MuskogeeUSA » Government

New Poll: How is President Obama doing?

admin — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 12:27:22 +0000

Good Morning America this morning reported the President’s approval rating is down to 41%. I think that number is probably too high given the current economic situation. I don’t know about you, but I probably have no 401k any more.

What do you think of the job President Obama is doing? Weigh in on the comments or answer the poll to the right.

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Cherokees need to repair election process

admin — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 14:09:47 +0000

I’m not Cherokee, so I guess this really doesn’t affect me much. However, it does allow me to be objective about the problems they are having with their latest election. The results for Chief are going back and forth between incumbent Chad Smith and challenger Bill John Baker much like a tennis ball between two aggressive players.

Baker was declared the unofficial winner first, but when the election board certified the votes, it showed Smith as the winner with just a 7-vote lead. Of course, Baker wanted a recount, which I don’t blame him. The recount showed Baker as the winner with 266 votes. That’s quite a difference. There was also a difference in the total number of votes counted. Hmm.

Smith Challenged back. I don’t blame him, either. The Cherokee Tribal Court orders a count of the envelopes for absentee ballots and come up with over 300 more envelopes than ballots. Double-hmm.

They have now completed a second recount and the unofficial winner is Smith by 5 votes, however, the total number of ballots has again changed. According to a statement made by Baker in the Muskogee Phoenix, many had erasure marks and white-out on them. Triple-hmm.

It is clear that something is wrong. When someone counts the same ballots three different times and comes up with three different totals and varying tally results, something is drastically wrong. The system is broken.

In my opinion, they need to fix the election process and declare a ‘do-over’. Otherwise, the court will have to step in and declare a winner based upon the evidence it sees and possibly not what the Cherokee people want.

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Muskogee storm water fee is necessary

admin — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 14:26:46 +0000

The price on everything is going up. We spend more on groceries, gasoline, clothing, electricity, water, and more. We are spending more while, in most cases, our income remains flat. It seems unfair that oil companies are reaping record profits while we struggle to keep the lights on. It feels like another thump on the head when the city we live in raises their fees as well and we cry foul when that happens.

But, stop for a moment and consider that while the price on everything we purchase has risen, so has the price on everything our city has to purchase as well. The City pays more for gasoline, diesel, electricity, pavement, equipment, repairs, etc. as well.

We citizens demand services from our city. In order for the city to provide these services, they must have appropriate funds to do so.

The people cry, “The streets need to be repaired!” In order to repair the streets, the city needs money to buy asphalt and other material.
The people scream, “The city needs to do something about storm drainage to keep our streets and homes and businesses from flooding!” But, in order to make those improvements, the city needs money.

To be fair, the more buildings and parking lots and driveways there are, the fewer places that rain and water have to go to soak into the ground. When water can’t soak into the ground, it runs off. If you get enough water running off with no place to go, there is flooding. So, it only seems fair that entities that have more impervious surfaces, and, therefore create more runoff, should pay more for the City to fix the problem.

Whatever the citizens demand, the city must have funds to deliver. Bottom line is, the city hasn’t kept fees in line with inflation, so now they are having to raise fees to get them in line. However, the fact remains Muskogee still charges lower fees than most cities and towns around. Even this impervious surface fee is lower.

Nobody likes paying taxes and fees, but in order for the city to provide the services its citizens demand, taxes and fees are the primary method of funding.

Like it or not, Muskogee needs this storm water fee.

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City not immune to cost increases

admin — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 04:25:29 +0000

It’s a sad fact that prices are going up, sometimes sharply. Expenses are outpacing income at a sometimes alarming rate. In such an economy, it seems that everywhere we turn, somebody’s got their hand out for more money from us. So, along with the gas pumps, grocery stores, clothing stores, and everywhere else, the City wants to raise fees.

Unfortunately, the City is not immune to the same cost increases that are plaguing private citizens. When gasoline prices go up, the City must pay more for gasoline as well. Of course, that causes higher costs for not only the fuel used in police, fire, and other city vehicles, but for everything else the City uses, too.

However, the City is not oblivious to our plight. Many fees have not increased in over a decade, even though costs of providing services and running the government has continued to increase. Many council meetings I’ve either attended or viewed shows City councilors resistant to increasing fees to the level they need to be. The most often quoted reason is that they don’t want to unduly burden citizens with fee increases. But, sometimes, increases are necessary.

However, citizens expect not only the same level of services from the City, but expect the City to provide more services in the future – services that cost money to provide.

In a perfect world, the City could eliminate taxes and fees and still provide all the services its citizens need and want. In reality, providing services costs money, money the City receives from taxes and fees.

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New TSA love song – Updated with video

admin — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 18:15:41 +0000

With all the TSA gropefest going on, it’s been suggested they have Barry White music playing in the background at security checkpoints. Then, I ran across this little jewel and thought, “Sure, why not Sinatra?”

