2-THE PERKINS JOURNAL T Thursdayt May 29 2003
Opinion
Doesn't downtown look nice? The city crews were out Sunday
morning painting bright white stripes for the parking spots and
handicap parking areas. It looks very spiffy - thanks guys!
CS
David Sasser let us know that the deadline to get your pre-order
forms in for the new Perkins history book, "Perkins - Many People,
One Community," has been bumped back a few days. Now all of
you procrastinators have a chance to get your order in and still
save $5 off of the price. It's going to be a wonderful volume with
lots of photographs, so don't miss out on getting your copy. See
the form on page 7.
CS
I was a bit disappointed to see such a small crowd at the Memo-
rial Day Service out at the cemetery on Monday.
The V.EW. does such a nice job of commemorating Memorial
Day each year and I thought the service would draw a bigger crowd
than normal, given the events of recents months,
I did note a very respectful group of young people attending the
service. I believe it was the Restoration Fellowship Youth Group,
since Pastor Chris Baumgarner was also in attendance. What a
nice group of kids!
CS
Speaking of Memorial Day, Maddie and I went to Woodward on
Sunday to attend a family reunion.
We traveled through Hennessey on the way there and saw a very
beautiful sight - both highways running through Hennessey were
lined with American flags. There were flags positioned about six
feet apart all along SH 51 and also along SH 81 running as far as
the eye could see.
I asked the publisher of the Hennessey Clipper, Barb Walter, about
it and she told me that a local man and his mother placed 2,700
American flags along the two highways in memory of his dad. His
mother al served in the military. What a great memorial!
CS
A special thanks this week to Cecil Henrick and Connie Norrie
who both bent over backwards to help in identifying people who
appear in some of our photos this week. I appreciate your help!
CS
I receive interesting and helpful things often as part of my
membership in the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ). Late
last week I received the following essay written by well-known
journalist Bill Moyers. In the essay Moyers speaks to journalists,
but I think the points he brings up are important to anyone who
lives in a democracy. I wanted to share it with you in honor of
Memorial Day. Enjoy.
Moyers on the role of a journalist in a democracy
From your letters I know some of you are curious as to why
journalists like me.keep opening the Pandora's box of democracy;
why we come round, and rtmad Io what ails America...the bribing
of Congress, the desecration of the environment, corporate tax
havens, secrecy, fraud on Wall Street, the "arrogance of ideology,
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the pretensions of power. Do we delight in the dark side of human
experience, you ask? Do we never see good in the world? Or was
Nietzsche right: that the Christian resolution to find the world ugly
and bad has made the world ugly and bad?
I can only speak for myself, of course. And I confess to think-
ing of journalism as the social equivalent to a medical diagnosis.
My doctor owes me candor; I pay him for it. Candor could save
my life.
I like to think journalists are paid for candor, too; society needs
to know what could kill us, whether it's too many lies or too much
pollution. Napoleon left instructions that he was not to be awakened
if the news from the front were good; with good news, he told his
secretary, there is no hurry. But if the news were bad, he said, "'rouse
me instantly, for then there is not a moment to be lost." Think of
journalism as a kind of early warning system - iceberg spotting in
the choppy waters of democracy.
But there's another reason for what we do. I'm reminded of it every
year at this time, when my thoughts about the honor and respect
we pay to our nation's soldiers on Memorial Day are colored by
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its proximity to D-Day.
I was just ten years old when the allies landed on Normandy on
June 6, 1944. I couldn't then imagine what it must have been like
on those beaches when our world was up for grabs and men spilled
their blood and guts to save it. I never knew what it was like until
fifteen years ago when I accompanied some veterans from Texas
who had fought at Normandy and survived, and were now return-
ing to retrace their steps. Jose Lopez was one of the veterans that
joined me on that journey.
Lopez said of his experiences as a soldier, "I was really very,
very afraid. That I want to scream. I want to cry and we see other
people was laying wounded and screaming and everything and it's
nothing you could do. We could see them groaning in the water
and we keep walkin'."
Jose Lopez went on to win the Congressional Medal of Honor,
our nation's highest honor for gallantry in action. But searching for
the place he landed that day, he didn't want to talk about the Medal
of Honor. He just wanted to be alone with his memories.
Howard Randall took a bullet in his ankle and almost had his leg
amputated. His buddy Ed wasn't so lucky. (Edward J, Myers, First
Lieutenant, fought in the 17th Infantry, 76th Division.)
Randall spoke of his friend Ed during our trip, "He's from the
State of Washington, Puyallup, Washington. March 1, 1945. That
was the same day I was wounded. He was behind me probably a
hundred yards, maybe 200 yards. And he caught a piece of mortar
fragment in the stomach, lived until that night. I didn't know he'd
died until a couple of days later."
Every Memorial Day I think about what these men did and what
we owe them. They didn't go through hell so Kenny Boy Lay could
betray his investors and workers at Enron, or for a political system
built on legal bribery. It wasn't for corporate tax havens in Ber-
muda, or an economic system driven by the law of the jungle, or so
a handful of media buccaneers
could turn the public airwaves
into private sewers.
