Everyone has a phrase that they seem to use when fall rolls around. Probably the most common one is when that first good chill hits the air and people say its football weather. I believe the funniest one that I remember from my days as a young Ag teacher in Jackson County was what the cowboys across the river called Eldorado weather. It took me a minute to grasp what that meant when I first heard it back in 1984. What it meant was, the county across the river in Texas was dry, right across the river on the Oklahoma side was a little joint called Dub’s and there was also a little road side liquor store and when the weather got cool they would get in the pickup and ease up into Oklahoma and get a little nip to break the chill. Thinking back to some of my horse back adventures on both sides of that river I’m not sure they really needed crisp fall weather but it made a catchy little phrase that welcomed the exodus of summer’s heat and the arrival of a new season.
It’s hard to believe, given where we’ve been last summer that it would ever cool off but seasons always change and the natural rhythm of the Earth seems to kick in right about the time it’s supposed to. I guess fall has always been one of my favorite times. It’s that time of year when you can start out in a light jacket or a vest and a long sleeved shirt feels about right even late in the day. Some people like to take a swing down through Eastern Oklahoma to take in the fall colors. Some folks go Northwest to look at the aspens in Colorado. Whatever your thing, it’s always nice to usher in a new season. It seems like we always welcome the change and I guess that’s one of my favorite things about our state. About the time you think you can’t take another day of heat or another day of cold it’s about time for that change to occur. With this years drought I don’t anticipate any beautiful fall but at least it feels better and this ol’50 year old fat boy is sure ready. I guess in my world the last couple of years fall has kind of become chuck wagon weather and we sure seem to have done a lot of cooking this fall which my partners and I enjoy and we’ve done some pretty cool events this fall. About a month ago we cooked for about 70 folks from all over the state with Leadership Oklahoma’s visit to Ft. Sill. We cooked right in the quadrangle in Ft. Sill among the historic buildings under the oak trees and you can’t find a better or more scenic place for an outdoor event. We cooked for the Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association fall cattle drive at Ken Holloway’s Coyote Hills ranch and we turned out some of the best stew I’ve ever tasted. I think we even filled up Colby Collins who I believe came back to the stew pot four times but that’s just a guess, I think I lost count. Last Saturday we cooked at the L.O. Ranch and fed about 60 for the Comanche County Cattlemen’s annual fall gathering.
Its our little side business or I guess I should say side hobby that makes a little bit of pocket money and allows us to dazzle folks with meat and bread cooked over a fire in a Dutch oven as well as what’s fast becoming our famous cobblers. It sure is a nice diversion from the hustle and bustle and the stress of politics which will really start gearing up in the next couple of months as we head toward February when the starter pistol fires signaling the start of the 2012 legislative session and when there will be little time for almost anything else. It seems that my career path has always included a lot of shifting of gears and a lot of changing of hats and I guess I must like it because for well over 20 years that just seems to be how I roll. Between my State Representative job, my auction business, our chuck wagon, and chasing a few cows I don’t have much time to get into any trouble. I certainly don’t suffer from boredom. We’ll keep you advised as things develop as we head toward the legislative session. As always there will be some interesting topics that will arise and I’ll try to give you my take and my read on how those things really look. Until next week.
If you would like to contact me at the Capitol, please do not hesitate to call 1-800-522-8502 or email me at donarmes@okhouse.gov.
