Whitley O'Connor
@WhitleyOConnor
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Social enterprise practicioner, supportive employment advocate, and social impact consultant.
Oklahoma City
Joined October 2012
If Superintendent Walters really wanted to put Bibles in every classroom, he would have done it. It's not hard or expensive. It would take no more than a few hours of time and a handful of phone calls to secure private funds (maybe $150,000) and the bibles. Instead. 1/3.
The Bible is back in Oklahomas classrooms. We are getting our kids back on track.
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Because that's not his real goal. The goal was to pander to future voters. The goal was to send a message to Trump. The goal was to continue to distract the public from the failings of his administration. None of these goals involve education or religion. Just grandstanding. 3/3.
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He spent $24,500 of State funds to purchase 532 copies of the Trump Bible ($46). This same amount could have secured at least 8,100 traditional KJV Bibles ($3). If his goal is to put Bibles in every classroom, why at a minimum didn't he maximize the classrooms impacted? 2/3.
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"But the Trump Bible includes the Constitution and Bill of Rights!" Sure. But you could add those to the KJV Bible and print it as a single book for under $5. How do I know? I've produced multiple books. So, historical documents are not why that version was chosen.
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But willfully false statements & misrepresentations provide nothing. You can't talk to (or trust) someone operating from a base you both know to be false. In other words, you can (and should) work with people with whom you disagree. You can't (and shouldn't) work with liars. 2/2.
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Here's the thing that really frustrates me. I wish this really was about religion or education. Because a difference of opinions provides a basis from which to understand each other and discuss differences - to disagree better as Governor Stitt says. 1/2.
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@oh_hey_quinn It was a Trump-endorsed Bible from Lee Greenwood that includes things like the Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights.
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This got out of control, so I guess I should point y’all somewhere. Want better leaders in Oklahoma? Closed primaries are a BIG barrier, and it’s getting worse. An open primary system could change that. Follow @oklahoma_united and visit to learn more.
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@WindersJean Hard for many of our students to read a KJV Bible at a 12th grade level without better reading outcomes.
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@Fessal08 To be fair… Walters did say that these documents played a role in world history, but that the Bible has played an outsized role in US History. But… he hasn’t promoted putting them in every world history class either.
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I was incredibly fortunate to graduate from the Oklahoma School of Science and Math, the top school in Oklahoma and a top 25 school nationally. A public school so good that every year, kids leave their private schools to attend. Why isn’t that our goal?.
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The idea that we should create school vouchers because public schools are “failing” is pretty odd to me. It’s basically elected officials admitting their policies have failed and refusing to fix them.
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Four sitting OKC Council members voted against creating a Human Rights Commission. Human rights. 4/9 voted against creating a group of citizens to ensure our City is upholding simple human rights. Real head scratcher that Oklahoma has a hard time recruiting businesses.
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@taylornicholz I didn’t forget there was an organization giving these puppies away for free. But looks like someone did.
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Can’t cut the grocery tax for working class families, but we can send $75 to millionaires. Oklahoma doing Oklahoma stuff.
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@thetrentroberts No need for bids under $25,000. Probably just a coincidence that the total was $24,500, right?.
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@fletch_ii The Greens of Hobby Lobby have donated tens of millions to build a Bible museum. Yes, I imagine this would have been in their wheelhouse. That’s why I said it’s a few hours and a handful of calls at most.
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Tonight while driving people to the emergency shelter, I saw a tent and pulled over. I called out offering a ride, and a man quickly answered with an enthusiastic acceptance. He soon unzipped his tent, and I could see him cocooned into his sleeping bag. 1/5.
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No smoke to Chip and Joanna Gaines, but no more white farmhouse-style homes in OKC. No more.
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Edmond just passed a mask mandate, but it won't go into effect until August 26. Why? Because apparently everyone should wear masks, just not right now. 🤦♂️.
