Oklahoma City, In the Press

[jdizzle]

Valid point.

I’m not sure how to break it down to within city boundaries, but another way to analyze it would be the Mayor.

Every OKC mayor the last 33 years has been a republican. That’s very telling with regards to the city and which way it leans.

Holt is not a republican who would have been elected 20 years ago. He is very moderate, and has some more liberal views. OKC is moving away from it's staunch conservative nature.

Also, Oklahoma has had a liberal governor more recently than Texas has. And one might have beaten Stitt if they had a decent candidate. But yes, OK is held back by the rural GOP hold. But it isn't OKC's fault, same with the big Texas cities.

[SEMIweather]

Valid point.

I’m not sure how to break it down to within city boundaries, but another way to analyze it would be the Mayor.

Every OKC mayor the last 33 years has been a republican. That’s very telling with regards to the city and which way it leans.

OKC is for sure one of the most conservative MSA's in the country, but I definitely think the extremely large city limits have something to do with why the city proper has elected a Republican mayor for the past three decades.

[HOT ROD]

OKC mayor is supposed to be non-partisan so I'm not sure why there's all of this talk now. Very could be that no democrat would run for mayor in OKC or have the support of the party since it's non-partisan and therefore can't really be counted among the league of dems for voting block.

Anyway, my point is exactly that you can't look at OKC's mayor party to define the city but instead at the people and how the city is run. OKC is conservative but not like what Cornett was saying IMPO. And i would define OKC's conservatism to only two facts: 1) OKC has a very high religious affiliation rate compared to other major cities and 2) OKC's nightlife is rather TAME compared to other major cities that earns the city the label "family friendly" which is also often used by mayor Cornett and the OKC print media.

It is ONLY in these two regards that I consider OKC to be conservative, otherwise, OKC is quite liberal when it comes to race and social issues, transparency, and engagement - hence why there aren't many flash points in today's world.

I think OKC could continue with the good points and still improve upon its nightlife and social amenities.

[SEMIweather]

From Politico, How One of the Reddest States Became the Nation’s Hottest Weed Market. Great article.

[Bill Robertson]

Not exactly in the press but we were a question today on Jeopardy. It had to do with being able to whitewater raft without having a whitewater river.

[mugofbeer]

The river's not close to white

[HOT ROD]

Not exactly in the press but we were a question today on Jeopardy. It had to do with being able to whitewater raft without having a whitewater river.

did anybody guess "where is Oklahoma City"??

[Plutonic Panda]

“ Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Big city amenities and a whole lot of heart in America’s heartland
City population: 655,057
Average rent for a 1-BR: $806
Despite being one of the largest cities in the US by area, OKC boasts the kind of cohesive neighborhood patchwork you’d expect of larger metropolises like Chicago or New York, each pocket enriched with distinct character. It’s apparent in the Santa Fe-like architecture and ceramics shops in the Paseo Arts District, and the drag brunches and rainbow murals lining the 39th Street Entertainment District. Stockyards City is home to centuries-old steakhouses, while Film Row brings new-school culinary flair: pair gingerbread-Nutella tarts with breakfast tacos at Stitch Cafe, or chicken-fried carrots with nori-infused amaro cocktails at The Jones Assembly.
In many ways, OKC is a small town masquerading as a big city. Gone are the staggering rents and the traffic (if it takes more than 20 minutes to drive across town, something is very wrong). As evidenced by a somber-yet-inspiring trip to the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum, this is a community that emerged from tragedy with a unified sense of camaraderie and care for one another—a sentiment warmly shared with newcomers from all walks of life. It’s a vibrant dot in a red state, colored by friendliness and cultural diversity that’s only growing stronger in America’s heartland. —Matt Kirouac”

https://www.thrillist.com/travel/nat...nder-the-radar

[OKC Talker]

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/16/u...itol-riot.html

In Oklahoma, critics of Sheriff West said that he had for months adopted overtly political positions. That included refusing to put in effect the Oklahoma City mask mandate aimed at reducing the spread of Covid-19 and forming a civilian “posse” to maintain order at public events, which his opponents considered a paramilitary organization. The riot came a few months later.

Sheriff David Mahoney, president of the National Sheriffs’ Association, said that he passed to the F.B.I. for investigation information he had received that Sheriff West had made a celebratory telephone call from inside the Capitol.

Sheriff West did not return calls seeking comment, and three main authors of the petition supporting him also declined to speak.

Brandy Becerra, the main organizer of the petition against the sheriff, acknowledged that she has long been at loggerheads with Trump supporters in the county, including the sheriff. But she questioned his judgment in marching on the Capitol given that the goal was to intimidate lawmakers or worse.

