MARCH 7, 2013 STIGLER NEWS-SENTINEL

15

JUST THINKIN'

Sequestered trying to understand sequestration

Afflicted by both disorder and cure, between coughing, congestion and medication, a substantial thickening of my thinkin' has occurred. I am mostly confined to my comfortable chair. I have been sequestered. So here I sat, trying to absorb the collective wisdom of the senate testimony of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke followed by a pleasant viewing to those two post lunch pundits, Hoda and Kathie Lee, with my wife. There is all this talk about sequestration. Feeling I am sequestered, I thought I knew the meaning of the word. I checked my old but dependable Merriam-Webster Dictionary. As I thought, it meant to seclude, to segregate, to impound or to isolate. You can sequester a jury. You can impound a car. With others keeping their safe distance, you may isolate a germ-infested man to his chair. None of those seemed to fit the heated exchanges of dialogue I was hearing. So I checked Dictionary.com . I found a noun alternative that stated, "A general cut in government spending." Aha! Being full of cough syrup and curiosity, I wonder about the origin of this noun. Where did it come from? My research suggested an origin in our congress, in a bill titled the Budget Control Act of 2011. So it seems this problematic sequestration came into existence because our congress actually passed a bill. A long time ago, Will Rogers cautioned us about the dangers of allowing congress to actually pass laws. But I thought he was joking. It seems that this sequestration, this general cut in government spending, will put a lot of people out of work while cutting the pay of way too many others. I've have tried to pay attention, but I just can't hear where these pay cuts are going to bother that top 5 percent very much. Now, the Good Lord undoubtedly knows, our federal government spends a tad too much money and often not very wisely. But it seems such a general spending cut could be a lot more general. It kept sounding like we should be reassured that the cuts would be somewhat gradual, but it kept sounding like a nurse saying it will be fine because she is going to pull the bandage off very slowly. I am certain that the "drop dead" date will have come and gone by the time anyone reads these thoughts. We'll be scratching our heads and wondering what just happened. A minute ago I got a cold can of Coke Classic and poured it over several ice cubes. Don't you just love the way it fizzes when the cold Coke hits the ice? I'll tell you I liked my Coke. It left a pleasant taste in my mouth. I can't say the same for this sequestration thing. "The significant problems that we face can not be solved by the same level of thinking that created them." Albert Einstein

By HAL McBRIDE

tAVANTAGE POINT
n. : a position or standpoint from which something is viewed or considered

Too comical to not report

Sometime bills that come before us are just too comical and too stupid not to report to you. Such is the case with HB 1424 by Scott Biggs, R-Chickasha. Ironically, this is labeled the "elevator safety act." I am telling you this even though it may put a "bad light" on the legislature as a whole. Are you ready? This bill does away with elevator inspections and replaces it with greetings a mandatory $1 million liability policy! Let's see, a couple of sessions ago we limited judgments to $250,000, so you can bet this legislator is not getting on an elevator with more than three people, for sure. It also states that elevators that serve only two stories don't have to be inspected or insured. I guess he thinks most people could survive, without bodily damSTATE REPRESENTATIVE age, a fall of two stories. My third and final bill that was heard in committee, HB 1072, passed 11-4, which was monumental since a representative from the Department of Education said my bill could potentially cost the state $333 million in federal funds. There were 11 members on the committee who did not believe the education department and they were right. My bill would keep the state education department from lowering a school's overall grade based on the number of special education students who are tested. There are numerous bills filed to change the A-F grading system and this bill is just one of them. An interesting bill that passed committee and that is on the House floor (HB 1098 by Shoemake, D-Morris), would allow all-terrain vehicles to operate on roadways within unincorporated areas if approved by the Board of County Commissioners. HB 2073 by Fisher, R-Yukon, passed out of committee and is subject to a vote on the House floor. This bill makes it a felony for anyone to provide services associated with the Affordable Care Act. The penalties are up to a $5,000 fine and five years in prison. We are talking about CEO's of hospitals, doctors, nurses, home health care employees and just about anyone in the health care professions. This is one of those bills, if signed into law, will have to be looked at by our supreme court to determine its constitutionality. Today was deadline day to get bills out of committee. All three bills of mine that were heard in committee passed and two have been passed on the House floor and are in the Senate. The third is on the House floor calendar. The school safety commission that Lt. Gov. Lamb appointed (Wilburton Junior High Principal Trice Butler is a member) gives the legislature their recommendations this coming Tuesday. We are all anxiously awaiting these recommendations on school safety. However, in spite of that fact, HB 1062 by McCullough, R-Sapulpa, was presented to committee on Wednesday in Public Safety. This bill arms teachers by creating a special reserve school resource officer, which could be a teacher or administrator who goes through a limited CLEET school. This school would reduce by one-half the number of hours of training that we put our reserve deputies through (reduced from 240 to 120 hours). This bill would also give immunity to these officers (teachers), in both civil and criminal cases, from any liabilities for their actions, either accidental or intentional. I felt, as I have said before, that we are putting the cart before the horse, by passing any bills pertaining to school safety until after we hear recommendations from the School Safety Commission. The next two weeks will be very busy on the House floor as we have eight days to clear all House bills to the Senate. Visitors from home this week include Melody Culberson, Samantha Humphreys, Carla Brunson, Ellen Young, Drs. Clark Grillot, Doug Auld and Michael Auld. Also coming by were Michael Davidson, Dr. Trice Butler, Don Faulkner and Danny Baldwin from KEDDO, along with several senior adults who were here for "Senior Day at the Capitol." Have a blessed week. Psalms 36:5