So, from Iowahawk, here it is: The Airport Security Love Song – Comply with Me. Hilarious!

UPDATE: I found this video on YouTube where someone put it to music! Ha!

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SQ754 a legislative Hail Mary against SQ744?

admin — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 04:01:51 +0000

Oklahoma State Question 744, placed on the ballot by initiative petition, seeks to force Oklahoma politicians to increase education spending to at least the regional average. Amidst cries of “It will bankrupt Oklahoma!”, “There is no money to fund it!”, “There is no oversight!”, “Other agencies will suffer!”, “State employees will lose their jobs!” and other similar interjections, Oklahomans are calling for fiscal responsibility.

In fact, it seems that politicians and governmental groups, such as OML, seem to be the ones most against SQ744 and hollering the loudest. Of course, they want to keep the status quo, keep funding pet projects, and keep money from education. Of course, we know there is money available to fund education – over $5 billion in over 400 tax credits and incentives that can be reviewed and reallocated.

And then, there’s the lottery. Instead of supplementing education as it was sold to us, it wound up replacing education funds. We are asking that they put back the funds they stole from education and supplement it with the lottery as it was intended.

However, since our politicians want so badly for SQ744 to fail, they came up with SQ754. I think it is no accident the numbers are so close. They are counting on confusion to hop on the 744 train. If they can confuse enough people to vote for both, 754 will effectively nullify 744. Voters need to beware SQ 754.

All the things they’ve been saying SQ744 will do to Oklahoma, SQ754 will do.

As this article at Et tu, Oklahoma says, SQ754 is a Hail Mary that must fail.

Please vote YES on SQ744 and NO on SQ754.

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Westboro Baptist Church and the First Amendment

admin — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 17:05:47 +0000

The Supreme Court is faced with a dilemma. Albert Snyder, whose son died in Iraq in 2006, had to not only grieve his son, but put up with the haters of Westboro Baptist as they protested is son’s funeral. He sued and won a verdict of $11 million, which was reduced to $5 million and later thrown out altogether under the church’s First Amendment rights.

The question is, is hate protected by the First Amendment? With all the anti-hate laws in place now, it would seem not, but now the Court has to decide if a father’s pain is more important than the church’s right to free speech. I hold the First Amendment in high regard, even though I think it is misapplied at times. Is it misapplied here?

When does someone’s First Amendment right trump a family’s right to privacy? When does someone’s words or actions become harassment? Would we sit still if a group protested a gay man’s funeral with signs that said, “God hates fags”? No, it would be considered a hate crime in most jurisdictions and legally punishable, regardless of the First Amendment. How is it any different to protest a soldier’s funeral with signs that say, “God hates soldiers”? To me, that is just as hateful, and just as wrong.

I’m not sure which god Westboro Baptist is serving, but it’s certainly not the one true loving God I know and love and worship. He will judge Westboro in a manner no earthly court can.

Now, as to the question of Westboro having the right to say horrible hateful things may be guaranteed by the First Amendment, but that doesn’t make it the right thing to do (Having the right doesn’t make it right). When we start picking and choosing which groups the First Amendment applies to and which it doesn’t, we are treading on very thin ice.

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No Wonder Atlas Shrugged

admin — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 02:28:49 +0000

Reprinted with permission from The Apple Corps.

In times of unprecedented educational blight in the State of Oklahoma, the arrogance of our elected officials to viciously attack award-winning teachers is appalling. How quickly they shifted the focus away from their own indiscretions!

Just last May, News on 6 reporter, Amy Lester, led an investigation into the reckless abuse of several of our state senators’ and representatives’ professional privileges: When state agencies faced 5 percent cuts, some senate staffers did their part to resolve the matter by taking trips. In September, President Pro Tempore, Senator Glenn Coffee offered no objections when his administrative assistant and the majority legislative director spent $2,392.73 to attend a conference in Austin, TX to learn how to become better staffers. When Lester asked Coffee if this was appropriate to OK while state agencies were struggling, he said, “I think that you still have to function. You still have to train individuals and create opportunities for them to do well in their jobs, and so yes, I think it is.”

While school districts across the state have been forced to eliminate all travel to equally beneficial training opportunities our leaders (ahem! Earl Garrison, Brian Bingman, et al.) deem it necessary to stay in the Ritz Carleton and take limousine rides when they attend similar junkets. Where’s the accountability? “While Coffee approves the travel, he never makes sure senators attend the conferences while out of town. ‘What a member chooses to do with their time away, that is on them and on their conscience what they do,’ Coffee [says].” Meanwhile, educators willingly wade through practical protocol and dutifully jump through ever-shifting paradigmatic hoops to maintain a certifiable level of expertise—all in accordance with a battery of checks and balances that guarantee their accountability. As hearty a salary as these officials approve for themselves (incidentally, the highest average in our region in sharp contrast to our educators’ lowest) is it so outrageous for their constituents to insist on some transparent conservatism?

