Oklahoma
updated
6:40 a.m.
1. “Road of the Righteous” by Face To Face (from Face To Face vs. Dropkick Murphys [Split EP]) 2. “Don’t Change” by Face To Face (from Standards & Practices) 3. “Take Her Down” by The Lemonheads (from Creator) 4. “Sad Girl” by The Lemonheads (from Lick) 5. “No Sense” by The Riverdales (from The Riverdales [Bonus Tracks]) 6. “Riverdale Stomp” by The Riverdales (from Storm the Streets) 7. ...
Oklahoma Lefty - 6:40 a.m.
G l enn Beck's whining about nearly every idea this side of the nineteenth century is causing the Fox News know-nothing more static. Beck complained this week that some churches are preaching (and practicing) the idea of social justice. Beck urged such church members to leave these churches —as soon as possible. Beck, a Morman, seemed to forget that his own church believes in, yes, social ...
Alternative Tulsa - Sat 3:41 p.m.
Title: V for Vendetta ( IMDB , Wikipedia ) For some reason I didn’t see this film when it came out, even though I thought it looked good. I finally got around to checking it out from the library this week and boy was I not disappointed. What is most frightening about this film is that I could totally see this country ending up like England in the film. This isn’t an Obama-is-taking-...
Oklahoma Lefty - Sat 8:50 a.m.
1. “Loveless City” by The Heartdrops (from This is The Heartdrops) 2. “Gonna Be Around” by The Heartdrops (from East Side Drive) 3. “I Fell for You” by The Mr. T Experience (from Alcatraz) 4. “Ready Set Go” by The Mr. T Experience (from Milk Milk Lemonade) 5. “Donut” by Sinkhole (from Core Sample) 6. “Don’t Fail Me Now” by Sinkhole (from Core Sample) 7. “Pick ‘Em Up Truck” by The Smugglers ...
Oklahoma Lefty - Sat 8:50 a.m.
G otta hand it to Fox News . Instead of reporting things like facts, they just make up stuff and pass it along because—in an alternate universe somewhere— it could be true. The Fox News motto: Give the people news they agree with —who cares if it's correct. (Facts are for silly liberals!) The latest example involves t he very blonde but empty head of one Gretchen Carlson , pretending to ...
Alternative Tulsa - Fri 4:20 p.m.
P olitical sex scandals are pretty routine these days (unfortunately), so it's not like AT was really shocked today. But still…how many sex scandals come from the Great State of Utah , land of LDS clean living? No booze! No smokes! Not even coffee! Sure it was years ago, but the man's libido must have taken over and, well, she was cute and so what if she was only 15. Besid...
Alternative Tulsa - Fri 3:27 p.m.
Hailing from Boston, MA, the Deadly Sins play high energy punk rock that fans of everything from Dropkick Murphys to Hole could really get into. For more info on the band check them out on MySpace and PunkNews.org . ...
Oklahoma Lefty - Fri 3:04 p.m.
Al Mohler has posted a blog praising the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals for affirming the constitutionality of using the phrase "under God" in the pledge of allegiance and "In God We Trust" on our... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Fri 12:15 p.m.
Psalm 99 (New American Standard Bible) The LORD reigns, let the peoples tremble; He is enthroned above the cherubim, let the earth shake! The LORD is great in Zion, And He is exalted above all the... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Fri 10:22 a.m.
Psalm 25:6-10 (New American Standard Bible) Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and Your lovingkindnesses, For they have been from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth or my... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Fri 10:10 a.m.
The Oklahoma Peace House and OCU Oikos Scholars are inviting people to attend a March For Peace at 11 a.m. March 20. The march, which will form at the corner of NW 23rd Street and Blackwelder, will mark the seven-year anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq. There will be speakers, drumming and music. In general, many in the right-wing continue to distort the gruesome military occupatio...
Okie Funk - Fri 9:49 a.m. - 5 clicks 
1. “My Marina of Remote Lakes” by Druglords of the Avenues (from Sing Songs) 2. “Search Again” by Druglords of the Avenues (from Sing Songs) 3. “Sleepwalker” by The Copyrights (from Learn the Hard Way) 4. “The Company” by The Copyrights (from e Sound) 5. “I Dare You” by Dead To Me (from African Elephants) 6. “Three Chord Strut” by Dead To Me (from African Elephants) 7. “Cold Morning” by Eve...
