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By Charles M. Phipps on November 27th, 2017 
There’s nothing like an election to show how much value people place on their principles. For those on the left, casting a vote for the most politically selfish of reasons is effortless since the left has no principles. Those on the right used to be guided by conservative principles, but it seems to be becoming more common for the right to abandon principle in favor of the same politically selfish reason exhibited by the left. Win the seat, at all costs, and the character of your candidate is irrelevant.
The dictionary defines principles as “an accepted or professed rule of action or conduct.” For those on the left, the only accepted or professed rule of conduct is to use an elected position to promote leftist ideals and programs. Any degenerate who does that will always be voted for, defended and supported by those on the left. Bill Clinton is the chief example of this premise with many others on […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on November 16th, 2017 
After the recent mass shootings in Sutherland Springs, Texas, and California, the media, Democrats and the leftist cabal in Hollywood went on their usual rants of demanding something be done. the knee-jerk responses to any shooting came as expected, with all the usual suspects putting out their same-old press releases, tweets, and editorials. All they need do is change the date on them.
It’s hard to take them seriously when gun-grabbers continually demand that “something be done” but never say what the ‘something’ is. They never get specific because they don’t have a clue what to do. It’s always interesting to me that lefties continually blame the availability of guns for mass shootings, but never want to discuss the decay of society that has fostered an environment friendly to those bent on mass murder. They never want to discuss the decay because their leftist ideals and programs are responsible for it.
So they blame the guns and demand “something […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on November 14th, 2017 
Since its passage in 1992, tax & spenders in the Oklahoma legislature have been continually frustrated by the restrictions placed on them by State Question 640 and this year’s special session of the legislature is highlighting that disdain. After the largest tax increase in a century failed to receive the required three-fourths vote for passage, proponents of House Bill 1054X were quick to complain about the three-fourths requirement placed on the legislature by State Question 640.
House Speaker Charles McCall (R-Atoka) called SQ640 a “high hurdle.” Yes, and it was intended to be such.
While the House members were on the floor debating HB 1054X I heard one representative actually complain about the three-fourths requirement, saying that it would only be fair if a three-fourths vote was also required to lower taxes. I wish I’d noted which one of our elected sages had the chutzpah to actually say that on the floor of the House.
I noted a column about […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on August 12th, 2017 
A question from David Van Risseghem on his Facebook page got me thinking. He asked, “Hey? Is the impending special session being called to help folks quit smoking? Or just to get more money?”
Very quick background for those who don’t know – During the last Oklahoma legislative session a bill was passed enacting a $1.50 per pack ‘cessation fee.’ Senate Bill 845, the Smoking Cessation and Prevention Act of 2017, was designed to bring in about $215 million into the state coffers. Earlier this week the state Supreme Court ruled the bill violates the Oklahoma Constitution for various reasons that are completely correct but not relevant to the discussion here.
Now the question is what to do about the $215 million in taxes (note – taxes, not ‘fees’) that the stat will not be receiving, but was included by the legislature in the 2017-2018 budget appropriations. Conventional wisdom seems to be that the governor will call for a special […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on August 10th, 2017 
I’ll never understand the celebrity worship in this country. Someone makes a few movies, stars in a television show or has some hit songs and all of a sudden people are falling prostrate before the celebrity and swearing total emotional devotion. Celebrity worship played a role in Donald Trump being elected president and even he seemed to be aware of it, saying that he could shoot someone on 5th Avenue and he wouldn’t lose any supporters.
And now there is a lot of talk about electing Kid Rock (real name Robert Ritchie) to the U.S. Senate from the state of Michigan. Seriously? Why? What is it about this man that appeals to people, politically? When word first broke of his possible candidacy, I was stunned at the number of people who seem to think it’s a great idea. Even Texas Governor Greg Abbott seemed excited about the possibility of Senator Ritchie.
IT’S HAPPENING! New poll has Kid Rock […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on July 31st, 2017 
After Senate Republicans failed to pass a bill last week repealing major parts of Obamacare, including the individual mandate, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee sent an interesting tweet that has been getting a lot of attention.
