Civic Duty Poll

Okay, let’s try a poll that is a bit more complicated. Respond to this poll regarding civic duty.

Technorati Tags: civic duty

American Idol Poll Results

Number of responses : 32
Questionnaire : Results

1. Do you watch American Idol?

Yes	23 (72%)
No	9 (28%)

Technorati Tags: American Idol

Thank You Tulsa P.D.

Click on each pic for a larger version, or go to the view in a slide show by clicking here.


(TPD badge)

(TPD Motorcycles)

(TPD APC)

(TPD chopper)

(Sizeable crowd stands up for what is right)

(People waiting to get into the stands to show their support for the TPD)

(TPD Honor Guard)

(Michael DelGiorno)

(Tim Harris)

(Drew Edmondson)

(Our US Flag)

(Medlock for Mayor)

(Chief Been)

Technorati Tags: Tulsa
KFAQ
Pro Tulsa P.D. Rally
Tulsa Police
Chief Been

To Sprinkle or Not to Sprinkle

That was the question at last Thursday’s council meeting. The forum was packed in a way that I haven’t seen since recall. Several of Tulsa’s downtown citizens were there in opposition to the proposed requirement that sprinklers be retrofitted in all high-rise apartment buildings by 2010. Several homeowners and building owners from Sophian Plaza and Liberty Towers spoke about the prohibitive cost of this requirement. Some estimates were in the 1-2 million dollar range. Several homeowners said that they would personally be out 30-40 thousand dollars should they be required to sprinkler their homes. It was the consensus of the speakers that this amendment to Title 14 (Fire Prevention Code) would effectively kill downtown. It was also the consensus of the group that come kind of compromise could be reached. No action was taken. This item is back on the agenda for this Tuesday’s committee meetings, and I assume for this Thursday’s regular meeting.

In other items of interest, the council voted to approve the final plat for the Kum & Go located at the southwest corner of the Riverside Parkway and the Creek Turnpike. This vote was largely ceremonial as the council has no choice but to approve final plats. Even so, I spoke on this item. I called for special zoning protections that would keep this kind of development off our precious riverfront.





Technorati Tags: Tulsa
fire code
Sophian Plaza
Liberty Towers
Tulsa City Council
Kum & Go
river development

Macro Mode

Bear with me until the newness of my camera wears off; until it does I'm liable to keep posting pictures. The following were taken in macro close-up mode.







Technorati Tags: Nikon Coolpix S4
pineapple
rhubarb
coffee

Downtown Tulsa Night Pics

My new camera arrived today! Enjoy these pictures I took after tonight's city council meeting. Click on each pic for a larger version.













Technorati Tags: Tulsa
Downtown Tulsa
Nikon Coolpix S4

Idol Poll Update

In short order, I'm going to shut this down. If you haven't voted yet, click here.

Technorati Tags: American Idol

Second Draft

You may have noticed that this blog is wroght wrought with spelling errors and other varisou various mistakes. I’v I’ve seen other bloggers claim that their blog is one big first draft. Mine, as you can see is one bug big second drafty draft. I catch a lot of errors that you never see. The ones that you do see but then become are magicly magically corrected, are the result of my wife's edits…thankyou thank you dear.

If you see erros errors cut me some slack, I learnd learned how to read and write in the Dallas Indipendant Independent school district. I try my best to stive strive for quality, but I don’t alywas always catch all my mistakes. I apreceate appreciate your understanding and paticents patients patience.

Technorati Tags: Proofreading

Republican Club Endorses Candidates

At its February meeting, the Tulsa Area Chapter of the Oklahoma Republican Assembly interviewed Republican candidates for Tulsa mayor, auditor, and city council. By a two-thirds super-majority vote of its members, the group endorsed the following candidates:

Chris Medlock, Tulsa Mayor

Michael Willis, Tulsa City Auditor

Rick Westcott, Tulsa City Council District 2
James Mautino, Tulsa City Council District 6
John M. Eagleton, Tulsa City Council District 7
Clifford Magee, Tulsa City Council District 8

No other endorsements of candidates were made because those candidates did not receive the required two-thirds super majority.

The group also endorsed voting FOR the proposition on the ballot.

"We believe these candidates are the best qualified and will work to move Tulsa forward," said Bob McDowell,
the group's president.

