• An Independent Journal of Commentary • SEPTEMBER 2019 • VOLUME 51 NUMBER 9 • $5.00 WASTED VOTES

Currently, Politicians Pick Their Voters – Not The Other Way Around. How Can Ensure All Votes Matter. Special Report begins on page 6 Observations

www.okobserver.org In Search Of Sanity VOLUME 51, NO. 9 Thirty-one innocents slaughtered in one weekend in El Paso and Day- PUBLISHER Beverly Hamilton ton. Permitless carry set to become Oklahoma law Nov. 1 unless a veto EDITOR Arnold Hamilton referendum petition is successful. This is a time that cries out for reflection – and action. ADVISORY BOARD Will it, like so many others, pass quietly? Just thoughts and prayers? Andrew Hamilton, Matthew Hamilton, And the usual bromides about the gun lobby’s power at NE 23rd and Lin- Scott J. Hamilton, Trevor James, Ryan Kiesel, George Krumme, coln Blvd. or how protective Okies are of their 2nd Amendment rights? Gayla Machell, MaryAnn Martin, If past is prologue, the answer, sadly, is yes. But know this: the uber- Bruce Prescott, Bob Rogers, conservative Oklahoma political landscape is hardly static when it Robyn Lemon Sellers, Kyle Williams comes to the great gun debate these days. OUR MOTTO Moms Demand Action’s red-shirted activists made their presence felt To Comfort the Afflicted and Afflict the at the state Capitol last session. Even before El Paso and Dayton, they Comfortable. had 13 meetings scheduled in the area, Tulsa and Still- water between August and early Sept. 4. OUR CREDO So then to all their chance, to all their Rep. ’s petition drive to force a statewide vote on permit- shining golden opportunity. To all the less carry helped an already well-oiled machine kick into higher gear. right to love, to live, to work, to be Moms Demand Action was seemingly everywhere, gathering signatures. themselves, and to become whatever It was a tall order – 59,000 in only two weeks. Even if they weren’t suc- thing their vision and humanity can combine to make them. This seeker, cessful, they sent a message that the gun lobby may rule the statehouse is the promise of America. but people power is potent. And activists seeking common-sense gun - Adapted from Thomas Wolfe control aren’t going away. [Note: The deadline for submitting the SQ 803 petitions was just after FOUNDING PUBLISHER we went to press with the September Observer.] Helen B. Troy [1932-2007] The pushback against Oklahoma’s return to the Wild West also is evi- dent in the Sept. 27 grand opening of Oklahoma City’s new Scissortail FOUNDING EDITOR Park, thanks to state law that allows anyone with a valid license to carry Frosty Troy [1933-2017] a handgun in any public park. At least one Oklahoma City Council member, Ward 5’s JoBeth Hamon, [ISSN 0030-1795] intends to skip the festivities, citing the recent violence in El Paso and The Oklahoma Observer [USPS 865-720] is published on the first Wednesday of each CONTINUED ON PAGE 43 month by AHB Enterprises LLC, 13912 Plym- outh Crossing, P.O. Box 14275, Oklahoma City, OK 73113-0275. Periodicals postage paid at Edmond, OK and additional entry of- fice. Phone: 405.478.8700.

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LETTERS TO EDITOR E-mail to [email protected] or mail to P.O. Box 14275, Oklahoma City, OK 73113- 0275. 2 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Observerscope

Sept. 12’s Observer Newsmakers Here’s why the Corporation Log Cabin Republicans once features House Democratic Leader Commission is oft-derided as the worked to open the GOP’s tent to discussing the gov- “Cooperation” commission? Okla- the LGBTQ community. What’s ernor’s new executive powers and homa industrial users pay only left of the long-marginalized group their impact on state agencies, 4.55 cents per kilowatt hour while now has endorsed Donald Trump services and employees. See back residential customers pay 11.17 for re-election. Their exec director cover for details. cents. h/t former Gov. David Wal- quit in disgust. ters. Dart: To Gov. , trying Dart: To Gov. Kevin Stitt, dis- to bully Chancellor Glen Johnson Dart: To U.S. Rep. , balk- missing the permitless carry veto into early retirement. Johnson is ing at ’s decision referendum because “the people a top-notch leader for higher ed. to send a delegate to Congress. have spoken.” Hardly. The power- Stitt is Donald Trump with a smile. Could it be because new Cherokee ful gun lobby spoke. And its legis- Chief Jr. is from a lative lapdogs delivered. This bud’s for you: In the first rock-solid Democratic family? year since medical marijuana was Laurel: To Democratic stalwart legalized, the state issued licenses The latest Sooner Poll shows Kalyn Free, selected as the party’s to 178,173 patients, 1,277 caregiv- 56% of likely Oklahoma voters new national committeewoman ers, 4,287 growers, 1,848 dispen- currently support Medicaid expan- from Oklahoma. She succeeds the saries and 1,173 processors. sion. You only have until Oct. 28 to late Betty McElderry. sign the SQ 802 petition to get the Laurel: To state Rep. Jason Lowe issue on next year’s ballot. Kudos to new Chief Chuck and Moms Demand Action, leading Hoskin Jr. and the Cherokee Na- the charge to block the dangerous Laurel: To Labor Commissioner tion, exercising their rights un- permitless carry law set to take ef- , whose department der a 200-year-old treaty to send fect Nov. 1. Their around-the-clock recently awarded $928,309 in un- a delegate to the U.S. House. Kim efforts long will be remembered, paid wages, benefits and liquidat- Teehee, a former adviser to Presi- no matter how the petition drive ed damages to Oklahoma workers dent Obama, is an excellent choice. turns out. – nearly double last year’s total. CONTINUED ON PAGE 44 THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 3 Letters

cards]. Its $3 trillion or $4 trillion cost was simply passed on as deficit spend- ing. With the global environ- mental, population and refugee challenges all heating up, the notion of war has become a truly obsolete relic of past eras, though much of humanity does not realize it yet. Nathaniel Batchelder Oklahoma City Editor’s Note: Nathaniel Batchelder is director of the OKC Peace House.

Editor, The Observer: Gov. Kevin Stitt is a kill- er wannabe. On Dec. 7, 2018, he told OKC’s Fox 25 that he supports the death pen- alty “for the worst of the worst.” Editor, The Observer: With help from his caddie Here are a few facts for him to The rich get richer and the poor And tricks that are shabby consider before he orders his first get poorer. In the mean time, in He outscores all contenders by a execution of one of the 50 inmates between time, aren’t they having stroke. left on his death row: fun? Tom Birbilis Fact No. 1: The death penalty They have always wanted to Tulsa does not deter crime or rehabili- privatize everything, including So- tate. cial Security which means putting Editor, The Observer: Fact No. 2: It is racially biased. your security that you paid for in Americans nervous the Trump Fact No. 3: In a number of cases, the hands of wealthy white gam- administration might wage war on the wrong man is executed. blers on Wall Street. Iran in a desperate attempt to win Fact No. 4: It violates all stan- Trump says no GOP health care re-election demand that Congress dards of human rights and decen- plan until after 2020 because they invoke the War Powers Act to en- cy. know it will not be a winning plank sure that the president not launch Fact No. 5: The only reason left in their platform. They are disman- war on his own. Congress must ap- to justify the death penalty is ven- tling anything that will help the prove going to war. geance, which is a horrible lesson working class, including collective Perhaps we should also demand for our children. God said, “Ven- bargaining. that any military action or war be geance is mine.” They are already talking about a pay-as-you-go operation, funded Fact No. 6: Psalm 102: “For the more tax cuts for the wealthy and by whatever “revenue enhance- Lord looked down from his holy corporations, but they are not ment” is required, so as not to in- place on high; from the heavens talking about a living wage for the crease the deficit, or pass on the he beheld the earth; that he might rest of us. debt. hear the groan of the captive and Keep America Great is worse. The G.W. Bush administration set free those condemned to die.” Karen Webb launched the Iraq War and imple- Fact No. 7: There is only one who Portland, OR mented a tax cut almost simulta- has the authority to take human neously, ensuring support for the life and that is the one who created Editor, The Observer: war as nobody was being asked to and gives life. Golfing with Trump is a joke pay for it [hardly anyone objected Virginia Blue Jeans Jenner His score is full of smoke to waging the Iraq War on credit Wagoner

4 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Arnold Hamilton

Luring Teaching Pros Back To The Classroom

Teachers descending on the state Capitol by the doubt because it was easier than deciding who’d thousands last year were clear to emphasize the reap the spoils. So many needs after a decade of two-week walkout wasn’t solely because of a decade financial mismanagement, so many constituencies without an across-the-board pay raise. to potentially disappoint. They were there to represent their students, too – It is true economic storm clouds are building [did casualties of the Legislature’s misplaced priorities you gobble Tums by the fistful during recent stock that favored tax cuts for the wealthy and corpora- market tumult?]. It also is true the state’s budget tions over tax investments in vital state services for remains too dependent on volatile oil and gas rev- the masses. enues. And they were there to demand r-e-s-p-e-c-t for As in all things in life, though, balance is the key. what should be one of society’s most honored pro- You don’t prioritize extra savings when the house fessions: educating future generations, giving them is falling down around you. Oklahoma’s needs are the tools necessary to compete for a slice of the great after a decade of Draconian budgets. American dream. Public education isn’t the only vital state service If statehouse leadership didn’t clearly grasp the that cries out for investment. But it is the state’s situation then, they surely do now. Two years of pay highest priority. This week’s Oklahoma Teacher hikes were not enough to coax many teaching pro- Pipeline Summit in Tulsa highlighted several cre- fessionals back into the schoolhouse. ative ideas for reducing the unconscionable number Way too many classrooms remain staffed by emer- of emergency certified teachers pressed into duty – gency certified teachers who may know the subject 3,038 last year, up from 32 in 2011-12. but don’t have the hundreds of hours of training in How about providing state-funded scholarships, what it takes to educate a diverse student popula- forgiving student loans, waiving teacher certification tion with varying abilities and learning styles. test fees or offering signing bonuses for university- Throwing money at teachers and hoping the prob- prepared educators in exchange for a commitment lems go away – or at least are muted – isn’t smart to teach in Oklahoma public schools? politics or wise public policy. It’s the ingredients for How about restoring the stipend for educators who a ticking time bomb sure to produce more walkouts complete National Board Certification – $5,000 a and ballot box revolutions. year for 10 years? Norman Rep. , Which makes Gov. Kevin Stitt’s obsession with himself a former teacher, authored legislation this eventually amassing a $2 billion Rainy Day Fund all spring to fund the program – the gold standard for the more stupefying. the best and brightest teachers – at a cost to the At present, Oklahoma’s finances are in solid shape state treasury of just $5 million annually. House – best, frankly, since the fallout from the 2008 reces- budget-writers said no. sion. “If we were to do just a few of them – for a fraction The Legislature’s pre-Stitt era hike in gross pro- of the $1 billion we’ve put back into savings – we’d duction taxes coupled with an improving economy not only stop the teacher exodus, we’d begin to at- yielded a state-law-mandated $354.6 million savings tract highly certified teachers from all over the dang account deposit – boosting the fund to more than country,” Rosecrants notes. $800 million. “When we invest in the folk who educate our fu- That wasn’t enough for Stitt. He insisted on leav- ture, we invest in the future of our state. And we can ing leave another $200 million unspent, creating finally move our state into the Top 10 [and beyond] a $1 billion cushion. Lawmakers capitulated – no in public education.” THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 5 COVER STORY

ENDING THE FIX With Next Redistricting On The Horizon, How Can We Ensure All Voices Are Heard At Ballot Box?

BY JOHN WOOD

hen I was on the Guthrie City Council in administration enacted an 1812 law defining unique 2012, I led the charge to redistrict our state senatorial districts, thereby squeezing Federal- small town because the population grew ist representation down to only a few voices. In effect, and our three wards shifted somewhat it threw the majority vote to the Democratic-Repub- overW the last 10 years. I found an OU political science licans. The most famous district from this time re- doctoral student who possessed strong GIS skills sembled a salamander, stretching across the state. A hired to not only help state legislators draw lines, but Boston Gazette cartoon at the time, dubbed it a “ger- also city and county officials. rymander.” The term “gerrymander” originates from the former Today you can even find “Goofy Kicking Donald 19th century Massachusetts Gov. Elbridge Gerry. His Duck,” since its shape resembles the Disney charac-

6 • SEPTEMBER 2019 ters shaping Pennsylvania’s 7th District. Interesting- the Redistricting Majority Project, REDMAP. ly, “Ugly Gerry” is a new typeface where each letter Gerrymandering means politicians listen to party conspicuously resembles a gerrymandered congres- leaders and pressure from outside interests, rather sional district hopefully bringing awareness to this than the people. While the former Massachusetts issue. governor gave gerrymandering its name, Thomas As a political scientist, the process is fascinating, Hofeller is the architect who brought the process into but it can make even the best of our eyes glaze over. the modern era. In Guthrie, I sat down with representatives from Between redistricting cycles, Hofeller travelled na- the three wards and we came up with three differ- tionwide. He presented PowerPoint presentations to ent maps. In the end, the council chose the map I prepare legislators for the next round of redistrict- recommended, which changed the lines the least. It ing in 2010. Friends said he was known for the one- was a positive experience, but I surmise it was only liners – or Hofellerisms – that hinted at privacy and because council seats are nonpartisan in nature and discretion, at a time when the results of redistricting we focused solely on balancing district populations processes often ended up being challenged in court. within plus or minus 3%. REDMAP strategically steered Hofeller on where to Partisan legislative and Congressional seats, how- spend to bolster Republican candidates in Democrat- ever, are a different story. ic-controlled state legislatures from North Carolina In their book How Democracies Die, authors Steven to Pennsylvania, Michigan to Wisconsin, according to Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt argue that today the two Daley. The strategy was simply to flip control of the parties represent “not just different policy approach- state’s legislative chamber, lock in redistricting, and es but different communities, cultures, and values” thus control Congress for the next decade. – exacerbated by reflexively partisan cable news and It worked, in the 2010 midterms, elections rode a political gerrymandering. “red wave” where the GOP captured 63 seats in the Likewise, Norman Ornstein and Thomas Mann find House of Representatives and 680 new seats in state that gerrymandering gives incumbents an unfair ad- legislatures across the country. vantage: “Redistricting is a deeply political process, It was an effective strategy that the Democrats may with incumbents actively seeking to minimize the have adopted had they thought it up first. As the risk to themselves [via bipartisan gerrymanders] or 2020 elections roll around, expect a clash between to gain additional seats for their party [via partisan the GOP’s REDMAP 2.0 led by former Wisconsin gerrymanders].” Gov. Scott Walker and the Democrat’s first attempt They find that gerrymandering ends up costing can- at BLUEMAP 1.0 to catch up, led by former Attor- didates more and increases partisanship as the dis- ney General Eric Holder and Barack Obama who has tricts become more polarized, perpetuating gridlock. made this a post-presidency focus. Seats are also less competitive and tend to be less While the REDMAP architect died in 2018, his leg- proportional. They achieve less descriptive represen- acy lives on. In May, a lawsuit over the 2020 Census tation, too, meaning winners of these districts do not citizenship question cited Hofeller’s analysis and look, act, or even think like the respective district’s other documents, saying “many striking similarities” average voter. Election winners are then determined existed between the unpublished Hofeller analysis more by incumbents who have too much of a hand in and the Commerce Department’s decision to seek a drawing them and less by the voters themselves. citizenship question on the Census. While Donald And voters inherently know this to be true. A sur- Trump lost in the courts, he had indicated that he will vey conducted by the Campaign Legal Center found find a way to add this question if he can. Hofeller’s that 71% of Americans would like the Supreme Court legacy lives on. to define a standard that ends extreme partisan gerry- It’s not just outcomes but intention. For instance, mandering. Unfortunately, the court seems unwilling North Carolina’s Republican majority plan in 2016 in- to do so at this time. cluded a criterion called “partisan advantage.” This REPUBLICAN STRATEGIC DOMINATION led to what had been a largely purple state transition- Currently, of the most gerrymandered districts ing to distinctly red, with Republicans winning 10 of in the , nine in 10 favor Republicans. 13 – or 77% – of U.S. House seats while only garnering What’s more, in districts where politicians perceive 53% of the vote share in the state. that nearly 80% of their constituents favor a certain One North Carolina Republican lawmaker actually political party, there is little incentive to compro- made his intentions clear. mise, driving an increasingly stagnant and dysfunc- “I think electing Republicans is better than electing tional Congress. Democrats,” explained David Lewis, a member of the Salon’s editor-in-chief, Dan Daley, wrote a book state General Assembly’s redistricting committee, called Rat F**cked: The True Story Behind the Secret “So I drew this map to help foster what I think is bet- Plan to Steal America’s Democracy in which he re- ter for the country.” counts an intriguing tale before the 2010 election. It’s He went on to say, “I propose that we draw the maps about how GOP strategists and the Republican State to give a partisan advantage to 10 Republicans and Leadership Committee raised millions of dollars for three Democrats, because I do not believe it’s pos-

