Yearly Archives: 2009

The Best Country Albums Of The 21st Century

Having offered my Top 10 of 2009, I thought it would be appropriate to make a list of the top 20 country/Texas/Red Dirt music albums of the 21st century.

It was an interesting decade with a return to the rootsier sounds of traditional country music. Making such a list was not easy, but the following is a guide to some of the best country/Texas/Red Dirt music I have come across in the last 10 years.

Garth Brooks — "Scarecrow" (2001)
Garth Brooks released "Scarecrow" just before his move to a soloist. All in all, it’s a terrific album featuring songs like "Wrapped Up In You," his duet with George Jones ("Beer Run") and a cover of America’s "Don’t Cross The River."

Toby Keith — "Shock n’ Y’all" (2003)
"I Love This Bar," the inebriated sing-along that gave us the name of his chain of restaurants, turned out to be one of Toby Keith’s best-loved songs. And really, the songs here are pure Toby Keith, from the patriotic "American Soldier" to the terrific "Whiskey Girl."

Corb Lund — "Losin’ Lately Gambler" (2009)
Along with his band, The Hurtin’ Albertans, Canadian singer-songwriter Corb Lund proves to be the real deal with his songs about rural life in the Canadian West and working as a vet. Lund is a true treasure.

Cross Canadian Ragweed — "Soul Gravy" (2004)
Cody Canada, Jeremy Plato, Grady Cross and Randy Ragsdale, the boys who make up Oklahoma’s Cross Canadian Ragweed, really hit their stride on "Soul Gravy," the quartet’s strongest record in this century. Listen to "Sick and Tired" with Lee Ann Womack and you’ll understand why.

The Dixie Chicks — "Home" (2002)
This was the album The Dixie Chicks released prior to singer Natalie Maines’ anti-Bush comments that caused the group’s popularity to tank. Regardless, the music on "Home" is amazing. Beautiful harmonies, acoustic instruments everywhere. It’s by far the band’s best offering.

Luke Olson — "Uvalde" (2003)
Not well-known beyond his central Texas stomping grounds, Olson’s "Uvalde" turned out to be an album I go to again and again. With a great voice, thoughtful lyrics and lots of traveling imagery, Olson’s "Uvalde" is one I’d take to a desert island.

Kevin Fowler — "Loose, Loud — Crazy" (2004)
Kevin Fowler is an amazing singer and songwriter. He’s also clever with a lyric and a turn of phrase. "Loose, Loud — Crazy" cemented Fowler as not only a rebel with a sense of humor but an entertainer with a holster of great songs.

Gary Allan — "See If I Care" (2003)
"Nothin’ On But The Radio" was a highlight on this disc, but only one of many Allan songs that made "See If I Care" his career best.

Robert Earl Keen — "What I Really Mean" (2005)
This is Keen at his most introspective and creative. Thoughtful lyrics and some of the best songs in his long music career.

Various Artists — "O Brother Where Art Thou?" (2000)
I recall being amazed at how good this soundtrack was. And hearing the Soggy Bottom Boys on country radio performing "Man Of Constant Sorrow" was an absolute treat.

Runners Up:
George Strait — "It Just Comes Natural" (2006)
Dierks Bentley — "Modern Day Drifter" (2005)
Kyle Bennett Band — "Kyle Bennett Band" (2005)
No Justice — "No Justice" (2006)
Pat Green — "Three Days" (2001)
Taylor Atkinson — "Beautiful Disaster" (2009)
Randy Rogers Band — "Rollercoaster" (2004)
Matt Martindale — "Big Sign" (2009)
Aaron Watson — "San Angelo" (2006)
Ryan Bingham and The Dead Horses — "Roadhouse Sun" (2009)

About the author: Andrew Griffin is the editor of RedDirtReport.com

Intel Report: Iran Seeking To Smuggle Raw Uranium

VIENNA (AP) – Iran is close to clinching a deal to clandestinely import 1,350 tons of purified uranium ore from Kazakhstan, according to an intelligence report obtained by The Associated Press on Tuesday. Diplomats said the assessment was heightening international concern about Tehran’s nuclear activities.

Such a deal would be significant because Tehran appears to be running out of the material, which it needs to feed its uranium enrichment program.

The report was drawn up by a member nation of the International Atomic Energy agency and provided to the AP on condition of that the country not be identified because of the confidential nature of the information.

Such imports are banned by the U.N. Security Council. In New York, Burkina Faso’s U.N. Ambassador Michel Kafando, a co-chair of the Security Council’s Iran sanctions committee, referred questions Tuesday about a potential deal between Iran and Kazakhstan to his sanctions adviser, Zongo Saidou. Saidou told the AP that, as far as he knew, none of the U.N.’s member nations have alerted the committee about any such allegations.