The Tulsa Area Republican Assembly meets monthly, and is the local affiliate of the Oklahoma Republican Assembly, which is also affiliated with the National Federation of Republican Assemblies (NFRA).

The NFRA has a 70-year history of success as a true grassroots organization. Originally established by the California Republican Assembly, it is our nation's oldest and largest Republican volunteer organization. President Reagan said that the Republican Assembly is, "The Conscience of the Republican Party."
The NFRA is the national umbrella organization for all of the nationwide state Republican Assembly organizations.

Technorati Tags: Tulsa
Chris Medlock
Michael Willis
Rick Westcott
Jim Mautino
John Eagleton
Clifford Magee
Tulsa Area Republican Assembly

Will She Make Life Better?

I heard a commercial for Kathy Taylor for mayor and two things struck me as…well...a load of crap frankly.

1. “She is not a politician”
The dictionary defines a politician as

A. One who is actively involved in politics, especially party politics.
B. One who holds or seeks a political office.

I know I'm slow on the uptake sometimes, but I could swear that being the Oklahoma Secretary of Commerce and running for the Mayor of Tulsa qualifies Kathy as a politician.

2. “She will make life better”. I checked out her site and she has this form where she asks, “How Can I Make Your Life Better?”

Kathy, let me make the following suggestion. Give me your car, your house and your money…that would make my life better. No? well ok…

I don’t want you to make my life better. I’ll take care of making my life better, that’s my job. The job of the mayor is to make Tulsa better. Fixing the streets, improving infrastructure, lowering crime, fostering economic development, this is the job of the Mayor. If you want a mayor that will make Tulsa better, a mayor that understands what his job actually is, I suggest that you vote for Chris Medlock.

Technorati Tags: Tulsa
Tulsa Mayoral Race
Kathy Taylor
Chris Medlock

Mayoral Debates

It looks like several of the Tulsabloggers had fun at last night’s Mayoral forum, unfortunately I was unable to attend due to my duties at work…(mumble grumble….stupid food on my table….)

I was, however, able to attend the Meeting The Candidates Forum on Monday over at St Augustine. In attendance were Republican candidates Brigitte Harper and Chris Medlock, and Independent candidate Ben Faulk.

This is the first time I’ve heard Faulk speak. My overall impression of the man is that he is intelligent and fair. I was impressed by the answers he gave, however, I don’t think he is ready to be mayor. We learned that his primary reason for running for mayor is to take a stand against illegal immigration.

Harper was also impressive, I spoke with her briefly after the forum and she seems like a nice person. But again, I’m not convinced that she would be a good mayor. Perhaps if Tulsa wasn’t so screwed up she would be okay. However, Tulsa needs a strong mayor with strong convictions and a solid vision. (I’m not suggesting that Brigitte does not have strong convictions but I am suggesting that I don’t believe that she is the strong mayor we are looking for)

I firmly believe that Chris Medlock is the candidate for our time. Here are just a few points from Medlock’s answers I’d like to highlight. (These are paraphrased quotes)

How will you strengthen the city of Tulsa by working across party lines, building unity and a common vision?

I’m currently doing it. The gang of 4 on the city council to which I’m a part, is composed of two white republicans and two black Democrats. We each represent four different and diverse parts of the city. Crime should not be a republican or democrat issue. I will work with the council if they will work with me. When it is required I will passionately debate on one issue with the council, and turn around and work with them on the next. Tulsa needs a Mayor that spends more time behind the desk and less time at ribbon cuttings, and I’ll be that Mayor.

On Eminent Domain…

We (the council) passed a one year moratorium on the use of Eminent Domain for private development. Eminent Domain goes right to the heart of what it is to be an American. It is an obscenity to take a church or business in order for a private development. It is even more egregious when Eminent Domain is used as the threat. That is why we needed a moratorium.

What will be your top priorities as Mayor?

1. Call the police chef and the FOP and say “I’ve got your back, clean up the city”.

2. Hire a certified city manager to deal with the day to day operations of the city.I will come up with public policy and the manger will carry it out.

3. Develop a strategic plan to use the third penny sales tax…it needs to be a 18 month extension, and not the 6 year extension that LaFortune wants.

Again these are paraphrased answers that reflect my notes and my memory. There were also other great questions and answers but I thought these were the highlights.

