The Red Dirt Political Report

CNHI Survey: Women prefer McCain

2008-03-31T16:58:00.000-07:00

Republican presidential candidate John McCain would defeat both Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama in a presidential matchup, data from a survey conducted by Community Newspaper Holdings Inc. shows.

The parent company of The Norman Transcript, CNHI owns more than 200 news outlets in 22 states. CNHI conducted the survey on the company’s newspaper Web sites between March 6 and March 15. While it didn’t use scientific methods, the survey did include ways to prevent respondents from participating more than once.

The survey — which was based on the Zoomerang Web site — received 2,123 responses.

“It gives an interesting look,” said Courtney Chojnacki, who supervised the survey. “It’s interesting how the women say they will vote.”

According to the survey, of the 2,132 who responded, a majority — 53 percent — were female, with the largest percentage of those falling in the 25- to 66-year-old age bracket.

Additionally, 42 percent of the respondents claimed membership in the Democratic Party, 37 percent Republican and 20 percent either Independent or undecided.

However, those Democrats may not help their party’s presidential nominee.

Of those who responded, 43 percent said they would vote for Republican John McCain in a race between Clinton and McCain with 36 percent supporting Clinton.

Twenty-two percent remain undecided.

In a race between McCain and Barack Obama, McCain, again, comes out on top with 47 percent for McCain and 33 percent for Obama; 20 percent, CHNI’s survey said, remain undecided.

Still, not all Democrats are worried by those numbers.

Oklahoma City-based Democratic political consultant Don Hoover said the survey is “pretty much meaningless.”

“Those kinds of Web surveys don’t count for much,” he said. “People are doing them because they are motivated one way or another. There’s not a chance of a random possibility.”

And while Hoover acknowledged he “wouldn’t be surprised” by a McCain win, he said the campaign season is still in the early stages.

“A McCain win would be due to the Republican nature of this state,” he said. “Oklahoma hasn’t voted for a Democratic presidential candidate in 44 years. It’s more of a partisan gap than a gender gap.”

Yet even for Oklahoma Democrats there is some good news, Hoover said.

“There’s always some bleed during a presidential year. In terms of legislative candidates, which is what we have a majority of this year, they will have to work hard and fund strong campaigns, regardless of what’s going on at the top of the ticket.”

Campus gun bill moves to state Senate

2008-03-30T13:43:00.000-07:00

KLAHOMA CITY -- A legislative proposal designed to allow concealed guns on the campuses of state colleges and universities was assigned to the Senate's appropriation sub-committee on education late Thursday afternoon.

Senate leaders made the assignment after House Bill 2513 was sent to the Senate's full appropriations committee. The bill passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives by a 65-36 vote last week.

Under House Bill 2513 -- written by Guthrie Republican Jason Murphey -- honorably discharged veterans and others with firearms training would be allowed to carry a concealed weapon on the campus of an Oklahoma college or university.

The bill is not popular with the state's higher education community.

The measure has drawn harsh criticism from education officials across the state including a plea from University of Oklahoma President David Boren asking lawmakers to kill the bill.

Additionally, in a statement issued to The Norman Transcript last week, OU's Faculty Senate passed a resolution asking lawmakers to reconsider their support of the measure.

"We believe that allowing guns on our campus would endanger the safety of our students, faculty and staff," the resolution said. "Furthermore, we, the faculty, cannot imagine being able to conduct class in a classroom where one or more of our students might be armed. We cannot imagine students being able to concentrate on a class, knowing that some of their fellow students might be armed. We ask you to reconsider."

Other groups echoed the OU faculty.

This week, the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators issued a statement saying the IACELA's Board of Directors believes "concealed carry" initiatives do not make campuses safer.

"There is no credible evidence to suggest that the presence of students carrying concealed weapons would reduce violence on college campuses. In fact, we are concerned that concealed carry laws have the potential to dramatically increase violence on college and university campuses that our members are empowered to protect."

The organization said it had several "concerns" about the bill, including the "potential for accidental discharge or misuse of firearms at on-campus or off-campus parties where large numbers of students are gathered or at student gatherings where alcohol or drugs are being consumed, as well as the potential for guns to be used as a means to settle disputes between or among students."

"There is also a real concern that campus police officers responding to a situation involving an active shooter may not be able to distinguish between the shooter and others with firearms," the organization's statement said.

Boren, a former governor, appealed to lawmakers to reconsider the proposal.

"While I strongly support the rights of our citizens to keep and bear firearms under the Second Amendment to the constitution, allowing guns on college campuses would endanger the safety of our students, faculty and staff," Boren said. "Every single day, I think about my responsibilities as president of a university for the safety of those on our campus. We have spent large sums of money to develop rapid communication systems and highly trained law enforcement personnel to take action in emergency situations. To allow other people to have guns who have not trained with our police units would create chaos in a crisis situation."

While he acknowledged he wasn't surprised by swift movement of HB 2513, state Sen. John Sparks, D-Norman, said he "really didn't expect" the measure to survive the Senate.

"Honestly, I don't think the bill will make it to the floor," Sparks said late last week. "The best thing for everyone involved would be if it died here."

However, on Friday, during a breakfast meeting sponsored by the Norman Chamber of Commerce, Sparks said he was leaning against the bill but would take "a wait and see approach" to view the bill's final language.

"I don't think it will happen this year," he said. "As a practical matter, I don't see it happening this year. It's happened too fast."
Rep. Scott Martin, R-Norman, who voted in favor of the bill, told chamber members that the law would narrowly define who could carry a gun on campus.

He also said the shootings at Virginia Tech last year and Northern Illinois this year showed police can't always respond in time.
"The police were too late," Martin said. "People were already dead by the time the police got there."

Murphey, the bill's author, said the proposal was a "commonsense step" to expand Oklahoma's concealed weapons law to combat campus violence.

"I don't know what could be safer for the students than having our men and women in the military to defend them if something went down," Murphey said Friday. "I wish there would have been someone that could have been armed in Illinois."
It's not sound public policy, he said, "to have a bubble around campuses, where criminals can penetrate."

Granite man's federal lawsuit dismissed

2008-03-28T07:29:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — A Granite man’s lawsuit against more than 40 defendants, including the Cleveland County Board of Commissioners, District Judge Tom Lucas, District Attorney Greg Mashburn, Sheriff DeWayne Beggs and a host of others has been dismissed by a federal district judge.

John Murray, 45, of Granite, claimed a loss of income, real estate losses, health problems resulting in surgery and “emotional, physical, mental and domestic distress,” in his lawsuit. Murray said the group’s actions “threatened his future and freedom, denied his civil rights and caused a general loss in quality of life.”

Murray’s claims stem from a July 4, 2006, incident.

In his suit, Murray said three women — Demea Guidice, Donna Guidice and Cathey Miller — initiated a campaign of harassment against Murray, “claiming dominion over the private road known as Running Deer Road.”

That harassment continued, Murray said, “when Demea Guidice made a complaint to Cleveland County Sheriff’s Department which resulted in Murray’s arrest and incarceration.”

Murray sought $30 million in damages and an “end to the pattern of harassment and persecution” along with “all remedies allowed by law including real and punitive damages, interest, cost, medical bills and other related expenses.”

Murray filed the suit pro se — meaning he represented himself in the proceeding without an attorney.

Dave Batton, assistant district attorney for Cleveland County, said Murray’s suit was originally dismissed at the state court level.

“He had his original suit dismissed in state court,” Batton said. “Then he turned around and filed in federal court.”
On several occasions, Batton said, he tried to speak with Murray, but Murray was “hard to get focused on what his problems are.”

Batton said Murray faces a trial for assault and battery in Cleveland County.

In his ruling, Federal District Judge Robin Cauthorn dismissed Murray’s complaint, saying none of Murray’s allegations “would support a plausible federal or constitutional claim for relief against these defendants.”

“It’s patently obvious that Plaintiff could not prevail on the facts he has alleged,” Cauthorn wrote. “Amendment would be futile and these claims shall be dismissed.”

Murray, Cauthorn said, “fails to include any discernible allegations regarding any federal claim against as-yet-unknown defendants, and therefore dismissal of these defendants is proper.”

Last week, Murray said the suit was dismissed “on a technicality.”

“I’ve muddled through the best way that I could,” he said. “I’ve made a couple of technical mistakes, but even knowning that the federal lawsuit had been dismissed I filed an appeal.”

Murray said he was seeking a dismissal of the criminal charges against him and had filed open records requests with the Cleveland County sheriff’s office and the Cleveland County district attorney’s office.

“The Cleveland County district attorney’s office has refused to answer my subpoena,” he said. “And they refused to produce a copy of a 911 call made May 22.”

Murray said he’s made an Open Records Act request for the tape and plans to continue his lawsuit.

“I think this is the beginning and not the end,” he said.

Supreme Court backs off secrecy rules

2008-03-27T12:25:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — An order which would have restricted public access to electronic court records has been withdrawn, officials with the Oklahoma Supreme Court an-nounced Tuesday.

The rule, which was originally designed to help curb identity theft, was set to take effect June 10.

Tuesday, the court’s chief justice, Justice James R. Winchester, said he was “pulling the request to allow time for further study.”

“The Supreme Court of Oklahoma is very aware of privacy and identity theft concerns of individuals related to the personal data that may appear on the court’s Web site,” the court said in a statement provided to The Associated Press.

“We are cognizant that many businesses and individuals rely on the information court clerks have placed on our Web site. Personal privacy balanced with reliable public information is critical for a free society.

“Due to the very important issues for all concerned, the Supreme Court is hereby withdrawing its privacy and public access order … handed down March 11, 2008, to give the issue further study and consideration,” the statement concluded.

The court’s about face drew praise from open records advocates.

“We’re happy that they withdrew the order,” said Mark Thomas, executive vice president of the Oklahoma Press Association.

“We believe further study of the issue is very important and gladly will serve on any task force formed to discuss this further.”

The original order, Thomas said, was “too broad, and closed so much information that it basically rendered court records unusable to thousands of people that relied on that information.”

“I do believe, however, the public wants us to seriously address the issue of identity theft, and more specifically Social Security numbers, and we will do so in the very near future.”

Campus gun bill awaits action in Senate

2008-03-24T09:36:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — A controversial legislative proposal designed to allow guns on the campuses of state colleges and universities has cleared the Oklahoma House of Representatives and is awaiting action by the Oklahoma State Senate.

Under the terms of House Bill 2513 — authored by Guthrie Republican Jason Murphey — active-duty military personnel, honorably discharged veterans and others with firearms training could carry a concealed weapon on the campus of an Oklahoma college or university.

In a vote which fell pretty much along party lines, the bill passed the Oklahoma House 65-36; only eight of the House’s 44 Democrats voted for the measure.

Murphey told The Associated Press his bill was a “commonsense step” to expand Oklahoma’s concealed weapons law to combat campus violence.

“I don’t know what could be safer for the students than having our men and women in the military to defend them if something went down,” Murphey said Friday. “I wish there would have been someone that could have been armed in Illinois.”

It’s not sound public policy, he said, “to have a bubble around campuses, where criminals can penetrate.”

And while many officials have expressed concern over having students with concealed weapons, Murphey said the state’s concealed carry permitting procedure “has done very well in the past 12 years.”

“I think the success of that program speaks for itself,” he said.

In Cleveland County, the county’s three Republican House members — Scott Martin of Norman, Randy Terrill of Moore and Paul Wesselhoft of Moore — voted in favor of the bill. Norman Democrats Bill Nations and Wallace Collins voted “no.”

Nations said he hopes the bill will die in the Senate.

“I have hope that it won’t make it through the Senate,” he said. “I don’t know that for sure, but at least I hope it won’t.”
The idea, he said, is being driven “by the excitement of those who are very strongly pro-gun.”

“University presidents are almost unanimously against it,” Nations said. “And at almost all levels, university administrators are against it. Professors on campus are almost 99 percent against it. Municipal law enforcement officials in towns which have a college are against it.”

The bill, he said, is “anti-business.”

“I’ve heard from business people that say it’s embarrassing to the state. We’ve got people trying to put guns on campus, we’ve got hate speech about minorities and have leadership resigning in disgrace. It is embarrassing.”

State Rep. Scott Martin disagreed.

Martin, a former assistant to Norman’s city manager, said the question isn’t what the state Senate is going to do with the bill, but what Gov. Brad Henry will do.

“The bill received fairly overwhelming bipartisan support in the House,” he said. “And the bigger question is what the governor is going to do?”

Martin said the bill “closely defines” what the new exceptions would be for those with a concealed carry permit.

“Just because you’re active duty, a veteran or CLEET certified, you wouldn’t automatically be able to carry a concealed weapon,” he said. “You would still have to have a concealed carry permit and meet those three previous exceptions I’ve mentioned, then you would qualify to have a gun on campus.”

Martin said “not every student who comes along” would qualify for the permit

“The average age is 51,” he said. “For the most part, the vast majority of people who have permits are older folks, not typical college students.”

And those residents who have permits, he said, have “gone through vigorous background checks and training.”

“In the 12 years Oklahoma has allowed the concealed carry permit, we haven’t had one problem. And I wouldn’t anticipate that to happen in the future.”

Still, many university officials oppose the measure.

Last week, University of Oklahoma president David Boren — a former Oklahoma governor — issued a statement scolding lawmakers who supported the bill.

Legislators, Boren said, should “stick to the laws that have worked well in the past” and allow colleges to continue to improve campus safety.

“If it would help for me to get down on my knees to plead with the Legislature for the safety of our students, I would do so,” Boren said.

At Oklahoma State University, officials said allowing students to carry guns on campus was a dangerous idea.

“I think it creates a very unsafe environment,” Lee Bird, Oklahoma State University’s vice president of student affairs, told the OSU Daily O’Collegian. “Realistically that (shootings) is not our most major problem and I don’t think weapons are necessarily going to help us; I think it will endanger people.”

Martin said he, too, was concerned about public safety on state campuses.

“We’re not arming an army,” he said. “We’re trying to provide law-abiding citizens the opportunity to protect themselves. It (the bill) is really a sad commentary on today’s life.”

Nations countered, saying whole issue boils down to a single question.

“Ultimately, the question is this: Do you believe that students, faculty and staff are safer with more guns on campus or with fewer guns on campus?. That’s the question. And when you answer it you know how to vote.”

House Bill 2513 is on second reading in the Oklahoma State Senate.

Court's proposed record policy could affect prescreening companies

2008-03-23T10:53:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — New public access rules developed by the Oklahoma Supreme Court would make it more difficult for companies that do prehiring background checks, officials with those companies said this week.

The rules, set to take effect June 10, require removal of personal information such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and other data from court filings. The rules also limit the number of documents available through the Oklahoma Supreme Court Network (OSCN) Web site.

Companies that perform background checks said the court’s rules will “severely limit” their ability to serve their clients.
“Although a person’s date of birth may be safe from the public, that same person may very likely be put at risk in the workplace because their employer will no longer be able to obtain adequate background checks on new hires,” said David Blanton, owner of PreHire Screening Service in Oklahoma City.

Blanton, who says his company performs about 10,000 background checks a year, told The Associated Press “the new rules could have an unintended negative effect, because companies may put workers in jeopardy by hiring applicants with violent criminal backgrounds.”

He said his company could face increased liability if it supplied incomplete information as a result of erroneous reports.
Norman private investigator Frank Gaynor agreed.

Gaynor, president of Norman-based Lighthouse Investigators, said the change would affect his business.

“It’s going to affect me because I do a lot of work on the Internet,” he said. “But it won’t affect me in Norman, because I can still go to the courthouse.”

And though Gaynor acknowledged the rule change would “cause a problem” for private investigators, he said he didn’t necessarily disagree with the court’s action.

“I do think that some public access is abused,” he said. “From a stalker standpoint.”

Tracy Seabrook, executive director of the National Association of Professional Background Screeners, said no other state has in place a records policy as restrictive as the new Oklahoma court rule.

She said others have tried such policies, but later backtracked after many who use court records pointed out problems. Seabrook said that includes North Carolina, where her association has its headquarters.

“We all understand, no one wants their identity stolen,” Seabrook said. “However, if I tell you my birthday right now, you can’t steal my identity with my birthday.”

Gaynor said he was aware of identity theft problems, but said he “hadn’t dealt with it here” in Oklahoma.

“I have dealt with identity issues in other states,” he said. “I’ve heard of it and it is a huge issue. But here, I think the problem is small, less than 5 percent.”

Several open government advocates have criticized the new rules.

Oklahoma Press Association executive director Mark Thomas said some disclosure is necessary when public institutions are used.

“If people want privacy they should settle their affairs in private,” Thomas said. “If they must use the public courts, paid for by taxpayers, they should expect much of their information to be public.”

There are a few sensitive issues such as Social Security numbers, he said, “but the list of items this new rule requires to be redacted, both in paper copies and any online documents is much too broad. Marking out all of that information will, in effect, give us secret courts.”

Oklahoma State University professor Joey Senat said the court should have listened to other parties interested in open government.

“I think there needs to be a more public process than letters sent to an administrator,” Senat, a former president of FOI Oklahoma Inc., said. “I’d like to see hearings, at the very least.”

Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice James Winchester said the new rules may be revisited before they take effect in June.
Winchester and Justices Tom Colbert, Rudolph Hargrave, Joseph Watt, John Reif voted for the rules. Justice Steven Taylor opposed the rules. Vice Chief Justice James Edmondson and Justice Yvonne Kauger agreed with some of the rules and disagreed with others. Justice Marian Opala did not vote.

Piatt, Collins lock horns over defibrillator bill

2008-03-20T14:27:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — A proposal which encourages public schools to purchase automated defibrillators is being derailed because House Republican leaders are feeling political pressure, the bill’s author claimed this week.

Norman Democrat Rep. Wallace Collins said he’s frustrated because he couldn’t get a hearing for House Bill 1847 — a measure, he says, which would encourage public school districts to make automated external defibrillators available “contingent upon certain funding.”

Collins developed the proposal in 2007. Since then, he said he’s struggled to get the bill heard by the House’s Republican leadership. “What’s crazy to me is here, they won’t hear a defibrillator bill which can help save lives, but they’ve got time to hear gun bills to make sure everyone can carry a gun.”

Collins claimed House Floor Leader Greg Piatt has refused to place the proposal on the House calendar because Collins has spoken publicly about his difficulty getting the bill heard and has encouraged residents in Piatt’s southern Oklahoma district to contact GOP leaders about the bill.

“He’s mad at me,” Collins said. “It’s not about the bill. It’s political, because he’s mad at me.”

But Piatt, an Ardmore Republican, said the issue isn’t with Collins, but his bill.

“I just found out about this bill a week ago last Thursday,” Piatt told The Transcript this week. “I started getting e-mails from Ardmore. I asked our legislative staff to look at it and they said the bill wouldn’t do anyting.”

Piatt said he contacted the House’s Education Committee chairman, Rep. Tad Jones — a Claremore Republican — and Jones, too, said the bill wasn’t heard because it “didn’t do anything.”

“The bill doesn’t change anything,” Piatt said. “That’s exactly the way it is right now. That’s the reason the bill wasn’t heard in the education committee. Why run a bill that doesn’t do anything?”

Collins, Piatt said, has “misrepresented” HB 1874 as “an avenue to fix a problem.”

Collins countered, saying Piatt is particularly sensitive to the issue because a boy from Dickson — a small town near Piatt’s home of Ardmore — died recently after collapsing at a basketball game.

In stories published in Ardmore’s Daily Ardmoreite newspaper, Dickson Superintendent Sherry Howe said 12-year-old Luke Davis — a Dickson Middle School student — died due to “an undiagnosed heart rhythm disorder.”

Davis died in early February.

Ardmore officials said Davis collapsed less than two minutes into a seventh-grade basketball game in February.

“If they had a defibrillator at the time, the little boy might have made it,” Collins said. “It probably would have saved his life and those people down there have taken this (bill) personally.”

Since then, Collins said several media outlets have contacted him about the measure, and the ensuing publicity has put a great deal of political pressure on Piatt. “I’ve been asked about my bill and I’ve answered their questions,” Collins said. “I’ve also referred people to Rep. Piatt and the speaker.”

Piatt acknowledged he was “frustrated” by the e-mails from his district.

“I asked him (Collins) to stop,” Piatt said. “I told him I wanted the e-mails from back in my district stopped. I didn’t have time to respond.”

Piatt said he did contact Luke Davis’ mother and “shared with her that Collins’ bill didn’t do anything.”

“I visited with her and that’s a tough phone call to make, let me tell you,” Piatt said. “That young boy died in February and it’s been a week and a month since he’d passed away. The day I called it was his birthday, it was one of the hardest calls I ever had to make.”

Collins said his focus was getting the bill passed and when asked, he “just responded to questions.”

On several occasions, Collins said he fielded questions from residents across the state about the bill. Collins said he encouraged those residents to contact either Piatt or House Speaker Chris Benge and that has angered Piatt.

“He (Piatt) doesn’t like that,” Collins said. “But I don’t think any of them would admit it.”

Copies of an e-mail obtained by The Transcript show that Collins did tell residents to contact Piatt and House Speaker Chris Benge.

In an e-mail dated March 10, Collins urged Ardmore residents Jamie and Charlotte Rutledge to “call or e-mail Speaker Benge and Floor Leader Piatt.”

“I feel this bill is important and can save lives,” Collins wrote in a reply to the couple.

Like Collins, Piatt said he, too, was frustrated.

“When I talked with him about the bill, he didn’t even know what was in his own bill,” Piatt said. “That’s frustrating. He just doesn’t get it. When Wallace left the House the first time he was in majority. When he came back, he was in a minority. That’s just the way it is. Not everyone gets what they want. You don’t go back and cry and complain. You don’t get everything you want when you are in the minority.”

Collins said he talked with Piatt about the issue again last week, and Piatt said he would not hear the bill because Collins was down in his (Piatt’s) district “stirring things up.”

“He said, ‘one more time and that’s it,’” Collins said. “So he’s mad. I guess I’m naive, I thought we were up here to do the right thing. I thought a bill would stand or fall on its own merits and personality wasn’t part of it. I’m being punished. For two years I’m not getting bills heard for purely political reasons.”

Paitt, however, said he supports the idea and has offered Collins a compromise.

“I told him we should run a House Concurrent Resolution,” Piatt said. “That’s what we need to do to bring awareness to this issue. If he wants to do that, that’s fine with me.”

COMMENTARY: When did Yield stop meaning Yield?

2008-03-19T07:41:00.000-07:00

The small, blue Toyota ahead of me is in a hurry.

The driver — oblivious to everyone except himself — zooms in and out of traffic like a Formula One race car driver on Memorial Day.

I’ve watched him for several minutes and honestly, I’m amazed he’s still alive.

Especially after he exits off I-35 at about 70 miles per hour and blows past a large red and white Yield sign.

He missed the yellow truck by just a few feet.

Granted, Mr. Blue Toyota isn’t alone.

In fact, he’s just one example of an all-too-common problem I call “Nonexistent Yield Signs.”

And it’s getting worse.

Across Oklahoma, in small towns and right here in the Metro, there are hundreds — maybe even thousands — of Yield signs.

They are shaped like a triangle and painted red and white.

And they say, “Yield.”

And I have yet to see a driver obey them.

Seriously, those signs might as well not be there.

Because no one yields.

When I was taking drivers ed, the Yield sign was the metal equivalent of your mother standing there, waving her finger at you.

She was reminding you to be good.

She was telling you to slow down, pause, and look around you as you prepare to enter the highway.

She was not telling you to stomp on the gas, and try to beat the other driver to the end of the road.

But somewhere, somehow along the way the humble Yield sign’s clout began to fade. It no long stands as a warming, a caution. It’s simply being ignored.

And the results are tragic.

If you look at almost any major intersection in the Metro area, you’ll probably find an impromptu monument to the victim of a car wreck. Now you and I both know, the accident victim’s friends or family would not have put those monuments there had the accident victim lived.

Nope. Those little crosses represent someone who died.

And I’ll bet you my copy of Newt Gingrich’s Fun Things to Do When You’re No Longer in Office, that more than half of those victims of accidents ignored Yield signs.

Just two weeks ago, I watched as the driver a of new, pretty silver Mustang blew past a Yield sign and right into the back of slow moving minivan.

The minivan was filled with a family which included several small children. Thankfully, no one was hurt.

But as I drove away — I’d stopped to see if everyone was OK — I overheard the Mustang driver cuss the other driver because the minivan “was moving to slow and causing disruptions in the flow of traffic.”

Bull.

The truth behind the story is simple: The idiot (and that’s the only word that truly describes him) in the Mustang was traveling way too fast and did not bother to Yield.

Mr. Mustang came very close to killing himself and several other people.

Honestly, if public safety officials are not going to enforce the laws surrounding the Yield sign, then all Yield signs should be removed and the motoring public can take its chances.

If, however, Yield signs are to remain, then patrolmen should nail those drivers who cruise through the signs with the same type of penalty for failure to stop or speeding or all those other traffic violations we’ve all come to know and love.

Still, most of the fault remains with the drivers and not the police.

It is up to each and every person who travels the ribbons of highway in this great state to turn off their damned cell phone, unplug their iPod and pay attention to what they are doing.

And that means slowing down at Yield signs.

I know, of all the problems our state faces today, you’re wondering why the issue of “Nonexistent Yield Signs” needs to be addressed.

It’s simple.

Somewhere, sometime soon, you may be driving.

And somewhere some dolt with too much car and too little sense will be out there, too.

And the next monument could be for you.

11 men seeking Cleveland County sheriff's post

2008-03-19T07:32:00.000-07:00

At least 11 men — almost all of them from Norman — have applied to replace Cleveland County sheriff DeWayne Beggs, who recently resigned and will leave office at the end of April.

As of last Thursday, all 11 men had submitted resumes to the Cleveland County Board of Commissioners. The application deadline has closed.

Assistant District Attorney Dave Batton — who serves as the county commissioners' attorney — confirmed the applicants and said each meets the statutory requirements to be appointed to the sheriff's post.

Batton said the eleven include:

Roy D. Magerkurth, Norman, a former sheriff's department employee.

Lloyd D. Blaine, Norman, a current employee with the sheriff's department.

David Williams, Norman, a former undersheriff.

Jim D. Filipski, Norman, the current undersheriff of McClain County.

Christopher Manning, Norman.

Rhett B. Burnett, Norman, who previously ran for the sheriff's post.

Joe Lester, Norman, the former public safety director for the University of Oklahoma.

Neil Vickers, Norman, the former deputy chief of police for the city of Norman.

Eddie Thomason, Harrah, current undersheriff of Cleveland County.

Mark S. Hamm, Moore.

Don Holyfield, Norman.

While all of the men meet the statutory requirements to be appointed to the position, at least one of the applicants, undersheriff Eddie Thomason, would not meet the requirements to be elected to the office.

"There's a gray area in the law on appointments," Batton said. "And Mr. Thomason meets those requirements. But it looks like he might not be able to run for the office because he lives in Harrah and not in Cleveland County."

State law requires a person seeking the office of sheriff to be a "registered voter in the county at least six months prior to the first day of the filing period for the election."

Because Thomason lives in Harrah he wouldn't qualify to run for election to the post, Batton said.

And though state law doesn't require any applicant — or person running for the office of sheriff — to have law enforcement experience, Batton said all the applicants were certified by the Council for Law Enforcement Education (CLEET).

Batton said he is compiling a notebook with all the applicants' resumes. That information would be given to Cleveland County commissioners to review. Once the commissioners decide who they want to interview, county officials will interview those chosen and pick a successor to Beggs.

An announcement is expected by the end of the month.

Moore council approves firefighter's contract

2008-03-19T07:28:00.000-07:00

City councilmembers endorsed a new contract for city firefighters, changed a municipal ordinance governing oil and gas storage wells, and approved more than $1 million in spending during a meeting Monday evening.

Voting unanimously, councilmembers approved a new contract with the international Association of Firefighters, Local 2047.
That contract, Mayor Glenn Lewis said, would give Moore firemen a 3 percent pay increase.

“Basically it’s a 3 percent raise,” he said. “This is the second year of a two-year contract and it was very easy to work with the firemen.”

Lewis said city officials use the 2007 Oklahoma City firefighters’ contract as the baseline for Moore’s pay schedule.
“We stay one year behind Oklahoma City’s contract,” he said.

In addition to the firefighters’ contract, Lewis said councilmembers endorsed changes to a city ordinance requiring sightproof fencing on oil and gas wells.

“People from three different oil companies attended the meeting,” he said. “And this a nice compromise with them.”
Under the ordinance, Lewis said oil companies would be required to screen pumps and storage tanks with fencing and landscaping.

“We want them (the storage tanks) to be secure,” Lewis said. “We don’t want solid fencing, because you can’t see if kids sneak in there to play. Those things can be dangers and we want to secure them.”

Companies who use “chain-link” fencing will be required to landscape the area around the tank, he said.

“We’re working with the oil companies to clean up the sites. They are painting tanks, cleaning up and keeping them beautified.”

The effort, Lewis said, makes a good partnership. “We’re working with them instead of fighting,” Lewis said. “We all want to make sure the areas are secure so no kids can get in there. We want to clean them up and make them safe.”

Monday evening councilmembers also heard a report about the city’s proposed new wastewater treatment plant.

A new plant originally was planned on land near the intersection of Indian Hills Road and south Pennsylvania Avenue.

However, the facility drew the complaints from landowners in the area and city officials eventually shelved the idea.

Monday evening, councilmembers heard a report from Eagle Consulting about alternative sites for the plant.

“We’re going to build a new facility on the same land that our old facility is on,” Lewis said. “We will build the new plant first, then tear down the old one.”

Lewis said the new plant would be “state of the art” and would be funded by a construction loan from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board.

“We’ll be holding a public hearing soon,” he said. He said construction costs are expected to be between $28 million and $35 million.

“We’re going to do it as quick as we can. We’re trying to get more capacity and take out the odors.”

In other action, councilmembers:

• Approved a $500,000 budget supplement to the General Fund Street Department.

• Accepted a drainage easement from Richard Montgomery in lots 10, 11 and 12 in block 8 of the Lockhoma Estates Addition.

• Approved a lot split in the Westmoore Business Park.

• Endorsed a $3,000 contract with Cleveland County Rebuilding Together for low-income repairs.

• Approved the preliminary plant of Old Town Square.

• Approved spending $101,277 for the purchase of three one-ton Wildland Grass-Bursh apparatuses.

Acting at the Moore Public Works authority, the council approved:

• A contract with the Great Plains Coca-Cola Bottling company.

• Claims and expenditures totaling $119,126.

Acting as the Moore Economic Development Authority, the council approved:

• A report from the city’s economic development director.

The council’s next meeting will be 6:30 p.m. April 7 at Moore City Hall, 301 N. Broadway Ave.

Meacham: No tax reductions this session

2008-03-14T05:52:00.000-07:00

MOORE— A $114 million hole in the state's budget will put the kibosh on any tax reduction plans for this year, the governor's chief budget negotiator said Wednesday.

Speaking to members of the Moore Rotary Club, state treasurer Scott Meacham said the $114 million hole presents a challenge for state lawmakers, but said the budget picture "wasn't as bad as it was in 2003."

"In 2003 things were a lot worse," he said. "We were looking at a $700 million hole."

But while Meacham said the state's financial picture wasn't rocky as the past, he said Oklahomans shouldn't expect new tax reductions this year. "I don't see any tax reductions right now," he said. "I believe we're looking at a maintenance type budget."

Meacham said that "maintenance budget" would include little, if any, new spending and would probably fund most state agencies at their current level. This year's budget probably wouldn't incude tax reductions, increases in pay for teachers or state employees or other spending initiatives.

"It's not a standstill budget, because I think we'll be able to adjust some things for inflation," he said. "I expect it will just be a maintenance budget."

Last week, Meacham said preliminary financial reports show the state's general revenue fund collections for February totaled about $303 million. That figure, he said, was 0.6 percent below last year and $26.9 million - about 8.2 percent - below this year's estimate.

"When the revenue loss from income tax cuts is factored in, Oklahoma's economy is showing growth. The trend of the past few months continues - the Oklahoma economy is expanding, just not as fast as during the past few years," he said.

Collections from three of the four major tax categories - sales, gross production and motor vehicle taxes - exceeded the prior year by $19.1 million and were above the estimate by a total of $20.7 million.

However, collections from income taxes were below the prior year by $4.1 million and below the estimate by $20.8 million.
Meacham said "timing issues" were primarily to blame for the "less than estimated" income tax collections.

"Electronic filing of tax returns has sped up the rate at which refunds are being paid," he said. "We anticipate this month's income tax shortfall will balance out to a certain extent in the coming months."

