Opinion

There is an epidemic of violence in our tribal communities: 80 percent of Native men and women experience violence, 34 percent of Native women experience sexual violence in their lifetimes, and murder is the third leading cause of death for American Indian and Alaska Native women.

Native women and girls are also disproportionately likely to become victims of sex trafficking.

Friday, May 15 was observed as National Police Memorial Day.

This day was set aside by Congress in 1962 to honor the memory of law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the performance of their duties. Each year, that day is recognized in Oklahoma as well as in Canadian County and in communities across the nation by a solemn ceremony where we reflect on the dangers and sacrifices of those who dedicate their lives to keeping their fellow citizens safe.

Fiscal year 2020 started strong and is approaching its end with an unprecedented world health and economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The City of El Reno economic status is austere at this time due to uncertainties in the reopening of businesses as well as a severe slowdown in the oil and gas industry.

If you would have known me growing up, your money would not have been on me to amount to much of anything.

I was a self-conscious kid who was constantly teased for my small stature and my academic failings.

I was regularly taken out of class in elementary school for special education classes to remediate my reading ability and other academic deficiencies.

I recently published a piece on Andrew Cuomo and other pro-choice Democrat governors who fight for life in their states against COVID-19.

This also includes Pennsylvania’s Tom Wolf, New Jersey’s Phil Murphy, Connecticut’s Ned Lamont, Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer and Virginia’s Ralph Northam.

As for Cuomo, I noted that few Americans have battled the virus quite like the governor of New York, a state under siege. I noted that I feel for him. I also said that I wish he would fight to stop the loss of innocent life from abortion.

Going through some online news the other day, I came to a couple of realizations. Obvious ones that we seem to forget as we’re going about our lives.

If you spend any time at all on the Internet, you’ll realize what a cesspool some of it can become. I didn’t have to look very far - I simply read public comments on a news article.

When man denies the existence of God, or even believes himself an agnostic, he, in effect, replaces God with himself as the highest entity of intelligence. This impacts his political thinking in virtually every way.   

If God does not exist, then he cannot be counted on to manage the planet, thus puny man must. Without faith that God oversees everything for the benefit of man, the following could not be understood: the rotation of the planets, sunsets and sunrises, the consistency of gravity, wind speeds and temperature variances — even oxygen levels.