Technorati Tags: Tulsa
Tulsa Mayoral Race
Brigitte Harper
Chris Medlock
Ben Faulk

Second Annual Educating Tulsa Seminar

On Saturday, I attended the Second Annual Educating Tulsa Seminar hosted by the Oklahomans for School Accountability. Their special guest Speaker was Michael Chapman. Also in attendance was Bobby from Tulsa Topics. We have had a few private conversations about it, and we both agree that it was an excellent seminar. It was both informative and eye opening.

I don’t think I could begin to do justice to Mr. Chapman’s presentation so I start by pointing you to his website and to the EdWatch website. I strongly encourage you to check these sites out.

[UPDATE] Bobby has posted video, it is a must watch...[/UPDATE]

The Reader’s Digest version of the seminar is that Secular Humanism has taken over our education system. Make no mistake; Humanism is a religion whose theology is based on the lack of a Divine purpose and the Divine all together. Starting with that world view has the following consequences which permeate everything else that world view is based on. 1. There is no such thing as Absolute Truth. Therefore education is no longer primarily focused on knowledge or facts. 2. There is not absolute standard for right and wrong. Right and wrong have been replaced with tolerant and intolerant. 3. There is no such thing as sin. Since mankind evolved, human nature must be natural, I.E. basically good.

The ultimate direction that our education system is headed, as presented by Chapman, is frightening. Again, I urge you to check out the aforementioned sites.

Hosea 4:6

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you from being priest for Me;
Because you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.

Technorati Tags: Oklahomans for School Accountability
Tulsa
Operation Information
Educating Tulsa
Michael Chapman
American Heritage Research
EdWatch.org

Digital Camera!

The days of posts with crummy camera phone pictures are almost over. I have just purchased a Nikon Coolpix S4. The Roemerman household has always been a Nikon Household. For my money you can't beat the Nikkor lens or the Nikon metering.

The decision to purchase the S4 is the culmination of a week of surfing the internet, window shopping, and calling my father two or three times a day. In 7-9 days I'll have my camera!

Technorati Tags: Nikon
Nikkor
digital camera
Coolpix S4

Pesto Mushroom Pasta

I won’t claim that this is an original creation, but I did not consult a cookbook or any other external source to create this pasta dish.

In a skillet coated with olive oil, sauté one small onion and two cloves of garlic with a pinch of kosher salt. Once the onion is translucent, add 8 oz of fresh mushrooms (chopped).

Take approximately 1 pound of cooked pasta (bow tie, penne, or some other small pasta with lots of places to hold tiny bits of goodness), and toss with a bit of olive oil, a few sprigs of fresh chopped parsley, and up to 4 oz of pesto.

Once the pasta is thoroughly coated with pesto, toss in the mushrooms and serve.




Technorati Tags: Pesto
Mushroom
Pasta

Winter Weary Traveler

We just got back (1:53 am) from a day trip to Springfield. When we left Springfield the sky was spitting snow at us, by the time we got to Joplin it was really coming down. At the Will Rogers Toll Plaza*, snow had accumulated enough that we had to slow down drastically. I had a feeling that it would get bad so I drove over the limit in Missouri so that when the inevitable 25mph speeds came into play their affect would be mitigated a bit. Amazingly it only took us an hour longer than normal. I’m glad I’m home…


*The Pikepass rocks! Especially in winter weather like this.

Technorati Tags: winter weather
snow
Oklahoma
Missouri
I 44
Will Rogers Turnpike
Pikepass

Causes Die

Technorati Tags: Lost

American Idol Poll

For my next poll I want you to tell me whether or not you watch American Idol.


Technorati Tags: American Idol

Sex Poll Results

Alright, I think everyone that is going to respond has already. So without further ado, here are the results of the survey.

Number of responses : 27
Questionnaire : Results
1. Have you had sex outside of marriage?

Yes	18 (67%)
No	9 (33%)

Technorati Tags: sexual purity

Four

4 Jobs I’ve Had In My Life:

• I “worked” on the farm during the summers
• My fist job was cleaning mini-blinds at an IRS building in Dallas
• A mover for Daryl Flood Allied Van Lines
• I did 900 tech-support for CompUsa at $3.95 a min! Oh the calls I used to get…
  

4 Goals I Set For This Year:

• Read more books
• Learn the Struts interface in Java
• Become more involved in Tulsa
• Come up with another goal? Perhaps it is a charter flaw, but I don’t set goals.
  