“I think people have a right to be worried about this sheriff,” she said.

[Bill Robertson]

I've read lots of things about Sheriff West but I don't get the mask mandate issue. No law enforcement agency is enforcing mask waring so why hold that against any sheriff?

[BridgeBurner]

https://fwtx.com/culture/travel/a-city-transformed/
Couple months old but thought it was a nice write up- just showed up on my suggested google news feed.

[OKC Talker]

I swear I don't go out looking for negative stuff about OKC but this is what pops up in my news alerts. It'd be nice if we made national news for positive things...

https://apnews.com/article/oklahoma-...4c9748de67be62

"Oklahoma Republican apologizes for ‘colored’ babies comment
The Associated Press
today
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A Republican Oklahoma House member apologized to his colleagues on Tuesday for using a racist term to describe Black babies during a debate on the House floor.

Rep. Brad Boles, 37, a Republican from Marlow, used the term “colored” to describe Black babies during debate on an anti-abortion bill, while suggesting that abortion affects people of all races."

[OKC Talker]

Apparently the Oklahoma Legislature is just full of quotable material...

"Boles’ remark wasn’t the only eyebrow-raising moment in the heated debate over the abortion bill, which ultimately passed on a vote of 80-19. According to local NBC station KFOR, the debate got “so rowdy at one point that two floor members mentioned taking things outside and settling them like men.”"

https://www.vice.com/amp/en/article/...bortion-debate

[Plutonic Panda]

Maybe they should let off a little steam. While renovating the capitol they should add a boxing stage. Televise it and call it “settling like men” segment for entertainment. Jerry Springer could be the referee. I bet that would get some viewers.

[GoGators]

I swear I don't go out looking for negative stuff about OKC but this is what pops up in my news alerts. It'd be nice if we made national news for positive things...

https://apnews.com/article/oklahoma-...4c9748de67be62

"Oklahoma Republican apologizes for ‘colored’ babies comment
The Associated Press
today
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A Republican Oklahoma House member apologized to his colleagues on Tuesday for using a racist term to describe Black babies during a debate on the House floor.

Rep. Brad Boles, 37, a Republican from Marlow, used the term “colored” to describe Black babies during debate on an anti-abortion bill, while suggesting that abortion affects people of all races."

The only guarantees in life are death, taxes, and Oklahoma being embarrassed on a national level anytime the state legislature is in session.

[mugofbeer]

I doubt much of anyone will really notice and even less will remember a week from now.

[TheTravellers]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...ed/6945418002/

Yay, accountability!

Edit: Made the top spot on The Daily Mail - https://www.dailymail.co.uk/ushome/index.html

[Ginkasa]

Tom Hanks, The NBA, And COVID’s Day Of Reckoning In The US: An Oral History

A series of interviews documenting the events of one year ago today which seems to be generally accepted as the day when things regarding COVID started feeling real. Included, of course, is the fateful Thunder-Jazz that brought it all home to many of us and led to the NBA season being postponed.

[Jersey Boss]

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news...rs/6953646002/

The right to assemble ends if I am forced to detour law.

[LocoAko]

I doubt much of anyone will really notice and even less will remember a week from now.

I mean, we're literally the front page of Huffington Post right now for some of these bills. If our legislators think this type of press is what is going to draw businesses to the state.....

[Bill Robertson]

I mean, we're literally the front page of Huffington Post right now for some of these bills. If our legislators think this type of press is what is going to draw businesses to the state.....

Very good point!

[TheTravellers]

I mean, we're literally the front page of Huffington Post right now for some of these bills. If our legislators think this type of press is what is going to draw businesses to the state.....

Front page, top headline all morning... And legislators don't give half a **** about the press the state gets, they have re-election pandering to do, and they'll do it all the time, day in, day out, and a huge amount of low-educated voters in this state eat it up...

[Bellaboo]

I saw on the news last night where a couple of the morons on the floor were challenging each other to go outside and settle it like a man. No crap, what a bunch of morons we have on 23rd street.

[dcsooner]

The only guarantees in life are death, taxes, and Oklahoma being embarrassed on a national level anytime the state legislature is in session.

Totally Agree

[mugofbeer]

I mean, we're literally the front page of Huffington Post right now for some of these bills. If our legislators think this type of press is what is going to draw businesses to the state.....

I guess certain things take a little while to catch on. When l made my post, only AP was reporting it online. It's now reported other places. Despite the pub, there are plenty of other similar things going on in other states so l would still not put too much weight on it unless something new comes out.