capitol

FOR THE COMMON GOOD

From bear wrestling to texting while driving

Oklahoma House District 56

By Rep. David Perryman

The first live bear I ever saw was on Main Street in Kinta. The year was about 1962 and the Ursus Americanus had not wandered into town from the mountains south of town. Nor was it an escapee from the zoo in Tulsa. Technically, it was not even a part of a circus. This black bear was chained to a tree in front of a tent and was the property of a promoter of one of those rural American holdovers of the 1800s. The event being promoted was bear wrestling and the barker was looking for both spectators and contestants. I was not old enough to qualify as either, but tickets were selling like hotcakes. I don't remember if my older brothers were allowed to go, but I am pretty certain that they did not wrestle the bear. We lived seven miles from town and they would not have had transportation at the time. The tent that was set up was not large enough to keep the crowd very far from the ring, but by the looks of the tired old bear, vicious animal bites were not likely. Apparently the sport of bear wrestling first became popular in France and came to the United States in December 1877. Rural America provided circuits of communities where there was just not a lot of constant commotion. To say that times were slow is an understatement and for decades, into the 1960s, any type of entertainment was welcomed. However, before you get too uppity, please realize that once in a while we did get to attend some really special events. For instance, in my hometown of around 350 residents in the 1960s, we actually got to meet Meadowlark Lemon when the Harlem Globetrotters came to our old WPA gym. My point is that until 1996 bear wrestling was legal in Oklahoma. The statute that prohibits bear wrestling also prohibits horse tripping. I don't

know how bear wrestling and horse tripping were addressed in the same statute. In fact horse tripping doesn't sound fun at all. Historically, Oklahoma has taken the lead and enacted statutes that are needed for the safety of Oklahomans. One of the hottest topics that I have been contacted about over the past 10 days is the proposal to ban texting while driving. Unfortunately the majority leadership of the Oklahoma House of RepresenPERRYMAN tatives has its head in the proverbial sand and is playing politics with lives concerning this extremely dangerous issue. House Bill 1503 by Rep. Curtis McDaniel, D-Smithville, is a proposal to make texting while driving illegal. More than 80 percent of Oklahomans support a ban on texting while driving. According to AT&T, a Virginia Tech study showed that persons who text while driving are 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash than persons who are not texting while driving. Rep. McDaniels' bill passed out of committee, but is being blocked from being heard on the house floor. AT&T reported that a Texas Traffic Institute study showed that when drivers read or send a text message, their reaction time is doubled and when asked to respond to a flashing light while texting behind the wheel, drivers were more than 11 times more likely to miss the light altogether. The telephone giant has dedicated millions of dollars to its "It Can Wait" campaign and says that "No text is worth dying for. And that is why AT&T is committed to putting an end to texting and driving." AT&T said, "Our goal is to save lives and to make texting and driving as unacceptable as

