philosophy was simple: When that we are not being who we know we Lucas, Tom Cole and James Lankford a buffoon. the election is over, we’re not Repub- should be being. voted “yes” for Rep. Paul Ryan’s bud- REP. SALLY KERN, R-OKC: Silly licans or Democrats, we work to im- Janine Taylor Bryant get bill [HCR 34] which ends Medicare Sally just keeps on embarrassing prove Oklahoma and America. Oklahoma City as we know it. herself and her state. It’s bad enough SEN. ANDREW RICE, D-OKC: Rice Today’s Medicare would end for that her legislative agenda is aimed at was the conscience of the Senate, un- Editor, The Observer: people now under 55 when they be- turning Oklahoma into a theocracy. afraid to use his bully pulpit as minor- All four of Oklahoma’s Republican come elderly. Instead of Medicare, But this session she picked up her ity leader to nip at the heels of GOP Congressmen got their wake-up call they would get a voucher as partial House microphone and unleashed a Sen. Clark Jolley. Rice was particular- on May 24. That long-distance call payment on health insurance from bigoted diatribe against blacks and ly eloquent when the GOP passed yet came from upstate New York where a a private company. One person at a women. What does it say about her another abortion bill – seven in all. stunning upset occurred. time trying to buy health insurance constituents that they keep re-elect- SEN. JUDY EASON McINTYRE, D- Kathy Hochul, a Democratic chal- would greatly increase the price and a ing her? Tulsa. Eason McIntyre is an equal- lenger, defeated Jane Corwin, a well- lone individual could easily be denied REP. JOHN BENNETT, R-Sallisaw: opportunity hugger, but don’t let her financed Republican insider, in deep- coverage because of age. In Bennett’s world, everyone would good nature fool you. She is a nem- ly red Congressional District 26. If these four Oklahoma congress- be allowed to carry a gun without a esis of the Republican agenda, debat- Medicare became the defining issue men prevail, good luck to granny, who permit, state aid recipients would be ing more often than any other Demo- in that campaign and, most likely, will is supposed to enjoy her “freedom” drug-tested and taxpayers would fi- crat. She refused to take a “yes” or a define numerous 2012 elections as from the “bonds of the mean old gov- nance a slab foundation for the Ten “no” – she wanted a full explanation. well. ernment” with its guaranteed health Commandments monument to be SEN. PATRICK ANDERSON, R-Enid: Regarding Medicare, Oklahoma’s Re- coverage. built with private funds on the Capitol Anderson would be more at home in publican Congressmen agree with de- Wanda Jo Stapleton grounds. Even Republicans think he’s the Democratic Party. Unable to in- feated Jane Corwin’s position. In fact, Oklahoma City

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THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER, JUNE 10, 2011, PAGE 19 TOM and SHERRI Friends Meeting (Quakers) Better Information, Better Policy GOODWIN Oklahoma Policy Institute provides timely and credible information, analysis and commentary on state policy issues. Cheyenne, OK Oklahoma City (Sunday evening) 405-632-7574 Worship at 7:00 p.m. (use west entry) See our latest issue briefs, fact sheets and blog posts at: Wesley Methodist Church 1401 NW 25 (at Classen) Readers and supporters of The Observer for over 20 years and counting. Stillwater (Sunday morning) 405-372-4839 Tulsa (Sunday afternoon) 918-743-6827 Norman (Sunday morning) 405-321-7971 David Blatt, Director n 918.794.3944 n [email protected]

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