Washita Valley Weekly

Page 8   Washita Valley Weekly “My Community Magazine” September 20, 2023 God Bless America Get Your Fa l l MUMS Now BEHIND EVERY PROJECT IS A 416 Choctaw - Chickasha 405-224-2222 Ornamental Cabbage & Kale Snap Dragons Dianthus Crepe Myrtles Trees & Shrubs Outdoor Living Made Better! Brighten Your Landscape with Fall Colors! Trees & Shrubs RULES!  General Douglas MacArthur famously said, “Rules are made to be broken and are too often for the lazy to hide behind.” There are lots of rules in society. They can be those as important as the laws/rules of how people are governed to rules in fashion and manners. Organizations, political Parties, govern- ments have rules. If everyone ignored the rules and refused to submit to any authority over them, the result would be anarchy/disorder/chaos. Three observations: First, believers who ignore rules/laws to accomplish their objective reject the sovereignty of God. They have no confidence the Creator of the Universe possesses the ability to move the heart of the king or change the mind of an elected official. They believe the only hands, feet, or mouth God has is theirs. In their mind, Yahweh is powerless, unless they act. The arrogance and pride they exhibit has to be laughable to an omniscient God. They believe by working harder, jumping higher and running faster, they will change the world. But these superhumans regularly violate the two great commandments (rules) given by Christ- love God and love your neighbor- in their quest to distinction. These professors of Christ show little evidence of possession. They treat those who don’t agree with them with disdain, contempt, and hatred. Second, it can take equal courage and strength of character to follow the rules or break them. Being a loyal conformist or a rebel can take the same mettle. It is a misconception that not playing by the rules takes more resolution than not submitting. Those who thumb their nose at the rules believe they are su- perior to those who submit. They fail to see that submitting to authority requires character, humility and meekness- all attributes showing evidence of a regenerate heart. Third, there are rules lazy people hide behind. MacArthur was right that often people lack the cour- age to challenge the status quo. Bad rules are often met with apathy or blind compliance. There are bad rules, but because of passivity they remain in effect. It’s often because people believe it just isn’t worth the effort to fight. It’s a lack of involvement, not a lack of courage. If principled people stayed engaged and involved in their government, those bad rules/laws would fade away like smoke. All rules are not equal. Wearing white after Labor Day is not as great an offense as committing mur- der. Both are rules, but one is a subjective guideline- the other a cardinal principle. But rules are in place for a reason. They help us maintain a level of fairness, order and justice. Rules should be based on truth and when they aren’t they create a value system that results in no settled certainty. Pilate asked Jesus, ‘What is truth?” Many rule breakers mistakenly today believe there is no truth. During the nation’s founding, John Adams said, “we are a nation of laws, not of men.” Adams was referring to the Rule of Law principle, which was established in ancient Greece. The principle holds all people are accountable to the same set of laws and equally enforced. Adams was saying the exact op- posite of MacArthur. Rules/laws are made to be followed. Steve Fair is Vice Chairman of the 4th district of the Oklahoma Republican Party. He can be reached by email at steve.fair@ymail.com. His blog is stevefair.blogspot.com. Fair and Biased A conservative view of national, state, and local politics by Steve Fair Chairman, 4th District Oklahoma Republican Party Vice-Chairman City to Host Fall Clean-Up Event  The City of Chickasha is set to host a 4-day clean- up event from September 20-23, 2023 at the Public Works facility. Citizens are encouraged to take advan- tage of free roll-off dumpsters to clean their proper- ties of debris and unwanted items.  “We are excited to offer this free service to our res- idents,” said Assistant City Manager Rachel Bernish. “We anticipate a lot of visitors to Chickasha during the Rock Island Weekend and the Festival of Light, and this is a great opportunity to show our civic pride by cleaning up property ahead of those activities.”  Public Works will have gates open for drop off from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, September 20 through Friday, September 22, and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, September 23. Limb drop off will also be available during this time.  