February 1, 2020 Issue, Page 4 of 10

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Page 4 The Elk City News, Elk City, Oklahoma Saturday, February 1, 2020 Uncertainty Opinion Page around you? Which way do you go when you can’t see “ElkCituNews where that path leads? Do you follow the news, your Glynda Lomax is a Chris- across the state being halted instincts, your faith? What? Serving Western Oklahoma since 1901 tian author and podcaster only a month earlier caused ‘We all fear the unknown. who resides in the Ozark more than a little concern Uncertainty has the tenden- among those of us who de- cy to make us feel afraid and Former NBA star’s Mountains of Northern Ar- pended on the energy indus- insecure. All we can do is kansas with her two very bossy dogs. She wrote her try for our living. take the facts we have and make a decision, using our passing reverberates Dallas. She is planning her toindustry, first About Life column in That being my fourth time work in the oil and gas priorities as our guideline. 2003 for a newspaper in I was not surprised The truth is, nothing in life next book. by a downturn.I was not sur- comes with any guarantees. Glenda Lomax prised when news of project We are not guaranteed an “When we walk to the Plan C, and get on with liv- cancellations was followed easy life; we are not guar- edge of all the light we have by gas dropping almost a anteed life at all. We are not ing your life. Because uncer- and take the step into the dollar a gallon from what even guaranteed tomorrow. tainty will be back tomorrow darkness of the unknown, we it was just months before. The difference is, during and next week and next year. must believe that one of two I was not surprised people times of great uncertainty ‘You may not see its presence things will happen. There were being sent home. like this, that fact just be- as clearly as you do today, will be something solid for The days following were comes more evident than but it will still be there. And us to stand on or we will a succession of telephone usual. The rest of the time all we can do is keep making be taught to fly.” - Patrick calls, letters and changes we feel like we have some the best decisions possible Overton which resulted in half the security, but the truth is, life group being moved to a can change ina heartbeat and based on the information we have. The Great Recession had short-term project and the you'll never see it coming. begun. News of bank fail- other half being sent home You get laid off from your Uncertainty is uncomfort- ings, foreclosures, and to hope for news of more job, your spouse wants a di- able, seeing changes hap- enough ups and downs in the work. My phone rang off the vorce, your child gets into pening that are beyond our stock market to make us all wall with calls from cowork- trouble, you lose all your control is uncomfortable, dizzy were causing everyone ers asking me what I planned savings in the stock market, but out of uncertainty comes to feel uncertain. Our econ- to do. The truth was,I hadn’t you get bad news from the change, and out of change omy, it seems, was all over made a plan yet. doctor. It can all change on comes growth. And out of the map. It’s difficult to make a de- any given day. uncertainty comes courage - The truth of the chang- cision when you don’t have All any of us can do is re- the courage to face the next Kobe Bryant, right, and daughter Gianna. ing economy really hit close all the facts. How can you alize that though today looks Photo taken fromKobe Bryant Instagram. to home with me when my predict where the cards will uncertain, yesterday was uncertainty As John life brings. Roger & Peter boss called a meeting and finally fall when everything just as uncertain, we just announced to our group that is falling apart so fast you couldn’t see it as plainly. We McWilliams said, “Courage, By Don Munsch, Editor the oil and gas prospect we can’t keep up? Which way hope for the best but plan for contrary to popular belief, The text from a friend came in around 2 p.m. Sunday, on are working on appeared to do you mun when pieces of the worst, just in case. So is not the absence of fear. be shutting down. This fol- your world come crashing make your Plan B, and if it Courage is the wisdom to act a quiet day I spent doing laundry, watching some college lowing another prospect down from all directions makes you feel better, even in spite offear.” basketball and spending a couple of hours doing stuff here at work. Just two words on the text: Kobe died. The 2020 legislative session can be My reply by text: “Kobe Kobe?” There’s only one Kobe — famous Kobe — I’m aware of: Kobe Bryant. He’s one of the best basketball players ever optimistic with your advocacy and one of the best the NBA has ever known. Bryant retired By Joe Dorman, CEO of submitted for this legislative the only state in the nation remain in contact with sena- OICA session, I see great potential with an age that low. There tors and representatives. from the Los Angeles Lakers in 2016 after playing for the It is less than a week be- to help improve the lives of are also plans to provide We will hold our first train- team for 20 years. fore the second session of Oklahoman. Several law- counseling to students acting ing of 2020 Monday, Febru- the 57th Oklahoma Legisla- makers filed legislation to out due to trauma, instead of ary 3 in Oklahoma City. Our Certain celebrity deaths trigger instant memories of where ture convenes, and we hear restore refundability of the punishing them with an arbi- Women and Children First we were when we heard them — Elvis Presley, John Lennon from Governor Stitt about Earned Income Tax Credit, trary suspension, which are Advocacy Training, held and Michael Jackson, to name a few — and now the shock- his proposals in the annual a tax cut championed by good. Conversely, there are the first day of session, in- State of the State address. President Ronald Reagan bad ideas which would allow ing death of Kobe Bryant in the helicopter crash in Calaba- cludes a curriculum on how The issues facing young encouraging people to go to children in pre-school and sas, California, will be one of them for many of us. Kobe people in our state and na- work. State Capitol discus- to communicate with poli- Kindergarten to be removed cymakers; tion are often depressing. sions and an impending vote for an entire semester. attendees will be and his daughter Gianna were on board with seven other The adverse experiences by the people to attract more These proposals and many able to interact directly with people, all of whom perished. All of the deaths are tragic, which plague children — and federal funding for working- more have bipartisan sup- lawmakers just before the obviously, and all families and friends involved grieve the