Politicizing Tragedy - The Moore Tornado

While following the aftermath of the tornado in Moore I was disgusted to see people using the tragedy to make political statements or to slam the political opposition.  Before all the debris had even fallen back down to the earth, Rhode Island Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse took the microphone on the Senate floor and lambasted Republican Senators for "denying man-made global warming."  He laid blame for the tornado squarely at the feet of Republicans while the dying and injured were still being pulled from the rubble.

He was far from the only one to make partisan hay of the destruction in Moore.  Lizz Winstead, co-creator of The Daily Show sent out a tweet about the tornado which said, "This tornado is in Oklahoma so clearly it has been ordered to only target conservatives."  And another which said, "How long has Obama known about this tornado?"  She later apologized after taking a beating on Twitter and claimed she didn't know the devastation caused before sending the tweet.  Indeed, here in Oklahoma we know that most tornadoes are just fun to watch and never, ever cause death or destruction.  Natural disasters are just rife with humorous moments.

The media wasted no time in launching into Oklahoma Senators Coburn and Inhofe for their positions on funding disaster relief, reminding readers repeatedly that both voted against the relief funds for Hurricane Sandy.  Most articles I saw did not go into detail and include the reason why, which Senator Inhofe explained:  “They had things in the Virgin Islands. They were fixing roads there, they were putting roofs on houses in Washington, D.C.  Everybody was getting in and exploiting the tragedy that took place. That won’t happen in Oklahoma.”

Senator Coburn in particular has been castigated by the media and those on the left for seeking to ensure that any tornado relief funding in Oklahoma is offset by cuts elsewhere in the federal budget.  This has always been his position on disaster relief funding, going all the way back to the Murrah Building bombing recovery in 1995.  It would be hypocritical of him to change his long-held position when his home state is involved, but the media conveniently doesn't mention that.

All over Twitter and article comments I have seen no end to the slamming of our politicians in Oklahoma, blaming them for the "global-warming-caused tornado", not spending $500 million for shelters in schools, not calling out enough National Guard soldiers, calling out too many National Guard soldiers, kowtowing to President Obama to get a disaster declaration, not calling Obama fast enough, not ordering school cancelled when bad weather was predicted, expressing glee that the tornado happened to a red state...

And the citizens of Oklahoma were also recipients of leftist diatribe, calling us gun lunatics, right wing pathetic freaks, religious freaks, the conservative nut pool and deserving of the wrath of our "mythical God."

Meanwhile, rescue workers still dig for victims, parents identify the bodies of their children and thousands of people look for new places to live with no more possessions than their clothes they have on.  Property has been lost on an unimaginable scale.  Lives are destroyed.  People are dead. 

To politicize such tragedy is the ultimate in antipathy.  It speaks to the visceral hatred of some on the left that they would seize the opportunity to lash out at those on the right or at Oklahoma itself, even before the first funeral is planned.  There is no rationalizing with such people.  No kind of mutual understanding that can be reached.  One could sooner haul back the tide than have a sensible discussion with such a person.

People with differing political views can agree to disagree and remain civil.  But apparently some cannot.  They have my pity because they fill their lives with hate instead of the joys that make life worth living.  And there are far more important things in life than politics.  Just ask the people in Moore.

Please Pray for Moore

Please pray for the residents of Moore. 

Two More Years of Democratic Obscurity In Oklahoma

In a piece of great news for Oklahoma Republicans this weekend, Wallace Collins was reelected chairman of the Oklahoma Democratic Party.  Collins was first elected to the position in 2011 and Oklahoma Democrats have taken a beating ever since, even from their own chairman.

Since Collins became chairman, Democrats have lost every statewide elected office, lost seats in the state House and the Senate, Obama failed to win a single county in the presidential election and the lone Democrat-held Congressional seat is now occupied by a Republican. 

In the Oklahoma presidential primary in 2012, President Obama lost fifteen counties to two other Democrats, one a publicity-seeking antiabortionist.  After the results came in, Collins said, "Racism is alive and well in Oklahoma."  Apparently, someone forgot to remind Collins that Oklahoma has closed primaries and any 'racism' was confined to his own democratic party.

