Let me do this before I move on to some more pleasant things with the blog this week. This is OKC mayor David Holt yesterday giving his take on the death of Charlie Kirk. Mayor Holt is what I would describe as a moderate progressive Rebublican.
Again…he would have no chance whatsoever of becoming governor in this state because he’s more like…me, and I can assure you Mike J would get ZERO votes outside of Oklahoma County-OKC, and Cleveland County-Norman. That’s almost 0.00.00 votes to clarify.
In this state currently– the likes of John McCain, Bush 41, Reagan, and Mitt Romney wouldn’t do very well either. I don’t think they would get hung like Mike Pence almost did, but I think they’d struggle against a strong MAGA candidate who’d tie themselves to the loins of Donald Trump. They’d be called RINOS or squishes because among other things…they believe or did believe in the Rule of Law. Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, and Eisenhower would’t do well either. Truth hurts…especially when you rank dead last in education…even behind Mississippi.
But here in Oklahoma County-OKC we have this amazing purple island of bi-partisanship…which of course—now hangs an NBA Championship banner as well and has this equally amazing ambassador named Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
But enough of me. Here’s America’s hottest mayor… OKC’s David Holt.
Damn…imagine that. Someone besides MJ in Oklahoma actually referring to The Rule of Law.
We had a lovely time in Greenwood Village with the’Fam’ over the week-end. My five year-old grandson, Robert, scored two goals in his Saturday soccer game. On Friday–on his home rink—he graciously allowed me to hang around with him as he politlely nudged me 9-8 in a grandfather-grandson streeet hockey game.
Hiking, exploring, looking for snakes… and just basically taking in the beauty of the Rockies took up the rest of our time. Aubrey was doing little girl things for the most part…although she did ask me to read her Little Red Riding Hood on Friday night.
It was beautiful.
I turned off my cell phone to the world. I didn’t watch any TV until the SEC college footall games started on Saturday afternoon. I never watch Fox or MSNBC—so none of that nonsense was touching my senses in any manner.
It was beautiful.
But, then of course–I finally saw the Charlie Kirk story. What a tragegy for Americans as a whole to now have to deal with the execution of a far right talk show/podcaster in front of the entire world.
Let me be clear. Charlie Kirk was never someone I took seriously or considered as a viable source of information or philosophy. Like his idol…Rush Limbaugh–I thought he was for the most part a carney barker for the far right wing of the GOP Christian movement. I in no way was or am an expert on Charlie Kirk nor an advocate of the doctrines he preached to the MAGA, Tea Party, and no tax Christian people.
But I am a human with a heart. I am an aging man with family members and others who I cherish. And right now regardless of my different views from those of Charlie Kirk…my heart goes out to his wife and their two young children.
This is not acceptable on any level in our country. This other party with pre-meditated malice basically executed another human being for political reasons, and this cannot happen in this country.
Yeah, I know, what Donald Trump did on January 6th, and it was horrific. So horrific in fact, since the gallows were constructed for Mike Pence on that fateful day…300 additional acts of domestic political terrorism have been recorded in our country to date.
On one hand, my heart as a Stage 4 cancer survivor is in the most joyous human spot one could hope for while still walking and living on this earth. On the other hand, our country is its own worst enemy and all of this is self-inflicted.
This nonsense from both the far right and the far left in our country cannot continue. As I’ve stated on this blog many times previously—you people on both extremes are killing our country one day at a time…literally.
You have to be better. As a country ‘We’ have to be better.
These type of senseless acts cannot continue.
We used to be better than this. But right now we’re broken–and broken as a singular unit. Know what I mean?
I almost feel dirty having lowered myself to the Mike Gundy nonsense I covered on the blog yesterday. But sometimes you have to summon the courage to write what you feel or else you wake up one day and you’re like the passive-submissives at the Daily Thunder or Chad Weiberg.
Fortunately-we had this trip to Colorado scheduled with the ‘Fam’ and it comes just as the Oklahoma temps are set to re-enter the 90 degree range for four days.
Perfect for us. Just perfect.
But before I go…I want to purge myself of the Mike Gundy filth and share with you one of my favorite meditative prayers that helped me so much during the toughest days of the Stage 4 cancer journey.
From St. Francis:
Lord, make me a channel of thy peace–that where there is hatred, I may bring love–that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness–that where there is discord, I may bring harmony–that where there is error, I may bring truth– that where there is doubt, I may bring faith–that where there is despair, I may bring hope– that where there are shadows, I may bring light– that where there is sadness, I may bring joy. Lord, grant that I may seek to comfort rather than to be comforted–to understand rather than be understood, to love, rather than to be loved. For it is by self-forgetting that one finds. It is by forgiving that one is forgiven. It is by dying that one awakens to Eternal Life. Amen
I love every word of it. If you’re a fake Trump Christian…you should try it sometime in place of all the hate.