then often repeat when those class health care coverage port. Still, whether they be- session begins. The day will terrible loss of all these lives. grown children have kids will, without a doubt, cre- come law in large part will conclude watching a live of their own — have created ate a vast improvement over be determined by how much feed of Governor Stitt’s ad- I don’t have a lot to add to what's already been said about widespread problems af- what our state has faced over you, as grassroots advocates, dress followed by discus- Kobe Bryant this week. His passing has the shock element fecting health, the economy, the past eight years. engage with policymak- sions on the speech and the because of the nature of his death and also because he was workforce, and life expec- The proposals which the ers. OICA will be very busy session. tancy. These issues also have Oklahoma Institute for Child traveling across the state this If you wish to learn more just 41, with still a lot of living to do, although he lived an overall impact with how Advocacy (OICA) have year, helping advocates de- about how you can join us life to the fullest. As some people have said in the past few well our rankings appear championed include a bill to velop stronger and more ef- for this event go to www. days, no one is guaranteed tomorrow. with other states. create a savings account for fective voices. oica.org and sign up for I have mixed emotions state-certified early child- We plan to spend time We remember Kobe in a different way, too, through the and predictions about what care assistance to help fami- speaking to partner orga- Women and Children First Advocacy Training. You also experience of watching him on the court. A Facebook friend we will see as far as im- lies struggling to meet the nizations and training their of mine on Sunday talked about what Kobe’s life meant to provements for Oklahoma, $8,000 to $10,000 annual membership to effectively can contact us about setting but I always lean toward cost for providing childcare communicate with lawmak- up a training for your orga- him. This individual, a Laker fan, talked about how he be- optimism. I am even hope- for their youngest. ers. These trainings hope- nization in your hometown. came a sports fan because the first team he liked was the ful that this being an elec- Multiple bills have been fully will spark interest in These all are great steps to- Lakers. About a specific event involving Kobe, he remem- tion year will not deter good introduced to fix the seat belt watching votes, sharing ward helping you and your ideas simply from party-line law requiring children above ideas for solutions, and en- community become stronger bered a playoff game and certain play from that game that stubbornness. the age of eight to be buck- gaging other constituents voices for improving Okla- began his adulation. Going through the ideas led in, which Oklahoma is with the best practices to homa! Whether it’s by following stars in sports, music or mov- ies, many people can remember when they first caught sight Direct-to-consumer drug advertising of an idol and became a fan. I can only guess the number of people who became Elvis or Beatles fans after first seeing benefits companies, but patients even more their performances on “The Ed Sullivan Show” back in the By Merrill Matthews side compared to other in- tance of DTC drug ads. health win. day. Analysts at the nonpar- dustries. Commercials serve a vi- Drug ads convey in a The passing of a celebrity — especially one many Amer- tisan Congressional Bud- The industry only spends tal public health purpose by concise, compelling way icans loved or were fond of — often will be ingrained in get Office recently scored about $6 billion annually on raising awareness of medi- how products may improve Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s drug direct-to-consumer advertis- cal conditions that many pa- health. Indeed, one national memory. That was certainly the case here with Kobe Bry- pricing bill, H.R. 3. ing to patients. That’s just tients might not know about. survey found that drug ad- ant. The CBO estimates the 3.2 percent of the $187.5 Consider the famous drug vertising prompts about two bill would reduce revenue billion in total U.S. revenue ad for the insomnia medica- in three viewers to take con- at America’s pharmaceuti- for the top 10 pharmaceuti- tion Rozerem. In this spot, cal companies between $0.5 cal manufacturers, and only a haggard, sleepless man crete action to better manage trillion and $1 trillion over a fraction of the up to $1 tril- has a late-night chat with their health. the next decade, dramati- lion in lost revenue over 10 Abraham Lincoln, a talking Defenders of Pelosi’s bill cally reducing innovation years. beaver, and other fantastical want to lower drug prices to share? and preventing the creation By contrast, companies figures. These characters are and many think eliminating of important new medicines. in the consumer-packaged from his dreams -- and in the DTC advertising is a way to Proponents of Pelosi’s goods industry spend, on commercial, they explain do that. But advertising is a plan appear unfazed. Many average, about 24 percent of how they’ve missed him way companies convey im- Send your have used this news to con- revenue on marketing, tech since he stopped sleeping. portant information to con- tend that if drug companies software spends 15 percent, Nearly two out of three sumers about products that simply scale back spending and banking and finance American adults suffer from may help them. on television commercials about 8 percent. sleep problems, and insom- editorial to and other direct-to-consum- The return on investment While drug companies nia costs the economy bil- isn’t just to drug companies, er (DTC) advertising, they underspend on DTC adver- lions of dollars a year in would make up for losses tising compared to other in- lost productivity. That com- it’s to people who act on that important medical informa- dustries, they overspend on mercial -- which went viral editor@ imposed by Pelosi’s plan. Such suggestions disre- research and development, before we had a term for it tion. gard the math and trivialize about 21 percent of total rev- -- helped raise awareness Merrill Matthews is a resi- the importance of drug ad- enue -- more than any other for a new, effective sleep dent scholar with the Insti- tute for Policy Innovation in ecdailynews.com vertisements. industry. And it’s the rev- treatment, which came with First, consider the math. enue from the sale of those much lower addiction risks Dallas, Texas. Follow him Drug companies’ DTC ad- drugs that funds that R&D. than existing —_ products. on Twitter @MerrillMat- vertising spend is on the low Next. consider the impor- That’s an enormous public thews.