Oklahoma Lefty - Fri 5:29 a.m.
O ur man Glenn Beck has stepped in it this time. Never one to think before speaking , Beck this week attacked churches that practice "social justice." Not surprisingly, some Christian churches and charities (Imagine: Christian charities! Beck's ears must be burning.) have reacted strongly against Beck's attack. Here's a brief example we found today: Beck's linking of socially co...
Alternative Tulsa - Thu 5:03 p.m.
A h, good ole Glenn Beck. A man so simple that he says whatever pops into his head . Even (or especially) when he knows he's right — which is all the time. Beck, who will peddling his paranoia in Tulsa on Saturday , this week urged Christians to abandon churches that practice something terrible—social justice. That's simply a code word (Beck claims) for communism . And Nati...
Alternative Tulsa - Thu 2:44 p.m. - 11 clicks
Thirty-eight years ago I was working on an undergraduate degree in criminology and corrections. The course I took on Constitutional Law was taught by a prominent local criminal defense lawyer. ... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Thu 10:51 a.m.
I’m a pretty liberal guy, okay more accurately I’m a liberal libertarian but liberal nonetheless. Yet I have realized that my wife and I are some of the most conservative in our parenting styles of the people that I know. We (my wife and I) are not Christians, I believe in the decriminalization/legalization of drugs, prostitution, and gambling, we both support gay marriage, we are passionate abo...
Oklahoma Lefty - Thu 8:26 a.m. - 2 clicks
Scott Reynolds will probably always be known as ALL’s second, and classic, lead singer. During his tenure in the band they released what some consider their magnum opus in Allroy’s Revenge which included what I consider to be one of the greatest pop songs ever written “She’s My Ex.” Since leaving ALL, Scott has lead Goodbye Harry and The Pavers and now works on solo projects and with his ba...
Oklahoma Lefty - Thu 8:26 a.m.
Today we’re doing a Hudson Falcons shuffle. 1. “Barrel of the Gun” (from American Fight Club) 2. “Come Out Ye Black & Tans” (from Desperation & Revolution) 3. “I Just Want to Dance” (from Desire to Burn) 4. “Back Out on the Road” (from Desire to Burn) 5. “The Right Way” (from La Famiglia) 6. “North Shore Bitch” (from Singles Collection 1997-2002) 7. “Pride” (Desperation & Revo...
Oklahoma Lefty - Thu 7:45 a.m.
"If I Were a Carpenter" by Dropkick Murphys This is a cover of an old Johnny Cash tune and the band is joined by Stephanie Dougherty (of the Deadly Sins and the third voice on the DKM song "The Dirty Glass"). Great stuff!!!! ...
Oklahoma Lefty - Thu 7:21 a.m.
The Peace House announces: Saturday, March 20 - - - Seven-year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. NW 23rd Street & Blackwelder, OKC (OCU,between Western & Penn Ave) 10:30: Drumming & Music (bring your drum) 11a.m.-Noon: RALLY: Speakers from student and faculty populations Noon: Peace March begins, returns to NW 23rd & Blackwelder Bring signs, banners, trumpets an...
Blue Oklahoma - Wed 9:40 p.m.
G lenn Beck and sidekick Sarah Palin will be in Tulsa soon to talk and talk and talk about all the things that are wrong with America. To hear them tell it, we're all going to hell in a hand basket. So before you plunk down your cold, hard cash to hear the ravings of Beck and Palin, we suggest you check up on some of Beck's more outrageous claims. The record isn't pretty. An entire ...
Alternative Tulsa - Wed 8:27 p.m. - 5 clicks
E ven people who don't know Samuel Barber's name probably know his music . That's because one of his pieces, "Adagio for Strings," continues to be widely performed. We remember it from the soundtrack of Oliver Stone's movie, Platoon. As NPR puts it, "It's become, in a way, our national music of mourning ." In honor of Barber's 100th birthday , NPR did a report on the composer's life and ...
Alternative Tulsa - Wed 7:25 p.m. - 4 clicks
As one of the reddest of the Red States , Oklahoma has plenty of conservative voices. (True, a lot of them aren't very good , but we do have plenty to go around.) Today we learned of a new progressive voice in the Sooner state. It's called Oklahoma Citizen and—what do you know?—it's literate, thoughtful and active. (Imagine that!) It's worth reading. Check it out here . (H/t to Kurt ...
