The Re Collection

I moved to the Waco area from the Oklahoma City Metro, home of “the worst newspaper in America“(CJR).

The Waco Trib is slightly better, which instead of a failing grade of 20 on the journalism test, it gets a failing grade of 40.

The star student in the class who skews the curve is editorial columnist John Young, and of course, the local no-nothings rail at every turn against him and his even having a job at the Trib.

Here’s an example of why Young drives the Bush ite fanatics over the edge: A million little evasions

As explained in my previous post about my pending visit to the Bush ranch, I needed money to help me get there and back. I some donations tonight, enough to feel like I can go without being in constant panic mode over money. And it looks like I got a travel companion as well. Folks at Camilo’s talk at Maayflower UCC were very jazzed about what’s happening in Crawford, and made donations to help the Peace Center there keep the demonstrators as comfortable as possible.

If you are thinking about contributing, send me a note privately through the contact page on this site. If something happens and I need your assistance, I can contact you. That would give me some backup, but not make this a profitmaking enterprise. Otherwise, save your dough for another cause another day.

Tonight I attended a potluck dinner followed by a talk by Camilo Mejia, the conscientious objector who was imprisoned for nine months here in Oklahoma for following his conscience and refusing to return to fight in Iraq. He is one of my heros and it was great to see him again, and to get more details about his journey — and further to see him reach ever more people with his message of personal morality and empowerment. I’ll post a story at www.okimc.org with more details about his talk as soon as I get a chance.More photos

In today’s Oklahoman, in an AP story about President Bush’s new ethics guidelines for White House employees, the name of the Deputy Chief of Staff, which hasn’t exactly been scarce in the news lately, is misspelled. It’s only eight letters long in its entirety; how hard can it be to get it right?

In the online AP version, oddly, only the last name “Rove” is used in its first use in the story, which is bad form for AP. So, evidently papers using the story needed to fill in the first name. I checked at another paper that ran it, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (selected at random), and they have it spelled correctly.

So whatever editor “corrected” the copy for the Oklahoman, performed the ultimate editorial faux pas: making an even worse error than the one they were trying to fix. I’m sure that person will be moving right on up the Gaylord express career ladder!

The Oklahoma City Impeach Bush Meet-up group — the folks who did the DSM demo at the Capitol a few weeks ago — is now hosting a study circle on the Downing Street Minutes (or “Memo) to mark the three-year anniversary of the document. Here are the details:

DSM 3rd Anniversary Study Circle

July 23, 2005, from: 02:00 PM until 04:00 PM
Address: The Backdoor CoffeeHouse 3214 N. Classen Blvd.
Directions: also known as ” Jeep-on-a-stick”, The Backdoor Coffeehouse is @ N.W.32nd & N.Classen

Sign up or get more info by following the link.

I’d say I’d be there, but I plan to be in Tulsa at the Greens National Convention that weekend.

Want to see a good film? Might want to pass by the multiplex and try a more intimate venue with more thought-provoking fare. Each of these films have been highly acclaimed. For more info: http://www.okcmoa.com/programs_film_cal.htm
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Amazing letter to the editor in today’s Oklahoman. (Not the usual uninformed anti-liberal rant, which in itself is notable.)

Volunteer force is floundering

Having served in the military recently, I believe I can shed some light on the questions posed by William R. Melton (Your Views, July 10). He wonders if our fighting men can maintain good morale and continue to fight under these conditions. They can’t. The morale of our enlisted men is already low. Most of the young enlisted men who do the majority of the fighting are tired of the lies from this administration. They know they are not defending America’s freedom; instead, they are wrapped up in a personal vendetta gone bad.

Will the volunteer force crash and burn? It already has! I would never allow one of my children or other family members to volunteer to serve in the military under its current leadership. I’d try to talk anyone out of volunteering to serve in an organization that’s governed recklessly and based on fiction.

Michael Marsh, Oklahoma City

BTW, Oklahoman editors: I think you mean “foundering.”

CST just announced it’s 22nd Season. For this kind of theatre, with the kind of work it offers, to last that long is quite remarkable. CST seems to be comfortably funded, and housed gratis at the arts center, I think (at any rate they were funded well enough to blow off my volunteering offers when I first moved here in 2003). Which is good (the funding, not the blow-off), because they can concentrate on the work.
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ChannelOklahoma.com syndicates the amazing Hearst White House columnist Helen Thomas. Good for them!