[Sawyer] Ethics And Terry SchiavoIn times of great suffering and sadness, it seems as though there is often much more yelling and screaming than there is loving and listening. The fact of the matter is this—there is a long list of ways in which …
[Stiggers] A Lap Dance For MedicaidOn this episode of "All God's Churn Got Shoes," the Right, Reverend "Chicken Bone" Jones conducts a morality campaign and protest rally across the street from the Mystical Magic City strip club, bar, grill and dollar store. From an elevated …
Mr. Barbour: It's Time to Start GoverningIt is telling that Haley Barbour was not in the state of Mississippi when he decided to call a special session this past weekend in a gambit to force the Mississippi House to pass Barbour's favored fix for Medicaid's 2005 …
Don't Call Me Ma'am"Yes, ma'am." "No, ma'am." "Ma'am this, ma'am that." If there is anything I absolutely despise, it is the tendency of people in my home state to call me "ma'am." I spend much of my early interactions with my new interns—and …
[Sawyer] The Arc of JusticeOne of the great crimes of our generation is not the cries of suffering throughout our world, but rather that we maintain the ability to heal such suffering, and yet we remain silent. We still have the blood of Rwanda's …
Hush! Somebody's Calling Our NameNever say things can't change. Sometimes remarkable change comes, and it seems so obvious that people barely notice. That was apparent recently when both the Mississippi House and the Senate voted to rename two stretches of highway after civil-rights martyrs: …
[Chick] Can Men Measure Up To Chick Flicks?My friend Cowboy and I watched "Hitch" by accident, which is OK because I burned some calories laughing, but I honestly thought it was going to be a boy movie, along the lines of "Lethal Weapon." Nope. I made Cowboy …
[Stiggers] 40 Acres And A FoolReadin' Rain-Bro Is brought to you by contributions from the International Electric Slide Foundation and The Ghetto Science Team's Trust Fund.
Dean and the Elephants in DixieCharles Evers and I hit it off immediately the first time we met. We, after all, both have Neshoba County roots. My Daddy, it seems, used to drive him around in a taxi back when he did radio there. We …
[Perry] ‘Eye for an Eye' Not EnoughAs a transplanted native of Jackson, with family still there, I have been following the story of Edgar Ray Killen's upcoming trial. I was delighted to see that Mississippians such as Donna Ladd, Eric Stringfellow and the Jackson Human Relations …
[Stiggers] Dr. Strange, or How to Learn to Not to Love Reality TVHere's an important message from the law office of Cootie McBride, the people's lawyer: Some clients come to me with extremely large knots on their foreheads after taking a pain pill for aching joints. Other clients, who take diet pills …
[Fleming] Get the Women and Children to SafetyTo paraphrase the former U.S. Sen. Daniel Webster, one should heed the warning, "Get the women and children to safety. The Mississippi Legislature has started working on the budget!" Since the beginning of the session, there has been great concern …
Fear And Loathing In The Dirty SouthI'm an opinionated chick, but every now and then, an issue comes a long that, no matter how much I ponder it, I can't quite firmly take a side on it. Choosing one side would be denying the reality of …
[Kamikaze] Hello, Mayor JonesI was reading The Clarion-Ledger recently, and I came across something that made me laugh. Some parents in Florence are up in arms over their kids allegedly being harassed by police, in particular, by Sgt. Mike Crowdus. About 30 parents …
[Stiggers] An Inner-City Fairy TaleKunta Rahsheed X. Toby film working in conjunction with Ghetto Science Productions present "The Adventures of Sista Gurl, Honey Child: An Inner-City Fairy Tale."
[Turner] From Djembe To MPCThe drum is a super projection of the human voice. Human force is combined with other natural forces—skin of animal, hollowed solid tree-trunk, etc.—as a medium for arousing the attention and reaction of mankind. The drum and the drummer, in …
Hills And Gullies On State StreetI've got two different things I need to say this week, and they're almost impossible to segue between, so let me just get the first one out of the way.
[Sawyer] The Patriotism ProblemIt's hard to remain calm in war. It evokes something within each of us that pulls at our very core. Crying mothers of soldiers, the piles of body bags in full color, and the posting of the guard do not …
[Stiggers] The ‘No Child Left Behind' School BusFunding for the Ghetto Science Team's No Child Left Behind School Bus for the financially challenged is brought to you by a grant from the L.M.H.F.D. (Let Me Hold Five Dollars) National Bank educational trust fund.
The House That Racism BuiltIt's been another one of those weeks the media love in Jacktown: lots of screaming and finger-pointing and accusations of someone else, inevitably of a different race from the accuser, being "a racist."
[Chick] ‘Rocky' For The Single GirlI swear I have some intellectual rights as someone clearly stole my hang-ups when creating the Ally McBeal character. You may remember back in her day when she searched for a theme song to keep her focused, lift her spirits …
Barbour: Heed The Will of The PeopleWe feel it's important to ask a serious question of Gov. Haley Barbour—has he returned to Mississippi to govern the state, or just to test his pet ideological theories about what wins elections?
Stokes: A Friend of Hip-HopThere are few people who I feel are truly allies to the hip-hop nation. The press condemns us, most parents hate us, and advertisers use us. But around these parts, there's one person who seems to understand our work, and …
[Stiggers] When I Say, ‘Hee', They Say ‘Haw'!This episode of "All God's Churn Got Shoes" has the answer to the burning question: Where is Colin Powell? The former secretary of state and his son Michael (former FCC Chairman) have gone to China to visit Master Po' Brutha, …
We Got A New At-ti-tudeCue the Patti LaBelle, baby. As we prepare our third Best of Jackson issue, it strikes me that Jacksonians are starting to take for granted the idea that "best" is a superlative term that applies to their city. We got …
[Stiggers] You Get More Than A Drug StoreCough Syrup: $12. Asprin: $5. Chunky Chicken Soup: $2. Cold Medicine and Vapor Rub: $20. You have bad cold and no sick day benefits at your job: FIRED!
[Chick] The Baptist and The FeministOne of my most difficult struggles as a Christian involves feminism. There. I said it. I'm a feminist. No, I don't wear combat boots, and yes, I love men like crazy. LOVE men. Wouldn't life be much simpler if I …
Don't Light The FireWhen the airport renaming story broke, it had the potential of yet another racial war in a place that certainly didn't need any help in that department.
[Sawyer] It's A Rich Or Poor ThingEach morning during the semester, the bell rings for thousands of Mississippi youth. Mississippi teachers bear a great burden in their cause to shape every young mind. They know that each generation becomes another candle to light the way for …