Additionally, net income tax collections produced $40.7 million - about $4.1 million or 9.2 percent below the prior year - and $20.8 million or 33.8 percent below the estimate. Net income tax collections, he said, include personal income taxes and corporate income taxes less refunds paid for the month.

Personal income tax collections totaled $38.9 million for the month, short of the prior year by 3.3 percent. Meacham said those figures failed to meet the estimate by $19.6 million or 33.5 percent.

"This year's budget is a good lesson for all of us," he said. "It's a lesson on who we can all work together."

Along with any new tax proposals, Meacham said he "didn't expect" a bond issue to pay for roads and bridges. "I do foresee some type of bond issue," he said, "but not for transportation."

And while Meacham was critical of some lawmakers for "the partisan nature" of the state capitol, he said he expected bugets issues would be resolved.

"Again, things aren't as bleak as they were before. There are many areas where we can find revenue. And people always seem to work better together when there is little money to spend."

Medal of Honor winner remembered as "humble hero"

2008-03-13T09:07:00.001-07:00

Funeral services are pending in Washington state for former Norman resident Richard M. McCool Jr., a former Navy lieutenant who earned the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1945.

McCool, 86, died last Wednesday at Harrison Medical Center in Bremeton, Wash.

McCool was one of only two Celveland County residents to earn the award — the second, Major John Lucian Smith of Lexington.

A native of Tishomingo, McCool graduated from the University of Oklahoma, then at 19, earned an appointment to the Naval Academy in 1944.

After graduating from the academy, he was placed in charge of the Navy transport ship USS Landing Craft Support 122.

The ship — similar in looks to a landing craft which brought soldiers ashore, but heavily armed with machine guns and rockets — was used to protect Naval destroyers.

On June 10, 1944, McCool’s ship was attacked while in Okinawa.

According to the book “Medal of Honor, Portraits of Valor Beyond the Call of Duty,” McCool rescued 99 crew members of the USS William D. Porter after the Porter was attacked by a Japanese Kamikaze.

The next day, Kamikaze planes attacked McCool's ship.

McCool’s crew blew one Kamikaze out of the sky and gunners hit a second, but that plane crashed into the 122, about 8 feet below the conning tower.

Of the 71 crew members on board, 12 were killed and 23 injured, including McCool, who suffered shrapnel wounds, burns and was knocked unconscious.

“When he came to, the conning tower was on fire,” author Peter Collier wrote. “He managed to get down to the main deck, and acting instinctively — he would remember almost nothing of the ensuing events — he rallied his crew to fight the fire that threatened to engulf the ship.”

As they attempted to save his ship, McCool learned that “several men were trapped in the burning deckhouse” and “went in to rescue them, carrying one of them to safety on his back, despite his burns.”

McCool continued to command his ship until he collapsed.

Because of his actions, he was awarded the Medal of Honor “for saving the lives of many” and for “saving his ship for further combat service” by then-President Harry Truman.

Created in 1861 by act of Congress, the Medal of Honor is the highest military award for bravery in the United States. It is traditionally awarded only to members of the armed forces for valor and/or self-sacrifice above and beyond the call of duty while in combat.

Since 1863, only 3,456 Americans have received the medal, incuding 28 from Oklahoma.

In a story published in the Kitsap Sun, McCool’s friends remember him an a “humble hero.”

“He was the most humble of men,” Fran Moyer, a friend of McCool’s, told the paper. “He did not ever want to be invited to a parade or anything like that because he could never think about himself as being a hero. The heroes were the men who gave their lives.”

After recovering, McCool returned to Norman, then returned to active duty service in mid-1946. He served in the Korean and Vietman wars and retired as a Navy captain in 1974.

That same year, McCool and his wife, Carole Elaine, moved to Bainbridge Island in Washington.

Active in politics, McCool served as chairman of the Kitsap County Democrats.

He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Carol Elaine; one daughter, Carolyn McCool of Vancouver, British Columbia; and two sons, Rick of Gig Harbor, Wash., and John, of Indianola, Wash.

Intelligent design politics,not science, OU prof says

2008-03-08T22:40:00.000-08:00

A movement which claims to be an alternative to the scientific theory of evolution is nothing than an attempt to inject politics and religion into the classroom, a University of Oklahoma professor said Friday.

Victor H. Hutchinson, a former George Lynn Cross professor of zoology at OU, told members of the Cleveland County Democratic Party the intelligent design movement is part of an "ongoing culture war" being waged in America.

Hutchinson, now retired, spoke at the Democrats' weekly Tyner Cornbread and Beans luncheon.

"Evolution is not a faith and intelligent design is not a scientific theory," Hutchinson said. "Science can only ask 'how,' science cannot ask 'why?'"

Using a computerized slide presentation, Hutchinson told the group many creationists claim anyone who supports the theory of evolution is automatically an atheist.

"These fundamentalist groups say, 'the removal of the theory of evolution will be salvation of western civilization,'" Hutchinson said. "They have said, 'this is not a debate about science but religion and philosophy.'"

Their group's goal, Hutchinson said, is to make the United States a theocracy.

"Religion and science don't need to conflict," he said. "And most of our country's mainstream church understand this. It's only in the far right that we have this problem."

In fact, Hutchinson said, the only other country with a greater fundamentalist movement seeking to inject religion in the classroom is Islamic Turkey.

"This is something that has happened before," he said "We saw this movement in the '20s, when the country moved toward fundamentalism, and we had a similar response in the '50s and in the '80s."

And now, Hutchinson said, "we're seeing the same movement again."

"Part of the problem is our fault," he said. "Education and science educators have failed to explain scientific education to the general public. The general public has no idea what science is and how research is done."

And because of that, Hutchinson said most people don't understand the difference between a theory -- that is, a guess -- and a scientific theory, which has been vetted, tested and reviewed.

"A scientific theory is as close as you can get. The scientific theory of evolution is just as valuable a theory as the theory of gravity or the theory of plate tectonics," he said. "But metaphysical concepts like faith and religion are different. The supernatural is not testable."

Hutchinson criticized some fundamentalist groups' reliance on polls to push for the teaching of intelligent design. "Polls don't determine science," he said.

The professor also had harsh words for some members of the Oklahoma Legislature.

"We've had to battle textbook disclaimers, bills for intelligent design and academic sunshine laws," he said. "This has become a partisan issue and it shouldn't have."

The only way to ensure that science is taught in the classroom is by continuing to fight the efforts of those who support intelligent design, he said.

"There is room for a discussion of intelligent design in the classroom," he said. "But not as a scientific theory. There are many places were it could be discussed, it's just not science."

And the problem, Hutchinson said, will "only get worse."

"Many science teachers are afraid to teach evolution because of the issues involved," he said. "And I had some tell me that when they do talk about it, students have asked to be excused. We are in the middle of a culture war and I don't think it will ever stop.

Extended school year a tough sell to teachers, administrators

2008-03-08T21:13:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A proposal which would make major changes in the length of the state's school year sailed through the Oklahoma House of Representatives this week.

But there's a big storm on the horizon.

Under House Bill 3122, lawmakers would add "about three days" to the state school year and use hours instead of days to measure time in spent in the classroom.

Written by state Rep. Tad Jones, R-Claremore, the bill would require a minimum of 1,080 hours per academic year.

Jones, chair of the House Education Committee, said the measure would make schools stronger.

"This will give our schools more flexibility to teach how and when they see fit," he said. "If school districts want to leave their school year exactly as it is right now, this bill gives them that option. But, if they want to extend each school day so the needed academic time is placed within a 4-day week to save money on utility and bus costs, this bill gives them that flexibility."

However, in addition to adding time to the school calendar, the bill would reduce the number of professional development days available to teachers. Currently most teachers have about five professional development days.

Under HB 3122, those days would be reduced to two.

"The bill ... protects 15 hours of professional development for teachers each year," Jones said in a media release.

And while Jones claims the bill will "help our students compete not only nationally, but globally," area school administrators and teachers' union officials are questioning that reduction and the lack of funding for the longer school year.

The measure, union officials said, doesn't include any funding for those three extra days.

"The bill is an unfunded mandate," said Moore Association of Classroom Teachers President Jill Dudley. "They took three of our professional development days and turned those days into instruction days. So where will the money to pay for the extra time, the support staff, the extra cafeteria food and things like that come from?"

In addition, Dudley said teachers don't want to lose their professional development days.

"What those legislators don't understand is those five days are not all about professional development," she said. "We also have to accomplish many things before the beginning of the school year. We have organizational meetings, we meet with subject area coordinators, we review test scores and remediation efforts. We need time to do those things, too."

Democratic state Rep. Bill Nations agreed.

Nations, from Norman, voted against the bill. He said he, too, didn't like the idea of trading teachers' professional development days for days in the classroom.

"I voted against it because they (the House GOP) won't tell the truth," he said. "You're trading three days of professional development for three more days in the classroom. Oklahoma has some of the best teachers in America and I'm not one who wants to take those professional development days away from them."

Representative Jones, Nations said, "doesn't want to come out and say that's what they are doing and that somehow, we're going to get three extra days in the classroom. This was the cheapest way to get them."

The real cost, some administrators say, is much higher.

Norman school superintendent, Dr. Joe Siano, said each extra day of instruction would probably cost an additional $18 million, statewide.

Siano, part of a task force appointed by state school superintendent Sandy Garrett to study the issue, said the additional school days would be expensive.

"Our task force studied three areas," he said. "The quality of instruction time, the cost of instruction time and the quantity of instruction time."

And while the task force recommended adding a total of 15 days to the school year, Siano said the group also recommended those additional days be added in five day increments and that the state provide the extra funding -- between $80 million and $100 million -- to cover the costs of those additional five days.

"I think extending the school year is something we ought to consider," Siano said. "The more time with kids is going to be impactful and I like the part of the bill addressing the school year in hours instead of days."

However, like both Dudley and Nations, Siano said he, too, "was concerned" about exchange of professional development days for instructional days.

"I think that, in the end, if you begin dismissing the importance of professional development, you're going to minimize the impact of additional instruction," he said.

The Legislature, Siano said, should "fund everything they are already underfunding and meet schools' operational obligations."

"Then you're going to have to pay for the extra days," he said.

And this year, money is tight.

"One of the challenges that we've encountered is clearly the funding portion of the bill," state Rep. Scott Martin said. "There isn't just loads of extra money sitting around. If we're to expand the school year, as it has been proposed, then we're talking about millions of new dollars."

Martin, a Norman Republican, said he voted for the measure because he was "in favor of some of the changes that have been proposed."

"I don't think the change of the school days to hours impacts us too much," he said. "But I am concerned about changing professional days to instructional days."

Still, even with the measure's 67-33 vote, Martin said House members will get another chance to review the measure before it's sent to the governor's desk.

On Feb. 21, Jones moved to remove the measure's title and enacting clause. That action forces the bill back to the House of Representatives before it can be sent to Gov. Brad Henry.

"We're gong to get another look at it," Martin said. "Changing of the school days to hours was an easier sell at this time. We're going to see if we can fund it appropriately. If it comes down to it and all we can do is change from days to hours, then that's all right. We can wait until we can find the money."

However, even those changes might not prove enough to satisfy the area's school teachers.

"None of us are opposed to adding more instructional days," Dudley said. "But you gotta pay for it. You just can't push the burden off on the district."

And, Dudley said, should the measure not include funding, teachers' union officials will work to defeat HB 3122 in the state Senate.

"If we can't beat it in the Senate, then we'll ask the governor to veto it," she said. "The districts can't bear any more unfunded mandates.

Sparks trying to recover WorldCom funds for retirement systems

2008-03-08T20:09:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — A Norman lawmaker is trying to pull the legislative equivalent of a quarterback sneak to reroute more than $11 million in settlement funds back to the state agencies who originally lost the money.

Norman state Sen. John Sparks, a Democrat, confirmed this week he would try to amend Senate Bill 1868 to earmark $11.7 million in WorldCom settlement funds back to the state retirement systems who originally lost the money.

“The money is in the wrong place,” Sparks said Thursday afternoon. “The money is available as a direct result of the WorldCom settlement. It represents some of what was lost by the agencies who invested in WorldCom.”

Under Sparks’ amendment, the funds — which are under the control of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce — would be shifted back to the various retirement systems who lost money in the WorldCom bankruptcy.

Sparks said his amendment would allocate:

• $4.3 million for the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System.

• $2.8 million for the Teachers Retirement System.

• $1.7 million for firefighters retirement.

• $1 million for police officers.

The funds should be returned, Sparks said, because the agencies are “actually the victims of a crime.”

“It’s the principle of the matter,” he said. “The money was lost from our retirement system and now some of that money has been recovered. It should go back to the retirement system.”

As part of a $650 million settlement, Oklahoma received the funds following a lawsuit by Attorney General Drew Edmondson.

More than 32 such suits were filed by various companies and public retirement funds against WorldCom over investments which were made between 1998 and 2001.

WorldCom — which had assets in excess of $100 billion — filed for bankruptcy protection in July 2002 leaving all of Oklahoma’s public pension systems and a handful of state agencies with heavy financial losses.

Edmondson originally settled the fraud charges with WorldCom with an agreement to create 1,600 jobs in Oklahoma. However, those jobs never materialized and, in 2007, an $11.7 million settlement was reached in lieu of the jobs with Verizon Communications, WorldCom’s successor company.

Since the payment of that settlement, the $11.7 million has been parked in an account controlled by the Department of Commerce.

And while many legislative leaders originally agreed those funds should go back to the state’s various retirement systems, some of those lawmakers have now changed their position, Sparks said.

“I think we have an uphill fight,” he said. “I had to do an amendment to get it out of committee. Many people want to sweep this under the rug, they want to use it for other things. The only problem is it was specifically lost from retirement funds, and some was recovered. I believe that money should be returned.”

In August 2007, then-House Appropriation Chair Chris Benge agreed.

Late last summer, Benge issued a media statement saying that “money received from a settlement agreement from the WorldCom accounting fraud should be placed in state employee retirement systems.”

Benge’s statement drew praise from the Oklahoma Public Employees Association.

Benge, the OPEA said, “has shown outstanding leadership regarding this issue. We, as an association, owe him a great deal of thanks.”

Since then things have changed.

Benge is now House Speaker and the state’s budget developed a $117 million leak. Both of those problems have sent retirement system officials scrambling to protect the settlement funds.

Tom Spencer, executive director of the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System, said the money should be returned to OPERS because it and the state’s other retirement system, were the original victims.

“We heard the state had settled for $11.7 million. What caught our attention was the funds landed at the Commerce Department,” he said. “And commerce was thinking about how to spend it. We were sorta the victims of the crime, as you will, we thought it more appropriate that those funds come back to us.”

Spencer said state retirement systems lost more than $66 million in the WorldCom bankruptcy and his fund alone lost more than $25 million.

“We have received some funds over the past couple of years,” Spencer said. “But we are nowhere near whole.”

And though some lawmakers downplay the settlement as “a drop in the bucket” when compared to the $8 billion in assets of the Teachers Retirement System, Spencer said his agency’s share — about $4.3 million — would cover his operational costs for a year.

“$4.3 million would pay a pretty good chunk of what it costs to run our office this year,” he said.

Still, both men acknowledge getting the legislation passed won’t be easy.

“Last year it looked doable,” Sparks said. “But this year things could be more difficult.”

Sparks said his proposal — which amends Senate Bill 1868 by Kingfisher Republican Mike Johnson — faces an uphill battle.

“I understand there’s some controversy,” he said. “But it’s something we should do.”

Right now, Sparks said he’s awaiting committee action on SB 1868 and hopes to offer his amendment soon.

In the meantime, retirement officials have crossed their fingers.

With many of the state’s public systems underfunded by millions of dollars, every dollar, they say, adds stability.

“It’s something we’d like to see happen,” Spencer said. “Every few million helps.”

Wesselhoft authors academic "sunshine" bill

2008-03-08T18:16:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — While many state legislators are struggling with issues such as reduced state revenue and problems with the Department of Corrections, state Rep. Paul Wesselhoft has a different worry.

Wesselhoft is concerned about free speech at the state’s colleges and universities.

Wesselhoft, a Moore Republican, is asking Oklahoma college students to “contact him if they feel their free-speech rights are being taken away” in the classroom. He made the announcement in an e-mailed news release sent to the state’s three largest universities — the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University and the University of Central Oklahoma.

“This is an important issue that guarantees freedom of speech but also impacts a student’s freedom to express personal choices — whether religious views or political ideas or general moral beliefs,” Wesselhoft said.

Wesselhoft said he became concerned after attending legislative conferences in Phoenix, Ariz., and Philadelphia, Pa.

“I attended these national conferences and it came to my attention at both of these places that some universities are having problems,” he said.

Wesselhoft claimed that at some of the country’s universities, professors are “not getting tenure because they might be on the wrong side of issues such as global warming.”

The professors, he said, are having promotions and tenure withheld because of their beliefs. And students in class, he said, are being graded harshly because they might disagree with a professor’s view.

“Even though they have credentials and they publish in academic journals, they are not being treated fairly. And I’ve heard of many students who feel like they have been unfairly treated.”

Because of that, the Moore Republican has authored House Bill 2600 — the Higher Education Sunshine Act — which would require public higher education institutions to file an annual report with the Legislature detailing how they encouraged intellectual diversity and “the free exchange of ideas.”

Wesselhoft could not cite any examples of the problem in Oklahoma.

“I don’t known of anything like that right now,” he said. “I am hearing from professors at OU, OSU and UCO. And most of them are saying, ‘Mind your own business, leave us alone in the classroom.’”

But Wesselhoft said he believes the issue is a “legitimate concern.”

“It may very well be there is not a pattern here,” he said. “Right now, I’m only collecting anecdotal information. All I’m asking for is for the presidents of our state’s colleges and universities to detail how they handle diversity issues.”

Wesselhoft’s claims, however, don’t sit well with the national organization that represents university professors.

In a posting on the American Association of University Professors Web site, the AAUP “sharply criticized” efforts to create an academic bill of rights or which push for intellectual diversity.

Those efforts, the AAUP said, are “unnecessary and almost certain to compromise academic freedom rather than defend it. At their core, these measures would place decisions about faculty appointments and the content of academic programs in the hands of political officials, thereby jeopardizing not only the independence of faculty members and their institutions but also their capacity to advance knowledge and educate our students.”

At OU students and faculty members also criticized the idea.

In a story published recently in the OU Daily — the university’s student newspaper — OU chemistry professor Phillip Klebba, said intellectual diversity already exists at OU.

“Diversity is already a, if not the, defining characteristic of institutions of higher education,” he said. “Are state legislators better qualified to evaluate intellectual diversity than the individuals in this chain of authority? Most of whom have spent their entire careers seeking to optimize the learning environment of colleges and universities.”

Klebba told the OU Daily that “requiring OU to report to the Legislature duplicates existing policy; OU already conducts comprehensive annual reviews of all academic activities.”

Student congress chair Jordan McGee agreed.

“I haven’t ever had the experience of being censored in the classroom,” McGee said. “The discussions in my classes have always been for the pursuit of academic knowledge.”

McGee, an Edmond senior, said he didn’t see how Wesselhoft’s bill would help.

“I don’t see how a bill could ever change that,” he said. “That type of information is not objectively verifiable.”

Still, Wesselhoft said the issue is worth exploring.

“I think it’s a legitimate question that needs to be asked,” he said. “I don’t have a deadline. And I hope to hear from students and professors. I’m not on a witch hunt, but I suspect that (some) colleges and universities are indoctrinating students.”

Facing the "real" issues of the 2008 legislative session

2008-02-03T09:21:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY -- After all the players have left the stage, and the dust settles from this week's Shakesperian-type drama about who will become the next speaker of the House, the 149 members of the Oklahoma Legislature still have a great deal of work to do.

And they won't have much time to do it.

Issues such as slow economic growth, increased funding for the Departments of Corrections and Transportation, a pay increase for state employees and schoolteachers and the possibility of yet another tax decrease all haunt the Capitol like vengeful spirits.

Spirits which been around for a while.

Take for example, ethics legislation.

Oklahoma City Republican David Dank said his ethics proposal, introduced last year, would "remove the clouds" caused by political fundraising in Oklahoma.

"The Oklahoma Clean Campaign Act (will) assure that the process of raising money for political campaigns is open, honest and divorced from the legislative process," he said.

Last year, the bill didn't get very far.

But, this year, things could change.

"It wouldn't surprise me if we did something on ethics in the first week," said state Rep. Wallace Collins, D-Norman. "It's come up pretty big right now and it may be a pretty good segue into some type of legislation."

Lawmakers, Collins said, now have "a great opportunity" to pass stronger ethics legislation.

"If we don't do it right now, at this time, when will we?" Collins said.

Collins' prediction was echoed this week by the House's Democratic leader.

State Rep. Danny Morgan, D-Suphur, said House Democrats would make ethics legislation a priority this session.

"First and foremost, at the top of the list is ethics," Morgan said. "We need an ethically and fiscally sound government. We owe that to the voters of Oklahoma."

Ethics, Morgan said, "is the one thing that our members have heard about back home."

"We had a speaker under an ethics investigation," he said. "We have to make sure we have the trust of the public. Strong ethics legislation is a way to clean up the process and show the people of Oklahoma we are truly here for the right reasons."

But ethics won't be lawmakers' only challenge -- as usual, the state's budget will be the main topic of debate.

While financial experts say state revenue will grow by about $198 million right now, most of that money -- all but $32 million -- is already spoken for, officials with the state treasurer's office said.

"A good portion of that money is going to fund previous legislative commitments," said Tim Allen, Scott Meacham's deputy state treasurer. "But there could be additional money available sometime during session."

Those funds, Allen said, could be as high as $100 million.

And those funds could go quickly. Already, some lawmakers want to use a portion of that money to pay for another tax reduction.

The Senate's Republican leader -- Sen. Glenn Coffee -- told The Associated Press his long-term goal is to cut the income tax, now at 5.5 percent, to 3.5 percent or less.

"Tax rates higher than this serve as an impediment to job growth," he said.

Coffee favors legislation to make sure a previously approved income tax cut to 5.25 percent takes effect as scheduled. He has said tax cuts should be paid for through elimination of yet-to-be-determined tax credits and sales tax exemptions.

Tax cuts also are on the minds of some Democrats.

Sen. J. Paul Gumm, D-Durant, is pushing again to end the sales tax on groceries.

"With a sluggish economy, there is no better time to move this proposal forward to put real money back into the pockets of working and middle class families as soon as possible," Gumm said. "Not only will we directly help them, we give the Oklahoma economy an extra boost."

Lawmakers also want to raise the pay of state employees and bring teachers' pay in line with the regional average.

In a media release sent out this week, state Sen. Kenneth Corn, D-Poteau, announced he'd filed legislation to authorize a $2,700 pay raise for Oklahoma state employees. Corn said state employees provide valuable and indispensable work, and should be at the top of the list when state funds are dispersed.

"From those who care for our elderly and children to those who ensure the safety of our highways and police our prisons, state employees provide essential services around the clock for Oklahomans," he said. "Every segment of our society is touched by these dedicated workers, and it's time for us to take care of them."

Corn said the need for a state employee pay increase has been made even more essential as the Legislature has been under-funding various state agencies in recent years.

"Many state employees have had to perform the work of two or three people when a vacancy is left unfilled," he said.

And with more than 2,000 pieces of legislation filed and ready to be reviewed in a 90-day period, state legislators face three months of intense work.

The second session of the 51st Oklahoma Legislature begins Monday.

Speaker selection creates pre-session drama

2008-02-02T11:39:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Earlier this week, had you asked your typical House Republican who they thought would be the next Speaker, you would have probably been told, "Gus Blackwell."

If you had asked that same question two weeks ago, your answer would have been "Lance Cargill."

Ask it today and you won't get an answer.

With just three days to go before the beginning of the 2008 legislative session, most pundits, experts and even the legislators, themselves, aren't talking about tax policy or education funding.

Instead, the focus is on who will lead the House.

And right now the race is wide open.

With Thursday's announcement that Speaker Pro Tempore Gus Blackwell was dropping out of the race because he, too, had failed to pay his property taxes on time, all bets are off on who serve as the next leader of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.

Considered the third most powerful position in state governorment -- following the governor and Senate president pro tempore -- the job of speaker is much like runing a multi-million dollar company with several hundred workers, many of whom are absolutely sure they could run things better.

"Being speaker is a tough job," said Don Hoover an Oklahoma City political consultant. "All eyes are focused on the speaker. They are the face of their party."

Just a few weeks ago, that face was of a 35-year-old attorney from Harrah.

Earlier this week, the face changed to that of a 53-year-old former campus minister.

By Thursday evening, the face had changed again.

The surprises continued.

"I was shocked and surprised," Blackwell told The Associated Press Thursday, after he announced his withdrawl. "I have never been told that my taxes were late in any way, shape or form. I'm not blaming anyone but myself."

Up until Thursday afternoon, Blackwell had been the assumed front runner. In fact, the House's GOP floor leader, Greg Piatt of Ardmore, told the AP that Blackwell had secured enough votes to be designated the next House speaker by Republican House members.

That afternoon, things changed.

Word got out that Blackwell had paid property taxes in Texas County late for the past 13 years and shortly thereafter, Blackwell withdrew his name from consideration.

Blackwell said he made the move to prevent becoming a distraction that might interfere with passage of Republican-backed legislation.

"In the present political atmosphere of search and destroy, I wish for the new speaker to go in without any excess baggage so we can have a productive session," he said.

But Blackwell's problems are far from other.

Thursday evening, at least one Republican House member questioned whether Blackwell should keep his position as speaker pro tempore.

Moore Republican Rep. Paul Wesselhoft told an Oklahoma City television station Thursday night the next question GOP legislators face is, "Should Gus Blackwell remain our speaker pro tem?"

Wesselhoft answered the question saying, "I think not."

With Blackwell gone, the race for speaker took a turn toward the dramatic.

Representatives Susan Winchester, Chris Benge, Dale DeWitt and John Wright have all announced they are running for speaker.

On the Democratic side, minority leader Danny Morgan said that he, too, would be a candidate for the top post.

Of course, Morgan's election is unlikely, given that the Republicans hold 57 of the Houses 101 seats.

Still, even with the entry and exit of House leaders becoming an almost daily occurrence, one fact remains certain: By next Tuesday, someone will be serving as speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.

But right now, no one knows just who that will be.

CARGILL RESIGNS AS SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE

2008-01-29T06:58:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Less than a week after he spoke in Norman touting his achievements as House speaker, state Rep. Lance Cargill resigned his post as House leader under pressure from his own caucus.

Cargill, 35, made the announcement Monday afternoon, during a conference call with members of the House’s Republican caucus. Cargill did not appear personally before caucus members; and later, made a public statement from the House lounge.

In an e-mailed statement to The Norman Transcript, Cargill said he wanted his ideas to be moved forward “without the burden” of personal stories.

“I have decided to step aside today as speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives,” Cargill said. “I want nothing more than to have good ideas to move forward without the burden of being weighed down by personal stories about me. I have always said my leadership has been about good ideas, and this move will allow those ideas to flourish as they should.”

Cargill — the nation’s youngest House speaker — has been under fire after published reports indicated he submitted late property tax payments on his Harrah law office six years in a row.

Cargill also reportedly failed to file state personal income tax returns in 2005 and 2006.

Additionally, questions have been raised about fundraising activities in 2004 by a House GOP political action committee headed by Cargill. The Ethics Commission has opened an investigation into the issue.

And last year, Cargill was criticized after he summoned lobbyists to one-on-one meetings at a political consultant’s office to seek contributions to Republican political action committees and for the speaker’s “100 Ideas Initiative.”

“For several weeks, our policies heading into the session have been buried in the newspapers,” he said. “While personal stories have remained on the front pages. I take full responsibility for that, and hope that a new speaker can shift the focus back to the future of this great state.”

Cargill said he made the decision over the weekend, after polling members of the House GOP caucus.

“This decision came after I spoke with most of my colleagues over the weekend. I am humbled and honored by the outpouring of support the caucus has shown me and their continued endorsement in my leadership. But one of the responsibilities of a leader is putting the needs of the whole before the needs of my own,” he said.

While Cargill did not resign from his elected House seat, his resignation as speaker — just one week before the legislative session — put Republicans on the defensive, and sent the House’s leadership team scurrying to find a new leader before the legislative session begins.

Published reports indicate that Rep. Gus Blackwell, a Goodwell Republican, will take over the role of speaker temporarily.
“Rep. (Gus) Blackwell will be acting speaker for right now,” state Rep. Paul Wesselhoft said. “But we will have a new speaker by the time session starts. I know that Rep. Susan Winchester and Rep. John Wright are going to run and maybe someone else who’s not expected.”

Both Wright and Winchester sought the position four years ago. Neither House member could be reach for comment.

State Rep. Scott Martin, R-Norman, said he is hopeful the Republicans can now move forward to the state’s pressing issues.
“Lance did the right thing and I’m hopeful we can move beyond this and redirect our focus to the issues facing our state,” Martin said.

Martin said the resignation caught him by surprise even though he had heard “lots of talk” about the speaker’s tax problems. “No one person is bigger than the process,” he said.

Wesselhoft, R-Moore, said he was saddened by Cargill’s resignation, but added the act was necessary.

“It’s sad but necessary and I graciously accept his resignation,” Wesselhoft said. “My prayers are with Lance and his wife, Amber. But I think things will be smoother now. This was an obstacle that had to be resolved. Now the pavement should be smoother.”

Cargill’s tax problems, he said, had been an issue for caucus members “for some time.”

“Here’s the bottom line,” Wesselhoft said. “Most people don’t relate to everything we do up here. But everyone, and I mean everyone, can relate to paying taxes. That’s why it (Cargill’s resignation) had to be done.”

State Republican leaders agreed.

Republican State Chairman Gary Jones told an Oklahoma City radio station that Cargill’s resignation was “the right thing to do.”
He did the honorable thing in stepping aside, Jones said.

Cargill said House Republicans will spend the next few days working on a transition for a new speaker.

“I know there are a lot of questions about how this move will impact the upcoming session,” he said. “Our caucus is working out the details and we will have more answers in the coming days.”

Nations: Cargill's resignation expected

2008-01-29T06:57:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — While some of the state’s political leaders were caught off guard by House Speaker Lance Cargill’s resignation Monday, some members of Cleveland County’s legislative delegation said they weren’t too surprised.

Monday, Cargill resigned as speaker, following published stories that indicated he had failed to pay his property tax on time, did not file state personal income tax returns and is under an Ethics Commission investigation because of his fundraising activities.

State Rep. Bill Nations, D-Norman, said Cargill’s tax problems had been the “topic of discussion” among House members for several months. “Personally, I’m not surprised,” he said. “I know there’s been a lot of discussion (over this) for a while.”

And while Nation said he “hated to see anything bad” happen to Cargill, he said Cargill’s resignation “might be the best thing for the GOP caucus this legislative session.”

“Him continuing as speaker would have made it very difficult for the GOP to operate in the House,” he said. “There would have been a cloud over him. With the welfare of the citizens of the State of Oklahoma in mind, (the) resignation is probably the best thing.”

Moore Republican Paul Wesselhoft agreed.

“Rep. Cargill is not a victim of the media,” Wesselhoft said. “He brought some of these problems on himself and now he’s having to face the full responsibility of that. I’m sure it was a tough decision for him to make.”

Cargill’s resignation, Wesselhoft said, makes for a “brighter future” for the GOP. “We can move forward now that we have this resolved.”

But other political experts say Cargill’s resignation — coming just a week before the beginning of the next legislative session — could hamper some of the GOP’s legislative agenda.

Don Hoover, an Oklahoma City Democratic campaign consultant said Cargill had no choice but to resign because House Republicans had spent “a great deal of time” talking about tax issues and tax cuts.

“The Speaker of the House is the face of the Oklahoma Republican Party right now,” Hoover said. “They’ve talked a lot about tax cuts and tax polity. So I’m not surprised there’s pressure to make a change.”

And that change, Hoover said, is going to throw Republicans “off their game.”

“The timing is unfortunate for Republicans,” he said. “Mainly because it’s the beginning of the legislative session. Now there’s lots of dust in the air and it will take some time for it to settle.”

Still, Hoover said the House Republicans should survive with their majority intact.

“I would say it will have minimal impact on maintaining control of the House,” he said. “The Republicans have a solid majority. They are not in control because of Lance Cargill, they are in control because for years Oklahoma has been trending in the GOP’s direction.”

Cargill is the second House leader to be forced out of his position in recent history. Eighteen years ago, on May 17, 1989, then-Speaker Jim Barker, a Democrat from Muskogee, was forced out the speaker’s office following a 72-25 vote.

