Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine) header
Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine) profile picture

Conservative blogger covering local politics, urban planning, and, frequently, western swing. Anglospherophile. Israelophile. ืฆึดื™ึผึ–ื•ึนืŸ ื‘ึฐึผืžึดืฉึฐืืคึธึผึฃื˜ ืชึดึผืคึธึผื“ึถึ‘ื”

Tulsa, Oklahoma
Joined October 2008
Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)Photo by Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ (@BatesLine)
Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
The filibuster. It all comes down to the filibuster. One does not โ€œcontrolโ€ Congress without 60 votes in the Senate. This can be changed, but, as I say now and then, if you do it, you have to legislate like thereโ€™s no tomorrow, because there practically wonโ€™t be. And the rightโ€™s coalition is not -nearly- cohesive enough to make and execute such a plan, since it is a loose collection of opponents of the dominant political-cultural agenda. It goes back, again, to cycles of what might be called discourse hegemony: Every seven presidential terms the country shifts from one major agenda to another. The first was Cold War centrism after Eisenhowerโ€™s election; the second was red-state conservatism after Reagan; the third was woke/leftism after Obama. The next one happens in ten years, if the pattern holds. If thereโ€™s anything left to do by then.
This is exactly right. Why did the Congressional Republicans not pass these executive orders into law? Serious question.
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Heute vor 22 Jahren wurde in Amsterdam eine ganz besondere Form der islamischen Filmkritik exekutiert. Theo van Gogh hatte es gewagt, einen Film รผber die Unterdrรผckung der Frau im Islam zu drehen. Die Quittung des gottesfรผrchtigen Terroristen: Erst ein paar Schรผsse, und als das Opfer wehrlos am Boden lag, folgte die rituelle Halsschneiderei. Damit die Botschaft auch ja nicht verloren geht, rammte der Gotteskrieger dem Toten zwei Messer in den Kรถrper, als Briefbeschwerer fรผr ein Bekennerschreiben, das ganz nebenbei auch Ayaan Hirsi Ali den Tod versprach. Ein Lehrstรผck รผber religiรถse Toleranz, das man im Westen bis heute lieber weglรคchelt.
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Gave a brief exhortation yesterday to our @crosscrowntul congregation on their civic privilege to vote. I led with the reality that @WillyRice speaks of here - evangelical Christians are one of the last bulwarks against our country's cultural slide. youtube.com/live/2alLmF1n28kโ€ฆ
Southern Baptist President Willy Rice argues that if Christians would just vote, we could decide every election: "We'll have as many as 30 million evangelicals who won't vote...It's unthinkable. I don't care what the polls say today, I don't care what the pundits say. If every Bible-believing evangelical said, 'we're going to go weigh in on these issues,' there will be some stunning outcomes on Tuesday, and I mean stunning in a good way." youtu.be/Z-ffgjteZis?si=51Fnโ€ฆ
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Oklahoma Republicansโ€ฆ.You got duped. Congratulations on electing liberal Robert Franklin. Once again: I am vindicated.
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Cyndi Munson, since taking to the campaign trail for governor, has been disingenuous and deceptive when it comes to comparing what she says with her actual voting record. She has attempted to portray herself as a moderate working for โ€œeveryday Oklahomans,โ€ but her record shows that she is not a moderate, nor has she shown any evidence of a major change of heart on important issues. You should NOT vote for Cyndi Munson, not simply because sheโ€™s a Democrat, but because she shows a lack of integrity and humility.
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
For those of us in staid Westminster system, US politics can be a compelling drama & also a complete freakshow ... but the Michigan Senate race is like this season of "Homeland" that was rejected as too preposterous a storyline
Genuinely insane that Abdul El-Sayed said โ€œhurt people hurt peopleโ€ in the context of a guy trying to murder 100 Jewish children at a synagogue in Michigan. Legitimately one of the most insane things you could ever say.
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
From Philip Greenspunโ€™s classic essay on general aviation
If any pilots are reading this, I am fine if we arrive late because you took the time to avoid storms. Please prioritize safety above everything else.