drinking and driving." Under current law, an Oklahoma Highway Patrolman cannot stop a driver who is texting and driving at the very instant that the highway patrolman passes the driver. Thirty-nine other states prohibit texting while driving. Should Oklahoma? According to the Associated Press, House Speaker T.W. Shannon, R-Lawton, stated last week that he is among those who have opposed a ban on texting while driving in the past because he believes that there is a slippery slope argument to be made about what people are doing inside their cars. At this time, the bill is being blocked from being voted on by the full House of Representatives and Oklahoma law does not allow local control by municipalities across the state. The cities and towns that could otherwise adopt texting and tobacco laws are being stopped by the state legislature. Ninety-seven percent of teens say that texting and driving is dangerous. What is your opinion? Do you want HB1503 to die without a vote or do you want it to be heard on the House Floor? It is your civic duty to let your voice be heard. Take action for the common good. Call or email a member of the House Calendar Committee or the Speaker of the House and let them know your opinion about HB1503. Their phone numbers and email addresses can be found at www. okhouse.gov. If the House Calendar Committee will allow the bill to be heard, I will vote in favor of it. It is my opinion that the need for a ban on bear wrestling has taken a back seat to the need for a ban on texting while driving. If there is ever anything that I can do to assist you, please call me at 405-557-7401 or email me at David. Perryman@okhouse.gov I look forward to seeing you soon. Rep. David Perryman, R-Chickasha, is a 1975 graduate of Kinta High Schol.

YOUR LETTERS
Editor, As I read the paper each week, I notice that several organizations in our fair city, as well as individuals, are hosting benefits, raising money, generally asking for some type of financial help in order to make lives better. These acts of strong consideration and hard work are very well appreciated. What I'm going to ask for has no cost. This deed is very much needed in areas of our home Stigler. This past week, as I rode around town running errands, I noticed a great amount of plastic bottles, plastic sacks, cups and overall trash on the sides of the streets and state Highway 9. Please, be more aware of throwing trash out of your cars as you travel around Stigler. We don't need to see trash all over the grassy area between Walmart and McDonald's. We don't need to see it at the stop light area as you turn into Walmart. I'm sure residents along state Highway 9 on the way out of town east and west don't appreciate trash in their yards. We certainly don't need to see it in the ditches that surround Stigler Cemetery and along H Street, a "back way" into our home. The "heart" of Stigler is abounding with generosity it always has. Our "inside" is terrific, but our "outside" needs work. Let's all start now by saving that cup or sack in our

Clean it up
Thank you everyone.
Nabe\Dave Self

cars until we can throw it in the trash can. As spring approaches, let's think about cleaning up our yards. I heard someone make the comment one time they didn't have the money to make their place look better. Well, it doesn't take money to pick up or stack up neatly things in a yard, it just takes work. Don't throw trash or heap trash on Stigler. It's a great home and we all need to take great care of it. Teresa McAdoo Stigler

On the money
Editor, Why won't people work? A lot of people are saying there are no jobs. There are jobs, but they do not meet the pay people are expecting. A person who has a college education or skills will sometimes not work at just any kind of job. Then a lot of people cannot work due to physical or mental disabilities. I think that people are lazy a lot of times and just will not work. The Bible tells us if you don't work you don't eat. There are a few people who sometimes hold two jobs. I heard the President say on television the other day he wanted to raise pay wages for minimum wage from $7.25 to $9. This sounds good, however, everything else is going up. I believe there are jobs out there, but sometimes we have to work for less pay. Work is what jobs do to keep the economy going. Diane Basden Quinton
Letters that are considered libelous or in poor taste will not be published. Letters may be mailed to P.O. Box 549, Stigler, OK 74462, or emailed to editor@stiglernews.com or news@stiglernews.com .

No Mountain Run
Editor, I would like to express my thanks to all who have participated in the past annual charitable Nabes Mountain Run Events to Benefit the McCurtain City Park. I also want to thank all persons that helped to conduct these events for past years, the city and its staff, also the people who have made donations to the park fund. I hope that these events have provided good memories for everyone and the park project is able to acquire a funding source for completion. But there will be no Mountain Run in 2013.
EDITORIAL POLICY The Stigler News-Sentinel welcomes your letters, columns and stories. Letters may be edited for form or content and should not contain any libelous statements.

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