Cargill says state needs more ambition

2008-01-25T08:36:00.000-08:00

Saying Oklahomans need to be more ambitious and “set their sights higher,” House Speaker Lance Cargill praised the “historic reforms” passed by the GOP-controlled House of Representatives. Those reforms, Cargill said, have brought “hope, growth and opportunity” to the Sooner State.

Cargill made the remarks Thursday evening at the Cleveland County Republican Club’s Helen Cole Awards Banquet. More than 150 people attended the event at the J.D. McCarty Center, which also featured a presidential campaign announcement by retired Major General Jerry Curry.

“Maybe it was our dustbowl mentality,” Cargill said. “But Oklahomans have not always set their sights high enough. I want the 21st century to be Oklahoma’s. I think this can be our century.”

And Republicans, he said, are leading the way.

“The historic reforms passed by Republicans have brought hope, growth and opportunity. We are experiencing a renaissance time.”

Cargill said those reforms include lowering the state’s income tax, adopting a pro-life agenda and investing in state infrastructure.

“There is probably no area of which I am more proud, than our pro-life agenda,” he said. “Until there was a Republican majority, Oklahoma didn’t have some of the most basic protections for life that other states had passed.”

In addition, Cargill said Democrats are misleading voters about the state’s revenue picture.

“The liberals are misleading you about the amount of revenue,” he said. “Did you know that the taxes paid into government this year are going to go up, this year by $200 million, maybe $300 million?”

Speaking to the GOP’s faithful, Cargill said elections in Oklahoma “have consequences” and the consequences have been “good for Oklahoma.”

Following his review, Cargill introduced Mina Hibdon who received the club’s Pioneer Award. Hibdon, the first Cleveland County woman elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives, thanked all those who supported her 1973 campaign.

“I have a lot of memories,” she said. “At that time we were in trouble with Watergate, that was a big problem nationally for our party. But here in Norman, I very quietly filed in a district that never had a Republican.”

Word got out quickly, she said.

“Well, everything begin to happen then, and the rest of my campaign is history.”

Following Hibdon’s award, state Rep. Paul Wesselhoft and Sen. Jonathan Nichols thanked the group for their efforts.

Wesselhoft, serving his second term in the House of Representatives, said he was excited by the upcoming legislative session.
“I have a full plate of bills that I’m going to be working on,” he said.

Nichols predicted the GOP would take control of the state Senate. “We can take over the Senate this year and I look forward to working toward that goal.”

A former staffer for Congressman Tom Cole, state Rep. T.W. Shannon, a Lawton Republican, introduced a video by Cole. Cole praised the group and said his late mother, Helen, would be pleased by their work.

“My mother would be honored,” he said. “She was a selfless, strong woman.”

The group also honored Don and Pat Allen for with a Lifetime Achievement Award and named former House member Thad Balkman as the Republican of the Year.

Curry signs, then announces for president

2008-01-25T08:34:00.000-08:00

In what can only be billed as one of the country’s more unusual political announcements, retired Major General Jerry Curry launched his bid for the Republican presidential nomination Thursday night at the Cleveland County Republican Club’s Helen Cole Awards Banquet.

For about 10 minutes Curry delivered a scathing attack on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and said Illinois Senator Barack Obama might make a good presidential candidate several years from now.

But prior to that speech, Curry did something few other national candidates have attempted.

He sang.

Listed on the program under “music,” Curry — without the aid of music or microphone — sang a chorus of the songs “God Bless America” and “My Country ’tis of Thee” for the 150-plus audience.

“I’ve been asked to sing a patriotic song,” he said. “So I’m going to do that even though I did graduate from the University of Nebraska.”

Following the song, Curry switched to campaign mode.

Blasting Mrs. Clinton, Curry said the former First Lady “could not fulfill the duties” of Commander in Chief because she “called General Petraus a liar last year” in front of the U.S. Senate.

“She did this with no cause,” he said. “And no facts to back her up, without even paying him the respect of having a private conversation with him. It was a cheap political stunt and it undermined our military leadership’s loyalty and confidence in the office of president — should she be elected.”

Saying Mrs. Clinton acted “cowardly” Curry said she had “forfeited her right to ever become the Commander in Chief of our military forces.”

Referring to Mrs. Clinton again, Curry then quoted the country’s first president, George Washington, saying “congressmen who wilfully take actions during wartime that damage morale and undermine the military are saboteurs that should be arrested, exiled or hanged.”

Acknowledging he was seen as a dark horse candidate in the race, Curry said Americans are seeking a candidate who will “capture their imagination” and gain their respect as the “person best able to lead the country.”

“I am running for president because I am convinced that none of the current candidates — of either party — can fix America’s problems.”

Curry said he chose to make the announcement in Oklahoma because the people here “have already responded so favorably” to him.

“Oklahoma is a proving ground for my message,” he said. “If it resonates in this state, it will resonate with the American people everywhere.”

A former deputy assistant secretary of defense in the Carter administration, Curry also served as press secretary to the secretary of defense in the Reagan administration and as the administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the Bush Sr. administration.

Married, Curry and his wife, Charlene, have four children. He said his “mixed racial and cultural ancestry is as colorful as America itself.” Curry said he will be campaigning throughout the state Jan. 22-29.

COMMENTARY: King's speech still rings true

2008-01-24T09:17:00.000-08:00

It was August 1963.

JFK was president and America still believed in Camelot.

In Washington, the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., and hundreds of his supporters marched to the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
There, in the shadow of Lincoln, King reshaped American’s civil rights debate with a single speech.

In just a few minutes, he spoke eloquently of the need for peace, and brotherhood.

He spoke of the dream of equality which is found the hearts of all good men.

Kennedy would be assassinated in November.

Dr. King would be killed by James Earl Ray in 1968.

But his speech, that wonderful essay on hope, trust and equality, lives on. Forty years later, King’s evangelical call still rings in our ears:

“I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal.”

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together...”

Our country has come a long way since Dr. King spoke in Washington, D.C. We have, in some ways, become better stewards of the good doctor’s legacy. Yet, King’s dream remains, still, a dream.

The truth is in America, not all men are seen as equal.

In our country, hatred and bigotry remain.

And, in many places, thousands still struggle for simple equality.

But King’s dream lives on.

And for those who choose to hear and live those famous words, they desire to make their country a better place burns deep.

Perhaps this year, our leaders will remember Dr. King’s dream and, once again, fight to make it a reality.

The directions are there.

The road lies before us.

We simply need to continue the journey.

Wesselhoft wants to expand DNA database

2008-01-24T09:15:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Any person arrested for a felony would be required to provide a DNA sample, under a bill filed this week by a Cleveland County lawmaker.

State Rep. Paul Wesselhoft, R-Moore, said his proposal — House Bill 2603 — could help police solve “many unresolved crimes.”

In a media statement sent to The Transcript, Wesselhoft said the measure, “would require all individuals arrested on felony charges to provide a DNA sample for a state database.”

Should it pass, Wesselhoft said the bill would be known as “Katie’s Law,” in honor of a New Mexico crime victim.

“In August 2003, 22-year-old Katie Sepich was brutally attacked outside her home in New Mexico. She was raped and strangled, and her body was set on fire and abandoned at an old dump site. No suspects were immediately identified, but skin and blood samples were found under her fingernails, leaving the attacker’s DNA sample. The DNA samples were sent to the national DNA database system,” he said.

Wesselhoft said most states do not currently allow law enforcement to take DNA samples for felony arrests, making it more difficult to identify suspects through the national database.

“If there was a swab of the person who killed Katie, they would now be in prison and unable to harm someone else,” he said. “By expanding the DNA database, we can catch more bad guys who would otherwise remain free.”

Officials with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation say they support the idea.

“We have a statewide DNA database and the more people and samples we have in it the more crimes we can solve,” said Jessica Brown, OSBI public information officer. “Many states have already done this — it’s a good situation for everyone. It will help us solve more crimes and prevent other crimes from happening, and it will help victims’ families find closure.”

However, some defense attorneys disagree.

Norman attorney David Smith, who serves as Cleveland County’s public defender, said Wesselhoft’s bill “was a terrible idea.”

“Beyond the obvious privacy issues, people who are arrested for a felony haven’t been convicted of anything,” Smith said. “And each year thousands of people are arrested on a felony charge.”

It’s that huge amount, he said, that could cause errors in processing and handling the DNA samples.

“The thing that bothers me most is this: There’s gonna’ be an awful lot of felony arrests, and everyone one is going to have to provide a sample,” he said. “In some places, in the smaller counties, consider the idea you’re going to have people who may not be very well trained or who may very well have no training at all. With that many samples, the potential for error is huge.”

Statistics support Smith’s claim.

Data included in Norman’s 2006 Community Report Card show the Norman Police Department made 3,635 arrests for the “eight most serious crimes” for 2006.

“When you look at the number of felony arrests on a county level, well the numbers would be huge,” Smith said.

In addition, Smith said he has “real concerns” about residents being forced to turn over personal information — such as DNA — to the government.

“People think DNA profiling is very routine, they see it all the time,” he said. “But when you are talking about giving the government the power to take a piece of your body, the potential for abuse is real. I’m sure at some we’re going to be able to look at person’s DNA profile. I know insurance companies want that type of information now, because it lets them hedge their bets on who they would provide coverage for.”

Wesselhoft’s bill, he said, would give government “too much” information about a person who hasn’t been convicted of a crime.

“It’s terrible, and the potential problems with it are enormous,” he said.

Wesselhoft downplayed the bill’s controversy.

“DNA profiles generated by crime labs contain no private medical or genetic information. This protects privacy,” he said. “There has been no instance of misuse of the DNA database. But there is evidence of its success—already the data has been used to solve nearly 50,000 crimes nationwide, according to the FBI.”

Wesselhoft said all states require DNA for felony convictions, and 26 of those states have considered bills to require DNA samples from individuals arrested on felony charges.

“This should be an easy measure to pass,” he said. “It is a measure that could prevent what happened to Katie from happening again by identifying criminals based on DNA before they are able to strike again.”

No so, Smith said.

“You are always going to be able to find anecdotal evidence like that. A single situation is not a good enough reason to give the government that authority,” he said. “A mistake could have horrible consequences.”

State lawmakers will have the chance to review Wesselhoft’s proposal in two weeks, when the Legislature reconvenes in Oklahoma City.

Students, Independents changing County's voter registration profile

2008-01-22T06:14:00.000-08:00

The University of Oklahoma’s student population and an increasing number of voters with no political party affiliation, have conspired to change the profile of Cleveland County’s registered voters.

Documents provided by state and local election board officials show major changes in the county’s voter registration — trending away from the two main political parties and, instead, toward Independent and Republican registration over the past eight years.

And though county officials have registered more than 13,000 new voters since 2000, fewer of those voters are choosing to affiliate themselves with the Democratic party and, instead, are choosing to register Independent or Republican.

The change began several years ago.

In 2000, 124,616 voters were registered to vote in Cleveland County, with a majority of those voters squarely in the Democratic column.

Records indicate that registered Democrats outnumbered Republicans by 5,569 voters — with Democrats claiming 58,656 voters to the GOP’s 53,087 in 2000.

A total of 12,826 residents listed themselves as Independent; 26 voters registered Libertarian and seven with the Reform Party.
Then, in 2002, Democrat’s numbers began to fall.

That year, both parties registration numbers were within 225 of each other. Democratic registration fell by 3,908 to 54,748 while GOP numbers rose by 1,436 to 54,523.

Independents, too, showed large increases, rising from 12,286 in 2000 to 14,930 in 2002 — a difference of 2,104.
Libertarians remained at 26.

“It’s been the trend for sometime,” said Cleveland County Election Board Secretary Paula Roberts. “I think it’s because people say they don’t want to be associated with either party. They see something on the news and it causes them to change their registration. Plus, many of them don’t understand our voter laws.”

Two years later, in 2004, Republican numbers would overtake Democrat’s.

In January 2004, Democratic registration fell by another 1,871 voters to 52,877 while county Republicans increased to 55,208 — 685 more than in 2002.

Independent and Libertarian registration climbed to 15,354 — an increase of 464 from 2002 for Independents, and 48 for Libertarians.

Only one county voter remained registered with the Reform Party.

Roberts said she believes those numbers reflect county voter’s emotions.

“To me it shows some frustration with the parties,” she said. “And it shows confusion about how Oklahoma classifies Independent voters.”

By 2006 the frustration had increased to new levels.

With Democrats and Republicans waging a scorched Earth battle for control of the Oklahoma State Senate, and the United States continuing its emotional struggle with wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, voter registration numbers increased.

But most of those new voters chose the Republican Party.

According to election board data, the heaviest voter registration was in the Republican’s favor.

And though Democrats regained some lost ground, adding 1,735 new voters for a total of 54,612, that increase was still 136 voters short of their 2002 mark, and more than 4,000 below their high water mark of 58,656 in 2000.

Republicans numbers jumped by 6,507 — for a total of 61,715. Independent registration increased by 1,467 to 16,821.
That year, a total of 133,157 county residents were listed a registered voters.

In 2007, records show Independents and Republicans continue to reach new heights, while Democrats struggled to catch up.
During that year, Independent registration stood at 18,002 — 1,181 more than 2006 and 5,176 more than the year 2000.

Republican registrations climbed from 61,715 in 2006 to 63,785 in 2007, a difference of 2,070.

And though Democrats came close to registering almost as many voters as their GOP counterparts — Democrats added 1,907 new names to their rolls, for a total of 56,619 — they still have not reached their original 2000 registration level of 58,656.

“It’s definitely a change,” Roberts said. “But I believe some of those numbers are inflated because of the OU student population. Students move around a lot and then they leave. I think some of those precincts by campus are overstated because of the student population being so transient.”

But a shifting student population isn’t the only reason for the county’s increasing number of Independent voters.

Independent voters, Roberts said, are quick to voice their opinion and to change their party registration.

“Independents are the most vocal,” Roberts said. “And part of it is frustration. Many times they were previously a Republican or Democrat and they will come in and change because the party did something they didn’t like.”

State election board officials agree.

Mike Kilngman, secretary of the state election board, said Independent registration jumped in 2001 “during the state’s right-to-work election.”

“That election had a fairly high bump in independents,” he said. “And it’s kinda’ continued since then.”

Additionally, Klingman said he believes more younger voters are registering to vote and they “are more likely to register Independent than in the past.”

“Party affiliation seems to matter less,” he said, “Being independent sounds like a good thing. For many, political parties mean very little any more.”

Plus, many voters are taking advantage of new laws which expanded the number of cites where voters could register.

“Many of those places are online or in a facility like a tag agency,” he said. “And there’s not the same level of awareness of election laws. Back in the old days, when we had registrars, they could answer questions. We don’t have as much of that now.”

Because fewer voters are aware of the law, Klingman said new voters register Independent thinking they can vote in either the Republican or Democratic primary elections.

“That’s not the case. In Oklahoma we have a closed primary system. Republicans vote in the Republican primary and Democrats vote in the Democratic primary. Many younger voters don’t realize that. I don’t think they really understand that you can’t vote in a primary election with an Independent registration.”

And while Klingman says he does agree the state’s ballot laws are “fairly restrictive” he also said he believes voters who would choose a third party candidate are “probably going to vote for someone in either main party who better represents their views.”

“People who are interested are always going to be active,” he said. “If you are in-tune enough to know about the minor parties, I wonder whether or not you would vote anyway.”

Either way, he said, the move away from party affiliation will continue.

“I don’t have any solid data, but I believe it will probably continue,” he said. “I believe the parties, themselves, will continue to be less visible.”

Moore, Norman Schools earn API awards

2008-01-22T06:10:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Three Moore schools — one of them making a repeat performance — and Norman’s McKinley Elementary are among the 63 state schools to receive bonus checks for their academic performance, state education officials announced this week.

Moore’s Wayland Bonds Elementary School, Fisher Elementary School and Earlywine Elementary School all received API awards, state school superintendent Sandy Garrett said Thursday.

The award is the first for the Wayland Bonds and Earlywine schools and the second year in a row for Fisher Elementary School.

“This is the kind of merit program that enjoys much support among school leaders across the state because it rewards teams of teachers whose instructional efforts result in both top-caliber academic performance and significant academic gains in one year,” Garrett said.

Moore school officials said they, too, were pleased by the awards.

“I am so proud of what they have accomplished,” said Moore superintend Deborah Arato. “They are just absolutely working so hard to make sure every student succeeds. It’s very difficult to achieve a perfect API score.”

Designed to reward and encourage academic excellence, the awards are based on a school’s Academic Performance Index (API) score. An API score — ranked on a scale from 0 to 1,500 — is based on the school’s student success on state achievement tests, and its attendance rates. For secondary sites, dropout and graduation rates also are factored in, as well as ACT scores and participation, Advanced Placement credit and college remediation rates in reading and mathematics.

“I often share that teachers don’t become teachers with any expectation of making a big salary,” Garrett said. “However, they, like all professionals, definitely should be recognized and rewarded when they go the extra mile for their students.”

Garrrett said teachers and administrators at Fisher and Earlywine will each receive a $3,000 bonus while administrators and teachers at Wayland Bonds will each see $2,000.

Arato said the awards are proof the district’s schools “are all doing well.”

“The only reason Wayland Bonds didn’t have a perfect API score was because of attendance,” Arato said. “They just missed it. We’re very, very proud. We had several other schools who just missed getting awards because of the attendance standard.”

Part of that success, she said, is because the district continually assesses students to make sure those students are learning.

“We’ve done a lot of really good work on our standards and making sure that we are well aligned. We do assessments every six weeks,” she said. “We’re constantly working to find out where kids are behind. When we get those indications, we can do what needs to be done quickly, before it becomes a large skill deficiency.”

At Wayland Bonds, principal Robert Romines praised his staff, saying they were primarily responsible for the school’s success.

“My staff is phenomenal,” he said. “They are very child centered. And our community has embraced many different concepts — before and after school tutoring, remediation. Everything we do is centered around kids.”

Romines said teachers and officials at the school, which opened three years ago, work hard to “create a family environment.”

“The teachers and staff are one big family,” he said. “And the parents realized that quickly. We have wonderful parents who are in and out (of here) day long. They are here to work. Their goal is to help the kids.”

And that atmosphere, he said, helps make the school successful. “Everything is centered toward the child,” Romines said.
McKinley elementary in Norman was one of 23 schools statewide that earned a perfect API score of 1,500.

Principal Terry Hopper said everyone who was a certified employee for the 2006-2007 school year will receive a $3,000 bonus check.

“It’s nice to be rewarded for our efforts,” he said.

Hopper said parents and the PTA deserve credit for their continued support through school-sponsored activities and programs.

“It’s really just a group effort,” he said.

Norman Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Joe Siano said all schools within the district have done an outstanding job of educating children.

The superintendent said he is proud of the McKinley Elementary staff for their hard work and recognition.

“We also appreciate and congratulate the parents and students for their part in working together to provide quality educational environment for all students,” Siano said.

In 2006, Purcell Elementary School score 843 on the API index. A year later, the number jumped 41 percent to 1,192, according to the State Department of Education. That increase also came along with $1,000 checks for school employees.

Principal Tammy Dillard said she and her 40 co-workers learned about their gift Friday morning.

“We’ve been celebrating all morning long,” Dillard said. “We were thrilled.”

Dillard was named principal eight years ago. At the same time, the school implemented a site improvement process working with the Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation and Literacy First.

“We also are able to tap into resources through a Reading First grant and using those models we’ve learned about the latest research on education and instructional processes,” she said.

Dillard said Purcell Elementary educators are focused on academic progress of each child. Each year, Dillard and faculty members expect the API to increase. She believes several factors contribute to the steady rise including improved performances from English Language Learner, special education and regular education students.

The principal said student success would not be possible if it wasn’t for the educators who teach at the school.

“It would be impossible to overstate the degree to which they’ve invested in to make sure each child makes education progress each year. They have invested personal time and energy. It really is paying off,” she said.

Moore mayor to face ex-Marine in March election

2008-01-18T09:25:00.000-08:00

MOORE — While most state voters are focused on February’s upcoming presidential primary election, voters in Moore will have more than just presidential candidates to deal with over the next two months.

Following February’s primary election, Moore residents will choose their next mayor and decide whether or not to fund $69.9 million in proposed school construction and improvements.

Both those issues will be on the March 4 ballot.

In addition, some voters — those who live in south Oklahoma City — will be asked whether or not to approve an extension of the MAPS sales tax to fund renovations to the Ford Center. That election, too, is set for March 4.

“There are several issues up between now and March,” said Paula Roberts, Cleveland County’s election board secretary.

And while Roberts said the school bond issue and the MAPS proposal have generated some voter interest, for Moore, the main event will be the mayor’s race.

A race which pits a popular, long-serving incumbent against a 70-year-old ex-Marine.

A race that incumbent mayor Glenn Lewis says will probably be his last.

“I still have a few things I want to finish,” Lewis said this week. “I want to be there when our new theater opens and I want to make some improvements for kids. I’d like to do a Little League stadium and accomplish some more things like that. But this will probably be my last term.”

Lewis, who has served as Moore’s mayor for the past 14 years, said if he’s re-elected, he wants to continue to push the community forward.

“I want to focus on where we are going,” he said. “I want to focus on what other people want us to do. We all work hard and if there’s something wrong I want to correct it.”

During the past decade, he’s has been busy.

Inheriting what he called a community with “issues,” Lewis described his first term in office as “a shocker.”

“When I first started, we couldn’t make city payroll,” he said. “We didn’t have enough money. The police officers were buying their own flashlights. We hadn’t budgeted to fix roads in neighborhoods, not in 15 years. So my message was we were gonna have to make government smaller or get smarter on taxes.”

The city, he said, got smart quickly.

“We worked hard at it. We chose to go the sales tax route because of our location. The visitors and retail traffic to our community — those who shop here but live somewhere else — help pay for our services. That’s why I’m unapologetic about using a sales tax.”

Since then, Lewis said Moore has grown and prospered.

“I think we’ve done a good job. About 75 percent of the commercial buildings which have been built went up while I was mayor.”

And though Lewis says he’s proud of his accomplishments, he’s also just as quick to praise Moore’s municipal staff and his fellow commissioners.

“We have a really good staff and a really good council,” he said. “None of this could have been accomplished without them.”
But economic development hasn’t been Moore’s sole accomplishment. The city, he noted, has had its share of disasters.

“I have probably had more disasters than any other mayor,” he said. “Tornadoes, storms, ice. Myself, the council, and our staff have more disaster experience than the FEMA guys. We know how to work a disaster and what to do.”

And it’s that experience, Lewis said, that has allowed Moore to recover from problems quickly.

“Knowing what needs to be done is a good thing,” he said. “I just don’t like having disasters. We’ve had more than our share.”
Still, for Lewis the job of mayor isn’t about the salary. Instead, he said, it’s about trying to make things better.

“Moore’s prosperity is not all my accomplishment,” he said. “I had a lot of help. I just simply want to try and make things better for the city and the people that live here.”

•

It’s not that Paul Jaynes is unhappy.

In fact, Jaynes said he’s very pleased with the growth and development of his hometown.

He acknowledges the city’s hard work and the progress made. “Moore is improving,” he said Monday. “And I want to keep that going.”

Jaynes is running for mayor, he said, “to see if people would vote for me or not.”

“I’m not running against the mayor. I’m running for the office of mayor. I’m doing it because a lot of people have asked me to.”
Before moving to Moore, Jaynes said he lived in Phoenix, Ariz. “Phoenix got too big, that’s why we came here. This city is going good. It’s wonderful.”

A veteran of the U.S. Marines, Jaynes, while pleased with Moore’s commercial development, said if he’s elected mayor, he would like to see more “light industry” locate in the community.

“I’d like to help put more people to work,” he said. “That would make more customers for merchants.”

Moore, Jaynes said, should create a “golden alley” from Moore to Norman and Oklahoma City. “I’d like to see us take advantage of our location. I’ve been watching Moore for a long time and it has the most wonderful people. It’s a great place.”

Jaynes — who donated a flagpole to Moore Chamber of Commerce last year — said he would use a low-key approach in his campaign.

“I’m not going to have a big campaign,” he said. “I might be passing out some literature, flyers and the like, but that will probably be about it. I don’t plan on spending a lot of money.”

Instead he said he wants to give voters a choice.

“I’d like to be the mayor. If people have different opinions or different ideas I like to help.”

And he wants voters to know he has “no mean intentions.”

“I’m just running for the office. There is nothing bad. I’m easygoing and I don’t have any ill feelings anywhere. This is my most favorite part of the world.”

A place, he said, where he plans to stay.

“I’m not leaving,” Jaynes said.

“The people here are great. This is where I want to die.”

A nonpartisan position, Moore’s mayor serves as a voting member of the city council and presides at council meetings. The mayor serves a four-year term and is paid $3,000 annually.

COLE: 2008 won't be very productive for Congress

2008-01-10T14:08:00.001-08:00

The U.S. House and Senate probably won’t get much accomplished this year, 4th District Congressman Tom Cole predicted Wednesday.

Speaking at a breakfast meeting of the Cleveland County Business and Industry Council, Cole, R-Moore, said the problem was due to the 2008 presidential election.

“The conventional wisdom is that we won’t get a lot done in a presidential year,” he said.

Cole said House Democrats will want to delay major initiatives until after the fall elections and added the GOP is in a defensive mode.

“That will probably be what happens,” he said. “The focus will be on the normal, governmental appropriations process.”

Still, he said, voters shouldn’t write off initiatives by President George Bush.

“Even as a lame duck president, Bush holds a strong hand,” he said. “He wants to leave a legacy.”

Cole said he would be “interested” to see if President Bush offers a stimulus package to keep the economy from slipping into a recession.

“You business people are worried about your business, and the economy,” he said, “while we politicians are in survival mode. We have to demonstrate to the American people that we can govern. It would be a marvelous way for us to end the year.”

Lawmakers predict "titanic" fight for State Senate

2008-01-10T14:05:00.000-08:00

While most members of Cleveland County’s legislative delegation agreed state lawmakers would work in a “bipartisan fashion” during the upcoming 2008 Legislative session, they also predicted a major political fight this year for control of the Oklahoma State Senate.

“When you don’t have much money, you don’t have many arguments,” state Rep. Bill Nations said Wednesday.

But once the election season rolls around, Nations said, “there will be a titanic struggle for control of the Senate.”

Nations, D-Norman, made the prediction Wednesday morning during a legislative breakfast sponsored by the Cleveland County Business and Industry Council.

Nations, along with state Representatives Scott Martin, Wallace Collins, Randy Terrill, state Senator Jonahan Nichols and U.S. Congressman Tom Cole spoke at the event.

“When things are tough, everyone on both sides of the aisle makes tough decisions,” he said. “When there is a lot of money available, there are a lot of arguments going on.”

And the past three years, he said, have been “the best years for revenue in the history of the state of Oklahoma.”

Though most of the group acknowledged the potential fight in the Senate, all five men agreed the session will have its share of big issues.

“I’m working on legislation to try and help reduce school violence,” Collins said. “I’m still searching for “magic wand,” to solve it. I don’t know if we’re ever completely prevent it, but we’ve got to keep working.”

Collins said violence at school happens “far too often.”

“It happens all around the world and it hits home more personally here in the U.S.”

Along with violence prevention, the Norman Democrat said lawmakers should work to expand the state’s light rail system to help reduce pollution and increase economic development.

“We have to talk about it,” he said. “We have to raise the bar of public awareness and expand the use of light rail.”

Collins said lawmakers should take advantage of a strong budget cycle to explore alternatives to traditional transportation.

“If we won’t do this kind of thing in good budget year, we surely won’t do it in a shortfall. It’s past time for us to look into transportation alternatives, instead of just adding more lanes on the highway.”

While Martin, a Norman Republican said he, too, believed transportation issues would be a top priority this year, the focus, he said, would be on infrastructure and funding.

“You’re going to see legislation to remove the 3 percent trigger on Oklahoma Department of Transportation funding,” he said.
Martin said he also was “anxious to hear” what both sides had to say about extending the length of the public school and potential plans for a performance based pay system for public school teachers. “There will probably be a lot of discussion about those issues,” he said.

Like Martin, Nichols predicted education, transportation and public safety would be issues which occupied a majority of the legislative session.

“I’m looking forward to finally stopping the supplemental funding to the Department of Corrections,” he said. “It’s disingenuous to the taxpayers that we balance the budget knowing we owe bills. What has historically been done to fund DOC is circumventing the State Constitution.”

Hopefully, he said, lawmakers will “fully fund” the department of corrections.

Nichols also said he was pleased by the fact lawmakers had less money to spend in 2008.

“State government has less money to spend this year,” he said, “because we’ve returned more to the taxpayer.”

Nichols said he meant “that less money is less growth money.”

“We’re returning more money to the taxpayer. And there is no better way to insulate the economy than through tax cuts. There is no better way to keep the economy alive and vibrant than to place it in the hands of the private sector.”

Bragging that Republicans in the state house were “driving the train,” Terrill said the House GOP members were framing their legislation against five standards.

“Everything we try to move through the House falls along four lines,” he said. “Whether or not it advances the cause of Constitutionally limited government; whether or not it is advancing the rule of law; whether or not it supports the free enterprise, free market system; and whether or not it promotes traditional family values.”

The House, Terrill said, was pushing a sound, conservative fiscal policy.

“We will continue to fund core essential programs of state government,” he said. “And we will demand performance, accountability and modernization.”

Terrill said lawmakers would continue to focus on performance audits for state agencies and predicted the Department of Human Services “would be next in line” for such an audit.

“DHS is next in line because of their foster care and daycare programs,” he said. “The death of one child because of DHS’ bureaucratic black hole is one too many.”

In addition, Terrill said House Republicans would continue to try to reduce the state’s income tax rate to “ultimately get it below” 5 percent, which, he said, is the GOP’s short-term goal.

Known for his immigration reform bill, Terrill said the measure is being modeled by 25 to 30 other states.

“I’m very pleased we’ve gotten Oklahoman to the forefront in the immigration reform movement,” he said.

Terrill said he would file legislation in 2008 to add to the measure, including provisions which would make English the state’s official language and to allow local law enforcement officials to seize an undocumented alien’s property.

“It would be much like seizing certain drug assets,” he said.

Terrill said he also would push for “transparency in education” to show taxpayers how much education for undocumented aliens is costing.

State lawmakers will return to the capitol for the 2008 Legislative session in February.

COMMENTARY: Ford Center tax proposal a bad idea...

2008-01-09T14:01:00.000-08:00

So Oklahoma City mayor Mick Cornett wants to bring an NBA team to town.

And Cornett’s buddy, businessman and NBA fan Clayton Bennett — plus a cast of favorites — purchased the Seattle SuperSonics.

Then Bennett and company decide Seattle wasn’t being nice to his team and they should move it to Oklahoma City.

Further, since Seattle wouldn’t give into Bennett’s extortion, he threw a tantrum to justify his reason for pulling up stakes.

I know, you’ve heard all this before.

And, at this point, the debate is nothing more than a fight between millionaires.

“These are significant issues dealing with big numbers of dollars in taxpayer money,” Cornett told the Daily Oklahoman’s John Estus. “These are significant decisions, and we’re asking people in a matter of weeks to make up their minds. We’ve got a lot to do in a short time.”

Yeah, come up with a bad idea and try to shove it down the public’s throat quickly.

For the record: I have some swampland near Guthrie I’d like to sell you, too.

While I’ve said — and written — before that Bennett’s actions toward the people of Seattle have given Oklahoma a bad name, the proposal to have taxpayers foot the bill to upgrade the Ford Center so Bennett will bring his team here is even worse.

Public money for a private gain.

Bull.

If Mr. Bennett wants to spend his fortune (and, apparently, the fortunes of others) on a basketball team that’s fine.

And if he wants to try and extort money from the good people of Seattle, so be it (of course if I were him I wouldn’t travel there any time soon).

But now Clay, Cornett and company are playing on the home court.

And the voters should flush their plans.

The original MAPS proposal was a great idea.

As was MAPS for Kids.

But MAPS for Millionaires is a stupid, silly concept that does nothing but help make a few rich people richer.

And it’s not good public policy.

Rest assured chamber officials, Bennett and company and other insiders will do everything possible to sell this snake oil as economic development. They’ll tell you how Oklahoma City will move into the big leagues with its own NBA team.

They’ll tell you how much money the team will generate.

And they’ll tell you what a swell idea it is to have a Sooner state NBA team.

Don’t believe them.

Tell them ‘no.’

I find it ironic that Oklahomans will raise cain about taxes and even force a public vote on a tax for our schools, and in the same breath, come begging hat in hand for public funds so a millionaire will being his basketball team to Oklahoma City.