Sure, to paraphrase Donald
Rumsfeld, freedom makes it
possible for people to be crooks,
but so does communism, and
fascism, and monarchy. Democ-
racy is about doing better. It's
about fairness, justice, human
rights, and yes, it's about equal-
ity, too; look it up. .......
I was never called on to do
what soldiers do; I'll never
know if I might have had their
courage. But a journalist can
help keep the record straight,
on their behalf. They thought
democracy was worth fighting
for, even dying for. The least we
can do is to help make democ-
racy worthy of them.
-Bill Moyers
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Studio owner expresses
I would first like to thank God for all the
us, including the tremendous support we
munity at the dance recital Saturday, May 10.
This year's recital was called "No Place Like Home..;
outstanding success! With over 450 in attendance,
so proud of their accomplishments at the end
shouted as the curtains closed!! And since then, we hava
hearing about how great it was!!
I wish to thank all those who came and gave
our studio, and have been so helpful to all of us.
ate your hard work and efforts! I also wish to
Jones for not only choreographing and helping
helping me get on my feet with the studio. I could
it without her.Thank you, Barb!
And last but not least, I wish to tell all
that I am so proud of them for doing this! It was the
many and I am amazed at how well they did! I
have the very best studio. Once again, a great big
out to the community for all their support!!
Sincerely,
Miss Morgan Reynolds
Owner, Rhythm Alley School for the Performing Arts
The Supreme Sacrifice
Memorial Day is a fitting time to honor those Americans who
have made the supreme sacrifice in war for the sake of our nation.
Operation Iraqi Freedom, thankfully, saw a comparatively low
number of U.S. casualties, but the war's death toll did include
several men with ties to Oklahoma.
It is an appropriate time to reflect upon these exemplary Ameri-
cans.
A 24-year-old Broken Arrow man, Lance Cpl. Thomas Alan
Blair, was among those killed in battle outside the Iraqi city of
Nasiriya. Tommy, as he was known to friends in his hometown,
had joined the Marines shortly after graduating from Broken Arrow
High School.
Another Marine who died in battle, 2nd Lt. Frederick Pokorney,
lived for several years in Wynnewood, Oklahoma. The 31-year-
01d man's love for the Marine Corps was eclipsed only by his love
for his family.
Fort Sill lost three soldiers in the conflict.
Army Sgt. 1 st Class Randy Rehn leaves behind a wife and infant
daughter. The 36-year-old Colorado native, who had survived the
first Gulf War, died in fierce fighting when coalition forces seized
control of Baghdad's airport.
Two other Fort Sill soldiers also died in Iraq while in service
to their country. We mourn the loss of 33-year-old Sgt. Todd
Robbins of Michigan and 20-year-old Spc. Donald S. Oaks of
Pennsylvania.
As recently as last week, a 27-year-oli Marine from my home-
town of Shawnee, Sgt. Aaron Dean White. died in a helicopter
crash in central Iraq.
The sacrifices of these men remind me of what Robert E Kennedy
once said about how heroism leads to further acts of greatness.
"Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the
lot of others, or strikes out against injustice," Kennedy said, "he
sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and - those ripples build a cur-
rent that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and
resistance."
Let us remember the bravery of these soldiers and keep their
families in our thoughts and prayers.
If you have questions or comments, please write me at the Office
of the Governor, Room 212, Oklahoma City OK 73105 or visit
the "Contact the Governor" section of my website at www.gover
nor.state.ok.us.
SENATE REVIEW
by Senator Mike Morgan
The 2003 legislative session marked my first
to serve as Senate Appropriations Chairman - a
post many here said they did not envy given the
difficulties inherent with a nearly $700 million
shortfall. But my position has always been that
the current circumstances represented both
tunity for our state. The challenge is passing a
that prioritizes the resources we have in a way
Oklahoma not just this year but in years to come.
is for us to revisit how things have been done in
more efficient ways of addressing the needs of our
This session I have authored legislation calling
budgeting. This ensures we will have the
thorough examination of all state expenditures
eliminate any possible waste or duplication
resources to areas doing the most
I've also authored legislation that calls for
tightening guidelines on when and how the state's I
can be accessed. Under current law, up to half
fund can be spent if estimated revenues are less
for the previous year, and up to half can be
gencies. The proposed constitutional amendment
to three-eighths to be spent for current year
the total amount spent could not exceed the amount c
It further states that no state governmental entity
than its original appropriation. Up to
if revenue estimates are less than the
Up to one-fourth could be spent
We're continuing to look at other ways
redirected to offset the effects of the bud
Senate Bill 438 would end the automatic
reminding vehicle owners when their car tags
I realize many of us appreciate these reminderS.
consider that the total cost of this service is $600
obvious that this is a convenience we can forego
more teachers and highway patrolmen on the job
protect other vital state services.
Our economist point to various indicators that :
an improvement the economy. But in the
we are implementing will put us in a better
with future economic downturns and make
conditions do improve.
