Blair, Caudill, Reynolds Go Down

The Tuesday runoff election was one of the most entertaining to watch in a very long time.  While the voter turnout stank to high heaven, the results were surprising to say the least.  It's sad to see so few people heading to the polls but given the political climate, we should expect as much.  Campaigns have become mud slinging propaganda-fests that are void of truth and reality and most often filled to overflowing in lies and deceit.  

The 20-year incumbent in the County Clerk's office was unseated by a business owner who is best known for his trumpet and not for his prowess in political affairs.  Not only was Caudill defeated, but David Hooten beat her with an almost 2-to-1 ratio.  Caudill's office has been plagued with problems for many years; hell, I remember pointing out problems with her office back when I was the afternoon drive host on WKY.  There were those who thought I was being too mean, but it turns out that I was spot on in my analysis.  Caudill will, of course, get to take her retirement and ride off into the sunset but she will be riding out of town on a hog rather than a steed.  Hooten will take over in January and he will have his hands full.  Not saying that the County Clerk post is the most difficult and complex in all of County government, but it is certainly one of serious responsibility and sitting on the Budget Board to allocate dollars to and fro can be a daunting task.  Will he rubber-stamp the desires of the senior members of the Board or will he trumpet reform and accountability (see what I did there)?

Former State Representative Mike Reynolds ran for Cleveland County Court Clerk and was defeated by almost 1,000 votes by Marilyn Williams.  Reynolds was known for his "smaller government" stances while in the House of Representatives.  There were plenty Republicans in Cleveland County who were shocked that Reynolds lost to Williams and they will probably analyze that race for many weeks to come.  Williams went after Reynolds on her Facebook page calling him a "career politician," which is terribly ironic because Reynolds advocated for smaller government; except where he decides to run apparently.  No doubt we'll see Reynolds again somewhere because he is very active in the GOP and rather enjoys politics.  

The biggest and most fascinating race was Senate District 41 in Edmond where Air Force pilot Adam Pugh faced the Goliath that is the former football player-turned-pastor, Paul Blair.  Blair racked up a ton of endorsements including those from members of the State House and the former "Dr. No" of Congress, Tom Coburn.  In the past, an endorsement from Coburn almost guaranteed a victory. Blair even received the endorsement of Congressman Steve Russell who was involved in the capture of Saddam Hussein!  Blair also picked up the endorsement of former Oklahoma County District Attorney Wes Lane and current Oklahoma County Democrat District Attorney David Prater.  Neither endorsement carried enough weight to push Blair beyond the relative newcomer, Adam Pugh.  Somehow, Pugh became the David of this David and Goliath match up and came out on top. 

In Defense of Sally Kern

Oklahoma State Representative Sally Kern has undergone intense scrutiny and perhaps some of it is a little over the top.  It's sad, in a way, to see the people who preach tolerance so assertively would be so aggressively intolerant of Sally Kern.  It is confusing, disheartening, and unfair in many ways.  The "Sally Kern Phenomenon" has garnered national attention and most of that attention has really been pretty negative - with the exception of Ellen, perhaps, who dealt with it in a comical, lighthearted way. 

First, let's consider what Kern and her husband believe and why:
They are Baptists, hardcore Baptists who shun the baptism of infants, dancing, and other things, in many cases are abject literalistic in their interpretation of Scripture, and lastly, they are premillennial  in their eschatology, and they are all about fire and brimstone.  (Read for yourself. But ignore the spelling errors.) You can't really blame them for their theological constructs because that is kind of a universal platform for their denomination.  They are very public figures, therefore, the last thing they want is to look inconsistent from the Baptist hard line.
[Note: I add Steve Kern in the dialog because he is, after all, her pastor.]

Second, let's think about the argument they espouse itself:
Think about it from a doctrinal standpoint.  They believe that the "rapture" could happen at any moment and that it will involve "tribulation" upon some of the Christians, but most importantly, it is the role of the "Christian soldier" to bring as many souls to the Promised Land as possible.  This kind of theology is designed, as its ultimate goal, to usher in the 2nd Coming.  Of course, fear and hell,

and eternal damnation is at the forefront of Sally's dialog!  The school of thought exists that if they don't try to "save" every single lost soul they can.  Here is they type of construct we're dealing with from a hardcore Christian Right website:

Is a New World Order something we should look forward to? Will it take place and if so, when? Who will be responsible for bringing in this New World Order? Will it be the president of the United States or maybe even the head of the Roman Catholic Church, the pope himself? Where can we find these answers? Does the Bible say anything about this important subject that will affect the whole world? Let’s look at some information that will help us get a better picture of upcoming events.

Wait, what?  New World Order?  The Pope?  See what we're dealing with here, kids?

Third, consider why it is better not to launch ad hominem attacks:
I eluded to it in my opening paragraph, but it is true that the "most tolerant" in our culture is often the LEAST tolerant of conservative Christian views.  In other words, by attacking Sally Kern and her fellow premillennial, "sky is falling" followers, the "tolerant ones" prove Sally Kern's point - that "the liberuls" are intolerant and have an agenda to destroy the country through indoctrination of the gay agenda on our children.  Attacking Sally, the person, is just not the right thing to do.  Attack her beliefs, her commentary, and her dumbass pieces of legislation, but Sally THE PERSON, is a human being just like the rest of us.

In my opinion, everyone has a right to speak and believe whatever they choose to believe.  Whether it be a complete allegorical interpretation of Scripture or a historical/grammatical interpretation, or that someone doesn't believe at all is well within the bounds of free speech that we're so proud of here in the United States.  Sure, there are people who exist to transform the nation into something that looks like a theocracy, but overall, we function pretty darned well.  You see, in a Democratic Republic, we get the privilege of raising hell and defeating whatever argument we choose.  But we must always remember the fact that we are all human, all created in the Imago Dei.

I'm not at all implying that I'm innocent.  I twist off with regularity, but it doesn't make it right.  

Of course, this is just my opinion and I could be wrong.  But I'm not.

Gorilla