Alternative Tulsa - Wed 2:02 p.m. - 6 clicks
As part of our ongoing series in The Edmond Sun, we have published the first of the session's legislative scorecards. Visit http://www.edmondsun.com/local... to read it for yourself. Bills tracked were: HB 2745: Establishes voluntary licensing of dog and cat breeders. HB 3393: Provides scholarships for special-needs children to any accredited school. HB 3302: Creates an energy-stabilization...
Blue Oklahoma - Wed 12:04 p.m. - 5 clicks
W hat sort of religious person would want to help the poor and the sick? That sort of ministry sounds, well, so Christ-like. But don't tell Glenn Beck , who this week slammed those horrible Christians who would bother to actually help the unfortunate. These misguided folks practice "social justice," a philosophy that really isn't about assisting the poor but is (secretly) a Communist plot!...
Alternative Tulsa - Wed 11:07 a.m. - 2 clicks
Here is the John Hughes tribute from the Oscars ( parts 1 and parts 2 ). PopEater did a story on the tribute as well. The work of John Hughes has had an enormous influence and impact on my life and for my generation he helped define who we are. ...
Oklahoma Lefty - Wed 8:21 a.m.
Hailing from Fort Collins, CO, 10-4 Eleanor sound a lot like the great unsung pop punk bands of the 1990s (see Sinkhole and Sicko). For more info on the band check them out on MySpace . Here is a live video for their song "It's Alive." ...
Oklahoma Lefty - Wed 8:21 a.m.
Corey Haim died early this morning of an apparent drug overdose (but an autopsy is still pending). Corey was a teen idol in the 1980s and was in such classics as The Lost Boys , Lucas , License to Drive , and Dream a Little Dream . Rest well Corey. ...
Oklahoma Lefty - Wed 7:42 a.m. - 4 clicks
"As One" by Dropkick Murphys This is one of the songs that I want played at my funeral. Here are the lyrics . Tonight my son I'll heed the call. If you're to live, then I must fall. Just give me one more moment, another walk out in the sun one more day to find some justice with your shadow by my side Cuff me, tie me, lock me down, cause I'll be back to go another round As one- my blo...
Oklahoma Lefty - Wed 7:42 a.m.
O ne the most ill-informed people in public life , Fox News windbag Glenn Beck , comes to Tulsa this week, ready to fire both barrels at everything he doesn't like. (Expect a very, very long whine.) That being the case, we want to do our part to let the public know how wise and thoughtful Beck really is. Today, for example, Beck attacked the U.S. census and its questions abou...
Alternative Tulsa - Tue 8:09 p.m. - 9 clicks
Last week, several dozen heroic Oklahoma college students showed us what it means to be committed to doing the right thing, and what it takes to hold a powerful elected official to account (at least if that official is Tom Coburn.) They are responsible for doing what 99 fellow Senators could not: They got Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) to end his hold on a bill aimed at neutralizing the terrorist...
DailyKos (Oklahoma) - Tue 7:48 p.m. - 8 clicks
Sometime this week, likely tomorrow, the state House of Representatives will consider House Bill 1530, a bill to require a semester of health education in middle school. Although you've likely heard all this before, our state's dismal health indicators are what really drive this bill. Oklahoma is one of the nation's least-healthy states. We rank dead last in heart disease, mental illness and nut...
Blue Oklahoma - Tue 1:03 p.m. - 5 clicks
Podcast (34MB wav) of Dr. Bruce Prescott's 3-7-10 "Religious Talk" radio interview with Rabbi Russell Fox. We talk about Jewish identity, Jews for Jesus, and the work of the Lammed Institute. ...
Mainstream Baptist - Tue 9:27 a.m. - 2 clicks
The Dropkick Murphys are releasing their second live album next week and in preparation (and thanks to my good friend Steve ) I have been on a DKM kick. One thing that I have always wondered as a long-time fan of the band, what would have happened if original lead singer Mike McColgan had not left the band to become a fire fighter? It is my theory that DKM would have become a bigger band...