Oklahoma educators not only have to FUNCTION but, are EXPECTED to continually IMPROVE at the same time our budgets are being slashed. This award-winning educator is tired of carrying these “pro-education” officials on my back. I won’t forget November 2, YES on 744!

http://www.newson6.com/Global/story.asp?S=12518615

http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/griffin/NEWS9/PDF/1005/Invoice.pdf

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Beware Oklahoma State Question 754

admin — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 02:51:26 +0000

There is a sleeper question on the ballot that will destroy Oklahoma if passed – State Question 754. With Oklahomans focused on State Question 744, it is easy to ignore SQ 754. In my opinion, it is no accident the state questions have such similar numbers. It seems designed to confuse voters, but that’s only my opinion.

State Question 754, or the No Mandated Expenditures Act, says the legislature cannot be required to make any expenditures for any function of government using a predetermined formula of any kind or by reference to the expenditure levels of any other state government or any other entity.

Ballot language:

This measure adds a new section to the Oklahoma Constitution. It adds Section 55A to Article 5. The Legislature designates amounts of money to be used for certain functions. These designations are called appropriations. The measure deals with the appropriation process.The measure limits how the Constitution could control that process. Under the measure the Constitution could not require the Legislature to fund state functions based on:

1. Predetermined constitutional formulas,

2. How much other states spend on a function,

3. How much any entity spends on a function.

Under the measure these limits on the Constitution’s power to control appropriations would apply even if:

1. A later constitutional amendment changed the Constitution, or

2. A constitutional amendment to the contrary was passed at the same time as this measure.

Thus, under the measure, once adopted, the measure could not be effectively amended. Nor could it be repealed.

Shall the proposal be approved?

For the proposal

Yes: __________

Against the proposal

No: __________

What this means is that there could never be a requirement that Oklahoma keep up with other states in any function of government. This means that Oklahoma will be free to be last in the nation not only in education, but in every other aspect of state government. More importantly, to ensure Oklahoma stays dead last, the language of this measure guarantees that this could never be amended or repealed. Why is Oklahoma so hell-bent on being the uneducated hicksville we are always portrayed as in television and the movies?

So, while opponents of SQ 744 are trying to convince voters that SQ 744 will ruin the state, they are ignoring the obvious devastation that SQ 754 would definitely cause. If they really wanted to save the state, they would stop fighting 744 and start fighting 754.

And, if that isn’t asinine enough, if both SQ744 and SQ754 pass, SQ754 will nullify SQ744.

People, we need to bring Oklahoma up from almost last place in the nation in education and teacher pay. We deserve better; our children deserve better. We can do this by voting YES on 744 and NO on 754. It’s our state and we need to take it back.

YES on SQ744

NO on SQ754

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Having the right doesn’t make it right

admin — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 12:52:39 +0000

From the proposed mosque and Islamic cultural center at ground zero to the Koran-burning pastor in Florida, America is questioning rights versus what’s right.

The ground-zero mosque supporters say they have the right to build their mosque anywhere that’s legal. That is true. If it is legal for American citizens to build a mosque at that location, then they have the right to do just that. But, is it right? I know Islamic extremist make up a small percentage of Muslims and most do not condone what their more extreme counterparts are doing, but they should be sensitive to the pain America is still feeling.

To build this center so close to the site terrorists crashed jets full of passengers into the World Trade Center is a slap in the face to America. To me, it seems to say, “Hey, look, we brought down your two tallest buildings and now we’ve got a mosque there.” That is most likely not what is on the mind of those who want to build this mosque and cultural center, but it is certainly what it says to me and, I’m sure, millions of other Americans who watched as the planes hit the buildings. Do they have the right? Yes. Is it right? No.

On the other hand, we have a Christian extremist, pastor Terry Jones of the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, who wants to burn the Koran on 9/11. That doesn’t sound much like world outreach to me. I don’t know enough about the Koran to either support or condemn it, but burning it does seem to me to be extreme. What’s the difference between Christian extremism and Islamic extremism? Remember the crusades?

The federal government has apparently gotten in on this action, but they can’t do anything about it as it is a First Amendment issue. The military are concerned about the fallout and increased risk to Americans who are still in the Middle East if this Koran-burning occurs, a valid concern to be sure. This church has the First Amendment right to burn the Koran, but should they do it? They have the right, but it is not right.

Americans enjoy certain rights (for now) and the most revered is the first one:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Maybe we need to not only enjoy our rights, but focus more on what is right.