Also during the 2012 presidential election cycle Collins made remarks comparing the Tea Party to a domestic terrorist, saying if Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh were alive today he would be in the Tea Party.  When asked about the comment and given an opportunity to backtrack, he doubled down and said, "I certainly stand by my remarks, because it's widely known that McVeigh was anti-government.  I think that he was a right-winger, and I think the current tea party people, while I'm not saying that they're proposing violence, they're anti-government.  They dislike the government.  I don't know if you'd call them a government hater, but I certainly see them in a similar vein.  Maybe they're an offshoot or offspring or next generation."

Among the accomplishment Collins brags about during his two years as chairman is recruiting at gay pride parades and hanging more pictures of Obama in state party headquarters. 

To Chairman Collins I say congratulations, sir, and may you have continued success.  And please, if you're ever upset about something and you see a microphone, by all means, please rush to it and share your thoughts.  Oklahoma will definitely be better off with you in charge of the Democrats.

Governor Fallin's Misleading Tax Cut

I don't agree with much at all of what the Oklahoma Policy Institute puts out, but their information about the recent tax cut legislation passed by the Oklahoma legislature and signed into law by Governor Fallin is right on the money.  Opinions about policy can vary, but numbers don't lie.

I've looked at the new tax rates in House Bill 2032 and I've run the numbers against the tax rates in this year's form 511 - the Oklahoma individual income tax form.  What the numbers tell me is that the things being said by Governor Fallin, Speak of the House T.W. Shannon and others are highly misleading.  Do you think you're getting a tax cut?  Unless you're on the poverty level, you are, but let's see how much.

 

Below is a chart from the OK Policy Institute's post about the tax cut.  It's accurate.  As you can see, if you make between $19,500 and $36,400 your tax cut is going to be a whopping $9.  If you make between $36,400 and $58,100 your tax cut will be $30, which might be enough for half a tank of gas. And don't forget; this doesn't take effect until 2015, more than a year and a half away.

 

 

Looking at the chart you can see the higher incomes are getting the biggest cuts.  That's as it should be.  People who make more money pay more taxes and therefore, will get larger amounts when taxes are cut. I am certainly not one of the people who decry the 'rich' getting bigger tax cuts than the middle or lower income levels.  I know full well the positive effect that tax cuts have on our economy, especially when the higher income people have more of their money to invest in their businesses or other ventures.

 

What I will decry, however, is being sold a bill of goods by the Republican leadership in Oklahoma when they tout this tax cut as something it definitely is not.  For example, in her press release on May 13, Governor Fallin said, "Oklahomans have already seen their paychecks decrease, beginning in January of this year, thanks to Washington’s tax hikes. Cutting our state income tax will help to offset that loss, and help working Oklahomans keep more of their hard-earned money."

 

Speaker Shannon said, "By lowering the income tax rate, we are attracting skilled and educated workers to our state and making Oklahoma a leader in business and economic growth."  Apparently he believes $9, $30, or even $81 will bring workers to our state.  Please, someone give that man a drug test.

 

According to the Census Bureau the average household income in Oklahoma is $44,287, which means more than half the households in Oklahoma will get $30, $9 or $0 as their tax cut.  And not until 2015.  Yes, that will really help offset Washington's confiscatory tax policies.

 

If Governor Fallin isn't careful there will be many more people in Oklahoma who refer to her as a few of my Democrat coworkers do - Governor Failin'.

 

While I am not at all pleased with the way this tax cut is being handled or with the amounts, that does not mean I will be abandoning the Oklahoma Republican Party.  Having lived in Oklahoma all my life I know full well the disaster we would face if the Democrats were able to come back into power.  Governor Fallin and the Republicans have done a lot of positive things in Oklahoma and our economy is one of the leading state economies in the nation.  I'm sure the Republican leadership knows the benefits to our economy of having top wage earners keep more of their money.  The rest of us are just stuck with the crumbs.  I'll take the crumbs, but don't tell me it's cake.

 

And there's one other thing to mention.  Since 1992 when Oklahoma residents passed a Constitutional amendment preventing the legislature from raising taxes without a vote of the people, a favorite trick of the legislators has been to increase the amount for fees, licenses and permits.  Among the fee increases about to take effect is a $12 increase in renewing a drivers license.  Bye bye minuscule tax cut. 

 

 

National Day of Prayer Service at the White House