The whole idea would be funny if it wasn’t so stupid.

Cornett, Bennett and others should be ashamed they’ve even asked. With thousands living in poverty, the economy struggling and our schools and infrastructure needing million of dollars in improvements, earmarking taxpayer money to help a millionaire support hisbasketball team is the last thing we should consider.

And it shows just how messed up our priorities are.

Wesselhoft back with more dog legislation

2008-01-09T13:56:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Despite two previous legislative setbacks, state Rep. Paul Wesselhoft confirmed this week he would again author legislation to prevent attacks by vicious dogs.

Wesselhoft’s previous bills — written in 2006 and 2007 — attempted to outlaw pit bull dogs, and would have allowed communities to outlaw dog breeds they considered a public health risk. Both bills were put down by legislative committees.

This year, the Moore Republican said, he plans to write a proposal which is “non-breed specific.”

“This bill is modeled after similar legislation which passed in Texas,” he said. “It passed their Legislature and was signed by the governor.”

In Texas, Wesselhoft said, lawmakers approved the legislation “because three or four adults were killed by pit bull attacks.”
“They had many maulings by pit bull, so they developed legislation which was non-breed specific.”

Wesselhoft said his new proposal could make a dog’s “first-bite” a felony.

“If a dog gets off its property and if that dog attacks someone and if that attack is serious — that is if a prudent person would seek medical help — then my legislation calls for making that attack a felony offense with a mandatory 20 days in jail,” he said.

Wesselhoft said a serious attack would include deep, penetrating wounds, torn muscles or a wound requiring sutures.

“My bill will make people hesitate when purchasing pit bulls because it would be a felony if the dog bit someone,” he said. “You will think twice before you buy.”

Should the bill become law, Wesselhoft said he hoped it would “dramatically” reduce the state’s pit bull population.

“It will make people think,” he said. “And I hope it will reduce the number of attacks.”

At least twice, since 2004, Wesselhoft has authored legislation to outlaw pit bulls. Both times his bills have failed to make it out of the House of Representatives.

His most recent proposal, HB 1082, would have allowed communities to outlaw dog breeds they considered a public health risk.

That bill, he said, was blocked last year by Tulsa Republican Sue Tibbs.

“I’m amazed I didn’t get it out of committee,” Wesselhoft said last May. “I am not presenting a bill that outlaws any particular breed of dog. But I’m trying to give that right to cities who have daily interaction with dog owners and victims of dog attacks.”

Across the state many dog owners lobbied against the proposal.

“Animals are like people; some are just bad, some are not,” Tibbs said. “But most are good-natured and take on the nature of their owner.”

Tibbs said Wesselhoft’s legislation wasn’t needed because the state, “already (had) laws on the books about vicious dogs.
And research has shown that allowing municipalities to decide issues such as this on their own, doesn’t work.”

Wesselhoft said he will introduce his bill when state lawmakers return to the Capitol in February for the 2008 legislative session.

Lawmakers should be prudent with budget, taxes, Meacham says

2008-01-07T13:53:00.000-08:00

State lawmakers should be conservative in their spending and in their plans to additionally reduce taxes, the state's top budget official said Sunday.

State Treasurer Scott Meacham -- who also serves as Gov. Brad Henry's cabinet secretary for revenue and finance -- urged lawmakers to hold the line on spending increases and new tax cuts during the upcoming legislative session until officials know how the latest round of tax reductions and spending will affect the state's revenue picture.

The Oklahoma Legislature reconvenes in February.

"Our rate of growth has slowed significantly," Meacham said. "And prudence dictates we don't make a lot more commitments; both on revenue reduction and expenditures in this environment."

Lawmakers, Meacham said, have passed major tax cuts and spending initiatives during the past few years and the effects of both just now are being felt.

"At this point, with state revenue slowing down and our spending commitments, we need to assess things. We just enacted the largest tax cuts in state history, we need to see how that will go."

Financial data seems to support Meacham.

November tax revenues, he said, showed "marginal improvement" from October, and failed to meet collections from the prior year.

Additionally, tax records show that net income tax and gross production collections failed to meet the estimate, while sales tax was equal to the estimate.

Preliminary reports indicate general revenue fund collections totaled $403.6 million for the month of November.

That amount, Meacham said, is $27.4 million -- almost 6.5 percent -- below the same month of the prior year and $11.4 million or 2.7 percent below the estimate for the same period.

"It would appear the growth of Oklahoma's economy has slowed," Meacham said in a recent media release. "Compared to the previous month, November's collections have improved -- but only slightly. We hope the (recent) ice storms won't significantly curtail retail spending in the coming days and weeks and our economy will pick up strength."

With the 2008 Legislative session only weeks away, Meacham said lawmakers should take a "conservative approach" with the state's budget.

"We need to be more conservative on both sides," he said. "We've just gone through the highest four years of growth in state history, we're spoiled a little bit."

Meacham's call is drawing support from both Democrats and Republicans.

Last fall, former Governor David Boren -- now the president of the University of Oklahoma -- urged legislators to put a moratorium on future tax cuts.

"I think we ought to have a moratorium on tax reductions right now," Boren, a Democrat, told the Associated Press in September of 2007. "I think we're bumping the limits and I think we certainly don't need to proceed down that path."

Since then, other lawmakers, including Moore Representative Paul Wesselhoft, have taken a "wait and see" attitude about addition revenue reduction.

"Don't get me wrong, I support tax cuts," Wesselhoft, a Republican said. "But I think we need to see what the effect of our recent cuts will be. We need to see the whole picture and what our needs are."

Advice that Meacham supports.

"I believe that soon, we're going to get to a point our rate of growth is not fast enough to keep up with our rate of spending," he said. "And when we hit the point were those two lines cross, we've gotta decide 'where am I gonna cut?' We could be making tough some tough decisions soon, as soon as two years."

Immigration, corrections and education will top 2008 Legislative session, county lawmakers say

2008-01-06T13:22:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Call it the problem of “what they need to be doing versus what they’ll get to do.”

With just over five weeks left before lawmakers return to the state capitol, the list of issues needing legislative action grows almost daily — education funding, teacher pay, health care, transportation, corrections and, of course, the budget all “desperately need attention.”

But many legislators — including some from Cleveland County — are concerned those issues will take a back seat to one which has dominated the state’s political landscape for more than a year: immigration.

And some worry the issue — like Frankenstein’s monster — just won’t go away.

With Moore Rep. Randy Terrill’s recent announcement that he plans to file the “son of” his previous immigration bill, House Bill 1804, some state lawmakers worry Terrill’s newest bill could divert attention from many other pressing issues.

“Immigration, it’s an issue that shouldn’t be No. 1, but it is,” said state Rep. Bill Nations, a Norman Democrat. “We ought to be talking about education and health care and other things, but Rep. Terrill has us talking about immigration.”

And that debate, Nations says, is a distraction.

“They should be dealing with it in Washington, D.C,” he said. “The bill that Randy wrote is causing economic hardships. It’s going to distract us from dealing with more important things. But you can rest assured there will be a lot of press and immigration will be a front page issue.”

Instead, Nations said, lawmakers should be working on issues such as health care.

“We need to look at some type of universal health care for children,” he said. “I don’t know if we are where it can happen, but there is a moral obligation to see if we can cover all the children in Oklahoma.”

And while Nations says lawmakers and policy experts haven’t solved the health care problem yet, he believes there is hope.

“State Insurance Commissioner (Kim) Holland’s task force isn’t quite finished with its study,” he said. “She and I have talked and I may be pushing their timing, but I believe there is a need to keep the conversation in people’s mind. We have a need and responsibility to do that.”

But health care isn’t Nations’ only concern.

A slow down in growth has the five-term Representative cautious.

“Our budget will be fairly quiet,” he said. “It’s not so bad a revenue picture that we’ll have to make drastic cuts.”

That is, cuts in spending or cuts in the tax rate.

“I certainly hope we don’t try any more tax cuts,” he said. “I agree with (OU President) Boren and the State Chamber of Commerce. We can’t afford any more tax cuts at this point. We already have incredibly low taxes and, by any way you want to slice it, we need to hold off on any future ones.”

An idea that some of Nation’s more conservative colleagues support.

“I think we’ll probably have to assess our situation,” said Moore Republican Paul Wesselhoft. “We don’t know how important additional tax cuts will be until we can see what our needs are and know how much money is available.”

Wesselhoft, who says “he’s not against tax cuts” said lawmakers should “exercise some caution” with future reductions in state revenue. “I read what President Boren had to say,” he said. “You’ve got to see the whole picture and see what the needs are.”

For Wesselhoft, those needs include repairing the state’s ailing roads and bridges and reducing the number of inmates in the state’s corrections system.

“The most important issues are roads and bridges and the corrections system,” he said. “We’re going to have a tighter budget than we did last year and getting our roads and bridges repaired and answering the problems with the corrections department, those issues should be our focus.”

To do that, Wesselhoft said he wants to earmark all the state’s growth revenue — about $32 million — for road and bridge repair.

“That means it won’t go to teaches salaries,” he said. “But infrastructure is not a sexy topic. It doesn’t lend itself to political rhetoric and gamesmanship. It’s not a ribbon cutting kind of policy.”

The state’s bridges, he said, are crumbling.

“Chunks are falling through windows and killing our citizens. That should send a chilling message to lawmakers. It’s a concrete example of why we should invest in infrastructure.”

Wesselhoft also wants to reduce the number of inmates in state prisons by expanding the use of community based sentencing programs, alternative forms of incarceration and drug courts.

“We have an overcrowded prison system,” he said. “We need to give more thought to putting those incarcerated for drugs into different programs. We are going to have to develop an alternative system, such as community sentencing for these people.”

State Sen. John Sparks, a Democrat, agreed.

“We should look at the reasons for incarceration,” he said. “We should decide if we can use alternative sentencing more.”
The issue, Sparks said, comes down to money. “Without over simplifying the deal it comes down to this: How much do we want to pay to keep people in jail?”

Sparks says he would rather earmark state revenue for education.

“We need to get a handle on our higher education system,” he said. “I think everyone would agree that higher education benefits the state. The numbers don’t lie. If you don’t have a healthy, well educated work force, economic development isn’t going to happen.”

Sparks said the state “needs to step up” and make higher education a priority. “It’s important to understand, this isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon. It’s a commitment, a long term commitment. We’re not going to fix the problem in one year. It’s going to be an ‘every year’ issue that is going to take an ‘every year’ commitment.”

For state Rep. Scott Martin, a Norman Republican, the focus will be on transportation issues.

“We’re going to look at removing the trigger and the cap on transportation spending,” he said. “So I’m sure that will be something that’s heavily debated and discussed.”

Two years ago, Martin said lawmakers passed legislation which had a 3 percent growth trigger. “If growth hit 3 percent, there would be additional funding to the Oklahoma Department of Transportation,” he said. “If it didn’t there would be extra funding, but not as much.”

And while growth didn’t reach the 3 percent threshold during last year’s legislative session, Martin said it hit the mark after the session, but lawmakers “weren’t able to go back and appropriate additional funds for roads and bridges.”

“I’d like to review that,” he said, adding that he also wants to reapportion fuel taxes which should be going for transportation issues but currently are not.

Like Martin, state Rep. Wallace Collins agrees that lawmakers should focus on transportation. But unlike Martin, Collins, a Democrat from Norman, said that discussion will probably be on light rail.

“We should be looking at transportation issues,” he said. “And we’ll probably be dealing with rail, it will get some attention. But I don’t think ethanol as an alternative fuel is going to solve much of anything. I think it’s a distraction.”

Education and mental health, he said, along with the state’s prison system and pay raises for state employees “all need to be dealt with.”

“It’s vital that we deal with them,” Collins said. “I just hope we won’t get bogged down with immigration and more tax cuts.”
Editor’s note: Despite repeated attempts, State Rep. Randy Terrill, Sen. Jonathan Nichols or Sen. Anthony Sykes could not be reached for this story.

COMMENTARY: About that New Year thingy...

2008-01-03T14:07:00.001-08:00

With the closing of 2007, we Oklahomans have put to rest another difficult, turbulent and, at times, wonderful year.

The year known as 2007 brought us death, destruction and, in some portions of the world, chaos.

And still, somehow, we survived.

Here in Oklahoma — and throughout the rest of the country — we have see the worse nature and our fellow man have brought.

And yet, we remain resilient.

Be it ice storms, political chicanery or tornadoes, Oklahomans are survivors.

Maybe it’s the red dirt under our fingernails.

Or the stubbornness in our hearts.

Whatever the reason, we Sooners always bounce back.

And, now with a new year facing us, we have the chance to, again, start over.

A chance to make 2008 better than 2007.

With that in mind, here a list of ways I believe we could make 2008 a great year.

• Get the mayors, vice-mayors and other city leaders together with the leaders of the all the state’s electric utilities and develop a game plan to bury all powerlines underground, across the state over the next decade.

Yeah, it will cost some money, but we can either pay the cost in damages or in better infrastructure.

• Expand the school year, and increase teacher (and support staff) pay. It’s time to stop dinking with education and get serious. Sandy Garrett is right, lengthen the school year. Secondly, move our teachers out of third world employee status and pay them a decent wage.

• Develop a statewide bond issue to repair and replace our ailing bridges, roads and highways. Oklahoma has let its transportation system fall apart and most lawmakers have done little more than give the issue lip service and a few million here or there. Like education, it’s time to invest heavily in our infrastructure.

• Offer a student loan reduction incentive for all Oklahoma college graduates who stay and work here after they graduate. This has been used successfully in the medical profession — let’s take it statewide.

• Invest millions more in our public libraries and charge the libraries of this state with fighting illiteracy. There’s a public library in almost every town in Oklahoma. It’s time to fund them properly and make them the central cog to encouraging literacy.

• Eliminate tuition at any Oklahoma institution of higher learning for Oklahoma high school graduates. You want and educated workforce, here’s the way to do it.

• Rewrite our state tax policy from the ground up; outlaw tax reduction incentives for idea such as Clay Bennett’s professional basketball team, and instead, develop a progressive policy based on income level. Taxes in Oklahoma and American hit the poor and the middle class with a higher percentage than the rich.

• Rewrite the state’s (and the country’s) child custody laws, to ensure the rights of both parents and eliminate the stupid idea of child support in cases of joint custody.

• Encourage personal accountability. You life is your responsibility, live that way.

• Encourage faith. Believing in something great than yourself is inherent in our nature; tolerance of other faiths and believes should be a foundation of our lives.

And finally, encourage peace.

I’ve always found it ironic that people will spend the entire month of December speaking about “peace on earth and goodwill toward men,” then promptly forget it on Jan. 1.

Let’s change that.

Let’s make 2008 a shining example of what humanity can do. God knows we’ve had lots of experience in show the world just how poorly we can behave.

Gumm files "Freedom from Hunger Act"

2008-01-03T14:05:00.001-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — A southern Oklahoma state Senator has filed legislation to eliminate the state sales tax on groceries.

State Senator Jay Paul Gumm, D-Durant, recently filed Senate Bill 1153, the “Freedom from Hunger Act.”

Gumm said the act would save state taxpayers “millions of dollars.”

The measure would remove the state’s portion of the sales tax on groceries — currently 4.5 cents per dollar spent.

“If enacted, the bill would save Oklahoma families 4.5 cents on every dollar they spend at the grocery store. Families spending $500 per month on groceries would save $270 annually on sales taxes under the bill,” he said.

Gumm said “working families are feeling the pain” of all-time high gas prices, and could use the relief at the checkout stand when they buy food.

“Eliminating this unfair tax will allow Oklahomans to have more money in their pockets to spend on necessities and to boost their local economies,” he said.

The proposal is Gumm’s third try at the tax.

He introduced similar legislation last year, but that bill never was granted a hearing in the Senate Finance Committee.

Gumm said his previous bill faced fierce opposition from the Oklahoma Municipal League (OML) — an organization that lobbies on behalf of Oklahoma cities and towns.

“The (OML) fears the measure would strip cities’ and counties’ ability to tax groceries,” he said.

Gumm said that is “simply not true,” as his bill would not affect cities and counties. “The ‘Freedom from Hunger Act’ clearly allows cities and counties to continue taxing Oklahomans’ food, just like OML wants.”

He said the state’s participation in the Streamline Sales Tax Agreement would not allow a city or county option to end the tax on a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction basis; the ability to tax an item must be uniform across a state under the agreement.

“Even though I would like to do away completely with the grocery tax, I realize OML would not allow that proposal to become law. Despite OML’s rhetoric to the contrary, their sales tax base is preserved under the bill.”

Gumm cited OML’s long opposition to the “Back-to-School” sales tax holiday as evidence the group “will pull out all the stops” to protect their sales tax base. Despite evidence that such a sales tax holiday would actually increase municipal revenues, OML stopped that bill cold for years before it finally passed in 2007.

“Getting rid of the state grocery tax is too important to risk on political gamesmanship,” Gumm said. “Removing the state’s portion of the grocery tax will make a real difference in the lives of Oklahoma families, and it is something to which I am deeply committed.If we aren’t successful this year, it will be back every year until it becomes law or my time in the Senate is complete.”

The measure will get its first hearing in February when the Oklahoma Legislature returns to Oklahoma City.

State revenue shows "marginal" improvement

2008-01-03T14:04:00.000-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — State revenue collections for November showed “marginal improvement” from October, but still failed to meet collections from the prior year, State Treasurer Scott Meacham announced recently.

Mecham said net income tax and gross production collections failed to meet the estimate, while sales tax was equal to the estimate.

Preliminary reports show general revenue fund collections totaled $403.6 million for the month of November.

That amount, Mechan said, is $27.4 million — almost 6.5 percent — below the same month of the prior year and $11.4 million or 2.7 percent below the estimate for the same period.

"It would appear the growth of Oklahoma's economy has slowed," Meacham said. "Compared to the previous month, November's collections have improved - but only slightly. We hope the ice storms won't significantly curtail retail spending in the coming days and weeks and our economy will pick up strength."

In October, revenue collections fell short of the estimate and prior year collections in three of the four major tax categories. Collections that month missed the estimate by $16.6 million or 3.6 percent.

In November, Mechan said earnings on investments made by the

Treasurer’s office — the state's largest source of non-tax revenue — totaled $16.5 million, about 3.8 percent above the same month one year ago.

The combination of individual and corporate income tax returns totaled $153.8 million for the month; about $29.4 million or 16 percent below collections of one year ago and $2.7 million or 1.7 percent below the estimate.

Personal income tax collections for the month totaled $153.8 million, which is $25.6 million or 14.3 percent below the prior year but equal to the estimate. Corporate income tax collections were less than corporate income tax refunds for the month and are shown as zero. Variances in corporate collections are common on a month-to-month basis.

The state sales tax produced $131.1 million for the month of November, which is $5.6 million or 4.4 percent above the prior year and equal to the estimate.

The Gross Production tax on natural gas yielded $46.5 million during the month, which is $0.4 million or 0.9 percent above the priorz year but $3.2 million or 6.3 percent below the estimate.

Motor vehicle tax receipts, which come primarily from vehicle sales and licenses, produced $20.8 million in the month.

That is $4.1 million or 16.6 percent below the prior year but $0.4 million or 1.8 percent above the estimate.

Other Revenue, which includes investment earnings along with taxes on insurance, alcoholic beverages and others, produced $51.5 million during November. This is $0.2 million or 0.3 percent above the prior year but $5.9 million or 10.3 percent below the estimate.

For the first five months of the fiscal year, collections total $2.314 billion. That is $27.4 million or 1.2 percent below the same period of the prior year but $67.2 million or 3 percent above the estimate.

Moore: Lots of experience in disaster recovery

2007-12-20T08:24:00.000-08:00

MOORE -- With less than 150 residents without power, Moore is "recovering well" from the county's ice storm, its city manager said this week.

Two weeks ago, more than 6,000 in Moore were without electricity.

"By and large, everyone is back up in the community," said Moore city manager Steve Eddy. "To the best of my knowledge we're pretty much back to normal."

And while Eddy described the storm as "the worst ice storm Moore has ever had" city officials, he said, were well prepared for the problems.

"We have the knowledge and we know what to expect," he said.

Eddy said Moore officials are accustomed to dealing with federal emergency management officials. "We speak FEMA," he said. "You have to learn to speak it and know what they are doing. We do."

With services restored, Eddy said city crews will begin hauling away tree debris Jan. 7.

"We wanted to give people a chance to get their debris out to the curb," he said. "We know there are a number of people who are going to need help."

Tree limbs placed for pickup should be placed within 12 feet of the curb or edge of roadway and must be cut in lengths of no longer than 10 feet.

Moore Mayor Glenn Lewis said the city has also set up a location where residents can haul their own tree limbs from the ice storm.

"There won't be any charge for the service," Lewis said.

Lewis said residents who wish to haul their own tree debris can take it to the Moore Animal Shelter at 4000 S. I-35 Service Road. To dump debris, a resident must show proof of residency, either a driver's license with the current address or a copy of a recent utility bill.

Proof of residency also may be obtained at City Hall.

"We are committed to getting the city cleaned up as soon as possible and getting back to normal," Lewis said. "I would like to thank the residents for their patience and their resilience in this time of recovery."

Lewis said the drop-off location will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week (except Christmas Day and New Year's Day) until further notice. Only tree debris will be accepted.

Both Lewis and Eddy said the clean up process should go quickly.

"Once we get started our contractors will be working on it daily. It shouldn't take too long, less that a couple of months."

Residents seeking more information can check the city's Web site at www.cityofmoore.com. Information also will be made available via the city's CodeRed emergency notification system.

Residents who are not in the CodeRed database, should sign up on the City's Web site or call 793-5171 to make sure that they receive the CodeRed calls.

COMMENTARY: So this is Christmas...

2007-12-19T14:09:00.000-08:00

“So this is Christmas
And what have you done
Another year over
And a new one just begun
And so this is Christmas
I hope you have fun
The near and the dear one
The old and the young...”
— John Lennon

Driving down the Broadway Extension, being passed by the reindeer-decorated Hummer, it’s pretty obvious that Christmas is close.

Very close.

The stores are well decorated, and a least one radio station is playing wall-to-wall Christmas carols. BC Clark has dusted off the jingle and we’ve already had snow and ice and winter isn’t even officially here yet.

Yeah, call it Christmas in Oklahoma.

But, to borrow a line from the late John Lennon, “what have we done?”

I wish I knew the answer to that question.

All across the state people are making plans, shopping and generally celebrating the Yuletide. Children — from 1 to 92 — are trying their best to behave and the rest of us are finding it difficult to focus at work.

Christmas does that.

Still, what have we done?

For a brief time, we’ve let go of the normal and found refuge in the silly, the fun and the sacred. With one breath we pause to celebrate a 2,000-year-old miracle and, that same day, find ourselves singing “Grandma’ got ran over by a Reindeer.”

We wrap ourselves against the cold by opening our hearts to others.

For a short time, the poor have souls and those who suffer are remembered. We allow ourselves to care and, briefly, we reach out to others.

All because of Christmas.

Many find comfort in movies and Christmas specials. We smile as the Grinch and English brethren, Ebenezer Scrooge, both find redemption through Grace.

Charlie Brown may always be a blockhead, but he does know how to choose Christmas trees and, yes, Burl Ives will always be a first-class snowman.

But what have we done?

Sure, we see daily examples of anger, spite and meanness. We see bigotry disguised as policy and hear hatred spoken of as justice.

But we also see faith.

And hope.

And love.

Across this state you’ll find thousands who truly care about their fellow man. You’ll find gentle, decent people who want to help and who seek to share what they have with others.

You don’t have to look hard.

I’m always amazed by Oklahomans when we run a story in the paper about a family’s struggle. The ink is barely dry on the newsprint before the telephone is ringing with offers of help.

I still smile as I remember the attorney — whose pledge of secrecy I continue to honor — who offered to help a Norman woman “for as long as she needs or wants it.”

This same attorney is known by several other names — most of which are unprintable — by those who have locked horns with him in court.

So, this is Christmas and what have we done?

We’ve lived, my friends.

We’ve recognized that there is something out there greater than ourselves and, many of us, have opened our homes and our heart to those fellow passengers we share this world with.

We’ve also loved.

For some, Dec. 25 my be just another day.

But for many others, the Christmas holiday is that time to reaffirm our faith in humanity and in our Creator. A time, again, to say “I love you.”

Yes, this is Christmas.

And may yours be bright, warm and filled with hope.

New jail could cost $30 million

2007-12-18T10:24:00.000-08:00

Cleveland County’s new jail could be a two-story, 85,000-square-foot facility designed to house more than 500 inmates in a series of “pods,” segregation units and holding areas, tentative plans for the structure show.

Those plans — while still far from complete — were reviewed Monday duirng a meeting of the Cleveland County Justice Authority. The county’s three commissioners, George Skinner, Rod Cleveland and Rusty Sullivan, are the authority’s trustees. The authority was created in October to build and operate the jail.

Documents reviewed Monday include designs of three jail “pods” for housing minimum, medium and maximum security inmates, a separate section for juvenile offenders, a medical facility, several padded cells, a unit for segregating inmates and a central booking area.

Cost for the facility could be “in the $30 million range.”

The jail is expected to occupy an eight-acre section of a 28-acre plot of land along Franklin Road and U.S. 177, near the Johnson Controls-York International plant. The county purchased the land earlier this year for $1.2 million.

And while county officials stress the jail’s design is not yet locked down, Sullivan said he believes that design is close to being complete.

“There’s still more to do, but we’re moving right along,” he said. “But I’d like to be putting a shovel in the ground sometime in the spring.”

Designed to house 528 inmates in an 85,330-square-foot area, the jail “makes terrific use” of space and includes state-of-the-art security and video features, Sullivan said. “Our goal is to be cost effective and construct a secure facility. I don’t want to get Buck Rogers and spend all the money in the world on this.”

Current design documents include plans for a 32-bed maximum security unit for male inmates, 112 beds for medium security male inmates and 192 beds for minimum security male inmates. For females, the plans include eight maximum security beds, 32 medium security beds and 48 minimum security beds.

A 27-unit area would allow for the segregation of inmates, while a medical facility would contain six beds. Another 20 beds are set aside for weekend prisoners, and additional 28 beds are earmarked for trustees — 20 for males, and eight females.

The jail’s intake area would house another 15 inmates.

“It’s a very effective use of space,” said Cushing jail consultant Donald Jones. “It also includes state-of-the-art security and video conferencing systems.”

The video system, Jones said, would allow inmates to remain in secure areas and communicate with their attorneys, bondmen or family members.

Sullivan said the video technology would allow law enforcement officials to better control inmates.

“If we’ve got them in control, if we control them in the pod … and an inmate loses his mind, if they are in the pod they are easier to control,” he said.

In addition to its video conferencing system, the jail would include a second-floor mezzanine level, which will allow county law enforcement officials to monitor the jail’s inmate population. Skylights in the building’s pyramid-style roof would provide lighting.

“It’s progressing very well,” said Norman architect Ben Graves. Graves, a partner with the firm Architects in Partnership, who is designing the jail. Earlier this year, Graves said he hoped to have the jail’s plans completed in mid-November.

And though commissioners didn’t make that late fall deadline, Sullivan said he expects the jail’s design to be settled soon. “We’re still working on the food service, administrative and laundry areas,” he said. “But I don’t think it will take that much longer. We’re working hard to get this done.”

Stadium expansion approved by OU Regents

2007-12-14T10:19:00.000-08:00

The University of Oklahoma’s Board of Regents approved a policy which — at a later date — could allow OU to sponsor a charter school, endorsed a $15 million expansion of the Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, and made major changes to its retirement policy during its December meeting.

The board met Wednesday at the Oklahoma Memorial Union.

With all seven regents attending, the group endorsed phase four of a multi-million dollar expansion project of the Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

That project, athletic director Joe Castiglione said, would include renovation and improvements to the football team facilities; including the locker room, shower and restroom areas located in the Barry Switzer Center.

“This will allow us to address the need for additional space for sports medicine,” Castiglione said. “We also anticipate building a team room.”

Castiglione said the project includes refurbishing the west mezzanine of the stadium. An area, he said, “that’s been abandoned for a number of years.”

“With that we can expand offices, and add some to space to take care of our fans,” he said.

Total budget for the project, documents show, is $15 million; of that figure, $12.5 million is the “guaranteed maximum price” for construction.

University officials also took the first step toward sponsoring a charter school with the adoption of four-page policy, by a quick, 7-0 vote.

“The policy is required to allow the university, if we were to decide to, to enter into an agreement to sponsor a charter school,” OU president David Boren said. “But any such agreement would be brought back to the board.”

That policy, he said, would “open the door” to the possibility of a charter school sponsorship.

“This would give us an opportunity to help meet some special needs,” Boren said. “To go into areas of education where there are particular areas of specialty and implement new ideas in education. This would allow us to receive applications.”

State law allows charter schools in districts which have an “average daily membership” of 5,000 or more and which are located in counties having more than 500,000 in population.

Only Oklahoma and Tulsa counties, Boren said, are eligible for charter schools.

“Clearly, an application would have to come from Oklahoma City or Tulsa county,” he said. “And we would bring it to you at that time.”

Acknowledging the high cost of health care, the regents approved major changes to the university’s retirement policy.

Recommended by OU’s Contribution Strategy and Health Insurance Options Committee, the new policy is the first “in a series of recommendations” proposed by the group.

Under the proposal, new employees hired on or after Jan. 1, 2008, would be responsible for 100 percent of the cost required to participate in OU medical and dental plans upon reaching retirement.

“The employees, upon meeting retirement eligibility, would continue to be eligible to participate in the university’s medical and dental plans at retirement,” the proposal states, “... but would be responsible for 100 percent of the cost, less any applicable Teacher’s Retirement System contribution.”

Those employees would “continue to be eligible for other retiree benefits currently listed in the Retirement Policy,” including free parking and library privileges.

The university picks up “a majority” of the cost of health benefits for its retired employees.

The new policy, Boren said, was necessary because of the rapidly escalating cost of health care. “This is no way changes our current responsibility to current employees or retirees,” he said.

Boren said the change was reflective of “what is happening in the private and public sector.”

“We are simply not able to guarantee new hires ... that when they retire, we will pay virtually the whole cost of their participation in their health insurance benefits. By taking this action today, we protect ourselves with new employees from undertaking obligations that we might not be able to meet.”

In other action, the regents approved:

• A resolution honoring Andrea DenHoed, who was named a 2008 American Rhodes Scholarship recipient, the university’s 27th Rhodes Scholar. DenHoed, Boren said, is a letters and international studies major from Aurora, Colo., and plans to pursue a bachelor’s degree in English at the University of Oxford in England.

• Awarding a posthumous Doctor of Philosophy degree to Dr. Monty Menhusen.

• A professional service agreement with HCA Health Services of Oklahoma for $2,513,400 per year.

• A professional service agreement with Academic Physicians Insurance Company for $918,666.

• Spending $7,506,000 for renovation of the Basic Services Education Building for Medical Student Education Facilities.

• An $850,000 advertising contract with BVK Advertising Services of Westmont, Ill., for a collaborative advertising contract with the OU medical Center and the Health Sciences Center on behalf of OU Physicians.

• $134,630 contract with Midwest Towers, Inc., for cooling tower repair.

• $175,000 to Central Oklahoma Parking and Transportation Authority for the purchase of three buses.

• Choosing the architectural firm of McFarland, Davies Architects PLC to plan, design and oversee construction of OU’s North Tulsa Clinic project.

• Spending $296,800 to purchase a flow cytometer from BD Biosciences of California.

• Authorizing OU administrators to acquire property located at 1420 Lincoln to use for parking space “for the foreseeable future.”

• Spending $141,300 with the Segal Company of Chicago for benefits consulting.

• Hiring Oklahoma City’s Elliott+Associates Architects to provide professional services for the university’s Boat House project.

• Spending $126,643 with Lumenate, Inc., to provide Sun Microsystems hardware, software and maintenance services.

• Spending $190,000 for sports video production services with Oklahoma City-based Visual Image, Inc.

• Changes to the Regent’s Fund Statement of Investment Policy.

In Norman: Voting in the dark

2007-12-12T17:56:00.000-08:00

Wrapped in blankets and huddled around a portable kerosene heater, Pat Collins, Laura Wilcox and Corene Siglin sat in the dark at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church’s Parish Center.

They arrived at 6 a.m.

They came prepared — coffee, snacks and things to work on if they got bored.

And they’ll be at St. Joseph’s for a while; at least 12 hours.

Still, for the trio — precinct workers for the Cleveland County Election Board — Tuesday was just another day; there was an elction to work and Collins, Wilcox and Siglin each had a job to do — that is, inspector, clerk and judge.