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Government can track us, court rules

admin — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 02:24:15 +0000

Imagine a world where you have absolutely no privacy, similar to Orwell’s dystopian society where privacy is non-existent. A world where the government can spy on you without a warrant and track your every move. Well, welcome to 2010, just 26 years after 1984, where it seems as if that prophecy has come true.

According to this time.com article, The Government Can Use GPS to Track Your Moves, government agents can sneak onto your property and plant a GPS tracking device on the bottom of your car to track your movements and it doesn’t violate your 4th amendment rights because, apparently, you have no expectation of privacy in your own driveway.

The US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has declared the government can track you in this way almost any time it wants without a search warrant. The court also showed class bias by suggesting that any personal privacy should belong mainly to the very rich.

It is a dangerous decision — one that, as the dissenting judges warned, could turn America into the sort of totalitarian state imagined by George Orwell. It is particularly offensive because the judges added insult to injury with some shocking class bias: the little personal privacy that still exists, the court suggested, should belong mainly to the rich.

It seems as if Americans are giving up more and more of their rights to privacy in the name of security and crime-fighting. The government says we must take off our shoes and submit to sometimes invasive searches if we want to fly – in the name of security. The government says we must have a passport if we want to re-enter our own country – in the name of security.

It is true there is a fine balance between privacy and security, but we must find that fine balance. Americans need to draw a line at just how many rights we are willing to give up.

I wonder: how would the framers of the constitution view our current society?

Read this article to get the entire story of how this developed.

Click the picture to learn how to protect your children from online predators with PC Pandora

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Aquí, se habla inglés – English spoken here! SQ 751

admin — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 02:17:08 +0000

Many official forms and documents are not only printed in English, but also in Spanish and other languages. Several states have decided that it is too expensive to translate things to other languages and are looking to establish a language in which to conduct official business. Even though America is made up of all different cultures, English is the predominant language and has been the de facto official language in the US. Now, some states are trying to make English the official language in which to conduct business.

Oklahoma’s State Question 751, on the ballot for November 2, brings that decision to the people. Nothing in this says that people should only speak English, or that a translator can’t be used, but that for the purposes of conducting official business, English is the only language in which forms, documents and services must be provided. I fully support this measure and I urge you to also vote Yes on SQ 751.

STATE QUESTION NO. 751

LEGISLATIVE REFERENDUM NO. 351

This measure amends the State Constitution. It adds a new Article to the Constitution. That Article deals with the State’s official actions. It dictates the language to be used in taking official State action. It requires that official State actions be in English. Native American languages could also be used. When Federal law requires, other languages could also be used.

These language requirements apply to the State’s “official actions.” The term “official actions” is not defined. The legislature could pass laws determining the application of the language requirements. The Legislature would also pass laws implementing and enforcing the language requirements.

No lawsuit based on State law could be brought on the basis of a State agency’s failure to use a language other than English. Nor could such a lawsuit be brought against political subdivisions of the State.

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Put Me in Coach – RougherTV: Vote Yes on SQ744

admin — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 19:21:27 +0000

Muskogee Public Schools staff and band got together one day and put this wonderful video all together to get ready for the 2010-2011 school year! Good Job, Roughers! Vote YES on State Question 744 to require Oklahoma to boost education spending! Watch the video below!

State Question 744 will basically require that Oklahoma spend at least the same average amount for K-12 schools as surrounding states:

STATE QUESTION NO. 744

LEGISLATIVE REFERENDUM NO. 391

The measure repeals a section of the State Constitution. The repealed section required the Legislature annually to spend $42.00 for each common school student. Common schools offer pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade.

The measure also adds a new Article to the Constitution. It sets a minimum average amount the State must annually spend on common schools. It requires the State to spend annually, no less than the average amount spent on each student by the surrounding states. Those surrounding states are Missouri, Texas, Kansas, Arkansas, Colorado and New Mexico. When the average amount spent by surrounding states declines, Oklahoma must spend the amount it spent the year before.

The measure deals with money spent on day-to-day operations of the schools and school districts. This includes spending on instructions, support services and non-instruction services. The measure does not deal with money spent to pay debt, on buildings or on other capital needs.

The measure requires that increased spending begin in the first fiscal year after its passage. It requires that the surrounding state average be met in the third fiscal year after passage.

The measure does not raise taxes, nor does it provide new funding for the new spending requirements.

This can easily be funded if the state will stop raiding the education fund and replacing it with lottery funds as it was supposed to. Right now, the state is replacing funds with lottery funds instead of supplementing them. See: Oklahoma Education Lottery – the big lie.

Now, the video!

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Oklahoma’s next governor will be a woman

admin — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 02:36:26 +0000

Well, in the primary election yesterday, Oklahoma voters chose two women to run against each other, Jeri Askins (D) and Mary Fallin (R) will compete for the top state job in November. So, now the question is, which one will be the best for the top spot?

