Oklahoma County Medallion Dinner

My wife, Cat, and our granddaughter Skylar, attended the Oklahoma County Medallion Dinner. During my time as an Oklahoma County officer, first secretary and then chair, I was involved in several Medallions, which are the main fundraiser for the county party. I enjoyed myself as always. It's great to see old friends and meet new people. The dinner was great, and the fellowship even better. Those who make fun of people in politics don't know what they are missing when it comes to associating with some of the finest people in our community.

The party took a beating in the last election because the Republican party managed to make the state elections a referendum on President Obama, who has never been popular in Oklahoma. Many people are asking what can we do to turn the party around. So far, the Republicans have so far been doing a good job of making us look very good by comparison. But we just can't sit back and "hope they will fail."

I think that we need to keep speaking our truths, but do so in terms that average voters understand: jobs, security, services, and rights. Whenever we propose something, we must keep in mind these goods. How will what we propose help our citizens enjoy better quality lives? If we keep doing this, and showing that we mean what we say, the voters will elect our candidates to office.

Bill Text for HB 1378-Abolishing Collective Bargaining for Teachers

Bill Text For HB1378 - Introduced
1| STATE OF OKLAHOMA |
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2| 1st Session of the 53rd Legislature (2011) |
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3|HOUSE BILL 1378 By: Holland |
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4| |
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5| |
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6| AS INTRODUCED |
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7| An Act relating to schools; defining term; |
| prohibiting collective bargaining contracts; |
8| prohibiting the recognition of labor organization as |
| bargaining agent for school employees; prohibiting |
9| school employees from engaging in strike; providing |
| individual not be denied employment due to certain |
10| membership; repealing 70 O.S. 2001, Sections 509.1, |
| 509.2, as amended by Section 7, Chapter 439, O.S.L. |
11| 2008, 509.2a, 509.3, 509.6, 509.7, 509.8, 509.9, |
| 509.10 and Section 12, Chapter 432, O.S.L. 2005 (70 |
12| O.S. Supp. 2010, Sections 509.2 and 509.11), which |
| relate to negotiations between school employees and |
13| districts; providing for codification; and providing |
| and effective date. |
14| |
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15| |
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16| |
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17|BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: |
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18| SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
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19|in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 509.1A of Title 70, unless there |
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20|is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
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21| A. For purposes of this section, "labor organization" means any |
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22|organization in which employees participate and that exists in whole |
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23|or in part to deal with one or more employers concerning grievances, |
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24|labor disputes, wages, hours of employment, or working conditions. |
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Req. No. 6410 Page 1
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1| B. A board of education or an administrator of a local school |
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2|district shall not enter into a collective bargaining contract with |
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3|a labor organization regarding wages, hours, or conditions of |
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4|employment of school district employees. This prohibition shall |
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5|also apply to renewals or extensions of any existing contracts. |
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6| C. A contract entered into, extended or renewed in violation of |
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7|subsection B of this section shall be void and unenforceable. |
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8| D. A board of education or an administrator of a local school |
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9|district shall not recognize a labor organization as the bargaining |
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10|agent for a group of school district employees. |
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11| E. School district employees shall not strike nor engage in an |
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12|organized work stoppage against a school district. |
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13| F. A school district employee who violates subsection E of this |
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14|section shall forfeit all rights, benefits and privileges of school |
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15|district employment. |
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16| G. The right of a school district employee to cease work shall |
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17|not be abridged if the employee is not acting in concert with others |
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18|in an organized work stoppage. |
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19| H. A individual shall not be denied employment with a school |
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20|district because of the individual's membership or nonmembership in |
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21|a labor organization. |
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22| I. This section shall not impair the right of school district |
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23|employees to present grievances concerning their wages, hours of |
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24| |
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Req. No. 6410 Page 2
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1|employment, or conditions of work either individually or through a |
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2|representative that does not claim the right to strike. |
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3| SECTION 2. REPEALER 70 O.S. 2001, Sections 509.1, 509.2, |
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4|as amended by Section 7, Chapter 439, O.S.L. 2008, 509.2a, 509.3, |
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5|509.6, 509.7, 509.8, 509.9, 509.10 and Section 12, Chapter 432, |
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6|O.S.L. 2005 (70 O.S. Supp. 2010, Sections 509.2 and 509.11), are |
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7|hereby repealed. |
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8| SECTION 3. This act shall become effective November 1, 2011. |
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9| |
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10| 53-1-6410 AM 01/03/11 |
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11|

I Hope the Republicans Succeed

The Republican Party has taken over nearly all branches of state government in Oklahoma largely because they were able to nationalize the issues in the state races and make this round of local elections a referendum on Pres. Obama and the national Democratic Party.

When Sen. Obama was elected to the White House in 2008, Rush Limbaugh and others on the fringe right loudly voiced their desire to see the president "fail" because they feared that his policies, which they saw as contrary to their ideology, would succeed and be made permanent. They were cynically willing to see ordinary Americans suffer in order to serve a political end.

I am liberal and proud to be so. However, I am not so much of an ideologue that I would wish my fellow Oklahomans anything but the best out of their government, which they voted for in very large numbers. I want their suffering due to the present recession to end, and I am not particularly concerned about who gets the credit. If Republican policies produce a better life for all Oklahomans, then bring them on and make them the law of our land.

What I am concerned about is that this government, and this goes for any government, deal with all its citizen justly. That they do all they can to respect and enhance human dignity, deal rightly with those who are most vulnerable in our society like the very old and very young, and work to make our presence on this planet more sustainable.

I am skeptical of the Oklahoma's Republican Party's ability to do this since it seems to me that they long ago sold their soul to rich and powerful who have little interest in the those who have been marginalized in our culture other than to provide them with a docile labor and consumer population. Their concern is for the short-term bottom line rather than the type of environment that will be inherited 7 generations hence.

But I hope that I am wrong. I wish to see my home state prosper. I wish to know that our choices have created better lives for our children and their children's children. Of course, I am going to be taking an active role in creating this success, and if this means that the Republicans claim justification for their victory, then so be it.

10 Commandments at the Oklahoma State Capitol

It has been announced that a moument of the 10 Commandments will be placed on the north lawn of the Oklahoma state capitol grounds. Presumably, this version of the commandments will still have the prohibition against making "graven images."