And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
The seasons are what a symphony ought to be: four perfect movements in harmony with each other. ~Arthur Rubenstein
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Congratulations Mr. Speaker
I know by the time you read this that all the major news outlets and daily papers will have already made the announcement but I would like to personally congratulate Representative T.W. Shannon for becoming Speaker-designate for the Oklahoma House of Representatives. Every now and then somebody shows up on the political scene that just seems to kinda’ have natural electability. It always on the surface looks like those folks kinda’ fall into it but most of the time it’s kinda’ like the analogy of the duck. While they look like they are gliding effortlessly across the water, just below the surface they are paddling like crazy. Let’s go back a few years to my first relationship with a young high school senior named T.W. Shannon. I was the Ag. teacher at Lawton high school for 9 years, from 1988 to 1996. In that short span of years I, as well as my co-sponsor Mrs. Sue Wiginton, sponsored the senior class two different times. There was a tall young African American man who you just kinda’ had a feeling was headed for something big, just his natural charisma and his good looks and just that little something that made him stand above the crowd. T.W. had it back in those days and he’s got it now. It looks like the vote was taken Monday in the republican house caucus and in about a year he will be the new Speaker of the House. Representative Shannon has worked his tail off over the last year to earn the respect and trust of the republican house caucus. He left no stone unturned, he reached out to every single member, even those opposed to him including his actual opponents. He was thorough and very systematic in his approach. T.W. Shannon does not come from any kind of political legacy he just kinda’ did it the old fashioned way, he worked at it. He spent time as a field rep. for Congressman JC Watts and Congressman Tom Cole. He’s been a quick study in the political game. He’s blessed with above average intelligence and I hope that he will be a uniter of the republican caucus as we move forward. He’s a strong conservative but with enough sense to know that we still have a state to run and that the train must run on time. Speaker -designate Shannon will not actually take the reigns in the House until the current Speaker Kris Steele finishes his two year term as Speaker of the House. The Speaker -designate position was created to allow the designate to study under the seated Speaker so that the transition can be smoother.
Some will say that T.W. Shannon may be a little young to be the Speaker of the House and one could argue that point and not be too far off base but term limits, which everyone clamored for a few years ago, have created this new dynamic. It creates a conveyer belt if you will, that is 12 years long. Gone are the days of 20 year political careers in the House or Senate. We now have a fast track and it has totally changed the complexion of the Oklahoma legislature. A young member that hits that conveyer belt at a run and has some political background doesn’t have quite as much to learn and can sometimes be propelled forward and gain momentum early in their career, especially one who has the charisma and the overall perfect political package that Shannon possesses. I told him early in the process that I would support him in his quest to be Speaker but that I also would reserve the right to box his ears if I saw him heading down the wrong road. In this new political environment in Oklahoma, I’m an old guy, having been in the legislature for 10 years. I told T.W. that I was heading into my last term and that if he won I really had nothing to lose in jerking his reigns and have no fear of doing just that. I think he’s extremely bright and won’t need much of that and I hope and pray he’s the natural born leader that I think he is.
Historically it’s very difficult for anyone in Western Oklahoma to win an election to represent the whole state. We’ve had only a handful in the history of Oklahoma politics. One was former speaker Lloyd Benson and another was former Lieutenant Governor Jari Askins. If you look back through the history books of Oklahoma politics, few Western Oklahoma members win elections to state wide positions. A lot of it has to do with the fact that Western Oklahoma is more sparsely populated and the votes are much more concentrated East of I-35. Another historical road block that TW Shannon will have to overcome is the fact that the only Speaker to ever go on to any elected office higher than that was Alfalfa Bill Murray and that’s been way before any of our time. I believe this young man has the ability, the charisma and the political savvy to even rewrite that part of Oklahoma history one day. Time will tell and in the meantime we will chalk up a win for Southwest Oklahoma. Once again we are in the game. Congratulations Speaker-designate Shannon. We’re proud of you.
If you would like to contact me at the Capitol, please do not hesitate to call 1-800-522-8502 or email me at donarmes@okhouse.gov.
And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
A leader leads by example, whether he intends to or not. ~Author Unknown
Some will say that T.W. Shannon may be a little young to be the Speaker of the House and one could argue that point and not be too far off base but term limits, which everyone clamored for a few years ago, have created this new dynamic. It creates a conveyer belt if you will, that is 12 years long. Gone are the days of 20 year political careers in the House or Senate. We now have a fast track and it has totally changed the complexion of the Oklahoma legislature. A young member that hits that conveyer belt at a run and has some political background doesn’t have quite as much to learn and can sometimes be propelled forward and gain momentum early in their career, especially one who has the charisma and the overall perfect political package that Shannon possesses. I told him early in the process that I would support him in his quest to be Speaker but that I also would reserve the right to box his ears if I saw him heading down the wrong road. In this new political environment in Oklahoma, I’m an old guy, having been in the legislature for 10 years. I told T.W. that I was heading into my last term and that if he won I really had nothing to lose in jerking his reigns and have no fear of doing just that. I think he’s extremely bright and won’t need much of that and I hope and pray he’s the natural born leader that I think he is.