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Question for @OKCPD and @cityofokc: Will the bill for the emergency response for Spiderboy's stunt today be billed directly to him? A couple hundred dollar fine for trespassing isn't much, but I'm sure the response easily cost taxpayers thousands.
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Alright, hear me out. The historic Gold Dome as a center for social enterprise and impact incubation in Oklahoma City. Give me a little of that Riversports money and let’s get this thing restored before one of our best known and most visible landmarks rots away.
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I’m here once again to tell you that you can’t complain about high gas prices AND support the oil and gas industry. Either you’re happy for O&G increasing their profits or you’re upset they’re inflating prices to increase stockholder returns. Pick your side and stay consistent.
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I am once again reminding you that you cannot decry high gas prices and also be a staunch supporter of the oil industry. Likewise, if you blame Biden for high gas prices, you cannot simultaneously accuse him of attacking the oil industry. Pick a lane folks.
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I guess now we know why the Oklahoma State Department of Education is really being audited.
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The Congressional maps proposed today are a nightmare for Oklahoma City. By breaking OKC into three districts, you strip the entire city of its voice in Washington D.C. I hope @davidfholt, @cityofokc, and @okcchamber are preparing to fight for #1OKC in the special session.
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I’m in Fort Worth today for Crystal Mason’s hearing. I had the opportunity to talk with her for about an hour yesterday. Heartbreaking story. This intelligent, hard-working woman is facing 5 years in prison for voting. We must do better.
Crystal Mason faces five years in jail—for the crime of voting. We are facing a crisis of voter suppression in this country and a big part of that is felon disenfranchisement, which has cost six million Americans their right to vote.
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When people ask things like "are you willing to give up your rights for safety?" and "are you willing to pay higher taxes?" the answer is yes. Yes, I will give up my "right" to shoot myself on accident to keep children safe. Yes, I'll pay higher taxes to care for my neighbors.
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Let me get this straight, @GovStitt called a press conference today just to let everyone know that he would once again ignore his responsibility to lead the state and defer to Mayors? Ya'll. Can we all just promise to remember this in November 2022?.
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Between high school and college, I took three years of calculus. But after not using it for *checks notes* a decade, I would not be able to teach day 1 of a calculus class without some serious refreshing. Good luck, state employees!.
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I’m thinking about starting an Instagram account to post my Oklahoma City postcards and share what I learn about the histories of the buildings. Mostly to give me a reason to organize and catalogue my collection. Lame or super lame?.
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Y’all remember the movie We Bought a Zoo? Well we bought a fridge!. Mr. Bao desperately needed a new fridge, and without one he had to restock supplies multiple times each day and was forced to frequently close early when he ran out of ingredients.
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Please, save a copy of this photo, and if you come across someone in need, point them in the direction of services. And if you have the financial resources, consider donating to @HomelessOKC here: 4/5
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Anti-maskers: There would be no mandatory mask ordinance if there wasn't a precedent, mandatory pants. If we hadn't let the government steal our freedom to choose whether or not to wear pants, we wouldn't be here today. That's where you should focus, overturning mandatory pants.
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Just so we're clear, Guymon is just as horrified to be associated with the Plaza. I'm sure they're printing "Don't Plaza my Guymon" shirts as we speak.
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Seeing people who support the oil and gas industry but complain when gas prices rise always amazes me. Pick a lane folks.
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There are three types of people in OKC. 1) People who complain about a free Kings of Leon concert, 2) People who complain about people who complain about a free KOL concert, and 3) People who complain about people who complain about people who complain about a free KOL concert.
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Everyone is using "Curbside" these days. Curbside delivery. Curbside pick up. Just remember, @CurbsideOKC was the original Curbside.
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I typically only go to Tulsa a couple times a year, but in my experience this seems really unnecessary. You know what would be useful though? A passenger rail between OKC and Tulsa.