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 7 sible to draw a map with 11 Republicans and two of partisan gerrymandering to be tried in the lower Democrats.” courts, but it also may decrease lower courts’ willing- WHAT CAN BE DONE? ness to hear those cases in the first place. Recently, courts explored multiple tests to deal SOONER-STYLE GERRYMANDERING with redistricting fairly. In Oklahoma, there have been various efforts to In 2016, the Wisconsin Supreme Court, for exam- change the redistricting process. During the 2019 ple, decided on what they called the “efficiency gap.” legislative session, Rep. , D-Tulsa, It was a newly defined metric, created to appeal to the failed to make much progress with her bill to create recently retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony an independent redistricting commission. Her bill, Kennedy, who was in search of a convincing method- like many authored by members of the minority party, ology to create district lines. was assigned to the House Rules Committee, which Simply put, the “efficiency gap” counts the number has a reputation for being “where bills go to die.” of votes each party wastes in an election to determine David Blatt, outgoing executive director of the Okla- whether either party enjoyed a systematic advantage homa Policy Institute, surmised in a recent Journal in turning votes into seats. In addition, any vote cast Record column that there are murmurs of activists for a losing candidate is considered wasted, as are all planning an initiative petition campaign for the No- the votes cast for a winning candidate in excess of vember 2020 election. While certainly admirable, any the number needed to win. such effort faces the daunting task of collecting more In addition, an amicus curiae brief filed by the than 178,500 signatures from registered voters with- Brennan Center for Justice in last year’s Gill v. Whit- in a tiny 90-day window to make the ballot. What’s eford case advocated for a “purpose-and-effects test,” worse, that’s 54,000 signatures more now because of which is a standard that “requires proof of both in- the high turnout for the last governor race. vidious intent and a partisan entrenching result that I recently spoke with Rico Smith, a vocal Oklahoma cannot be explained by neutral considerations.” Democrat who unsuccessfully attempted to organize Unfortunately, the court ruled unanimously that a ballot initiative related to independent redistricting the Wisconsin Democrats who sued failed to have earlier this year. standing because they hadn’t demonstrated that “One of the foremost rights we have is the right to their own votes had been diluted because they were vote and petition our government,” he said. “If our of the minority party. voice can’t be respected by process, we don’t really In North Carolina the Legislature’s intentions have that right.” seemed clearer: they had openly discriminated on the Andy Moore, founder of the Oklahoma nonprofit basis of partisan difference to draw line with a clear Let’s Fix This, told me, “While Oklahoma is not as partisan advantage. heavily gerrymandered as North Carolina, creating However, the recent Supreme Court’s most recent an independent redistricting commission would still court cases show that the conservatives on the high be the right thing to do. If [the legislature] draws the court are not willing to define what constitutes par- lines, essentially, they are allowed to pick their own tisan gerrymandering nor determine its legality, voters. The way lines are being drawn now, red dis- thereby permitting state legislatures to continue to tricts get redder and blue districts get bluer – which redistrict with openly biased partisan intent. In June, means there are a lot of wasted votes.” the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 along ideological lines On the bright side, at the University of Central in a single court’s ruling on two consolidated cases Oklahoma, I’m part of a study called: “One Person – – Rucho v. Common Cause and Lamone v. Benisek – One Vote: Addressing Gerrymandering in Oklahoma stating that the issue of partisan gerrymandering is Through Policy and Mathematics.” not judiciable; that is, it is a political issue and not Over the next year, a group of five faculty members something for the court to sort out. in both math and political science, as well as student Now it seems that federal courts are powerless researchers in both disciplines, are working toward to hear challenges to gerrymandering, “closing the developing mathematical techniques to minimize door” to future challenges and leaving the matter bias in districting. solely in state legislative hands. As the political science expert, I will ensure these In a fiery dissent, Justice Elena Kagan penned: methods are informed by current and historical ideas “The practices challenged in these cases imperil our on fairness as it relates to drawing lines and interpret system of government. Part of the court’s role in that their implications. system is to defend its foundations. None is more im- UCO’s group is motivated by the works of Tufts Uni- portant than free and fair elections. versity Professor Moon Duchin, creator of the Metric “Gerrymandering at its most extreme amounts to Geometry and Gerrymandering Group, which focuses ‘rigging elections,’” Kagan said, quoting a 2004 opin- on applying cutting-edge mathematics to detect bias ion from now-retired Justice Kennedy. “The practice in districting with the goal of removing it as much as allows politicians to cherry-pick voters to ensure humanly possible. their re-election.” Oklahoma, by the way, does have an ignored biparti- The Supreme Court’s decision still allows cases san redistricting commission available as a “backup”

8 • SEPTEMBER 2019 if lawmakers and the governor can’t agree on a plan. plied geometry will make all of Oklahoma’s voices With the current Republican supermajority, the relevant again? Legislature and governor can bypass the commission John Wood is an associate professor of political sci- and draw the lines without anyone’s input but theirs ence at the University of Central Oklahoma. The and to their specific advantage. views he expresses are his and not necessarily the Part of Clean Missouri’s plan that garnered sup- university’s. port from 63% of the state’s voters, creates a required independent redistricting commission among other reforms. We need this in Oklahoma, too – led by citi- zens who will not benefit in any way from partisan gerrymandering, allowing them to focus on fairness and transparency instead. With the political preferences of fewer than half of Oklahoma’s population reflected in the state’s cur- rent districts, maybe a statewide petition or even ap-

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 9 Governor Or Emperor? Stitt Takes Aim At Some Of State Government’s Most Experienced Leaders

BY ARNOLD HAMILTON

f the first seven months of Kevin Stitt’s reign as Patterson. Allbaugh abruptly quit, the other two re- governor are any indication, it’s going to be a tired. Nudged? Shoved? bumpy ride. In late August, Stitt took aim at another experienced The owner CEO turned elected official is clearly state leader, trying to stampede longtime higher edu- Iused to barking orders and getting his way. It doesn’t cation Chancellor Glen Johnson into retirement. work like that in government. The State Regents, of course, make that decision, Oklahoma’s founders not only set up separation not the governor. But Stitt resorted to Trumpian tac- of powers similar to the federal system, but also dif- tics by publicly depicting Johnson as an under-per- fused control over state agencies – working to limit forming hanger-on who needs to get out of the way of the power any one politician could wield. progress. The Legislature’s poobahs, of course, gave Stitt vast Clueless. And dead wrong. new authority this year over five of the state’s largest Yes, Johnson’s served for nearly 40 years in a pub- agencies, including firing and hiring their top lead- lic capacity – lawmaker, House speaker, Southeast- ers, no matter what duly appointed citizen-oversight ern Oklahoma State University president and higher boards think. education chancellor. But he’s done so with great Result? Three highly-regarded leaders already are skill and collegiality and without a whiff of funny out: Corrections’ , Health Care Authori- business. ty’s Becky Pasternik-Ikard and Transportation’s Mike Indeed, his last 12 years as chancellor arguably have been his finest, helping keep the state’s colleges and universities afloat – and accessible to as many students as possible – amid Draconian budget cuts, 26% since the 2008 recession. Sadly, Stitt’s broadside is yet another sign of who has his ear: deep-pocketed, anti-government ideo- logues [think: Charles Koch and his billionaire net- work] that despise any public program that doesn’t socialize their private business losses or enhance their profits. Taking aim at Johnson dovetails with a decades-old rightwing talking point: higher education is a bastion of – gasp! – liberal professors working around-the- clock to create a socialist utopia that would make Karl Marx proud. Of course there are political liberals on college campuses, just like in Oklahoma neighborhoods. There are plenty of conservatives, too. And moder- ates. Not to mention an increasing abundance none- of-the-aboves. Let’s be real: Invoking the “L” word in red state Oklahoma is designed to frighten, not enlighten. And to conceal what’s really happening: some corporat- ists and carbon barons don’t want to encourage criti- cal thinking on campuses, they want to control the dialogue, including what’s taught and how. Stitt’s bid to depose Johnson follows another ham- CONTINUED ON PAGE 15 10 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Oklahoma, Opioids And Oil

BY MARK Y.A. DAVIES

In Oklahoma’s case against Johnson & Johnson dents of the universities. in relation to the opioid crisis, Oklahoma Attorney The oil and gas companies attempted to squash General Mike Hunter used an argument that could dissent by academics who were exposing and telling also be applied to Oklahoma’s oil and gas compa- the truth about wastewater-induced earthquakes and nies and how they are deceiving us about the long who openly resist the lies being told by the fossil term and lethal effects of their production processes fuel industry about climate change. and their product for Oklahomans and all of human The attorney general described Johnson & John- civilization. son’s conduct in misleading the public about the ad- Like the pharmaceutical companies, the oil and dictive nature of opioids as “devious and diabolical.” gas companies have deceived us for self-profit that Attorney General Hunter, congratulations on your has led to grave societal harm. work to hold the pharmaceutical industry account- They have deceived us about wastewater-induced able for its role in the opioid crisis in Oklahoma. earthquakes, supported merchants of doubt to lie Congratulations on the verdict that Johnson & to us about the reality of our climate crisis, and at- Johnson is to pay $572 million for the damage it has tempted to block any meaningful regulations on the done to the people of Oklahoma. environmental impact of their industry. When will you be taking Devon Energy, Chesa- The oil and gas companies have even sought to peake Energy, Continental Resources, and others to weaken academic freedom at our colleges and uni- court to hold them accountable for their devious and versities by buying university and college presidents diabolical role in our climate crisis and for the mil- and in more than one case giving them millions of lions of dollars of damages from earthquakes that dollars in direct payments to serve as paid directors their industry unleashed on our state? on their boards. Mark Y.A. Davies is the Wimberly Professor of So- In other cases, oil and gas companies influence cial and Ecological Ethics and director of the World Boards of Regents and Boards of Trustees to simply House Institute for Social and Ecological Responsi- place oil and gas company executives as the presi- bility at .

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 11 A Public Health Crisis That No Longer Can Be Ignored

BY BOB JACKMAN

ho would have guessed Oklahoma – the seeking to stay competitive in football. The head great state of Bob Kerr, Will Rogers, and coaches’ salaries at OU and OSU are a combined $10 presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren million for the 2019 season. – would have three out of the five towns Epidemiologists aren’t certain what is causing the withW lowest life expectancy in the U.S.? extraordinary levels of premature deaths. Scientists Stilwell is lowest with 56.2 years, Checotah 58.1 concede, however, polluted air, land, and surface and and Eufaula 59.5 – compared with a national average subsurface waters might be part of Stilwell’s public life expectancy of 78.8 years. health puzzle. Wouldn’t that demand immediate sci- Moreover, Oklahoma at 75.7 years has the nation’s entific, environmental investigations? fourth lowest life expectancy. The public health crisis serves as a graphic remind- These facts from the federal Centers for Disease er that special interests – Big Oil and Big Ag, just to Control and the Johnson Foundation were published name two – worked hand-in-glove with former state last September in The Observer, the Tahlequah Daily Attorney General Scott Pruitt to roll back environ- Press, Tulsa World and nationally – yet little has been mental protections. done since to address the crisis, according to Stil- Rural Oklahoma’s volunteer groups – Green Coun- well’s mayor. try Guardians fighting the poultry industry’s inva- Not one state public health doctor or water or air sion, southeastern Oklahomans battling to save pris- chemist has shown up. tine Kiamichi Basin waters and others – know that Quite a contrast to how Oklahoma reacts when man-made toxic air and waters are part of our grow- 12 • SEPTEMBER 2019 ing public health problems. Should death by environ- The plant has 31 groundwater monitoring wells, 29 mental poisoning be classified second-degree man- of which were polluted above federal advisory levels, slaughter? according to samples collected between Jan. 26, 2010 Polluters escape prosecution using – or misusing – and Aug. 29, 2017. laws and courts, and bought governments. Plus, com- From that evidence, be assured the coal burn- plicit industries drive rural activists away by crimi- ing plant’s unlined ash pond leaks into BR Aquifer nalizing resistance and tying legal opposition up in ground water and into nearby Flint Creek Lake which costly, lengthy court battles they cannot bear. flows down into scenic Illinois River Basin of Okla- As one pollution victim put it, “You get the justice homa. you can afford!” The man-made toxicants endangering humans, air, Don’t expect help from first-year Gov. Kevin Stitt, land and water in northeastern Oklahoma are all but embedded with Big Oil, Big Chicken and the right- unregulated – supersized poultry houses, the Flint to-harm Farm Bureau – three environmental blind Creek power plant, and mercury from 10 regional mice that wield enormous political power. The gover- coal power plants’ smokestacks. nor has not uttered a word of concern about climate Mercury, an airborne carcinogen carried by wind change. and rain, is suspected in Stilwell’s low life expectan- So, is Oklahoma exempt from global warming? Or cy. Note: Power Plants converted to natural gas still pollution? leave polluted soil and ground water from years of Consider the case of Decatur, AR. It sits near the burning coal. Oklahoma border, next to Spavinaw Creek … which Sadly and disconcertingly, Oklahoma lawmakers flows west, filling two of Tulsa’s main water sources: have not authorized the creation of county-managed Eucha and Spavinaw lakes. “ground water districts” – a wise course of action tak- Recently, Gentry, AR, revealed that wastewater from en by adjoining states. Simmons Food’s new chicken processing plant – pro- This omission enabled special interest-controlled cessing 420 chickens per hour – will be sent to near- state agencies to rubber-stamp 250 permits in 2018 by Decatur for disposal. for massive new ammonia-producing poultry houses Was the city of Tulsa consulted? Will Simmons’ in Green Country. waste end up in Spavinaw Creek? Will Tulsa’s 2003 This is symptomatic of state leadership’s approach settlement agreement with Arkansas’ poultry produc- to many rural Oklahoma issues. Think: Epic Char- ers regarding Spavinaw Basin’s clean waters be en- ter Schools [under investigation]. Or a dismissive at- forced? titude that non-metro counties are just vacant lots Both Arkansas and Oklahoma farms spread thou- that can be filled with unregulated industries, wreck- sands of tons of chicken litter on soil. Heavy rains ing county roads and bridges and the environment. rapidly leach the waste down into the Boone-Rubi- Or the fact five rural-regional hospitals closed since doux [BR] freshwater karst aquifer. 2010. This aquifer supplies many water wells in north- Medicaid expansion is one smart solution to short- eastern Oklahoma’s Delaware and Adair counties. life expectancy issue, but it is not enough. Oklaho- BR karst-aquifer’s ground water flows are intercon- ma also needs to aggressively address public health nected with surface water streams and creeks shared protection measures – taking on inhumane water, air by Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri – and help fill and land polluters and their elected enablers. Spavinaw, Grand and Tenkiller lakes. Further, state Scientific tests found the poultry producers’ chick- leaders need to en litter contains ammonia, arsenic, metals and other quadruple fund- toxicants absorbable in plants and humans. North- ing for community west Arkansas and Northeast Oklahoma together public health pro- produce over 500,000 tons per year – and growing – of grams, and under- this feathered litter crap. write emergency Its all but invisible dust particles settle in bodies of high-tech chemi- water, homes, schools and children’s lungs – not to cal testing of water mention bees and beasts. and air quality in Tulsa officials might ask whether Decatur’s waste- rural counties with water treatment plant has EPA environment permits. the poorest health But, hey, Big Ag is free and exempt from protective outcomes. environmental regulations. This is a public Want a new definition of hell? How about life down- health crisis that wind from eastern Oklahoma’s 600-by-60-foot poul- can no longer be try houses, each filled with 50,000 forever defecating ignored! chickens. Bob Jackman is a Meanwhile, the Flint Creek coal-burning power Tulsa-based petro- plant sits at Gentry’s edge, six miles from Oklahoma. leum geologist. THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 13 Battle Over Southeast Oklahoma Water Heats Back Up

