Commentary

Issues of affirmative action and racial integration are again in the public eye. The recent Supreme Court decision in Meredith v. Jefferson County Board of Education and also a Seattle case are lauded as progress toward a race-neutral society and decried as overturning Brown v. the Board of Education. Closer to home, in Oklahoma, expect […]

Call it “reportitis” or report burnout, but Oklahomans have to be tired of hearing about all the latest studies and rankings that show the state has major problems.   One of the most recent reports by The Commonwealth Fund shows the state tied with Mississippi for worst overall health care performance in the nation. Mississippi? […]

In health care, we currently have choice for those who can afford it and government subsidies for those who cannot to help them go to public or private hospitals. What we lack is a sufficient level of universality ” the working class gets left out. Meanwhile, in education, we have universality for public schools, but […]

If everything Midas touched turned to gold, then surely everything George W. Bush touches turns to blood. He now has accomplished something that no other U.S. president can claim: starting a Palestinian civil war. The others were hoping for a unified Palestinian state.   In fact, civil war is one of the president’s most successful […]

Several recent stories highlight the inefficiency of government and the often tragic results that follow. By April 20, the Oklahoma Department of Human Services had learned about a day care program operator who had hit a child with a flyswatter. Worse, the operator had a history of child care violations.   DHS delayed closing the […]

In a May 25 editorial, Gov. Brad Henry encouraged readers to “see Oklahoma first” this summer, and soon I will be sending the “Read Y’All” governor an invoice for a replacement keyboard. You see, I spit coffee out of my mouth with such velocity upon reading his comment that my keyboard was forced to find […]

“Front-loaded.” “First, at all costs.” “Super Tuesday.” “Super-Duper Tuesday.” If you haven’t already heard these buzz words, get ready.   Just eight months from now, on Feb. 5, 2008, the atmosphere will be positively pulsating with media coverage and blog talk of early presidential primary elections being held in more than 20 states, including Oklahoma. […]

Oklahoma County District Judge Richard Freeman’s decision a decade ago to ban the Academy Award-winning film “The Tin Drum” still goes down as one of the most embarrassing moments in local history.   Freeman might as well have issued a judicial decree proclaiming only religious folks and meth-lab cooks would be welcomed henceforth in Oklahoma […]

I have discovered true misery. All it takes is a case of old-fashioned, “killer-diller” flu ” the kind that can be endured only if you curl up in a fetal position and sleep ” combined with a sick dog that needs medicine, meals and doors opened to the back yard approximately 20 times per day. […]

Another Memorial Day has come and gone, but instead of a sobering reminder that war is hell and requires the ultimate sacrifice, we are more disconnected from the war in Iraq than ever. Most Americans don’t know that May was one of the deadliest months, or that the surge has produced nothing but a surge […]