Oklahoma Lefty - Tue 8:43 a.m. - 2 clicks
Is the fact that they are legally bound to do whatever is most profitable; otherwise the shareholders can sue the board of directors. This is a problem because often the actions that are the most profitable aren’t the ones that are ethical, moral, or plain good for the company, its customers, employees, and shareholders. NPR’s Morning Edition did a story today on businesses that desire to pro...
Oklahoma Lefty - Tue 8:30 a.m.
According to this story , the Vatican has remained silent on the incredibly anti-gay legislation being proposed in the country of Uganda. From the story – Pope Benedict XVI met with the Roman Catholic hierarchy of Uganda at the Vatican last Friday and delivered a speech summing up what he saw as the main tasks of the church in the East African nation -- but made no mention of the draconian ant...
Oklahoma Lefty - Tue 5:48 a.m. - 2 clicks
Today we’re doing a Dropkick Murphys shuffle. 1. “Gonna Be a Blackout Tonight” (from Blackout) 2. “Never Alone” (from Do or Die) 3. “Memories Remain” (from Do or Die) 4. “Fields of Athenry” (from Blackout) 5. “Billy Bones” (from The Singles Collection) 6. “Tessie” (from The Warrior’s Code) 7. “Good Rats” (from Sing Loud, Sing Proud) 8. “Eurotrash” (from The Boys on the Docks) 9. “Far Aw...
Oklahoma Lefty - Tue 5:48 a.m.
C ould urban land in Tulsa be used for free public orchards? It's an interesting question, one that would supplement the growing trend of public gardens . For city dwellers, it's a way of reconnecting with the natural patterns of growing and harvesting . USA Today reports that more cities are joining the public orchard movement . Learn more about the idea here . ...
Alternative Tulsa - Mon 8:42 p.m. - 11 clicks
Today we’re doing a shuffle of albums released from the 90s. 1. “Only in Dreams” by Weezer (from Weezer: The Blue Album) 2. “Until the End of the World” by U2 (from Achtung Baby) 3. “Too Much Passion” by The Smithereens (from Blown to Smithereens: The Best of The Smithereens) 4. “Knowledge” by Green Day (from 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours) 5. “Letterbox” by They Might Be Giants (from Flood...
Oklahoma Lefty - Mon 3:02 p.m.
Andrew Sullivan has an excellent and thoughtful post entitled The Death of Conservatism, Ctd . Money Quote – In this worldview - which is now the worldview in American political analysis - ideology has infiltrated everything, it has saturated public and private, it has invaded even something sacred like religious faith, in which the mysteries of existence have been distilled in writing or even ...
Oklahoma Lefty - Mon 3:02 p.m.
Dalen Jackson, academic dean and professor of biblical studies at the Baptist Seminary of Kentucky, recently had an Op-Ed published in the Lexington Herald-Leader warning the Christians that they... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Mon 3:02 p.m.
T hanks to Tulsa's Circle Cinema , Oklahomans can get a inside look at Charles Darwin's life of ideas , especially his long struggle to write On the Origin of Species . The film, Creation , opened February 12 (Darwin's 201st birthday) . It follows the famous English scientist at home, providing a portrait of his passionate marriage and his grief over the death of a beloved daught...
Alternative Tulsa - Mon 3:02 p.m. - 6 clicks
T his post has nothing to do with any of our usual concerns, but we want to post it anyway. The topic is jobs of yesteryear , which we found on the NPR website. We all know that jobs change over time , but it's interesting to review some of the occupations that once were, but are no more. Two quick examples: Telegraph operators and copy boys . Check out the NPR slideshow of obsolete j...
Alternative Tulsa - Mon 3:02 p.m.
A ltTulsa has been a consistent critic of fear-based campaigning . Now, at last, even Republican leaders are pulling back from the GOP's latest round of demonizing by the Republican Right. Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell has gone on record against GOP tactics. So has Orrin Hatch , the Utah Republican. We applaud these men and their rejection of destructive, hyper-partisan rhetori...
Alternative Tulsa - Sun 2:07 p.m. - 12 clicks
T he excesses of the Republican Right are considerable and, often, outrageous. Now this list includes exploiting terror to score political points. The culprit is none other than former Veep daughter Liz Cheney , a person with a a less-than-firm grip on political reality. Her latest screed is an attack on a handful of Justice Department lawyers who once defended terror suspects. Heavens! A l...