Historically it’s very difficult for anyone in Western Oklahoma to win an election to represent the whole state. We’ve had only a handful in the history of Oklahoma politics. One was former speaker Lloyd Benson and another was former Lieutenant Governor Jari Askins. If you look back through the history books of Oklahoma politics, few Western Oklahoma members win elections to state wide positions. A lot of it has to do with the fact that Western Oklahoma is more sparsely populated and the votes are much more concentrated East of I-35. Another historical road block that TW Shannon will have to overcome is the fact that the only Speaker to ever go on to any elected office higher than that was Alfalfa Bill Murray and that’s been way before any of our time. I believe this young man has the ability, the charisma and the political savvy to even rewrite that part of Oklahoma history one day. Time will tell and in the meantime we will chalk up a win for Southwest Oklahoma. Once again we are in the game. Congratulations Speaker-designate Shannon. We’re proud of you.
If you would like to contact me at the Capitol, please do not hesitate to call 1-800-522-8502 or email me at donarmes@okhouse.gov.
And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
A leader leads by example, whether he intends to or not. ~Author Unknown
Thursday, October 13, 2011
A Nice Rain
I don’t know what we did to prime the pump but we finally got what may have been a life saving rain. I dumped out three inches at our place and I’ve heard reports from friends, anywhere from two to as much as four inches. There’s been a lot of wheat planted in this country over the last few weeks and this rain may have been just what the doctor ordered to at least have a chance to get some wheat up. It was actually foggy Monday morning about daylight. We haven’t had enough moisture in many months to create fog. There’s a little water in the bar ditches and at least early today there was some water standing in the drill rows. I heard one of the local weathermen say that it looked like the grass was trying to green up even while the rain was still falling. We’re not out of the woods by any means. There was very minimal runoff. So we still have a critical shortage of pond water. But there’s something kinda refreshing about a good solid rain and the optimism it can bring. If a cattle producer can grow even a little bit of wheat it can help get a set of cows thru the winter, for those of us lucky enough to have any left. The critical part of this will be how much rain follows but its mighty encouraging pouring three inches out of a gauge. It does provide some much needed optimism in our old parched corner of the state.
This rain did more than just settle the dust which seemed to be all we could get over the summer. This one could be the one that saves the agriculture economy in southwest Oklahoma. And we’re extremely thankful to have received it. Don’t let up prayin for more because we’re certainly not out of the woods but that little light at the end of the tunnel just got brighter.
We’ve been extremely busy over the past few weeks with plenty of things non political which can be as refreshing as a good rain. We’ve had at least one wedding per weekend for the last five weeks and seen a lot of young people start lives together with all the hope and anticipation that comes with a young couple getting married. I’ve seen several dads that looked a little bit vapor locked as they tried to figure out how to pay for these shindigs and guys I’m not makin fun at all. I’m very sympathetic cuz I know that I have a 23 year old daughter as well as an 18 year old daughter and I know my turn’s comin. It’s like the old standard joke says. It would be cheaper to buy them a pair of plane tickets to Vegas than it would be to put on the dog like some of you have. But of course it’s easy for us guys to stand back and talk that trash when we know we only want the best for our daughters.
My partners and I have also been very busy adding a little cowboy flavor to several different events with our chuckwagon. One of the highlights was a week ago last Friday when Class 25 of Leadership Oklahoma made their annual stop at Ft. Sill where they got a first hand glimpse at what a strong military economy looks like and also had up close and personal visits with actual soldiers and their families, which gives these leaders from across the state a little better way to understand the sacrifices that a military family makes to keep us free. It’s a very important message to deliver and Ft. Sill, from the Commanding General on down, do a wonderful job of hosting this event. Here in Southwest Oklahoma we’re blessed to have two major military installations and most people realize how important the air base at Altus and the army post at Ft. Sill can be to the Southwest Oklahoma economy and actually to the whole state.
We talked last week about the race for the White House and I’m still watching with great interest as that race shapes up. It’s a little like dirt track stock car racing. Seems like somebody can be way out in the lead and all of a sudden they blow an engine. And then they’re back to the pits and all of a sudden there’s a new leader. I think if you care about my analyses I’d be watching Cain very closely. Seems to be very astute, extremely literate and while this is in no way an endorsement of any kind I think he bears watching. And I’m still not sure Perry’s not out of it yet. It’ll be lots of fun as this race continues and the dust settles, not only on the political landscape but as it finally has on the Oklahoma landscape.
