A4 - THE ,PERKINS .JOURNAL, Thursday, June 10, 2010
Opinions
Thanks to the
Iowa Tribe
Police
A friend of mine called me
late one night out of gas in
Perkins. Since they didn't
have a debit card they were
unable to purchase gas (had
the cash to buy gas but no
debit card for the automatic
gas pumps).
I called the Iowa Tribe and
they helped my friend out
as soon as they were able.
We should all be grateful
for the Iowa Tribe. They
go out of their way to make
our community safe.
Even during ice storms
in the past, I have seen the
Tribal Police out delivering
water to those who were
without. Small things like
this are why I am so thank-
ful to be in their area where
help is always only a call
away. Also about a week
age, my friend was broke
down on a country road
south of Perkins. We had
a trailer to load the car on
but were going to have to
push it up there by hand.
Then here comes an Iowa
Tribal police officer and
helped us get the car on
the trailer using his winch.
I really don't know if we
could have done it without
his help.
I just want to say thanks to
the Iowa Tribe for all they
do for our community!
Jon Barrett
"...gO, K FAULT I00-,IE, WOI00T 00:NVlIaONI00:NT00 19r--0000'a00R IN U.g,
No IN glOWER'lIE-s, DONE Wffl4 n:,""
By Cecil Acuff
A ventriloquist puts
words in the mouth of a
dummy; writers put words
in the mouths of actors -
smart people, but essen-
tially dummies until they
speak the writer's words.
The worlds of communi-
cation and entertainment
have people in front of
the camera who may
become wealthy celebri-
ties. Behind the camera;
technicians, directors,
and producers - dozens
of "necessary" people.
Blacksmiths, Tin-
smiths, Gunsmiths, and
others were the Artisans
or Craftsmen of the past
who met the needs of the
marketplace• So, those
who work with words
are the Wordsmiths of
society. One such person
is James J. Kilpatrick,
who retired at age 88.
Alan McDermott, Kil-
patrick's editor for more
than 30 years, wrote of
James' retirement in
The Tulsa World, Feb.
1, 2009. "I began edit-
ing Kilpatrick's political
commentary in 1970.
I was a young, green,
mostly untrained editor
of 17, he a widely syndi-
cated columnist with 400-
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plus clients (this corner
saved 90 from the
World). Kilpatrick' s
Writer's Art began as a
separate column in 1981,
as a way of spreading the
gospel of good writing;
it never sold as well as
the commentary; it was
a column often posted
on newsroom bulletin
boards. But, it received a
passionate response from
readers who cared about
language and enjoyed
reading a master word-
smith expound on the
good and bad of newspa-
per writing."
"In the spirit of his
beloved Strunk and
White (titled 'The Ele-
ments of Style,' in the
Foreword, by Roger
Angell), "writing is hard,
even for authors who do it
all the time. Less frequent
practitioners ... students,
business people, or letter
writers, often get stuck
in an awkward passage
or find a muddle on
their screens, and then
blame themselves. What
should be easy and flow-
ing looks tangled, feeble,
or overblown - not what
was meant at all; 'why
can't I get this right'?
"We jousted during our
weekly conference call.
He would say, 'And what
picky nits do you have
today?' I once threatened
to write an editor's note
that laid out my disagree-
ment with him; he replied
in language not fit for a
family newspaper. But
we always parted friends
... when we met in person
over the years, we always
found things to laugh
about. I salute him for
the grace and wit of his
writing, for his irasci-
bility (mostly feigned)
and spirit, for his love
of newspapers and their
writers .... I will miss
him." This scribbler's
note -shouldn't this
relationship between
these two men be a
model for spouses, fam-
ilies and every relation-
ship between and among
people - even nations?
Writers can't casually
take pen-in-hand and start,
"Once upon a .... "The
reader's attention must
be captured quickly, lest
other options are chosen,
or the web. Writers must
know their audience - dif-
ferent strokes for differ-
ent folks, then, there's
research, and writers must
decide about sentences,
short or long (columnist
George Will once wrote a
63-sentence sans period).
And redundancy, full stop,
free stop, etc. Although,
at times, writers may use
this emphasis. Scribblers
must mind split infini-
ties- X told the dog to
instantly stop barking.
