EDMOND — Rep. Sally Kern, R-Oklahoma City, seems to have fallen down the proverbial rabbit hole, but unlike Alice, she hasn’t found a Wonderland. Instead, Kern’s world seems populated by negativity, concerns of depravity and fear.
Kern unleashed a proclamation for morality at the state Capitol last week. According to the Associated Press, her proclamation says the nation has become a world leader in promoting abortion, pornography, same-sex marriage, sex trafficking, divorce, illegitimate births, child abuse “and many other forms of debauchery.”
Perhaps Kern could find her way into seeing the world’s glass as half full instead of half empty. Her proclamation focuses solely on the negative while ignoring all of the wonderful things and people that can be found in both our great state and nation.
It’s no secret that Oklahoma’s social statistics are not the greatest, particularly in the areas of child abuse and neglect, drug use, divorce and our health habits. These are problems that our state and its residents still must address collectively. But Kern’s ham-fisted approach gets her nor the state anywhere.
She fails to find hope in the facts that Oklahoma is a leader in early childhood education, that Oklahoma is being applauded for new health insurance coverage plans like Insure Oklahoma, that we’re known for our charitable nature and that Oklahomans know how to respond and pull through tragedy unlike any other state in the nation, creating what’s now known as the “Oklahoma standard” in emergency management.
Our residents are thirsty for real solutions to our state’s problems, not grandstanding. A little bit of honey always has proven to lure followers more than the bitter pill of hatred and fear-mongering. We urge Kern to keep her proclamations to herself and instead put her time and effort into working with other legislators to be a true servant leader in our great state.
Our View
Kern needs leadership lesson
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OUR VIEW: Feb. 14 vote about ideas
If you read any of the letters to the editor in the past two weeks regarding Tuesday’s District 2 Edmond school board race, then you already know that this election is not about the individual candidates so much as it’s about what type of school board do Edmond residents really want governing their school district?
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OUR VIEW: Bright spots highlight 2011
Last year was mostly marked with grim economic news and continued worries for the future by most individuals and businesses. However, there were several bright spots that highlighted 2011 and they are good examples why Edmond continues to weather the nation’s economic storms better than most.
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City still needs a business navigator
At the outset of her first term in office, then-Mayor Patrice Douglas appointed a task force dedicated to helping the City of Edmond better understand the needs of small businesses in our city. This task force met for several months and released a number of recommendations for how the city could better serve this huge sector of its economy.
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OUR VIEW: It’s time to bring ME’s office to Edmond
The exhumation of Dwite Morgan’s body earlier this month by state and local authorities is a travesty and symbolizes what has been wrong with the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s office.
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OUR VIEW: HOPE needs your help
Stories like the one shared today by Oneka Parker on page A1 are both troubling and uplifting at the same time. It’s a stark realization that so many Edmond residents find themselves in crisis and in need of basic, everyday supplies. But it’s a blessing to know that someplace like the nonprofit HOPE Center exists to help residents like Parker.
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Our View: Sustainment center good news for Tinker
The Air Logistics Center at Tinker Air Force Base will now be a command site for a new Air Force sustainment and logistics center. Other changes include adding a three-star general that oversees operations at Tinker and two other Air Force bases.
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Our View: DHS needs an overhaul
A recent conviction of an Edmond foster mother has added fuel to the angry fire of scorn heaped at Oklahoma’s child welfare system. The system has been rocked by multiple recent failures ending in the loss of very young, innocent lives entrusted to either the state’s care or supervision.
In the case of Amy L. Holder, she was convicted of felony child abuse and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine plus a $10,000 assessment to the victim’s compensation fund with no jail time in the death of 2-year-old Naomi Whitecrow. Family members of the victim seethed with anger at how the system failed their young relative. -
Peters exemplifies service
This Friday is special for more than just a national commemoration of Veterans Day. It also will mark the induction of Edmond resident Oren Lee Peters and eight other military veterans into the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame. The annual banquet will take place at 6:30 p.m. at Oklahoma Christian University. The ceremony also will posthumously honor 14 Comanche code talkers who made pivotal contributions to encoding communications during World War II.
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OUR VIEW: Brain gain plan needs to start earlier
Gov. Mary Fallin came to the University of Central Oklahoma campus along with State Superintendent Janet Barresi in September and touted her new “brain gain” initiative. The goal of the new program is to increase the 30,500 college degrees conferred annually now by 67 percent to 50,900 degrees annually by the year 2023.
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Our View: Time to look at what’s next
With voter confidence strongly behind city leaders, the Public Safety Center project can now move to the planning stage.
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OUR VIEW: Feb. 14 vote about ideas
