Sapulpa Daily Herald (Sapulpa, Okla.), Vol. 81, No. 229, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 8, 1995 Page: 4 of 8
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PAGE FOUR - Sapulpa lOkla.l Daily Herald, Thursday, June 8, 1995
Commentary
Save Medicare
It’s a tall order - saving Medicare.
The program designed to insure healthcare for our senior
citizens itself is sick and wounded. It may even be on its
death bed. Miracle medication and super surgery is required.
Congressman Tom Cobum (also a medical doctor) has our
support as he diagnoses the patient.
In a telephone news conference Wednesday afternoon, he
told editors in his second district that the system must be
changed “to meet the need and not feed the greed.”
Coburn is working on legislation to cut the costly fraud
and abuse perpetrated by healthcare providers against the
system.
Currently, the government is spending more for Medicare
than it receives into the Medicare Trust Fund. Cobum cites
projections from the Medicare Board of Trustees that says
Medicare will be bankrupt in seven years.
Medicare spending grew 10.5 percent in 1994 while pri-
vate health care costs grew by only 4.4 percent.
Again, we’re for Coburn as he attempts to doctor the plan,
and we hope a complete medical team can be assemble on
Capitol Hill to save the patient.
You can be a part of the effort as well.
Cobum is polling constituents to determine support for his
reform proposals. A special survey is in today’s Herald.
(Also see story on Page 1).
“People should realize that everyone, regardless of their
age, will be affected by Medicare reform,” Cobum points
out.
The questionnaire asks voters:
■ if they would support legislation that would reward
those who discover fraud and severely punish those who
knowingly cheat the system.
■ if they would choose a free-market reform with more
personal choices and control over medical decisions, or a
“government controlled program run by Washington politi-
cians.”
Cobum also has scheduled a hearing from 3:30 p.m. to 5
p.m. June 12 at the Senior Citizens Center.
- The Sapulpa Heralc'
KUDOS
Youth Services gets local help
Dear Editor
On behalf of Youlh Services of Creek County we want to convey our
appreciation to those of Omni Medical Group here in Sapulpa for contribut-
ing a variety of items to our program.
Our family of children need the same things your family does: shoes,
clothing, toys, towels, etc.
Youth Services is a 24-hour, seven-day a week emergency shelter facility
for chileren ranging in age from a few days through adolescence.
Bcca isc of local people like these from Omni Medical Group, we are bet-
ter able to meet the needs of children in our own community.
Gary O. Wilburn, executive director
LETTER POLICY
The Sapulpa Daily Herald accepts letters to the editor on
nearly any subject. All letters must be signed by the writer and
must include the writer’s address and phone number for ver-
ification.
Letters must be limited to 300 words. Only light editing will
be done to correct spelling and grammar. The Herald may
choose not to print every letter when numerous letters are
received on the same subject but will print at least a represen-
tative letter.
Send letters to: Letter to the Editor, P.O. Box 1370, Sapul-
pa, Okla. 74067.
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Opinion
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Reality found at sci-fi meet
A couple of weeks ago, 1 visited
Oklahoma City to attend the Thunder-
con convention for science fiction
fans.
Most people attend these conven-
tions for three reasons: Par-ty! Par-ty!
Par-ty!
Those with a mundane brain
assume such frivolity is made up of
smelly, overweight “trekkies” who do
not realize what losers they all are.
But 1 am fascinated by the exquisitely
mercenary activity of having a good
time.
Science fiction conventions in
Oklahoma City are in the Century
Plaza Hotel, now the Medallion,
accessible to the restored downtown
Brickyard district. More than 1,000
people attended each of the conven-
tions during the past two years. On its
best days, the Okon convention in
Tulsa attracted 2,000 people.
Not the PGA tour, but nothing to
sneeze at. The Sapulpa Chamber of
Commerce reports tourism dollars
turn over four to six times in a local
economy. Add the two-night stay,
restaurant expenses, purchases and
admission, and tourism promoters
start salivating.
Convention-goers represent the
most sought-after demographic - the
age that earns its highest income and
is most willing to spend it.
Admission ranges from advance
reservations of $15 for the weekend to
$25 at the door for one day. Most of
the up to $25,000 admission revenue
goes back to the hotel, to reserve
meeting and activity rooms and main-
tain a hospitality suite with refresh-
Lines from Lower
By
Greg
Lower
Herald News
Staff Writer
ments.
Many conventions are run by non-
profit groups who turn the proceeds
over to local charities. Last year's
Thundercon raised more than $4,000
for charity.
In addition, conventions gain rev-
enue from an art show and dealer or
huckster room. Artists rent space in
the show to display works for sale.
Usually, artwork has a price for imme-
diate sale and a lower, minimum bid
price.