A 15-year, $5B turnpike improvement plan proposes widening Turner Turnpike to six lanes between Oklahoma City and Tulsa in addition to a slew of other projects. via @stevelackmeyer
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Flatter me for a second here. What if Chesapeake donated their campus to Curbside so I could turn it into a giant social enterprise campus? It’d be very cool of them and I’m sure a jumbo tax credit would follow. And it’d make OKC a great destination for social enterprise startups.
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As someone who works in Oklahoma journalism, seeing this tonight was a gut punch. 1) Starting March 25, Oklahoma’s largest city - and Capitol - will no longer have a daily newspaper. 2) The print editions have become incredibly thin as staff has been slashed to the bone. 1/3
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If only there was someone who could provide guidelines to create this consistency among cities/towns to help decrease the spread. Like a Mayor, but for the whole state. If only we had such a position. .
On an @OklaMuniLeague call with lots of OK mayors. Good, strong recommendations from @davidfholt, @gtbynum, and @clarkfornorman that all cities and towns in Oklahoma need to adopt aggressive social distancing rules. State-wide consistency is key to effectively stop spread.
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7 years ago today we launched @curbsideokc. Since publishing our first issue in 2013, the community has rallied around our vendors in green vests, breaking down stigmas and lifting up our neighbors in need, $2 at a time. 1/6
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Y’all know what I’m thankful for tonight? Councilwoman Nikki Nice’s leadership in Oklahoma City. An incredible advocate for the East side and OKC as a whole.
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Friday I got to tell 8 @CurbsideOKC vendors who completed 30+ hours of screen printing training and testing that they’re getting hired on at @CurbsideApparel. Starting in January, our shop will be buzzing with our second cohort of employees. A highlight of the holiday season.
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Found an original Oklahoma City bus destination roll sign from 1946. 2 feet wide by 28 feet long with 39 designations all across OKC. Now to find a house with 30 foot ceilings.
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Just slid into @Sethrogen’s Instagram DMs pitching a collaboration with his handmade vases and Curbside Flowers. You know what they say, gotta shoot your shot.
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Another great day for a Winchester burger. Amirite?.
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This truly abhorrent human - the new OK GOP Chair and a proud Islamaphobe and bigot - is a pastor?! I told someone recently that millennials aren’t leaving the church, the church is leaving the faith and millennials aren’t joining the ride. This is what I mean.
Bennett, a pastor, is also scheduled to lead the Oklahoma Senate in prayer on Monday.
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Incredibly honored to be named to the @ForbesUnder30 list for social impact this year. Every year I look forward to reading this list and learning about organizations and young leaders making an impact, and this morning I was humbled to find my own name.
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Can we work on a coordinated campaign to get a cool nickname going for Oklahoma City? So help me if it’s Scissortail City, I’ll start packing my bags for the first bus out of here tonight.
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@Chucktw It’s already been ruled on when we put the 10 Commandments monument at the Capitol. The court basically said allow all religions to be represented or none.
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Apparently Oklahoma City is waiting on community spread before addressing it. Like, why be proactive when you can be reactive? 🤦🏻♂️.
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So the Oklahoma Republican Party just elected a proud Islamaphobe, homophobe, and general bigot as their party chair? What a sad and embarrassing day for the party.
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I’ve received a lot of calls, texts, and emails, so I want to make something clear. I have heard Senator Inhofe will retire, but I have no intentions of seeking his seat in Congress. My full attention is and will remain on my campaign for OKC Golf Commission. Thank you.
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Does anyone find it odd that the party that continually tries to ban abortions also continually bans the methods shown to reduce abortion? Like comprehensive sex ed and free and easily accessible contraceptives. It’s almost like it’s not about reducing abortions at all….
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Completely unrelated: it’s remarkable that the words of Jesus are printed in a different color in most Bibles for ease of identifying/reading the important parts. Yet somehow, a great deal of self-identified Christians completely miss them.
