Catching Up, Throwing Down

For a "Christian nation," there sure are a whole lot of really angry people running around.  We are seeing that the folks who beg for tolerance are less tolerant than they desire others to be and we are seeing that folks who are supposed to be all about grace and mercy are really all about their perception of justice and retribution.  Perhaps this is just how things go after an election but I have a very distinct feeling that there is something special in the air (or maybe in the water) and there will be some major changes soon.  The storm clouds are forming on the horizon and a shift is about to take place…

I suppose I still find it tough to believe that Donald Trump is our POTUS.  I say this not for or against the man, but rather with curiosity as to how we got to this place in our history where we would have to choose between the two previous candidates.  President Trump has already stirred the pot in Washington and without a doubt, he'll continue to do so until it's a murky, muddy mess.  It's also amazing how many people absolutely hate the man and would rather turn violent and destroy property to show their disdain for him than they would to accept the fact that sometimes candidates we don't like much win races.  Reasoned dialog is out the window, the tolerant ones have become immeasurably intolerant.  And what really pisses people off is that Trump is actually keeping his promises that he made on the campaign trail.  

Fascinating.

On a local level, Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel has resigned after his November victory over Mike Christian.  Christian has vowed to run again during the special election and unless another candidate steps up, he will probably win in a walk.  Whetsel submitted his resignation letter and is ready to ride off into the sunset regardless of what kind of ghosts will follow him; the ghosts of fiscal mismanagement.  This makes everyone wonder just why it was that Whetsel again wasted taxpayer dollars by causing this upcoming special election.   It's just bloody weird.

In other weird and wacky news, a state senator is apparently filing legislation to shut down the will of the voters on a couple state questions in the last election cycle.  As I have said before and will again; we must never forget that for some elected officials, it is by far the best job they will ever have and their new-found power will corrupt their minds absolutely.  They begin to think that they know what's better for their constituents than do the constituents who elected them.  More Nanny State manure will certainly be coming our way, so wear your political waders.

In my humble opinion, everyone needs to just calm down for a little while and try real hard to find logic in action.  If we do, maybe there is still hope for us.

Of course, those are just my opinions and I could be wrong…but I seriously doubt it.


Ron "Gorilla" Black

And Yet, Here We Stand

The land was laid bare and the bodies of the dead littered the streets; streets that were covered in blood.  In the distance, the screams and lamentations of women and children pierced the air and threatened to shatter eardrums.  The smell of death and destruction permeated the air and created a weight and denseness to every breath.  The fear and sadness surrounded every living thing that remained; it was as though any hope of life and joy had been sucked from the human existence and left in its wake was nothing but despair.  The skies were permanently darkened, buildings and institutions that had stood the test of time were decimated, and survivors were fearful to even consider a future. 

Okay, not really, but reading some of the post on social media after the election, one would think that the end of the world had come and stripped all Americans of their humanity and dignity.  Hillary Clinton lost in her bid to be the country's first female president, defeated by one of the most disliked men in all of politics, Donald Trump, and far too many people are taking it personally.  Trump was called every name in the book by the elitists on either side of the aisle and yet he triumphed and that really pisses people off.  Even today, there are people who have lost their damned minds and are protesting in the streets!  What in the hell is wrong with us?

This country will survive.  We survived Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford and Bill Clinton.  The country will survive Donald Trump and perhaps it will awaken the establishment douchebags to see their douchebaggery.  Maybe, just maybe, terrorists will take us a little more seriously now as well.

On a local level, there were some serious surprises.

SQ779:   While I believed that our teachers and children deserved better than this proposal, I really figured that it would pass.  After all, they had Toby Keith in the ads...but I digress.  It was believed that the initiative would pass, teachers would receive a pay raise and administrators would have s slush fund to play with, but no.  It didn't happen.  Teachers still need a pay raise and we need to do something better to fund education because the lottery wasn't the magic bullet, was it?  Hopefully, the legislature can do something honest to address the issue and make sure that the administrators keep their filthy paws off of the money that will be for the classrooms and for teachers.