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Replying to @GabeGwoolley
The hotel tax hike also nearly doubles the amount of money the worthless Chamber gets for "convention and tourism" services. batesline.com/archives/2026/โ€ฆ
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
To my TULSA friends concerning your Nov. 3rd ballot measure: Hotel Tax Proposition No. 1 - I CHALLENGE YOU TO THINK CRITICALLY, USE PATTERN RECOGNITION & SEEK WISDOM ON THIS ISSUE AS YOU GO TO THE BALLOT. Have homelessness, cost of living, and crime decreased in the City of Tulsa over the past four years under current City leadership? (I recognize the mayor has only been in office for 2 years). The answer that I have found is that two out of three have not decreased. Crime has shown a minor decrease from what I can find online. That raises some important questions: Are we going to continue entrusting more taxpayer dollars to a system when the results of past spending have not been positive? Is the money already being collected being properly stewarded by those in authority? I have serious questions about that. We also have to recognize the patterns playing out in other cities and states, including California and Colorado, where similar policy approaches & Democrat leadership has generated significant increase in public spending, homelessness, affordability, and public safety, yet the outcome has not been favorable. It is more expensive, unsafe, & people are more dependent on the government than ever in these blue states. These are lessons worth considering before asking taxpayers to entrust even more of their money to the government. TULSA Hotel Tax Proposition No. 1 - The BOK Center, Arvest Convention Center, and Tulsa Performing Arts Center that would benefit from this tax are government-owned facilities. However, they also operate as revenue-generating venues and businesses. My question is this: Shouldnโ€™t a business be expected to reinvest its own revenue into maintenance, repairs, and improvements to remain competitive and continue generating revenue? Why should taxpayers automatically be expected to shoulder that burden whenever additional funding is needed? Taxpayer dollars should be treated with the utmost responsibility. Before creating another revenue stream for government, we should be asking whether existing resources are being used effectively and whether the proposed expenditure is justified. If I were a Tulsa resident, these are the questions I would be weighing before casting my ballot. I believe wisdom says vote NO on the Tulsa, Hotel Tax Proposition No. 1
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
A district whose children are DROWNING should not keep sending out the same boat (the S.S. Bloat). Iโ€™m an engineer, NOT a career politician. Give me two years to pull kids out of the water and show you results. SAVE OKLAHOMA STUDENTS. Iโ€™d be honored to have your vote Tuesday!
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Speaking of career advice Here are 124 actionable tips on consistency, skills, discipline, the grind, the journey, the team, the mission, motivation, learning, and expertise. PDF freely available: justinmath.com/files/advice-โ€ฆ
The best career advice for young people is to just focus relentlessly on 3 things as early as possible: 1. Get skilled. Technical skills, writing skills, people-orchestration skills, everything. 2. Get involved contributing to a mission you're aligned with. It doesn't have to be pure bliss and your contribution doesn't have to match your top strengths exactly. But at the end of the day you have to feel some pride in what you did or what you learned. If you can find something like that while becoming skilled in a number of different ways then you'll find ways to increasingly wrap your skill profile around it (and you'll find/develop strengths in your skill profile that you never expected). 3. Pick up momentum. If you do (1) and (2) right then you've got direction and potential and all that's left is to sprint forwards and achieve it. The more momentum you pick up, the better you get, the more real value you produce, the more opportunities you create, the more you get noticed, the more value you capture into your own life, the more effort you want to put in... you create a virtuous cycle with so much momentum behind it that it becomes an unstoppable virtuous cyclone.
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
If you're a R voter thinking of staying home Tuesday to "teach Republicans a lesson", let me tell you what that exact technique did in my state of Virginia last year. ๐Ÿงต
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Replying to @jchasedavis
RINO Saboteurs like @EWErickson and @brooks_caedmon are too obnoxiously arrogant to acknowledge these realities. Their vindictive fellow travelers @KarlRove, @JohnCornyn, @gentnerdrummond and the Bush ex-dynasty want the @GOP to lose the midterms. Sick and wrong!
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
The most mathematically gifted student I ever worked with initially resisted learning calculus. He was already way ahead, and he liked doing puzzles with math that was already familiar. But eventually he just wasnโ€™t really progressing. You see, there are levels of math that you have to climb in order to unlock the next thing. And kids donโ€™t always see the long game, so adults have to see it for them. So this kidโ€ฆ once his parents and I pushed him to learn calculus, he ended up LOVING it. And now heโ€™s doing serious math using ideas from this area that he originally resisted! Thatโ€™s why sometimes a push is what opens the door.
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
If you read the Bible with an app, you probably switch between the text, references, and maybe a group study. What if all three worked together? Deep Dive Bible launches today. Free, forever: a gift to the whole Church. deepdivebible.org
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
I'm afraid Mr PK Dick must be consulted daily at this point if you are to remain oriented and sane.
How to mount an attack on a country or a people without triggering a defense. An interesting and timely passage from Philip K Dickโ€™s brilliant and melancholy novel of the 1970s drug scene, A Scanner Darkly
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Tomorrow Oklahoma chooses: Mike Mazzei, endorsed by President Trump, or Cyndi Munson, who voted against Oklahoma's pro-life law, the girls' sports law and the ban on gender procedures for minors. oklegislature.gov/cf/2021-22โ€ฆ
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
I was First Secretary at the British Embassy in Warsaw 1994-98. While that was a long time ago, I knew personally many of the people at the heart of the current crisis, such as Donald Tusk and Radek Sikorski. 1)ย The first thing to say about Poland is craigmurray.org.uk/archives/โ€ฆ
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
After the apple joke, I was trying to think of what would be next... never would have guessed an Eggs-Box 360! ๐Ÿ˜‚ RIP Legend!
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Michael Bates ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฑ retweeted
Remember, when the left condemns "Nationalism" - its because they whole heartedly support GLOBALISM. Nationalism saved Poland when Globalism tried to overthrow it.
Poland is a case study in why an EU wide army is a terrible idea. The Polish Army remaining loyal to Poland was the key. Imagine if the army reported to an EU commander rather than the President of Poland.
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