They welcomed voters, checked names against the precinct list, handed out ballots and answered questions.

Only this time they did their jobs in the dark and cold.

The weekend’s ice storm may have downed power lines and left more than 25,000 Norman residents without power, but it didn’t change the world for the employees of the Cleveland County Election Board. Tuesday was election day, and the vote went on.

“People are voting, the election is happening,” Collins said. “Even without power. It shows us we can survive.”

With about 80 pecent of the election board’s precincts without power, election board staffers did things “the old-fashioned way,” said Paula Roberts, Cleveland County’s election board secretary.

“People voted,” she said. “They voted in the dark, but they voted.”

Sure, the ballots are the same. And there’s a big blue voting machine in the lobby. But for this election, Roberts and her staff hand processed a majority of the ballots.

With flashlights.

And portable heaters.

A lots of coffee.

“We’ve stored the ballots in the voting machines at each precinct and then brought the ballots here, to the election board office, and counted them.”

Once at the election board office, the ballots were hand fed into three voting machines stationed at the lobby to tablulate results.

Those machines, Roberts said, were powered and working, thanks in part to a loaned electric generator.

Roberts said Cleveland County District 3 Commissioner Rusty Sullivan brought her office a gas-powered generator, which provided some heat, light and powered the voting machines, allowing workers to process Tuesday’s election results.

“We do have some power,” she said. “We’ll be able to count the ballots with three machines we’ve got set up in the lobby.”

But at the vast majority of the county’s 70 precincts, electricity was Tuesday a rare commodity Tuesday.

“We did things by hand,” Roberts said. “But each precinct had a cell phone. They all know the procedure. Things went pretty smoothly.”

Back at St. Joseph’s, Collins, Wilcox and Siglin took the storm and the problems it caused in stride.

“It’s not that bad,” Wilcox said. “We watched it rain and tried to stay warm.”

As she spoke, the precinct’s 10th voter walked through the door.

Using a flashlight, Siglin showed the woman where to sign her name in the precinct book; Wilcox handed her the ballot.

A few minutes later, another ballot was cast.

“We set up close to the door to take advantage of the light,” Collins said. “But there wasn’t much at 6 a.m. this moring.”

As the woman left, Collins handed her an “I voted” sticker.

“Here’s you a sticker,” she said. “You earned it today.”

So did the staff of Cleveland County’s Election Board.

“It’s been a weird day,” Roberts said. “But we’re going to make it.”

Collins agreed.

“The post office isn’t the only one who works in rain, sleet, snow and hail,” she said.

Church responds to former pastor's lawsuit

2007-12-07T13:48:00.000-08:00

MOORE -- Dr. Jimmy Lady, the former associate pastor of the Moore's First Baptist Church, was fired from his job for "unacceptable ministerial services, disruptive conduct, interfering with other employees' work and excessive unexcused absences," and not because church officials thought he was bipolar, recently filed court documents charge.

Those documents are the latest filed in a civil lawsuit against the First Baptist Church of Moore.

In his suit, Lady claims he was fired because church officials believed he was bipolar. Additionally, Lady said church leaders spread "false rumors about his mental health through the community."

"Although a man of God, Dr. Lady cannot ignore the dramatic, adverse effects these untrue and unfair accusations have had on him and his family," Lady's attorney, Andrew Hicks said.

And while Lady's suit said the former associate pastor is seeking $10,000 in actual damages and $10,000 in punitive damages, at least one court document puts the figure much higher.

In an Aug. 17th letter from Hicks to church officials, Hicks says settlement in the case "will require the Church to pay Dr. Lady $2 million in compensation for his lost wages, retirement benefits, mental anguish and attorneys' fees."

Church officials continue to deny Lady's allegations.

In a 156-page motion to dismiss filed Nov. 17, the church -- through attorney Steven Lewis of Edmond -- claimed Lady was fired from his job for poor performance.

"During his third year on staff, some church members and employees began complaining about Pastor Lady's ministry," the church's motion said. "The complaints continued to grow and after several months of seeking the Lord's will, church leaders decided that it was necessary for Lady, as well as for the church, that Pastor Lady be directed to seek other employment."

Lady, First Baptist's senior pastor Kevin Clarkson concluded, was "a double minded man and unstable in all his ways."

Lady's accusation that church officials spread "false rumors about his mental health" also was denied by Clarkson.

However, in a sworn statement, Clarkson acknowledges using the word "bipolar" in meetings with Lady and his wife, but claims he was "ministerially reaching out" to the couple.

"I did use the word bipolar in my meeting with both Pastor Jim Lady and his wife," Clarkson said. "But it was in the manner of non-physican, pastor ministerially reaching out to them, asking them in they thought Jim Lady might need help or counseling."

Clarkson said he did not use the word (bipolar) in "a defamatory or derogatory manner" and did not use it with intent to "harm" Lady.

"I used the word as a simple statement of Christian concern to encourage Pastor Lady to consider seeking help."

Clarkson also denied church officials defamed Lady in public.

"All ministers, personnel team members and staff who were aware of the personnel decision were directed to keep the matter confidential," Clarkson said. "There were instructed not to tell anyone about Pastor Lady's departure."

But Clarkson did acknowledge speaking about Lady and using the word "bipolar" in meetings with some church staff members.

"I made a similar comment in a private discussion of the personnel team, but the statement was not made outside of a very small core group of fewer than seven church leaders," Clarkson said. "I also mentioned the term at a staff devotion meeting, since they were the ones who had been experiencing the direct conflicts with Pastor Lady and who had been observing his behavior and performance up close."

In their motion, church officials asked the court to dismiss Lady's suit and quash his efforts of discovery.

"The relationship between the plaintiff as a former ministerial staff member and as a member of the defendant church is a constitutionally protected relationship which is protected from discovery and judicial intrusion as a religious freedom under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution," the motion says.

A hearing on the motion is set for 2 p.m. Dec. 19 in Cleveland County District Court before Judge Bill Hetherington.

COMMENTARY: About those "anchor babies..."

2007-12-06T12:10:00.000-08:00

Maybe it’s because I’ve spent the past several weeks at the hospital, dealing with an infant with a cardiac problem.

Or, it could be because I like being a father.

Or maybe it’s because my wife is a public school teacher.

Whatever the reason, I’m sick and tired of a human child being referred to as an “anchor baby.”

Anchor baby.

The very phrase is a grating, cynical term meant to dehumanize the child of non-resident.

Anchor baby.

A political catch phrase used by those “round ’em up and ship ’em out” politicians.

Anchor baby.

A racist phrase that needs to go away.

Whether a child is a blond haired, blue eyed Christian, a Muslim, Jew or Hispanic the fact is they are simply, a child.

A human with a soul.

And they, too, have the right to a spot on this earth.

But some would change their status.

State Rep. Randy Terrill’s latest proposal to deny children born on U.S. soil American citizenship is an affront to human dignity and our country’s Constitution.

Now, I’m sure the ink won’t be dry on this paper before I hear from Rep. Terrill and the rest of the American First crowd.

Heck, I get blasted by those guys all the time. Big deal.

Because I stand with Tulsa Catholic Bishop Edward J. Slattery.

Slattery recently issued a pastoral letter — only the second in his tenure — in which he said Mr. Terrill’s anti-immigration legislation, HB 1804, “creates an atmosphere of repression and terror designed to make it impossible for those illegal immigrants who have settled here to find a stable, secure life for themselves and their children, many of whom are native born citizens with civil rights equal to our own.”

Now for the record this isn’t some wild-eyed, tree-hugging liberal (which is what those who have opposed HB 1804 are usually called) writing. This is the Catholic Bishop of Tulsa.

And the good Bishop Slattery is right.

Oklahoma’s new immigration law — and Rep. Terrill’s newly announced changes for the next session — are morally wrong.

I find it ironic that Rep. Terrill and some of his GOP cronies will gladly wave the banner of Christianity when it’s important to one of their pet ideas, then without pausing for a breath, run the other way when Christian leaders dare to disagree.

Further, Terrill’s statements that Oklahoma Catholics were just trying to protect their growing Hispanic base — language only a politician would use — by complaining about HB 1804 are disingenuous and show a deep misunderstanding of the Christian faith, at best.

But, remember, we were talking about anchor babies.

And a baby — whether its parents are here legally or not — born on U.S. soil is an American citizen, end of story.

Sorry, you cannot change that fact.

By dehumanizing the children of immigrants, Rep. Terrill is hoping that he can sell some modern day snake oil to a crowd frightened that another 9/11 type incident will occur here in Oklahoma.

I understand their fear.

But focusing it on babies is, quite possibly, one of the lamest ideas to come down the pike since Jim Crow laws.

By making immigrants the cause of all our problems — they are draining our resources, stealing our jobs, keeping our kids from going to college, responsible for the Seven Deadly Sins, the primary reason for global warming, and the reason there isn’t prayer in school — Rep. Terrill and his buddies are simply exploiting the politics of fear.

Don’t buy it.

All this group has done is to distill fear down into a single, caustic phrase: anchor baby.

Randy Terrill — and here, I include Gov. Brad Henry, because I hold him responsible for signing this stupid immigration law to begin with — should have to spend an afternoon volunteering in the pediatric ward of the OU Children’s Hospital.

Maybe there, after they sat with the parents of an infant struggling to survive, or helped the nurses in the intensive care unit, would they begin to understand.

I wonder if after such a visit we’d see the term “anchor baby” any more.

I wonder if both men would step out of their political skin long enough to understand the human side of the immigration issue.

I hope they would.

But then again, maybe not.

Commissioners create trust to finance, operate new jail

2007-12-03T09:43:00.000-08:00

Cleveland County Commissioners recently have created a trust to finance and operate the county’s new jail to be constructed on Franklin Road, east of U.S. Highway 77.

Records indicate a new public trust — the Cleveland County Justice Authority — was created by a unanimous vote on Tuesday, Oct. 9, during a regular commission meeting.

“A resolution...establishing the Cleveland County Justice Authority as an Oklahoma Public trust, accepting the beneficial interest in the Cleveland County Justice Authority created by a trust indenture for and on behalf of Cleveland County, Oklahoma,” county records show.

The justice authority joins at least two other county trusts, including public facilities authority and the home loan authority. The county also has “two or three other trusts” which are inactive, county bond attorney Glenn Floyd, said.

Trustees for the authority are the county’s three commissioners: Rusty Sullivan, George Skinner and Rod Cleveland
Sullivan will serve as chair of the new trust, while Skinner will serve as vice-chairman. Denise Ellison, an administrative assistant in the commissioner’s office, was named as secretary and county employee Brenda Wakeman will serve as assistant secretary.

Floyd said the trust was necessary because county officials plan to fund the new jail with revenue bonds.

“Those revenue bonds could be issued over a long period of time, maybe 30 year bonds,” he said.

The county’s current jail — located downtown — was built with ad valorem tax revenue. But that option, Floyd said, probably wouldn’t fly with county voters for the new facility.

“The consensus that I’ve gotten from the commission over the last three or four years is that they feel that there’s too many people against it,” he said.

That feeling apparently extends to members of the commission itself.

Earlier this year, during his campaign for the District 1 seat, commissioner Rod Cleveland’s platform included the statement “no new ad valorem tax increases.”

However, with costs for the jail being estimated in the $20 to $50 million range, county officials say they must have the ability to raise revenue for the facility.

“For a county, without having a general obligation election, the only way to finance a new jail is to have an authority that issues debt,” Floyd said.

By creating the trust, Floyd said, the county had “a mechanism for issuing long term debt that’s payable from a revenue stream other than ad valorem taxes.”

Those funds could come from the county’s general fund or from a sales tax, he said.

A sales tax increase would require a public vote.

“If they decide to finance (the jail) with sales tax backed issue, there would be a vote of people,” Floyd said.

However, the amount needed for the jail and the way those funds will be raised has yet to be decided.

Currently, county officials are working with Norman architect Ben Graves to finalize the jail’s design. Graves and members of his committee said earlier they hoped to have the jail’s design completed by mid-November.

Registration deadline Dec. 2 for political hopefuls

2007-11-30T11:43:00.001-08:00

Come Dec. 2, if you don't change, you can't run.

Potential political candidates -- and those who are sure about their political plans -- have until Sunday, Dec. 2 to change their voter registration or register to vote, state election officials confirmed today.

Fran Roach, assistant state election board secretary, said state law requires candidates to be a registered voter of a political party six months prior to the filing period.

Filing period for the 2008 election cycle is June 2 through 4.

Candidates who don't register by the deadline or who don't change their registration by the deadline, would not be eligible to run for state office.

Cleveland County Election Board Secretary Paula Roberts urged potential candidates to compete their registration now.

"If they want to make sure, they should get their registration done by Nov. 30 at the county election board office," she said.

Changes also can be made at tag agencies, public libraries and the post office.

"People should make sure they have their registration date stamped while they are standing there," Roberts said. "That's the date we go by."

The rule is part of state law governing elections.

"To file as a candidate for nomination by a political party, to any state or county office, a person must have been a registered voter of that party for the six month period immediately preceding the first day of the filing period," the law states.

Political hopefuls wanting more information should call the election board at 366-0210.

Centennial Project A Success

2007-11-21T11:30:00.000-08:00

M. Scott and Karen Carter are pleased to announce the complete of their Centennial Project, Kenneth Zachary Clark Carter. Zach was born at 8:45 a.m. Monday, Nov. 12 at OU Children's Hospital. He weighted 6 pounds 13.5 ounces and was 19 inches long. Zach and his mother are doing fine.

Zach — a red head — may have been born breech, but he came out full of piss and vinegar, having whizzed all over his doctor at the age of about 5 minutes old — in fact, he was encouraged to pee on the doctor again, by his nurses.

Zach's arrival has bent a few deadlines and delayed some work here at the Red Dirt Political Report, but rest assured we'll be back in a few days.

Hope each of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

M.Scott, Karen & and the latest Carter, Zach.

STATEHOOD IN GUTHRIE: Oklahoma kicks off its second 100 years

2007-11-17T05:03:00.000-08:00

GUTHRIE — With a gunshot marking the event, Guthrie once again became the state capital of Oklahoma.
But just for the weekend.

As the rest of the state — along with a good portion of the world — watched, the city of Guthrie re-created Oklahoma’s birth with parades, music and re-enactments of the series of events that saw Oklahoma join the union.

Like it was 100 years ago, Guthrie’s bash was big and noisy with lots of people, animals and plenty to eat.

State officials — including Attorney General Drew Edmondson and Lt. Gov. Jari Askins — attended the event.

“We all have a responsibility to take this excitement and stir all of our imaginations as today we take our next step toward our next 100 years,” Askins said.

At 9:16 Friday morning, Hugh Scott Jr., grandson of the man who made Oklahoma’s birth announcement 100 years ago, fired a pistol in the air and yelled that “Oklahoma is now a state.”

Scott, dressed in period attire, stood on the steps of the State Capital Publishing Company building and waved as a crowd of more than 1,000 cheered.

“I felt like I was retracing my grandfather’s footsteps,” he said later. “I was honored to participate. This isn’t something you get to do every day.”

But Scott wasn’t the only Oklahoman who spent the day reconnecting with the past.

“I came here because I wanted to celebrate history,” said former Norman resident Teresa Black.

“Both my great-grandfathers were in the run of ’89 and this was a way for me to get back to my roots.”

Black, an assistant U.S. attorney in Oklahoma City, said she’d been looking forward to the once-in-a-lifetime celebration.

“That’s why I’m wearing this,” she said, waving toward her Edwardian-style dress. “That’s what was in.”

After Scott’s announcement, the crowd walked several blocks east to Guthrie’s Carnegie Library for the “wedding” of Miss Indian Territory and Mr. Oklahoma Territory and the inaguation of the state’s first elected governor, Charles Haskell.

Following the wedding, Haskell’s great-grandson portrayed his grandfather’s oath of office, using the same Bible Haskell used a century ago.

Both ceremonies lasted more than an hour and finished with a parade which stretched from the Masonic Hall to Mineral Springs Park.

The state’s second Centennial Parade featured a collection of the weird, the fun and the historic.

Along with bands and groups from across the state, the parade included a mobile square dancing unit, several groups of motorcycles, hundreds of of horses, members of the military and at least two cement trucks.

“This is great, they’ve got a little of everything — just like our state,” said Hannah Blighton, a resident of Nowata. “This was much better than the parade in Oklahoma City. It was more fun, more real.”

And with a crowd estimated at close to 70,000, Guthrie, once again, briefly returned to its original glory.

Terrill, Morrissette lock horns over immigration law

2007-11-09T05:16:00.001-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The principal author of the state's new immigration law and one of the measure's chief critics debated the new law Thursday during a meeting of the state's political scientists.

Speaking at the annual conference of the Oklahoma Political Science Association, state Reps. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, and Richard Morrissette, D-Oklahoma City, spent the better part of Thursday afternoon arguing the pros and cons of House Bill 1804 -- the state's new immigration bill.

The event, billed as a roundtable discussion, also included Linda Allegro, a professor from the University of Tulsa, and Carol Helm, a representative of the group Immigration Reform for Oklahoma Now.

The discussion drew a full crowd to the House of Representatives chamber and was, at times, tense.

Terrill defended his bill saying it "wasn't any big secret that the federal government had fallen down" on its responsibility to protect the nation's borders.

"Illegal immigrants are coming this way at a rate of many thousands per day," he said. "And I can assure you that not all of them are out putting roofs on your house."

Since the government has failed to act, Terrill said, "no one should be surprised that lawmakers like me should step forward."

"All you're seeing here is federalism in action," he said.

Terrill, a law school graduate, also criticized the law's opponents for using the courts to challenge the law.

"They don't like HB 1804, and they've used the court from the very beginning," he said. "So what have they done, they've taken the fight to the court, to the judiciary. They want the unaccountable judiciary to decide it. They are attempting to accomplish through the judicial process what they couldn't accomplish through the legislative process."

Morrissette disagreed.

"This bill was driven by politics," the Oklahoma City Democrat said. "Because Carl Rove in the White House did a poll of conservative, GOP voters."

Undocumented workers, he said, are already prevented from receiving benefits by federal law and HB 1804 is nothing more than a duplication of existing federal statutes.

"All this is already illegal. This is a terrible state issue. The state doesn't have the authority to pass citizenship statutes. You have to go through a federal process to become a U.S. citizen, it's cumbersome, weary and time-consuming."

The country, Morrissette said, "is big enough to follow the law. If you work, pay taxes and go by the rules, then you should be given a reasonable chance to become a U.S. citizen."

Responding to Terrill's complaints of opposition groups filing suit over the bill, Morrissette said he hoped the courts "would do something" about the bill. "I suspect they will. I suspect the federal court will take some action."

Echoing Terrill, Carol Helm, a representative of Immigration Reform for Oklahoma Now, said Oklahoma was facing an "invasion" by illegal aliens.

"Our group is non-partisan," she said. "The thing that brings us together is one issue: the illegal alien invasion."

The states, she said, have every right to enforce immigration laws.

"Why are these laws not being enforced? There are many, many laws on the books that are being overlooked."

The forum's fourth speaker, University of Tulsa professor Linda Allegro, said the bill has generated many unanswered questions.

"We don't have all the answers yet. We don't know if it will be more costly to enforce this law."

Allegro said other issues have been absent from the debate over the new law.

"We have to look at how the global economy is reshaping labor availability," she said. "The North American Free Trade Agreement has created a paradox, a borderless movement of goods, services and capital and, at the same time, more limited immigration."

And HB 1804 had made things worse by creating "racial divisions."

"It's contributed to more tension between whites and Hispanics; where the former are viewed as racists and the later as criminal," she said.

The Oklahoma Political Science Association annual conference continues through today at the State Capitol building.

Indian Gaming - a good news, bad news thing

2007-11-09T05:15:00.001-08:00

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Indian gaming will generate more than $100 million for the state's budget, employ thousands of Oklahomans, and plow millions of dollars into health care, education and other social services for the state's Native American tribes, two former state lawmakers said Thursday.

Speaking at the annual meeting of the Oklahoma Political Science Association, former state Reps. Phil Ostrander and Tommy Thomas said Oklahoma "is fortunate" to have Indian gaming.

"If the state is going to have gaming, then it's very fortunate to have Indian gaming," Ostrander, a lobbyist for the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association, said. "Indian gaming is a nonprofit enterprise. It generates revenues, not profits. And those revenues go right back into Oklahoma."

Native American tribes, he said, have had a major impact on rural Oklahoma.

"It's much more than what anyone anticipated. In Miami, people are talking about how the tribes had turned around the economy."

Like Ostrander, Thomas touted revenue generated by the tribes' gaming operations.

"The tribes create jobs with benefits," he said. "They help drive the economies of rural Oklahoma. Native American gaming ventures employ Native Americans and non-Native Americans."

Yet, despite the influx of additional state revenue, some operations are causing problems for local and state governments.

"There are lots of detractors of Indian gaming," said University of Oklahoma professor Aimee Franklin. "Many detractors came into the market and talked about the gambling addiction."

Other issues, she said, involved the tribe's "heritage land claims."

"In Kansas City, they have one casino on the river," she said. "The tribe wanted to have another on the other state line so they made a heritage claim, saying they had previously owned the land."

Those claims, Franklin said, often use imminent domain laws to take land.

"Governments are being forced to look at the costs and long-term consequences," she said. "Some governments are experiencing financial losses because of these operations."

Ottawa County Undersheriff Bob Ernst agreed.

"We have jurisdictional issues," he said. "We're funded by sales tax. And, obviously, Indian tribes on trust land don't contribute sales tax."

The sheriff's department, he said, could "use more people and resources" to service the county's 35,000 residents.

"We will see an increase in some crimes," he said. "And we could use more resources to get out there. But that's something that isn't happening."

Expired Driver's License: You've got trouble

2007-11-08T04:34:00.000-08:00

MOORE — Kenneth Pricer just wanted to renew his driver’s license.

Pricer, 81, was shopping with is wife Tuesday, when a clerk pointed to his license said it had expired.

“No big deal,” Pricer thought. The last time he renewed his license, the trip took about 15 minutes; and because he was retired, it didn’t cost him a thing.

So Pricer and his wife, Marlane, finished their shopping and traveled to the Moore Tag Agency for, what they thought at the time, would be a quick errand.

Six hours — and four trips later — Kenneth Pricer got his license.

But the process required traveling from the tag agency to home, then to Norman, then to the bank, then to Oklahoma City and, finally, back to Moore.

“It was crazy,” Pricer said. “I had no idea.”

Pricer was one of hundreds of residents caught in a web of problems caused by the state’s new immigration law, House Bill 1804.

The law, authored by state Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, went into effect Nov. 1.

Terrill said the bill is supposed to curtail illegal immigration and prevent undocumented residents from obtaining state-issued identification.

To prevent undocumented workers from receiving state benefits, state and local agencies are required to verify the citizenship status of applicants before authorizing benefits and public employers are required to enter job applicants into an electronic immigration database to verify legal status.

Those rules also include drivers licenses.

And the changes apply to any resident — lifelong or not — who lets that license expire.

“We went to the tag agency, but they said, ‘because of the new law you have a problem,’” Pricer said. “They said ‘you have to go to the Department of Public Safety and take either your passport or birth certificate and get it okayed to get a drivers license.’ Then they said to ‘bring it back and they would issue the license for you.’”

For Pricer, the new law meant traveling a total of more that 100 miles and spending about five hours to get his license renewed.

“We couldn’t find our visas,” he said. “So we went home and got a copy of our birth certificates. We took them and went over went to Norman. We finally found the place, but they said, ‘sorry these are not notarized and we can’t used them.’”

Frustrated, Pricer and his wife drove from Norman back to their bank, where they retrieved certified copies of the same birth certificates. From there, the couple went to another DPS testing station — this one in Oklahoma City — to prove their identity.

“We went back to get different, certified, copy,” he said. “Then we went the testing center on I-240. We got there about 3 p.m., got a number and sat down. We were about the next to the last one. The place closes up at 4:45.”

The Pricers were the 154th in line.

The experience, he said, was “real stupid.”

“I guess what bothers me is there was nothing out that warned a person about this. We thought the bill was all about immigration, we didn’t think it applied to us.”

Under HB 1804, Oklahoma residents must prove their citizenship before they can get their driver’s license upgraded — or in the case of an expired license — renewed.

Previously, an expired drivers license could be renewed at a tag agency without the extra documents or a visit to a DPS driving examiner.

But residents, Pricer said, “didn’t know” about how the law would effect them. “Everybody thinks it’s just about immigration. Well, it’s not.”

According to a Department of Public Safety message e-mailed to state tag agents — on Nov. 2, the day after the law went into effect — “any individual whose driver’s license has expired (even one day) must appear before a driver’s license examiner” to show proof of legal presence.

The message said the tag agent’s computer “will not prompt you to send them to the examiner at this time. You will have to look at the expiration date on the license. Computer programming will be in place on Monday with a prompt which will read ‘this license has expired and driver must see a DL examiner.’”

DPS officials confirmed the new policy, but added that most residents will only have to show their citizenship proof one time.

“If a resident has an expired driver’s license, they will need to go to a DPS examining station,” Department spokesman Captain Chris West said. “The will need to see the examiner and let the examiner look at their forms, then they can go back to their tag agent and get their license renewed.”

West said the law “wasn’t that complicated” and only required residents to provide documentation one time.

“Once they’ve shown their documents to a driver’s license examiner, that’s the last time they are going to have to do that,” he said. “DPS now maintains that data on file.”

That may be so, but tag agency officials say the law is confusing residents, and causing agents major problems.

“We are turning people away by the dozens,” said Cindy Virgin, the owner of the Moore Tag Agency. “On Saturday, we had about 15 people we couldn’t help and yesterday it was probably 30 to 40.”

Along with upset customers, Virgin said in many smaller towns, there are no DPS testing stations. And those stations are not open on weekends.

“The stations are understaffed; the lines are incredible. They are not open on weekends so our customers just have to wait and in many places the testing station is in another town.”

The end result, Virgin said, is a “very upset customer.”

Kenneth Pricer agrees.

“It was very inconvenient,” he said. “It was frustrating. We were lucky we were retired. It would be almost impossible for someone who has a job.”

Still, even with all the difficulty, Pricer said he did learn something from the process.

“I’m gonna make sure every knows. I’m gonna make sure all my kids and grandkids check their driver’s license. I want them to be legal.”

COMENTARY: How one city councilman did the right thing

2007-11-07T08:59:00.000-08:00

Moore city councilman Dave Roberts is an easy going, standup guy.

Blessed with a voice that’s a cross between James Earl Jones and Barry White, Roberts could have made a fortune in the soul music industry.

But Dave is more than a smooth talker.

Having watched him in council meetings, and as a member of the Moore Rotary Club, I’ve been impressed by his level-headed approach to municipal problems and his desire to make Moore a better place to live.

It’s obvious he cares.

It’s also obvious he wants to do the right thing.

What’s not so obvious is what Dave did last week.

Following a recent speech by Republican state Senator Kathleen Wilcoxson, Roberts offered a rebuttal.

Wilcoxson, it seems, used a speech with the Moore Rotary Club to denigrate Oklahoma’s public school system, its teachers and administrators.

And Dave Roberts became angry.

He did a slow burn for about a week.

Then, the following week, Roberts did something that’s almost unknown by public officials any more — he stood up publicly and announced he disagreed with Sen. Wilcoxson; he she was wrong he said and her speech was “intellectually dishonest.”

He wasn’t worried about the fallout.

He made his point simply and elegantly without negative rhetoric or name calling.

He stood and spoke softly about why he disagreed.

It was the right thing to do.

Because for months now, Wilcoxson has paraded around the state blasting public schools and those involved with them.
She’s trotted out failed political candidates and dubious experts who all say the same thing: our schools are horrible and the system needs to be destroyed.

A couple of weeks ago, the good Senator brought her dog-and-pony show to the Moore Rotary Club where she proceeded to tell Rotarians this same, tired story. Prior to her speech, she even issued a press release announcing she would be speaking.

Being the gentleman that he is, Roberts sat quietly and listened.

But, like many others in the room, he knew he was being misled.

Consider this:

• Just last week, a Moore teacher was named a Milken Foundation Award winner — the Academy Award of the teaching profession. The honor comes with a $25,000 stipend. And while many Moore and state officials — including Lt. Governor Jari Askins — cleared off their schedule to attend the entire ceremony, Wilcoxson came in late, made a brief appearance at a reception and left early.

• Last year a Moore elementary school was named a Blue Ribbon School.

• Earlier this year, a Moore student received a $100,000 Intel prize for her performance at a national science fair.

• The average GAP for a Moore senior is 3.0.

• 72.4 percent of Moore’s 2005 senior class participated in the ACT test — well above the state average of 66.5 percent.

• Moore’s average ACT score was 21.5 — almost a full point above the state average of 20.6.

• Moore spends $5,816 per pupil with an 18 student per teacher ratio.

• Moore’s schools consistently rank high — usually exceeding the state average — in API and other educational performance rankings.

• Moore is the state’s third largest school district with more than 20,000 students.

But, if we listened to Sen. Wilcoxson, we would think our district is failing. If we bought the negative, we’d light the torches and head for the administrative building.

Thankfully, someone like Dave Roberts saw the truth.

Don’t let anyone kid you, the Senator’s recent speeches are being delivered as a platform for her eventual campaign for state school superintendent.

They are political.

They are designed to inspire fear and distrust.

They are supposed to divide.

She’s been in office for 12 years — she’s served on the education committee and currently is its co-chair. If Oklahoma’s schools are as bad as she believes, then Wilcoxson is partly responsible — because she and her comrades have had more than a decade to make a difference.

Running around the state, talking smack about teachers and schools may score her points on the political front.

But here in Moore, one thoughtful, genuine public official didn’t by the rhetoric.

And a wise man told the rest of us not to buy it either.

Which is why, my friends, councilman Dave Roberts did the right thing.

Attitudes the biggest problem for disabled professionals, speaker says

2007-11-05T08:44:00.000-08:00

Jason Price's biggest barrier isn't brick or steel or wood.

It has nothing to do with construction or even equipment.

Jason Price's biggest barrier is people.

More specifically, their attitude.

Price, a graduate of Northeastern Oklahoma State University, and a professional with the State of Oklahoma, has cerebral palsy.

And he uses a wheelchair.

And it's what people think about his disability, he says, that causes most of his problems.

"People with disabilities face tremendous barriers. The biggest barriers to employment for people with significant disabilities are attitudinal barriers -- they are even more profound than the architectual ones we still face."

Disabled professionals, he said, have a "very difficult time" getting on equal ground in the search for employment.

"Despite a degree, it took me from May 1997 until September of 1999 to find employment," he said. "And I had a good resume. I was a straight-A student and did an internship at Channel 9 in Oklahoma City."

An avid sports fan, Jason had hoped to use his degree to pursue a career in sports journalism.

But the attitude toward his disability derailed his plans.

"I would send in my resume and people would call back for an interview. They would be ready to interview me and it never failed, I showed up and everything about the individual changed."

From words, to downright shock, he said.

He blames the problem on a what he calls "the grocery store incident."

"The grocery store incident is that moment each of you had when you were at the grocery store with your mom and you saw someone with a significant disability," he said. "Your jaw dropped to the floor and you stared. You probably had a lot of questions for that individual."

However, Price said those questions were left unasked because, "your mom would not let you and you got into trouble for staring."

"On your way home, your mom told you what her mom told her and the misinformation continued. It continues to this day," he said.

Along with the fight to overcome the attitude.

"People with disabilities are regular people," Price said. "There is nothing different about our wants or desires. We are exactly the same."

As an example, Price described his own life.

"I've been married 10 years, I own my own home and have a 5-year-old son," he said. "I like to watch football on the weekends. There is nothing out of the ordinary."

Too often, Price says society looks at disabled professionals as "super crips."

"I refer to it as 'super crip.' Where we are exalted for doing things considered normal. When the fact is, we are normal."

Speaking at a recent reception for human resource professionals at the Sarkey's Foundation, Price, a Social Security Administration vocational rehabilitation coordinator for the state's Department of Rehabilitation Services, said the best way to deal with disabled professionals was simple respect.

"Don't assume all disabled people know each other," he quipped. "I've had it happen where people will see me at, say, Subway and they'll say 'hey, do you know David?' and I'll say, 'who?' and they'll say, 'you know, David. He's that guy in a wheelchair, too.'"

"Well," Price said. "I hate to break your heart, but disabled people don't all get together in the evening."

Using humor and a well-honed, comfortable speaking style, Price urged business and industry leaders to ignore the myths about hiring disabled employees.

