Dick Wheatley or Tulsa, a lobbyist for twenty-five years, comments on the political and cultural scene in Oklahoma, where we’ve been and where we are going..

At the beginning of the next one hundred years of Statehood, ranking things in Oklahoma is a good thing.

We are first in incarceration of women but real good at football. We rank near the bottom in health care and Tulsa is ranked as one of America’s unhealthiest cities. But our Legislature refused to impose a health care provider tax because it was a “Tax.” One of our former and most popular Senators can be given much credit for pushing Oklahoma and the nation to the bottom in healthcare, but after sticking Oklahoma in the mud he has abandoned us for a lobbying job in Washington.

Oklahoma ranks high in political hypocrisy and low in political common sense. After all, a majority of Oklahoman’s still support Bush but Oklahoma reportedly has more statewide elected Democrats than any other state.

Oklahoma ranks very low in common education funding and just as low in total tax per individual.

Oklahoma has the second largest Native American population, which is among the sickest and the poorest. However Indian Gaming Casinos, over eighty and counting, are planning or completing multi-million dollar expansions. This problem and this opportunity will bring about huge changes in Oklahoma but the “Good Ole Boys” at the coffee shop think that giving the Native Americans a break on car tags is a “Bad thing.”

We have a goofy new “Parity Funding Formula” for OU and OSU. If one University asks for ten million for a project than the other has to come up with it’s own ten million-dollar project. OSU’s Capitol Cowboys are a force, and they have a Speaker and one-half of a Pro Tem this session but David Boren is also a force and he has better football tickets. The other schools just suck hind tit

Oklahoma is supposed to have more shoreline than any other state, but the draught has probably changed that and our continued and increased pollution of the waters of the state is going to make that boast moot - if you can’t drink or swim in the lakes and rivers.


I hope to institute a “Daily Dirt Pile” the Administrative Assistants contribution to good government.