With elections coming up in less than a week, I thought readers might like to have a brief synopsis about each state question that will appear on the ballot. I have listed the 11 state questions that you will be voting on in a few days. Many have asked me my opinion on certain ones so I want to make it clear which ones I will be voting ‘yes’ on and which ones I think deserve a ‘no’ vote. To make it simple, I plan on voting yes to every state question except 744 and 750. As discussed in previous articles, I believe SQ 744 is an all-around bad idea for everyone involved. I strongly encourage you to vote ‘no’ on this one. I will also vote ‘no’ on SQ 750. I fear that requiring less signatures to get a question on the ballot would make it too easy for animal rights groups, and people against our way of life in Southwest Oklahoma, to attack animal agriculture or sportsman activities like hunting and fishing. I will vote ‘yes’ on every other question except for these 2, which could both have devastating effects. Please take a look at each state question below and read the summary of what each one represents.
SQ744- A yes vote would mandate the state spend up to $1 billion more per year on common education to meet a regional average. This would be done by raising taxes 32% statewide, or cutting all other state agencies and services by at least 20% each.
SQ746- A yes vote makes voters show proof of identity-voter ID.
SQ747- A yes vote would make all state-wide elected offices have a term limit of 8 yrs, except Corp. Comm., which would be 12 years.
SQ748- Every 10 years redistricting is done by the legislature; if they fail to act then a commission does the job. A yes vote changes the number of people on the commission from 3 to 7, and makes it bi-partisan, with the Lt. Governor as the non-voting chairman.
SQ750- A yes vote would require less signatures on the initiative and referendum petitions. The least election with the Governor on the ballot, instead of the last election with the President on the ballot would be used to determine the signatures needed.
SQ751- A yes vote makes English the common language of Oklahoma.
SQ752- A yes vote modifies the Judicial Nominating Commission, which recommends candidates to the Governor to appoint. Currently, it is made up of 12 (6 non-lawyers appointed by the Governor & 6 lawyers appointed by the OBA.) This measure adds 2 non-lawyer members appointed by the Speaker of the House and the President Pro-Tempore of the Senate.
SQ754- A yes vote would ensure that the appropriations and budgeting process set up by the Oklahoma Constitution stays the way that it currently is. It would stop any unions or government agencies from demanding that they be funded in a different or higher way.
SQ755- A yes vote forbids Oklahoma courts from using Sharia (Islamic) or international law to decide cases in our state courts.
SQ756- A yes vote allows OK residents to opt-out of Federal health care.
SQ757- A yes vote increases rainy day fund from 10% to 15% of certified funds from the previous years state budget.
Please take advantage of your right as an American citizen and cast your ballot on Tuesday, November 2nd. Remember, one vote really can make a difference. See ya at the polls!
If you would like to contact me while I am at the Capitol, please do not hesitate to call
1-800-522-8502 or send an e-mail to donarmes@okhouse.gov.
And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
“The margin is narrow, but the responsibility is clear.” – President John F. Kennedy
Friday, October 29, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Let's Stay On the Issue.
It seems the farther I get into my legislative career, the more of a fighter I become. I do not know whether that is a good thing or a bad thing. One thing I have learned in my political career is that one of the best ways to keep from talking about the real issue is to cloud that issue with negatives. State question 744 is still exactly what it was when it was first introduced several months ago. It is a very bad idea embraced by some well-meaning folks who have been sold a really large bill of goods. I have said before and stand by my statement that SQ 744 may well cause the biggest wreck that we have seen in 20 years. Most of the folks that are trying to sell you on 744 and get you to vote yes have never had to struggle with the state budget. I can tell you from eight years of experience through good and bad times that the state budget is a puzzle with many pieces, all of which have to be placed together for it to work. I can also tell you that, as a former teacher as well as a current legislator, I have seen this argument from both sides. I can tell you that if this were a good idea and a fiscally prudent move, Governor Brad Henry would be the first in line to support it. The fact that Governor Henry has come out in opposition to SQ 744 should speak volumes. Governor Henry’s legacy will be that he was the “education governor” and he is opposed.
