Brian Altenhofel's blog

It looks like the Supreme Court will hear the Snyder v. Phelps funeral picketing case.  In case you don't know, the Phelps family is who runs Westboro Baptist Church.  You might know them better for their "God Hates Fags" pickets or "Santa Claus Will Send You To Hell" video.

In September of 2009, the Fourth Circuit reversed a previous $5 million intentional infliction of emotional distress verdict against the Phelpsians.  While I don't believe that what the Phelps family and Westboro Baptist Church does at soldiers' funerals (among other places) is right, I do believe that the Fourth Circuit was correct in their ruling.

The McCarville Report posted that Senator Randy Brogdon received an endorsement from the Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund for his gubernatorial campaign in Oklahoma.  Here's a quote from him (my emphasis):

Recently, the Oklahoma Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill to allow elective courses on the Bible in public schools.  Now before you jump to conclusions, I don't think this is a bad thing.  A lot of American (and world) law is based off of principles taught in the Bible, and students may not fully grasp the principles without an opportunity to learn about them from their source.  However, students should also be afforded the same opportunity to take courses on other religious texts, including the Quran, on their roles in history and the development of the laws we have today.

During the Great Depression, the FDR administration imposed limits on crop production to artificially increase the price of food.  Yeah, that makes PERFECT sense when people are starving and is another reason why I believe the policies of the FDR administration led to the Great Depression being much worse than it could've been.

A man by the name of Roscoe Filburn was told to plant a little over 10 acres of wheat.  He planted that 10 acres and sold it on the market.  However, he also planted an additional ten for consumption by his own family to save money due to lack of revenue because of the limits on how much he could plant.  His reasoning was that since the wheat was never entering the market, it was not subject to federal regulation under the Interstate Commerce Clause of the Constitution.

There are many parallels between the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 and the Patriot Act of 2001. You would’ve thought that Americans would’ve learned in history class about the lessons to be learned from 1798.... oh wait, we don’t really teach the parts of history we don’t like anymore.

“It is a universal truth that the loss of liberty at home is to be charged to the provisions against danger, real or pretended, from abroad.” - James Madison

“[The people are] made for a moment to be willing instruments in forging chains for themselves.” - Thomas Jefferson

The above statements were made in 1798 regarding the Alien and Sedition Acts. You can also apply those statements today to the Patriot Act (or just about any Act of Congress that threatens our liberties).

There is a report from News9 that there are numerous bills (as usual) in the State Legislature which have the purpose of limiting the public’s access to information. Included are limits to autopsy reports, employee birth dates, municipal court information, and records of the Oklahoma Film and Music Office.

Personally, I believe that citizens have a right to know everything about their government. I guess some of our reps disagree.

The Oklahoma Senate overwhelmingly passed Senator Brogdon's "Oklahoma Firearms Freedom Act" by a 39-3 vote.  Now, it is on its way to the House, where it will be considered alongside HB 2994.  Both bills have virtually identical text.

I wouldn't hold my breath for Gov. Henry to sign it.  He has historically been against any legislation which asserts states' rights.

Last weekend, Congress quietly renewed the PATRIOT Act for one year while we were fixated on Obamacare. The Senate was unanimous, while the House was 315-97 in favor.

I find it quite ironic that the same Democrats who decried the PATRIOT Act as the worst ever Act of Congress voted in favor of renewing it. This just goes to show that it doesn’t matter what our representatives say or where they appear to stand on an issue, but it only matters how it helps them.

Have you checked out the latest unfunded mandate that will appear on the Oklahoma ballot in November?  It is State Question 744.

According to Hope4OurKids.org, Oklahoma's per-pupil spending on education is the lowest in the region.  Is that a problem?  Yes, considering all the wasteful spending that goes on in the education system.  SQ744 would require Oklahoma to raise per-pupil spending by $1627 to get on par with the regional average, but it doesn't specify a source of funding.  This is where we run into problems.

According to the FAQ on their website:

Around the country, many states have introduced nullification legislation. These measures have usually been titled “Firearms Freedom Act” because they usually deal with the issue of federal firearm registration. Typically, these measures include provisions that guns, accessories, and ammunition manufactured within a state, sold within that state, and never leaves that state is not subject to the Interstate Commerce Clause.