4 Movies I Could Watch Over And Over:

• Lord of The Rings
• Groundhog Day
• Back to the Future
• Monty Python and the Holy Grail
  

4 Places I Have Lived:

• Ridgecrest ,CA
• Carrollton, TX
• Highland Village, TX
• Springfield, MO
  

4 TV Shows I Love To Watch:

• Lost
• 24
• House
• Battlestar Galactica (the new one)
  

4 Places I’ve Been On Vacation:

• Edinburgh Scotland
• Liechtenstein
• Washington DC
• Gunnison, CO
  

4 Websites I Visit Daily:

• Google Reader
• Gmail
• Google News
• Site Meter
  

4 Of My Favorite Foods:

• Brisket and mashed potatoes
• Chocolate
• Steak
• Lemon meringue pie
  

4 Places I’d Rather Be Right Now:

• Home
• The ISS
• Hunting with Dick Cheney
• The beach

(via Counseling Notes)

Technorati Tags: 4

Bad Day

Today is not shaping up to be a good day. I stayed up until 3:00am last night. (Not on purpose)
This morning I locked my keys in my truck at QT.
And I have meetings all day...


Technorati Tags: bad day

Peace out Bill!

Technorati Tags: Bill LaFortune

Transformers…

…robots in disguise. Speaking of things that are in disguise, I’ve recently seen a new local blog that is not what it appears to be. If I didn't know better I'd swear that it was a tool of one of the local Mayoral Candidates....I'll keep you posted as I get more information.


Technorati Tags: Transformers
Tulsa
Tulsa Mayoral Campaign

Pulling Signs

Someone placed one of those round, soft, and weak LaFortune signs on the property of my church. Before service started I yanked it. The pleasure of pulling it paled only to the satisfaction of wadding it up and throwing it in the trash. Yeah, that’s right I pulled a sign, and if they put another LaFortune sign on my church’s property again, I’ll do it again!

Technorati Tags: Bill LaFortune
campaign signs

Round Soft and Weak

I spoke with an expert in the art of graphic design recently. This person expressed the opinion that the LaFortune signs are awful. They said, “The font is round, soft and weak.”

Wow, that is really ironic. Round, soft, and weak are all adjectives that describe Bill LaFortune perfectly.

Technorati Tags: Bill LaFortune
Tulsa

Brooker Clarifies

Bellow is the second in a series of emails from Dr. Brooker. In this email Dr. Brooker states that the first email was not actually from him, but from someone else using his email address. Apparently that someone is Toby Huyssen, president of ORU's College Republicans. I’m not entirely convinced I buy this explanation. Even if the email was written by Huyssen, I don’t believe that Brookner let the email go out without reviewing it. All of this is really moot anyway. It was his email address and he is responsible for the email’s content.

So with out further ado, “HERE WE GO…”

To ORU Government Students and Volunteers.

I wanted to address an e-mail that was sent a few weeks ago under my name about the upcoming mayoral election. The e-mail that was sent out was from my contact list from a student who wanted to let people know of a campaign opportunity. I did not see the wording before it was sent out. Let me clear up a few issues that have come up from this correspondence.

First, Richard Roberts has endorsed Randi Miller as a private citizen, not as president of ORU. This is his right as an American to voice his opinion. ORU as a university does not and cannot have a position in the election and no university assets or resources should be used for partisan purposes.

Secondly, I want it to be clear that any student working on this campaign is volunteering their time. You are on the e-mail distribution list because you have volunteered for the Virginia Governor's campaign. Any political campaign experience for any candidate is eligible for possible extra credit or can count as hours toward your practicum. For the Christian Faith and Government practicum, students are required to document 75 hours in a campaign of their choice. I want to make sure you are aware of all opportunities to get first hand experience in politics. No student is required to participate in a campaign for any specific candidate.

Sincerely, Tim Brooker
Coordinator, Department of Government Oral Roberts University

Technorati Tags: Oral Roberts University
ORU
Tulsa
Tulsa Mayoral Race
Randi Miller
Tim Brooker

More Items of Note

Here are some other interesting items from last night’s council meeting.