Alternative Tulsa - Sun 1:44 p.m. - 3 clicks
S ome on the conservative end of the spectrum claim that racism is dead, that we now live in a post-racial society. We suspect otherwise. In fact, there's plenty of racism to go around , much of it directed toward the president and his wife. Here's the latest example : NASHVILLE, Tenn. - After accusations of racism and calls for him to step down, a prominent local businessman sa...
Alternative Tulsa - Sun 11:22 a.m. - 3 clicks
Oklahoma leads the nation in the per capita number of women serving prison sentences, a dubious national distinction. Many of the women in prison are serving time for nonviolent offenses. Some of these women are mothers, and their incarcerations often lead to family dysfunction, which creates even more problems. Recognizing the problem, the Oklahoma House passed a bill last week that c...
Blue Oklahoma - Sun 10:47 a.m. - 7 clicks
Spinner is reporting that Thin Lizzy’s Live & Dangerous topped a recent poll that was trying to determine the top 40 live albums of all time. The story only includes the top 20, but based on that I have to say that this is a horrible list. The only acts on the list worth anything, IMHO, are The Who, Queen, Cheap Trick, and AC/DC. The rest of the list is your atypical classic rock that h...
Oklahoma Lefty - Sun 8:47 a.m. - 2 clicks
I’ve been listening to the Modern Scholar course Rings, Swords, and Monsters: Exploring Fantasy Literature again and was thinking about what I would cover if I got a chance to teach a class on fantasy. Last night I began a rough outline for the class, but there’s a problem… there is a lot of fantasy literature that I haven’t read yet and I’m not sure on what I should make sure to read and what ...
Oklahoma Lefty - Sun 8:47 a.m. - 2 clicks
Today we’re doing songs from the 1990s. 1. “Birdhouse in Your Soul” by They Might Be Giants (from Flood) 2. “Slunk” by Smashing Pumpkins (from Lull) 3. “Alison’s Starting to Happen” by The Lemnoheads (from It’s a Shame About Ray) 4. “Sexual Healing” by Soul Asylum (from No Alternative) 5. “Star 69” by R.E.M. (from Monster) 6. “Stuart and the Ave.” by Green Day (from Insomniac) 7. “Fountai...
Oklahoma Lefty - Sun 6:08 a.m.
I saw this quiz this morning and just had to give it a go. My Results – Congratulations! You are an ISFP! ISFP: Introverted, Sensing, Feeling, Perceiving You are sensitive, friendly, easy going, and kind. Non-confrontational, the ISFP personality is committed to your beliefs but will not force opinions on others. You are most successful when you are able to work at your own pace. ISFP...
Oklahoma Lefty - Mar 6 - 2 clicks
Today we’re doing a Buffalo Tom shuffle. 1. “For All to See” (from No Alternative) 2. “I’m Not There” (from Let Me Come Over) 3. “Postcard” (from Smitten) 4. “Clobberred” (from Sleepy Eyed) 5. “Summer” (from Sleepy Eyed) 6. “Dry Land” (from Big Red Letter Day) 7. “Pendleton” (from Three Easy Pieces) 8. “Latest Monkey” (from Big Red Letter Day) 9. “Crutch” (from Let Me Come Over) 10. “Th...
Oklahoma Lefty - Mar 6
A ltTulsa likes to hang with artists . They're a quirky bunch —which is probably why we like them. Which brings us the Momentum show in Oklahoma City, a show in for Sooner state artists under 30. It's a cool idea . We like it. We've posted a link to a NewsOK video here . ...
Alternative Tulsa - Mar 5 - 7 clicks
Keith Gaddie is publishing unsubstantiated, self-serving and silly articles criticizing the Oklahoma political blogosphere. Gaddie , a political science professor at the University of Oklahoma, has published two articles recently in the Oklahoma Gazette that purport to give daily pageviews and backlinks to conservative and liberal blogs. The articles can be found here and her...
Blue Oklahoma - Mar 5 - 8 clicks
Police asked a family in New Jersey to clothe their snow sculpture after their neighbors complained that it was too risque. Bad form. I agree with Ms Gonzalez. It's much worse with the bikini... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Mar 5 - 4 clicks
G l enn Beck is coming to Tulsa (yawn…) later this month. But Beck's fans many might want to consider the man's Montana-sized ego. To wit: Beck has repeatedly compared himself to great thinkers including (get this!) Socrates, Paul Revere, Ben Franklin, and Martin Luther King. Wow! It's silly, but true to the man. He's clueless, all hot air and fear. The dumb details here . ...