Time to repeal 17th Amendment. Founders had it right-Senators chosen by state legislatures. Will work for their states and respect 10th amid
— Gov. Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) July 28, 2017
In an age when a lot of people probably couldn’t even tell you who their own representatives are, I would not expect most people to know about the 17th Amendment and how it changed the way Senators are elected. To save you having to Google it, the 17th Amendment was ratified in 1913 and established the election of Senators by the people. Previously, Senators were elected by state legislatures.
To my mind, the 17th Amendment is just another nail in federalism’s coffin.
When the founders wrote the Constitution, one of their concerns […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on May 17th, 2017 
In every movie and television episode I can think of where the protagonist somehow travels to a parallel universe, one of the chief differences is that those who are good and bad have swapped roles. I’m outing myself as a Trekkie here, but the most notable example I can think of is the original Star Trek series episode, Mirror, Mirror, in which Captain Kirk and others accidentally swap universes with their counterparts. Kirk suddenly finds that the Federation is a conquering empire and his ship, the Enterprise, is a battleship sent on a mission of domination and murder.
I haven’t yet worked out the science of it how it happened but I think I may have been transported to a parallel universe.
For weeks now the news from the Oklahoma state capitol building has been proposal after proposal to increase ‘revenues’ by various methods. Let’s pause for a moment here and dispel the euphemism, ‘revenues,’ and call it by its […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on March 31st, 2017 
Of the seven people running for Oklahoma County Sheriff, it’s hard to imagine that any of them could have a worse record than Mike Christian. If you live in Oklahoma County I’m sure you’ve been receiving his almost daily mailers touting the Purple Heart award he received as an OHP trooper. As if that makes him qualified to be our sheriff. But there are a lot of things in Mike Christian’s background that will never be on his mailers because they show dishonesty, unethical behavior and just plain shadiness.
Here’s what he doesn’t want you to know.
NewsOK – The Republican candidate for Oklahoma County sheriff was disciplined while a state trooper for misconduct involving a female police cadet and for lying during an internal affairs investigation, a notice of the action shows.
Mike Christian also was disciplined for bringing beers to cadets at the Oklahoma Police Corps academy in Ada.
Christian was found to have violated the patrol’s rules […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on February 9th, 2017 
Yesterday at the Oklahoma State Capitol was Rose Day, an annual day when hundreds gather at the capitol building to express their belief in the sanctity of human life by meeting with representatives and senators and presenting them with red roses. How ironic that on the same day, the House Public Health Committee voted to reject a bill that would have banned abortions that are based on a diagnosis of a genetic disorder or Down syndrome.
A summary of the bill, HB1549, from the Oklahoma legislature website:
The introduced measure prohibits the performance of an abortion solely because the unborn child has been diagnosed with either Down Syndrome or a genetic abnormality or has the potential for a genetic abnormality. A physician or person who knowingly violates the measure will be held liable, have their medical license suspended or revoked, and be fined not less than fifty thousand dollars. A woman upon whom an abortion is performed in violation of […] → Keep reading
By Charles M. Phipps on February 3rd, 2017 
The rioting at UC Berkeley earlier this week is becoming an old story with those on the left using violence, vandalism, assaults, and general mayhem to demonstrate disagreement. It seems to be becoming a common occurrence with progressives putting on outrageous displays or general rioting and destruction when they don’t like something. Odd how the people who say violence never solves anything are the first ones to be violent when they don’t get their way.
If you aren’t familiar with the events precipitating this week’s progressive riot, Breitbart New contributor and Trump supporter Milo Yiannopoulos was scheduled to speak at UC Berkeley and apparently, progressives there were none too pleased. Being unable to envision any other way to voice their opposition to Yiannopoulos being allowed to speak, vandalizing their city and assaulting people is how they chose to show their displeasure. Odd that at UC Berkeley, the location for the birth of the free speech movement in the 1960s, someone’s […] → Keep reading
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