1. Public Hearing on Kendall Whittier Neighborhood Urban Renewal Plan. When you get down to brass-tacks, this is a plan where houses are seized to build a park. It may be a great plan but if Eminent Domain is required then I’m against it.
2. Part 1 of the public hearings for the Tulsa Hills TIF district, located at approximately 71st Street and Highway 75. This is a great idea. This commercial development will not only help retain Tulsa sales tax dollars, but it will reap additional dollars from surrounding cities like Sand Springs, Glenpool, Sapulpa, Jenks, and others. There will be another public hearing on this matter Feb 23rd at 6:00 (regular city council meeting)
3. Change order from Sherwood Construction for a 40 day extension for the Yale widening project between 71st and 81st. I was very happy to see the council unanimously deny this change order. The developer should have taken greater care in their estimate. To paraphrase Councilor Medlock, if we don’t put some rigidity into bidding process and the contracts that follow, then Tulsa will be taken advantage of by the developers.
4. Due to health violations, The Fountains Club has lot their license to operate on Jan 23rd. They appealed to the council but failed to show up so their appeal was denied. I did not even know that they lost their license. After talking with someone who used to work there, I was advised not to eat the fish at The Fountains…hrm interesting.
5. Tulsa World reporter,“P.J” Lassek, is an inconsiderate litterbug. During the meeting her phone started ringing. I guess she neglected to turn her phone to silent, despite the clearly visible signs requesting that visitors do so. Below is a picture of her returning after her call was over. I also spotted her leaving an empty Diet Dr. Pepper bottle on the press table…For shame “P.J”; don’t you have respect for the City Council?
   
   

Technorati Tags: Tulsa
Tulsa City Council
P.J. Lassek

Medlock wins Eminent Domain Victory

Last night the Council passed on a resolution that would place a one year moratorium on Eminent Domain for private development. Kudos to Councilor Medlock for proposing this resolution and kudos to State Rep. Mark Liotta who provided a short presentation on House Joint Resolution 1057. Since Kelo V. New London, a safety net for property owners has been lost. This legislation attempts to re-apply that safety net.

Medlock tendered this resolution to prevent greedy land grabbers that might try to use ED the shadow of this legislations passage. Medlock’s resolution also recognizes that the Eminent Domain issue, since Kelo V. New London, has been hotly contested and very controversial. Because there is legislation that also recognizes this, it seems wise to stay our hand, to wait and see what happens in the legislature.

Medlock’s resolution passed 6 to 2 Neal and Sullivan voted against this resolution and Baker was absent. It is noteworthy that Mayor Bill LaFortune has been on record as against this moratorium.

Mayor Bill LaFortune opposes any moratorium, calling eminent domain an important tool for cities. It is indeed a tool. A crowbar is also a tool, but it makes all the difference whether I use it to pry off your hubcap to help you change your tire or to crack open your door to steal your jewelry or to bash in your head. This moratorium doesn't mean we're throwing the tool away; we're just going to avoid using this tool in potentially damaging ways until we have some clear guidance on its proper, moral, and just use.

It is also noteworthy that District 5 candidate Al Nichols, and District 2 candidate Rick Westcott spoke to the council in favor of this resolution.


Technorati Tags: Tulsa
Tulsa City Council
Chris Medlock
Rick Westcott
Al Nichols
Mark Liotta
eminent domain
Kelo v. New London
House Joint Resolution 1057
Susan Neal
Randy Sullivan
Bill LaFortune

Bachelor House Update

I woke up early this morning to return the house to order.

• The bullet is out of the chamber, and the gun is back in the safe,
• the dishes are in the dishwasher,
• the kitchen counter has been cleaned and disinfected,
• the carpet has been vacuumed,
• the Trash has been taken out,
• and the light sent of Febreze is wafting through the house.
  

The house is ready for the return of two little girls and a road weary wife.

As it turns out I played my Xbox very little. Mostly because I went to bed at 11:00 every night, four hours short of my planed retirement. I guess I getting too old...

Welcome home honey, I missed you while you were gone.

Realtor Reality-Check Rally

From the Medlock For Mayor camp...

REALTOR REALITY-CHECK RALLY
MONDAY - FEBRUARY 6 - Starting at 5 pm

A constructive way for us to tell the builders and Realtors that there’s more of us than there are of them.

While they are at the Marriott Hotel on 71st Street having their mayoral forum without our candidate, Chris Medlock … we’ll be having our own rally across the street and just east of there!