Well, I’m not going to go into it (yet) because I really don’t have enough information and really don’t know which one I will vote for. But, it begs the question – Will a woman do a better job leading the state than men have done?

The last presidential election saw Hillary Clinton running for president until she was pushed out in the primary. But, it did get some people to thinking about how a woman would lead this country versus a man. I can’t count the number of times I heard “Well, she can’t screw it up any more than a man.” I don’t know, man can screw it up really bad (cue Obama). Would Hillary have done a better job? Don’t know.

I personally don’t have a problem with a woman as president or governor. I think women are just as capable as men are to lead the state (or country), so don’t get on to me for being sexist.

Back to Oklahoma. Quite a few people would say our government is screwed up. There’s quite a few things I could (and do) gripe about. Up until this next election, Oklahoma has been governed by men and it is pretty screwed up.

I guess now we may finally get the answer to the question: Can a woman screw it up any worse than a man?

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Arizona v. Illegal Immigration

admin — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 19:54:07 +0000

The new Arizona state immigration law has been likened to a standoff by local writer David Gerard in his recent column on MuskogeeNow.com. I read this column with great interest because what is happening in Arizona is very important to the rest of us. The decisions made by a federal judge will have a lasting message as to the importance of state rights versus federal responsibility.

I agree with David that the protection of our national borders is the federal government’s responsibility as I understand the Constitution. I also agree with David that the feds aren’t doing this job well, if at all.

Arizona officials and their supporters say the law is needed so that Arizona can maintain order within its borders from foreign sneaks, a job delegated by the Constitution to the federal government, but one the feds aren’t doing well or at all.

These get-tough-on-immigration officials would normally stand for a strict reading of the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law, but when it comes to illegal immigration, their attitude is hang the Constitution and illegal immigrants.

It is also true that, during this recent economic crisis, it is very easy to blame the lack of jobs on illegal immigrants. Yes, some jobs are being taken by illegal immigrants who employers (illegally) pay under the table; and, yes, most of these jobs are undesirable to Americans. (We DO have standards, you know.) Even though our economic crisis is NOT because of illegal immigration, they don’t help the situation, either.

Illegal immigrants do take away from citizens in the way of jobs, social services, unpaid taxes, housing and more. Most illegals drive without licenses or insurance. Since Arizona didn’t see the feds doing their job, they decided to do it for them. I don’t agree with all the aspects of the law, especially with the part that says if an officer has a reasonable suspicion someone might be here illegally, they have the right to stop and check. But, as part of other enforcement action, i.e. a traffic stop, response to a call, etc., the officer should have the right to verify a person’s identification, as well as immigration or citizenship status.

While the border between Mexico and the US has always been ‘porous’, as David Gerard puts it, is no reason to leave it that way. If the feds don’t want Arizona doing their job for them, then they need to step up and do it. Illegal means against the law. If I do something illegal, I will face the consequences. Illegal immigrants are here against the law, they should face the consequences. I am not against legal immigration, I am against illegal immigration.

¿Se habla español?

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Illegal immigration needs to stop

admin — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 15:35:57 +0000

Arizona took drastic steps several months ago to try to stem the tide of illegal immigration. I may not agree with every aspect of this law, but I do agree something has to be done. Illegal immigration adds to the financial burden of legal US citizens. Instead of condemning Arizona, the feds may do better to work with them to not only make sure Arizona’s laws are correct, but to shore up federal law and assist other states with legislation.

No, I’m not racist, anti-immigration, or anything else. I am an American. I know we are the melting pot and this country was built on immigration. I think this is the greatest nation in the world and I understand why people want to move here and live here and raise their families here. I don’t have a problem in the world with those who want to live and work here LEGALLY! It is those who don’t want to go through the legal processes that I have a problem with.

Apparently, so does Arizona, hence their laws. So, instead of doing their jobs and protecting our borders, the DOJ is filing suit challenging the constitutionality of Arizona’s laws. Our president apparently doesn’t think illegal immigration as he calls the state law misguided.

From MuskogeePolitico.com:

‘My favorite part of the article is this: “The lawsuit will argue that Arizona’s new measure requiring state and local police to question and possibly arrest illegal immigrants during the enforcement of other laws, like traffic stops, usurps federal authority.”‘

Legal immigration – no problem. Illegal immigration needs to stop.

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Government wants to track your gold and coin purchases

admin — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 20:46:19 +0000

Congress has passed national health care legislation, which means, that if you buy or sell more than $600 in coins or bullion, you must fill out a tax form. Wait, what? Yes, that’s correct. This is part of the national health care and kicks in with it in 2012.

According to NumisMaster.com, this is part of section 9006 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148).