"People with disabilities are perceived to be a risk to hire," he said. "That's wrong. They are perceived to be an insurance risk or to need extra accommodations. Well, the truth is, there are a lot of things out there that help with the architectural barriers, but there are not that many which help with the attitude barriers."

Disabled employees, he said, "are constantly in a state of proving our worth."

"None of the myths are true," he said. "People with disabilities just want a tiny piece of the American Dream."

To help overcome those barriers, Price said professionals should interact with disabled professionals on an equal level.

"For example, with me, please be seated if you are going to talk with me at length. And while assistance is appreciated, please ask before helping."

Many times, some people will "literally run me over," Price said, by trying to open the door. "We call those people good deed vampires. They are trying to suck the good right out of me."

A native Oklahoman, Price said disabled professionals just seek a "fair chance" to succeed in the business world.

"I consider my disability a part of me," he said. "It's who I am. I believe I am exactly how God wanted me to be. And there are many, many others just like myself. We're all seeking the same thing. We all want the same things. People need to see that."

Moore teacher earns Milken Award

2007-11-01T06:23:00.000-07:00

MOORE — Shelly Unsicker didn’t suspect a thing.

Surrounded by about 800 students in the Central Junior High School auditorium, Unsicker thought she’d come to Wednesday morning’s assembly to celebrate the school’s recent API score increase.

On stage, she heard Moore superintendent Deborah Arato brag on the students and the school’s faculty.

She listened as state school superintendent Sandy Garrett talked about the district’s accomplishments.

And she applauded when Richard Sandler, the executive vice president of the Milken Family Foundation, talked about the need to recognize great teachers.

But she had no idea.

Yet Wednesday, being Halloween, had at least one trick — and one great treat — in store for Unsicker, an English and Pre-AP English teacher at the school.

As she sat among her students, Unsicker, a seven-year veteran of the district, listened as Sandler told the crowd that a teacher in Moore was going to be honored with a 2007 National Milken Educator Award.

Her expression never changed.

At least not until Sandler said her name.

And even then, she wasn’t sure whether to sit or stand.

“I ... I ... really didn’t know exactly what to do,” Unsicker said. “My students had to tell me to get up and go on stage.”

Encouraged by her students to stand, Unsicker did, and eventually she made it to the stage where she said the award wasn’t about her, but about the school.

“It’s about you,” she said, pointing to the student audience. “It’s about critical literacy. It’s about the future. I work with the best principal in the United States, the best faculty and the best staff. I’m inspired by all of you.”

As one of only two 2007 Milken Award winners in the state, Unsicker joins a select group. Only 18 state teachers have received the award, Garrett said. Nationwide, the foundation has honored 2,300 K-12 educators since the awards began in 1987; about 80 teachers across the country received the award this year.

“It’s considered the Academy Award of teaching,” Garrett said.

Teachers, Garrett said, don’t apply for the award.

“The Milken Foundation goes looking for them. They ask us to send them a list of our best teachers, then they decide. There is no application process.”

Winners have no idea they’ve won, but discover the fact during a surprise all-school assembly.

“I’m still kind of shocked,” Unsicker said. “It’s amazing.”

In addition to the recognition, a trip to California for the award ceremony and a chance to discuss education ideas with other winners and education policy experts, Unsicker will receive a $25,000 stipend.

Money which, she said, she isn’t quite sure what to do with.

“I have no idea what I’ll do,” she said. “Except ... well, I’ll probably buy some books for my classroom library. I think it’s important for kids to read for pleasure, so I’ll add to my library.”

Named Central’s Teacher of the Year for 2006-07, Unsicker holds National Board certification. A native of Lawton, she taught in Lawton and Frederick before coming to Moore.

She also participated in the National Writing Project, the Oklahoma Writing Project and has sponsored Central’s Writing Art Club since 2002.

Peace Protests Scheduled this weekend

2007-10-27T10:30:00.001-07:00

The group United for Peace and Justice has announced several peace protests scheduled for this weekend.

In Oklahoma City, an End the War Rally is scheduled 11 to 12:30 a.m today at the intersection of the Northwest Expressway and Meridian Avenue.

On Sunday the Church of the Open Arms will hold a Peace Music Concert 5 to 6:30 p.m. The church is at 3131 N. Pennsylvania Ave., in Oklahoma City. The concert, “An Artful Call For Peace,” features singer-songwriter Tracy Feldman.

Oklahoma City also will also host its 21st annual Peace Rally from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 10 at the Civic Center Music Hall’s “Hall off Mirrors” in downtown Oklahoma City. Admission is free.

For more information, call Nathanel Batchelder, director of The Peace House at 524-5577 or visit www.peacehouseok.org.

Tom Cole on the 2008 election

2007-10-25T04:41:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON — While he said he wouldn’t make a political issue of his belief that violence had decreased in Iraq, U.S. Congressman Tom Cole said improvements in the Iraq war could help Republicans’ 2008 election efforts.

“We will have a better chance if the number of American troops over there is smaller,” he said. “There’s no question that’s helpful politically.”

But Cole, the chairman of the National Republican Campaign Committee, said next year’s elections will be more about “the post-Iraq world” that the current war.

“I believe people will be thinking about health care, taxes and the economy,” he said.

Cole, who returned his week from a four-day fact-finding visit to Iraq, Kuwait and Germany, predicted the 2008 presidential race to be “a close election” which, he said, would work to Republicans’ advantage.

“I think a lot of Democratic members will have cast tough votes. But that’s the nature of politics. Still, I think we’ll have issues and a better political environment.”

And though the GOP’s position is stronger than last year, Cole said that environment “has to get better” before Republicans can regain control of the U.S. House of Representatives.

“We will need a strong presidential candidate,” he said. “If not it could cause trouble.”

With his seat considered safe by most political experts, Cole has seen his share of controversy.

He denied a rumor that incumbent Sen. Jim Inhofe wouldn’t seek re-election, and he, instead, would run for the seat.

“I have not heard that,” Cole said. “I’d be shocked if he (Inhofe) didn’t run. He’s our senior Senator and he’s been very effective in getting Oklahoma $130 to $140 million more in road money. No, I haven’t heard that.”

Cole also faced criticism over the NRCC’s recent fundraising efforts.

The program — which he said has since been stopped — involved calls from National Republican Congressional Committee staffers who told donors they’ve received the group’s National Leadership Award.

Callers were told they had received the award, then asked to contribute money to support a “media blitz” announcing the honor.

The program quickly became controversial, generating hundreds of web blog listings, e-mails and complaints to the Better Business Bureau.

Cole said the program was in place when he became NRCC chairman and once he became aware of the complaints, the program was changed.

“Some of that stuff was inherited,” he said. “And I thought it went a little beyond pale. Since then things have changed.”

Cole said it “took a while” to stop the fundraising calls, because the NRCC was “locked into several contracts.”

“We have made some changes,” he said. “We’ve got a new finance crew and I have a very different idea about raising money.”
To win, he said, Republicans need strong candidates, a strong message and a good image.

“I try each day to go to the floor and earn back the mantle of a fiscally responsible, free enterprise Congressman,” he said.
“And that’s what it takes. The rest is a mechanical process and good mechanics never trump a strong message and a good image.”

Cole: Things are better in Iraq

2007-10-25T04:39:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON — Violence in Iraq is down, U.S. soldiers are upbeat, and the Sunnis are turning against al-Qaida, U.S. Congressman Tom Cole said Wednesday.

Cole, who returned from Iraq this week following a four-day Congressional fact finding mission, said the war-torn country is undergoing “remarkable changes.”

“It was an amazing trip,” he said. “And they’ve seen quite remarkable changes over the past year. Our group was the first group to go into Ramadi. No other group has been able to do that, it’s a genuine measure of the progress.”

Cole, R-Moore, said he traveled overseas to look at three areas: the logistics and movement of material and people in and out of Iraq; the quality of medical care and the medical installations; and the changes happening inside of the country.

The trip was Cole’s seventh visit to the country.

“I saw a lot of the country,” he said. “I talked to everyone from shopkeepers to Iraqi soldiers and I talked to many, many U.S. soldiers. And their moral is very high. They are great believers in their mission and they have confidence in General Petraeus as compared to a year ago.”

The biggest change, he said, was a reduction in violence.

“When I was there in 2004, I couldn’t go outside the Green Zone,’ said. “And we didn’t go into Ramadi.”

At that time Cole said, “you couldn’t go 10 feet in Ramadi without being hit by an IED (improvised explosive device) or small arms fire.”

And though the area is “still a dangerous place” for those soldiers stationed there, Cole said the number of U.S. causalities had dropped.

“It’s nice to see the violence decreasing,” he said. “When you can walk into places like Ramadi without armor, and you get outside the Green Zone, well, all those tell me things are getting better.”

Additionally, Cole said Sunni Muslims’ awakening “is a real thing.”

“They are sick of the violence and al-Qaida,” he said. “The Sunnis have realized they can work with us.”

Current estimates show about 35 percent of Iraq’s population is made up of Sunni Muslims. “And they have turned on al-Qaida,” he said.

Cole said the reduction in violence also has encouraged the country’s reconstruction efforts.

“I spoke with a military unit from Tulsa,” he said. “Their job is to help get civic services going again. And they are very popular. Things are changing.”

Yet while he remains optimistic about the war’s pace, Cole said the situation in Iraq is “still very fluid and very fragile.”

“Iraq can break your heart, but it’s still a very dangerous place. I can see the level of American involvement going down. But only if the Iraq people can take advantage of the situation.”

COMMENTARY: Rep. Duncan should shut up

2007-10-24T11:41:00.000-07:00

Few men of first class ability can afford to let their affairs go to ruin while they fool away their time in Legislatures; but your chattering, one-horse village lawyer likes it, and your solemn ass from the cow countries, who don't know the Constitution from the Lord's Prayer, enjoys it; and these you always find in the Assembly; the one gabble, gabble, gabbling threadbare platitudes and 'give-me-liberty-or give-me-death' buncombe from morning to night, and the other asleep, with his slab-soled brogans set up like a couple of grave-stones on the top of his desk.
— Mark Twain, June, 1866

The sage of Missouri was right.

From the one-horse village lawyer, to the solemn ass from cow country, the idiotic actions of some state lawmakers never cease to amaze me.

And here, in the land of Red Dirt, the small mindedness of some members of our government, has now taken on epic proportions.

Take for example, Rep. Rex Duncan.

Duncan, a Sand Springs Republican, is all bent out of shape because he received a Centennial copy of the Quran from the Governor’s Ethnic American Advisory Council.

“I object to the use of the state Centennial Seal and the state Seal all in an effort to further their religion,” he said to the Associated Press this week.

Rep. Duncan also wrote his colleagues, telling him them he has rejected the gift because, “most Oklahomans do not endorse the idea of killing innocent women and children in the name of ideology.”

Okay, I admit I don’t know much about the Muslim faith. But I do believe there is room enough for both Muslims and Christians in our state.

Religious tolerance is a cornerstone of our government.

Except for dudes like ’ol Rex.

The chairwoman of the Governor’s Ethnic American Advisory Council said she received a call from Duncan wondering whether state money was used to buy the books.

She told the Tulsa World newspaper that members of the Muslim community paid for copies of the Quran.

“We are not trying to force anything on anyone,” she said. “This is a peaceful, thoughtful project to introduce ourselves to leaders.”

Not a bad idea.

Send ’em some information which they, hopefully, will read. Then some members of our esteemed legislature just might learn a little more about a different faith.

Or, in Rep. Duncan’s case, you could cuss and spit and throw up your hands and get quoted saying “my comment is that we never hear those 30,000 to 50,000 Muslims opposing the practice of violence on innocent people.”

Smart. Real smart.

Earlier this year, lawmakers received a copy of the Bible sponsored by The Baptist General Convention in Oklahoma.

Duncan didn’t complain about that.

“Mine is proudly on my desk in the Capitol and I don’t think I ever read a part of it that condones the killing of women and children in furtherance of God’s word,” he said. “It’s one of the nicest things I’ve received in my three years in the Legislature.”

Good for him.

He probably needs to re-read that part about love thy neighbor, and the other part about the “do unto others” thingy.

Then, when he’s finished, he just needs to sit down and shut up.

Martin among those who refuse Quran

2007-10-24T04:20:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Saying he had no “spiritual or scholarly need” for it, Norman state Rep. Scott Martin confirmed Tuesday that he refused a copy of the Quran, the Muslim world’s holy book.

On Monday, a “Centennial” copy of the Quran was offered to all members of the Oklahoma Legislature from the Governor’s Ethnic American Advisory Council. And while many lawmakers accepted the book, at least eight legislators refused the gift, citing religious reasons.

Martin, a Republican, joined at least five other state representatives and two state senators — David Derby of Owasso, Guy Liebmann of Oklahoma City, Mark McCullough of Sapulpa, Mike Reynolds of Oklahoma City, Susan Winchester of Chickasha, Rex Duncan of Sand Springs and Senators Randy Brogdon of Owasso and David Myers of Ponca City — who refused to accept copies of the Quran.

“They (the Governor’s task force) sent us an e-mail, asking if we wanted a copy,” Martin said. “And since it wasn’t something that I needed, I kindly declined the offer.”

Martin said he turned down the book for religious reasons.

“I’m a Christian,” he said. “And there’s lots of other religious documents that I don’t have a copy of. But I appreciated them giving us more of a choice.”

State Rep. Rex Duncan, who announced his refusal publicly, said he turned down a copy of the Quran because it advocated killing women and children.

“Most Oklahomans do not endorse the idea of killing innocent women and children in the name of ideology,” he said in an interview with the Associated Press. Duncan said he objected “to the use of the state Centennial Seal and the state Seal all in an effort to further their (Muslims’) religion.”

However, one religious scholar said the action could be viewed as an insult to the Muslim community.

University of Oklahoma religious studies professor David Vishanoff, who specializes in Islamic studies, said lawmakers were making a “quick judgment” about the Islamic faith and probably haven’t read the book.

“I think they are making the mistake of identifying what they perceive as some Muslims’ belief as what’s in the Quran,” he said. “I don’t think they can find it advocating ‘killing innocent women and children.’”

The Quran, Vishanoff said, condemns infanticide, has a system of rules about the taking of life and urges restraint and forgiveness. And while some parts of the Quran are “hair raising,” Vishanoff said they are subject to interpretation. “It’s a Seventh Century Arabian book. You can say the same thing about the Bible … it’s all in there.”

By refusing the offer, Vishanoff said lawmakers were sending a negative message to the Muslim community.

“If I were in their shoes, I think I would get the message that we don’t really want Islam in our community,” Vishanoff said. “And that’s what they are trying to overcome.”

Oklahoma Muslims have “been making a real effort” to have a visible relationship with Oklahoma’s business and community leaders, he said. “They are an integral and respected part of the Oklahoma community. They are voters and supporters. And they matter.”

But while a few lawmakers passed on their copy of the Quran, at least one Cleveland County lawmaker said he accepted his copy.

Norman Democrat Bill Nations said he, too, was offered a copy of the Quran and he accepted it.

“I did receive a copy,” Nations said. “I fact I already had one.”

Nations said he wasn’t offended by the book, adding that he owned a copy of the Book of Mormon and “about 20” Bibles.

“It’s a matter of an intellectual exercise,” he said. “And understanding what’s going on the world. All Muslims are not our enemies, just some radical ones, which are the problems.”

While he said he had not received the e-mail about the Quran, state Rep. Wallace Collins, D-Norman, said he would accept a copy if offered. “I didn’t see an e-mail about it, but I would accept one if offered,” Collins said. “I have several friends who are Muslim.”

The controversy comes on the heels of a recent Ramadan dinner hosted by Gov. Brad Henry at the governor’s mansion.

Henry’s spokesman, Paul Sund, said the governor had hosted the dinner for several years. “Like President Bush, he’s hosted a Ramandan dinner for many years.”

At this year’s dinner Henry was presented with a copy of the Quran, Sund said. “No, he didn’t refuse it,” he said. “He accepted it warmly.”

Fewer students attending Moore Norman Career Tech

2007-10-23T09:09:00.000-07:00

While there were more than 138,000 secondary school enrollments in some type of career tech program over the last year — and even though statewide, enrollment is growing — figures at the Moore Norman Technology Center are trending the opposite direction.

And that trend has school officials concerned.

Recent figures from the area’s four main high schools — Norman High School, Norman North High School, Moore High School and Westmoore High School — all show steep declines in secondary enrollment from 2004 to today.

“It’s not an easy solution,” said Susan Gladhill, Moore Norman’s director of educational services. “We don’t think we’re at the point of alarm, but we are concerned, certainly, about addressing this issue.”

During a last month’s Moore Norman Technology Center board meeting, Gladhill presented figures which paint a gloomy picture of the center’s secondary student enrollment over the past few years:

• Westmoore High School — from 90 students in 2004 to just above 50 students last year.

• Moore High School — 150 students in 2005, 200 students in 2006, 160 in 2007.

• Norman North High School —130 students in 2004, less than 100 in 2005, about 115 in 2007.

• Norman High School —140 students in 2003, about 120 in 2007.

And though Gladhill was hesitant to point a finger at any specific reason for the decline, she did say a number of factors contributed to the decrease, including new academic standards passed by the Oklahoma Legislature; the state’s ACE (student exit) test, which goes into effect next year; difficulty with school schedules, and athletics added back into some school’s daily schedule.

“It’s a combination of several things,” she said. “For example, some new legislation limits the number of electives that students can have.”

Because students are required to take more core classes, the number of electives has been reduced and fewer students can take career tech classes. Even so, career tech officials, Gladhill said, “support and encourage” academic rigor in their students.

“We want that academic rigor,” she said. “We support that fully.”

The difficulty seems to lie in scheduling.

When school officials in Moore put athletics back into the school day, the options for those students, Gladhill said, decreased. “It has made it more difficult for some students who want to come here.”

However, Moore school administrators say the change was requested by parents and needed to give students time with their families.

“That change was made at the request of our school patrons,” said Moore Superintendent Deborah Arato. “Before we changed the schedule, we had students who weren’t getting home until late in the evening. They had no family time.”

New curriculum and testing requirements have put public school and career tech officials “between a rock and a hard spot,” Arato said.

“We really need to be sure that we’re sending students out who are prepared for a post secondary education. We know for a fact that students need post secondary education. The onus is upon us. We have to make sure our students have the right education.”

And the issue, she said, is not going to be easy to fix.

“We have people working with career tech officials right now. But we don’t have a solution yet.”

Career tech officials praised the effort.

“We couldn’t be more pleased with how they (Moore officials) are working with us for a solution,” Gladhill said. “And we’re certainly not putting anything on the Legislature, but we’re trying to address the fact that it’s becoming more difficult for students to have a variety of options.”

Paula Bowers, a spokesman for the state Department of CareerTech, agreed.

“We know that that all technology centers are concerned about giving students the opportunity of coming to the center,” Bowers said. “But as students choose and look at what they have to do to graduate, they find more requirements placed on them.”

And despite the changes, statewide enrollment figures are showing an increase.

In 2005, the department recorded 135,359 secondary enrollments in some type of career tech program. Those figures increased to 138,444 in 2006 and 142,804 in 2007.

“Some of the tech centers are doing innovative things,” Bowers said. “Some are going to high schools and others have reduced their three-hour classes to two hours.”

The schools, she said, are working closely with the state’s higher education and common education systems and officials in their local districts.

“Each of our technology centers, hopefully, has a relationship with their area high schools. They are asking what would be advantageous for your child. Career tech is a great option for many students, but they know it’s not for everyone.”

House passes Cole's water study bill

2007-10-23T05:21:00.000-07:00

The House of Representatives passed a proposal by Fourth District Congressman Tom Cole Monday to authorize $900,000 to administer a water feasibility study in order to find future water sources for Norman, Midwest City and Del City.

Now it’s on to the Senate.

“This was a critical step in the process of securing water resources for cities in central Oklahoma,” Cole said in a prepared statement. “Because these areas are growing rapidly, the demand for additional water is only going to get greater as time goes on. I believe it is vital that these needs are anticipated early so that Oklahomans will have access to water as they need it. I am pleased that this legislation has passed the House, and I look forward to seeing it signed into law.”

H.R. 1337 directs the commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation to conduct a feasibility study of the amount of water used by the Central Oklahoma Master Conservatory District and the cities served by it.

The study would include possible proposals for drilling additional wells, increasing the storage capacity of Lake Thunderbird and transporting surplus water from outside sources. The primary source of water for the COMCD is Lake Thunderbird.

Over the past several years, the City of Norman has exceeded its annual share of allotted water from the lake.

Cole said he hopes the study will enhance the current and long-term water needs of COMCD and the cities it serves.

The bill is expected to be voted on in the Senate in the near future, officials in Cole’s office said.

Off to Iraq: 2nd Lt. Jeremy Spearing

2007-10-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

Second Lieutenant Jeremy Spearing is ready.

He spent this week saying his good-byes, celebrating his birthday and Thanksgiving early, and packing his bags.

Because Jeremy Spearking is going to war.

Spearing, 25, and 2,399 other soldiers from the state’s 45th Infantry Brigade leave today as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

On Friday, the 45th will move to Fort Bliss, Texas, for “about 12 weeks” of intense, mission specific training. Early next year, they’re expected to be deployed to Iraq.

Spearing will return next October.

“Serving in the military is something I’ve always wanted to do,” he said. “It’s something I’ve always believed in. I was raised with the idea that you are supposed to serve your country in some way.”

A 2000 graduate of Norman High School, Spearing has served his country since he was 17. He enlisted because of the influence of his cousin and his uncle, General Miles Deering.

He also earned a degree in Criminology from the University of Oklahoma in 2006, attended two years of ROTC and served as president of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity in 2005.

And he’s more worried about his mom than the tasks ahead.

“I just plan on doing my job effectively,” he said. “The Army has trained me unbelievably well. I’ll follow the rules and make sure everyone comes home safe.”

But his mother, he said, “is worried to death.”

“I know she’s scared. But she’s very supportive. She’s helped out other families by sending supplies. She knows this is something we have to do.”

Understanding is one thing, concern for a son is a different matter.

“You just have to learn to toughen up and pray a lot,” Jeremy’s mother, Debbie said. “You have a lot of confidence in your son and the people he’s with.”

A single mother of two, both of Debbie’s sons followed the same path.

Both graduated from Norman High, were members of Delta Tau Delta Fraternity and attended the OU.
And both serve in the military.

Her youngest son, Allen, recently enlisted.

But like her son, Debbie Spearing has prepared herself; and, like her son, she’s upbeat about his trip and return.

“You have to be strong for yourself and your son,” she said. “You do worry. When he was first activated, well...it was the worst feeling in the world. But the role of parent is to be strong and I will do anything and everything to make it easier for him.”

And that includes, cards, letters, care packages and “anything” to remind her son that he’s missed, loved and respected.

“I always want to love and support them and always want to be positive. I send lots of letters and cards, whatever needs to be done, just count me in.”

For Jeremy, that simple act speaks volumes. “There’s nothing like a letter from home,” he said.

And while he acknowledges the difficulty of leaving home, Oklahoma and his friends and family, Spearing plans on taking a little of Oklahoma with him.”

“I’ve lived in Norman all my life,” he said. “Oklahoma is the best place to be. And, yeah, I’ll definitely miss my friends and family. But I’ll be back home in October of next year.”

To make the trip shorter, Spearing said he would take two souvenirs with him: a photo of his family and friends and an OU flag.

“The photos are to remind me of home,” he said.

And the OU flag?

“I plan to fly the flag somewhere that’s unique in the land. I want to make it a keepsake.”

Cops, jail architect meet

2007-10-17T07:55:00.000-07:00

Area police officials want Cleveland County’s new jail designed so officers can book prisoners in the facility and then “get out in a timely manner,” one participate in a jail design meeting confirmed last week.

Moore Police Chief Ted Williams said jail architect Ben Graves met with “several” of the area’s chiefs of police recently to discuss issues such as booking procedures, prisoner unloading and processing for the new facility.

“Mr. Graves wanted to know what issues they should look into in the new jail,” he said. “And we were all petty much in agreement, we wanted to get our officers in, get the inmates processed and get the officer back out on the street as quick as possible.”

Williams said he urged Graves to include additional work stations for police officers and a secure booking area in the jail’s final design.

“We need several work stations,” he said. “It streamlines things if officers can complete their reports and do some of that stuff at the jail.”

Last week’s meeting was the latest in a series of meetings about the jail’s design.

In September Cleveland County commissioners voted unanimously to build a second county jail on a site along Franklin Road, east of U.S. 77. The county purchased the 29-acre plot of land south of the York-Johnson Controls plant for $1.3 million earlier this year.

Since then, Graves and several other county officials have held a series of meetings to gather information and make decisions about the jail’s design.

Those meetings — which include Cushing jail consultant Don Jones and Cleveland County sheriff Dwayne Beggs — are expected to continue until early November.

Once the process is complete, Graves said he would take the information collected and use it to finalize a jail design.

However, before that design can be built it must be approved by state Fire Marshall Robert Doke and Don Garrison, supervisor of jail inspections for the Oklahoma State Department of Health.

In 2006, Garrison told Cleveland County commissioners they could face heavy fines or the closure of the jail if they didn’t take steps to reduce the inmate population.

Garrison’s office has continued to monitor the county’s progress.

“We feel like these guys are moving as fast as they can,” he said. “But it wasn’t like that a few years ago. As far as I was concerned, then, they weren’t making any progress at all.”

Since then, Garrison said county officials have worked hard to develop a new jail and get that jail built.

“As long as they continue to make the progress they are making, we’re probably not going to be too involved.”

Still, Garrison’s office must sign off on the jail’s design. “Our job is to review the design and make sure they meet jail standards,” he said. “We will thoroughly examine it.”

And while Garrison said he didn’t know when he would see the jail’s final plans, he did express confidence in Graves, the jail’s architect.

“I don’t expect any problems with Ben Graves or AiP,” he said. “We’ve got four or five architects in the state that we don’t worry about at all. But it hasn’t always been like that. When we began to push to get new jails built, we had some architects that had never built a jail, and we had a few problems.”

Garrison said he stayed in “frequent contact” with Graves and with jail consultant Don Jones. “I’m real aware of what they are doing,” he said. “I talk to Ben (Graves) and Don (Jones) nearly every day.”

The big issue with the jails, he said, is inmate population.

“We’ve got eight jails under construction,” he said. “And when they are finished, we will have completed 48 county jails which are either brand new or have been remodeled. But they are short of staff and overcrowded. Even most of the new ones are full and to be honest, I don’t know what they are gonna do about that.”

Commentary: Doing the right thing a moral, not political judgement

2007-10-17T07:16:00.000-07:00

It doesn’t take an act by the Oklahoma State Legislature to know it’s wrong to steal. Nor do we need a gubernatorial proclamation that lying, cheating on your spouse or killing someone are not the best of ideas.

Because, long before members of the Oklahoma House and Senate convened in their marble chambers at 23rd and Lincoln there were rules of conduct.

The Bible’s 10 commandments were a pretty good start.

From there, society was given the “Golden Rule” — based on Matthew 7:12. “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”

That simple idea has been the basis for our modern concept of human rights since the time of Christ.

But right now it’s taking it on the chin.

Especially here in Oklahoma.

With state Representative Randy Terrill’s anti-immigrant bill now law, Oklahoma has set aside its moral principals and, in the process, lost its humanity.

Terrill’s recent blast at the Oklahoma Health Care Authority is the perfect example: Terrill criticized the OHCA for allowing women who may or may not be in the country illegally — but who will be giving birth to a United States citizen — to offer treatment to the mother and the child.

In story after story, Terrill called the move “an attempt, by tugging at the heart strings, to backdoor an expansion of government-run health care.”

Terrill went on to say that we “cannot allow Oklahoma to subsidize illegal activity” and the OCHA’s action “would encourage other women to illegally cross the U.S. border.”

He added that the proposal creates a “slippery slope” and called on the OHCA board members to withdraw the proposal.
Thankfully the OCHA passed the rule 6-1 and Gov. Henry signed it.

But what seems lost over this ongoing, almost vitriolic debate over illegal immigration is our collective humanity. An attitude that — for decades — would inspire one Oklahoman to help a neighbor — no questions asked.

We have survived Dust Bowls, tornadoes and terrorists. We have suffered and seen thousands of strangers ride to our defense. And we have done the same for others. Those simple facts has always made me smile.

But now, we’ve embraced the god of Mean.

Now, we have taken the Golden Rule and, in one legislative act, thrown it away.

Today, thousands of our fellow humans, living here now, live in fear.

Today, we have declared war on a race of people simply because of language as “legal status.”

We’ve forgotten the fact that these people — whatever that status, skin color or country of origin — are our brethren.
Like us, they too bleed red.

And like us, they, too, are human.

When Rep. Terrill first offered his immigration proposal, I questioned the idea. I said it was mean spirited.

I still believe that, today.

And since that first column ran, more and more people have done the same. Several state lawmakers had the courage to ask Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson whether the idea was sound.

Others are planning legal challenges.

Many have protested.

Good.

Because when you finally get through all the politics, the rhetoric and the blizzard of press releases, what you have in this legislation is simply, a lack of compassion and humanity.

There has been no “come let us reason together” and regretfully, few members of the faith community have stood in opposition.

That, too, is a sad statement about our current social climate.

Oklahomans don’t need advice from members of the legislature on how to do the right thing.
We simply need to act.

Norman companies help rebuild vet's '79 El Camino

2007-10-14T19:32:00.000-07:00

Since he was a little kid, Jeffrey Anderson Jr., loved El Caminos.

His dad, Jeff senior, drove one.

His granddad, Tom, drove one, too.

And Jeffrey “bought one to fix up” when he was 17.

The El Camino — sort of a combination truck and car made by Chevrolet — has a special meaning for the Air Force staff sergeant.

“I remember a long time ago, working at my granddad’s roofing yard,” Anderson said. “and he would pick me up and drive me there in his El Camino.”

That connection stayed with him.

The years passed, but Anderson’s desire for an El Camino didn’t.

A native of Southern California, he would eventually get married, join the Air Force and have children. His Air Force career would bring him to Oklahoma, to Tinker Air Force Base, and a home in Moore.

In Oklahoma, he’d find his El Camino.

“One day, I was looking around on the Internet and this guy was selling one,” he said. “It was the right time and the right price.”

The car happened to be in Mustang, for $1,350. But it wasn’t in the best of shape — in fact, it was pretty much dead.
“It was the guy’s working car,” Anderson said. “It had just about every problem under the sun. It was pretty much ready for the salvage yard.”

The windshield was broken.

One wheel was close to coming off.

Only about five of the motor’s eight cylinders were firing.

The quarter panels were beat up and filled with expanding foam.

The paint job was “primer red, primer gray and primer black.” Anderson called the color “primer rainbow.”

But, still, it was an El Camino.

And for Jeffrey Anderson, it was a project, that — when he had time — planned on slowly restoring.

Then came the war.

Anderson was sent to Iraq but the El Camino, along with his wife, Shawna, and the couple’s two children remained in Oklahoma. And he put his restoration project on hold.

Or so he thought.

Because while he was overseas, his wife — along with more than 40 of her newfound friends — would join forces to do what he couldn’t; they would rebuild his car.

•

Built by Chevrolet until 1987, the El Camino was Chevy’s response to Ford’s wildly successful Ranchero. Both vehicles seem to be a combination of a truck and car, but are actually classified as trucks.

And they haven’t been made for more than 20 years.

But that didn’t matter because Anderson’s goal was to rebuild the car and reconnect to his past.

“I knew it wasn’t going to happen overnight,” he said. “I knew it would probably take 10 to 15 years, doing it myself.”

So he began working and then, shipped out.

But the car stayed in this thoughts.

“I told my wife before I left that she would have to start it and drive it a little to keep it from deteriorating,” he said. “And she said, ‘yeah, OK.’”

What he didn’t know is that his wife had other plans.

Shortly after he left, she contacted the Pedal Down El Camino Club of Oklahoma City. From there, members of the club contacted several local auto enthusiasts, including Larry Pennington, owner of Norman’s Body Works Inc., and Floyd Kelley, an automotive instructor at MetroTech.

When Pennington heard about the project, he agreed to help.

“They told me it was a pretty straight, clear car,” he said. “That it probably just needed to be prepped and painted.”

It was an optimistic assessment.

“It was pretty rough,” Pennington said. “But I signed up to do it and I was gonna do it.”

Enlisting the help of staff members at his three locations in Edmond, Norman and Oklahoma City, Pennington and company spent “about three months” rebuilding the El Camino.

“We had to remove the body from the frame because the bushings were so worn. In fact some of the bolts had rusted through.”

When they finished, the car was a show piece.

The interior was gutted and replaced with black leather and enough chrome accents to please the toughest auto critic — even the silver paint was matched to Anderson’s motorcycle.

