Far be it from me to pretend to be some kind of technology futurist, but a headline from KOSU caught my attention. The story is about a new Oklahoma law that would make it illegal to be holding a phone in school or construction zones.

Great. But what are we going to do about glasses?

That’s right. I said glasses, and I’m specifically referring to the types of digital glasses Meta and RayBan have partnered to make. For the record, I don’t know that I would bet money that it will be Meta that ultimately makes AI / AR / VR glasses popular — because Apple still exists, and a) they are notorious for being second-movers and b) they haven’t really innovated in quite a while.

However, I am presently more convinced that digital, heads-up glasses will significantly cut into phone usage than I am that AI will ever truly cut into business and employment. To wit, this article about a growing number of scientists who now believe we have reached peak AI.

Seriously. What if this is all there is?

But this newsletter prelude isn’t about AI. I will write about that again soon enough. This is about glasses. Five to ten years from now, I predict that most everybody will be wearing Meta- or Apple- or Samsung-branded glasses with prescriptions, and the ability to text, email, take calls, follow GPS without touching a phone.

These glasses also caption conversations for those who can’t hear very well. (Hello, that would be me.)

Anyway, are you wearing a smart watch? Well, there you go.

So, while I applaud the new law aiming to keep us off our phones in school or construction zones, you can best believe there will be something new come along soon enough to distract us.

There always is.

Message me anytime at [email protected].

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By Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica for The Frontier
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The future that the Trump administration envisions for public schools is more patriotic, more Christian and less “woke.” Want to know how that might play out? Look to Oklahoma.

Oklahoma has spent the past few years reshaping public schools to integrate lessons about Jesus and encourage pride about America’s history, with political leaders and legislators working their way through the conservative agenda for overhauling education.

Academics, educators and critics alike refer to Oklahoma as ground zero for pushing education to the right. Or, as one teacher put it, “the canary on the prairie.”

By the time the second Trump administration began espousing its “America First” agenda, which includes the expansion of private school vouchers and prohibitions on lessons about race and sex, Oklahoma had been there, done that.

The Republican supermajority in the state Legislature — where some members identify as Christian nationalists — passed sweeping restrictions on teaching about racism and gender in 2021, prompting districts to review whether teachers’ lessons might make students “feel discomfort, guilt, anguish” or other psychological distress about their race. The following year, it adopted one of the country’s first anti-transgender school bathroom bills, requiring students to use restrooms and locker rooms consistent with the gender they were assigned at birth or face discipline.

While he was state schools superintendent, Ryan Walters demanded Bibles be placed in every classroom, created a state Office of Religious Liberty and Patriotism, and encouraged schools to use online “pro-America” content from conservative media nonprofit PragerU. He called teachers unions “terrorist” organizations, railed against “woke” classrooms, threatened to yank the accreditation of school districts that resisted his orders and commissioned a test to measure whether teacher applicants from liberal states had “America First” knowledge.

Many of the changes endorsed by the state’s leaders have elements of Christian nationalism, which holds that the United States was founded as a Christian nation and often downplays troubling episodes in the country’s history to instead emphasize patriotism and a God-given destiny.

Walters, who declined to comment for this story, resigned at the end of September and became CEO of the Teacher Freedom Alliance, an arm of the conservative think tank Freedom Foundation that aims to “fight the woke liberal union mob.” But much of the transformation in Oklahoma education policy that he helped turbocharge is codified in the state’s rules and laws.

“We are the testing ground. Every single state needs to pay attention,” warned Jena Nelson, a moderate Democrat who lost the state superintendent’s race to Walters in 2022 and is now running for Congress.

ProPublica has reported that Education Secretary Linda McMahon has brought in a team of strategists who are working to radically shift how children will learn in America, even as they carry out the “final mission” to shut down the federal agency. Some of those strategists have spoken of their desire to dismantle public education. Others hope to push it in the same direction as Oklahoma.

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After 20 years leading hundreds of benefit meetings across Oklahoma, I’ve seen how employees tune out when things get too complex — and that’s where real dollars are lost.

At Bigbie Insurance & Benefits, we make renewals clear, personal, and human again — helping employers cut through the noise so their people actually understand their benefits.

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By Elizabeth Caldwell, Public Radio Tulsa
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Representatives from organizations that help the homeless gathered at Tulsa Day Center Wednesday to blast Gov. Stitt’s encampment sweeps that began last month.

Officials claim Operation SAFE, as the initiative is known, aims to uproot homeless people from high traffic areas so they don’t get hit by cars. CEO of Tulsa’s John 3:16 shelter Steven Whitaker said there is more to story and hinted at political motivations.

“I think it’s fair to say we need to address the intended consequences of Operation SAFE from the governor’s position,” said Whitaker. “I’d like to ask those questions at some point. What is appeasement, and saying you did something make it worth it when you see the human cost?”

Evan Dougoud of BeHeard that offers a mobile help center said he was not sure how SAFE — standing for Swift Action for Families Everywhere — was really helping with security. Dougoud and others said it’s unrealistic that people will move to Los Angeles, as the governor suggested, and much more likely that they will trickle into residential neighborhoods.

“Operation SAFE is safe to who? I never understood that part of it,” said Dougoud.

Advocates of the initiative say it's necessary to address neighborhood aesthetics and public health by removing "trash," which often equates to the belongings of encampment dwellers.

Adrian Guy, 24, is experiencing chronic homelessness and has currently been on the street for a year. She said the governor was “not that bad” but pleaded for people to understand unhoused folks.

“I believe each and every one of us out here, we have identities. Our homelessness is not who we are, that’s our circumstance,” said Guy.

Homeless sweeps are continuing in Tulsa. On Monday, state troopers began clearing out camps they hit previously where people returned. Hundreds have been displaced, service providers say.

Homelessness has grown to record levels across the country due to wages not keeping up with rent, immigration, and a shortage of housing.

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A hand-curated list of the best journalism from across the state:

• Oklahoma Head Start centers face ‘dire’ funding loss from government shutdown (Oklahoma Voice)

• Oklahoma’s rising property insurance rates create money ‘Mayhem’ for consumers (NonDoc)

• Gov. Stitt files motion to speed up discussions on Oklahoma's poultry pollution case (KOSU)

• 'You can’t drink data': Oklahoma lawmakers analyze costs of growing data center industry (Public Radio Tulsa)

• Oklahoma lawmakers discuss possible new state agency to serve young children (KOSU)

• El Reno officer remains in critical condition after hit-and-run (KOCO)

• Tulsa City Council votes to extend downtown curfew through October 2026 (The Oklahoma Eagle)

• Operation SAFE returns to Tulsa for second round of sweeps (The Oklahoma Eagle)

• When will Tulsa trees reach peak color this fall? Drought could have an impact (Tulsa Flyer)

• Public meeting scheduled as plans to reopen Vista Shadow Mountain Apartments proceed (Tulsa World)

• Okmulgee HS alumni fight to preserve building facing potential demolition (2 News Oklahoma)

• Muscogee Creek Nation calls four witnesses on day one of Fultz trial (2 News Oklahoma)

• BigBankz: Youtuber arrested in OKC for vandalism (News 9)

• Oklahoma City pedicab owner seeks return of stolen bike (KOCO)

• Chickasha man arrested for assault in Duncan golf course brawl (KSWO)

The ‘Oklahoma Memo’ mission is simple: Reignite the daily local news habit by connecting Oklahomans and those who love Oklahoma to quality sources of news and vetted information.

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