And here’s a little something to think about as you’re goin down the road.
Every day may not be good but there’s something good in every day.
Author Unknown
This rain did more than just settle the dust which seemed to be all we could get over the summer. This one could be the one that saves the agriculture economy in southwest Oklahoma. And we’re extremely thankful to have received it. Don’t let up prayin for more because we’re certainly not out of the woods but that little light at the end of the tunnel just got brighter.
We’ve been extremely busy over the past few weeks with plenty of things non political which can be as refreshing as a good rain. We’ve had at least one wedding per weekend for the last five weeks and seen a lot of young people start lives together with all the hope and anticipation that comes with a young couple getting married. I’ve seen several dads that looked a little bit vapor locked as they tried to figure out how to pay for these shindigs and guys I’m not makin fun at all. I’m very sympathetic cuz I know that I have a 23 year old daughter as well as an 18 year old daughter and I know my turn’s comin. It’s like the old standard joke says. It would be cheaper to buy them a pair of plane tickets to Vegas than it would be to put on the dog like some of you have. But of course it’s easy for us guys to stand back and talk that trash when we know we only want the best for our daughters.
My partners and I have also been very busy adding a little cowboy flavor to several different events with our chuckwagon. One of the highlights was a week ago last Friday when Class 25 of Leadership Oklahoma made their annual stop at Ft. Sill where they got a first hand glimpse at what a strong military economy looks like and also had up close and personal visits with actual soldiers and their families, which gives these leaders from across the state a little better way to understand the sacrifices that a military family makes to keep us free. It’s a very important message to deliver and Ft. Sill, from the Commanding General on down, do a wonderful job of hosting this event. Here in Southwest Oklahoma we’re blessed to have two major military installations and most people realize how important the air base at Altus and the army post at Ft. Sill can be to the Southwest Oklahoma economy and actually to the whole state.
We talked last week about the race for the White House and I’m still watching with great interest as that race shapes up. It’s a little like dirt track stock car racing. Seems like somebody can be way out in the lead and all of a sudden they blow an engine. And then they’re back to the pits and all of a sudden there’s a new leader. I think if you care about my analyses I’d be watching Cain very closely. Seems to be very astute, extremely literate and while this is in no way an endorsement of any kind I think he bears watching. And I’m still not sure Perry’s not out of it yet. It’ll be lots of fun as this race continues and the dust settles, not only on the political landscape but as it finally has on the Oklahoma landscape.
And here’s a little something to think about as you’re goin down the road.
Every day may not be good but there’s something good in every day.
Author Unknown
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Smash Mouth Politics
As somewhat of a political insider I might have a little bit different perspective than the average person of the political process in general. The biggest philosophical battle that I deal with inside my own head is to not become jaded and negative to the whole thing. Now I don’t mean I’m smarter than you or better or any of that, all I mean is simply the view from the inside is much different because I know a lot of the dynamics that occur. I’ve watched with some interest as we try to select the right person to get Obama out of office there seems to be a pretty clear message coming from America that says that needs to happen. The question is who will it be? The next thing we have to ask ourselves as a country is can whoever we pick to run against an incumbent president win? Now before I start chewing us out let me say that this is still the greatest country in the world and I certainly don’t wanna’ live anywhere else I just wish we could select a candidate without slashing and burning everything in our path. Rick Perry seemed at one point to have a decent shot but the media started in on him and to hear people talk you’d think he is a blubbering idiot. I don’t think you can be Governor of a state the size of Texas as long as he has been there and be stupid. I’ve heard him speak in a fairly small meeting where we were able to ask questions and interact and I’ll tell ya’ the guy is pretty impressive and you can’t overlook the fact that the Texas economy is pretty solid. I’m still not convinced he wouldn’t make a fair president but the damage the media can do from the left pales in comparison to the damage in character assassination that we inflict from the right. I’m not sure that we on the right won’t scare off anybody of any quality. Then all of a sudden the powers that be, whoever the heck that is, decide that we need to push New Jersey Governor Chris Christie toward the nomination. I don’t know a lot about him but I kinda’ like the guy, he’s kind of a no nonsense common sense Governor, pretty plain