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We ordered a Thanksgiving meal from @theJonesOKC. My wife decided she wanted to make it tonight and have leftovers tomorrow. She’s opening each dish individually and saying, “noice” each time.
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A week like this stretches resources thin, so donations help maintain the vital, life-saving services like the Day Shelter, Willard Winter Shelter, and street outreach, as well as purchasing winter supplies for our neighbors in need. Donate here: 5/5.
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Somewhere in an alternate universe far, far away, everyone got vaccinated and wore masks, and now they're having one heck of a roaring 20s.
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Folks, this was a man wearing boots and a winter jacket, wrapped in a sleeping bag, in a tent that was covered with a tarp. And he was still on the verge of frostbite. It's just that cold outside. It's literally deadly. 3/5.
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People are talking about, “it’s finally fall! Time to wear my sweater by the fire while I sip my pumpkin spice latte.” It’s going to be over 90 degrees five of the next seven days. Settle down, Nancy.
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Bad, oppressive policy has consequences. Just imagine how many events and businesses never even looked at Oklahoma because of our own consistent flow of terrible legislation that makes national headlines.
MLB will move the 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta amid criticism of Georgia’s new voting law
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Just emailed @SnoopDogg's manager asking for an interview for @CurbsideOKC's upcoming voter guide about why he'll be voting for the first time in November. If he agrees, I'm thinking we make an "I voted with Snoop" sticker for vendors to hand out on election day.
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Appreciate everyone who showed up to the City Council meeting today to voice their concerns about the anti-homeless ordinances. I was stuck at Curbside Flowers, where we are providing supportive employment and job training to more than 40 people with lived experience this week.
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This is the dadgum cover story, y’all! We’ve been above fold, but this might be the first time we’ve made it to the #1 spot.
This new storefront is fighting homelessness in OKC with screen-printed T-shirts
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@samiamsamh @ACLUTx @alt_localgov But did you know that the lead election worker was her neighbor? And that he encouraged the poll worker who who helped her fill out the provisional ballot to turn her in? Pretty wild stuff. Covered the story and dug through the transcripts for an article in a local magazine.
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I noticed that Mayor @davidfholt’s Facebook status had 666 likes. It was a good post, but my main motivation for liking it was definitely superstition. You’re welcome, Oklahoma City.
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@CaseyCornett You gotta watch /listen to more true crime. The correct answer to the first question is “am I being detained?”.
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When you meet someone for the first time and they say, “I follow you on Twitter” so you know you’ve already made a bad first impression and can just be yourself.
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Ran to the store to grab the essentials before the big storm. I’m ready!
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I have a lot of thoughts on this, but two major ones are: 1) This is counter to the advice of the two consultants OKC has spent nearly $1million on, and 2) The last punitive measure was deemed unconstitutional (as is this) and cost nearly $1.5million in legal fees.
OKC Councilman Mark Stonecipher, Ward 8, is bringing two ordinances that make homeless camps illegal and allow police to arrest people who don't leave after a warning and citation. City council meets next Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. where they'll be intro'd:
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Rep. Fetgatter mentioned that 3/5 of the absentee ballots in his district were mailed to empty lots. I'm not sure how they would have been delivered, but that's besides the point. The point is, if true, wouldn't that mean that voter fraud helped get him elected? Weird debate.
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Next time this baby blooms, you’ll find me pushing a merch cart up and down the line. I’ll be slinging corpse flower shirts, hats, pins, postcards, whatever you want.
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@hitefield Me? I don't think I've posted about the cost of textbooks, but I'm not sure the relevance to this discussion or my concerns.
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If you ask me to pick a place for a business lunch, we’re either getting pho or going to Seafood Party. Im not picking something “safe.” If i can’t slurp noodles or crack crab legs with you, then I definitely can’t do business with you.
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You never want to apologize for one public lie with a second public lie. Woof.