Meet us at 5 pm (or just as soon as you can) just west of Lewis on 71st Street. North side of the street, look for the Medlock signs.

We’re going to have fun so bring your own signs and your positive attitude!

I plan to be there...hope to see you too.

Technorati Tags: Chris Medlock

Sex Before Marriage Poll

I was reading a post on No Blog Of Significance about Sexual Purity. It made me wonder how many people have saved sex for their marriage alone. Lets find out. Go to my first ever Roemerman on Record poll and answer the question” Have you had sex outside of marriage?”

While I’m primarily interested in whether or not folks have had sex before they are married, the way I worded the questions leaves room for those of you who have sexual relations outside your current marriage (affairs) or those of you who are had sexual relations after being single again (divorce). As to what the definition of sex, I’ll leave it to you to figure out for your self.

This poll will only allow 50 responses so, first come first serve.

Technorati Tags: sexual purity
sex before marriage

Mautino's Eastside Town Hall Meeting

Tuesday, Feb 7 at 6:30 there well be a town hall meeting at East Central High School. Councilor Mautino will provide:

• An update on Third penny sales tax for District 6,
• information from neighborhood inspections,
• a discussion on Streets, Sewer, and Water projects,
• a discussion on proposed storm water, sewer, and water rate increases,
• and a discussion on Eastland Mall.
  

Technorati Tags: Jim Mautino
East Tulsa
Town Hall Meeting
District 6
East Central

Bachelor House

The Roemerman house is a house of one this weekend. The following are the consequences:

• I'm cooking for my self (Tonight I ate 3/4 of a roast chicken with no sides)
• Eating over the kitchen counter
• Loud music (I've currently got Van Halen cranked up)
• A pile up of dishes
• Firearms on the coffee table with one in the chamber
• Xbox
• 50% more SciFi, Cops, and Discovery channel
• Talking to my self
• Boredom
• Going to bed somwhere between 2:30 and 3:00 am
  

Blogger problems

Apparently blogger has been having some difficulty over the past few days. I'm sorry if this has caused you any inconvenience.


Technorati Tags: blogger

Justis Helping a Repug?

Over at OKDemocrat there is an intresting post about Art Justis pulling up Mautino signs.

One poster comments "There is a primary out there for the repugs (Republicans). Why steal signs before the primary unless you are trying to help the other repug (Theresa Buchert)?"

Why indeed? Why would Art Justis help Theresa Buchert? Hrm...let me think about that for a second...Maybe because at the local level, party does not really mater. Ideology matters, which is why I support Turner, Henderson, and Nichols.

District 6 voters, listen and listen well Buchert=Justis=Buchert.

Technorati Tags: Theresa Buchert
Art Justis
Jim Mautino
Tulsa
Tulsa City Council

Roemerman on Record's Favicon

Firefox and Opera users should now enjoy the new Roemerman on Record favicon . Well, it is not really an honest to goodness favicon.ico. Blogger won’t host ico or png files, so I had to host it on Flickr and Flickr converted it to an jpg. Since Internet Explorer wont recognize favicons that aren’t actually ico(s), I guess it is a special treat for those who stopped using IE.

[UPDATE - 03FEB06]
A good friend of mine hosted the favicon.ico for me...it should now work in IE! Thanks Brian.


Technorati Tags: Favicon
Blogger
Firefox
Opera
Internet Explorer

East Central Honored

At tonight’s City Council meeting, Jim Mautino donned an East Central football Jersey. In honor of East Central’s Oklahoma State 5A football championship, Mautino gave an official proclamation praising the team espousing the pride they have brought to Tulsa.





Technorati Tags: Tulsa
Tulsa City Council
East Central
Jim Mautino
Football

Who's The Opposition?

Dr. Tim Brooker wrote an email to ORU students encouraging them to volunteer for Tulsa Mayoral candidate Randi Miller. In that letter he makes a cryptic reference to a quote from the “opposition”

The opposition has been quoted as saying that "ORU is a paper tiger" and "they can't deliver what's needed to win this race.". Well guess what, we need to show them just what we CAN deliver.

I spoke with Medlock and he told me he never said that. I believe him because I’ve personally heard him make reference to the powerful force that is the ORU student volunteers. In fact because the ORU students have been a great resource for Medlock, it was postulated that the date for recall was at least, in part, chosen to coincide with when the ORU students were on break.