I actually made a brief appearance on Jim Traber’s show yesterday afternoon as Oklahoma’s premier underground blogger. Some clueless, hopeless O State fan named Lugnut preceded me. He was the lone voice on the show who supported Mike Gundy continuing as O State’s football coach after their shameful beatdown Roberto Duran ‘No Mas’ 69-3 loss at Oregon this past Saturday.
So Lugnut, buddy…listened up and take some notes.
I basically said, ” He should have been fired last season after his idiotic diatribe when he basically said, ‘Many O State fans are poor white trash who live in trailer home parks and have difficulty paying their utility bills.’
That’s interesting because when Boone was still living and along with AD Mike Holder they ‘somewhat’ kept Mike Gundy’s most idiotic impulses ‘somewhat’ in check and were able to co-exist with the trailer park people. But of course, both of those guys are gone and Gundy in fact seems to in no way be monitored by either the interim O State president or the very weak AD Chad Weiberg.
Putting aside the horrific loss at Oregon this past weekend…Mike Gundy should be fired. He’s an embarrassment not only to O State, but to the state as a whole. He’s become one part Ryan Walters, one part Markwayne Mullin, and one part Tiger King. And of course….it was MJ who authored the still unfilmed Netflix docu-film…’Mullet King: The Boone Pickens-Mike Gundy College Football Saga.
After firing or retiring Mike Gundy early… O State should pursue Zac Robinson, Todd Monken, Ben Arbuckle, or the head coach at South Florida to become their next football coach.
The good news for O State is that they play in the defenseless Big 12 and it shouldn’t at all be impossible to get the program back to the point where they should be one of the top three teams in the conference somewhat quickly if they can locate a new Boone on a par with the oil and gas dude in Lubbock.
Mike Gundy…the SEC awaits you. Don’t shit all over yourself thinking about that one.
Have a wonderful, Tuesday, Oklahoma.
MJ
Editor’s note day after the Mike Gundy post: It was reported by the Tulsa World this morning Mike Gundy and AD Chad Weiberg will both be enjoying their last seasons in Stillawater this season. There evidently is an eight figure donor who will not make his donation until both of them are gone.
So…basically, MJ beat the Tulsa World by a day on the story even though he didn’t have the donor as an off the record source. All you youngsters out there on the internet who aspire to superstar blogdom—this is how it works. You follow your heart and then have the guts to go with your feel.
Pretty much an outstanding first week of the NFL regular season as my Green Bay Packers routed the Detroit Lions at Lambeau Field by a 27-6 count.
I’ve always loved the Packers pretty much since 1962 or so at the age of five when my hatred for Tom Landry and the Dallas Cowboys made the Packers an easy choice for me to adopt them as my NFL team. Coach Lombardi, Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, Jimmy Taylor, Jerry Kramer, Willie Davis, Fuzzy Thurston…. these were my guys and their sheer dominance over America’s Team down south in Dallas was my NFL refuge.
I did however like Don Meredith and Roger Staubach—so my Cowboys’ hatred never extended to those two great NFL quarterback legends. And, I will also admit I liked Peter Gent’s novel North Dallas Forty almost as much as I loved Dan Jenkins’ Semi-Tough and Dead Solid Perfect.
What Mrs. Juanita Elijah wll never undertstand is that Dan Jenkins and Peter Gent pretty much explained to me in their novels the passage of young manhood back during my days as a John Marshall Bear. Mark Twain and Edgar Allen Poe…not quite as much.
The Packers aquired Micah from Jerry Jones just before the trade deadline and hopefully he’ll be the missing miss to the Packer pash rush which I think along with QB Jordan Love’s rising play could put my Packers into what I call the ‘championship window.’
When Presti acquired both Caruso and Isaiah he pretty much in my view vaulted the Thunder into the ‘NBA championship window’. This move with Micah could be along those same lines ‘IF’ the Packers have enough physicalty to get past the Eagles when it matters.
What an NFL season this portends to be for MJ even beyond the Packers as the OU quarterbacks in the league, Baker, Kyler, Jalen, and even even Caleb all appear to be at the point in their careers when they’re all going to be prominent NFL storylines this season. I don’t really consider Spencer Rattler an OU quarterback, but I should… given he quarterbacked the Sooners over the Florida Gators in a Cotton Bowl rout before being benched for Caleb Williams.
Micah…welcome to the Green Bay Packers, buddy. Let’s see if we can climb through that championship window while MJ’s still breathing and walking even if ‘we’ have to beat Baker and Jalen to do it.