We have got a state full of good teachers that care very much for our children and take their jobs very seriously. None of my comments are intended in any way, shape or form to disparage the very important job that they do. But, the members of the out-of-state campaign team, whose full-time job is to try to convince you that 744 is a good idea, are not residents of Oklahoma but employees of the NEA who have poured 3 million dollars into our state to buy very pretty, well done television ads to convince you to vote yes. When it is over and the dust settles, they will board airplanes and head back home and we, the citizens of Oklahoma, will be left to sort out the mess. I do not begrudge teachers wanting more money for education or even higher pay. Few could argue that good teachers are not worth more. But, should 744 pass, dramatic budget ripples will look more like waves as the severe cuts to everything else in the state budget occur to meet this mandate. 744 will cost the state of Oklahoma an additional $800 million dollars that must be cut from other important functions of state government. The fact is that it will cost an estimated $1200 dollars from every man, woman and child in Oklahoma in increased taxes just to cover the cost. Right now, the ads are attacking the legislature saying that we pay ourselves more than any other legislature in the region. Let’s set the record straight on who decides what legislators make. In Oklahoma, legislative pay is set by a compensation board. We, as legislators, have no say in how much we are paid and legislative pay has not been increased in over 10 years. Many confuse the Oklahoma state legislature with Washington. Here is what a state representative or senator makes. The annual salary is $38,400. The median income for a teacher in the state of Oklahoma is $43,000. That is not the beginning teacher or the veteran teacher, but the median. Had I remained in the education business as a 12-month ag teacher, I would now make over $50,000 a year. In those attack ads, they also claim that legislators only work four months out of the year. There are many unseen duties of a legislator that many may not be aware of. I never had to back up to get a paycheck as a teacher. I have never had to back up to get my paycheck as a legislator. It is like saying teachers get off at 3 o’clock. We know that is not true also. Teachers work many extra duties and spend a great deal more time than their nine month contract to get the job done right. I have a great deal of respect for the job that educators do and have been a proponent of education since my first election in 2002. I have stood for teachers and public education and have a voting record to substantiate that. In fact, the first bill that I carried as a state representative was to support fundraising efforts in many schools called raffles. I thought it was logical and made sense and was something that would help, especially in small schools.
It would be very easy, given the recent “hit pieces”, for me to come out sluggin’ but that is not my goal. My goal is to convince you that a yes vote for 744 could be a fatal mistake for Oklahoma. Most of the tax credits that are referred to in this latest negative campaign have been done away with and tax credits alone are not evil, especially when they do things like help Goodyear to expand and increase the amount of high paying jobs that expansion will provide. Not to mention, that at some point Goodyear will even pay more property taxes on their expanded plant, which will further support education. My biggest fear is that if 744 passes and we have to cut an additional $800 million from other agencies throughout the state and the awful things come to pass, we have been told that teachers that teachers will have the biggest black eye they have ever had. So, if you want sales tax to go up by 35 percent, just vote yes on 744. Remember that the increase asked for by 744 will require us to spend $120 million more for education than we spend on the entire public safety sector of the state budget. Some of those evil tax exemptions that they speak of are things like the child care exemption and agricultural exemptions. Those special interests that are attacked in these very high quality commercials are you. It is okay to vote no on 744. It does not mean that you do not care about kids.
"Money often costs too much." -Ralph Waldo Emerson
We have got a state full of good teachers that care very much for our children and take their jobs very seriously. None of my comments are intended in any way, shape or form to disparage the very important job that they do. But, the members of the out-of-state campaign team, whose full-time job is to try to convince you that 744 is a good idea, are not residents of Oklahoma but employees of the NEA who have poured 3 million dollars into our state to buy very pretty, well done television ads to convince you to vote yes. When it is over and the dust settles, they will board airplanes and head back home and we, the citizens of Oklahoma, will be left to sort out the mess. I do not begrudge teachers wanting more money for education or even higher pay. Few could argue that good teachers are not worth more. But, should 744 pass, dramatic budget ripples will look more like waves as the severe cuts to everything else in the state budget occur to meet this mandate. 744 will cost the state of Oklahoma an additional $800 million dollars that must be cut from other important functions of state government. The fact is that it will cost an estimated $1200 dollars from every man, woman and child in Oklahoma in increased taxes just to cover the cost. Right now, the ads are attacking the legislature saying that we pay ourselves more than any other legislature in the region. Let’s set the record straight on who decides what legislators make. In Oklahoma, legislative pay is set by a compensation board. We, as legislators, have no say in how much we are paid and legislative pay has not been increased in over 10 years. Many confuse the Oklahoma state legislature with Washington. Here is what a state representative or senator makes. The annual salary is $38,400. The median income for a teacher in the state of Oklahoma is $43,000. That is not the beginning teacher or the veteran teacher, but the median. Had I remained in the education business as a 12-month ag teacher, I would now make over $50,000 a year. In those attack ads, they also claim that legislators only work four months out of the year. There are many unseen duties of a legislator that many may not be aware of. I never had to back up to get a paycheck as a teacher. I have never had to back up to get my paycheck as a legislator. It is like saying teachers get off at 3 o’clock. We know that is not true also. Teachers work many extra duties and spend a great deal more time than their nine month contract to get the job done right. I have a great deal of respect for the job that educators do and have been a proponent of education since my first election in 2002. I have stood for teachers and public education and have a voting record to substantiate that. In fact, the first bill that I carried as a state representative was to support fundraising efforts in many schools called raffles. I thought it was logical and made sense and was something that would help, especially in small schools.