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I waited for him to grab his things, and we hopped in my truck. He immediately put his hands in front of the vents and said, "Man this feels good. I was starting to lose feeling." When we pulled up to Willard, Billy happily dashed inside to continue warming up for the night. 2/5.
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Want to buy a cool shirt that supports a local business in need? Keep reading! . Today I met Mr. Bao, owner of Quoc Bao Bakery in the @asiandistrictok. Some of you may have followed his story on Okie Dokie Foodie’s Instagram page, but if not, here’s a synopsis.
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Really cool house went on the market last night around 5-6pm. We knew we’d need to move fast, so we booked a showing for after work today. This morning I wake up to a text saying the owners have accepted an offer. Y’all. Prepare for a (worse) housing crisis in OKC.
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Tomorrow, we celebrate two years since we opened the doors of Curbside Flowers. Today, we were named Best Local Florist by @okgazette for the second year in a row. Social enterprise isn’t just about impact. It’s about good business. Thanks to everyone who has supported us!
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Got my first call at @SasquatchOKC asking if our employees are wearing masks. I replied, “absolutely!” but what I wanted to say was, “do I sound like a flat Earther? Of course our employees are wearing masks!”.
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It’s all fun & games & quarantining w/ friends until your grandma gets coronavirus and you’re the one that unwittingly gave it to her. If anyone in my family gets it, it won’t be from me. I haven’t seen any of them in weeks. It’s called “social distancing.” You should try it.
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@sharonstout18 @ACLUTx Same County, a GOP candidate for office forged signatures to get on the ballot and was either fined or a short parole. Can’t remember which now.
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@Okie_LPC Another indication that this isn't about teaching history. Also, the KJV Bible is one of the most challenging versions to read. It's considered a 12th grade reading level. Again, if it was about education, a more accessible and age appropriate version would have been selected.
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Woof. Y’all remember when - despite political differences - Senator Lankford was respected on both sides of the aisle? Hard to believe based on his behavior now. Idolatry is a sin. They taught that at Falls Creek back in my day, but that must have been after the Senator left.
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The goon who climbed Devon Tower isn’t an activist. He’s a clout chasing idiot. Stop giving him the attention he is recklessly seeking.
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@HowUDoKen Not on expenditures under $25,000. But it’s probably just coincidence this one was $24,500.
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Oklahoma City is very fortunate to have such an active and accessible Mayor. And such hardworking employees!.
Our @cityofokc crews are working right now at NW 73rd on the only current break in the city’s main water lines. See my visit with Jorge below. 👇
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I know I’m often a big dreamer to the point of naïveté, but I wish the ownership would turn the paper over to a nonprofit to run properly, taking a tax deduction for whatever value it still holds. Oklahoma City deserves (and needs) a daily newspaper. 3/3.
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Today the Oklahoma City Council voted 5-4 to advance a ridiculous legal appeal that has already cost taxpayers around $500,000 to the Supreme Court. 5-4 folks. Two of those five are not running for re-election and one has a good challenger. The election is in February.
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Come join the incomparable @NathanPoppe at Oklahoma’s Best Magazine for the past four years in a row, @CurbsideOKC! We’re hiring a full-time journalist. Check out the job description and let me know if you have any questions!
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My latest find: a doorknob that I believe came from the State Capitol. Now to polish it up, fix one of the pieces, and install it!
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I asked a General in the Air Force who mentored me in high school to review my resume while applying to colleges. His reply was simple, "If I can fit my resume on one page, you can too." It stuck with me. But here I am reviewing 3+ page resumes from folks who didn't get the memo.
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Most of y'all know I've spent the past seven years building @CurbsideOKC and working to create supportive employment programs in Oklahoma City. That's why I'm really excited about the next step for Curbside - opening a flower shop! 1/5.
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Just so we’re all clear and caught up: the Supreme Court never has and never will rule that schools can’t have a moment of silence. It’s dictating what that moment is used for that the Supreme Court (and hopefully every American) has an interest in.
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