Commentary

It’s the Christmas season ” be careful what hate-crime legislation you ask for.   The murder of Steven Domer, 62, was and is a heinous, barbarous act by, allegedly, a couple bottom-feeders bent on the destruction of human life. And why? We are not really sure just yet, but evidence thus far indicates that the […]

  Arguments ad nauseam over who is number one in football, and why the Bowl Championship Series is the Great Satan have overshadowed a much more important debate in Oklahoma about what kind of state we really live in, and why we refuse to add “sexual orientation” to our hate-crime laws. It took the murder […]

Some Oklahoma lawmakers are trying to keep secrets from leaking out of the state Capitol. Behind closed doors and with no accountability, local governments and state agencies are hiring lobbyists to push for more spending and increased taxes. But legislators, agencies and other government entities don’t want you to know how much of the public’s […]

Oklahoma’s new illegal immigration bill, considered one of the strictest such laws in the country, should become a catalyst for state leaders from diverse political backgrounds to come together to oppose it and educate the public about its unintended effects.   Those leaders opposed to House Bill 1804, now the Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection […]

Oklahoma and Oklahoma City have been enjoying several years of prosperity. Some of the credit goes to former Oklahoma City Mayor Ron Norick for his visionary leadership on MAPS. Norick convinced voters that taxing themselves would give the city new life. Few politicians ever have been willing to promote a tax increase ” and lived […]

I am not a basketball fan. I do not follow the NBA and only pay attention to college basketball in March. Yet, I am keeping a keen eye on recent developments with the Seattle SuperSonics’ potential move to Oklahoma City.   Already I am hoping against hope that I can go to games with friends […]

The conversation at a pastoral conference in the Northeast some years ago went something like this:    “Pastor, you head up one of the largest yet poorest churches in the region and today, you’re dressed in the finest apparel and you drive one of the nicest and most expensive cars here.”   “Yes, son, that […]

There are plenty of things to be worried about these days, but few of them are as frightening as what is happening in Pakistan. Right after Sept. 11, 2001, when President George W. Bush saddled up to fight the war on terror and “smoke out” Osama bin Laden, then-Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage is […]

It is a slow news week for politics, so Dr. Stones pulled out the “little smart pill machine” to look into the year to come:   Jan. 3, 2008: In a stunning upset, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee wins the Iowa Caucus. He announces “ultramarathoner” Dean Karnazes as his running mate, “not that being a […]

When city officials recently dedicated a Bricktown alley in honor of The Flaming Lips, they did more than just honor a local rock band that has become world famous.   They also sent this clear and long overdue message to the city’s artistic and creative community: We want you here.   Just a few years […]