Alternative Tulsa - Mar 5 - 6 clicks
T he zanies on the Far Right can't be bothered with ordinary political speech. No boring policy debates for these folks. Instead, they have opted for hyperbole and fear —making claims about President Obama that don't pass the truth test. It's sad, and it says more about the fear-mongers and race-baiters than it does about the president. The good folks at The Daily Beast have looked at ...
Alternative Tulsa - Mar 4 - 4 clicks
T here are many legitimate reasons to complain about or protest government actions . Then again, some reasons are nutty , which is exactly what we have now in Indiana. Using a highly questionable interpretation of the Tenth Amendment, these folks say they can claim their own sovereign status , which (conveniently) means that they don't have to pay taxes. Cool—and quite idiotic. The state ...
Alternative Tulsa - Mar 4 - 3 clicks
K arl Rove is out with his new book. To the surprise of absolutely no one, Rove is still spinning the story of how the Bush team got us into war. Thankfully, David Corn has taken a look at Rove's fish story and found some problems, to put it politely. To put it bluntly, the Bush folks lied. Writing in Mother Jones , Corn sums up the problem: Rove can argue that in the run-up to ...
Alternative Tulsa - Mar 4 - 5 clicks
T he Tea Party folks are having a bad week . Their candidates were duds in Texas this week. (This raises an interesting question: If you can't win in Texas, where can you win?) Now a leading conservative voice is dumping on their fake outrage and actual extremism . On the Colbert Report, David Brooks , Times columnist, compared them to hippies, but these folks are the "Wal-Mart hippies." ...
Alternative Tulsa - Mar 4
A ltTulsa doesn't claim to have the best background in classical music . But we like to keep abreast of all things musical, which is how we come to Frederic Chopin. It was the composer's 200th birthday the other day and in honor of the occasion, NPR has set up a site with video clips of great pianists playing the master's work . The link is here . Needless to say, it's worth a ...
Alternative Tulsa - Mar 4 - 5 clicks
F acts don't change, right? The Mississippi River still flows down the middle of the country and the height of Mount Everest is always the same. Or is it? Turns out that many facts do change . The "facts" of the weather change all the time, of course. Even the height of Mount Everest has changed, thanks to more accurate measuring devices. But people don't always adjust to some changes...
Alternative Tulsa - Mar 3 - 2 clicks
The state bill requiring women receive an ultrasound of the fetus before an abortion is about the government intimidating women into not having the procedure here. If it seems like we've been here before, it's because we have. Last year, the Oklahoma Legislature passed a bill that contained the same provision, but it was ruled unconstitutional because it violated a rule that requires bills con...
Blue Oklahoma - Mar 3 - 8 clicks
Soner Cagaptay, a Senior Fellow at one of America's most prestigious neo-conservative think tanks, published a couple essays today (here and here) defaming the Turkish Islamic philosopher and scholar... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Mar 1 - 3 clicks
Add David Blatt, who maintains the OK Policy Blog , to the growing list of people who find flaws with proposed legislation that would allow outside health insurance companies to sell coverage exempt from state mandates. Blatt argues Senate Bill 2046, introduced by state Sen. Bill Brown, a Broken Arrow Republican, is part of a national effort to create interstate competition when it comes to...
Blue Oklahoma - Mar 1 - 7 clicks
The U.S. Supreme Court has denied Haskell County's request that it review and overturn the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals' decision that declared unconstitutional the 10 Commandments monument at the... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Mar 1 - 2 clicks
USC News has published a story about the results of a USC study published in the February issue of Personality and Social Psychology Review. The study conducted a meta-analysis of 55 independent... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Mar 1 - 2 clicks
…NBC premieres the most ill-conceived show in the network's history, The Tonight Show Without Conan O'Brien . And that's saying something from the network of Supertrain , The Man from Atlantis , and Fear Factor . The tag is the new department reserved for NBC and KFOR (Oklahoma City affiliate) exploits. ...