SQ790:  I really thought that Oklahoma would pass this measure and not because it was the right thing to do, but because of our desire to mix God and government at every turn.  Perhaps Pastor Paul Blair's loss in the primary was a harbinger of things to come that Oklahomans understand that we need to be careful what we ask for, because we might just get it.  First, it would be spending money on the 10 Commandments (the ones we couldn't keep and so Christ had to die for us), then it would mean that Islam would get a monument, then Hinduism, and so on so forth.  Tax dollars spent on one religious institution would mean, by necessity, an entitlement from all religious expressions.  Kudos to the voters for shooting this one down.

Oklahoma County Sheriff:  Whetsel got another four years, defeating an aggressive and determined Republican Mike Christian.  Whetsel will now face the County Commissioners about financial wrongdoing.  This was a surprise.  Even though Whetsel was a recognized name, he spent money on television and frankly, that was a big plus for his campaign because Christian was pretty much nowhere to be found.  Maybe he spent too much on his consultants...but again, I digress.

Yet, amid all this madness, here we stand.  We still live in the greatest country on the planet to say or believe anything different is just silliness.

We can do this. 

Of course, these are just my opinions and I could be wrong, but I seriously doubt it.

Gorilla

What A World

It's been a little while, so I thought I'd better catch up and provide a little color commentary to the already jaded political and social landscape.  It's what you expect from me, so I choose not to disappoint.  Let's get after it, shall we?

POTUS:  What a train wreck.  How in the world we ended up with these two candidates is something that OU Political Science Professor Keith Gaddie will be writing about long into the future, but it befuddles the rest of us.  The Trump Train exists, in my opinion, as a rebellion move against the establishment of the GOP that has been virtually indistinguishable from the mainstream of the Democratic Party over the last decade.  Fortunately, we have three branches of government so two out of three will have to get us through the next four years.  I truly have no pony in this race at all and it looks like I may have to vote for the Libertarian just so I can preserve what is left of my tattered soul. 

Oklahoma County Sheriff:  This has turned into a barn-burner of a race, hasn't it?  The State Auditor released findings that basically showed that incumbent Democrat Sheriff John Whetsel has not been so adept at handling financial issues.  Of course, most of us with any functioning brain cells whatsoever have seen the disaster that is the Oklahoma County Jail; but at least we don't have to deal with Joyce Gilchrist any longer.  But I digress...  Representative Mike Christian is the GOP hopeful for the race and I've known Mike for a long time; we used to hunt and consume adult beverages together "back in the day."  I think I may even have some film from my old TV show with Mike on a hunt with us.  He has survived the turmoil of the Randy Terrill/Debbe Leftwich disaster that sent Terrill to jail.  Now, he is gunning for the Sheriff's badge.  This will be a close nail-biter of a race to watch and it's anyone's guess as to who will win this one.  

Oklahoma County Clerk:  David Hooten surprised everyone and found himself in a runoff with Carolyn Caudill and then he defeated her in the runoff.  Embattled former Speaker of the House, Lance Cargill, helped run the campaign and it is a pretty significant one to win.  There is a lot of taxpayer dollars involved in that office and a whole lot more than one would suspect.  Garnering the endorsements of two previous governor's, David Hooten will be facing the perennial Libertarian candidate, Chris Powell.  Hooten will run away with this race and soundly defeat Powell.  What will be interesting to watch, however, will be who Hooten brings into the County Clerk's office to work with him.  Who will be his Chief Deputy?  That pick will set the stage for either reform, or more of the same.  

As far as the Congressional races go, expect the incumbents to win easily.  The Oklahoma Congressional Delegation will remain in the grasp of the GOP as will House and Senate seats in the Oklahoma Legislature.

What a world in which we live.  God help us.

Of course, these are just my opinions and I could be wrong, but I seriously doubt it.

Gorilla