“Section 9006 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148, signed into law by President Obama this spring) turns 1099 forms into reporting forms not only for independent contractor’s income – what they have long been used for – but also to show sales, gains and losses on purchases and sales of goods as part of a trade or business.”

“There’s a bill introduced by Rep. Dan Lungren (H.R. 5141), which has gathered over 80 members of Congress as co-sponsors to repeal this section. Evidently, however, the drafters of the provision think there is a $17 billion loophole that this plugs.”

So, that coin collection you have been hanging on to that is probably worth more than $600 may be best to be sold before January of 2012 to keep you from having to file a barrage of 1099 forms. If you are into coin collecting, buying or selling bullion, then you definitely need to check into this law.

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Problems with Hammons’ council nominee

admin — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 21:30:09 +0000

Some potential problems have arisen for Mayor Hammons’ nominee for vacated council seat of Bob Luttrull.

According to MuskogeeNOW.com, Mayor Hammons has nominated his mother’s boss, Craig Koele of Solara Hospital, to replace Bob Luttrull on the city council. Perhaps this is a conflict of interest.

According to MuskogeePolitico.com, there are also allegations of sexual harassment at Solara Hospital that have allegedly gone unanswered. Be sure to read the

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Vote April 6 for Mayor, Council, School Bond

admin — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 22:00:40 +0000

Vote YES on School Bond, Your choice for mayor, council

For mayor, our choices are incumbent John Tyler Hammons, John Coburn, Theresa Garris, and Chris James.

Council Ward III choices are incumbent David Ragsdale, Jr. and Randall Howard.

Council Ward IV choices are incumbent Jim Ritchey, Cedric Johnson, and Ken Payne

The school bond issue is very important. This is a $2.1 million school bond issue that provides $700,000 per year for three years. This bond is for maintenance, equipment and renovations. The cost to the taxpayer is $1.66/month on a $100,000 home. That’s less than $20/year. This will help ease the budget woes placed on the schools by the state and keep teachers employed.

The state lied to the citizens when they said the lottery proceeds would be an addition to the state formula for education (see Oklahoma Education Lottery – the big lie). They instead made it PART of the formula resulting in schools not receiving very much extra money, if any from the lottery. Because of this lie, schools are not receiving the help they need to make budgets in lean times. The schools need our help to provide quality education to our children.

Please vote Tuesday, April 6

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Obama plans to open off-shore drilling

admin — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 03:12:24 +0000

President Obama plans to open off-shore drilling on the Atlantic, East Gulf Coast, and Alaska shorelines. The environmentalists, of course, are all upset saying that this will cause all sorts of ecological disasters. However, I’m happy that finally president Obama has done something I agree with.

Technology has come a long way since the drilling ban was put into place. There are better ways to mitigate any spill, however rare they should be.

Obama Oil Drilling Plan: East Coast, Alaska Waters Could Open For Drilling – Huffington Post

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The bankrupting of America

admin — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 14:07:41 +0000

Just as it appears we are looking at a better economy, despite the Democrats mortgaging our future for generations to come, they took the final action that will even more completely bankrupt America. They passed Obamacare at a huge cost, $940 Billion. Yes, that’s BILLION … with a B, which also stands for BAILOUT!

Yes, almost $1 Trillion was allocated earlier to bailout big banks and corporations, now almost $1 Trillion more for Obamacare. Well, this is just the beginning, kids. Employers who will be forced to provide health insurance to every employee, including part time, will feel the cost. One report I heard is that Caterpillar will spend $100 million dollars in the first year alone.

And what happens when companies have to spend more to make a product? That’s right, they pass the cost on to the consumer. That’s you and me. If you think eating at McDonald’s was a cheap treat, think again. If Mickie D’s has to insure every employee, they will pass the cost on to us. Walmart commercials talk about low prices – not if they have to insure every employee who works a few hours a week. If you think the unemployment rate is high now, wait until employers start laying off employees because they cannot afford to insure them.

What makes the government think they can do this any better than they’ve done any other program in the past? What makes them think they can do health care better when every country in the world with socialized health care says, “Don’t do it!!!”?

And, the beauty of it all is that most provisions don’t take effect until 2012 or 2014 when Obama will be out of office! Yes, Mr. President, this is what change looks like – a change for the worst. YES, WE CAN… bankrupt America!

This article is my own personal opinion. If you share this opinion, or don’t, please leave a comment. Thank you.

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New Oklahoma statewide calling plan is nonsense

admin — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 22:42:07 +0000

Bob Anthony must think the people of Oklahoma are stupid. He has apparently been watching too many movies out of Hollywood that portray Oklahomans as a bunch of slow-talking, slow-thinking hicks. His plan is to enact toll-free calling statewide in Oklahoma. You could call from Hugo to Boise City without any long distance at all. Okay, that is well and good, but it has to be funded. The logical place to fund this would be to put a surcharge on landline phones because this is what it would affect.