He should write ... stop
barking, this instant. Then
there's the who-that mis-
use; who for people - that
for things.
There are too many
synonyms. The one
used should convey the
same nuance to writer and
reader• Gobbledygook
can be claptrap, garbage,
gibberish, nonsense, or
officialese. And, the
commas and colons, dot
and dashes which will say
what's meant in the Lynn
Truss book, Eats, Shoots,
and Leaves. " A woman;
without her man, is noth-
ing." "A woman; without
her, man is nothing."
The world of TV has
demanded pilots for the
"Tlwse ,.h(.,s ttn fim.u146 yanls fr, m
Ihe enth c,a.sed hy a du.k drie;
(Jariz I)ca,on ,s tlm)n 30 ymls mad
nol eve. her lder, a d(.;tol', €ouhl sine her.
Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk.
O
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:i !. :+:' !ii .ill .:.ii. :,::...i:!i ....
y vernor Brad Henri i
Reforms put Oklahoma
in race to the top
Providing Oklahoma's students with the best education
possible has always been a top priority of my administra-
tion. We've made great strides in recent years-- increasing
standards and accountability along with teacher pay--but
now Oklahoma has a great opportunity to take on even
greater reforms.
Race to the Top is a federal grant program which allows
states to compete for funds to invest in remaking their
educational systems. Unfortunately, Oklahoma lost out
in the first round of grants, but our state's application for
the second round, submitted earlier this month, shows
great promise.
During the legislative session, I worked with state
leaders and other stakeholders to pass a measure that
increases accountability in our classrooms and creates
new evaluation systems for determining how well our
schools are performing.
Former Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor and State Superin -
tendent Sandy Garrett have worked hard tO put together
Oklahoma's application for $175 million dollars of the
$3.4 billion in federal funds available through the Race
to the Top competition.
A panel of experts will review the applications and award
the grants to the boldest plans for educational reform. With
the groundwork laid this legislative session, Oklahoma
will be competitive in the second round of funding.
The Race to the Top grants offer states like a Oklahoma
to think critically about how educational systems can be
improved, and then it provides the resources to turn those
ideas into real reforms.
That education reform is vital for the future of our state•
Our ability to be prosperous in the years to come depends
on our state's ability to grow and attract high-paying jobs.
A highly educated work force is a must.
Furthermore, I believe we have a moral obligation to
offer Oklahoma children the best education possible•
Great jobs increasingly demand a great education and I,
like so many other Oklahoma parents, want our students
to have the opportunity to pursue their dreams.
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, www.governor.ok.gov.
past half-century - upfront
presentations from which
to choose next fall's crop
of television programs
and advertisers. TV's
pilot need is insatiable and
time-sensitive. Scripts for
comedies and dramas are
gathered in January by
studios from hundreds in
development. By the end
of April, each finished
product is delivered to a
network. In mid-May, the
networks unveil their fall
lineups. Network execs
say everyone accepts the
system, but it's hectic,
with scrambling for the
same time-slots and the
same people•
A stately house in a
quiet neighborhood of
Burgton, USA has been
vacant until just a few
days ago, then trucks,
trailers, actors, and crews
gathered - there's a bee-
hive of activity. A pilot
is being made for this
fall. There are dozens of
this scenario; few will be
seen. All the dreams and
hopes of each partici-
pant, from idea people,
to crews and actors, to
distribution people, will
vanish into thin air.
For next fall's TV
viewers, which show,
present and projected,
is safe? 26 shows have
been renewed, 12 shows
are in no danger, 9 have
been cancelled, 3 are
ending their runs, 3 are
unlikely to return, and
20 are on the bubble. The
viewing public has little
knowledge, and no input.
The network moguls
decide the demographics
of which pilot will bring
the most viewers and
advertisers. And then, the
production costs; it may
not be a great show, but it
costs so little, or it costs a
small fortune, but 10ok at
those demographics.
Finally, which shows
will be watched, and
renewed for next year?
Then, which will be
cancelled after a few
episodes, to join the
hundreds of disappoint-
ed people of yesterday's
Burgtons, USA?
May all your Favorite
Pilots sail happily into
next year, and last
season's pleasures reach
port this year!
J .1