Medlock said that he did not think that LaFortune would say that either. If that is the case then who is this “opposition” that Dr, Brooker spoke of?


Technorati Tags: Oral Roberts University
ORU
Tulsa
Tulsa Mayoral Race
Randi Miller
Chris Medlock
Tim Brooker

ORU's Involvement in Mayoral Campaign

A couple of days ago Bates had a post about an apparent ORU sanctioned email from Dr. Tim Brooker, Coordinator Department of Government, to ORU students encouraging them to get involved in the Randi Miller campaign.

There is a fine line that should not be crossed and ORU crossed it. There is nothing wrong with ORU encouraging its students to be involved in political campaigns in general. In fact, I believe that ORU's student base is a great resource. They should be applauded for their involvement. However, this email, from an ORU faculty member's ORU email address, is blatant in its support for Miller and no other candidate. ORU needs to publicly apologize for this email, and put in place measures to prevent this from happening in the future.

Below is a copy of that email. Because the copy I have is hard to read, I transcribed it as well.

Subject: Attention All Campaigners

Attention All Campaigners

Our ORU reputation has been challenged!!! President Roberts has thrown his support behind Randi Miller for Mayor of Tulsa. The opposition has been quoted as saying that "ORU is a paper tiger" and "they can't deliver what's needed to win this race.". Well guess what, we need to show them just what we CAN deliver.

There are only 50 days until the primary election and we need EVERYONE OF YOU!

There will be team leader positions available along with lots of responsibilities. We have a terrific head quarters to work out of and a caring candidate who will take care of her volunteers.

We need you, and we need you now. Come sign up in the Government office as soon as possible. We have activates starting as early as THIS Wednesday!

HERE WE GO......

Dr. Mr. Brooker &r. Mrs. Brooker

Dr. Tim Brooker
Coordinator, Department of Government
Oral Roberts University
(918) 495-****

Technorati Tags: Oral Roberts University
ORU
Tulsa
Tulsa Mayoral Race
Randi Miller
Tim Brooker

State of the Union 2006

There is an entire world of punditry and analysis regarding last night's State of the Union. As such, I’ll share only my favorite quotes as well as some superficial observations.

"There is no peace in retreat. And there is no honor in retreat. By allowing radical Islam to work its will -- by leaving an assaulted world to fend for itself -- we would signal to all that we no longer believe in our own ideals, or even in our own courage. But our enemies and our friends can be certain: The United States will not retreat from the world, and we will never surrender to evil."

...

“..there is a difference between responsible criticism that aims for success, and defeatism that refuses to acknowledge anything but failure. Hindsight alone is not wisdom, and second-guessing is not a strategy..”

...

"The terrorist surveillance program has helped prevent terrorist attacks. It remains essential to the security of America. If there are people inside our country who are talking with al Qaeda, we want to know about it, because we will not sit back and wait to be hit again."

...

"Our economy is healthy and vigorous, and growing faster than other major industrialized nations. In the last two-and-a-half years, America has created 4.6 million new jobs -- more than Japan and the European Union combined. Even in the face of higher energy prices and natural disasters, the American people have turned in an economic performance that is the envy of the world."

...

"If we ensure that America's children succeed in life, they will ensure that America succeeds in the world."

...

"Fellow citizens, we've been called to leadership in a period of consequence. We've entered a great ideological conflict we did nothing to invite. We see great changes in science and commerce that will influence all our lives. Sometimes it can seem that history is turning in a wide arc, toward an unknown shore. Yet the destination of history is determined by human action, and every great movement of history comes to a point of choosing.

Lincoln could have accepted peace at the cost of disunity and continued slavery. Martin Luther King could have stopped at Birmingham or at Selma, and achieved only half a victory over segregation. The United States could have accepted the permanent division of Europe, and been complicit in the oppression of others. Today, having come far in our own historical journey, we must decide: Will we turn back, or finish well?"

And now for my superficial observations of the night:

• Cindy Sheehan was stupid.
• Sheila Jackson Lee made me laugh because she undermines the President but couldn't wait to be seen next to him on TV.
• John McCain looked like Popeye.
• John Kerry looked like Lerch.
• Hillary looked funny when she rolled her eyes.
  

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State of the Union 2006