But, noooo, his idea is to add a surcharge (I heard $3.19/line) on CELL PHONES. Yep, you heard it right… cell phones. I don’t know about you, but I can already pick up my cell phone and call anywhere in the US as part of my calling plan. I’m quite sure that this is now pretty standard with most plans out there. I still have a landline for the DSL. Any long distance calls are placed using my cell phone.

The whole reason for this push is to further subsidize small telephone companies in the state who already charge below-cost rates to their customers. So, he wants to further subsidize these little locals with money from wireless customers. I don’t think so! Especially at $3.19/line where most families may have 2, 3, 4 or more phones. And further especially because cell phone users won’t benefit at all with this. Not one bit.

I urge you to contact your representative and let them know how asinine this plan is and to tell Bob Anthony to crawl back under his rock and stop trying to gouge user with fees for services we don’t need.

Keeping right

admin — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 15:47:08 +0000

Back in November, a law was passed in Oklahoma to ban drivers from driving in the left lane on highways and clogging things up. It is now being enforced by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. If a person drives in the left lane, unless he or she is passing or turning left from the highway, can be ticketed.

Even though there are already laws on the books that tell slower drivers to stay right and allow for ticketing drivers who impede traffic, State Rep. Glen Bud Smithson, D-Sallisaw, one of the authors of the new bill, seems to think we need yet another law for drivers to be wary of.

Also, while there are signs to tell out-of-state drivers that slower vehicles should move to the right, there won’t be any signs that tell drivers it’s illegal to drive the left lane even if there is no traffic.

There are also questions about enforcement on state and federal highways inside city limits. For example, here in Muskogee, Shawnee, Main Street, part of Okmulgee Ave, Peak Blvd, and 32nd St. are all state or federal highways. It doesn’t make much sense to enforce this law on these roads. Doing so will impede traffic in and of itself.

Did we need a new law or just stricter enforcement of the impeding laws?

For more information, see: Muskoge Phoenix: Left lane law creates a stir

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It’s not your mayor’s charter review, but it’s the best choice

admin — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:50:30 +0000

Every so often, federal and state laws change and that usually means that local laws and ordinances must change with them. Same goes for the governing document of the City of Muskogee – the city charter. Even in the absence of federal or state law changes, it is a good idea to partially review sections of the charter from time-to-time and make sure we are keeping up with the times.

The mayor proposed a complete charter review and a change in city government from the current city manager to a strong mayor government. This was very bold and seemed to some that it was a power grab attempt. The mayor also wanted a committee made up of citizens for this charter review. I’m not against citizens being involved, in fact, I think citizens should be very involved in their government – local, state and federal. However, the first step of being involved means to be informed.

The council voted down the mayor’s proposal and proposed the council as the charter review committee. The portions of the charter under review will be posted on the city’s website and citizens who want to be informed may read the proposed changes, attend the meetings and give input. This is, in my opinion, the best way to handle charter review and change.

Mayor’s plan for charter review voted down

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Stormwater runoff is everyone’s burden

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 14:24:07 +0000

Heavy rains can quickly overburden our storm water system flooding streets and homes. A storm water fee is assessed on each water bill according to the size of the meter. According to this article by the Muskogee Phoenix, the current fees bring in $380,000/year with residents paying $280,000 of that.

Under the proposed fee revisions, businesses will now start paying for the amount of impervious surface (roofs, parking lots, sidewalks, etc.) at $1/unit. A unit is 2650 sq. feet of surface. This sounds like a much more equitable way of assessing the fee than the water meter size, since the amount of water a business uses in no way correlates to the amount of runoff they will have in a storm.

There will also be exemptions available to those businesses that manage their own storm water. Schools and churches have also asked for exemptions. I don’t think the fee schedule needs to be complicated with a bunch of exemptions, but I do think the fee schedule needs to take some things into account for schools, at least.

Muskogee Public Schools is struggling to meet expenses due to the way the feds and the state like to play with education funding. We will be in a much worse position if the schools have to cut academics to pay for storm water management. I think temporary exemptions, or discounts, should be available to our public schools.

Boulevard Christian Church, according to the Phoenix, built retention ponds and manage the runoff from their property and that of their neighbors. I’m not in favor of exempting churches simply because they are a church, but when a business or church does not contribute to the storm water runoff problem, they should be rewarded with an exemption.

Muskogee needs this fee, there is no doubt of that, but the council needs to recognize some economic factors of entities that depend on public funding. If they have to pay this fee, they will have to cut services.