If more than one bid comes on a
work, it goes to auction, where sales
range from a bargain to several hun-
dred dollars over the immediate sale
price. Works include not only ama-
teurs but professionals like Okla-
homa’s David Lee Anderson and
David Cheny, who illustrate the cov-
ers of paperback books.
The dealers’ room sells crafts,
videos, books, collectibles and memo-
rabilia. Anyone in the art or col-
lectibles business will say that means
large sums of money change hands. A
collector may pay $100 to $1,250 for
items like a TV script autographed by
the cast.
The most important aspect of con-
ventions is to meet people. The princi-
ple guest at Thundercon was Tim Russ
from the TV series “Star Trek: Voy-
ager.” Perhaps some actors can afford
to tell their fans to “get a life," but stu-
dios know that if a star will schmooze
with the public, those viewers will sit
through a screeching stereo store com-
mercial.
This is how big-time bucks arc
involved in the high-dollar entertain-
ment business. This summer’s most
expensive movie, “Watcrworld," cos*
$175 million to make. If it docs as
well as last year’s special-effects spec-
tacular, “Jurassic Park," it will return
two to-one on the investment, and
movies today make twice as much in
video rentals and sales as they make in
theaters.
That is only in production cost.
Some other summer movies, such as
“Casper," involve big investments in
outside merchandising, logos and
toys. At stake are heavy advertising
endorsements. With that kind of
money up for grabs, people desperate-
ly want to know if they have some-
thing to offer that the public will buy.
It works both ways. While publish-
ers and writers like Oklahoma's CJ.
Cherryh, Tulsa’s K_D. Wentworth of
Clare more s Mercedes Lackey come
to see what fans will buy, other
wannabes come to meet publishers
and authors to get their foot in the
door. It is networking in its most
1980s sense.
For someone who is willing to be
silly for a weekend, it is fun. too.
Mayor applauds
Kellyville grads
Dear Editor:
I appreciate the Sapulpa Daily
Herald and staff for the great cover-
age of our students at Kellyville
Schools in Thursday. May 25 edition
of your paper
I feel that Creek County and the
Town of Kellyville can be proud of all
Creek County students
I know that not only did the stu-
dents do exceptionally well academi-
cally but they were involved in sever-
al community service functions such
as a blood drive, raising funds for the
victims in the Oklahoma City bomb-
ing and a canned food drive for the
needy.
Many citizens of the community
have express^! as well as school fac-
ulty members, that this has been an
exceptional graduating class at our
school.
I believe that this is the result not
only of proper upbringing but also by
the moral and Christian leadership of
the school administration and teach-
ers that arc presently at the school.
I truly believe that we taxpayers
can say that our taxes locally are
properly being utilized Dr. Dwight
Davidson and other staff and teachers
arc greatly concerned for the well-
being of the students here at the Kcl-
lyville Schools.
Again. I appreciate the Sapulpa
Herald for the positive coverage of
our Kellyville system.
Danny K. Reich
Mayor, Town of KellyriUe
More than 20k
meal involved
Dear Editor:
On the mom. of May 18, 1995 my
daughter, who is 8 years, old, called
me at home from school upset that the
cafeteria at her school (which I will
not name) denied her breakfast
because she did not have 20 cents.
I can not believe that in such a time
when the welfare and well being of
our children is such an issue (as it
should always be) that any child (not
just mine) be suffered the indignity,
humiliation and embarrassment in
front of her piers to be told she can
not cat because she didn't have 20
cents at that time.
This is outrageous and intolerable.
How dare anyone at any price deny a
child a meal - I blame school admin-
istrators for such irresponsible and
outright mental and physical abuse.
Pay attention, school administra-
tors. for the pen is mightier than the
sword:
This needs immediate attention so
that further circumstances of not
immediately having the price of a
meal does not prevail over a child
being hungry in this great and free
nation that we are bom into.
Randal Carnes, Sapulpa
ANYBODY CAN GRIPE
Get off your duff and do something
eOKbyNEAMC
‘Wanna see some obscenity in cyberspace?’
THE SAPULPA DAILY HERALD
Published By
Pak Newspapers of Sapulpa. Inc.
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NATIONAL NEWSPAPER
ASSOCIATION
I won’t deny it: a column in the
June 4 edition of The Daily Ard-
moreite here in southern Oklahoma
has gotten me pretty steamed.
Its author, Tom Mullins - who
I’m told once toiled right here at my
desk at the Durant Democrat, way
back before the Powers That Be had
the good sense to take a chance on
Yours Truly instead - decries what
he perceives to be the death of
America. He never uses that precise
term, you understand, but that’s
certainly the situation he seems to
be describing.
He claims that Americans “have
abandoned protest demonstrations,
writing letters to their elected
political representatives, and, well,
giving a hoot about anything which
doesn’t personally affect them.”