BY MIKE W. RAY

court hearing scheduled for early August cial, industrial and wholesale customers inside and in a pending lawsuit that contests a water- outside its city limits. use permit the Oklahoma Water Resources Treated water is distributed through 3,650 miles of Board [OWRB] issued to Oklahoma City al- waterlines ranging in size from two inches in diam- mostA two years ago was delayed until late September. eter to 72 inches. State District Judge Michael DeBerry re-set the Besides its Oklahoma City utility customers, the hearing for 10 a.m. Sept. 25 at the Pushmataha Coun- city provides retail individual water service to resi- ty Courthouse in Antlers. dents of The Village and Warr Acres. Seven individuals who own land or businesses The Oklahoma City Water Conservation Plan for along the Kiamichi River filed suit in Pushmataha 2017 reported that wholesale drinking water service County District Court on Nov. 8, 2017, asking the is provided to Bethany, Blanchard, Edmond, El Reno, court to “provide judicial review of and overturn” the Moore, Mustang, Newcastle, Norman, Piedmont, Yu- water-use permit that the OWRB granted to OKC on kon, Canadian County Water Authority, Deer Creek Oct. 10, 2017. Rural Water Corp., and . The permit authorizes the capital to siphon 115,000 Private raw water service is provided to Oklahoma acre-feet of water – almost 37.5 billion gallons per year Gas & Electric Co. [for its Mustang and Seminole – from the Kiamichi River and Sardis Lake, which is power plants], Lattimore Material Corp. and Cedar fed by a tributary of that river. Valley Nursery. Representing Oklahoma City in the lawsuit are Ida- Oklahoma City also supplies raw water to Atoka, bel attorney Kevin T. Sain and special counsel Brian Coalgate, Pottawatomie County Rural Water District Max Nazarenus from Denver, CO. The water board is No. 3, and to Shawnee. represented by its deputy general counsel, Sara Gib- In addition, the McGee Creek Authority sells raw son. water to Atoka Rural Water District No. 4. Representing the seven plaintiffs is Norman attor- The McGee Creek Authority is a public trust estab- ney Kevin Kemper, who held an impromptu public lished on Aug. 1, 1977 to develop, operate and main- gathering outside the Antlers courthouse on Aug. 8 tain the McGee Creek Reservoir and to provide a mu- and accused the defendants of concealing research nicipal and industrial water supply for participants compiled by Oklahoma State University of in-stream of the McGee Creek Authority [MCA] in central and water flows. southern Oklahoma. Those include the Oklahoma OKC HAS SIX LAKES City Water Utilities Trust [OCWUT], the City of Okla- Oklahoma City has six sources of surface water: homa City, the City of Atoka and Atoka County. Lakes Hefner, Draper and Overholser in OKC, Canton A MAJOR REVENUE PRODUCER Lake in Blaine and Dewey counties in northwestern Oklahoma City’s water system is a major revenue Oklahoma, plus Atoka Lake and McGee Creek Lake producer for the municipality, the most recent an- in Atoka County in southeastern Oklahoma. nual report shows. “Combined, we have 211,667 acre-feet of water Total assets for the OKC Water Utilities Trust [Con- available” annually, Chris Browning, director of Okla- solidated Trust] grew to $1.7 billion, an increase of homa City’s Utilities Department, said in a 2017 in- more than $123 million, in Fiscal Year 2018 [July 1, terview. That’s almost 69 billion gallons per year [an 2017 – June 30, 2018]. Assets of the Consolidated acre-foot is equivalent to 325,851 gallons]. “We be- Trust – which includes blended operations of the OC- lieve our current supplies will be sufficient until at WUT and the MCA – increased $110 million in Fiscal least 2060,” Browning said, adding that city officials Year 2017. anticipate metro-area population growth of 1.5% an- Total liabilities for the Consolidated Trust reached nually. $803 million during FY ‘18. A WATER WHOLESALER, RETAILER Thus, Consolidated Trust assets exceeded liabili- In the interview he gave 2½ years ago, Browning ties by almost $914 million, an increase in the Trust’s said OKC delivers water to a combined population of net position of $21.65 million over the previous fiscal approximately 1.4 million people. Oklahoma City sup- year. plied more than 33 billion gallons of water in 2016 to FINANCIAL POSITION IMPROVED 208,670 accounts that included residential, commer- “The overall financial position of the Consolidated 14 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Trust improved” during FY ‘18, accountants reported. eral clean water and drinking water projects since Current assets increased by $41 million, cash and 2009,” Browning related. investments increased $39 million, and accounts re- OCWUT bonds held a AAA credit rating from Stan- ceivable increased by $2.23 million “due primarily dard & Poor’s, and a credit rating of Aaa from Moody’s, to rate increases and timing of customer payments.” at the end of FY 2018. [The Oklahoma City Council in November 2017 ap- WATER LOSSES QUANTIFIED proved a four-year program that included a new tiered In its 2017 Water Conservation Plan, Oklahoma City rate plan for residential and commercial utility cus- indicated its water losses were 13.8%. The American tomers that went into effect in January 2018.] In FY Water Works Association encourages a standard of 2017, current assets increased by more than $46 mil- 10% or less for “non-revenue” water. lion, while cash and investments increased by more In an effort to reduce its water losses, OCWUT ap- than $37 million. proved a $1.16 billion capital improvements plan for The OCWUT, which operates and maintains Okla- fiscal years 2018-22. As part of that program, approxi- homa City’s water and wastewater utility systems, is mately 20 miles of small-diameter water mains are self-supporting; it does not receive tax funding, the scheduled to be replaced each year. annual report states. Also, the OCWUT and the MCA SARDIS, ATOKA, LARA EXPENSES both are, as a general rule, exempt from federal and Non-operating expenses of the OKC Water Utilities state income taxes. Trust in the past two years included $5 million in Operating revenues climbed to $267.68 million in contributions to the Sardis and Atoka conservation FY ‘18, an increase of $9.65 million over FY ‘17 and projects fund. $17.29 million more than operating revenues in FY In 2017 the OCWUT made a pact with the Chicka- ‘16. Operating expenses last year totaled $170 mil- saw and Choctaw nations and the state of Oklahoma lion. That resulted in net operating income of $97.6 to create the Atoka and Sardis conservation projects million. fund “for the benefit of Atoka and Sardis Lake areas,” Operational expenses increased 3.8% last year, the annual report explains. largely because of higher maintenance and operation As of June 30, 2018, the fund held $5 million de- expenses, including higher electric costs on the 60- posited by the OCWUT and a $5 million receivable inch, 100-mile long pipeline that conveys water from from the two tribes, according to the annual report. Atoka Lake in southeastern Oklahoma to Draper Lake The OKC Water Utilities Trust also reimbursed the in Oklahoma City with the aid of six pump stations. A Lake Atoka Reservation Association nearly $481,000 17.2-mile pipeline extends from McGee Creek reser- during FYs 2017 and 2018 for unspecified expenses. voir to the Atoka reservoir. LARA was created in 1974 “to administer use of the BOND DEBTS water reservoir, its resources and facilities.” The Consolidated Trust’s outstanding debt totaled Mike W. Ray spent 45 years as a journalist on news- $669 million on June 30, 2018. That included $483.66 papers in Oklahoma and Texas, two years in public million in revenue bonds, payable by the OCWUT and relations with Southwestern Bell Telephone, plus 19 the MCA, that are supported by pledged water and years as a media director at the Oklahoma House of wastewater revenues, plus $173 million in notes pay- Representatives. able to the Oklahoma Water Resources Board. The Editor’s Note: For more coverage of this legal show- OWRB “provided partial funding to OCWUT for sev- down, see the July 2019 Observer. Emperor?

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 handed effort at empire building by the first-year gov- ence is not without merit. Remember, Oklahoma re- ernor. He now wants to create a Washington, DC of- lies heavily on federal tax dollars – think: military in- fice to represent Oklahoma’s interests in the beltway. stallations, the FAA, the National Weather Center and This is nothing new, of course. Former Gov. David highways, just to name a few. Walters did so back in the early 1990s, but his suc- What makes it harder to swallow, though, is that cessor, , eliminated it. just last month he issued an executive order barring There’s a compelling argument that opening an state agencies from hiring outside lobbyists. Oklahoma office is, in fact, duplicative because the Yet, now, he wants to deploy state tax dollars to lob- state already has seven taxpayer-financed, full-time by the federal government? What’s good for the goose Washington-based representatives: two senators and … five members of Congress. Each with a sizeable staff, Oklahomans concerned about too much power in by the way. too few hands should keep an eagle eye on this ad- Still, Stitt’s idea to increase the state’s DC pres- ministration.

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 15 EPIC FAIL BY DAVID BLATT

t has not, to put it mildly, been a good couple withdrawal of low-performing students to help im- months for David Chaney and Ben Harris, co- prove its performance measures. founders of Epic Charter Schools, Oklahoma’s A week later, an Oklahoman article revealed that largest virtual charter school. over one-quarter of Epic’s students were automati- ILaunched in 2011, Epic has enjoyed explosive cally disenrolled for missing 10 consecutive school growth. It enrolled over 21,000 students in 2018-19, days, more than double the statewide average, a pat- making it larger than the state’s fifth largest school tern that also artificially aids the school’s assess- district. It operates online programs statewide and ment on annual A-F report cards. Even so, Epic high three centers that blend virtual and in-person learn- school received an F in overall performance on their ing in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. 2018-19 school report card, while the middle school Epic’s growth has been fueled by aggressive mar- earned a C and elementary school earned a D. keting campaigns, bonuses and gifts to help recruit Next came a press release from state Sen. Ron students, and teacher contracts with bonuses that al- Sharp questioning why Epic’s blended charter school low its highest-paid teachers to reach annual pay of received state funding allocations for grade levels the over $100,000. This growth has now attracted intense school has acknowledged it did not provide instruc- scrutiny of its business model and operations. tion for over two years. In June, Oklahoma Watch reported on a lawsuit Then most dramatically, in July, the Oklahoma filed by several Epic teachers alleging that the school State Bureau of Investigation filed an affidavit against has, for years, encouraged teachers to push for the Chaney and Harris alleging they embezzled more

16 • SEPTEMBER 2019 than $10 million between 2013 and 2018. The main safeguards. accusations involve enrolling “ghost students,” some We can expect the 2020 legislative session to in- of whom are also home-schooled or attending private clude additional reform measures, including efforts schools. Epic is also being investigated by the FBI to either abolish the Statewide Virtual Charter School and federal Department of Education. Board or place it under the authority of the State De- Chaney and Harris have benefitted through their partment of Education. control of Epic Youth Services, a for-profit affiliate We are also seeing more public school districts that receives 10% of Epic’s total revenue to provide develop their own virtual alternatives. Recently, the its management services – an amount now exceeding Cooperative Council for Oklahoma School Adminis- $11 million a year. tration launched the Blended Learning Framework, So far no criminal charges have been filed and Epic which includes guidelines for selecting and training has strenuously denied all accusations of wrongdo- teachers, recommendations for identifying students ing. likely to succeed in a blended/virtual environment, Until recently, the Legislature and State Depart- and guidelines for choosing beneficial technology re- ment of Education have been slow to enact appropri- sources. ate oversight and accountability over Epic and other High demand for virtual and blended education sug- virtual charter schools, but this year saw passage of gests they fill a need to serve students who don’t re- HB 1395 that will hold virtual charter schools to the spond well in traditional classroom settings. But the same financial reporting requirements as brick and lesson of Epic suggests that when schools are oper- mortar schools. ated as profit-making ventures, the interest of stu- It also requires charter management organizations dents won’t come first. like Epic Youth Services to detail how it spends mon- David Blatt is Executive Director of Oklahoma Policy ey on behalf of the school and adds some additional Institute; okpolicy.org. The 411 On SQ 802 Petition Drive

BY CARLY PUTNAM

he initiative to extend health coverage for able to limit or roll back the expansion passed by vot- some 200,000 Oklahomans kicked off July ers. 31. That’s when Oklahomans Decide Health- Once the signatures are collected, the Secretary care began collecting signatures for SQ 802, of State, state Attorney General, and state Supreme Twhich would put Medicaid expansion to a vote of the Court will count the signatures to ensure they meet people. If the group is successful, Oklahomans will the state’s requirements and write the ballot title. get to vote in 2020 on whether the state will expand There’s also a period for legal challenges. After that, Medicaid. Governor Kevin Stitt will determine which ballot SQ WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? 802 will appear on, or call a special election. Oklahomans Decide Healthcare has until Oct. 28 to HOW DID WE GET HERE? collect at least 178,000 signatures – 15% of the votes Oklahoma is one of just 14 states that hasn’t ex- cast in the most recent gubernatorial election – and panded their Medicaid programs to include low-in- signatories must be registered voters in the state of come working-age adults, who otherwise have virtu- Oklahoma. Organizers have said they intend to col- ally no health insurance options. Thirty-six states lect more than 200,000 signatures, giving themselves and Washington, DC have expanded Medicaid. a cushion in case some signatures are thrown out. The seriously considered Ballot initiatives in Oklahoma can change statute expansion for the first time in 2019, when SB 605 or amend the state Constitution, with the latter re- became the first Medicaid expansion bill heard in a quiring more signatures to make it onto the ballot. legislative committee. Although the bill passed out Oklahomans Decide Healthcare wants to put Medic- of committee unanimously, it died when it was not aid expansion in the state Constitution rather than heard before the next legislative deadline. simply changing statute. If enough signatures are The ballot initiative process in Oklahoma formally collected and voters approve the measure, Medicaid began in April 2019 when two Oklahoma women, Kel- expansion will be added to the Oklahoma Constitu- ly Smalley and Erin Taylor, filed a petition with the tion, which will make it difficult for the legislature to Oklahoma Secretary of State, which designated the tamper with it. petition SQ 802. In the four states where Medicaid expansion passed Although the Oklahoma Council for Public Affairs via ballot initiative, the change was only statutory, filed a legal challenge shortly thereafter, alleging that and those states’ legislatures and governors were SQ 802 was unconstitutional and the gist was inad-

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 17 equate, the state Supreme Court disagreed. On June pansion and legislative expansion could pass. If the 19, the state Supreme Court cleared the way for a Legislature passes an expansion bill, the expansion Medicaid expansion ballot initiative to move forward. initiative will still be put on the ballot if it gathers WHAT ABOUT GOV. STITT’S PLAN? enough signatures and meets other legal require- The ballot initiative may not be the only expansion ments. effort under consideration in the fall of 2019 or in In this situation, if the initiative passes, it should 2020. Gov. Kevin Stitt has said he expects to be able supersede the legislative expansion because the ini- to unveil a customized Medicaid expansion plan in tiative is a constitutional amendment and the legisla- late summer or early fall 2019. The Legislature will tive expansion would be statutory. then take up the plan in the 2020 Legislative session. Carly Putnam is Policy Director at Oklahoma Policy There is a possibility that both the initiative ex- Institute; okpolicy.org. Interim Studies Tackle Children’s Issues

BY JOE DORMAN

ver the summer months, Oklahoma lawmak- sively allow a child to be abused. However, the law ers are dedicated to preparing for the up- can often ignore the reality of an abusive household coming legislative session. One way they do where, for instance, a mother is abused and essen- this is through the interim study process. tially terrorized by a husband or a boyfriend. OEach lawmaker can request an official hearing Furthermore, there have been some instances through a legislative committee to review a law or where the actively abusive adult receives a lighter policy that impacts the state. The hearings are sched- sentence than the parent witnessing the abuse and uled through the committee chair most closely asso- failing to protect the child. Currently, the “failure ciated with the issue and time is dedicated to hearing to protect” statute allows a lifetime sentence to be presentations from speakers who are experts on the brought against a person, which is usually more than subject matter. twenty years of incarceration. The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy [OICA] This is a complicated issue and we do not current- is pleased to have worked directly with lawmakers ly have enough research in Oklahoma to fully grasp to request several different interim studies. We are how this law is being used. It is estimated that a few awaiting a final confirmation from Senate committee dozen individuals, mostly women, have been charged chairs on which studies will be heard, but we are con- with “failure to protect” and been sentenced. fident that many will proceed. We would first call upon funding to be delivered to Two subject-areas where OICA is excited to have an the Department of Corrections to update their system active role in are child nutrition and laws that impact and provide a clear picture of who these people are both adult and child victims of domestic violence. and under what circumstances they were prosecuted. I was happy to sit down recently with the staff from For those who have received a punishment under this Hunger Free Oklahoma to delve into the topic of and other domestic abuse crimes, we will call on poli- child nutrition and summer feeding programs, issues cy changes to better fund counseling for inmates. For I have discussed in previous columns. We are hop- those who have turned their lives around, we support ing to have organizations that engage on these sub- reuniting them with their children when that is safe jects participate in interim studies addressing why to occur. We also want a fair timeline on the sentence Oklahoma ranks last in the nation on feeding chil- to be given in association with counseling. dren who qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition As- Of course, we will continue to remind parents of sistance Program [SNAP], what improvements have their moral responsibility to protect their child from been made, and what more can be done. My thanks abuse, even at the risk of their own safety. Some- go out to Sen. Paul Scott, R-Duncan, and Rep. Toni times, the only solution is to leave a bad situation. If Hasenbeck, R-Lawton, for requesting discussions on you or someone you know is a victim of abuse, call this important issue. the Oklahoma Safe Line 1-800-522-SAFE [7233] to Another study, requested in the House by Rep. speak with an advocate. The first step to securing , will look at “failure to protect” laws and safety is to get help and into a safe location. legislation in Oklahoma and other states. “Failure to We hope these studies will lead to positive changes protect” laws are used to prosecute parents or guard- for Oklahoma. We will keep you posted about their ians of children who witness child-abuse but do not progress. stop it. Former state Rep. Joe Dorman is CEO of the Okla- This is an important concept – no adult should pas- homa Institute for Child Advocacy.