Life and Deatherage - Mar 1
Looking out my back window at about 2:15 PM today I caught a rare sight with my camera. Wild turkeys and deer trek through our yard on a daily basis. This is the first time I have seen them... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 28
Just as Kylene and I were about leave the back window, I snapped this picture. It is the most unusual sight we have ever seen in our back yard. I frequently see deer stand on their haunches to get... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 28 - 2 clicks
Yesterday a 4.4 magnitude Earthquake struck in Lincoln County, Oklahoma north of Shawnee. About 40 miles Northwest of my house as a crow flies. It was the second largest earthquake ever recorded in... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 28 - 5 clicks
Why do state legislators continue to want to dictate what women do with their bodies when it comes to reproduction issues? Why do they continue to crusade against science? On Thursday, the Oklahoma House passed a bill, sponsored by state Rep. Rebecca Hamilton, an Oklahoma City Democrat, which would make it illegal for state fertility clinics to compensate women for donating eggs. Under...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 27 - 6 clicks
Obama's Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Parternships held a conference call today to make final changes and to vote on the recommendations and reports that they have prepared for the Obama... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 26 - 2 clicks
In a scathing editorial at Ethics Daily, Robert Parham says the regents at Baylor "watered down the definition of authentic church membership" when they introduced Kenneth Starr as President of the... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 26 - 2 clicks
Britt Towery had a very good Op-Ed on separation of church and state published in the Brownwood Bulletin yesterday. After summarizing the ignoble history uniting church and state from Constantine up... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 26 - 2 clicks
(We need to get rid of Oklahoma City's antiquated liquor laws! Read DocHoc's commentary this week in the Oklahoma Gazette , the state's finest alternative newspaper.) The Oklahoma Policy Institute , operated by David Blatt, has emerged as the state's most credible outside source on budget information and analysis and has been praised by both conservative and progressives. In a recent fu...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 25 - 4 clicks
The Washington Post is reporting that the Chicago Council of Global Affairs has made recommendations that the U.S. take steps to fill the "God gap" in its foreign policy. Rather than ignoring the... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 24 - 2 clicks
Will U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn go unchallenged by a viable Democratic candidate in his 2010 re-election bid? I discern two lines of thinking among local progressives over the issue. (1) Don't run a candidate because it will be a waste of financial resources and energy. Unless the political landscape changes drastically, Coburn, pictured right, will easily win re-election. He's the darling ...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 24 - 6 clicks
Last week, two conservative Republican Senators, James Inhofe of Oklahoma and John Barrasso of Wyoming, called for an independent probe of the IPCC -- the international scientific body that summarizes the latest climate science -- and asked the Senate to halt all climate action until that happens. The senators claim that because there were some errors included in the IPCC's 2007 report ...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 23 - 2 clicks
Okie Funk has been voted the state's Best Political Blog (Liberal) in the 2009 Okie Blog Awards competition. This is the third award won by Okie Funk in the annual competition. The blog also won Best Political Blog in 2006 and 2007. The runner-up in the liberal political blog category this year went to Alternative Tulsa . Batesline won the Best Political Blog (Conservative). The Be...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 22 - 3 clicks
A local judge recently ruled a draconian 2009 anti-abortion law is unconstitutional, but for pro-choice advocates it's a bittersweet victory. Oklahoma County District Judge Dan Owens ruled that legislators violated the state constitution when they placed multiple laws in a single piece of legislation. The ruling struck down a law that made it illegal for doctors to perform abortions on w...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 21 - 5 clicks
CNN is reporting that young people born after 1980 are significantly less likely to be affiliated with a faith tradition than those born between 1965 and 1980. One in four American millennials --... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 19 - 2 clicks
(Check out the discussion about this post on Daily Kos .) The next time you hear some local Second Amendment distorter talk about the government's efforts to put more restrictions on guns, remember this: Oklahoma has some of the least restrictive weapon laws in the nation. According to a new report by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, which advocates for stricter gun laws, the ...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 19 - 6 clicks
As most of you are well aware, last week was a snow week in Washington, DC, and the odds are pretty good that there's something like that going on for you as well. Our good friends in the conservative community have seized upon the moment as proof that this whole "global warming" thing is just a big scam perpetrated by the likes of Al Gore and his Legion Of Weather Nazis; their mission being only...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 18 - 2 clicks
Charlie Johnson has posted a blog challenging newly elected Baylor President Kenneth Starr to host an all day meeting with Texas Baptist pastors and answer questions about his commitment to our... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 18
Earlier in the month I had a series of scheduled doctor appointments to check on the progress of my eventual deterioration and decay. I'm pleased to report that I am not decaying at any faster rate than would normally be expected for a person my age who more or less types for a living. Heart condition is stable, everything else is stable. We made one slight medication change that I'm starting ...