The rear differential displays an eagle and American flag; a new 350cc motor sits under the hood.

“I was dumbstruck,” Anderson said. “I had no idea that was my car.”

Using donated parts and the labor of his staff, Pennington’s company took Anderson’s $1,350 investment and transformed it into a $45,000 ride — all for a man they’d never met.

“Well, it’s kinda like this,” Pennington said. “They are over there sacrificing for us, so we can make some sacrifices for them.”
Pennington said he offered to help because he understood what members of the military go through when they serve overseas.

“My brother is a 20-year military member. And I helped him when he came back. I told him he’d been over there fighting for our country and I’ve been here making a living. We wanted to help. All my guys felt the same way.”

•

So just how do you return a serviceman’s newly restored El Camino to him when he has no idea that its been restored in the first place?

The answer involved some deceit, chicanery and a ruse or two.

In short, a full-fledged conspiracy involving Anderson’s wife, parents, Pennington, some military brass and dozens of others.

“When I got back, my wife picked me up at the airport,” Anderson said. “But she didn’t have the kids. I wasn’t too happy about that.”

Anderson’s wife told him the kids had “been a handful” so they were with her sister whom the couple would meet for dinner.
Anderson wasn’t too happy about that, either.

“Instead of driving home, we drove to Edmond, to go to some ‘quiet little place’ my sister-in-law had, supposedly, discovered.”

That quiet little place turned out to be a barbecue and auto show where Anderson’s newly restored El Camino was waiting.

After being led through the crowd by his kids, Keiran, 7, and Chase, 5, Anderson saw several El Caminos.

But none of them, he thought, were his.

“It took me a little while before I figured it out. Then I was dumbstruck.”

Instead of his “primer rainbow” beat-up El Camino, Anderson was looking at a shiny silver and black, ’79 model with new tread, chrome mags and a tag that said ‘vrynice’.

He also was looking at dozens of people whom he had never met, all standing and applauding for him.

“It’s great,” he said. “But what’s really wonderful are these people. How they all came together to do this. I could take or leave the car, but the people — that’s what’s wonderful.”

Since then, Anderson has claimed many friends. He went to Body Works to say thanks and talk to those staff members involved in rebuilding his car.

“What really meant a lot was when he went to the garage and talked to the guys,” Pennington said. “He told them he wished something like this could happen to everyone.”

Proof of that new friendship will soon be found in Anderson’s garage. Once it’s painted and signed, the El Camino’s original hood will hang on the wall, adorned with the signatures of everyone involved in its restoration.

Under it will sit Anderson’s motorcycle and the El Camino — the gift of a loving wife and several dozen people who just wanted to make life a little better for one soldier.

“We understood the sacrifice of people being without their family,” Pennington said. “My son is currently in India, serving as a missionary. I know what that sacrifice is like and, besides, I needed something to keep me busy.”

Jail design like "herding ducks" architect says

2007-10-10T09:48:00.000-07:00

The process of designing Cleveland County’s second jail is like “herding ducks” the jail’s architect said last week.

Ben Graves, a principal with the Norman firm, Architects in Partnership, said he continues to meet with county officials and others involved in the county’s jail project, to get their “input and needs.”

After more than two years of discussion, the Cleveland County Commission voted unanimously in September to build a second jail on a 29-acre plot of land along Franklin Road, near the York-Johnson Controls plant. Earlier this year, the commission voted 2-1 to purchase that land from Johnson Controls for $1.3 million.

Graves’ firm was hired for the jail project two years ago by former commissioners Bill Graves and Leroy Krohmer and current commissioner George Skinner, “when discussions began” about the need to build a new jail.

“It is like trying to herd ducks right now,” Graves said. “We had a very good meeting with the sheriff, the undersheriff and jail administrator. The four of us scratched the surface for administrative needs.”

In addition, Graves said he’s working with a design architect at his firm on the administrative portion of the facility. “That area is one of the four subcommittees we organized,” he said.

A second meeting — set for 11:45 a.m. today — will include representatives from Norman, Moore, Oklahoma City, Noble, Lexington and the University of Oklahoma’s police department.

“We’ll be working on the intake booking area,” he said. “We’re going to put up a couple of intake booking areas of jails and take them through these smaller county jails. We want to talk with them about how we can offer solutions to some of their frustrations in processing and booking inmates and helping them (the officers) get back on the road quicker.”

Hopefully, he said, members of the group “will be e-mailing me with ideas after the meeting.”

The Cleveland County jail is one of several Graves’ firm has designed. Other facilities include the Creek County jail, the Haskell County jail (currently under construction), a jail in Leflore County, a jail in Pontotoc County, a 145-bed facility in McIntosh County and a 210-bed facility in McAlester.

Hired in December 2005, Graves’ 21-page contract with the Cleveland County Commissioners calls for AiP to be paid 7.5 percent of the jail’s construction costs as its fee. And while no budget has been set by the commission, construction cost estimates for the jail have ranged from a low of $20 million to a high of more than $34 million.

AiP’s fee, the contract says, is contingent upon the county obtaining financing for the project and covers the services of a security consultant and a food services consultant.

Should that contract amount come in “below an established budget” the contract stipulates that AiP’s fee “shall be computed as a percentage of said budget.”

The contract also protects Graves’ firm should a public vote on the jail’s funding fail. “If a sales tax election is called and is not successful, the architect will be retained for all future issues,” the contract says.

Graves said the contract is a normal one used for public buildings.

All architect fees on public building contracts are “paid for by a percentage of cost of the project,” he said.

And though the design process is “always slow getting out of the block,” Graves said, he really is “pushing to get information from them (county officials.)”

“We’re going to be meeting numerous times with these folks,” he said. “I’ve sent an e-mail to Don Jones (the jail consultant), asking for a date for initial meeting on detention housing.”

Feds nail two for fraud

2007-10-10T09:47:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Two Moore men have been sentenced to more than four years in federal prison for crimes relating to false aircraft engine log books and filing false tax returns, officials with the U.S. Attorney’s office said this week.

John C. Richter, United States Attorney for Oklahoma’s Western District said Moore residents Larry Gene Good, 59, and Allen D. Good, 37, were sentenced in federal court for crimes relating to false aircraft engine logbooks and filing false tax returns.

A third man, Robert Evan Parker, 44, of Oklahoma City, was also sentenced in the case.

Richter said Allen Good was sentenced to 51 months in prison for making false entries in aircraft engine logbooks and ordered to pay $363,633 in restitution. Good also was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to forfeit to the United States $176,243.

He has been incarcerated since May of this year.

“Through their involvement in the sale of unsafe aircraft engines with false logbooks, these defendants created a substantial danger to the purchasers and the public,” Richter said. “We will not hesitate to prosecute those who create this sort of danger.”

On September 28, co-defendants Robert Evan Parker and Larry Gene Good received also received federal prison sentences.

Larry Gene Good received was sentenced to fourteen months in prison and was ordered to pay restitution in the total amount of $306,990, while Parker was sentenced to 72 months in prison for the aircraft-engine and tax charges.

Larry Good was also ordered to serve one year of supervised release after his release from prison and Parker was ordered to pay restitution to 19 victims totaling $378,633.

In addition to the 72 months of incarceration and restitution, Parker was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to forfeit to the United States $176,243.

In December of 2006, a jury convicted Parker of conspiracy, making false aircraft engine logbook entries and mail fraud. The evidence at trial established that Parker worked with Larry Good’s son, Allen Good, who overhauled and sold aircraft engines that were not safe and that were accompanied by engine logbooks that misrepresented the work performed on the engines.

The Goods did business as Good Aviation in Washington, Okla. Most of the engines fell within the “experimental” category, Ritcher said.

Ritcher said Parker sold the engines and false logbooks to individuals across the country who responded to classified advertisements he placed in an aviation publication.

According to trial testimony, Parker provided some of the parts for the engines and caused misleading engine data plates to be attached to some of the engines.

Those engines, the jury was told, contained used parts that according to the logbooks should have been new, as well as parts stamped “not airworthy.”

Purchasers and their aircraft engine mechanics from various states testified that the engines were not safe for use in flight. Several purchasers attempted to fly with the engines and were forced to land immediately because of engine problems.

In addition to the convictions at trial relating to aircraft engine logbooks, Parker pleaded guilty Friday to filing a false personal federal income tax return for the 2002 calendar year.

Parker admitted that when he signed his tax return, he knew he was reporting substantially less in gross business receipts than he actually received. His 72-month sentence was based on both the conviction at trial and the plea to the tax crime.

Just before the December 2006 trial, Larry Good pled guilty to misprision of a felony, or failure to report knowledge of a felony, based on his failure to report his son making false logbook entries. Good’s son signed many of the logbooks, and virtually all of the logbooks bore the number of Larry Good’s aircraft and powerplant certificate. This certificate — issued by the Federal Aviation Administration — indicates to the public that the holder can perform quality work on aircraft and therefore played an important part in the crimes committed by Parker.

These sentences are part of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Transportation, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service. The Oklahoma City Flight Standards District Office of the Federal Aviation Administration also provided assistance in the investigation.

Union praises Moore employee's contract

2007-10-10T09:45:00.000-07:00

Municipal employees will see their pay increase by more than four percent under a new union contract agreed to last week by the American Federal of State, County and Municipal Employees and the Moore City Council.

The contract — the first for the Moore employees’ union — was approved by a 7-0 vote at last Monday’s city council meeting.
Union leaders praised the agreement.

“No one is more excited about this contract than the city employees in Moore who have worked so hard for this,” said William Bryles, President of Local 2406, which represents the city employees in Moore. “We organized a union in Moore to have a voice in decisions about our jobs and our community and this contract provides that voice.”

Under the contract, employees would see a 4.34 percent increase in base wages and a 2.5 percent increase in merit-pay steps for those below the top step.

Those increases, Moore city manager Steve Eddy said, will apply “to about 100” city employees who are eligible for union membership.

For an employee at the low end of the city’s pay scale, the increase means about $75.11 more per month. An employee at the top end of the scale would see an increase of $249 monthly, he said.

The 2.5 percent stipend would add from $758 to $1,271 to an employee’s annual pay.

“There are less than a hundred who are eligible by statute to be in the union,” Eddy said. “I don’t, frankly, know yet how many members the contract will cover, but it will include all employees eligible to be in the union.”

Longtime city employees who have “topped out” on the city’s pay scale, would get a 2.5 percent one-time stipend and employees who are on-call will see pay bumps from $25 to $75 per month.

The contract also provides for new additional hours of sick leave per month and increases the maximum number of sick leave hours to 1,000, up from the previous 816.

Employees also would have an additional day of personal leave — from three to four days — and have up to 10 hours off per month for union business.

Eddy said negotiations with the union were smooth but took a “little more time” than expected.

“It was just a little slow,” he said. “I’m not sure why, but it was probably just a matter of a new union and the employees, perhaps, not being familiar with how things go.”

Usually, Eddy said, city officials have their employment contracts hammered out before the beginning of the city’s new fiscal year.

“I always try to have them (the contract) before the new fiscal year starts,” he said. “It helps for budget reasons. But this time, we were a little behind. But it was just working out the kinks.”

Bryles agreed.

“It has been a very long road for all of us, but we are very pleased with the outcome,” he said.

The contract comes a few years after the passage of the Oklahoma Municipal Employees Collective Bargaining Act, which spawned four new municipal unions in Oklahoma.

“Studies have shown that collective bargaining significantly improves the quality of public services,” Bryles said. “Collective bargaining for public employees also increases productivity, improves stability and reduces turnover.”

Eddy said the contract changes would cost the city about $211,000. Moore’s municipal budget is more than $50 million.

Jail won't look like a jail, officials say

2007-10-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

Cleveland County’s new jail probably won’t look like a jail, should be cheaper to run than the current downtown facility, and should be designed for future expansion, two officials involved in the project said Monday.

District 1 County Commissioner Rod Cleveland and Donald Jones, a Cushing-based consultant hired by the commissioners to help with the jail’s design, said the facility should be built to fit in with other buildings in the area.

“It probably won’t look like a jail,” Cleveland said. “The front would look like a municipal building, more like a warehouse, with high walls and small windows.”

Both Cleveland and Jones are part of a recently organized committee charged with gathering information and ideas for the jail. Last week, the group had its first meeting with the jail’s architect, Ben Graves.

That meeting followed a decision — made by commissioners in September — to build the jail on a site along Franklin Road, east of U.S. 77. The county purchased the 29-acre plot of land south of the York-Johnson Controls plant for $1.3 million earlier this year.

While some residents voiced opposition about the Franklin Road site, Jones said the goal is to make the jail fit aesthetically in the area.

“You probably won’t see razor wire and things like that,” he said. “There will be an effort to make it not look like a detention facility.”

And though both men emphasized county officials are still “gathering information and have made no decisions yet” about the jail’s size or structure, Jones said the final design should allow for “easy expansion” for future inmate growth.

“The needs assessment for future bed space indicates that in 20 years, the facility should be able to house 700 or more inmates,” he said. “The jail should be built with that plan in mind.”

By anticipating the 700-plus inmate number now, Jones said county would reduce future construction costs.
“It would be much more cost effective to plan for it now,” he said.

Along with room for expansion and a non-jail look, Cleveland said he wanted to consider alternative energy solutions for the facility.

“I’m looking at wind, solar and geo-thermal energy,” he said. “I hope to make it carbon neutral for one, and hopefully, to provide its own power. We want to plan for the future, to try and get the most cost effective solution we can.”

Cleveland said other considerations include where to house the county sheriff’s department and how to use the existing jail in downtown Norman.

“I will want to look at ways to continue to use it,” he said. “The (downtown) jail was built to hold 134, and we’ve been running 177 detainees and personnel around the clock. That’s a lot of people. I think that once we’re able to move into a new facility, then we can take a look at the downtown jail.”

Jones agreed, saying any future use of the existing downtown jail would need to include plans for remodeling.

“They are going to have to bring it up to code,” he said. “Even with simple things like heating and cooling.”

But some of those cost could be reduced Jones said, if the county houses low security inmates, or females at the downtown jail.

“If you reduce it to low-security inmates or females, with the right modifications you could reduce some staff positions and keep costs lower. But again, the commissioners haven’t made any decisions yet. Everything is still being looked at.”

Cleveland said the downtown facility could also be used to house inmates ready for trial; or be slowly phased out of use over the next 10 years.

“That’s what I’m asking the jail administrator,” Cleveland said. “We’re working to get all the operational costs. It could be, over the next few years that the (downtown) facility will go away, maybe sometime in the next decade.”

Cleveland said county officials are “looking at the operation costs for both jails,” to see which might come out better. “It’s not like building a house, where you decide on a size and a budget ahead of time. Here, there are so many variables.”

With the jail’s location selected, Cleveland, Jones, representatives of sheriff’s Dwayne Beggs’ office and architect Ben Graves have planned several meetings to gather information and make decisions about what components will be used in the jail’s design.

Last week, Graves said he would like to have a concept developed by mid-November.

Meet John Gordon: Think Tank founder at age 92

2007-10-07T12:46:00.000-07:00

MOORE — Even at 92 John Gordon is a believer.

From the time he was a kid — back in Caddo County in 1920s — Gordon believed in the importance of education, democracy and government service.

He also believed in getting involved.

And, he believed politics.

Yes, politics.

Despite its negative perception, Gordon says politics can provide the framework to solve many of the state — and the country’s — social problems.

So John Gordon puts his beliefs to work.

Call him a democracy activist.

Call him a voting advocate.

Call him a public service servant.

Call him what you want, just call him.

Because like Uncle Sam, John Gordon wants you; he wants you to listen and learn, and get involved, and most of all, go vote.

And he so serious about it, that just last year — at the youthful age of 91 — he founded his own Think Tank — a forum for ideas and idealists, he says.

He calls it the More Democracy Think Tank.

“My goal is simple,” Gordon said. “I want to get people involved in government. I believe people should give back, but they have to learn how to do it. Social problems can be solved with political solutions.”

To start the process, Gordon’s Think Tank holds weekly meetings where different speakers wade deep into the waters of a current issues. A way, Gordon said, of making people aware of those issues and inspiring them to act.

“The more people are involved, the stronger the country. There are lots of social groups looking for help, for volunteers. But people want to understand before they get involved.”

For Gordon, getting involved has been a life-long adventure.

After graduating from Gracemont High School in 1936, he joined the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) — a work relief program for young men from unemployed families, established by then President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

While in the CCC, Gordon spent two years in Wyoming and Colorado, working in the nation’s national park system. From there, he spent time at several farm cooperatives.

“I stayed pretty busy then,” he said.

In 1942, he left farming and joined the U.S. Navy, serving as an electronic technician until the end of World War II.

Later in 1948, he moved to Ada, where he earned his degree at Central State College. From there, it was off to the Indian Services and a teaching gig at South Dakota’s Indian schools for three years.

In the late 1950s, he worked for the Federal Aviation Agency and in 1967, he returned to Oklahoma City to teach mathematics and science in public schools. He retired from teaching in June 1978.

Since then, he’s served as a community volunteer, as a member of the American Legion, a member of Kiwanis and the Moore Council of Aging.

“I like to stay involved,” he said. “I like to help.”

That desire reached its apex last summer.

In June 2006, Gordon and a handful of friends founded More Democracy. A way, he said, to show social issue organizations how to solve their problems using political tools.

“The thing that really gets me is that we’ve got a lot of social organizations that work on child care, parenting, the environment, protecting the wildlife and such,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of those, but they are nonpartisan. And their members don’t always participate in political activities to reach their goal.”

That, Gordon says, is the wrong approach.

“If you’re going to reach some environmental goal and you are nonpartisan, and you just keep talking about, say, pollution, and you don’t turn people out to the precincts to vote, well, you can’t get improvement by sitting back and not doing anything politically.”

People, he said, should be politically involved.

“Everything is political,” he said. “I laugh when I hear someone from church saying they don’t like politics, but then they are heavily involved in church politics. Politics isn’t ugly, its a way of doing business.”

Through his organization, Gordon is slowly exposing Cleveland County’s less active residents a way to be involved in their community and achieve their goals — through a political structure.

“I’m politically inclined because I see the goal we’re trying to reach,” he said. “But the only way we’re going to get there, is through political action.”

Groups fighting social problems, he said, should say to their members, “we’re going to have to do this through political channels, ‘cause we can’t get there any other way.”

And for Gordon the results are worth the effort.

“Politics isn’t a bad thing,” he said. “It’s a way to get stuff done.”

Especially if you’ve spent nine-plus decades believing.

The More Democracy Think Tank meets weekly at Earl’s Rib Palace, 920 SW 25th in Moore. Call 794-4541 for meeting times and topics.

Cargill wants teacher input on merit pay idea

2007-10-06T10:17:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s public school teachers are being asked to “participate in the process of constructing a new teacher performance pay plan” by completing an online survey about House Speaker Lance Cargill’s merit pay idea.

The survey — located at: www.okhouse.gov/survey/ — is sponsored by Cargill’s office.

“Any Oklahoma teacher may log on to the House Web site to fill out a survey that asks their opinion on specifically how the plan should be constructed,” Cargill, R-Harrah, said in a media release e-mail Friday.

The survey follows several weeks of interim studies conducted by the House of Representatives about the speaker’s merit pay idea. Since September, House education committee members have heard opinions from business leaders, career tech professionals and representatives of the state teachers’ union about a possible merit pay plan for state teachers.

Cargill said House leaders were polling teachers because they wanted their input.

“In Oklahoma, we value our educators, and we want their help in developing an outstanding educational system in which all our children can excel,” he said.

Officials from the state’s largest teachers’ union, the Oklahoma Education Association, urged their 40,000-plus members to participate.

In a posting on OEA President Roy Bishop’s Web blog, Bishop directs state educators to the survey.

“They are currently conducting an interim study on the topic of performance pay and they are hearing testimony from many experts who are sharing their experiences and knowledge on the subject,” Bishop wrote. “They would also like to hear from you. Please click on the link and give them your opinions.”

Cargill’s office said the survey includes questions such as:

• “Are you satisfied with the current public school teacher pay structure? If not, why?”

• “How would you change or enhance it?”

•“If we adopt a performance or incentive pay plan, what evaluation tools do you think would be the most effective?”

Other questions deal with growth in student achievement, collaboration, peer review and professional development.
“With their (teachers’) input, and with input from other experts, we hope to develop a performance pay plan that is fair to all teachers and rewards those teachers who help their students succeed,” Cargill said.

While the speaker’s office says about 1,300 have already taken part in its survey, those filling out the online form are required to include their name, school and what grades and subjects they teach.

“In order to verify that the individuals filling out the online surveys are in fact teachers, the survey features a space for teachers to fill out their name, their school and what grades and subjects they teach,” Cargill’s release said.

Next Tuesday, the House Education Committee will hold its final interim study hearing on the merit pay issue.

Feds nail Moore men for fraud

2007-10-06T10:13:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Two Moore men have been sentenced to more than four years in federal prison for crimes relating to false aircraft engine log books and filing false tax returns, officials with the U.S. Attorney’s office said this week.

John C. Richter, United States Attorney for Oklahoma’s Western District said Moore residents Larry Gene Good, 59, and Allen D. Good, 37, were sentenced in federal court for crimes relating to false aircraft engine logbooks and filing false tax returns.

A third man, Robert Evan Parker, 44, of Oklahoma City, also was sentenced in the case.

Richter said Allen Good was sentenced to 51 months in prison for making false entries in aircraft engine logbooks and ordered to pay $363,633 in restitution. Good also was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to forfeit to the United States $176,243.

He has been incarcerated since May of this year.

“Through their involvement in the sale of unsafe aircraft engines with false logbooks, these defendants created a substantial danger to the purchasers and the public,” Richter said. “We will not hesitate to prosecute those who create this sort of danger.”

On September 28, co-defendants Robert Evan Parker and Larry Gene Good received also received federal prison sentences.

Larry Gene Good was sentenced to 14 months in prison and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $306,990, while Parker was sentenced to 72 months in prison for the aircraft-engine and tax charges.

Larry Good also was ordered to serve one year of supervised release after his release from prison and Parker was ordered to pay restitution to 19 victims totaling $378,633.

In addition to the 72 months of incarceration and restitution, Parker was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to forfeit to the United States $176,243.

In December 2006, a jury convicted Parker of conspiracy, making false aircraft engine logbook entries and mail fraud. The evidence at trial established that Parker worked with Larry Good’s son, Allen Good, who overhauled and sold aircraft engines that were not safe and that were accompanied by engine logbooks that misrepresented the work performed on the engines.

The Goods did business as Good Aviation in Washington, Okla. Most of the engines fell within the “experimental” category, Ritcher said.

Ritcher said Parker sold the engines and false logbooks to individuals across the country who responded to classified advertisements he placed in an aviation publication.

According to trial testimony, Parker provided some of the parts for the engines and caused misleading engine data plates to be attached to some of the engines.

Those engines, the jury was told, contained used parts that according to the logbooks should have been new, as well as parts stamped “not airworthy.”

Purchasers and their aircraft engine mechanics from various states testified that the engines were not safe for use in flight. Several purchasers attempted to fly with the engines and were forced to land immediately because of engine problems.

In addition to the convictions at trial relating to aircraft engine logbooks, Parker pleaded guilty Friday to filing a false personal federal income tax return for the 2002 calendar year.

Parker admitted that when he signed his tax return, he knew he was reporting substantially less in gross business receipts than he actually received. His 72-month sentence was based on both the conviction at trial and the plea to the tax crime.

Just before the December 2006 trial, Larry Good pled guilty to misprision of a felony, or failure to report knowledge of a felony, based on his failure to report his son making false logbook entries. Good’s son signed many of the logbooks, and virtually all of the logbooks bore the number of Larry Good’s aircraft and powerplant certificate. This certificate — issued by the Federal Aviation Administration — indicates to the public that the holder can perform quality work on aircraft and therefore played an important part in the crimes committed by Parker.

The sentences are part of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Transportation, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service. The Oklahoma City Flight Standards District Office of the Federal Aviation Administration also provided assistance in the investigation.

Collins: Schools need better violence prevention

2007-10-04T19:19:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Norman Public Schools could be the site of a pilot program designed to identify troubled students and better prevent school violence, a state Representative said Tuesday.

Norman Democrat Wallace Collins said he would file legislation next year to create a program which would give public schools increased access to mental health professionals.

“We’re all aware of the school shootings that have taken place in this country in recent years,” Collins said. “In many cases, officials realized there was a problem well before a student went on a rampage, but failed to deal with it. I believe the state needs to do a better job identifying troubled students and addressing their problems before an attack occurs.”

Collins said his bill will create a pilot program at Norman Public Schools which places licensed social workers at schools to provide assistance when teachers identify potential problem students.

“A lot of these kids need help — such as medication or counseling,” he said. “If teachers feel a student is potentially dangerous, they should be able to refer that student to social workers who have expertise dealing with emotionally troubled individuals. By intervening early, we could eliminate the likelihood of future school shootings.”

In addition, by using licensed, trained mental health professionals, Collins said teachers wouldn’t face an additional burden on already limited classroom time.

“I’m not trying to put another task on the teacher,” he said. “But teachers are on the front lines, and I believe they see the initial signs of trouble. If we had a mental health resource for them, then we could prevent problems before they happen.”

Norman school officials said they were impressed with the idea.

Norman superintendent Dr. Joe Siano said he was “very open” to collaborating with officials from the Department of Mental Health or Department of Human Services.

“I think it could work,” he said. “We make referrals all the time. Our counselors are also qualified as people who can intervene, but our resources are limited. I’d like to see more efforts to bring services closer to the families and students who need them.”

Siano said Collins could model his proposal after a joint program in effect between NPS and Norman Regional Hospital.

That effort, he said, places nurses at local schools to provide health services for students.

“There is no mandate for school nurses,” he said. “There is no funding for school nurses and there should be. But our program is a primary example of a model collaboration that has benefited more than 13,000 students.”

The program, he said, is funded by the schools and Norman Regional and offers Norman school students “a full health services program.”

“In our first year, we had more than 8,000 student health encounters, either with a nurse or health assistant,” he said. “It’s a win-win for us and Norman Regional.”

Collins said state leaders need to work quickly to address students mental health needs.

“There’s been plenty of school violence across the nation for quite a while,” he said. “After the shooting at Virginia Tech I was shocked to think people were saying, ‘I knew this guy had all these different signs,’ and thinking that all these signs got missed and that no one did anything. I felt that we’ve got to try and do something.”

Rather than wait until after another shooting, Collins said he wanted the state to be proactive. “That’s why I’d like to see schools working and talking with social workers and mental health professionals.”

Collins said the bill will be filed in time for the 2008 legislative session.

“After the Virginia Tech shooting, a lot of people said they saw warning signs but failed to act, and now 30-some people are dead because of it. We can’t afford to repeat that mistake in Oklahoma.”

Russell says Iraq war isn't lost

2007-10-02T18:55:00.000-07:00

The war in Iraq isn’t lost, a veteran of the campaign told Cleveland County Republicans Tuesday.

Retired Lt. Col. Steve Russell, commander of the forces that captured Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, said America should continue to fight for the Iraqi people and continue its war against terror.

Russell, now a resident of south Oklahoma City, spoke Tuesday to about 60 members of the Cleveland County GOP during the group’s monthly luncheon at Coaches Restaurant.

Russell spoke briefly about the war, his capture of Hussein and about his displeasure with MoveOn.org’s recent full-page newspaper advertisement blasting U.S. General David Petraeus. The veteran then answered questions from the audience.

“(The war) it’s not lost,” Russell said, “only in the mind of some legislators and groups like MoveOn.org.”

In fact, Russell said, the war is actually getting better.

“There has been an interesting development in the last year,” he said. “A year ago you didn’t hear any of our national leaders — Republican or Democrat — saying the word ‘victory.’”

However, Russell said the recently issued Iraq Study Group report used the same word. “The Iraq Study Group report came out and guess how many times the word ‘victory’ was used in the report?” he said. “Three, three times.”

Facts which show, Russell said, the war is improving.

Russell also had harsh words for the political organization MoveOn.org.

“Who would have thought we would have seen full-page articles against our military? I’m trying to imagine 1942 when we had security setback after security setback to see a full-page ad expressing that General Marhsall was a traitor to the country. Or, on the anniversary of Dec. 7, 1942, you go to the theater the Movitone newsreel said, ‘and now a word of Emperor Hirohito.’”

When the country starts “doing things like that” Russell said, “we’ve lost our way.”

He said he was pleased by “the universal condemnation” of the MoveOn ad.

Now retired from the military, Russell serves as chairman of Vets for Victory, a group that says it wants to engage and change public sentiment to achieve victory in the war on terror.

However, Russell’s tenure with that group could be short-lived.

Tuesday afternoon he said he will seek the state Senate District 45 seat, being vacated by state Sen. Kathleen Wilcoxson, who is retiring due to term limits.

“I haven’t officially announced,” he said. “But I have filed paperwork with the state Ethics Commission and I’ve started fundraising.”

Cost studies needed, Augenblick says

2007-09-28T06:05:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY —State leaders need a much better understanding the costs associated with meeting new education standards, the author of a controversial Oklahoma education study said this week.

John Augenblick, the president of Denver-based Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, defended his firm’s 2005 study of the way Oklahoma’s education system is funded, saying the questing of how much it cost a state to provide education services which meet governmental standards is “a pretty new question.”

Augenblick’s two-part study, “Calculating the Cost of an Adequate Education in Oklahoma,” analyzed the “adequacy of revenues available to elementary and secondary school districts in Oklahoma” for the 2003-2004 fiscal year.

The second portion of the report — finished in April of 2005 but never released by the House of Representatives — said state per-student spending would have to be increased to almost $7,000 to “ensure school districts have a reasonable chance” to meet state and federal student performance expectations.

With more than 600,000 students enrolled in Oklahoma public schools, records show the state would need to spend an additional $844 million in new education funding to meet standards set by state lawmakers and the federal No Child Left Behind law.

“One question — and it’s a relatively new question that leaders are asking — is ‘what does it cost for school districts to reach (those) standards,’” Augenlick said. “No businessman would last 10 minutes if they didn’t ask a similar question.”

The answers, he said, are often controversial.

“I’m not going to tell you that this stuff isn’t controversial,” he said. “Sometimes it becomes dangerous for a state to sponsor this type of study; by sponsoring it, it becomes official and has more power.”

And then, Augenblick said, the information becomes the legal basis for a lawsuit.

“Quite frankly, there are people who go around telling Republican leaders that ‘you are silly to do this type of analysis,’ that if the result is a number which you may not want to fund, because the study was sponsored by the state it could become the basis for a lawsuit.”

While then-House Speaker Todd Hiett has not said why Augenblick’s 2005 study wasn’t released during his tenure as House leader, Damon Gardenhire, a spokesman for current House Speaker Lance Cargill, claimed the study was made available, but that its conclusions “were questionable at best, since the firm was clearly a tool of the NEA.”

“Other studies reach different conclusions,” Gardenhire said in an e-mail to The Transcript Sept. 10. “And other states are experiencing fiscal problems because of similarly flawed studies by Augenblick. Meanwhile Oklahoma continues to make record investments in public education.”

This week, Augenblick refuted Gardenhire’s claim.

“We have no relationship with the NEA,” Augenblick said. “We don’t have a contract with them. He (Gardenhire) would have to tell me what he means by that. We don’t take orders from anybody. We do what we’re asked in the best way that we can.”

Augenblick also said Gardenhire’s statement that his firm “seems to reach strikingly similar conclusion in state after state” was wrong.

Augenblick cited studies his firm did for Maryland and Kansas, where, he said, the states used “our numbers in (their) education funding system.”

“Maryland was very proud of their accountability system,” he said. “But they wanted an answer to what it cost and we set about doing the work. Later, the Legislature created a new school finance system and used our numbers in this new system.”

Maryland officials, he said, “knew there was no way to fund” their formula so they used a six-year phase-in process. “They now have reached a point were they are funding schools at a level sufficient so districts have no excuse. And, as far as I know, they weren’t bankrupt.”

Gardenhire countered, saying the form “seems to find that the only way to solve a state’s education problems is to throw hundreds of millions of dollars more at the system.”

This almost always seems to hinge on “adequacy” with lawsuits by state-level teachers’ unions and public policy fights hanging on Augenblick’s intriguing findings, he said.

“Last year, the OEA filed one such lawsuit against the Oklahoma Legislature, and it was dismissed. This seems to follow a pattern of lawsuits seen in other states. Other education experts have questioned Augenblick’s methodology.”

Gardenhire, however, did not say which experts have questioned the firm’s work.

Still, Augenblick said he was surprised the study was paid for and not released.

