Earlier this year, Oklahoma violinist Kyle Dillingham and his acoustic trio Horseshoe Road traveled across the Far East on behalf of the American Music Abroad program. The group traveled to South Korea, the Republic of China (Taiwan), Far East Russia and Myanmar.
In 2007, Gov. Brad Henry signed some of the country’s strictest anti-immigration legislation into law.
House Bill 1804 by State Rep. Randy Terrill (R-Moore) made it a felony for the state to provide education and health care services to illegal immigrants, and requires police to investigate the immigration status of anyone “suspected” of being in this country illegally.
Six years later, the controversial law and its effect on people form the basis for Oklahoma native Rilla Askew’s fourth novel Kind of Kin.
“I'm always writing about the coming together and the clash between cultures and races in Oklahoma,” Askew says. “I was disturbed by the notion of a bill like that.”
Her experience and research in studying the fiscal crisis of the late 1920s and 30s became important to the Obama administration as it navigated the nation’s deep recession.
John Steinbeck does not often rise to the list of universally revered authors among Oklahomans. His book, The Grapes of Wrath, is widely viewed as presenting a negative view of the state's residents.
But University of Oklahoma history professor David Wrobel says the state's reputation has not been cursed by the book.
“Energy has treated Oklahoma so well,” said Hamm speaking at the Governor’s Energy Conference last fall. “A third of production comes from Oklahoma. That’s tremendous.”
U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) told a crowd at an Oklahoma City town hall that a .45-caliber handgun with 10 rounds in it is no different than an AR-15.
“There isn’t a gun that’s made that isn’t an assault weapon,” he said after one man recommended a ban on military-style assault guns.
After answering several questions last week related to controlling firearms, Coburn told the nearly 150 people in the room that he wouldn’t answer any more questions about guns.
“What I’m trying to do right now is both protect the Second Amendment and the 10th Amendment for Oklahoma if we want to do something different,” Coburn said.
Several federal employees questioned 5th Distrcit U.S. Rep. James Lankford (R-Okla.) on pay cuts they’re forced to take as part of sequestration during a town hall recorded last month by KGOU.
Delo Anderson wanted to know why Congress isn’t letting the Dept. of Defense make strategic decisions on how to implement mandatory budget cuts, forcing 800,000 defense workers to take 22 furlough days.
“I met with Leon Panetta last summer to ask about sequestration,” Lankford said. “His response was we are not going to plan for it; it’s not going to happen.”
Listen to the Rev. Mary Hughes Gaudreau discuss how faith communities came together to help in times of disaster.
Held together by a common goal to protect vulnerable disaster survivors and a deep commitment to respectful conversation, 50 diverse, non-profit and faith-based disaster response organizations found a way through divisive religious issues to develop national standards in disaster spiritual care.
The conference was designed to model ways of disagreeing, find common ground, stay in relationship and do important work together despite deep differences.
One of the nation’s most well-known storm chasers, Reed Timmer, is taking his work to the public after appearing for several years on the Discovery Channel.
To help pay for his new Internet-based series of programs, Timmer used social media and Kickstarter. The plan was a success, surpassing its initial $75,000 goal, now trying for a new “stretch goal” of $125,000 by Thursday.
