Stan Geiger

Askins Ads

I give Jari Askins, Democrat for governor, some credit relative to her ads. She has avoided kissing up to the education lobby. For a Democrat, in particular, to do so is admirable.

Her current ads seem to focus on ethics in government. That is admirable as well. However, Askins has been in government for years. She is currently lieutenant governor. Corruption in government is certainly nothing new. Why the great concern, all of the sudden?

My biggest bitch with an Askins ad has to do with one I haven't seen in a while. I'm left to wonder if she pulled it.

The ad in question was clearly aimed at garnering female votes. It claimed women in Oklahoma make 76 cents on the dollar relative to men. The ad claims that is illegal, and Askins pledges to fight that evil if elected governor.

I don't dispute the number. I'm sure, if Askins is making the claim, there is a statistic out there, somewhere, that says women in Oklahoma make less than men. That isn't necessarily illegal, however. It is perfectly legal for different jobs to pay different salaries. Therein lies the rub.

Give me two schoolteachers, a man and a woman. They have the same number of years on the job, they have the same level of education and they work for the same district. Do they not draw the same pay? I think they do.

You could make that same argument for, say, cops.

How about legislators? Do women state senators make 76 percent of what male senators get paid? No. They get paid the same.

Let's go private sector. Does a female store manager at Quik Trip make 76 percent of what a male counterpart gets paid, all influencing factors being equal? Again, the answer is no.

Women, on the whole, might make 76 percent of what men get paid in the state. The perfectly rational explanation for that lies in the fact that men, on the whole, occupy tougher jobs than women. Ergo, it is perfectly fine that women, on the whole, get paid less.

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