“It would be unusual for a state to do a study and for it not to be made public somehow,” he said. “It’s unusual in our experience. That doesn’t mean people like them and people agree with them; because it’s public money, they are normally released.”

Sparks lukewarm on Dank's ethics bill

2007-09-27T05:51:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — A proposal by an Oklahoma City lawmaker to ban in-session campaign contributions, prohibit transfers of campaign funds between political action committees, and prevent the use of campaign funds for personal use, is drawing a lukewarm response from a Cleveland County state Senator.

Monday, state Rep. David Dank announced he would file legislation “to remove the clouds” caused by political fundraising in Oklahoma.

“The Oklahoma Clean Campaign Act (will) assure that the process of raising money for political campaigns is open, honest and divorced from the legislative process,” Dank said in a media release.

However, state Sen. John Sparks, D-Norman, said Dank’s proposal really doesn’t do anything new.

“I haven’t read the legislation,” Sparks said this week. “But from what I’ve learned, it sounds like a lot of what he’s doing is already being addressed.”

Dank said his bill would:

• Tighten the definition of a “person” making a campaign contribution to eliminate loopholes used in the past by some companies and other organizations.

• Limit legislative contributions in any election cycle by an individual, lobbyist or family to a total of $40,000. Under current law, he said, a single lobbyist could contribute up to $700,000 in any election year, thereby “flooding the field with enormous donations.”

• Ban contributions to incumbent legislators and candidates for the Legislature during the legislative session and for 15 days before and after the session to eliminate the "pay for play" suspicions that naturally arise when large donations are made while recipients are considering legislation.

• Limit the use of campaign contributions to actual campaign expenses. “The use of campaign funds for purchasing expensive computer equipment and office supplies, traveling around the country, lodging, food, automobiles and other expenses not related to the campaign would be prohibited,” he said.

• Require detailed listing of all campaign expenditures on regular reports filed with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission.

• Prohibit the use of campaign funds raised to run for one office in seeking another office. This would prevent incumbents from shifting funds into a new account to pursue another office.

• Prohibit the use of surplus campaign funds for personal purposes or donation to another candidate. This would prevent excess donations to term-limited legislators.

• Prohibit the transfer of funds from one PAC to another. “Such transfers are often used to shield the identity of donors as their dollars move from one PAC to another,” he said.

“The legislative process has been tainted by suggestions that access and even legislation can be bought," Dank said. “A central provision of this bill would ban contributions during the legislative session while bills are actually being considered.”

Dank’s proposal follows an investigation of possible Republican campaign finance violations by the Oklahoma Ethics Commission. According to the a state GOP official, the ethics commission is looking into how donations made to the state organization wound up in a county fund.

“This is not about party,” he said. “We simply have to divorce the contribution process from the lawmaking process, and the best way to do that is to ban contributions during session.”

Sparks, said “a lot of what Dank is proposing” is already addressed in existing law.

“Instead of tinkering with the state’s campaign finance law, lawmakers should work to make sure there is full and complete disclosure of all campaign contributions and their contributors,” Sparks said. “The best process is full disclosure — full disclosure is paramount. But our campaign laws keep changing every year and I believe that injects more uncertainty into what we’re doing.”

Additionally, Sparks said lawmakers and the ethics commission should “work together” to tell candidates how they should to improve their campaign reports.

“What I really think would be helpful is if the ethics commission would tell candidates where their filings need to be improved.”

As an example, Sparks said that two years after he began raising money, he “was surprised to read” that listing ‘self employed’ was no longer an adequate designation.

“I’d done it for two years and never heard from ethics commission,” he said. “I want to do things the right way. A little input would have helped.”

Instead of changing rules every year he said, “working better with candidates in relation to their reports, instead of playing ‘gotcha’ after the fact, would help.

“Then, the ultimate process is served by disclosure. If Rep. Dank’s mechanism will really improve things, then great. But if we’re trading one system for another, just for the sake of saying we’re improving things, well, that’s not having any impact.”

Dank’s proposal will be reviewed when lawmakers reconvene the legislative session in February 2008.

Jail design committee meets

2007-09-27T05:48:00.000-07:00

Cleveland County officials began the process of developing plans for a new county jail at an “information gathering” meeting Wednesday at the county fairgrounds building.

Chaired by Norman architect Ben Graves — the jail’s designer — the meeting included county commissioner Rod Cleveland, assistant district attorney Dave Batton, jail consultant Don Jones, undersheriff Eddie Thomason and sheriff’s department officials Doug Blaine and Sid Stell.

Graves said the meeting was held to gather input which could be used to help his firm design the new facility.

“We wanted to defer this meeting until the commission and the sheriff had an opportunity to discuss the site location,” he said. “We’re trying to prepare a program of your jail needs to be presented to the architect and commission, so we can develop a plan.”

On Monday, the Cleveland County Board of Commissioners voted 3-0 to locate a new county jail on a 28.92-acre tract of land bought by the county in April. That land — purchased at a cost of $1.3 million — is near Franklin Road and 24th Avenue NW.

While no action was taken at the meeting, Graves said he was hesitant to discuss ideas about the jail in front of the news media for fear of generating “coffee talk.”

“The one thing I don’t want is to get information out in public that hasn’t been decided on yet, in error, where we have coffee shop talk,” he said. “We’ve had it two years now. We need to get it to a point where the information that we do put out is accurate; that way we’re going to keep from having confusion with the public. It isn’t an effort to hide anything, just a process we go through.”

On other projects he’s been involved in, Graves said the planning process was closed.

“We’ve not done that (open meetings) in other counties,” he said. “We’ve done a planning process and then offered that document, once it’s completed, to the newspaper and said, ‘these are our decisions, they were made on this date and this is how we’re gonna proceed.’”

Some of those issues discussed included the number of beds in the facility, whether the new jail would include the Cleveland County sheriff’s office, transportation access to the location, the needs of other communities that use the facility, future expansion of the new jail, how the jail would be funded, and how the county would use its existing downtown jail over the next decade.

Additional concerns, Graves said, were raised by residents of the Franklin Road area.

“In visiting with the families out there, Commissioner Skinner and myself have made a pledge to them to locate the facility as far to the south as possible,” he said.

Jail consultant Don Jones urged the group to make plans which include “issues such as laundry, kitchen, staffing and future growth.”

“Ask yourself, ‘Will there be a sheriff’s office out there?’” he said. “‘And how would we include it later?’ Those issues have a definite impact on jail operation.”

Jones, from Cushing, said construction costs for the facility could be expensive. “Each square foot could be anywhere from $150 to $300,” he said.

Graves said the committee also should seek input from other governmental departments and city officials in the county, including those in Norman, Moore, Lexington, Noble and Oklahoma City.

“We’ll be getting other departments involved to learn their needs,” he said. “We’ll try to break down the areas we’re going to need a lot of information on.”

As an example, Graves cited plans by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation to reconstruct the US 77 overpass. Plans that were unknown by county officials until recently.

“Commissioner Sullivan talked to ODOT and the City of Norman,” he said. “And no one was aware that in the fall of 2008 they (ODOT) were going to start reconstructing the overpass. They are going to bring it (the overpass) in farther to the south. And they’re proposing to move the intersection 500 feet to the south.”

Graves said members of the committee would meet with city and ODOT officials to discuss how the project would be funded.” There is a possibility the county would donate property for the right of way,” he said.

With dozens of issues remaining to be examined, and at least two months work ahead, the committee broke into groups to gather information about the jail’s administration, location and funding. The goal, Graves said, was to have some type of document ready for commissioners by mid-November.

“When we get through, it’s going to be the most innovative jail done in the state of Oklahoma,” he said. “But the truth is we can’t design this jail for Sheriff Beggs, he’s not going to be sheriff forever. We have to design it for the community.”

The committee is expected to meet again next week.

Commissioner, jail architect to meet

2007-09-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

Cleveland County Commissioner Rod Cleveland is expected to meet with Norman architect Ben Graves, jail consultant Don Jones and officials with the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office 9 a.m. today at the Cleveland County Fairgrounds to discuss the county’s new jail.

The meeting, confirmed by commissioner Rusty Sullivan, is being held “to gather information” about the jail, including its size and possible construction costs.

However, Sullivan and commission president George Skinner said they wouldn’t attend the meeting.

Cleveland’s meeting follows Monday’s unanimous vote by the commission to locate a new county detention center on a 28.92-acre tract of land located near Franklin Road and 24th Avenue NW. That land, which the county purchased in April for $1.3 million, was owned by York International.

For more than a year, commissioners have struggled with issues surrounding the county’s existing jail in downtown Norman.

Twice in 2006, state officials threatened the county with heavy fines, or possible closure of the facility, if the jail’s inmate population wasn’t decreased.

Since then, commissioners made plans to open a second jail facility and have examined more than 60 different locations, including the Franklin Road site, a plot of land near the Norman YMCA and a 240-acre site in Lexington next to the Lexington Assessment and Reception center.

This week, county official were told the jail averaged 213 prisoners during Sept. 13-19, 12 more inmates than the previous week. The facility was built to hold 177.

The commissioners’ next scheduled meeting will be 9 a.m. Monday at the Cleveland County Office Building, 201 S. Jones Ave.

Citizens uphappy about jail location

2007-09-25T10:11:00.000-07:00

A decision to build a new county jail near Franklin Road and 24th Avenue NW is drawing complaints from the people who live in the area.

Monday, several families living along Churchhill Downs Road said they were unhappy with the announcement that Cleveland County’s Board of Commissioners would build a new jail facility near Franklin Road and 24th Avenue NW.

The 3-0 decision, made at the commission’s weekly meeting, placed a new jail facility on a 28.92-acre tract of land purchased by the county in April. That sale — a $1.3 million deal — was finalized this summer.

And while the decision — made after months of discussions and review of more than 60 possible sites — was praised by some officials, several residents said they were not pleased by the commission’s action.

“I’m not happy with it,” said John Fletcher, who lives on Churchill Downs, just off Franklin Road. “We haven’t been very well informed. We don’t know exactly what’s been going on.”

Locating the jail along Franklin Road, he said, was “really wrong” and a hazard to the county. “They talked about having it (the jail) in Lexington,” he said. “We didn’t know. There are a lot of fuzzy things going on.”

Fletcher said commissioners told residents of the area “there would be a discussion and (they would) keep us informed about it.”

“But they made a decision without any input,” Fletcher said. “They didn’t tell us before; we didn’t have any input at all.”

Fletcher said he was concerned officials would lease beds in the facility and take in inmates from other states.

“This area is a growing part of Norman,” he said. “There is a shopping center out here, a hospital, and a vo-tech, so it doesn’t seem like a very desirable place for a jail. This is an entry port into Norman, and of all the entire county they could choose from, it seems like a silly place to put the jail.”

James Hannah, another resident of the Churchill Downs area, said he, too, was upset by the decision.

“I’m very disappointed,” Hannah said. “I was kinda expecting some pre-notification. We thought that after some previous meetings we’d had with the commission they would contact us directly.”

Area residents, Hannah said, didn’t want a jail located on one of Norman’s main entry points.

“I thought the city felt strongly about preserving the gateway into Norman, to ‘put your best foot forward,’ particularly during football season,” he said. “I don’t know what it is we can do; maybe we can speak to the city.”

Hannah said he also wanted to know if county officials were able to overcome environmental issues on the land. “That area is part of the Little River drainage. I’d like to know if the Corps of Engineers have been talked to, they are responsible for all that drainage.”

Hannah, who said he and his family have lived in the area for the past four years, said his main concerns centered on safety, property values in the area, and the logistics and burden of building a second jail.

“People think about safety first,” he said. “Then they think about property values, then the third thing is the logistics or the burden of building another jail. I wonder if it has been fully investigated. I don’t think the financial impact on the citizens of the county and the city have been investigated. I want to know how the county plans to pay for all that. Are they gonna surprise the citizens of the county with a tax increase?”

But while many residents in the area expressed concern about the location, the mayors of Moore and Norman said, overall, they were pleased by the decision.

“I’m OK with it,” Moore Mayor Glenn Lewis said. “I’m pleased with the decision.”

No decision about the jail, Lewis said, would please everyone.

“Everyone is a ‘not in my back yard’ type,” he said. “It’s just like when you put in new sewer plant, people gripe about the location, but everyone knows you have to have one.”

Lewis, a former member of the jail site selection committee, said members of the commission worked hard to make the best decision possible. “I know the commissioners went to a lot of trouble and lot of hard work,” he said.

Like Lewis, Norman Mayor Cindy Rosenthal praised the commission’s decision.

“I want to congratulate the commission,” she said. “I know it’s been a very difficult decision. I know they’ve done a careful job. This is a choice that will be beneficial to the county and all its communities.”

Rosenthal said she believed county officials would work to address concerns about the jail’s location. “I know, at the same time, they are working diligently to address the concerns of residents of Hidden Lake area who worried about the site.”

Rosenthal said she was encouraged by the commission’s efforts to minimize “any type of intrusion” by the jail in the neighborhood.

“I know they will do a careful job of planning to mitigate those concerns. And while I wasn’t privy to all the information that the commission had in front of them, I knew the pros and the cons of the Lexington site, and the pros and cons of the downtown site. And based on what I know, I believe this was a good choice.”

Cleveland County Commissioners chose jail site

2007-09-25T09:00:00.000-07:00

Cleveland County Commissioners voted 3-0 Monday to build the new county detention center on a 28.92-acre tract of land located near Franklin Road and 24th Avenue NW. They also appointed Ben Graves, a principal partner in the firm Architects in Partnership, to start drawing plans.

Chairman George Skinner said the site selection committee had looked at more than 60 sites originally, handing the commissioners 10 sites they thought were the best. After careful study, commissioners picked the Franklin Road property.

Skinner said many people in the neighborhood did not want the center built there.

“It is in my district, and I took it to heart and looked at other sites,” Skinner said.

He said he looked at some property on North Base, but it was not big enough and it was across the street from the Cleveland County Family YMCA. Another lot was across from Sysco Food Services of Oklahoma, but it was too rough and would take too much work. Skinner said he considered land by the Cleveland County Sheriff’s substation south of Noble but there are no utilities there and it would be more expensive to build there, he said. Another piece of property was by Highway 9 and Jenkins Avenue, but Yamanouchi Consumer Inc. owns one side and OU owns the other, he said, so that piece is not viable.

The last piece commissioners considered was a 240-acre site near the Lexington Assessment and Reception Center. The Department of Corrections said they would help pay and would even lease beds from the county. However, the water wells and lagoons there are barely adequate for their prison. Skinner said it would be more expensive for the county to build new water wells and lagoons than to build on one of the other sites.

Last month, Skinner, Commissioner Rusty Sullivan, Graves, Sheriff DeWayne Beggs and Cleveland County jail administrator Sid Stell attended a National Institute of Corrections jail design seminar in Colorado, along with representatives from four other counties in Oklahoma with the same overcrowding problem.

Skinner said they visited a detention center north of Denver that was in an industrial site right off a highway much like the Franklin road area. Skinner said it did not look like a jail. The way it was built and bermed up, he said, with shrubbery and trees, it looked like an office building.

“You walk inside and the reception area looked like an office building, too,” Skinner said.

Past that was a large recreation hall, offices, an infirmary and then the cells, he said. That center holds 177 inmates and they are going to have to build on, Skinner said.

“People who live in that area (Franklin Road and 24th Avenue NW) have commented and I have assured them this property will not look like a detention center,” Skinner said.

A doctor’s office is being built right across the highway, Skinner said, and he doesn’t think people would be building offices if the detention center would be a problem.

Skinner also said there was no left turn at the intersection of Franklin Road and 24th Avenue NW because it was too dangerous. The city and county are talking about moving that intersection one city block south and possibly putting up a traffic light, Skinner said. That would solve another problem.

Sullivan said some people had voiced concern that property values would decrease. He said Don Sullivan with the Department of Corrections had done several studies that showed property values actually increased. He also said he liked the central location, serving the entire county.

District 1 Commissioner Rod Cleveland said since he was not in on the jail studies from the beginning, he thought he could be unbiased and after weighing all the pros and cons, regarding costs, utilities, location, he could “say with confidence, we’ve made a good choice.”

Skinner said Graves will begin to draw the plans with input from the commissioners, Don Jones and Sheriff Beggs. He said the building would be one story and they are planning on 500 beds. Sullivan said as fast as the county is growing they will need that many.

Once the plans are approved, they will look at costs and how to pay for it, Skinner said. He thinks the whole process will take 30 to 36 months.

The commissioners plan to keep the present detention center, built in 1984, open as well and will use it to house prisoners awaiting trial.

In his jail report, Neil Vickers told commissioners the detention center averaged 213 prisoners the week of Sept. 13-19. This is 12 more than the previous week.

Where the sidewalk ends: Torn up walkways a problem for local mom

2007-09-24T08:55:00.000-07:00

Every morning — weather permitting — Anne Baker takes her son, Michael, to Head Start.

It’s not that far; she travels from her home on Comanche Street, east to Cook Street. Then it’s north down Cook to Main Street, then east on Main Street to Head Start.

The trip is just a mile or so, but for Anne, it takes more than 30 minutes. Still, she says she enjoys the time — it’s just her and Michael.

Only Anne Baker doesn’t drive.

Neither does her husband.

And she can’t walk.

Nor can her husband.

So to get Michael to school, Anne uses her small, motorized wheelchair. She puts Michael on her lap and buckles both of them in. The boy’s small backpack is tucked next to her and they set off, moving quietly down the street.

The trees are tall and shady, and though there are few sidewalks, the traffic in the area is sparse, the neighborhood still.

Occasionally a stray dog will watch the pair, but most days it’s just Anne and her son. Very little is said, Michael is nestled on his mom’s lap and seems amazed by the outside world as Anne carefully steers her red wheelchair down the street.

Five days a week she makes the trip — once in the morning and once in the evening.

But electric wheelchairs run down quickly.

Her chair is good for about 15 miles before needing a recharge. And some days, Anne has to recharge between school trips.
“I’ve put a lot of miles on it,” she said. “It’s seen a lot more travel than just around the house.”

Diagnosed with spinal bifida at the age of 5, the 26-year-old has spent most of her life using a wheelchair.

A graduate of Norman North High School, Anne attended the Moore Norman Career Tech for a while, then, five years ago, she met her husband, Ronnie. Ronnie, like Anne, uses a wheelchair; he has muscular dystrophy.

Two years ago Michael was born.

“And he’s absolutely perfect,” she says, smiling.

•

About three weeks ago, the City of Norman began a $3 million project to make major improvements along Main Street from 12th Street to Carter Street. Plans include a traffic circle, new crosswalks and sidewalks and expanding Main Street to four lanes.

“It’s a big, messy project,” said Norman’s Public Works Director Shawn O’Leary. “We’re improving a really difficult intersection at 12th Street, and the intersection at Carter and Main. We’re also widening Main to accommodate the additional traffic.”

The first phase — which has already started — involved moving utilities along a stretch of Main Street, west, between Carter Street and 12th Avenue NE.

And that means construction, holes, loose dirt and digging up sidewalks.

Sidewalks that, until now, had been Anne Baker’s route down Main Street to Head Start.

A route that, even on a bright sunny day, was a challenge; a route that, now, has become a major problem — especially following a rain.

“I don’t mind traveling like this,” she said. “I can’t really drive because I might blackout, so we go in my wheelchair. With Michael so close, I stay focused and we do pretty well.”

Until three weeks ago.

With no sidewalks along Main Street, lots of loose dirt, sand and several thunderstorms, the trip which used to take about 30 minutes has become a nightmare.

“The rain and mud are a real problem. I’ve already been stuck with Michael twice and I’m scared of getting stuck there again.”
Stuck in a wheelchair, along a busy street, in the mud, with her son — and no way to get help.

Frustrated, she spoke to a workman involved with the project.

“They talked to me a couple of weeks ago, but they didn’t know of anything they could do.”

But Anne refused to give up.

Instead, she developed a unique way of getting Michael to school. She took her usual route down city streets until she got to Main, then as she traveled east, she darted in and out of driveways, along the street, waiting for the cars to pass and avoiding the mud and holes.

“It’s kind of strange and sorta’ frightening,” she said. “But it’s been like this for at least a month. I haven’t seen any workmen in a while, so I’m doing the best I can. I go to one driveway and then another driveway wait for cars to go past, I don’t want to get run over or anything.”

•

Once in a while Anne takes MetroLift — a Metro Transit vehicle which is lift-equipped for riders with disabilities.

The ride cost her $1 each way.

And, at first glance, that doesn’t seem like much.

But $2 a day adds up pretty quickly for a family that survives on about $900 per month.

“We get food stamps and SSI,” she said. “But our budget is limited and I can’t afford to do that every month.”

And so, instead, Anne, Ronnie and Michael make due.

And that means traveling to school via wheelchair.

“I’m going to take my son to school, one way or another,” she says. “That’s important.”

Still, help may be closer than she knows.

Along with his duties as the city’s public works director, Shawn O’Leary serves as Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) coordinator.

And O’Leary wants to help.

“My concern is this area is gonna’ be a mess for a while,” he said. “It will be torn up for at least a year. It’s going to be a very disruptive construction zone.”

And O’Leary doesn’t want a woman — using a wheelchair with her 2-year-old son — forced to travel Main Street while it’s under construction.

“Once it’s complete, she’ll have wonderful sidewalks and crosswalks,” he said. “But that’s going to be a while.”

Instead, O’Leary is trying to arrange alternative transportation.

“Right now, we’re going to examine her route and see what we can do to facilitate a solution to her problem. I’m hoping we can find some type of transportation assistance for her. We work through it and try to help.”

Welcome news for Anne Baker.

Because for her, the task of taking her little boy to school isn’t as simple as it used to be.

Wow, am I surprised!

2007-09-23T10:04:00.000-07:00

I just discovered that this little blog is considered one of the top ten most influential political blogs in Oklahoma according to
BlogNetNews.com in their Sept. 9 rankings. The RDPR came in at No. 7, right behind our old friend Mike McCarville. So, I just wanted to say "thanks" to all you who have been reading and posting.

I'll keep writing and posting. Please keep reading, and thanks again for your support.

– M. Scott

1 TPD Blog
2 The Lost Ogle
3 Oklahoma Political News Service
4 My Tulsa World Blog
5 SoonerThought
6 The McCarville Report Online
7 The Red Dirt Political Report
8 Oklahomily the Blog
9 Living On Tulsa Time
10 Okiedoke - Vintage Okie opinion
11 Stan Geiger
12 BatesLine
13 meeciteewurkor
14 Bounded Rationality
15 blue oklahoma
16 Satellite Sky
17 Speaker Cargill's Blog
18 MedBlogged
19 OKLAHOMA OpinionsViewsOK.comOkieLife.com
20 Sidebar Blog: Law and Disorder, Okie Style

NOTE: BNN's Oklahoma Blogosphere Influence Rating combines a variety of data sets to determine which blogs are most powerfully influencing the direction of the Oklahoma political blogosphere. The exact method BNN uses to calculate influence scores must remain proprietary in order to prevent attempts to game the system. BNN's methodology takes into account the fact that all Internet data is profoundly limited in its reliability by using multiple data sets that, when combined, reveal a fair picture of activity in the blogosphere.

Terrill: State income tax still too high

2007-09-22T17:15:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — While University of Oklahoma President David Boren is calling for a moratorium on further state tax cuts, the chairman of the House’s Revenue and Taxation Committee believes Boren’s request is premature.

State Rep. Randy Terrill said Thursday he still believes the state’s income tax is still too high, but wants to gather information from a series of interim studies scheduled later this fall, before deciding “whether or not additional tax relief is needed or necessary.”

“Boren’s call was premature,” Terrill, R-Moore, said. “We haven’t begun our interim studies yet. We want to look at whether or not additional tax relief is needed or necessary and, if so, what type of tax relief is preferable.”

Terrill said Oklahoma must balance tax cuts against the “right set of priorities” and targeted spending increases.
“It’s about respect for taxpayers, too,” he said.

In an interview last week with the Associated Press, Boren urged lawmakers to sideline future tax reduction proposals and, instead, invest in higher education to create a knowledge-based economy which he believes will produce long-term benefits in new businesses and good jobs.

“I think we ought to have a moratorium on tax reductions right now,” Boren said last week. “I think we’re bumping the limits and I think we certainly don’t need to proceed down that path.”

Boren said that when he served as governor 30 years ago, more than 40 percent of OU’s budget came from appropriations by the Legislature, with the balance coming from tuition and fees, grants and contracts, private donations and other sources.

This year, the AP reported, state tax dollars will provide only 21.5 percent of the $713 million operating budget for the OU campus in Norman and just 7 or 8 percent of the $632 million budget for the OU Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City.
And as public funding for OU declined, tuition and fees paid by students have increased.

“It’s almost a dollar for dollar trade-off,” Boren said.

Yet Terrill — an OU alumnus, himself — says certain tax cuts will “have the effect of generating more revenue for the treasury.”

“The higher business taxes are, the more they are a deterrent to growth and job creation,” he said. “We want to invest in higher education, but we want a business-friendly climate here as well.”

Additionally, he said, the state should establish clear lines of accountability, so taxpayers can see exactly where their money is going and how those funds are spent.

“The clearer the lines of accountability are, the more voters can see if their tax dollars have been spent well and whether or not there is a need for more revenue,” he said. “But when the pot gets blended and mixed, the voters get skeptical.”

And while Boren said an investment of state tax dollars in colleges and universities — and other research institutions — will produce economic results, Terrill said recent tax cuts have not caused a reduction in government services.

“We paid for the tax cuts purely out of surplus,” he said. “There has not been one reduction in state government.”

Boren countered, saying that some temporary tax cuts “won’t amount to much.”

“It’s very tempting to give in to the siren song of tax cuts. I realize that,” he said. “I always want to keep taxes as low as they can possibly be. If we really want to put more money in the pockets of Oklahoma citizens so they can spend it the way they want to, ironically, I think investment is the best way to do that right now than some temporary tax cuts that won’t amount to much. Most people won’t even notice.”

Terrill, however, said he would prefer those cuts to go directly to taxpayers.

“Again, it’s about respect,” he said. “I believe when we had the type of economy we have and when we have record surpluses, we should return some of that surplus back to the public.”

Lawmakers propose new tax cut

2007-09-21T15:26:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Just days after OU president David Boren called for a moratorium on further cuts and more investment in higher education, two state lawmakers announced they’ve filed legislation to exempt most overtime pay from state income tax.

But at least one area lawmaker said he has concerns about the idea.

State Senator Kenneth Corn, D-Poteau, and Rep. Bud Smithson, D-Salisaw, held a Capitol press conference Monday to say they’d filed a measure “to help ensure Oklahoma workers would keep more of their hard earned dollars.”

The proposal — Senate Bill 1132 — would exempt most overtime pay from state income taxes required by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

“We’re talking about a tax break that will make a meaningful difference to the many Oklahomans and their families who work hard, but still live paycheck to paycheck,” said Corn, D-Poteau. “If they keep more of their overtime pay, it’s money that’s going to go straight back into the local economy for food, groceries, clothing and other necessities. It’s a win-win proposal.”

Corn said the exemption would apply to most employees who are paid by the hour but not apply to employees who are exempt from the FLSA overtime mandates — that is, executives, professionals or administrative employees.

However, Norman Democrat Wallace Collins said he’d like to know what the impact would be on the state or if both lawmakers were “simply cutting taxes.”

“While I think that we’ve cut taxes about all we’ve needed to cut them, a tax exemption (like the overtime proposal) would benefit working people,” Collins said.

People who are paid overtime, he said, “are certainly not CEOs and managers and people like that. And a bottom-up tax break could be beneficial.”

Collins said he preferred tax cuts that came “from the bottom up.”

“I do support the idea of trying to help working people,” he said. “But I’d kinda like to see tax cuts come from the bottom up and not the top down.”

The proposal comes on the heels of a call by Boren to put a moratorium on further tax cuts and “more investment in higher education.”

“I think we ought to have a moratorium on tax reductions right now,” Boren said in an interview with The Associated Press. “I think we’re bumping the limits and I think we certainly don’t need to proceed down that path.”

Boren, a former Democratic governor and U.S. senator, authored legislation to abolish the inheritance tax between spouses at the federal and state levels.

The state’s recent tax cuts, he said, will reduce state revenue by more than $600 million a year, about “as far as the state should go.”

“We’ve pushed the tax cut envelope about as far as possible and I think what people in Oklahoma really want is excellence,” Boren said. “It’s very tempting to give in to the Siren song of tax cuts. I realize that,” he said.

The lawmakers said they had also filed a companion measure, Senate Concurrent Resolution 43, calling on Congress to enact similar legislation at the federal level. Both measures will be considered when the 2008 legislative session convenes in February.

But while Boren and Collins were cool to the idea, Republican leaders in the Oklahoma Senate said they are willing to consider the proposal.

“The idea of exempting overtime pay from income taxes is being promoted nationally by prominent Republicans like former Speaker Newt Gingrich, and it is an idea Senate Republicans are willing to consider here in Oklahoma,” Senate Co-President Pro Tempore Glenn Coffee said in a media release.

“Oklahoma’s income tax rate is too high, so we are continually looking for ways to reduce the tax burden on Oklahoma families,” he said.

Wesselhoft proposes new legislation "to better protect" state's pregnant women

2007-09-21T13:00:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA CITY — Saying he wants to “better protect women and unborn babies” state Representative Paul Wesselhoft said he’ll introduce legislation next year to strengthen the penalties for assaults on pregnant women.

Wesselhoft, a Moore Republican, said he would file the bill for the 2008 legislative session. That measure would make it a felony to assault a pregnant woman with the intent of causing a miscarriage, and would set a minimum sentencing requirement of five years in prison for a first conviction. A subsequent, second conviction would carry a minimum 10-year sentence.

Should a woman suffer a miscarriage within 48 hours of the assault, her assailant would face a minimum of 20 years in prison, he said.

Wesselhoft said he wrote the measure after learning how many pregnant women are assaulted each year in Oklahoma.

“We have over 3,000 pregnant women who are physically attacked in this state,” he said. “I think it’s an outrage that any man would attack a pregnant woman.”

Statistics from the Journal of the American Medical Association and the Oklahoma State Department of Health show that in 2005 about 6 percent of the nation’s pregnant women were assaulted. For Oklahoma, that figure is 3,158.

“Oklahomans must protect unborn children and the mothers who carry these vulnerable babies,” Wesselhoft said in a media release about the bill. “It takes a degenerate to try to kill an innocent baby, no matter what stage in life. I hope this bill literally scares the hell out of that reprobate who would physically abuse a pregnant woman.”

While Wesselhoft acknolwedges he hasn’t found a Senate co-author for the proposal, he believes the bill will be popular with the House of Representatives’ Republican leadership.

“I feel very optimistic,” he said. “Most likely our leadership will choose a couple of bills as part of their agenda, and I believe this will be one. I believe we’re definitely going to pass it in the House.”

Wesselhoft could get help from an unlikely ally.

Officials with the Oklahoma Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault said they did research for Wesselhoft’s measure, and added they would be receptive to the proposal — provided it didn’t contain “other language which could cause problems for women.”

“I haven’t actually seen the bill yet,” said Marcia Smith, the OCADVSA’s executive director. “But we are supportive of the idea. We hope that it’s in a form that we can support. We hope they don’t put anything else in there that will harm women.”

Smith said the group supports any legislation which holds abusers more accountable.

“We’re going to take a very close look it, anything that holds an abuser more accountable for their crimes is something that we can support.”

Many times, she said, women in abusive relationships are encouraged to terminate their pregnancy, or not seek medical help or child support. “That’s why we’re open-minded to this idea. Often, physical violence to a pregnant woman will result in brain damage or chemical imbalances to the fetus.”

Abused women, Smith said, are impacted by violence which in turn impacts their unborn baby.

Wesselhoft said he welcomed input from the group.

“I’m going to call them when the bill is heard in committee,” he said. “I do want their input, they are a critical component.”

Wesselhoft’s bill comes on the heels of a handfull of other measures — known as fetal homicide laws — which recently were passed by state lawmakers.

Those bills include:

• A bill passed in 2006 which defines an unborn child as a human being, but does not include legal abortion or instances of death during medical, therapeutic or diagnostic testing.

• A revision of the state’s civil wrongful death statutes — passed in 2005 — which revises the law governing the intentional shooting with intent to kill another, and assault and battery by adding an unborn child and includes a penalty anyone who willfully kills an unborn child.

Wesselhoft said lawmakers will get their first chance to review his bill next February at the beginning of the legislative session. “We must not allow over 3,000 pregnant women a year, and their unborn babies, to be physically abused or murdered,” he said.