An article by Ben Felder, newsok.com/declining-school-funding-fake-news-says-state-rep/article/5562242, Declining school funding? 'Fake news says state rep, details that an e-mail sent by State Rep. Michael Rogers (chair of the state House common education committee) to his Republican colleagues decries that "reports of declining state funding for public schools" is fake news. "Fake News" is also known as bald faced lies, so in effect, Representative Rogers is saying that public school officials have been lying to the Oklahoma public about cuts to state public education. In other words, Mr. Rogers wants the public to believe that Oklahoma Lawmakers have not cut state dollars going to public schools by almost 27% since 2010, which leads the nation (we're number one!). He also wants his colleagues in the House to believe that Oklahoma has not cut school funding by $233.20 per student since 2009. Mr.Rogers tells his colleagues that "...we (the Legislature) have increased funding per pupil since 2010". This statement by Mr. Rogers is not only a "lie", but a lie he hopes his fellow House members will pass on to their constituents. The facts state otherwise. Mr. Rogers evidently has not taken the math course Advanced Gazintas for the mathematically challenged, or he would know Lesson #1 - naught plus naught is still naught, and $3275.60 in 2009 - $3042.40 in 2017 = +$233.20 less per student. It was probably the + in the + $233.20 which made Rep. Rogers think that state funding "has increased" since 2009... No, I think that Mr. Rogers is really very intelligent, so he wants his Republican colleagues in the House to spread the word to their constituents that "school funding is actually up!". Many Republicans will not lie for Rep. Rogers, but many will. Many Republican House members will also pass this lie on, to their unsuspecting public.
Update: Representative Michael Rogers (R) has doubled down on his "fake news" claims. Rogers, a self-professed gazinta expert and chairman of the House Common Education Committee, responded to recent news stories regarding an e-mail sent to members of his Republican caucus labeled "fake news". A math legend in his own mind, Rogers said the email was in direct reference to "false educational funding data" released last spring by the Oklahoma State School Boards Association (OSSBA) Executive Director Shawn Hime and the Cooperative Council of State School Administration (CCOSA) that claimed Oklahoma 'ALEC Corporate Legislators' cut education funding by $1 billion dollars. Rogers said "When I first saw these 'mathematically advanced' numbers last spring, I reached out to Mr. Hime, asking him to show me 'gazinta' numbers supporting his claim. He sent a breakdown showing how he used 'advanced' cumulative math to come up with the figure." The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and Mr. Rogers are still trying to reconcile Hime's numbers using only fuzzy gazintas, as Rogers said "I showed how the 'Corporate' Legislature would be up nearly $2 billion dollars (not $1 billion dollars down) in education funding" had Mr. Hime only used "fuzzy gazintas" instead of advanced mathematical techniques. Mr. Rogers ended his latest "fake news" release by saying "I will continue to fight for students and parents and won't be bullied or silenced for wanting to have an open honest conversation on education funding and how we can improve it." Translated from political rhetoric into an honest statement, Mr. Rogers means that "I will continue to fight for the corporate control of our public schools and won't be bullied or silenced by honest straightforward facts".
I'd like to issue a challenge to Mr. Rogers or any other corporate Oklahoma Legislator to publically debate the school funding issue. You may come down to KBLP 105.1 FM in Lindsay, at 8:30 AM on any Monday morning, and we'll discuss it "live" on the air... By the way, my "local lawmakers" Representative Tim Downing and Senator Paul Scott, have a "standing invitation".
It's now Tuesday, September 12, exactly 12 days since issuing the invitation to answer constituent questions about the "fake news" of education cuts by state lawmakers. We still only hear "crickets chirping" instead of meaningful answers from Representative Downing and Senator Scott. They both have the option of either confirming Representative Roger's claims that education cuts are "fake news" or confirming that funding cuts to our public schools are indeed real. Downing and Scott have no doubt seen the invitation, but have refused to respond thus far, leading one to believe that they just don't want to discuss the issue. It's not surprising they won't answer constituent questions about school funding or other public school issues though, since Mr. Downing failed to answer any public school questions while campaigning for his seat. Stay tuned and I'll tell everyone when one finally responds...
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