"We don’t have any official information yet regarding this kind of exchange between the two countries," Saidou said. "I don’t have any information; I don’t have any proof."

A senior U.N. official said the agency was aware of the assessment but could not yet draw conclusions. He demanded anonymity for discussing confidential information. A Western diplomat from a member of the IAEA’s 35-nation board said the report was causing concern among countries that have seen it and generating intelligence chatter. The diplomat also requested anonymity for discussing intelligence information.

A two-page summary of the report obtained by the AP said the deal could be completed within weeks. It said Tehran was willing to pay $450 million, or close to euro315 million, for the shipment.

"The price is high because of the secret nature of the deal and due to Iran’s commitment to keep secret the elements supplying the material," said the summary, adding: "The deal is to be signed soon." An official of the country that drew up the report said "elements" referred to state employees acting on their own without approval of the Kazakh government.

After-hours calls to offices of Kazatomprom, the Kazakh state uranium company, in Kazakhstan and Moscow, were not answered. Iranian nuclear officials also did not answer their telephones.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said, "the transfer of any uranium yellowcake … to Iran would constitute a clear violation of UNSC sanctions.

Separately a senior U.S. official who demanded anonymity for talking about confidential information said Washington was aware of the intelligence report, but declined to discuss specifics.

"We are not going to discuss our private consultations with other governments on such matters but, suffice to say, we have been engaged with Kazakhstan and many of our other international nonproliferation partners on this subject in particular over the past several years," he told the AP. "We will continue to have those discussions."

Purified ore, or uranium oxide, is processed into a uranium gas, which is then spun and re-spun to varying degrees of enrichment. Low enriched uranium is used for nuclear fuel, and upper-end high enriched uranium for nuclear weapons.

Iran is under three sets of Security Council sanctions for refusing to freeze its enrichment program and related activities that could be used to make nuclear weapons. Tehran denies such aspirations, saying it wants to enrich only to fuel an envisaged network of power reactors.

Any attempt to import such a large amount of uranium ore would be in violation of those sanctions, which ban exports to the Islamic Republic of all items, materials, equipment, goods and technology that could contribute to its enrichment activities.

In addition, transfers of uranium ore in quantities greater than 500 kilograms – 1,100 pounds – annually are subject to close scrutiny by the Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries exporting atomic technology and materials.

Tehran still has hundreds of tons of uranium hexafluoride – the gas that is spun by centrifuges into enriched uranium. But its stockpile of uranium oxide, from which the gas is derived, is thought to be rapidly diminishing.

The IAEA believes that Iran’s rapidly expanding enrichment program has been built on 600 tons of so-called "yellowcake" or uranium oxide imported from South Africa during the 1970s as part of plans by the former regime to build a network of nuclear reactors.

But the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security said earlier this year that, based on 2008 IAEA statistics, Iran had already used up close to three-quarters of its South African supply.

In a November report, the IAEA noted that Iran had stopped producing uranium gas from yellowcake in early August and said Iranian officials had notified the agency that the production facility was down for maintenance.

But David Albright, head of the Institute for Science and International Security, said Tuesday that the facility at the city of Isfahan had produced very little for about a year.

"They said it was closed for maintenance but the reality is they probably ran out of uranium," he said.

Kazakhstan is among the world’s three top producers of uranium, accounting for more than 8,500 tons last year. Iran, in contrast is producing an estimated 20 tons a year – far too little to power even one large reactor let alone the network is says it wants to put in place.

Associated Press Writers John Heilprin at the United Nations and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this report. 

State Educator Named Oklahoman Of The Year

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma Today, the magazine of Oklahoma since 1956, has named Oklahoma Assistant State Superintendent of Education Dr. Ramona Ware (Emmons) Paul as the Oklahoman of the Year for 2009.

Randy Krehbiel’s feature story on Dr. Paul is in the January/February 2010 issue.

 Paul received the honor for developing the nation’s leading early childhood education program, according to the magazine.

“Ramona Paul is the first educator and the first Oklahoma state employee to be named Oklahoman of the Year,” said Oklahoma Today editor in chief Louisa McCune-Elmore. “Her vision and achievement have put Oklahoma in the limelight of early childhood education progress. To say that she has created a better future for Oklahoma is an understatement, and we believe telling her story is a step toward creating the best schools in our nation. There can be no doubt that our state’s four and five year olds are lucky children indeed.”