It would be very easy, given the recent “hit pieces”, for me to come out sluggin’ but that is not my goal. My goal is to convince you that a yes vote for 744 could be a fatal mistake for Oklahoma. Most of the tax credits that are referred to in this latest negative campaign have been done away with and tax credits alone are not evil, especially when they do things like help Goodyear to expand and increase the amount of high paying jobs that expansion will provide. Not to mention, that at some point Goodyear will even pay more property taxes on their expanded plant, which will further support education. My biggest fear is that if 744 passes and we have to cut an additional $800 million from other agencies throughout the state and the awful things come to pass, we have been told that teachers that teachers will have the biggest black eye they have ever had. So, if you want sales tax to go up by 35 percent, just vote yes on 744. Remember that the increase asked for by 744 will require us to spend $120 million more for education than we spend on the entire public safety sector of the state budget. Some of those evil tax exemptions that they speak of are things like the child care exemption and agricultural exemptions. Those special interests that are attacked in these very high quality commercials are you. It is okay to vote no on 744. It does not mean that you do not care about kids.
"Money often costs too much." -Ralph Waldo Emerson
Monday, October 18, 2010
I Think I Need a Hobby
Throughout my life, I have had to overcome my lack of intelligence with work ethic. One of my standard responses when someone asks how I am has always been “pretty good for an old guy”. When the person says “you’re not old” I have always responded “no, but I am high mileage”. I really cannot remember a period of time in my life when I did not work at more than one thing at the same time. An old friend of mine used to say about me “he knows a thousand ways to make a hundred dollars”. Dede and I married in 1984 and I took my first ag teaching job and I knew that I needed to make extra money. So, with our very first tax return of our married life, I invested in auction school. In addition, I helped people around where we lived by plowing, working cattle, work at night at the co-op, clipped club calves and anything I could do to make a few extra bucks to stretch what was a meager beginning teacher salary in those days. One of the things that I did for over ten years was every Monday night I worked at Southwest Auto Auction and made a hundred bucks a week breathing car exhaust, opening hoods and auctioneering. I learned early in my life that there are lots of ways to earn a little extra walkin’ around money. I have never rested on my laurels and have always been willing to do extra duties to supplement my income. Most recently, those skills that I have learned over the years have come in pretty handy and have become increasingly important as I became a legislator. Even though people think we are overpaid, it has become quite a struggle since my income went down in order to become a public servant.
My most recent endeavor has been a little enterprise that we call Snake Creek Cattle Company that my partner Clyde Hill and I have had going for a little over a year. We purchased and rebuilt an old chuck wagon and have been hiring out to do events and providing a little cowboy flavor that people really seem to enjoy. One of my oldest friends Terry Davis, who has been a Lawton fire fighter for over 20 years has been an integral part of that little side business. Several times over the last little while, the three of us have loaded our little dog and pony show and headed out to cook for groups who have come to visit and have introduced them to beef, beans, homemade biscuits and Dutch oven cobbler. It has been lots of fun but we are also learning that it is a ton of work. Usually by the time we get loaded and head home, we feel like the wagon itself has run over us. We have had some fun groups. Our first official cooking job was last year when the Lawton Chamber of Commerce hosted weapons experts from all of the NATO countries around the world. It is fun to watch people stare in amazement as you create a meal with no electricity with firewood and cast iron Dutch ovens. It is almost as though we are doing magic tricks when really, it is nothing more than an old cooking style developed in the Old West out of necessity to keep cowboys fed as they moved cattle in the days before trucks and trains. This last week has been extremely busy as we cooked brisket and trimmings for over 60 people from this year’s Leadership Oklahoma class that made their annual stop at Ft. Sill to learn about the military presence in Oklahoma. It was really kind of cool to cook right in the historic Ft. Sill quadrangle among the officer’s quarters and prepare a meal using historic cooking methods in a setting so rich in military history. By the time you read this we will have set our wagon and pitched our fly at the Museum of the Great Plains and cooked ribeye steak and fixins’ for The Society of Military Widows who have made their trek back to Lawton-Ft.Sill hosted by the Lawton Chamber of Commerce. They wanted something a little different and the Chamber folks thought that the chuck wagon would be a nice touch. We hope to dazzle them with a little bit of cowboy cookery and hopefully make their stay in Lawton memorable.