18 • SEPTEMBER 2019 PUBLIC FORUM

Fuels From Hell BY BOB ROUNSAVELL

If you’ve not read Thomas Friedman’s Hot, Flat, above ground, are endlessly renewable, and produce and Crowded, I highly recommend it – and do it as no harmful emissions.” soon as possible. We were fortunate in getting a The current Administration probably doesn’t want copy at a library book sale, a primary source for us. to hear the following scientific observation. But here Friedman is an excellent writer, because he’s full goes. of insights on the current world. Hence, he makes Scientists at the Pew Center on Climate Change profound statements for us to consider. studied the precise relationship between expanded In pages 28 and 29 appears the following: “The greenhouse gas emissions and global warming and Industrial Revolution gave a whole new prominence issued their report entitled “Climate Change 101.” to what Rochelle Lefkowitz, president of Pro-Media According to them, global average temperatures Communications and an energy buff, calls ‘fuels have experienced natural shifts throughout recorded from hell’ –coal, oil, and natural gas. All these come history. In the Northern Hemisphere the climate from underground, are exhaustible, and emit CO2 has varied from a relatively warm period between and other pollutants when they are burned for the 11th and the 15th centuries to a period of much transportation, heating and industrial use. In con- cooler temperatures between the 17th and the trast are ‘fuels from heaven’ – wind, hydroelectric, middle of the 19th century. tidal, biomass, and solar power. These all come from Noting the rapid rise of global temps during the

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 19 PUBLIC FORUM late 20th century, they conclude that natural vari- greenest country will not be a selfless act of charity ability, however, cannot account for it. There is a or naive moral indulgence because it is now a core new factor – the human factor, i.e. human activity. national security and economic interest. We are largely responsible for vastly increased There is a mental exercise we can go through. We emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse ask ourselves the kind of America we’d like to be – gases, principally due to the burning of fossil fuels one addicted to oil, thereby fueling the worst autocra- coal and oil, as well as deforestation, large-scale cies in the world; a country with a government that cattle-grazing and our grilled steaks, agriculture and relaxes energy and efficiency standards on cars? I our high incidence of obesity. think not. In their report, “scientists refer to what has been How about the America Donald Trump is creating happening in the earth’s atmosphere over the past for us? An America spotlighted as the last holdout at century as the ‘enhanced greenhouse effect.’” international environmental conferences, losing the According to David Rothkopf, an energy expert and world’s respect. visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment, “We re- We haven’t far to go before we will be completely invented ourselves as a continental industrial power out of the good loop. Therefore I believe we better get in the 20th century and then as a global information back into the good loop because the world is in great society in the 21st century.” He goes on to empha- need of our help at this moment in history. size that the present situation is requiring America Bob Rounsavell currently serves as chair of the for its own sake, as well as the world’s, to reinvent Eastern Flyer Coalition of communities between ourselves one more time. Tulsa and Oklahoma City. His wife Maria serves as According to him, making America the world’s his editor. Bad Joke On Farmers Who Supported Trump

BY GARY EDMONDSON

Last month, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Per- They’re stressed and they’re scared. Family farmers due proved himself tone deaf at a “listening session” are experiencing the real consequences of an esca- where he was hearing complaints from Minnesota lating trade war and rapidly disappearing markets.’” farmers whose existence is threatened by the Trump More to the point was a tweet directed to the presi- Trade War. dent and circulating last week from a Lexington, NE, As Mary Papenfuss of Huffington Post reported, farmer, as reported by KNOP-TV in North Platte. Perdue decided to lighten the mood with some hu- In a detailed outline of Trump farm failures, Don mor: “‘What do you call two farmers in a basement? Batie’s fourth suggestion was for Trump to maybe A whine cellar.’ let his Ag secretary know “that farmers are not in a “As he pounded the table in mirth, some of the joking mood when facing financial ruin because of thousands of farmers at the event laughed nervously YOUR government’s action. Most farm operators [ac- – which was followed by boos.” tual farmers, not landowners] are, or will be, having The reaction from farmers was predictable: “‘It difficult discussions with their banks.” was definitely not an appropriate thing to say,’ Min- Christopher R. Martin, pointed out in an April is- nesota Farmers Union President Gary Wertish told sue of People’s World that, “Trump’s misguided tariff HuffPost. ‘It was very insensitive. It took everyone wars and scuttling of NAFTA have exacerbated crop by surprise. He doesn’t understand what farmers are prices that were already slumping, especially corn, dealing with, and he’s the head of the Department of soybeans, and wheat. This year, farm loan delin- Agriculture. He’s supposed to be working for farm- quencies have hit a nine-year high.” ers.’” Jason Easley of Politicus USA wrote in June, The HuffPost story continued, “Rep. Angie Craig, “Trump’s trade war has become a president-made D-MN, who attended Farmfest, was taken aback by disaster for red states as Sen. Mike Rounds, R-SD, Perdue’s characterization of farmers as whiners. said South Dakota had lost $500 million” in the “‘I’m sitting down with farmers across my district trade war. and I know for a fact that they are not whining … These dire conditions were before Trump’s pre-G7

20 • SEPTEMBER 2019 PUBLIC FORUM outburst ratcheted up the trade war with China – the the farmers left today are shrewd small independent status of which varies according to scary inconsis- businessmen and businesswomen. Treat us that tencies. [Some suggest Trump’s trying to crash the way, don’t pander to us. All we ask is an even play- economy to make the Fed lower interest rates so ing field. Don’t tell us one thing and do another. that he can pay less on his own loans.] Listen to us, not the folks inside the beltway.” Batie’s tweet from the Heartland takes on even Midwestern Republicans have yet to stand up for more urgency: their constituents, some of whom are reaching the “1. Fix the trade issue with China today! Not soon, end of their patience. TODAY! More recently Reuters reported, “The U.S. Agricul- “2. Rejoin the [Trans Pacific Partnership], now ture Department said on Wednesday it had pulled all the [Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for staff from an annual crop tour after an employee was Trans-Pacific Partnership]. While I know you do not threatened, and three sources said the threat came like multilateral trade agreements, they are better over the phone from an angry farmer. than no trade agreements. “Farmers have complained this month that a gov- “3. Tell the oil industry to take a hike and stop ernment crop report did not reflect damage from his- issuing [Renewable Fuel Standard] waivers. And tell toric flooding this spring. They are also frustrated EPA to reassign the waivers already granted to other over unsold crops due to the trade war with China, refiners, like the law says to do. In other words, falling farm income and tighter credit conditions.” FOLLOW THE LAW!” [What a concept for our scoff- I understand the frustration. Someone lies to you law prexy!] to get your vote and then sets about destroying your This refers to waivers Trump granted to refineries livelihood. in order to cripple the bio-fuel industry in favor of But being a Democrat, I neither condone nor incite his fossil fuel favorites. violence. That is another trait of our lying Republi- Batie’s fourth suggestion referred to that come- can president. dian [or just plain joke] Sonny Perdue. Number Five Duncan resident Gary Edmondson is chair of the tried to inform the uneducable Donald Trump, “All Stephens County Democratic Party. Trump’s Dependency On Racism BY MARK Y.A. DAVIES There seems to be at least three forms of racism denounce white supremacy and his use of racist and that are fueling Trump’s current hold on power: xenophobic rhetoric. First, you have the hardcore racist white suprema- Those in the third category likely do not view cists. Not every Trump supporter is a hardcore racist themselves as racist, but their continuing support white supremacist, but every hardcore racist white of Trump and his agenda that is supported by white supremacist is a Trump supporter [these are the supremacists is, in effect, racist in that it perpetu- David Dukes, Richard Spencers, Steve Kings, and ates experiences of injustice and violence for im- Stephen Millers of the world and their followers]. migrants, refugees, and persons of color in general. Second, you have those who primarily express Included in this third form of racism are many cor- their racism through a willingness to use race, racial porate supporters of Trump who overlook or tolerate divisions, xenophobia, and racism in general to gain his racism in order to continue to reap the rewards power. These persons may not understand them- of low taxes and fewer regulations. selves to be white supremacists, but they are more These three forms of racism – the first overt, the than willing to use racism as a political tool to gain, second crassly utilitarian and Machiavellian, and maintain, and expand political power [Trump himself the third more covert and silent, all worked together and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell are at to bring Trump to power, and Trump needs all three the very least representatives of this form of racism]. forms of racism to remain as president. Third, you have those who may reject white su- Persons who express the first two forms of racism premacy and who may not like Trump’s overt use of are for the most part a lost cause in terms of poten- racism and xenophobia to gain and maintain power, tial conversion, but there may be some hope that but they have decided that Trump’s policies on tax- some persons in the third group may have had too es, regulations, abortion, and perhaps some other much of the overt and utilitarian forms of racism to social issues are enough to make up for his use of remain silent much longer. racial division and unwillingness to consistently Even if that is not the case, as long as Democrats

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 21 PUBLIC FORUM and progressive independents stay united in their ly reduced, but still rapacious in its own rite. But resistance to Trump, there is a path that leads us the sheer volume and sophistication of the weapons beyond Trump and his racist agenda. we produce are still astounding. Mark Y.A. Davies is the Wimberly Professor of So- We are very, very good at finding new ways and cial and Ecological Ethics and director of the World new mechanisms to kill one another. But as a House Institute for Social and Ecological Responsi- sportsman, I couldn’t imagine hauling a 105mm field bility at Oklahoma City University. artillery piece out to my deer stand. I’m not going to get into a moral discussion about killing. We humans have always behaved like my father-in-law’s goats: we all keep finding new ways to We Are Children kill ourselves. I accept that because we have always done it. All of recorded history highlights war as the most significant activity of a society. Wars are mass killings brought about by organized Of Our Earth bands of humans brandishing weapons of death to other humans. That’s it. The band with the most sol- diers with the most effective weapons wins. Rarely BY VERN TURNER do the meek survive. We know all too well the reasons for war: religion, The principles of evolution do not include the race, tribe identity, territory, resources, food and wa- phrase survival of the fittest. These principles – now ter. Political power that launches wars is predicated greatly supplemented, proven and accepted since on one or more of these things. Charles Darwin first wrote On the Origin of Species What if we made robots so sophisticated that they – require that features of an organism that promote only needed us humans to maintain their systems, its ability to reproduce offspring that survive matter keep them lubricated and repaired? What if we the most. programmed them to keep us alive so that we could Sudden catastrophes, fast-moving disease and continue their maintenance; if not they would be- short-term climate change are all major threats to come heaps of rusting junk? an organism’s “fitness” to survive. Plants and ani- I wonder if these robots would have sufficient mals cannot adapt to a comet crash, or a quickly oc- cognition from intelligence programming to prevent curring drought, or a volcanic explosion. If they have us from killing ourselves off in order to ensure their the bad luck to be in the wrong place at the wrong survival. Maybe they would drop their agrarian du- time, they will become extinct irrespective of their ties of feeding us to prevent us from killing each adaptations to more “normal” times. other via wars; a robotic rebellion, if you will. After Humans are the most adaptable animals the world all if we, their keepers, survive, they do. has yet seen – as far as we know. We have and can Well, right now the planet Earth is our keeper. We manage to survive dramatic changes in our environ- humans are exploiting its resources at rates and us- ment because we observe those changes, under- ing methods that were not even imagined even 100 stand the threat to our existence [hence our ability years ago. In my lifetime the human population has to reproduce] and adapt ourselves to avoid dangers. more than doubled and may add another 50% before We made weapons to defend ourselves against I die. predators [and each other, often the same thing], We “evolved” as the most rapacious organism we relocated to more favorable areas for food and to ever walk the planet. Even world wars haven’t we eventually invented medicines to overcome most stemmed the tide of overpopulation. diseases. The point to all this is that we must adapt once The question is why are we building so many again to a major threat to our existence: ourselves. weapons for killing? We are most complex and the answers to our sur- Most of today’s peoples grow their own food. There vival are also complex. are but a few remnants of civilizations where hunt- Two things we can start doing right away is stop ing is the primary activity for meat acquisition. Most killing each other and control our population humans farm their meat as well as their vegetables. growth. We must give the planet a chance to support Similar to bears and pigs, humans are omnivores us further; otherwise it will be worn out from us and among larger mammals. Rodents are often omnivo- we will be gone. rous, but most specialize in a food type. Denver resident Vern Turner is a regular contribu- Today’s “modern” man hunts for sport with food a tor to The Oklahoma Observer. His latest book, Why secondary consideration. Fortunately, the killing of Angels Weep: America and Donald Trump, is avail- wild animals for trophies or hide commerce is great- able through Amazon.

22 • SEPTEMBER 2019 PUBLIC FORUM What Walsh And ‘The Mooch’ Are Saying Is Significant

BY DAN RATHER I have refrained, until now, from commenting on tions of President Trump that are defining his public what has become a spectacle on cable news, and image for tens of millions of Americans: his immo- more generally, of former Trump acolytes and attack rality, recklessness, corruption, narcissism, incom- dogs, namely Anthony Scaramucci and Joe Walsh, petence, and so on. now turning on the president in harsh rhetoric that What newly minted antagonists like Scaramucci calls into question not only his fitness for office, but and Walsh are saying is that Donald Trump is deeply his general fitness of mind and morality. flawed and it’s not hard to point to countless rea- The response from the press and the public has sons why. been what is to be expected. Both of these men Now these men should not be allowed to crowd out make for good television, if by good television you other voices. They must answer for their previous mean bold statements uttered without irony. They statements. Their actions in the past and in the fu- can fill news cycles with no shortage of provocative ture should not be graded on a curve. But those who source material and consequently hours of pundit see themselves as the resistance, who are dismayed pontificating. by what President Trump has done and fear deeply Meanwhile, many remember these men for the the damage yet to come, should be heartened by outrages they peddled over the years and thus react voices like Scaramucci and Walsh. with understandable revulsion at what can easily be They represent cracks in the foundational belief dismissed as naked self-interest. that this president will hold on to his base no mat- I do not know what lies in these men’s hearts. And ter what and that he is not bound by the realities of I don’t really care to judge their motives. The more political physics. important consideration is what do their roles in Perhaps these men have really had a change of the drama of our times say about the larger political heart and have, as they both have said, seen the landscape. Are they just bit players to be ignored? damage of their past selves. But even if they are After all what they are saying has already been said more like weathervanes spinning around their own by many. Or is there any reason to pay heed? axes of personal aggrandizement it still means the I would argue that what these men are saying is winds of fate for Donald Trump are shifting. And that significant. And it doesn’t matter what drives them. is important. If they are merely political opportunists, it only Veteran journalist Dan Rather is author most re- enhances the importance of their message. Because cently of What Unites Us: Reflections on Patriotism. what their voices mean is that Donald Trump is los- ing the battle for the soul of this nation. That doesn’t mean he can’t win reelection. But it does mean that many who are reading the currents of history sense he occupies a place of weakness. In a world where Donald Trump was winning, where his power was fearsome, where the future was bending to his will, I don’t think men like Walsh and Scaramucci would be betting their futures on call- ing him out. Look at how authoritarians throughout history have consolidated power and squelched dis- sent. President Trump is doing the opposite. And in a world where criticism of Donald Trump was difficult to focus, amorphous, and without a strong foundation of truth, the lines of attack from these men would not land with such force and preci- sion. They are further reinforcing many of the denuncia- THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 23 We Don’t Want To Be Stupid Twice ... Do We? BY CAL HOBSON

“The public appears disposed to be amused even citizens’ ability to resist it. as it is being deceived.” In other words these apparently are not “normal That admonition is credited to the creative and times.” calculating mind of circus maestro P.T. Barnum who As I have watched with growing disdain, now lived from 1810-1891. It also could have been said turning to abject disgust, our president’s conduct, I yesterday, today or tomorrow by our 45th president, began to examine history for someone of similar be- Donald John Trump. havior. Through the miracle of Google, I discovered I was unaware of that Barnum quote when I wrote many such characters prominent in American lore a column for The Oklahoma Observer in September but one stood out for his likeness to Trump through 2015 about the then-real estate hustler and former both word and deed. That fellow is Phineas Taylor TV huckster who was contemplating, for the third Barnum, showman, politician, author, occasional time, a run for the presidency. I did not predict he philanthropist and loquacious liar. would win in 2016 because of his track record of During Barnum’s long and illustrious lifetime of exaggerations, outright lies, racist commentary, self promotion he took great joy insulting others, questionable personal finances and other traits that, denigrating minorities, making fun of cripples and in normal times and circumstances, would end most “freaks.” using his deceitfulness to enrich himself campaigns before they even get the slightest mo- at the expense of others and thusly is best remem- mentum. Obviously I underestimated Trump’s ability bered for being a bore, crook, clown and con man. to sell his snake oil and overestimated my fellow Sound familiar?

24 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Midway through his life, Barnum declared, “I am a So how did these un-cautious characters, after showman by profession … and all that gilding shall leaving mountains of debt and unpaid bills, recover make nothing else of me.” Thanks to gaining his financially? wealth the old fashioned way – by inheriting it – our Barnum became an ardent and vocal opponent 21st century version of P.T. privately, and most like- of demon rum as Trump has been all his life, per- ly, recognizes he is nothing more than the creation haps due to his older brother’s death from alcohol- of a doting, dollar-driven, dominating father and ism. P.T. was so spellbinding a speaker he became coddling mother. Handsome, a bully larger in size wealthy by sermonizing at temperance rallies while than most, born into wealth but lacking “old money” D.J. may or may not be the fiscal wizard he claims. status, D.J. has always tried to even the playing field No one knows because he refuses to release his by manipulating people’s fear of those different from tax returns, contrary to what every other presiden- themselves. tial candidate over the last 50 years has done. His Another fixation of both men was, and obviously excuse? The documents, he says, are in audit now is, money. It is said frequently of Barnum that “to going on three years. Perhaps true, perhaps not. A put money in his own coffers” was his highest pri- more important point is we do not know and thus ority and the same can truthfully be attributed to cannot make informed decisions about possible Trump. Our 21st century three-ring circus-master conflicts of interest, self dealing and personal ag- has left a trail of failed ventures, including an air- grandizement not just for himself but family mem- line, several casinos, a specialty vodka that was not bers as well. That behavior alone would normally be so special, production of forgettable beef steaks, a bar to re-election but as a reminder these are not money losing golf courses, hotels, vineyards, etc., normal times. and did so while not paying contractors or even the Clearly both men were/are notorious liars, exagger- hourly help. ators, gossipers and tellers of tall tales. Time after Although Trump has established various chari- time in the 19th century, Barnum created business- ties, their financial records reveal he and his family es that attracted and later skinned investors until members have been the major beneficiaries includ- he finally hit the mother lode as a circus ringmaster. ing using duped donors’ money to buy, among other Our current tempestuous tweeter doubles as presi- things, a portrait of himself. dent of the United States, undoubtedly the most Along with treasuring the almighty dollar both powerful man in the world, which should give pause philanderers married young, had several children by to friend and foe alike. first wives and then later repeated the vows of mat- Amazingly, the Barnum and Bailey Circus, formed rimony with much younger ones. Both egomaniacs in 1881 in partnership with one James Bailey, lasted eventually sought elected office, Barnum at the low- until 2017, the same year the longest of Republican ly city and state level while Trump tumbled into the long shots moved into the White House. The B&B White House via the vagaries of something known as Circus drew record crowds for generations while the Electoral College. In the popular vote, which he President Trump claims to have attracted one on a continues to question, No. 45 lost the White House particularly very cold and politically important Jan. by over three million ballots. Regardless, this presi- 20. dent governs as though he has the popular mandate Like so many other baseless boasts Trump and his of a Reagan, Eisenhower or Roosevelt when in fact press toadies – led by new Dancing With The Stars his rock solid, unshakable and worshipful base of supporters fluctuates between 38% and 41% and cur- rently registers 36%. Demographically, it is populated mostly by cauca- sians, especially less-educated, middle-age males who are often devoted to Rush Limbaugh and Fox News. Additionally, heading into the 2020 election, it also appears his dominance among the evangeli- cal electorate remains strong and dedicated to him. When polled, the religious right stalwarts invariably respond that they don’t like his language, tweets or personal traits but stay with him due to hot button issues such as abortion and judicial nominations. A century and a half before The Donald became fa- mous for real estate recklessness in New York City, The Phineas went busted in the same community and in the same business. Bad investments, years of litigation followed by bankruptcies and stiffing creditors were/are the trademarks of both men and should have besmirched their names forever.