I picked OU to win this game, but in no way did I pick the Sooners to cover the 5.5 Vegas betting line. Pat McAffee picked OU to win and cover the spread as well. Good for him. Maybe I’ve been too hard on him.
A tremendous win for Brent Venables’ Sooners as they in earnest are now in the process of playing what I think is the second toughest schedule in all of DI college football this season. By my count… I have Florida’s schedule just a little tougher than OU’s in that they have South Florida, Miami, and Florida State as well as their eight SEC games to navigate.
By contrast, OU with Michigan included will play nine teams in total who at one time or another this college football season will probably crack the Top 20.
If you’re an O State fan, my heart goes out to you, you could have taken your Booneless passive-submissive Pokes and 65 points at Eugene on Saturday and still lost your bet. If I were Michael Gundy, moving forward this season, I would suggest he not at all be concerned with other team’s NIL money and just focus on doing the job in which he is currently being so obscenely overpaid to not perform at a satisfactory level.
Back to the Sooners…with this win over a physically tough Michigan team—the Sooners are aligned to possibly get off to 5-0 start before heading to Dallas for the always anticipated Red River Rivalry.
The fact OU covered the 5.5 spread even with the four special team blunders against a team like Michigan gives me hope this OU team can evolve into a team which can contend for a College Football Playoff spot.
Well see on that. Again the schedule, it’s brutal after the Sooners get rid of Temple and Kent State.
My wife’s Auburn War Eagles with former OU QB Jackson Arnold visit Norman in two weeks for what I suspect will be a very interesting football game.
My three game balls for this game go…1 John Mateer, 2 the Sooner offensive line for that 4th period drive which in essence won the game, and 3 Jared Kanak, the former lineback now a converted tight end who for the second straight game gave the Sooners some much needed big play production at his new position. I love Kanak. He struggled at times at linebacker in his previous seasons at OU, but has showed all of us what kind of an athlete and team player he truly is for Coach Venables.
With the exception of the 75 yard run by Michigan on the first play from scrimmage in the second half, I thought OU tackled well on the interior and in space as well. Take that one play away and I pretty much viewed the OU’s defense as…dominating and physical.
OU is now No. 13 in the AP Poll. Temple up next in Philadelphia next week. I’m guessing at this point…if Mateer can stay healthy…. sophmore backup QB Michael Hawkins will be continued to be protected in what could be a redshirt season for him.
Nice win for Jeff Lebby at Mississippi State as they beat Big 12 defending champ Arizona State last night with former OU wide receiver Brendan Thompson scoring the game winner in the last minute of play.
Have a nice week, O State fans. MJ feels confident you can handle Tulsa.
I had no idea Shai was going to be on Jimmy Fallon last night, but after hanging on after the delayed Eagles-Cowboys’ game on NBC–I luckily caught his appearance by sheer accident.
What an awesome dude we here in OKC have representing us in our serene purple county where people actually read books here and there as opposed to being functionally illiterate as most of the state of Oklahoma is currently.
Wouldn’t it be special if somehow every time either the cage fighting Markwayne Mullin or the psychologically abused Czar of Oklahoma Education–Ryan Walters had some sort of public statement scheduled… that perhaps Shai could sub in for either of those dimwits and give the other 74 counties in this state some sort of inspiration as to what it looks like when you’re all grown up and can read and speak the language. Plus, looking sharp with the attire as well.
Just a random thought here from MJ on Friday before the OU-Michigan game tomorrow which will be the ESPN Game Day locale this Saturday. Remember…they can read in Cleveland County nd Tulsa County—that’s why good things are happening in Norman and Tulsa as well.
Shai…MJ loves you and the ‘fam’ here on okcthunderground.com. You’re like gold here, buddy even though you’re on my second favorite NBA team currently. But we never know…maybe you alone could win me back to having the Thunder pass Nicola, Jamal, Aaron, and Christian as my favorite NBA team.
Don’t change a thing, buddy. The ‘fam’ always comes before the fame.
Always.
Take care, buddy.
MJ
I’m still playing the Billy Joel songs from the docu-film in my head…which I very much liked. I’ve heard some people bitch about parts of Billy’s life which they found to be disappointing. I will just say this in that regard…we all as human beings navigate tough waters at times during our lives. If you’re kind, a good parent, and a wonderful dog or cat owner….. I can pretty much love your music.
This mid-week was the first set of labs and the second baby mini-chemo maintence treatment. PSA count has leveled out. No side effects other than the loss of some hair…which isn’t that big of a deal since I’m not the type of vain ‘man’ like Mike Gundy who will be coloring his hair into his eighties….primping like an aging escort of sorts.