And by the way, I did manage to do a little auctioneering over the weekend at the Tulsa State Fair. I served as auctioneer for the short horn and Simmental futurity sales at Tulsa. I guess I better put off the search for a hobby because I think I have got a pretty full plate. I have friends who work normal jobs and have weekends off, but I don’t know what normal is. I know that all the little things that I do will make a few extra dollars. I have a daughter that hopefully will graduate from OSU in December and maybe will give us a little financial breathing room because right now it seems that anytime I make a check of any size, it goes straight to Stillwater. But, our youngest daughter is not too far behind so I guess in the meantime, I will live by the old adage “nobody ever drowned in their own sweat”. I am lucky to enjoy good health and the ability to work, so while I have that blessing, I guess we will just enjoy it because there are lots of folks out there who can’t.
“The daily grind of hard work gets a person polished.” -Unknown
My most recent endeavor has been a little enterprise that we call Snake Creek Cattle Company that my partner Clyde Hill and I have had going for a little over a year. We purchased and rebuilt an old chuck wagon and have been hiring out to do events and providing a little cowboy flavor that people really seem to enjoy. One of my oldest friends Terry Davis, who has been a Lawton fire fighter for over 20 years has been an integral part of that little side business. Several times over the last little while, the three of us have loaded our little dog and pony show and headed out to cook for groups who have come to visit and have introduced them to beef, beans, homemade biscuits and Dutch oven cobbler. It has been lots of fun but we are also learning that it is a ton of work. Usually by the time we get loaded and head home, we feel like the wagon itself has run over us. We have had some fun groups. Our first official cooking job was last year when the Lawton Chamber of Commerce hosted weapons experts from all of the NATO countries around the world. It is fun to watch people stare in amazement as you create a meal with no electricity with firewood and cast iron Dutch ovens. It is almost as though we are doing magic tricks when really, it is nothing more than an old cooking style developed in the Old West out of necessity to keep cowboys fed as they moved cattle in the days before trucks and trains. This last week has been extremely busy as we cooked brisket and trimmings for over 60 people from this year’s Leadership Oklahoma class that made their annual stop at Ft. Sill to learn about the military presence in Oklahoma. It was really kind of cool to cook right in the historic Ft. Sill quadrangle among the officer’s quarters and prepare a meal using historic cooking methods in a setting so rich in military history. By the time you read this we will have set our wagon and pitched our fly at the Museum of the Great Plains and cooked ribeye steak and fixins’ for The Society of Military Widows who have made their trek back to Lawton-Ft.Sill hosted by the Lawton Chamber of Commerce. They wanted something a little different and the Chamber folks thought that the chuck wagon would be a nice touch. We hope to dazzle them with a little bit of cowboy cookery and hopefully make their stay in Lawton memorable.
And by the way, I did manage to do a little auctioneering over the weekend at the Tulsa State Fair. I served as auctioneer for the short horn and Simmental futurity sales at Tulsa. I guess I better put off the search for a hobby because I think I have got a pretty full plate. I have friends who work normal jobs and have weekends off, but I don’t know what normal is. I know that all the little things that I do will make a few extra dollars. I have a daughter that hopefully will graduate from OSU in December and maybe will give us a little financial breathing room because right now it seems that anytime I make a check of any size, it goes straight to Stillwater. But, our youngest daughter is not too far behind so I guess in the meantime, I will live by the old adage “nobody ever drowned in their own sweat”. I am lucky to enjoy good health and the ability to work, so while I have that blessing, I guess we will just enjoy it because there are lots of folks out there who can’t.
“The daily grind of hard work gets a person polished.” -Unknown
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Baby Boomers and Health Care
My whole life, I have heard people speak of the “baby boomers”. According to the United States Census Bureau, baby boomers are considered a generation born in years ranging from 1946-1964. For whatever reason, there was a population explosion in our country during that time that lasted almost 20 years. America, being the land of entrepreneurs, has tried to get ready for baby boomers to become elderly and no surprise to anyone, they are doing just that. You become painfully aware of this phenomenon when you have a family member in the hospital. It is evident as you see the rise of nursing homes and veterans facilities and it really drives the point home when you try to find a parking place at almost any hospital. I spent all last week at Comanche County Memorial with my dad who had been struggling to get over a minor hernia operation, when in reality is not minor for someone in their late 70s who already deals with a host of other health issues. That hernia surgery might be minor for me in my late 40s but it certainly was not minor for dad. As I tried to handle my daily work of my legislative and auction and real estate business, it has been a real challenge as we dealt with getting in and out of a hospital parking lot. As I thought about that, I realized that parking is nothing in comparison to the bigger picture which is “how do we care for this aging population”?