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 25 socialite Sean Spicer – were caught lying about the ard Nixon jeopardized our country’s freedoms due to inauguration attendance. The response from his his obsession with personal power, his proclivity to base was classic Beatle Bailey who often opined, lie and deceive. He only stepped aside when con- “What? Me worry?” fronted by a handful of great men, including Oklaho- Well, Beatle aside, I’m worried going forward. All ma’s U.S. Sen. Henry Bellmon, R-Billings, who knew of us have the right to our own opinions but not RMN had violated his oath of office. our own facts. Former New York Sen. Daniel Pat- So here we are, some 15 months before the 2020 rick Moynihan is generally given credit for that wise presidential election. Americans then will decide admonition so widely ignored today. Therefore, with their ballots whether to retain or retire a very without some consensus on “truthiness” how can flawed man in the world’s most powerful position: this country, or just our state, find solutions, even the U.S. presidency. partial ones, for our most intractable challenges? Forty-four white males and one black man have The truth here is … not easily. earned the title of president. None have been perfect. I believe this “failure to communicate” to us from Their flaws were many, some bordering on flagrant. politicians has led average citizens – just plain folks Think: incompetent Democrat Andrew Johnson, im- – to turn inward for answers and in Oklahoma that peached by the House and retained in office by only clearly has meant voter generated initiative peti- one vote in the Senate, or wayward Republican War- tions. These efforts over the last several years have ren Harding, who died during his scandal-plagued received approval on such diverse and controversial administration. They were, generously speaking, issues as criminal justice reform and legalization of terrible leaders who should have never held the job. medical marijuana. Americans, and hopefully only Americans, will Conversely, ballot measures – at least important decide soon whether to keep Donald Trump as presi- ones – placed before voters by lawmakers have often dent. His direct accomplishments are few and his failed. These include proposals to encourage corpo- flaws – some domestically, others internationally – rate farming and the expenditure of public money for border at least on high crimes and misdemeanors. religious purposes. All polls show we are bitterly divided racially; trea- Perhaps one lesson to be learned by these ex- ties and agreements have been unilaterally reversed amples is that when citizens go to the expense, time and/or ignored; the national debt is $22 billion and and trouble, which is considerable, to place an idea soaring; our allies are now criticized while dicta- on a ballot, success often follows. Conversely, it is tors receive praise; the judicial branch is frequently much easier for lawmakers to offer the plebiscite held in contempt; trade imbalances regularly reach ideas that are doomed to fail. For example nine of 10 record highs; and Russia unquestionably tried to state questions proposed in 1968 were defeated. The impact our 2016 elections for which it received as only one approved turned out to be a Trojan Horse punishment no more than a wink and a nod from scheme to raise lawmakers’ salaries which was the Oval Office. promptly done several times. Having watched and participated in politics now Along this line, eligible voters are currently being going back 60 years, I recognize the presidency is a asked to sign two new initiatives. First is a consti- herculean task. The day Nixon resigned in 1974 is tutional question to expand Medicaid and second the same day I completed my tour of duty in the Pen- is a statutory one to repeal the Legislature’s vote tagon. I served in the Air Force three years overseas on “constitutional carry.” One would result in more in several countries during the Vietnam War and health care in our state and the second is push- saw first hand their people’s love and admiration for ing for fewer guns. Both reflect a desire of voters to America. I had the honor to wear the uniform of my more directly decide matters affecting the future for country for more than three decades. I have been themselves and their families. elected to four different public offices at the city and In summary the trend to distrust elected officials, state levels and have lost elections for two others. especially at the state level but growing federally, As I age, the fragility and vulnerability of democ- is accelerating and the double-talking Trump is but racy becomes more obvious to me and, therefore, one part of the problem. His proclivity to lie with more treasured and valued. impunity is more than tiresome, but actually now is Having said all that let me now say this: No can- expected and accepted by most Americans. didate for any office is perfect but it doesn’t mean Our president’s conduct could prove to be fatal to we have to re-elect the most imperfect one who has democracy because without trust and confidence held the most important position in the world. If we in our leaders the Constitution is but a set of mere do, the problem is not Donald John Trump. words crafted in the 18th century for 13 colonies As Stephen King admonished “Fool me once, your and a select group of citizens … white men. fault; fool me twice, my fault.” It’s correct that only one other time in the last We don’t want to be stupid twice … do we? half-century has America truly been on the doorstep Cal Hobson, a Lexington Democrat, served in the of democratic implosion – caused by a president Oklahoma Legislature from 1978-2006, including who lied until caught by his own tape recorder. Rich- one term as Senate President Pro Tempore.

26 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Democrats Need A Smarter Nominating Process BY FROMA HARROP

Is anything really wrong with Jay Inslee? Was campaigns like his face. Governors, he insists, have John Hickenlooper not qualified to be president? a harder time because they actually have to govern. And is Steve Bullock a weak candidate? The an- That often means compromising with Republicans. swers are no, no, no and for all three, “on the con- Democratic senators in Washington, particularly trary.” now that they are in the minority, accomplish little. Any of them could be a remarkably attractive Dem- “DC is now set up to have grand speeches, but not ocratic nominee for president. In a general election, actually get anything done,” he told The Atlantic. they might do better than the two firebrand senators The three Democratic front-runners – Biden, War- trailing Joe Biden in the polls: Elizabeth Warren and ren and Sanders – are or were senators. Bernie Sanders. But their campaigns never took off. As governor of purple-hued Colorado, Hicken- Something in the Democrats’ nominating process looper also worked with Republicans. And given the isn’t working for their kind of candidacy. relentless partisanship of the age, that meant coax- Inslee, governor of Washington state, distin- ing even moderate Republicans who perpetually fear guished himself by seriously addressing the crisis attacks from the right. of global warming. He’s left the race. So has Hicken- Some Democratic Party rules are also tough on looper, former governor of Colorado. He is now run- non-celebrity candidates from the heartland. Bull- ning for the Senate. Early polls give him a solid lead ock is angry that billionaire Tom Steyer may have against the Republican incumbent, Cory Gardner. bought himself a spot on the next debate stage – The only one still in is Bullock, governor of Mon- something he has not achieved. tana. Bullock’s main argument to Democrats is his “Tom Steyer just spent $10 million to get 130,000 ability to win elections in red parts of the country. In donors,” Bullock said on MSNBC. That number of 2016, Donald Trump took Montana by 21 points, but unique donors is a threshold for admission into the Bullock won the governorship by four. Sept. 12-13 debate. So is 2% support in four ap- As far as Bullock is concerned, defeating Trump proved polls by the end of August. should make 2020 a one-issue election for Demo- “We’re getting to the point where we’re spending crats. And “if we can’t win back places that we lost,” money online as opposed to actually talking to vot- he said, “we’re not going to win this election,” he ers,” Bullock complained, not without reason. told a recent CNN town hall meeting. In any case, what an interesting presidential can- Yet the latest Democratic polls put Bullock’s sup- didate Bullock or Hickenlooper or Inslee would or port at a meager 1%. One of his problems might be would have been. But don’t rule out vice presidential that some of the very stances a Democrat needs in a running mate. red state are not deemed adequately progressive for party activists. In Montana, many still work in coal, and hunt- ing is part of life. So Bullock finesses his views on climate change and gun control in ways that may bother those wanting more aggressive approaches. [Note, however, that when he ran for governor, the billionaire Koch brothers poured their fossil fuel riches into supporting his Republican opponent.] Bullock insists he is progressive. “I’m a pro- choice, pro-union, populist Democrat that’s actually gotten things done.” As governor, Bullock pushed through an expan- sion of Medicaid. He lists publicly funded preschool as a top priority. An outspoken environmentalist, he has helped lead the charge against the Republican crusade to transfer public lands to private interests. Being a hunter helps his credibility. Bullock is outspoken about other handicaps that

THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 27 LABOR DAY 2019 American Workers Are Not Happy

BY LEO GERARD

mericans are not happy. And for good reason. They contin- ue to suffer financial stress caused by decades of flat in- come.A And every time they make the slightest peep of complaint about a system rigged against them, the rich and powerful tell them to shut up be- cause it is all their fault. One percenters instruct them to work harder, pull themselves up by their bootstraps and stop bellyaching. Just get a second college degree, a sec- ond skill, a second job. Just send the spouse to work, downsize, take a stay- cation instead of a real vacation. Or don’t take one at all, just work harder and longer and better. The barrage of blaming has persuad- ed; workers believe they deserve cen- sure. And that’s a big part of the reason they’re unhappy. If only, they think, they could work harder and longer and better, they would get ahead. They bear the shame. They don’t blame the system: the Su- preme Court, the Congress, the Presi- dent. And yet, it is the system, the American system, Reviewing data from the General Social Survey, ad- that has conspired to crush them. ministered routinely nationally, the professors found Yeah, yeah, yeah, unemployment is low and the Americans’ assessment of their own happiness and stock market is high. But skyrocketing stocks ben- family finances has, unambiguously, declined in re- efit only the top 10% of wealthy Americans who own cent years. 84% of stocks. And while more people are employed But if Americans would just work harder, every- than during the Great Recession, the vast majority of thing would be dandy, right? Americans haven’t had a real raise since 1979. No. Not right. Americans work really, really hard. It’s bad out there for American workers. Last spring, A third of Americans work a side hustle, driving an their ranking dropped for the third year running in Uber or selling crafts on Etsy. American workers take the World Happiness Report, produced by the Sus- fewer vacation days. They get 14, but typically take tainable Development Solutions Network, a UN initia- only 10. The highest number of workers in five years tive. report they don’t expect to take a vacation at all this These sad statistics reinforce those in a report re- year. And Americans work longer hours than their leased two years ago by two university professors. counterparts in other countries.

28 • SEPTEMBER 2019 LABOR DAY 2019

Americans labor 137 more hours per year than Jap- gate, into individual arbitration cases, for which each anese workers, 260 more than Brits, and 499 more worker must hire his or her own lawyer. Then, just than the French, according to the International Labor last spring, the right-wing majority on the court fur- Organization. ther curtailed workers’ rights to class-action suits. And the longer hours aren’t because American In a minority opinion, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg workers are laggards on the job. They’re very produc- wrote that the court in recent years has routinely de- tive. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates ployed the law to deny to employees and consumers that the average American worker’s productivity has “effective relief against powerful economic entities.” increased 400% since 1950. No matter how hard Americans work, the right-wing If pay had kept pace with productivity, as it did in majority on the Supreme Court has hobbled them in the three decades after the end of World War II, Ameri- an already lopsided contest with gigantic corpora- can workers would be making 400% more. But they’re tions. not. Their wages have flat lined for four decades, ad- TRUMP’S ANTI-WORKER ADMINISTRATION justing for inflation. The administrative branch is no better. The Trump That means stress. Forty percent of workers say Labor Department recently issued an advisory that they don’t have $400 for an unexpected expense. workers for a gig-economy company are independent Twenty percent can’t pay all of their monthly bills. contractors, not employees. More than a quarter of adults skipped needed medi- As a result, the workers, who clean homes after get- cal care last year because they couldn’t afford it. A ting assignments on an app, will not qualify for feder- quarter of adults have no retirement savings. al minimum wage [low as it is] or overtime pay. Also, If only Americans would work harder. And longer. the corporation will not have to pay Social Security And better. taxes for them. Though the decision was specific to SYSTEM STACKED AGAINST WORKERS one company, experts say it will affect the designa- Much as right-wingers have pounded that into tion for other gig workers, such as drivers for Uber Americans’ heads, it’s not the solution. Americans and Lyft. clearly are working harder and longer and better. The Also, the Labor Department has proposed a stingy solution is to change the system, which is stacked increase in the overtime pay threshold, that is, the against workers. salary amount under which corporations must pay Workers are bearing on their backs tax breaks that workers time and a half for overtime. The current benefited only the rich and corporations. They’re threshold of $23,660 has not been raised since 2004. bearing overtime pay rules and minimum wage rates The Obama Administration had proposed doubling it that haven’t been updated in more than a decade. to $47,476. But now, the Trump Labor Department They’re weighted down by U.S. Supreme Court de- has cut that back to $35,308. That means 8.2 mil- cisions that hobbled unionization efforts and knee- lion workers who would have benefited from the larg- capped workers’ rights to file class-action lawsuits. er salary cap now will not be eligible for mandatory They’re struggling under U.S. Department of Labor overtime pay. rules defining them as independent contractors in- It doesn’t matter how hard they work, they aren’t stead of staff members. They live in fear as corpora- going to get the time-and-a-half pay they deserve. tions threaten to offshore their jobs – with the assis- Just like the administration and the Supreme tance of federal tax breaks. Court, right-wingers in Congress grovel before corpo- Last year, the right-wing majority on the U.S. Su- rations and the rich. Look at the tax break they gave preme Court handed a win to corporatists trying to one percenters in 2017. Corporations got the biggest obliterate workers’ right to organize and collectively cut in history, their rate sledgehammered down from bargain for better wages and conditions. The court 35% to 21%. The rich reap by far the largest benefit ruled that public sector workers who choose not to from those tax cuts through 2027, according to an join unions don’t have to pay a small fee to cover the analysis by the Tax Policy Center. And by then, 53% cost of services that federal law requires the unions of Americans – that is workers not rich people – will provide to them. This bankrupts labor unions. And pay more than they did in 2017 because tax breaks there’s no doubt that right-wingers are gunning for for workers expire. private sector unions next. The White House Council of Economic Advisers This kind of relentless attack on labor unions since predicted the corporate tax cut would put an extra 1945 has withered membership. As it shrank, wages $4,000 in every worker’s pocket. They swore that cor- for both union and nonunion workers did too. porations would use some of their tax cut money to Also last year, the Supreme Court ruled that cor- hand out raises and bonuses to workers. That never porations can deny workers access to class-action happened. Workers got a measly 6% of corporations’ arbitration. This compels workers, who corporations tax savings. forced to sign agreements to arbitrate rather than liti- In the first quarter after the tax cut took effect, THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 29 LABOR DAY 2019 workers on average received a big fat extra $6.21 in 1. Ban stock buybacks. They were banned before their paychecks, for an annual total of a whopping 1982 when the Securities and Exchange Commis- $233. Corporations spent their tax breaks on stock sion viewed them as vehicles for stock manipulation buybacks, a record $1 trillion worth, raising stock and fraud. Then ’s SEC removed the prices, which put more money in the pockets of rich restrictions. We should ban buybacks again. CEOs and shareholders. 2. Stop corporations from deducting executive pay That’s continuing this year. Workers are never go- in excess of $1 million from their taxable income ing to see that $4,000. – even if the pay is tied to so-called company perfor- No wonder they’re unhappy. The system is working mance. There’s no reason other taxpayers ought to against them. be subsidizing humongous CEO pay. Leo W. Gerard is a steelworker and a Canadian and 3. Stop corporations from receiving any tax de- American labor leader. He was elected president of duction for executive pay unless the percent raise the United Steelworkers in 2001, and is the second received by top executives matches the percent raise Canadian to head the union. He is also a vice presi- received by average employees. dent of the AFL-CIO. 4. Increase taxes on corporations whose CEOs © Nation of Change make more than 100 times their average employees. 5. Finally, and most basically: Stop CEOs from corrupting American politics with big money. Get big money out of our democracy. Fight for campaign The 5-Step finance reform. Grossly widening inequalities of income and wealth cannot be separated from grossly widening inequalities of political power in America. This cor- CEO Pay Scam ruption must end. Former Clinton administration labor secretary BY ROBERT REICH Robert B. Reich is Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley Average CEO pay at big corporations topped $14.5 and Senior Fellow at the Blum Center for Develop- million in 2018. That’s after an increase of $5.2 mil- ing Economies. lion per CEO over the past decade, while the aver- © RobertReich.org age worker’s pay has increased just $7,858 over the decade. Just to catch up to what their CEO made in 2018 alone, it would take the typical worker 158 years. The True Dope On This explosion in CEO pay relative to the pay of average workers isn’t because CEOs have become so much more valuable than before. It’s not due to the so-called “free market.” Clothes Pollution It’s due to CEOs gaming the stock market and playing politics. BY FROMA HARROP How did CEOs pull this off? They followed these five steps: Do you worry that the clothes you buy pose an First: They made sure their companies began pay- environmental hazard? The idea never crossed my ing their executives in shares of stock. mind until serious news sources started talking Second: They directed their companies to lobby about it. The central claim was that the fashion Congress for giant corporate tax cuts and regulatory industry is the world’s second biggest source of pol- rollbacks. lution, the first being oil. Third: They used most of the savings from these The story circulated so widely because few of us tax cuts and rollbacks not to raise worker pay or to imagine that our T-shirts and track shoes could be invest in the future, but to buy back the corpora- hurting the environment big time. We’ll get to the tion’s outstanding shares of stock. scientific consensus on its accuracy shortly. Fourth: This automatically drove up the price of But one of more fascinating aspects is how this the remaining shares of stock. No. 2-polluter rap against clothes began. No one Fifth and finally: Since CEOs are paid mainly in seems to know. It seems to have become a “truth” shares of stock, CEO pay soared while typical work- through the magic of internet laundering. ers were left in the dust. Fashion websites bounced the story back and How to stop this scandal? Five ways: forth, providing links to supposedly authoritative 30 • SEPTEMBER 2019 voices. And where did their links lead? To one an- it had $4.3 billion of unsold merchandise and had other. started incinerating it to provide energy. Passed around enough, the idea that clothes are Fast fashion is definitely a villain here. Its busi- the second biggest polluter became a “fact.” Fashion ness model relies on women buying lots of clothes designer Eileen Fisher, known for her environmen- at low prices, wearing them a few times and then talism, got sucked in. She began making a big thing throwing them out or giving them away. No one has of clothes pollution, citing the above assertion. to go naked, but the environmentally conscientious When asked for her source of information, she know not to run wild at Target and H&M. referred to websites that referred to other websites. • Up to 25% of the world’s chemical compounds And she quoted the 2015 documentary about the are used in textile dying and finishing. Fashion plays fashion industry “The True Cost,” which turned out a big part here, but bear in mind that textiles are not to be not as dependable a font of knowledge as one just clothes. They are bedsheets, curtains, napkins, might believe. upholstery and toys. The documentary-maker said he found the claim • About 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions through people running the Copenhagen Fashion are produced by the clothing and footwear indus- Summit, a respected conference on sustainability. tries. This came from the United Nations secretariat The fashion summit people said they believed it on climate change. The reasons are long supply came from a report by the Deloitte consulting firm. chains and energy-intensive production. Guess what. No one can find the report. How polluting your clothes consumption is de- When professional journalists jumped on the mat- pends, of course, on how many clothes you buy ter, they swatted away some of the more exaggerated and how long you wear them. “Sustainable fashion” assertions. The global clothing industry is not the is an interesting concept, because it can include No. 2 offender, they concluded, but it is highly dirty. sturdy, inexpensive jeans or high-priced designer What makes it polluting? Here are some of the fac- clothes. What’s most important is that the clothes tors: don’t have to be replaced often. • Nearly 60% of all clothing is discarded within a One last amazing statistic that seems to have year of being made. This astonishing revelation is stuck: Over the past two decades, Americans have not a reflection of flighty consumer behavior. It’s doubled the amount of clothing they discard every not that you and I throw out 60% of the new clothes year. It’s now about 80 pounds a person. Is that pos- we buy. Rather, it’s that mass producers get rid of sible? wares that don’t leave the racks right away. The fast Don’t look at me. fashion retailer H&M, for one, reported last year that © Creators.com THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 31 Jim Hightower Decoding Afta-NAFTA