spoken, doesn’t seem to have a lot of patience for idiots which I have to admit kinda’ appeals to me. I don’t know for sure how conservative he is or isn’t but I think even though he’s from New Jersey, he seems to be the type of person that might understand “cowboy logic.” So what do we do, we start calling him fat. I mean the guy hasn’t even said he’s running and we start picking on him because he’s a portly gent. I mean come on people the last I checked there are no super humans out there that run for these offices, these are human beings with families but we tend to wanna’ chew them up and spit em’ out, stomp em’ to death and cuss em’. Makes me wonder again, are we smart enough to pick someone who can win whose enough of a conservative to get the nomination but yet centrist enough to win the election? I mean really do we even know what we want? I can tell ya’ from experience that there’s a great deal of stress involved in this business of politics and a guy like Christie who struggles with his weight is definitely gonna’ dive into some comfort food every now and then, it’s just how it is. I’ve been there. I think what our country did to former President George W. Bush is unforgivable. Something has changed in the political process and I think we’ve lost our manners. I think we’ve come to a point in our country that it is not enough to disagree we have to inflict pain and bodily harm. It’s not enough just to kill a guy we have to dismember him as well. It’s a wonder we can get anybody to run for anything from city council on up because our country has become very mean spirited and the rules of engagement have totally changed. As a matter of fact, and I’m gonna’ go out on a limb here, I’m certainly not a fan of Obama, his healthcare mess, or his thoughts that we can tax ourselves into prosperity but I don’t think that gives me or anyone else the right to impugn the person. It seems we think we have a license to do that now.
There seems to be some interest in a new candidate by the name of Cain. He’s an African American gentleman, seems pretty conservative and may be pretty solid, might could have a shot but we’ve only begun to dismantle him. I’m sure if you look hard enough he’ll have some warts as well and I’m sure that we’ll have him beat to a pulp in short order because it seems that that’s just how we roll. But obviously that is part of the political process at least in this new environment that we find ourselves in. I guess we call it the pressure test. If we apply enough pressure and the guy can stand it maybe that’s how it should be but it just really seems like there ought to be a better way. I think maybe the smartest one in the whole game is Sarah Palin. We treated her as bad as I’ve ever seen anyone treated and I think what she’s doing is laughing all the way to the bank. She’s definitely a political force, probably no way in the world she would ever run for President and I’m not sure we deserve her. I know we must change the complexion of Washington, that’s a given I just hope that whoever survives the beating can win. It seems that we loose track of the mission from time to time and I’m not sure why anybody would want to go through that but there seems to be no shortage of folks willing to be beat to a pulp so I guess the beatings will continue until morale improves. Lord, help us.
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 email to donarmes@okhouse.gov
And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
Any American who is prepared to run for president should automatically, by definition, be disqualified from ever doing so. ~Gore Vidal
There seems to be some interest in a new candidate by the name of Cain. He’s an African American gentleman, seems pretty conservative and may be pretty solid, might could have a shot but we’ve only begun to dismantle him. I’m sure if you look hard enough he’ll have some warts as well and I’m sure that we’ll have him beat to a pulp in short order because it seems that that’s just how we roll. But obviously that is part of the political process at least in this new environment that we find ourselves in. I guess we call it the pressure test. If we apply enough pressure and the guy can stand it maybe that’s how it should be but it just really seems like there ought to be a better way. I think maybe the smartest one in the whole game is Sarah Palin. We treated her as bad as I’ve ever seen anyone treated and I think what she’s doing is laughing all the way to the bank. She’s definitely a political force, probably no way in the world she would ever run for President and I’m not sure we deserve her. I know we must change the complexion of Washington, that’s a given I just hope that whoever survives the beating can win. It seems that we loose track of the mission from time to time and I’m not sure why anybody would want to go through that but there seems to be no shortage of folks willing to be beat to a pulp so I guess the beatings will continue until morale improves. Lord, help us.
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 email to donarmes@okhouse.gov
And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
Any American who is prepared to run for president should automatically, by definition, be disqualified from ever doing so. ~Gore Vidal
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.JPG)