Dr. Paul began working on developing Oklahoma’s public early childhood system nearly 30 years ago, and she continues that work today. Oklahoma ranks No. 1 in the nation for early childhood education, both in number of children served and the quality of its programs, which require a certified teacher and adherence to the state’s core curriculum. Rutgers University’s National Institute for Early Education Research has rated Oklahoma’s early childhood education programs number one in the nation for six consecutive years. Moreover, an ongoing Georgetown University study shows the programs help to close achievement gaps and increase all students’ readiness for reading.

To date, nearly 73 percent of all Oklahoma four year olds are voluntarily enrolled in the state’s publicly funded pre-Kindergarten programs, and about half of those enrolled are being served in full-day programs.

“We are excited Dr. Paul has been selected for Oklahoman of the Year,” said Oklahoma State Superintendent Sandy Garrett. “For nearly 20 years, I’ve seen firsthand the passion and professionalism of this extremely knowledgeable educator and innovative change agent.”

 Garrett added, “Ramona has worked steadfastly behind the scenes and is deserving of this honor. She has been the engine that has kept our state on track and on task for adding an entire grade to its publicly funded school system. Ramona and I are frequently requested to present to policy makers in other states and countries about Oklahoma’s early learning success.”

 Paul said she was humbled the honor of being Oklahoma Today’s 2009 Oklahoman of the Year. Working to develop a quality early childhood education system in Oklahoma has been a calling, but she said it has been a calling she has shared with many, including State Superintendent Sandy Garrett, Governor Brad Henry and first lady Kim Henry, businessman and philanthropist George Kaiser, former governors and many others.

“I’m thrilled by this honor, but Oklahoma’s success with early childhood education has been a team effort including many people over three decades,” Dr. Paul said. “To see the vision all of us have been working toward and dreaming about become reality is rewarding. Helping children to develop a love of learning and experience the wonder of academic curiosity from an early age will reap huge dividends not only for them, but also for our state.”

State Educator Named Oklahoman Of The Year

altOKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma Today, the magazine of Oklahoma since 1956, has named Oklahoma Assistant State Superintendent of Education Dr. Ramona Ware (Emmons) Paul as the Oklahoman of the Year for 2009. Randy Krehbiel’s feature story on Dr. Paul is in the January/February 2010 issue.

 Paul received the honor for developing the nation’s leading early childhood education program, according to the magazine.

“Ramona Paul is the first educator and the first Oklahoma state employee to be named Oklahoman of the Year,” said Oklahoma Today editor in chief Louisa McCune-Elmore. “Her vision and achievement have put Oklahoma in the limelight of early childhood education progress. To say that she has created a better future for Oklahoma is an understatement, and we believe telling her story is a step toward creating the best schools in our nation. There can be no doubt that our state’s four and five year olds are lucky children indeed.”

Dr. Paul began working on developing Oklahoma’s public early childhood system nearly 30 years ago, and she continues that work today. Oklahoma ranks No. 1 in the nation for early childhood education, both in number of children served and the quality of its programs, which require a certified teacher and adherence to the state’s core curriculum. Rutgers University’s National Institute for Early Education Research has rated Oklahoma’s early childhood education programs number one in the nation for six consecutive years. Moreover, an ongoing Georgetown University study shows the programs help to close achievement gaps and increase all students’ readiness for reading.

To date, nearly 73 percent of all Oklahoma four year olds are voluntarily enrolled in the state’s publicly funded pre-Kindergarten programs, and about half of those enrolled are being served in full-day programs.

“We are excited Dr. Paul has been selected for Oklahoman of the Year,” said Oklahoma State Superintendent Sandy Garrett. “For nearly 20 years, I’ve seen firsthand the passion and professionalism of this extremely knowledgeable educator and innovative change agent.”

 Garrett added, “Ramona has worked steadfastly behind the scenes and is deserving of this honor. She has been the engine that has kept our state on track and on task for adding an entire grade to its publicly funded school system. Ramona and I are frequently requested to present to policy makers in other states and countries about Oklahoma’s early learning success.”

 Paul said she was humbled the honor of being Oklahoma Today’s 2009 Oklahoman of the Year. Working to develop a quality early childhood education system in Oklahoma has been a calling, but she said it has been a calling she has shared with many, including State Superintendent Sandy Garrett, Governor Brad Henry and first lady Kim Henry, businessman and philanthropist George Kaiser, former governors and many others.

“I’m thrilled by this honor, but Oklahoma’s success with early childhood education has been a team effort including many people over three decades,” Dr. Paul said. “To see the vision all of us have been working toward and dreaming about become reality is rewarding. Helping children to develop a love of learning and experience the wonder of academic curiosity from an early age will reap huge dividends not only for them, but also for our state.”

