Communication is my bread and butter. When everything else is stripped away, communication is the root of our company. As a pastor, communication is key. The WynnBlog exists to communicate. And so, I try my best to adequately communicate as simply as possible. I think it was in some CS Lewis work where he said (something very similar to) no one can truly be called an expert in a matter until he can explain it to a child. Granted, that is probably a very horrible paraphrase of a vague recollection, but the sentiment is meaningful.

There are a lot of voices in the room, so to speak, these days, and I think one of the best lessons anyone who strives to communicate can really learn is to communicate simply by abandoning all attempts, by using impossibly difficult words and structures (and this is coming from a grammar Nazi), to appear smart in your writing. You can communicate, educate, and inform people, or you can shoot for impressing them with your "intelligent" writing and never transfer an idea further than your own mind.

I picked up one of Jeane’s books, Encyclopedia of a Common Life, the other day, and the author, Amy Krouse Rosenthal, quoted Alain de Botton, who said:

But writing with simplicity requires courage, for there is a danger that one will be overlooked, dismissed as simpleminded by those with a tenacious belief that impossible prose is a hallmark of intelligence.

de Botton’s words ring very true, and I think they would be beneficial to anyone who truly wishes to communicate with others.

By the way, I am speaking from experience here. I have looked back over some old writings from high school and college and all I can think is Man, I can’t believe the teachers let me get away with that; I was so trying to look smart. It’s just embarrassing. And, there are times we are tempted to over-write press materials for people. When I feel we are headed in that direction, I sit down and start stripping out the attempts to be smart or impressive and replace them with attempts at simply communicating, and we end up with a much better work. And before you blame the general populace for being un-educated by government schools (to which I would agree to an extent), understand I am not advocating dumbing down anything. I am recommending everyone pull the arrogance and pride out of their text, not the subject matter, deep thoughts, and important statements. Just develop and communicate those things more effectively–more simply. All the best writers have and do.

Unrelated post-script: If it has ever occurred to you that you are the smartest person in the room, you were wrong. 

OKLAHOMA CITY–Responding to mounting public pressure that the name of the nation’s 46th state is offensive to Native Americans, the Oklahoma Legislature has passed and Governor Brad Henry has signed into law legislation that will change the name of the state of Oklahoma effective November 16, 2007. The law, which was drafted by Oklahoma State Senator Polly K. Rekt (I-Bowlegs), calls for a blue-ribbon commission, selected by the Governor, to propose three new names for the state. Among the requirements for the new state names is a provision that all entries be gender and ethnically neutral. Rekt said,

We should be ashamed that our state website states: "The name ‘Oklahoma’ comes from the Choctaw words: ‘okla’ meaning people and ‘humma’ meaning red, so the state’s name literally means ‘red people.’" Just think of what harm that must do to our Native populations to have a state named after their color. Further, our state name is offensive to many other Natives because we selected Choctaw words. What about the Cherokees, or Osages, or Peorias? Are we saying their language is not as legitimate as the Choctaws’? This kind of hateful, stereotypical speech must stop, and this new law is the first step to healing the great racial divide that exists between most Native American Oklahomans and the rest of the white Euro-trash Oklahomans, er, I mean, citizens of the 46th state." 

Once the blue-ribbon committee has selected three choices for a new state name, there will be a special election held November 16, 2007, which is the 100th Anniversary of The-State-Formerly-Known-As-Oklahoma’s admission to the union. Early front-runners in the contest to rename the state will be forth-coming. The state name is not all that will change if Polly K. Rekt has her way.

I fully intend to sponsor another bill that would call for a re-designed state flag. Do you realize we have stolen the proud Indian symbols to use for our bourgeois aggrandizement? We should be ashamed. In fact, most nights I leave the Capitol crying for the wrongs my vanilla-white forefathers inflicted upon the Indian masses. I had one grandfather that single-handedly got a bunch of them drunked up on firewater and surrounded them late one night, and they named a whole county after him. I can barely hold my head up.

Opponents of the campaign to rename the state have been few and far between, as they have been unwilling to buck the current of public opinion and fearful of losing campaign contributions from the Casino-rich Native American tribes.

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This is, of course, nonsense I just made up, but I was inspired to write after hearing this today.
 

It’s terrible when you lose touch with old friends. Ron and Joan Kimball and their family were very important to me at a very trying time in my life. Having lost touch in the last few years, I decided I needed to re-establish contact, and I discovered Ron had recently died. I had a warm conversation with Joan this afternoon, and I am asking all my readers to please pray for her and the kids. You can read his obituary here.

In all the research and quotation of other sources, there seems to be a great void in researching the Great Source. I submit that this might be of some use.

Take a good, long look at this face folks. This is the face of the enemy of every working, tax-paying citizen of Oklahoma. Who is this guy, and what could be so wrong with him (aside from the haircut)?

His name is Mike Morgan, and he is the President Pro Tem of the Oklahoma Senate (D-Stillwater). In case you haven’t been following the news, let me break it down for you:

Democratic Gov. Brad Henry and Republican House Speaker Todd Hiett supported a bill that would amount to the largest tax cut the state of Oklahoma has ever seen, $320 million in income and estate taxes. When it got to the State Senate, enter Mr. Morgan, and the plan was rejected. Morgan said:

"Everybody wants a deal, but in the rush to get a deal we shouldn’t trample the people of Oklahoma. I’m not willing to throw the people of the state of Oklahoma under the bus."

Just one question, Senator: who do you think pays those taxes you are so keen on not cutting? If cutting my taxes means I am being trampled, then please, by all means, trample me hard. If allowing the citizens of Oklahoma, rather than a bunch of lame-brained politicians, to decide how to spend the money they earn is throwing us under a bus, I’d like a convoy, please.

Senate Minority Leader Glenn Coffee (R-Oklahoma City) said:

"Senate Democrats may be angry about the budget agreement between the speaker and the governor, but they shouldn’t take it out on Oklahoma taxpayers by blowing through the surplus like they just won the Oklahoma lottery. 

Speaking of the lottery, shouldn’t the new lottery revenues that are pouring in cover the increased education spending?

Finally, ladies and gentlemen, this is why conservatives must gain control of the Oklahoma Senate. They have control of the House, and we are seeing some great things come from there. But no matter how hard our state representatives work in the House, the liberal Democrats in the Senate are going to throw up roadblock after roadblock. The only way around the roadblock is to protest at the ballot box.  Morgan claims Henry and Hiett are only backing the tax cuts because they want to get re-elected. Dang right they are! They realize that it’s those tax payers who elect them. Mr. Morgan, you would do well to remember the same. Your term will be up someday, hopefully sooner than later.

Update: I guess it would help if I actually linked to the article I referenced, duh! Here it is.

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I didn’t have time to read this whole article yet, but the info–and especially the graphic–are very telling. Did you ever think we’d see the day when the Toyota Sienna is more "American" than a Ford Mustang? Reminds me of my first real car purchase on my own. I specifically bought American. As I think back on it, buying based on a car’s nationality is utterly meaningless when buying used cars (which I always do) and would really only have an impact on a new car purchase (which I will never do unless I am filth rich–read: never). So anyway, I set our to buy American and was thrilled when I found a 1996 Chevy Monte Carlo ("The Monte"). After scaring the salesman half to death on the test drive, I negotiated a good price, wrote the check, and took my American car purchase home. Only later, when cleaning the car up one day, did I notice the huge maple leaf sticker on the door with a "Made in Canada" declaration underneath. Let me just say, that cleared up my thinking a whole lot. I still tend toward "American" cars because I like large sedans, but I am no longer consider them American, and I find that sad.