Life and Deatherage - Feb 17
The Oklahoma Policy Institute has published an insightful research brief that calls for more transparency regarding the state's numerous tax exemptions. The brief, titled "Let There Be Light: Making Oklahoma's Tax Expenditures More Transparent and Accountable," points out the huge reduction in revenue because of the exemptions, which are known as tax expenditures. According to a summary of ...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 17 - 4 clicks
During his time as Independent Counsel investigating the legality of President Clinton's Whitewater investments, Kenneth Starr, newly appointed President of Baylor University, often stood in the... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 17 - 4 clicks
The Baptist Standard has published a story portraying Texas Baptists as "cautiously optimistic" about the possibility that Kenneth Starr can bring unity to Baylor Baptists. The need to qualify... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 16 - 3 clicks
A Senate subcommittee has approved sale of the state-backed workers' comp insurance provider, CompSource Oklahoma, and a House committee will consider the matter Wednesday. Rep. Dan Sullivan, R-Tulsa, has a CompSource sale bill conveniently assigned to the Economic Development & Financial Services Committee, which he chairs. Rep. Sullivan is the point man for workers' comp reform in the House jus...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 15 - 3 clicks
The Oklahoman editorial page continues to use false comparisons to attack Democrats. On Feb. 1, I published a post criticizing an editorial that absurdly compared the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans four years ago to the country's response to the recent Haiti earthquake. The editorial's point was that President Barack Obama was doing as bad of a job rescu...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 15 - 3 clicks
Last month, I encouraged you all to donate to Doctors Without Borders to help with the massive needs in Haiti, after an earthquake pretty much destroyed the impoverished nation’s capital city and killed an estimated 230,000 people , as many deaths as in the massive Asian tsunami in 2004. I chose DWB because of long-standing reasons to avoid donating to the American Red Cross (ARC)...
Life and Deatherage - Feb 15
Blood Done Sign My Name a film inspired by true events in Oxford, North Carolina will be in theaters beginning February 19th. Based on the autobiography and Master's thesis of Tim Tyson at Duke... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 15
The Waco Tribune is reporting that Kenneth Starr, the former independent counsel who politicized the office of independent counsel and orchestrated the impeachment of former President Bill Clinton,... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 15 - 5 clicks
This is how, for the most part, the GOP responds to global warming: Everytime it snows or gets really cold, it mocks former Vice President Al Gore. Oklahoma's own U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, of course, is the leading mocker, but now even his family is getting in on the fun. During the recent Washington D.C. snowstorm, Inhofe's daughter, son-in-law and their children built a replica of an ...
Blue Oklahoma - Feb 13 - 3 clicks
Newswires are abuzz today with a story about coins that the Chilean Mint printed with the word "Chile" misspelled. The coins have become collector's items but the manager of the mint was... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 12 - 4 clicks
A lot of intelligent people seem to wonder how things like this can happen in the New York Times : You might think it impossible for any newspaper — let alone the one-time “paper of record” — to run a story raising “accusations of scientific sloppiness” about the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that never quotes a single climate scientist . ...
Life and Deatherage - Feb 9 - 2 clicks
Rick Scarborough, former fundamentalist candidate for President of the Baptist General Convention of Texas and key leader in the breakaway Southern Baptists of Texas, demonstrated how close racism is... ...
Mainstream Baptist - Feb 8 - 3 clicks
Andrew Sullivan reported this last December. Just the other day, Politico stated that Sen. Coburn helped sponsor a resolution condemning Uganda's law. Far more insightful is Edwin Okong's analysis of the situation in his article, "Why Ugandans Embrace U.S. Christian Right's Anti-Gay Agenda". excerpt: In other words, having failed to turn the United States into a true "Nation under Go...
PhotoTune - Feb 6 - 7 clicks
