Sam’s Perspective: Christmas Past

Seems like the Christmas season was really short this year. We are taping this in the middle of January but I’ve been giving Christmas past a lot of thought.  I do hope the season was good for you.  Did Santa bring what you wanted? Lots of folks didn’t get what they ask for or what they needed. Which brings me to why. About six months before Christmas the kids in the legislature started talking about a budget shortage,… a 600 million dollar shortage. They blamed the depressed oil industry.  As we got closer to Christmas that figure started to climb. By the time Santa rolled in, it was over 900 million and could go higher. Meaning,… lots of budget cuts.

On top of that, a planned tax cut that the legislature and the Governor refused to stop.  So, the present  we all got was a warning,… to expect budget cuts. And the state delivered.  My question is, the legislature is reportedly made up of semi intelligent men and women so why didn’t they act?  Why did they go ahead with a tax cut in the face of a looming shortage?  But the bigger question is,  didn’t they know it was dangerous to look to one major revenue source to keep us afloat?  Why didn’t they plan ahead and push for economic diversification?   Also how come we saw the state file so many lawsuits that they knew they would lose?   That had to cost a lot of money. Now, rather than live like the rest of us and obey the law, they’re looking at changing the judicial process because they feel judges were unfair,…  In other words, lets get some judges who are more in tune with what they want. If that happens, of course we can expect more lawsuits that we will again lose.

Speaking of losing,… who gets hurt with the latest budget cuts?  Who do you think? Education of course is really taking it on the chin.  Instead of investing in Oklahoma children, state lawmakers are giving them teacher shortages, growing class size and disintegrating textbooks. And of the children going to school, what about the ever growing number who go to school hungry. Well over half of students in Tulsa alone fall into that category. I haven’t even talked about state prisons. Guess that puts me on the same level as state lawmakers. And too, what about all that money Oklahomans should have received over the Affordable Health Care Act?  Refusing to accepting it because it would make the President look good?  My, my, my.  That’s real class. And here is what really hurts,…  Who elected these folks to the legislature?  The very same folks who are being hurt by their decisions.  Begs the question, what are the people going to do about that? Chances are,…. they’ll just reelect them.

What is it they say about doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results? I don’t really need to say it do I?

That’s my perspective.