Well, this was certainly news to
me. As I’m sure it will be to all
those individuals from around the
state - indeed, from around the na-
tion - who came to Oklahoma City
to provide aid and comfort to the
victims of the single most horrific
example of domestic terrorism in
the history of this country.
Imagine, if you will, a scenario
in which nobody came to lend a
hand in the wake of the bombing.
Picture the people of Oklahoma
City being left to deal with such a
tragedy on their own, without the
assistance of those who in the real
world had been so willing to drop
what they were doing to lend a hand
in time of genuine catastrophe.
Then again, try to picture the re-
action of those rescue workers if
Oklahoma City Mayor Norlick or
Assistant Fire Chief Hansen had
said: “Go away. Go on back where
you came from. We know you don’t
really want to be here. We know
you don’t care. You’re not part of
this community anyway. So get lost
and let us take care of our own.”
Didn’t happen quite that way ei-
Small Talk
A Guest Column
By John A. Small
Tishomingo
ther, did it, Tom?
The nation’s reaction to the Mur-
rah Building tragedy is the most
vivid proof that Mullins is wrong,
wrong, wrong. But there is other
proof, as well:
People are participating in elec-
tions; how else does one explain the
drastic shifting of power in Wash-
ington last November? Even
though the overall outcome may
not have been what I as an individ-
ual might have liked, I do appreci-
ate the fact that said outcome did
appear to be “the will of the peo-
ple.”
People are writing to their elect-
ed officials; where does he think
some of the ideas contained in the
so-called “Contract with America”
came from? While I don’t agree
with every individual aspect of said
Contract, the fact remains that
much of it did come from issues
raised by the voters of this country.
And anybody who would attempt to
tell you otherwise has got his head
up a bodily orifice.
And, yes, people are participat-
ing in protest demonstrations - and
on both sides of the issues. Pro-life,
pro-choice, gay rights, flag burning,
Jeannie vs. Samantha... there are
few issues being confronted by the
American public today that has not
led to some sort of demonstration
or another by those on either side of
the given argument.
Just because each protest docs
not resemble Chicago’s Democratic
National Convention in 1968 or
Kent State doesn’t mean nobody’s
saying anything.
Mullins goes on; “Somewhere
on this Sunday afternoon ride to
Freedomtown, we quit yelling and
screaming and shooting our guns
into the air... while demanding at-
tention.”
Oh, really?
How, then, do we explain the
success of lunkhead talk radio hosts
like convicted Watergate felon G.
Gordon Liddy or the ever-popular
Rush “I’m Right Because 1 Say So”
Limbaugh? Or the proliferation of
hate groups masquerading as pa-
triots? Or, for that matter, the afore-
mentioned Oklahoma City bomb-
ing? If that was not an act of
“shooting a gun off for attention,”
then what in the bloody hell was it?
To be as fair as possible to Tom,
there are some things he says in his
column which are true.
Our judicial system is somewhat
askew. Some Americans would
rather win the lottery than put in an
honest day’s work. Sometimes
those in the government do forget
just who it is they’re working for.
And. yes, there arc some people
who probably just don’t give a flip
about the rest of us.
But Tom leaves the impression
that there’s nothing we can do to
change this. Worse, he suggests that
it’s wrong to even try. “What good
would it do anyway? Nothing will
change...” And I guess that’s whal
has me madder than anything else.
Look, kids, the system may be
flawed but it still works. Better than
any other system being used on the
face of this planet today. And while
we may have our problems and oc-
casionally come away from a par-
ticular situation thinking that there
must have been a better way to have
handled it, I guarantee you that
somewhere on this planet right now
- numerous somewheres, in fact -
there’s somebody wishing they had
it as good as we do here in Ameri-
ca.
I’m not blind. I see the troubles
that plague our nation. But I also
see that there are solutions, if we
just take the time to look for them.
The fellow who said “My country,
right or wrong” didn’t quite have it
right; my country wrong needs my
help.
And that’s where you and I come
in, bunky. Anybody can sit around
and gripe about uie things that are
wrong; it takes someone with real
courage and conviction to quit
complaining and start doing some-
thing about it. From what I’ve seen
in recent weeks, there are still plen-
ty of people in this nation who
place more value upon action than
words.
As long as this is so, there will
always be hope for tomorrow.
The next time you hear or read
someone say that Americans as a
whole don’t care enough to do any-
thing, politely point out that maybe
he ought to be be the one to set an
example.
The way I see it, America’s prob-
lem isn't dial it’s going to hell in a
handbasket.
It’s that some of its would-bc
opinion-makers are too wrapped up
in their own vainglorious sense of
self-importance to do anything
other than whine about it.
(Copyright © 1995, by John A.
Small)
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Lake, Charles S. Sapulpa Daily Herald (Sapulpa, Okla.), Vol. 81, No. 229, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 8, 1995, newspaper, June 8, 1995; Sapulpa, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1500113/m1/4/: accessed July 17, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.