“Keep your eye on the ball” is a core principle not the anti-democratic and unjust system of dispute- only for baseball players but also for us common- deciding corporate-run “courts,” seven oil behe- ers trying to assess exactly what the spinmeisters moths [including Shell, ExxonMobil and Chevron] of global trade are hurling at us. Their deals are and would retain their NAFTA-granted access to these always have been large-scale hustles, filled with odious tribunals. One particular concern is that the hypocrisy, deceit and greed. Promoted as fair and giants will use these kangaroo courts to block Mexi- good for all, they’re invariably rigged with profiteer- can efforts to strengthen environment and health ing schemes that lock into law advantages for cor- protections and address the climate crisis. porations over the common good of consumers, the BIG BOSSES: The USMCA would finally outlaw environment, labor, independent businesses, gov- Mexico’s notorious company-run “unions” that al- ernments and all other democratic forces. low workers no control or even participation. While Further, they are works of deliberate deception, the deal prohibits these fraudulent labor units, it drafted in strict secrecy and couched in page after provides no way to monitor, much less enforce, cor- page of arcane legalese that intentionally obscures porate compliance. the corporate thievery so We the People don’t know BIG FOOD: The original NAFTA included a lit- that we’ve been had until it’s too late. eral gag rule. It allowed cheaply produced Mexican They hide the ball to keep you, me and even beef and other meat to be sold in the U.S. – even if Congress from seeing specifically who’ll profit and it didn’t meet our food safety standards. Trump’s who’ll pay. So, heads up, for here comes another “fantastic” redo of NAFTA keeps this rule prohibit- sucker pitch. ing our supposedly sovereign government from set- “A historic transaction,” Trump grandiloquently ting our own health standards for meat sold to our hailed his Afta-NAFTA handiwork in an April tweet, consumers. lauding the 1,809-page United States-Mexico-Canada Congress must obviously kill this thing, right? Agreement as “the most important trade deal we’ve Hmmm ... not so fast. Even with all the uglies and ever made by far.” absurdities in the USMCA, progressive strategists Backed by a coalition of some 200 corporate and see enough pretties and potential for fixes that it Wall Street powerhouses, Trump demanded that could become one of the only positives to emerge Congress quickly ratify the USMCA “so we can bring from Trump Hell. As Lori Wallach, head of Public back our manufacturing jobs in even greater num- Citizen’s savvy band of trade jujitsu artists puts it, bers, expanding American agriculture, protecting “Improbably, things are going quite well.” intellectual property.” Prettiest of all is the USMCA’s whacking down of “Once again,” swooned Fox personality Laura In- NAFTA’s most repugnant component: “investor-state graham, “Trump delivers.” dispute settlement” tribunals. These autocratic, Yes, but what ... and for whom? plutocratic, corporate-controlled “courts” empower BIG PHARMA: If the USMCA passes as currently multinational corporations to obtain unlimited drafted, it would require the governments of the taxpayer dollars through specious lawsuits claim- U.S., Mexico and Canada to guarantee – and even ing that their special NAFTA privileges are restricted extend – Big Pharma’s monopoly price-setting power. by the people’s democratically enacted laws – laws Specifically, the deal gives drugmakers 10 years intended to protect consumers, workers, the envi- of exclusive marketing for critical “biologic” meds ronment and other social/economic interests. The that millions of people need – in addition to the 20- investor-state dispute settlement provision is an year monopoly that U.S. patent laws already grant. anti-democratic abomination, and gutting it would Trump’s deal would prevent generic competitors truly be a huge step forward – one worth taking from offering cheaper versions for an extra decade while we can. while also shackling Canadians and Mexicans to the Further, if we can strengthen the USMCA’s labor pricing racket that Pharma already runs in the U.S. and environmental standards – and make them BIG OIL: Although the USMCA largely eliminates strictly enforceable – they might counter corporate 32 • SEPTEMBER 2019 America’s race-to-the-bottom outsourcing that con- pay attention to this one. The USMCA is a momen- verts middle-class U.S. jobs into Mexican sweatshop tous battle that’s more about people’s democratic servitude. And of course, the absurd goodies for Big power than trade. It unites folks across the left-right Pharma must be removed. But the fight, then, is not political spectrum, it’s worth the fight, and it’s win- simply to reject the USMCA but instead to expose its nable – if we team up to wrangle our Congress crit- flaws, democratize it and force improvements. That’s ters to oppose Trump’s corporatized version and add not easy, but it’s doable. essential democratizing improvements. Let’s do it! Yes, trade fights can be complex and tedious, but © Creators.com If You Drain The Swamp, Where Do Swamp Critters Go?

Donald Trump bragged in June that “we’re drain- sleazy industry: ing the swamp,” declaring victory over “the unholy “We’ve got a friend in Trump alliance of lobbyists and donors and special inter- He’s lifting us out of our slump ests who made a living bleeding our country dry.” We were down – and life was rough Bravo! Too many regs, were way too tough But wait ... where did all those swamp critters go? After so many years Don’t look now, but – psssst – they’ve been brought We’d just had enough, but right into Trump’s corporate-cozy administration Now, we’ve got a friend in Trump.” to continue serving the same old interests that are As Lily Tomlin once put it, “No matter how cynical bleeding our country dry. For example, just hours you get, it’s almost impossible to keep up.” before gloating about draining the swamp, Trump Ahh ... consider the grandeur of America’s great named Mark Esper – former head lobbyist for the outdoors, our rich and often awe-inspiring expanses giant military contractor Raytheon – to head the of irreplaceable public lands we share with each Pentagon. There, Esper will oversee the doling out of other and future generations! Thank goodness our hundreds of billions in tax dollars each year to such country has demanded over the years that govern- corporate powers as ... Raytheon! ment be Mother Nature’s steward, protecting these If you wonder why Trump’s government sides even public properties for posterity. But what if these more than usual with corporations over workers, the lands and natural resources suddenly got a “stew- environment, consumers and the common good, it’s ard” who was a predator rather than a protector? because none of them are on the inside. Meanwhile, Meet William Perry Pendley. For more than 40 the corporate executives, lobbyists and hired apolo- years, he’s been a fringe political operative and gists have become Trump’s government. His interior lawyer for a network of loopy, anti-environmental ex- secretary was an oil and coal lobbyist. His Treasury tremists intent on helping corporate predators grab chief came straight from Wall Street. His EPA hon- and plunder our national assets for their private cho lobbied for Big Coal. His Health Department is profit. And now – holy Teddy Roosevelt! – Developer headed by a drug company executive. And on down in Chief Donald Trump has named Pendley acting the line to undersecretaries, bureau directors, etc., head of the Bureau of Land Management. etc. Yes, a guy who favors the wholesale privatization About the grossest example of Trump Inc. being of America’s public lands is to oversee their future. owned by the moneyed interests it’s supposed to Indeed, Pendley has been lost in the ultra-right-wing regulate is the Education Department, headed by bil- weeds for years, screeching that the “Founding Fa- lionaire heiress Betsy DeVos. Having swallowed the thers intended all lands owned by the federal gov- ideological effluent of the corrupt for-profit college ernment to be sold.” industry, which has ripped off millions of students That’s nuts, but Pendley’s zealotry carries him – along with billions of our tax dollars – DeVos has even deeper into paranoiac nuttiness. He lists a twisted law and logic to try to bail out and resurrect sextet of villains he believes are “at war” with west- the Wall Street-backed for-profit model. Her inves- ern civilization: radical environmentalists, federal tors-first perversion of public education’s mission, bureaucrats, the media, academia, Hollywood and backed by her political patron Trump, has brought “ignorant” Americans who are “easily panicked” great cheer to those who profiteer from young into believing in things like climate change. people trying to better themselves. Pendley’s views are so twisted that he literally A lawyer for the profiteers even penned an ode to tries to dehumanize the environmental movement, The Donald, hailing him as a corporate savior of his proclaiming that its millions of adherents “don’t be- THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 33 lieve in human beings,” that “they’re not concerned tal miracle!” about human health and well-being.” Don’t just keep an eye on this corporate extrem- Also, with funding from the Koch brothers and Big ist – don’t even blink! For updates, contact Public Oil, Pendley has been a fanatical fossil fuel pros- Employees for Environmental Responsibility at peer. elytizer, even declaring in a moment of rapture that org. – Jim Hightower fracking is “an energy, economic, AND environmen- © Creators.com Government For The Rich, The Poor Be Damned Donald Trump loooooves farmers. We know this a multibillion-dollar subsidy into big grain farms, because he says so. “Farmers, I LOVE YOU!” he they’re shockingly stingy when it comes to our so- declared in December. And we’ve learned that when- ciety’s moral responsibility to make sure the least- ever The Donald says something, it’s true – even wealthy among us get an adequate level of food. when it’s not. Their latest effort in the practice of mass minginess These days, he’s loving farmers to death. Trump is to try literally taking food off poor children’s has ignored the obvious need to get monopolistic plates. Using a tangle of federal red tape, Trump price-fixing bankers, suppliers and commodity buy- ideologues and bureaucratic minions are interven- ers off their backs. And he’s ineptly playing tariff ing to prevent states from providing food stamp as- games with China and other buyers of U.S. farm sistance to millions of their people. products, causing exports and farm prices to tum- According to federal rules, to qualify for food ble. The result is that our ag economy is tumbling aid, a family of three should have an income under into a deep ditch, slamming farm families and rural $27,000 a year. But with rents, utilities, health care America with a rising tsunami of bankruptcies. and even food prices constantly rising, millions of Adding crude insult to economic injury, Trump’s Americans can’t make ends meet on such a low in- doofus of an ag secretary, Sonny Perdue, laughed at come. Thus, 40 states have stepped in to loosen that farmers, branding them “whiners” for opposing his income restriction so families at least get the mini- majesty’s disastrous policies. mum nutrition humans need. So, needing a political “I love you” gesture, Trump Far from being welfare moochers [as far-right-wing has been sending big bouquets of money to some of extremists screech], these recipients overwhelm- his beloved farmers. Our money. Lots of it – $28 bil- ingly are working families, children, the elderly and lion so far, in what he cynically [and comically] calls Americans with disabilities. The benefit is hardly the Market Facilitation Program, otherwise known lavish; it averages only $127 a month, but even this as a taxpayer bailout. modest outlay has proven enormously successful in But TrumpLove turns out to be highly selective, mitigating poverty. with more than half of the government payments Congress actually authorized states to make such going to the biggest farm owners. The Department pragmatic income adjustments in a 1996 revamp of Agriculture initially announced a $125,000 limit of the law. But look out! Here comes Sonny Perdue on the amount any one farm could get, but every again, rising up on his hind legs to proclaim that Trump deal seems to have a gimmick in it to give a naughty state officials are using that authority as a special break to the slickest operators. The slickum “loophole” to circumvent Trump’s federal authority. in this deal is that assorted members of a family can So Sonny and Donnie are demanding that a whole claim to be owners of the same farm and be eligible new bureaucracy of food stamp “eligibility police” for bailout money, even if they do no actual farming be set up to monitor the assets of hard-hit people and live in New York City! Thus, one Missouri farm who’re just trying to get adequate food on their family got $2.8 million worth of subsidy love from tables. Trump, and more than 80 families topped half a mil- This nonsense will cost tens of millions of our dol- lion in payments. lars to harass the poor in an autocratic hope of nab- Meanwhile, the great majority of farmers – 80% of bing a couple of hungry families who have a dime eligible grain farmers – got zilch from Donald the more in assets than miserly Trumpistas claim they Dealmaker. The smaller producers who are most should have. endangered by his export collapse got less than What we have here is government by plutocratic $5,000. So Trump’s “Market Facilitation” is squeez- authoritarians who’ll gleefully dole out millions to ing the many who are most in need while helping a a wealthy family and then just as gleefully go out of few of the largest get even bigger. their way to deny food to millions of poor families. – While the Trumpistas are presently trying to plow Jim Hightower

34 • SEPTEMBER 2019 When It Comes To U.S. Health System, The System Is The Problem

The British people have been widely admired for Another nurse, Melissa Johnson-Camacho, recalls: their steady demeanor in times of adversity – stiff “I had just finished explaining [to a cancer patient] upper lip and all that. Until Donald Trump, that is. how important it was to take this medication faith- In June, our presidential popinjay descended on fully. ‘Every day you skip it is a day that the cancer London with a bombastic proposition that caused has to potentially spread,’” she told him. “And then the upper lips of the entire British population to we had to send him home without it” because the quiver at once. There as a guest, and treated to the insurer wouldn’t cover the cost. full pomp of a state visit, The Donald blurted out Similar nightmare stories abound, and most Amer- what he hailed as a “phenomenal” gift in the form icans dread they may be next. A nation that only of a new U.S.-U.K. trade deal: He offered to bring in 40 years ago boasted a world-class system of care America’s health care profiteers to start privatizing has been sickened by a corporatized network that Britain’s National Health Service. treats patients as bookkeeping entries and reduces It’s possible Trump was simply ignorant, unaware doctors and nurses to functionaries on the medical that Brits love their NHS because its socialized plan assembly line. The hard numbers paint an embar- provides quality care to all without families fear- rassing picture: ing they’ll be bankrupted or priced out of treatment • The U.S. ranks 34th worst among developed na- by private insurance giants, hospital chains or Big tions for the percentage of people without coverage Pharma. [44 million Americans, including four million chil- Or maybe he was hornswoggled by the right-wing dren] – lower than Chile, Greece, Kuwait, Slovenia pontificators of Fox News [Trump’s most trusted and Turkey. policy advisors] and their steady stream of lies about • As many millions of “insured” Americans learn anything with the word “social” in it. the hard way, high deductibles and copays can make Last year, after seeing a Fox News segment [what treatments unaffordable, i.e., unusable. else?] reporting that thousands of Brits were march- • Price gouging by drugmakers puts essential ing in protest of their health system, Trump smugly medicines out of reach; surprise bills from hospitals trumpeted that they were fed up with care-for-all and clinics drown families in medical debt; and – socialism. But – oops – the uproar was actually in most commonly – insurance bureaucracies assidu- support of the NHS, demanding that the miserly Tory ously work their fine print to deny payment for your government strengthen it with “more staff, more condition, injury, medicine, surgery or rehab. beds, more funds.” • Our country spends the most [more than Trump aside, no country that’s even quasi-ad- $10,000 per year per person] on a system that often vanced is going to throw its people into a health care delivers the least. [U.S. life expectancy has fallen to future modeled on the USA’s care-denying medical the bottom among wealthy nations.] industry. Our for-profit system amounts to plutocrat • Most shamefully, roughly a third of the $3.5 care, providing concierge attention and top-notch trillion we pay into the U.S. system each year is treatment to moneyed elites [such as the Trump sucked up by corporate paper shuffling, advertising, clan] who therefore perceive it as a marvel of free- executive pay and perks, expensive headquarters market efficiency. and other non-care charges. Canada runs its full- They never witness the harsh realities that most coverage programs with less than half [12%] those U.S. working stiffs, middle-class families, students, administrative expenses. the poor and others routinely experience from the The problem with the system is – hello – the sys- most expensive, worst performing health scheme in tem! the developed world. While our doctors and other providers have top- Karla Diederich, an intensive care nurse in Califor- level skills and knowledge, they operate within a nia, bluntly calls the U.S. industry “barbaric.” She fundamentally flawed corporate structure that mea- told The New York Times about her friend Nelly Yap, sures success not in care delivered to the many but also a nurse, who had cancer and was scheduled for in profits extracted for the few: the investor elites. chemotherapy – until her hospital changed own- – Jim Hightower ers. She lost her job, her insurance and her cancer treatment. “Nelly spent most of her life taking care Read The Observer On-Line of other people,” Diederich says, “and when she needed that care herself, it was not there.” www.okobserver.org THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 35 Why Do Nonbelievers Face Prejudice In America?

