The Bad Kind of Money

Dear Editor:

The pandering quote "SemGroup and the Kivisto's were strong community supporters" seems to be appearing less and less in related news stories. I suppose as more of the dirty laundry airs, the glaring fact is they gave to the community alright - with stolen money. Wouldn't we all like to be philanthropists with other people's money? Wining and dining, getting the best seats in town, free meals, hugs from strangers, and slaps on the back wherever we appeared is heady stuff.

Gracing the little people with our presence would be such an ego trip. But most of us would never consider such antics as pleasant. And if we did, we'd go to jail for the rest of our lives, be forced to give up everything we own, ever owned, or hoped to own, lose our children, and the list goes on.

Billions of dollars have evaporated. That doesn't count the lost wages of the employees who no longer have jobs. Stockowners, many of them local, will never recoup their losses. Exactly what amount did SemGroup and the Kivisto's give to the community? Nothing.

-Tammie Dooley

You Again

Dear Editor:

Gov. Brad Henry and his state capital gang should be drummed out of our Democratic party for cowardice.

In this year's historic election, Henry, Congressman Dan Boren, Lt. Gov. Jan Askins, Attorney General Drew

Edmondson, State Treasurer Scott Meachum, Corporation Commissioner Jim Roth, School Supt. Sandy Garrett and Labor Commissioner Lloyd Fields acted like closet Republicans.

How else to explain their failure to campaign for a fellow Democrat, President-elect: Barack Obama? None gave a single speech in support of Obama. They were hiding under their desks for fear of offending the Ku Klux Klan, rednecks and Republican kingmakers.

Pish Posh. Horsefeathers. Hogwash. Too bad these D.I.N.O.s(Democrats in Name Only)never learned the best lesson of our late, great Democratic Congressman, Mike Synar, who said, "To be courageous is to be guided by your own moral compass rather than popular decisions and the madness of crowds."

Nor did they tell us, just plain folks, that being called a liberal is okay because that means Obama is open-minded, tolerant of divergent opinions and exceedingly generous. And, Jesus Christ was a liberal and a community organizer like Obama.

Love always

Virginia "Blue Jeans" Jenner