Category Archives: Issues Blogs (2011-2014)

Education

Cox Responds to Questions About Charters, ALEC, Campaign Finances

Earlier this week I featured Dr. Freda Deskin’s answers to questions that I suggested in two earlier posts: The 3 Education Questions We Should Ask all Candidates for Public Office; and, Necessary Questions for Oklahoma Supt of Schools Candidates . 

She is in a Democratic Party Primary Runoff race with Dr. John Cox. Dr. John Cox Promo PicHe has responded to those same questions, and has some interesting answers. Some of those answers diverge significantly from Deskin’s.

I have included all questions from each blog post for readability. These are Cox’s answers as sent to me on Thursday, July 24th.

Continue reading Cox Responds to Questions About Charters, ALEC, Campaign Finances →

Education

Deskin First to Volunteer Answers to Questions About Charters — Campaign Finance

In two earlier posts I have raised education questions for candidates for any public office in Oklahoma, and specifically for Oklahoma Superintendent of  Schools.

Deskin Promo PicTo my surprise, Freda Deskin, volunteered her answers to both blog posts in her comments on my Google + timeline where I had posted the separate links. I did not solicit her responses.

Deskin is in a Democratic Party runoff with John Cox for state Supt. of Schools. Voting will be on August 26th. The winner will face Republican candidate Joy Hofmeister in November.

Continue reading Deskin First to Volunteer Answers to Questions About Charters — Campaign Finance →

Education

Barresi as Fallin’s Education Secretary — That OK With You?

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Some people just won’t go away when they should.

Barresi has revealed a lot in her recent self-righteous comments that I included in the post Barresi Misses the Fact that She Is the “Power”.  Those comments show us that she believes she and her allies are the righteous few – misunderstood geniuses – fighting against a stupid, corrupt rabble of teachers unions and administrators who are just trying to defend their turf at all costs.

Of course, she never seems to believe that her opponents may be the ones who are right.

Certainly too many education “reformers” fall into this category. While talking a “disruptive innovation” game, they bring only disruption and not for the sake of innovation.

Instead, it’s about the money.

Continue reading Barresi as Fallin’s Education Secretary — That OK With You? →

Education

Person of the Week – Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins

Judge Clay Jenkins, credit: The Scoop, Dallas News
Judge Clay Jenkins, credit: The Scoop, Dallas News

Dallas County, Texas Judge Clay Jenkins is coordinating a church — local government — Texas — federal government effort to develop temporary, humanitarian shelters for the flood of refugee children who have crossed the Texas border and are now in detention.

Continue reading Person of the Week – Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins →

Politics

Failure in Central America — When I Stopped Being a Reagan Republican

Like kindness, brutality changes lives. And it often changes lives with more permanence than kindness does.

Even though I was a witness to brutality from far away, it changed my life in the 1980s toward a new political course. It was when I stopped being a “Reagan Republican”.

Continue reading Failure in Central America — When I Stopped Being a Reagan Republican →

Politics

We Sponsored Central American Brutality for 60 Years — So Now the Refugee Children Come

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What has been a trickle of unaccompanied children arriving on our Southern border over the last few years, has now turned into a flood. And it is causing distress to both liberals and conservatives, albeit for different reasons.

But it didn’t come from out of the blue, as the Right Wing wants us to believe. Nor is it some Obama conspiracy to bring in more brown people, as the Right is saying now. Solid facts on this refugee crisis can be found here.

It was caused by specific overt and covert policies of the political Right Wing in the U.S., starting all the way back in the early 1950s. Those policies have produced a Central America today that is ravaged by poverty and violent gang control.

Continue reading We Sponsored Central American Brutality for 60 Years — So Now the Refugee Children Come →

Politics

The Best Buildings Do Not Wreck Their Owners

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Pano - Stage Center - 3

(All photos are by Brett Dickerson, copyright 2014 except the thrust stage photo.)

They are wrecking the Mummers Theater/Stage Center building in downtown Oklahoma City. It is likely because of some essential design flaws in the building itself. Often overlooked, those flaws caused it to be financially toxic to each of its owners. In addition, its bold design that made it so notable also made it a relic that could not be used for new purposes.

And so, the building that has wrecked its owners is being wrecked. Justice? Perhaps.

Continue reading The Best Buildings Do Not Wreck Their Owners →

Education

Barresi Misses the Fact That She Is the “Power”

IMG_0192Right on cue, she delivered.
  • Angry.
  • Self-righteous.
  • Martyr pose.

It’s just what we were expecting. Amazing.

There was a larger-than-usual crowIMG_0217d gathered at the Oklahoma State Board of Education meeting yesterday, June 26th. The room filled completely although the location had been changed to a huge Oklahoma Senate hearing room to accommodate it.

After some formalities, Supt. Barresi started off saying that she wanted to first make “some brief comments”.  Here is about the first 2 1/2 minutes of those opening remarks. If you can’t take even that much, just stop it and keep reading.

Continue reading Barresi Misses the Fact That She Is the “Power” →

Education

Necessary Questions for Oklahoma Supt of Schools Candidates

Congratulations to Joy Hofmeister for winning a tough Republican primary campaign. It was even tougher because Ms. “I’m-Not-A-Politician” pulled out every underhanded politician stunt her campaign thought that she could get by with.

The Democrats still have some sorting and choosing to do. Congratulations to John Cox and Freda Deskin for getting into the runoff. That part will come to a conclusion August 26th.

No matter what party these three represent, it is important to ask questions that will allow us to understand who might have the most influence on them later.

And that is important, isn’t it?

Continue reading Necessary Questions for Oklahoma Supt of Schools Candidates →

Education

Don’t Believe Right-Wing Rhetoric About “Teachers Unions” in Oklahoma

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The ads for Janet Barresi in the Oklahoma City TV market are almost surreal. Are they even talking about Oklahoma? Yes, they are. But I don’t recognize what they are describing.

Now to get the effect, use that deep, male, monster-truck-tractor-pull scary voice to say the words “teachers unionzzzzzzzzzz“. What? You mean there are for-real teachers unions in Oklahoma?

Continue reading Don’t Believe Right-Wing Rhetoric About “Teachers Unions” in Oklahoma →