BY RANDOLPH M. FEEZELL

here is a form of prejudice in America di- nizations, and personal relationships. rected toward persons who don’t believe in Eight state constitutions still require a public office God. I call it “Godism” in order to suggest holder to believe in God, despite a 1961 unanimous that this kind of prejudice is analogous to Supreme Court ruling in Torasco v. Maryland, holding Tmore familiar “isms,” such as racism, sexism, and that such religious tests are unconstitutional. Some anti-Semitism. examples: Each type of discrimination directs antagonistic at- Arkansas: “No person who denies the being of a titudes and discriminatory actions toward members God shall hold any office in the civil departments of of groups who share characteristics that are the ba- the state.” sis for prejudice and the denial of equal moral worth Mississippi: “No person who denies the existence of and respect: race, sex, sexual lifestyle, Jewishness, a Supreme Being shall hold any office in this state.” age – lack of belief in God. [The South Carolina and Texas constitutions contain Godism is well-documented in our country’s past similar language.] and present, and powerfully described in a recent The Tennessee constitution requires an additional book, Godless Citizens in a Godly Republic: Atheists condition for holding “any office in the civil depart- in American Public Life, by R. Laurence Moore and ment of this state.” No person can deny belief in a Isaac Kramnick. Godism is expressed in state consti- “future state of rewards and punishments.” tutions, officially sanctioned practices, private orga- CONTINUED ON PAGE 38 36 • SEPTEMBER 2019 It’s Easy To Be A ... CHANGE AGENT MyChange is an app that makes it easier than ever to support your favorite progressive organizations – like The Oklahoma Observer.

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THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 37 Prejudice

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 36

Clearly these religious tests for public office are un- son or daughter comes out. constitutional, thus unenforceable, yet they remain Another kind of ignorance is more historical: being on the books. unaware of great figures from the past who were athe- The presence of religious tests in state constitu- ists, agnostics, or nontheists: Churchill, Golda Meir, tions is an outrage. Imagine the reaction if some Einstein, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Luther Burbank, state constitutions still contained these types of un- Mark Twain, Jane Adams, John Dewey, and others constitutional restrictions for groups that have faced [discussed in the book by Moore and Kramnick]. discrimination in our history: African Americans, An assertion about believing in God and being mor- women, religious minorities. ally good might be more theoretical, based on an in- It would be a sign of social progress if state consti- sufficient grasp of some basics of moral psychology tutional requirements linking citizenship and belief or a lack of awareness about what a secular moral- in God were quaint relics of a less enlightened time in ity might look like. Surely Godists have heard of the America. Polling and social research have shown that old moral truism: virtue is its own reward. Morality antagonistic attitudes towards nonbelievers are still might be better understood in terms of virtue and prevalent. And politicians continue to attempt to im- moral character than a set of divine commands. Hav- pose their religious worldviews in the public sphere. ing good moral character – being just, honest, kind, A new state law in South Dakota requires that all courageous – doesn’t depend on belief in God. public schools display in a prominent place the na- Aristotle argued that moral virtue is an essential tional motto, “In God We Trust [a Godist displace- component of a flourishing life – and virtuous con- ment of “E pluribus unum”]. In Kentucky a similar duct and character are satisfying as well. Many phi- law, sponsored by a Republican legislator who is a losophers have claimed that morality provides an Christian minister, will take effect as students return opportunity for any human being to achieve an impor- to school this fall. tant kind of excellence in life, independent of whatev- Why are atheists, agnostics, and other nontheists er material conditions a person might confront. The disliked and disrespected? What are the reasons for pursuit of excellence can be motivational. antagonism toward religious skeptics? Kant, a theist, held that moral goodness [a will that First, there is in the minds of many people a neces- acts solely from duty, the desire to do the right thing] sary connection between God and morality. It’s im- is intrinsically good. According to Kant, doing the portant to distinguish two different claims about this right thing because it advances one’s self-interest relation: there can be no morality without the exis- [the honest businessman whose honesty is good for tence of God; and no one would have the motivation business] isn’t morally praiseworthy. Neither is vir- to be morally good without belief in God [or, belief tue or conscientiousness motivated by the prospect in God is required to do morally right actions]. The of future rewards. first is a claim about the foundations of morality; the People who believe that nonbelievers are necessar- second claim is about moral motivation. Both are de- ily immoralists seem incapable of imagining persons monstrably false. motivated by anything other than self-interest. Their I suspect that most critics of nonbelievers are more view of human nature is misperceived and constrict- worried by the question of moral motivation, because ed. They apparently believe that without God to dole tests and comments are put in terms of belief, the out punishments and rewards no one would be mo- presumption being that belief in God and acting mor- tivated to do the right thing. Their notion of human ally are necessarily connected. Religious tests for nature is tainted by the view that creatures act well holding public office, and in at least one instance, for only in order to please, obey, and enhance their fu- giving testimony in court, are really moral tests. It is ture prospects, instead of seizing the opportunity to assumed that public officials should be trustworthy, the right thing … simply because it’s right. morally good people – and nonbelievers can’t be mor- The book by Moore and Kramnick offers quintes- ally good or can’t be trusted, because they lack the sential Godist views of moral motivation. A Boy Scout internal economy that would make moral goodness leader: “Anyone who doesn’t believe in God isn’t a possible. Why do Godists believe a claim that is obvi- good citizen … If an atheist found a wallet on the ously false? ground they [sic] would pick it up, plunder the mon- The assumption may be based on ignorance – a ey, and throw the wallet back on the ground.” narrowness generated by being unacquainted with A critic of an atheist mathematics professor who religious skeptics who proclaim their nonbelief. Per- ran for governor in South Carolina says he “must be sonal experience can cause transformation, like an free to rape, murder, and commit any atrocity he can anti-gay legislator whose views about homosexuality get away with.” No. The atrocity is the worldview ex- and same-sex marriage dramatically change when a CONTINUED ON PAGE 42 38 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Good For The Jews? BY SUSAN ESTRICH Years ago, Frank Rich, the leg- endary New York Times colum- nist, wrote a piece – channeling his grandmother – on the first question her generation used to ask when big news broke: Is it good for the Jews? Or [more often] is it bad for the Jews? You could hardly blame them. Living through the Holocaust makes the question painfully relevant. But a habit is a habit. I will never forget my mother’s first words when John Kennedy was shot: “Thank God it wasn’t a Jew.” And young as I was, I understood. After all, I had already been told in kindergarten that I couldn’t play Mary in the school play [even though I had the longest hair, the usual qualification] because I was bring war and suffering. Fine. Don’t go. We already Jewish. I wasn’t old enough – or brave enough – to have enough of that. point out that so was Mary. But don’t blame the Israelis. This was a Trump As I got older, I adopted my own refrains. Was it deal, first and foremost. This wasn’t about protect- good for the Democrats? Good for women? ing Israel. There was a time – albeit a very brief one – when I This was about painting Jewish Democrats as a even wondered if my children would ever appreciate bunch of cowards for not standing up to the boycott the fear and uncertainty my mother lived with and I of Israel. grew up with. Far from improving Israel’s standing as the only I need not have worried. democracy in the Middle East, Trump put the screws No one stood on the morning of 9/11 and wondered on Prime Minister Netanyahu, leaving Netanyahu if Canadian separatists had taken over the skies. little choice but to ban the Israel haters and earn That year, the High holidays has almost as many the enmity of the world for denying access to elected security guards as Jews. members of Congress. Hate crimes are on the rise. Tlaib got all the publicity she wanted without ever Anti-Semites sit in the United States Congress [oh, stepping foot on the airplane. Am I the only one who I know, they just love Jews. They just hate the only thinks she could have accomplished far more for the Jewish state in the world, even though most of the cause of humanitarian aid by actually bringing the states they admire do things like dismember jour- press to see her grandmother, maybe even bringing nalists, deny human rights and kill judges. But at her medicine or food she might need? least they’re not Jewish]. Am I so wrong to wonder whether this whole thing Trump knows a publicity stunt when he sees one. was about politics or love? Who better? Rep. Rashida Tlaib was so desperate Make no mistake: There are many American Jews to see her grandmother [not] that she changed her who are deeply troubled by the suffering of Palestin- travel plans to Israel because she couldn’t play poli- ians in the Middle East. War serves nobody but the tics on her trip. other Arab nations who want to keep the Palestin- Sorry, but I would give Heaven and Earth to see my ians out. But members of Congress who refuse to mother again – or my grandmother – without a word accept Israel’s right to exist in peace are, like Trump, of politics. part of the problem, not the solution. Does she really expect sympathy from anybody? And I can’t help but wonder if that’s what they re- These women could play a valuable role in bring- ally want. ing peace to the Middle East. Instead, they’d rather © Creators.com THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 39 Books Reckoning With The Fallout From Monetizing America’s Public Services

PRIVATIZATION OF AMERICA’S PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS The Story Of The American Sellout By Lawrence Baines Peter Lang Inc./International Academic Publishers 172 pages, $40.95

BY JOHN THOMPSON

I was driving to an education conference in Texas character of the country.” which would document the damage done by corpo- In the first chapter, “Privatizing the Military: Prof- rate school reform. I didn’t realize I was on a turn- iting from the Carnage of War,” Baines reports that pike until a bill arrived in the mail. That was just one private contractors in the Mideast would outnumber question that was answered in Larry Baines’ excel- soldiers by a 3-1 margin by 2015. By that time, 44% of lent Privatization of America’s Public Institutions: Department of Defense spending went to contractors. The Story of the American Sellout. As one military analyst said, contractors had become After Baines took such a road, he received $20 bill “the fifth branch of the military.” for driving four miles, and here’s why. Gov. Rick Perry Baines explains how the inability to hold contrac- had sold formerly public roads to a Spanish company, tors accountable leads to an unknowable amount of Cintra, which abandoned the project in 2016. So, the killings, meaning that we can’t evaluate the human way that the system was supposed to run was for lo- and moral costs of military privatization any more cal police departments, funded by American tax dol- than we can calculate the true financial costs. lars, to serve as Cintra’s “enforcers.” But the privati- Baines explains that we have reached the point zation’s failure “left taxpayers in a lurch with a $1.2 where ROTC officer training is contracted out. Since billion bill and a complicated bureaucratic mess,” the program acculturates the young people who will not to mention the interest payments. become the leaders of our democracy’s armed forces, That is just one example of how privatization has an analyst says, this form of privatization may pro- become the “go-to” solution for cutting government duce “‘longer-term effects on the overarching values spending, taking flawed systems and making them that motivate military service.’” much worse. Given Oklahoma’s status as No. 1 in the world in Privatization of America’s Public Institutions com- incarceration, the second chapter, “Privatizing Cor- bines analyses of the assaults on four public sectors rections: Making Money from Misery,” is especially – the military, corrections, public schools, and higher pertinent. As in the case of Texas turnpikes, when education – to reveal the scale of privatization and its a privatized operation goes broke, taxpayers are left dangers. with the bill. But the contractors can still make bil- Dr. Baines, Associate Dean of Education at the lions of dollars in profits off the failed private prisons. , shows that “privatization As the demand for adult prison cells decreased, is no longer an occasional strategy to help improve privatizers moved into even more disgusting systems efficiency of a particular public service.” It “has be- for making big bucks, juvenile detentions. More than come an automatic response to any perceived gov- half of incarcerated juveniles are locked up for non- ernmental inefficiency.” Baines carefully documents violent crimes; 21% committed no crime. They are the ways that “privatization is changing the nature of locked up due to “technical violations,” and “status America’s public institutions and consequently the offenses.” So, an institution profits from detaining

40 • SEPTEMBER 2019 a 13-year-old who didn’t show for a hearing about a fight he didn’t witness and a 15-year-old girl who ridiculed an assistant principal on social media.” The median time for a juvenile for status offense is 128 days. Then the story grows more hor- rific. As states like Oklahoma over- incarcerate on the cheap, fees and fines become an essential funding source. I knew how cruel the situ- ation is in Oklahoma, but I had no idea that 48 states have gone down that path. And since fees and fines are a doomed method of funding the overgrown incarceration complex, monitored release of inmates is growing. That creates another market for privatizers, electronic bracelets to oversee parolees. And – surprise! – the lucrative, private market for monitoring those devic- es is “subject to virtually no judi- cial oversight.” The story became even more un- conscionable as private prisons moved into another growing mar- ket. For instance, since 2003, 176 immigrant deaths have gone large- ly unreported by for-profit institu- tions. And private prisons enable Trump’s brutality towards immi- grant families. Chapter Three, “Privatizing K – 12 Public Education: How the Prof- it Motive Is Changing Schools,” explains how the use of privatiza- tion as a tool for corporate school reform has denigrated teacher quality and fostered dumbed-down WHY WAIT? instruction. It uses technology to reduce number of teachers needed Now you can subscribe to The Oklahoma Observer in the culture of data-driven com- at the Full Circle Books checkout counter petition it created. and receive your free book certificate on the spot! It has gotten to the point where 5,000 emergency certificates were IMPORTANT RESTRICTIONS To take advantage of this offer, visit Full Circle Books, where you can subscribe to The Oklahoma Observer at the checkout issued in Oklahoma in 2017 and counter and receive your free book certificate immediately. You also may subscribe to The Observer using the coupon on page 3 of this issue 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 2018. Next door, Texas adjudicated free book [$20 limit]. The certificate is not transferable and must be presented in person at Full Circle Books in order to receive your 222 cases of teacher misconduct free book. No facsimiles, printouts or photocopies will be accepted as a substitute for the original Full Circle certificate. This book in 2016, with most involving sex offer is for new subscribers only. Not valid with any other offer. acts with minors. The backlogged and some try to deny that charters mates; most white students who caseload is over 1,100. and other privatized schools have attend privatized schools have few Privatization also has increased increased segregation and inequal- minority classmates.” inequality and segregation. I know ity. But Baines’ evidence and char- The next issue that Baines ana- many sincere and constructive acterization of charters are solid. lyzes, higher education, is inter- charter school advocates who re- He explains, “Most minority twined with the legacy of privatiza- coil at the use of the word priva- students who attend privatized tion by charters and vouchers, as tized to describe their schools, schools have few white class- CONTINUED NM PAGE 46 THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 41 Prejudice

