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Students deserve serious conversation about the school safety May 23, 2013 WAS it really just weeks ago that the conversation about keeping children safe at school centered on whether the Legislature would OK the arming of teachers? The debate seems like so long ago. Nature is good at rearranging the weather in ways that mess with time — and rearranging priorities in the process.... Read More
Market forces can resolve testing woes May 23, 2013 Critics of state testing, often citing concern for students to mask their opposition to the accountability tests create, have tried to make hay of recent glitches. In April, education vendor CTB/McGraw-Hill Education's online system crashed, delaying testing for about 9,000 Oklahoma students. This led some critics... Read More
Gun issue's impact surprises Democrats May 23, 2013 After the Newtown massacre, President Barack Obama and many liberal politicians thought they were poised to enact dramatic gun control laws. Things haven't played out as they expected. Gun control measures were first weakened and then defeated in the Democratic-controlled U.S. Senate, an embarrassing public... Read More
Oklahoma lawmakers should resist push to repeal Common Core May 22, 2013 IN a triumph of irrationality over reason, House Speaker T.W. Shannon abruptly announced that lawmakers might try to repeal Common Core academic standards in the legislative session's final days. “A lot of people are becoming very concerned about its ability to open the door for kind of a federal takeover of... Read More
'Pressing matters' aren't as important today May 22, 2013 SUDDENLY, all the talk of late-session wheeling and dealing by Oklahoma legislators doesn't add up to much. The recent spike in gas prices in this area? Washington politics? It's tough to get worked up about those issues today. Not when the bodies of children could be recovered from their grade school in Moore.... Read More
Imperfect legacy for Oklahoma Democratic Party chairman May 21, 2013 Among the accomplishments that Wallace Collins can cite as chairman of the Oklahoma Democratic Party is an increase in the number of Barack Obama photographs hanging in party offices. While he was putting up photos, Oklahoma voters were taking down the party. Obama got only 57 percent of the vote in the state... Read More
Another storm, another prayer for God's mercy on Oklahoma May 21, 2013 A row of backpacks on hooks in a roofless grade school corridor. This is just one of many images that will stay with us because they represent the horror without actually being the horror. The fate of the students, the fate of their teachers. The fears of parents helpless to help when their children needed them... Read More
LNG project approval a sign of progress May 21, 2013 It isn't much in the grand scheme of things, but considering the Obama administration's loathing of non-green energy sources, the news that a Texas company may soon be allowed to ship natural gas overseas is cause for some celebration. The United States is awash in natural gas, which has depressed the market and... Read More
Oklahoma Legislature, governor should back effort to fund museum projects May 20, 2013 AFTER years of stop-and-start progress, the American Indian Cultural Center and Museum may be nearing the finish line. A Senate budget committee has voted to fund the museum's completion by earmarking $40 million in use taxes over several years. Use taxes are paid on out-of-state and online purchases in lieu of... Read More
Excessive state job protections unneeded May 20, 2013 State Rep. Mike Christian, R-Oklahoma City, claims lawmakers “beat the hell out of our state employees all session.” That outburst was prompted by a bill making some state employee jobs at-will positions. In other words, those government employees would face the same job security as the vast majority of... Read More
Obamacare insurance exchange costs keeps growing May 20, 2013 Gov. Mary Fallin's critics still haven't forgiven her for turning down a $54 million federal grant to set up a state-run insurance exchange. These exchanges, mandated by Obamacare, will supposedly help the uninsured obtain subsidized coverage. Fallin concluded that federal regulations would make the exchange... Read More
President Obama should follow his own advice to graduates May 19, 2013 IN a commencement speech to Ohio State University graduates on May 5, President Barack Obama said this: “You've grown up hearing voices that incessantly warn of government as nothing more than some separate, sinister entity that's at the root of all our problems. ... They'll warn that tyranny is always lurking... Read More
Gov. Mary Fallin right to veto measure to raise school reserve cap May 19, 2013 THIS year's state budget agreement includes an additional $91 million for public schools, but education boosters say the total school budget remains around $200 million lower (inflation adjusted) than what was spent in 2008 and student enrollment has increased by more than 30,000 since then. Yet at the same time... Read More
ScissorTales: Oklahoma DNA testing bill worthwhile May 18, 2013 OKLAHOMA inmates who believe they were wrongly convicted of a violent crime may soon have a new tool available to help prove their point. The House gave its approval this week to House Bill 1068, which would let those serving sentences of 25 years or more petition the sentencing court for DNA testing. Oklahoma is... Read More
Oklahoma House minority leader cooks up unappetizing resolution May 17, 2013 Thousands of Oklahomans participated in a food drive last weekend when letter carriers picked up canned foods at mailboxes for distribution to regional food banks and local food pantries. This voluntary, nonpolitical event is in stark contrast to what Oklahoma House Democrats tried to make of the issue of hunger... Read More
Keystone pipeline protesters paying at the pump May 17, 2013 By our reckoning, the protesters trying to stall an oil pipeline have consumed copious amounts of gasoline getting to and from protest sites and to fuel the police cars taking them to jail. As far as we know, no bicycles have been confiscated when the protesters are arrested for chaining themselves to construction... Read More
As study unfolds, Oklahoma prison guards hoping for a cool August May 17, 2013 OKLAHOMA made it through the past two broiling summers without a major prison brawl — remarkable, really, considering the state's lockups are packed with groups that don't like each other, in facilities that aren't fully air conditioned. And, with little to stop inmates if they do decide to rumble. Only... Read More
Caution urged in forecasting Oklahoma tax revenue trends May 16, 2013 WEATHER trends are often cited to support political positions, such as those either pushing a climate change agenda or opposing that agenda. It's dangerous, though, to put too much stock in short-term temperature or precipitation trends when formulating a policy stance. The same is true of government revenue... Read More
Tax increase barriers spur fee increases in Oklahoma May 15, 2013 The ultimate “user fee” in Oklahoma has risen exponentially over the years. Every increase has drawn complaints, but people keep paying. We're referring to the tolls that drivers pay to use turnpikes. Those who don't drive on toll roads don't pay tolls, which not only fund the cost of construction but... Read More
'Leveling the playing field' can be problematic May 15, 2013 Something must be done! With that as their rallying cry, some public high schools upset that private schools in Oklahoma were winning multiple championships in football and boys basketball worked to get the rules changed a few years ago. Private schools that enjoy sustained success in any sport now pay for it by... Read More
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