Citizens and businesses wanting to use the dump- sters will need to show a copy of their City of Chickasha water bill. The Community Development Department will provide a ticket to those who live in Chickasha city limits but do not have a water bill due to ongoing work or code violations; to receive the ticket, please call (405) 222-6010 or stop by City Hall during business hours.  Items not allowed in the dumpsters include tires, batteries, oil, paint, liquids, pesticides, or hazardous materials. If you have anything with Freon, such as a refrigerator, you are asked to have it removed by a technician and be able to provide a certificate stating all Freon has been removed.  Public Works is located at 502 N. Genevieve St. The dumpsters will be located just to the north of Public Works, and limb drop off is just south of the facility. There will be signs at the road to help direct traffic. Grady County Fair Results These are the results from Still Exhibit entries in the Grady County Fair. 4-H Horticulture Terrariums Class 1 - Terrariums (3rd-5th Grade) 1st Hayden Ladyman, 2nd Kareah Cox, 3rd Kayslee Elliott Class 3 – Terrariums (9th-12th Grade) 1st Alexandraya Brown Class 4 – Dish Gardens (3rd-5th Grade) 1st Ava Johnson, 2nd Kareah Cox Class 5 – Dish Gardens (6th-8th Grade) 1st Wyatt Basford Class 6 – Horticulture Terrariums (9th-12th Grade) 1st Alexandraya Brown Class 10 – Horticulture In Our Lives Poster (3rd-5th Grade) 1st Eastn Witt Class 11 – Horticulture Terrarium (6th-5th Grade) 1st Kara Pettijohn Class 12 - Horticulture Terrarium (9th-12th Grade) 1st Alexandraya Brown, 2nd Abigail Pettijohn, 3rd Brian Dunn Open Class Agronomy Class 2 – Corn 1st Emery Turner Open Class Home Gardening Class 1 – Potatoes, Yellow, White or Russet 1st Donna Standridge, 2nd Sharon Courtney, 3rd George Tiner Class 2 – Potatoes, Red 1st Linda Rathbun, 2nd Eddie Rathbun, 3rd Ryder Drennan Class 3 – Okra 1st Eddie Rathbun, 2nd Kambrie Keller, 3rd Patricia Bingaman Class 4 – Onions, Yellow 1st Sharon Courtney, 2nd Eddie Rathbun, 3rd Donna Standridge Class 6 – Onions, Red 1st Sharon Courtney Class 8 - Pumpkin, Jack-o-Lantern 1ST Bergundy Nelson Class 9 – Squash, Winter, Acorn 1st Oaklee Ast Class 18 – Pepper, Jalapeno 1st Kara Pettijohn, 2nd Abby Pettijohn, 3rd Nathan Pettijohn Class 19 – Pepper Other Hot Pepper 1st Ryder Drennan, 2nd Trenton Rippy, 3rd Sharon Courtney Class 20 – Pepper Sweet Bell Pepper 1st Pam Stokes Class 21 – Pepper, Sweet Banana Pepper 1st Donna Standridge, 2nd Jyme Tiner Class 22 – Tomatoes, Large Type 1st Kambrie Keller, 2nd Jyme Tiner Class 23 – Tomatoes, Cherry Type 1st Sharon Courtnet, 2nd Bergundy Nelson, 3rd Oscar Nelson Class 24 – Watermelon Oblong 1st Donna Standridge, Kambrie Keller, 3rd Bryan Haynes Class 26 – Watermelon Small Icebox 1st Oscar Nelson, 2nd Trinity Keller, 3rd Kambrie Keller Class 28 – Peas-6 Pods 1st Donna Standridge Class 29 – Misc. Vegetable 1st Oaklee Ast, 2nd Coralei Nelson, 3rd Georgia Nelson Class 31- Pears, Plate of Five 1st Eddie Rathbun, 2nd Nathan Pettijohn Class 32 – Cantaloupe, 1 Speciman 1st Kambrie Keller, 2nd Trinity Keller, 3rd Maretta Rog- ers Class 33 – Misc. Fruit 1st Emerson Foster Class 35 – Home Gardening Food Basket -Open Class 1st April Williamson Best In Wheat Senior Division – 18 Years & Older White Bread 1st Shirley Burns Whole Grain Bread 1st Shirley Burns Dinner Rolls 1st Roberta Hinkle, 2nd Shirley Burns Sweet Breads 1st Shirley Burns, 2nd Roberta Hinkle Junior Division – Under 18 Years of Age White Bread 1st Kara Pettijohn Other Wheat Breads 1st Olivia Evans Cole Supports Americans’ Choice in Purchasing Vehicles  Congressman Tom Cole (OK-04) released the follow- ing statement after H.R. 1435, the Preserving Choice in Vehicle Purchases Act, passed the U.S. House of Represen- tatives with Cole’s support. H.R. 1435 would amend the Clean Air Act (CAA) to prevent the elimination of the sale of internal combustion engines.  “Democrats’ radical green energy agenda has not only costed thousands of U.S. jobs, caused energy prices to skyrocket and has put our national security at risk, but now some states are looking to ban gasoline-powered vehicles in coming years,” said Cole. “These outrageous bans would force hardworking Americans to give up the cars that fit within their budget, or have potentially already paid off, and buy expensive electric-powered vehicles instead, which cost $17,000 more on average. It would also limit Americans’ choices in the future when selecting a vehicle that best meets their needs and the needs of their business- es. The choice of owning an electric vehicle or not should be up to the individual, not bureaucrats in Washington or California. I was proud to support this critical legislation to protect the roughly 300 million Americans who own gasoline-powered cars.” A friend asked me what I would regret the most if I were to die in my sleep. After much thought and contem- plation, I think I would regret going to bed. Seymore Folkes