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 39 pressed in the statement. error isn’t merely factual. The type of argument used It is ironic – but unsurprising, given my experienc- is suspect. es with atheist friends – that there’s evidence show- We are supposed to believe this: since the founders ing the opposite of what religious moralists claim were there at the birth of the nation their beliefs are about immoral atheists. According to sociologist Phil normative – norms for all of us – for the rest of the Zuckerman, studies have shown that atheists and history of the United States. The founders were not, nonbelievers are “markedly less nationalistic; less however, morally perfect demi-gods. They were fal- prejudiced, less anti-Semitic, less racist, less dog- lible persons who were wise in certain respects and matic, less ethnocentric, less close-minded, and less unwise in others. authoritarian.” A reference to the views of the founding fathers Belief in God isn’t necessary for moral motivation. as the method to define what it means to be a good It’s also clear that theistic belief isn’t sufficient for American is a fallacious appeal to authority. The rea- doing morally right actions. Some priests are pedo- soning is similar to one who claims that being a good philes; some preachers are adulterers. Some holy American requires belief in owning other human be- books have been used to justify morally repugnant ings – because such a belief was held by the founding actions and practices. There are pious murderers and fathers. corrupt, unctuous evangelical Christian politicians One can cherry-pick founders’ beliefs in any num- [and coaches]. ber of ways – and whatever is picked will have the If I met a stranger and found out that she didn’t [or problem of being justified. Why is that claim sup- did] believe in God, what could I infer about her moral posed to define the vague notion of what it means to character based on this fact about her system of be- be a good American? We ought not to believe some- liefs? Absolutely nothing. thing just because it is asserted by famous histori- Moore and Kramnick claim that distrust of nonbe- cal figures. We should believe because there are good lievers is sometimes an expression of dislike for “cul- reasons for belief. tural elitists” who “think they know better than any- Here’s a ripe cherry, picked from Thomas Jeffer- one else.” This claim is also ironic, given the cultural son’s letter to one of his nephews. dominance of Godists who talk as if they know better “Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tri- than anyone else which “faith” claims are true and bunal every fact, every opinion. Question with bold- which should be imposed on nonbelievers in Ameri- ness even the existence of a God; because, if there can public life. be one, he must approve the homage of reason than Godist prejudices against nonbelievers are also re- of blindfolded fear … Do not be frightened from this lated to patriotism. Newspaper reports about South inquiry by any fear of its consequences. If it end in a Dakota’s new law requiring public schools to display belief that there is no God, you will find incitements prominently “In God We Trust” indicated that law- to virtue in the comfort and pleasantness you feel in makers wanted to inspire patriotism. To be a good its exercise and in the love of others which it will American supposedly requires belief in God. They as- procure for you.” sume our history shows we are a godly nation. South Dakota lawmakers, in virtue of defining in This view may have something to do with a sim- religious terms what it means to be a good American, plistic misapprehension of the founders’ religious stigmatize the school children of nonbelievers whose beliefs. They weren’t all Christian theists. Many were parents may have taught them a Jeffersonian lesson. deists, who produced a godless constitution. But the Legislators define as outsiders people who want to think for themselves and whose conclusions about God are contrary to believers. THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER There is an unacceptable asymmetry in demand- ing respect for religion without a reciprocal respect for irreligion, a respect that is absent in our politics Your Passport To Oklahoma’s Most and in other venues of public life. Like other forms of Progressive, Socially Responsible prejudice, Godism is an affront to both morality and reason. We should pray for the death of Godism, as And Intellectual Audience well as other irrational prejudices in American public and private life. Advertising rates start as low Randolph M. Feezell, PhD, grew up in northwestern as $40 per issue. Oklahoma and is professor emeritus of philosophy at Creighton University in Omaha, NE. Call 405.478.8700 for details. 42 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Observations

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

Dayton. “ … [E]specially since it has been widely publicized that you can bring guns into the concert, any chance I have to stay away from that is safer and better for me,” she told Oklahoma City’s KFOR-TV. Thankfully, Oklahoma has escaped a mass shoot- ing on the scale of El Paso, Las Vegas or Orlando. But we well know terror’s toll after the 1995 Murrah bombing. And we experience more than our share of gun-re- Better Information, Better Policy lated fatalities – No. 5 nationally in 2016 with nearly Oklahoma Policy Institute provides timely and credible 20 for every 100,000 residents. information, analysis and commentary on state policy issues. That’s what Democratic Reps. Jason Dunnington of Oklahoma City and of Tulsa See our latest issue briefs, fact sheets and blog posts at: hoped to address with HB 2457 that would create the Oklahoma Extreme Risk Protective Order Act – a so-called “red flag” law already enacted by 17 other states. The measure would give state district judges the David Blatt, Director n 918.794.3944 n [email protected] authority to issue protective orders that empower authorities to temporarily confiscate firearms from those deemed to be a danger to themselves or others. Requests for the protective orders would most likely come from relatives or friends alarmed that a loved one is threatening suicide or to harm others. “I believe 2nd Amendment rights and common sense gun reform,” Dunnington said, “are not mutu- ally exclusive.” In the wake of the El Paso and Dayton shootings, President Trump embraced “red flag” laws. So did South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham. But DC’s parti- san gridlock makes federal action unlikely. In Oklahoma, there is a knee-jerk antipathy to al- most any gun restriction, of course. But if Repub- licans truly believe gun violence is a mental health issue, why wouldn’t a red flag law be a reasonable response? Yes, it could temporarily seize guns – but it also would require mental health treatment. Two more thoughts on this contentious subject: First, why wouldn’t the Legislature’s GOP superma- jority be willing to require that gun owners carry li- ability insurance – just in case someone is injured THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER or killed? We already require drivers to insure their motor vehicles for just that reason. Isn’t this capital- Your Passport To Oklahoma’s Most Progressive, ism with a capital C? Second, maybe it’s time for Attorney General Mike Socially Responsible And Intellectual Audience Hunter to regard some weaponry in the same legal Advertising rates start as low vein as opioids – a public nuisance. After all, Okla- as $40 per issue. homa reported 766 gun deaths in 2016, including 517 suicides. Call 405.478.8700 for details. State leaders clearly have common sense, reason- able options available when it comes to reducing gun violence. Read The Observer On-Line Will they be prepared – and have the courage – to act when the next session begins Feb. 3? www.okobserver.org THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 43 TOM GOODWIN Observerscope Cheyenne, OK

Reader and supporter of The Observer for over 30 years and counting.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3

Gov. Kevin Stitt swears he still wants a better deal on tribal gaming compacts, but he sure was quick to hand off the mess he created to Attorney General Mike Hunter. Can Hunter help the governor save face?

11701 N. MacArthur Blvd. Thanks to lawmakers’ decision to hike gross pro- Oklahoma City, Ok. 73162 duction taxes last year, the critically understaffed Corrections Department is better positioned to fill [405] 721-3252 nearly 600 guard positions – offering $15.74 an hour springcreekbc.com to start, along with benefits and overtime.

Laurel: To Oklahoma Tax Commission Executive Director Tony Mastin, retiring Sept. 1 after 35 years with the agency. He will be sorely missed!

Too bad Stillwater Central failed to deliver on plans to test passenger rail service between OKC and Tulsa. Connecting the state’s population center and lever- aging their economic power could help spur an eco- nomic boom.

Yikes! One in 10 older adults binge drinks [five or more in a sitting for men, four or more for women]. This is especially troubling since people become more alcohol sensitive as they age. – Journal of the American Geriatrics Society

Epic Charter Schools’ woes aren’t confined to Okla- homa. Its plans to expand into Texas were derailed – at least temporarily – by an OSBI probe into allega- tions that include embezzlement and racketeering.

Could another Dossett be headed to the ? Owasso Sen. J.J. Dossett’s sister Jo Anna is seeking the Democratic nomination in south Tulsa’s SD 35 – an open seat next year because incumbent Republican Gary Stanislawski is term-limited.

A Fidelity Investments survey found 72% of Baby Boomers prioritize improved health over improved fi- nances. With age comes wisdom?

An AARP survey finds one in 10 Americans have been victimized by robocall scams – at a cost of $429 Read The Observer On-Line million in 2018 alone, according to FTC. Our rule of thumb: If you don’t recognize the number, don’t an- www.okobserver.org swer. 44 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Fracking States Still Building Fracking Infrastructure

BY JEN DEERINWATER okea.org

racking bans have begun to sweep across the world, with Ireland, France, Germany and Bul- garia declaring a moratorium on the deadly fossil fuel process. While the U.S. is lagging Fbehind in the effort to stop the ill effects of global cli- mate crisis, states like Vermont, Washington, Mary- land and New York have passed bans. Both Georgia and Florida have attempted these bans as well. Banning fracking isn’t enough, though. Fracking infrastructure is being built in states with bans and is continuing the fossil fuel industry’s race to drain the remaining dirty energy sources from the Earth. The Cornell Policy Review defines hydraulic frac- turing as the “propagation of fractures in a layer of rock called shale, using pressurized fluid pumped thousands of feet below the surface through a drilled well.” There are three types of hydraulic fracturing: water; the use of water and a proprietary blend of chemicals, and frac sand or proponnant; and matrix acidizing. A mixture of water, proppants and chemi- cals is pumped into the shale, creating fractures by injecting gases, such as propane or nitrogen, and sometimes acidizing involves pumping acid (usual- ly hydrochloric acid) into the formation to dissolve some of the rock material to enable gas and fluid to flow more readily into the well. No state has banned all three forms of fracking. The fossil fuel industry claims that fracked gas is a cleaner energy source than coal, but in this as- sessment, it neglects to account for the emissions that come from transporting the gas. Noelle Picone, the Williams Pipeline campaign lead from the New York City chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, told Truthout that from the beginning process through transport, fracked gas is “84 times more potent a cli- mate actor than other fossil fuels.” Methane emissions from fracking account for one- third of all U.S. methane emissions and more than 3% of the total U.S. greenhouse emissions. Community engagement coordinator for the Sane Energy Project Lee Ziesche told Truthout that from the fracking well head to the point of use, there is a 5% to 12% leakage of methane. Fracking also poisons the water and wildlife, and contributes to climate change. Areas with high lev- els of fracking have also experienced earthquakes, flooding, cancer clusters, and fires and explosions THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 45 at compressor stations and on the trains and ships It wasn’t easy to pass a permanent ban, according transporting the fracked gas. to Rianna Eckel, senior organizer with Food and Wa- More than 90% of the water injected underground ter Watch Maryland. State Senate President Thomas to frack gas wells never returns to the surface, re- Mike Miller and atate Sen. Joan Carter Conway, both moving it from the water cycle and contributing to Democrats, held a bill in committee from being vot- water scarcity. Meanwhile, as fracking has expanded, ed on in the Maryland Senate until Gov. Larry Hogan so has the volume of waste generated. Between 2010 came out in favor of the ban. Incidentally, Conway and 2011, fracking waste went up by 70% in Penn- is close friends with lobbyist Lisa Harris Jones, who sylvania. Thanks to a regulatory gap often referred lobbies for the American Petroleum Institute. The oil to as the Halliburton Loophole, fracking is exempt and gas industry spent over $1 million to stop the from several pieces of federal regulation that protect fracking ban. the environment: the Safe Drinking Water Act, Clean Even after the ban’s passage, Maryland has contin- Water Act, Clean Air Act and National Environmental ued to support fracking through the buildup of frack- Policy Act, to name a few. ing infrastructure. Despite Hogan’s support of the Maryland was the first state with known oil and gas ban, he still supports the industry. Hogan appointed reserves to pass a ban on fracking. The state passed Ben Grumbles secretary of the Maryland Department a 1.5-year moratorium on fracking in 2015. A perma- of the Environment. Previously, while serving in the nent ban was passed in 2017. George W. Bush administration, Grumbles wrote the Privatization CONTINUED FROM PAGE 41 well as the budget-cutting that has devastated public promising universities’ commitment to public ser- education in Oklahoma and many other states. vice, and that brings me to a final concern I’ve had Early in the chapter, “Privatizing Public Education: but that I hadn’t understood well enough. Selling Off the Alma Mater,” Baines lists the 10 states The Oklahoma State Department of Education and that have cut higher education by 26% to 54% from scholars like Dr. Baines have long had hard-earned 2008 to 2017. Oklahoma is sixth, with cuts of 34%. reputations for excellence. I still see some of their In 1996, higher education privatization was basi- experts, as well scholars from the OU Health Science cally limited to five support services. By 2017, there Center, testifying in legislative hearings. were 17 categories of privatized services, culminating Today, however, much or most of the legislature’s with academic programs. Moreover, one third or more information comes from “experts” hired by corpo- of universities outsource their online programs. rate reform think tanks. Many of their witnesses are Today, 70% of higher education instructors are ad- equally smart as traditional scholars, and some have juncts. The university’s mission of service has been some real-world experience in public education. And de-emphasized. College is supposed to be a transfor- they bring compelling power point presentations! mational experience – “a rush of unfamiliar people, But these witnesses don’t know what they don’t cultures, knowledge, relationships, and interac- know about schools. tions.” But now, the “collegiate experience is becom- Unfortunately, today’s government officials tend to ing commercialized, standardized, and monetized.” listen to these “astroturf” advocates for privatization. Baines wraps up his account of the human and fi- Too often, legislators don’t realize that they do not nancial costs of privatizations by illustrating ways conduct research according to scholarly principles, that the military, prisons, public schools, and higher such as peer review. Their methodologies typically education are being undermined by interrelated forc- ignore the social science conducted in traditional es. universities. And their recommendation’s come from For instance, Baines explains that “privatization is their think tanks’ public relations departments, not happening so quickly and on such a colossal scale in an objective review of the evidence. higher education that it is difficult to stay current.” So, privatization has run up unconscionable hu- To take one example of how it is interconnected with man and financial costs. But the worst of these inter- K-12 schools, he shows how teacher certification is related tragedies might be the long-term damage to “being transmogrified into a product traded on the our democratic, educational, and moral values. open market, teachers are circumventing universi- The first step towards reclaiming them is wrestling ties and teacher preparation completely and moving with Privatization of America’s Public Institutions. straight into the classroom.” John Thompson is an award-winning historian who This has led to unqualified teachers being rushed became an inner-Oklahoma City teacher after the into many states’ classrooms, pushing down student “Hoova” set of the Crips took over his neighborhood performance, and enabling privatizers to blame the and he became attached to the kids in the drug hous- public schools. es. Now retired, he is the author of A Teacher’s Tale: Baines emphasizes the danger of privatization com- Learning, Loving, and Listening to Our Kids.

46 • SEPTEMBER 2019 Halliburton Loophole. Governor Hogan also approved station and the Northern Access Pipeline expan- the use of tax dollars for the Canadian corporation sion (NAPL) as evidence that fracking-related activ- AltaGas to build fracked gas infrastructure and for ity hasn’t ended, even though the actual process of TransCanada’s Potomac Pipeline. fracking is no longer allowed to take place in the Meanwhile, Maryland is home to Dominion En- state. National Fuel’s NAPL would move gas from ergy’s Cove Point. Cove Point is a liquified natural Pennsylvania to Canada, directly crossing the Sen- gas [LNG] import and export hub that moves fracked eca Nation’s land. The New York State Department of gas to India, China and other international markets. Environmental Conservation originally denied neces- LNGs are highly explosive and unstable. The environ- sary permits, but the Federal Energy Regulatory Com- ment and the residents in the area are at risk of water mission [FERC] overruled the decision. Construction contamination, air pollution, pipeline and well leaks, is slated to begin in 2020. as well as explosions and fires. Communities are ab- Rubber-stamping at the federal level makes bans sorbing this risk while those in power can earn prof- not only on fracking, but also on related infrastruc- its off fracked gas that doesn’t even stay in the U.S. ture, crucial at the state and local level. A similar situation is currently playing out in New “FERC doesn’t really listen to the public” said Zi- York, which passed a fracking ban in 2014. As in esche. Indeed, many activists view FERC as a body Maryland, New York’s fracking ban hasn’t brought that approves almost every pipeline application that an end to fracking infrastructure in the state. The comes its way. This rubber-stamping at the federal proposed projects of the Danskammer gas-powered level makes bans not only on fracking, but also on plant, the enormous Cricket Valley gas power plant, related infrastructure, crucial at the state and local and Williams’s Northeast Supply Enhancement proj- level. ect (NESE) are all a part of the fracking infrastructure North Carolina lifted its fracking ban and even went boom that’s being built across New York. And it’s not so far as to make it illegal for anyone to reveal the difficult to see why the infrastructure is being built chemicals used. even in the wake of a fracking ban: In 2016, Joseph In Florida, a fracking ban appears to be on the ho- Percoco, a top aide for Gov. Andrew Cuomo, pled rizon. During the 2018 gubernatorial race, every can- guilty to six counts of extortion and soliciting bribes didate, including Gov. Ron DeSantis, went on record from Competitive Power Ventures. supporting a fracking ban. Kim Fraczek, director of Sane Energy, pointed to Governors Hogan, Cuomo and DeSantis did not re- controversial fracking projects happening in New spond to Truthout’s requests for comment. York, such as the Manheim compressed natural gas © Truthout

Show your love for The Observer and your solidarity with the 99% with a classic “T” featuring our iconic logo on the front and our motto on the back. Available in gray, black and Oklahoma flag blue. M-XL $18, XXL $20 plus $3 postage/handling. To order visit https://okobserver.org/store/products/ Or mail payment to PO Box 14275, Oklahoma City, OK 73113 THE OKLAHOMA OBSERVER • 47 Newsmakers Series

Join Observer Editor Arnold Hamilton for an important one-hour conversation with House Democratic Leader Emily Virgin about the expansion of gubernatorial power and its impact on state agencies, state services and state workers.

Thursday, Sept. 12, 2019 Full Circle Books 1900 Northwest Expressway Oklahoma City 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. Admission is free Light hors d’oeuvres will be served Wine and beer available for purchase