Whatever Happened to…..Customer Service

altIs it just me or did society completely get off the service train long ago, only to watch it leave the station with no return trip planned?  Can someone please tell me when we went to a total self service model in almost every aspect of our lives?

When was the last time that you went somewhere and were really taken care of?  Leads me to ask…..

Whatever happened to…..Customer Service?

My wife and I don’t go out much, but when we do it is as though we are cursed.  It seems as though we have pulled the ignore card when it comes to dining.  Every since we started dating it doesn’t matter where we go in town, our service in a word, “Sucks!” 

Now I was raised to believe that if someone was going to lay down their hard earned, then you give them your attention in order to get a tip out of it.  Maybe it is my Christian belief that you do all things as though you were doing them for the Almighty, and maybe that is placing things a little too high for some. 

I recall one time at a famous pancake house, that we sat for 25 minutes before we even got greeted and then another 15 to get out drinks and order taken.  The food finally got to the table and it wasn’t right.  After, getting the proper order it was cold, frustrated by this point but hungry we ate it, my wife never got a refill on her tea and actually got up and went to the beverage station and refilled her glass herself.  We brought this to the managers attention and what does he do, he tells our server that we were not pleased, the server comes out and says, “My manager told me you were unhappy with my service, well I am busy, so if you need something, just flag me down.”  Really?!  Needless to say, there was no gratuity coming, in fact, a note was drafted that said “Thanks for making calculating your tip so easy.”

Surely, I am not the only person this happens to and like I said, it seems to be an epidemic in the service world.  When was the last time you went to a store and needed assistance and actually got taken to the location of the item you were looking for?  Does that even happen anymore?  I mean good luck in finding a worker first of all, then if you do they generally just point you to where it may or may not be.  I have been kind of doing a small experiment lately in that when I call to see if an item is available to ask more about the item and unanimously I get the same answer, “I really don’t know.”  Okay so let me get this straight, you are not sure if you have it first of all and second you know nothing about it.  Wow!  Congrats on your career choice!

Is it really too much to ask that, you set aside what you are doing, ( in some cases it is texting your friend) and give me your focus so that you can possibly make some more money?  I am not asking for you to manufacture the product, just get me to where it is so I can get my hands on it.

Now I don’t want to get preachy…..but,

I work in the service industry, I know what it is like to be busy and have to deal with servicing the customer.  That is just it, servicing the customer, if this is the business you have chosen, guess what, you chose it!  There really isn’t an industry or business around today that we are not waiting, servicing or taking care of a customer, be it internal or external.  All of us need to be willing to stop what were are doing or at least politely request a second, and help those that we rely on to pay our bills to the fullest of our ability.  Don’t know the answer, admit it and say, “Let me find out for you.” then and here is the kicker, DO IT!  I am not looking for super service just to be left feeling important enough to come back again. 

I hear tell of a restaurant in town where you have your own personal server that just takes care of your table.  I also hear that you pay out the nose for the experience.  I will be the first to tell you that I have no problem in making it well worth the time for me to receive even decent customer service.  Why is that?  Because I have been there, I have been on the serving end and I know what it looks like to take care of the customer.

I could go on all day and half of tomorrow about this, but I am sure you get my point by now. 

Some helpful hints to those that may read this and say, “Hey that could be me he is talking about.”  First, look people in the eye when addressing them, it helps them feel important and can’t help but make you focus on them.  Second, give them you name, I love going to a restaurant and getting my servers name and using it. Most people love the sound of their name being spoken, gives them a sense of intimacy.  Third, Do Not! I repeat do not ask how everything is when people have food in their mouth.  Give them a second to get adjusted and check back, when you do, have drink refills ready.  Lastly, ask them to come back.  Again, they are paying your check. I promise you that if you do these things you will be taken care of in return.

Finally, let me say this.  It does not matter to me if you work at McDonald’s, Wal-Mart, or the Warren Duck Club.  If you have chosen to be in service, be in service and don’t expect anything in the end.  Don’t get me started on tip jars at the places that I am paying you to do certain tasks, then you want a tip for handing it to me.  Understand that the customer is not always right, but they are always the customer. 

 

About the author:  Ernie Osborn is just a regular joe that sees life around him a little differently.  He is a former youth leader that believes that life should be lived to the fullest.  His views and opinions may or may not reflect those of Tulsa Today.  Ernie serves as Concert Editor for Tulsa Today.  (In other words, if his writing strikes you and makes you think, great, or if it just makes you laugh and scratch your head that is fine too)