It's My Turn!

I don't understand voters in Oklahoma. Our state was founded on populist principles, which is why we elect everything from Governor to Dog Catcher (only partially in jest). Within 4 years, it appears that conservative voters of the 5th Congressional District have gone from one end of a spectrum to the complete opposite end. When Mary Fallin ran for Congress after serving as Lt. Governor for over a decade, many voters expressed the opinion that it was Mary's turn. Turn? Where is the end of THAT line? I'd like to get in line if that's all it takes to be elected to Congress in Oklahoma. Now, Mary Fallin vacates her Congressional seat and we have a new slate of candidates. It's amazing the difference 4 years can make. Now we have Calvey and Lankford in a runoff election pitting "experienced politician" (Calvey) against "integrity" (Lankford, and where have we heard something similar, a la 'Integrity in Congress’?). They're both counselors. One is a counselor of the law; the other is counselor of the camp. Where is the difference in the voters' eyes? Experience. Calvey took major hits because he was a "career politician". Lankford is a "fresh new voice" and "political outsider".




WAIT A SECOND!!!!!!!!!



Wasn't Kevin Calvey the next person in line after Mary Fallin? Isn't it his "turn"??? Are Republican voters being manic and swinging from one extreme to the other? Maybe I don't want to be in that line after all. So Mary's service mattered and it was her "turn" when she ran for Congress, but now that we have Lankford in the race, we need a fresh new voice for the people of Oklahoma's 5th Congressional District? Is it that we've lost our minds or our minds are easily controlled?



My wife had a wonderful insight a while back that applies to about everything in life, this included. Her statement was in the context of marketing her business. She said (loose paraphrase):



Marketing is a lot like high school. It's like the popular clique in high school. What did those kids do? The popular kids went around telling everyone how much better they were and everyone else was not. What do companies do? McDonald's burgers are SO much better than Burger King, Jack in the Box, or Wendy's. They tell everyone else what to think, and people start to think it!!!



Voters in the 5th District were told that Mary should win because it was "her turn" and she had dedicatedly served our state and it was time for her to go to Washington D.C. Now, we've been told that we need a fresh new voice in the 5th Congressional seat, and we're being told that voice must belong to James Lankford. What do the voters do? Go out and vote for Lankford even though Calvey has served in the State House of Representatives and in our armed forced.



Where do we go from here? I'm not sure, but I believe if I had an idea and told you to think the same as me, after hearing it over and over and over between now and the first Tuesday in November, you'd start to believe me.