I was born in 1961 and they consider the last official year of the baby boom to be 1964. I am fortunate as I approach 50 to enjoy good health. I can tell you, as I watch my father struggle, that I will never be a smoker. I am not saying that I have never smoked but there is nothing like dealing with declining health of a lifetime smoker to illustrate what that vice can do. We are a lot better nowadays at preventative medicine and we know a lot more than we did 40 years ago in dealing with diseases like cancer, heart issues and a myriad of other ailments. The fact remains, we are still somewhat responsible for our own health and we have to help the health care system help us. It is amazing when you think about it that our health care system in this country can even come close to dealing with the sheer volume that the baby boom generation has placed before it. In addition to the challenge, it is also a big business. You could almost pick any single issue out of the health care discussion and write an entire book. It is so complex and so in-depth that it is a mind boggling situation. Americans in general tend to think that “ObamaCare” as it has been dubbed is certainly not the answer. A lot of that stems from the old work ethic that former generations were raised with. Kind of like the old adage, “you don’t work, you don’t eat”. I would have to say that I agree; people do need to pull some of their own weight. I think we can all agree that there are some situations where folks need a leg up. I, as well as most of you, do not think that socialized medicine is the answer, although many would argue that we are already there.
There is no way that I can really address this whole issue in this limited space. The problem is ever-growing and as my generation approaches 50 and my parents’ generation live in their twilight years, it is something that we need to think about and find some answers to because it is here and it is real. Any of us are but an accident or a heart attack away from being in a hospital bed for an extended period of time. I appreciate the thoughts and prayers from constituents, neighbors, Facebook friends and others as we struggle to get my dad over this health issue. It is always tough and I can say that he has had good care from an overburdened system who is trying to win a poker game with a pair of threes. They were dealt a tough hand but, as the old saying goes “a winner is someone who bites off more than they can chew…and chews it”. I think healthcare has got a pretty full plate. Thank God for doctors and nurses who go to work everyday knowing that they are never going to win them all, but they keep trying, and they win more than they lose. In the meantime, as I was deep in thought about this week’s column, that guy just got my parking place!
And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
“I'll tell 'ya how to stay young: Hang around with older people” -Bob Hope
I was born in 1961 and they consider the last official year of the baby boom to be 1964. I am fortunate as I approach 50 to enjoy good health. I can tell you, as I watch my father struggle, that I will never be a smoker. I am not saying that I have never smoked but there is nothing like dealing with declining health of a lifetime smoker to illustrate what that vice can do. We are a lot better nowadays at preventative medicine and we know a lot more than we did 40 years ago in dealing with diseases like cancer, heart issues and a myriad of other ailments. The fact remains, we are still somewhat responsible for our own health and we have to help the health care system help us. It is amazing when you think about it that our health care system in this country can even come close to dealing with the sheer volume that the baby boom generation has placed before it. In addition to the challenge, it is also a big business. You could almost pick any single issue out of the health care discussion and write an entire book. It is so complex and so in-depth that it is a mind boggling situation. Americans in general tend to think that “ObamaCare” as it has been dubbed is certainly not the answer. A lot of that stems from the old work ethic that former generations were raised with. Kind of like the old adage, “you don’t work, you don’t eat”. I would have to say that I agree; people do need to pull some of their own weight. I think we can all agree that there are some situations where folks need a leg up. I, as well as most of you, do not think that socialized medicine is the answer, although many would argue that we are already there.
There is no way that I can really address this whole issue in this limited space. The problem is ever-growing and as my generation approaches 50 and my parents’ generation live in their twilight years, it is something that we need to think about and find some answers to because it is here and it is real. Any of us are but an accident or a heart attack away from being in a hospital bed for an extended period of time. I appreciate the thoughts and prayers from constituents, neighbors, Facebook friends and others as we struggle to get my dad over this health issue. It is always tough and I can say that he has had good care from an overburdened system who is trying to win a poker game with a pair of threes. They were dealt a tough hand but, as the old saying goes “a winner is someone who bites off more than they can chew…and chews it”. I think healthcare has got a pretty full plate. Thank God for doctors and nurses who go to work everyday knowing that they are never going to win them all, but they keep trying, and they win more than they lose. In the meantime, as I was deep in thought about this week’s column, that guy just got my parking place!
And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
“I'll tell 'ya how to stay young: Hang around with older people” -Bob Hope
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.JPG)