MJ is is at peace and quite frankly hovering in something akin to a Zenist state of consciousness. Nothing rattles or bothers me any any longer. There is no need whatsoever to sweat any of the small things which we all sweat at earlier juntures of our lives.
Bless your hearts… and may the generosity, light, and kindness of God steer you around/beyond your hatred and bigotries.
MJ’s College Gameday for the Michigan-OU game will hopefully be done tomorrow evening.
Peace, love and eternal hope….even for the Trump fake Christian rabble. Live every day to its fullest as if it could in theory be your last living obit.
I know…I’m almost 68. I’m in the latter years on my runway of life in this body. But I have to write it on my blog this Labor Day morning….I loved everything about Lee Corso on Gameday.
He had me at hello in 1996 when he did his first headgear pick on ESPN’s Collgege Football Gameday.
This current generation which lap dogs the likes of Donald Trump, and for reasons which I simply cannot grasp…think Pat McAffee is the next big, new thing…I feel like I lost a generational football soulmate this past Saturday when LC correctly picked the Ohio State Buckeyes over the offensively enemic Texas Longhorns in Columbus.
Suggestion to Sark…after the RRR in Dallas, it might be smart to turn Arch Manning loose with his feet. Just a thought.
MJ will sorely miss LC…for certain. And, of course, MJ cried.
LC was kind and he had a great sense of humor, but most of all….HE NEVER TOOK HIMSELF TOO SERIOUSLY and made sure the shows were entertaining and made sure college football fans everywhere smiled and maybe laughed at themselves from time to time.
The Bill Murray moment was probably my favorite Lee Corso moment of all-time But in reality…I loved all of them.
Pat McAffee, buddy, don’t take yourself too seriously. Lighten up. Take a few cues from Lee Corso would be my suggestion.
Not because I think David Holt hasn’t done a good job as mayor of OKC, but more because I’m not even sure if he would be competitive outside of three counties in rogue red MAGA Trump Oklahoma which is probably the reddest overall state in the Union.
And let’s be candid, one which currently as a state ranks dead last in education in all fifty states.
There are seventy-seven counties in Oklahoma. In 74 of those counties, I think the people who vote in these rural jurisdictions in Oklahoma would have voted for Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, and Putin even if the Dems had a moderate nominee like say maybe Mark Kelley from Arizona or Josh Shapiro from Pennsylvania. I don’t think it was just a Kamala Harris thing. It goes deeper than that unfortunately in my view. I could be wrong on the Mark Kelly thing, he have had a chance in Oklahoma.
I hate to write in such a cynical tone on my blog, but I’ve been to all 77 counties at one time or another during my life, and what I would have to write is that while the people are nice for the most part, I think that the people in these 74 counties would vote for Trump over Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, LBJ, Bush 41 and Arkansas’s favorite son Bill Clinton as well. Probably even Dwight D Eisenhower from bordering Kansas.
I hate to write this as well, but I very much feel that throughout rural Oklahoma the color of one’s skin does in fact make a difference in these 74 couties at the ballot box. Truth hurts. Genuinely.
Let’s say this … let’s suppose Holt somehow got through a GOP primary and somehow became the nominee…Mike J would think at that point Trump and the MAGA hardcores like Steven Miller and such would put the money together to run a MAGA candidate of their own in the general election.
Remember this as well, Mick Cornett was a very successful Republican mayor in OKC as and got drubbed by newcomer Kevin Stitt in the 2020 GOP primary in Oklahoma. Why? Because Mick Cornett wouldn’t embrace Trump or the MAGA nonsense, while Stitt fully embraced Trump, and even did it a second time even after the historical disgrace of January 6th.
The only three counties in which I think Mayor Holt would resonate enough to even be competitive would be OKC-Oklahoma County, Tulsa-Tulsa County, and Norman-Cleveland County. The remaining 74 counties would view David Holt as a RHINO ( Republican in Name Only) of sorts even though he was Little Marco Rubio’s Oklahoma State Campaign Chair in 2020.
I like David Holt. We had a nice conversation once on a Sunday night flight from Denver back to OKC. I’m glad he’s OKC’s mayor. He’s done a solid job and has been a tremendous cheerleader for the city. If OKC isn’t the hottest city in the country, I would have to guess it’s close to being in the top eight in several categories.
So…my heartfelt advice to David Holt, don’t make the mistake Mick Cornett made. Oklahoma City-Oklahoma County is a complete cultural and political outlier from the rest of the state. I don’t even think you could win Cleveland or Tulsa Counties.
Keep your focus on this amazing purple city in the middle of Oklahoma which was the subject of Sam Anderson’s NY Times bestseller, and of course, the home of the current NBA champs… the OKC Thunder.