× Thanks for reading! Log in to continue. Enjoy more articles by logging in or creating a free account. No credit card required. Log in Sign up {{featured_button_text}}

It's hard to say where Right to Farm went wrong. Entered on Tuesday's ballot as State Question 777, a year ago it seemed a pretty safe bet.

Surely, nothing appeals more to conservative Oklahomans than the rugged individualism of farmers and ranchers. Not that many of us actually farm and ranch ourselves anymore.

And surely is nothing is more despised than pasty-faced liberal environmentalists and animal lovers.

And yet, Right to Farm lost 60-40.

Probably, it lost for some legitimate and some not-so-legitimate reasons. It was probably not, as some have contended, going to bring back puppy mills and cockfighting, or cause towns and cities to lose control of their land use ordinances.

But it would have created a lot of uncertainties and no doubt would have been a boon for the legal profession. Some of its advocates hinted at it becoming the basis for showdown lawsuits with the Environmental Protection Agency and the federal government.