Stormwater Fees Considered – Muskogee Phoenix

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What’s all the hubbub, bub?

admin — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 14:36:44 +0000

Yesterday, President Obama went to a high school in Arlington, Virginia, and gave a speech that was televised on C-Span aimed at school children across America. For some reason, quite a few people were upset about this, arguing that the President is forcing some sort of hidden political agenda. I wonder if it was mostly parents who didn’t care enough to read the speech online before deciding if they liked it or not.

I, personally, don’t understand what all the fuss was about. I read the speech, then I watched C-Span to see if he really stuck to the prepared speech, or launched off on a tangent to brainwash our children. Well, he stuck to the speech and it was a wonderful message – one that our children (and parents) need to hear and take to heart. I wonder if parents were upset because the president said they have a responsibility as well in the education of their children.

I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with that Xbox.

Some parents don’t think they themselves have any role and push that responsibility off to the schools and the teachers. Well, sorry, but it doesn’t work that way. Teachers and schools can only do so much, but they need parents to reinforce the importance of education and their children’s responsibility. If children don’t get that reinforcement from home, they are less likely to succeed in school.

But, the president didn’t stop there. He put the bulk of the responsibility for education right where it belongs – on the students themselves.

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.

Students must realize that there are going to be obstacles to overcome in every part of their lives. Part of their education is learning how to overcome these obstacles in order to improve their lives. They may face adversity in their lives during their young years, but they should strive to overcome and take their education seriously and take responsibility. They need to do their homework. They need to study hard. They need to get good grades to improve their chances of going to college.

Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job, and there’s not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life – what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home – that’s no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude. That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. That’s no excuse for not trying.

I do not agree with most things our president is doing, but I do agree with the words in this speech. I agree with him that individuals need to stop blaming everyone else for their troubles, pick themselves up, and take responsibility for improving their lives and not rely on government handouts.

Maybe that’s why this speech drew such ire – people are afraid of taking responsibility as the president is asking them to.

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We the People stimulus package

admin — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:38:10 +0000

I received this You-Tube video via email and liked it. I’m not saying he’s right or he’s wrong with the entire message, but he is correct in saying that we the people need to be much more involved in our government. I share it now with you.

Bob Basso author of “Common Sense” plays the role of Thomas Paine to ignite the fire of change in America. Patriotism and Pride for America lead Thomas Paine to help take back America!

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Cash for clunkers: success or failure?

admin — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 17:30:39 +0000

Back in June, I first heard about the government’s “Cash for Clunkers” program and had mixed emotions about it. To be honest, I didn’t know how it would go over. The response was overwhelming as people took advantage of this program, dealers were happy to see customers actually buying cars, manufacturers had to step up production to keep up. This sounds like a terrific success. And, I have to agree. I think this is one of the best stimuli to the economy yet.

However, the failure, if you can call it that, is in the reimbursing of dealers. When customers trade in a clunker under this program, the dealer is obligated to take the clunker, apply whatever credits due under the program immediately, and close the deal. The dealer cannot legally have a contingency clause in the contract which obligates the customer to pay back any clunker cash if the application is not approved. The dealer cannot legally postpone the sale until the clunker cash comes in. Several other restrictions put the burden on the dealer to provide the credit and wait for reimbursement. Dealers are now out hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars waiting on horrendously slow reimbursement from the government. Car sales are up – good for the dealer and manufacturers; reimbursements are almost nil – not good for the dealer.

So, if the government is having trouble keeping up with claims from dealers, how does this give us faith in socialized medicine?

President is fifth-grader’s homeboy

admin — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 18:38:44 +0000

Student reporter Damon Weaver, who interviewed Joe Biden earlier this year, interviews president Barack Obama about education. He asks some good questions, including if the president has the power to make school lunches better and how the president handles bullies. This is a must-see interview.

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Did White House break the law with request?

admin — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 04:12:45 +0000

Earlier this week, the White House posted on their blog a request for anyone to report “fishy” information about the health care bill to a White House email address. A blatant ploy, in my opinion, to have citizens report other citizens to the government based upon their opinions. This would be a definite violation of our first amendment rights.

According to this Fox News article, the White House says that is not their intention, that they are not collecting information on people, just information on what is being said about the health plan. Well, since the White House must keep all communication sent, they are, by default, collecting information.

“The White House is in bit of a conundrum because of this privacy statute that prohibits the White House from collecting data and storing it on people who disagree with it,” Judge Andrew Napolitano, a FOX News analyst, said Friday.

“There’s also a statute that requires the White House to retain all communications that it receives. It can’t try to rewrite history by pretending it didn’t receive anything,” he said.

“If the White House deletes anything, it violates one statute. If the White House collects data on the free speech, it violates another statute.”

Of course, the White House defends their actions by stating they simply want to alert people to misinformation. This is funny since they are key in spreading misinformation themselves. Hopefully, this Obamanation will not stand.