[Stiggers] Momma's MadMr. Announcer: "In the ghetto criminal justice system, the people are represented mostly by two members of the McBride family: Dudley 'Do-Right' McBride, and attorney Cootie McBride of the law firm McBride, Myself and I. This is their story."
JPS Students Need StringsSometimes I wonder if the people in charge of making decisions about education realize we are the future. We kids are affected by the school board's decision to cut out important extracurricular activities such as strings.
[Mott] The Cost of ExecutionsQuitman County, Miss., population 10,500, raised taxes for three years and borrowed $150,000 to provide legal counsel to Robert Simon and Anthony Carr, sentenced to death for the 1990 murders of four family members. A death-penalty case "is almost like …
Why ‘Local' is a ‘Good' Thing"Chamber of Commerce Announces Free Enterprise Climate Policy" read the headline of the e-mail in my in-box on Monday morning.
Walk the Local TalkHere at the Jackson Free Press, we know well how hard it can be for a small, locally owned business to stand up to a corporation that wants to stamp out as much competition as possible in order to please …
[Stiggers] Facing the FactsJudy McBride: "Welcome to my 'Coping with the Trials and Struggles of Life' class. My objective is to show you how to deal with negativity."
[Kamikaze] The ‘Balloon Boy' StorySometimes I think we live in a bizarro worlda place where logic and reason don't always win out. Up is down. Left is right. Its like we're in an alternate dimension sometimes.
[Israel] No Check RequiredThis weekend, law-abiding citizens will attend the Mississippi Gun Show and undergo a background check to purchase a firearm from a federally licensed firearm dealer.
Into the GrooveBack in the 1980s, I wasn't too worried about much of anything. I was living in Washington, D.C., working by day as a legal assistant for a huge broadcast corporation and, by night, in a club as a deejay.
Jackson's ComebackYou can feel it in the air. Jacksonians are starting to believe in the power of Mississippi's capital city to be great, to rise from the ashes that fiery politics and racism of old turned us into.
[Stiggers] Health Care a la ModeBoneqweesha Jones: "It's 'Qweesha 2009 TV, the show with news and views you should use in your critical thinking process. My guest is Chef Low Fat Meat, the Galloping Gourmet of the Ghetto Science Team. He's on a mission for …
[Mott] Bearing WitnessI inherited my love of history from my dad, who had a passion for it. A genuine scholar, the true stories he told around the dinner table were more engaging than anything in school textbooks.
[Balko] Scenes From a CrackdownPolice overkill, such as that displayed at the G20 summit in Pittsburgh, is becoming more common every day.
Time For StrengthI was talking to a police officer recently about a domestic-abuse situation I'm worried about. It was the case of a local woman whose partner has beaten her for years. She finally got up the courage to leave, and he …
PSC: Keep Rates LowThe Mississippi Public Service Commission has a hard decision before it.
[Stiggers] Aunt Tee Tee, Certified GeekTaaQweema Jenkins: "Welcome to the final segment of the Ghetto Science Team Public Television special program reviewing of the inspirational documentary titled 'L.O.M.O.: The Life Time Achievement of Aunt Tee Tee Hustle, IT Guru,' produced by Hustle Family Productions."
[You Turn] Oxford's Mean GirlsAt the Lyric Theater in Oxford I recently encountered a very strange example of Southern femininitythe vicious sorority girl inflamed by pledge week. The Lyric has quickly become a world-class music venue, perhaps the best in Mississippi, due in large …
[Moore] Stop the Insanity!I hate the fact that for so many years I believed the propaganda. It is printed, reported, over-reported and regurgitated across all media about the city of Jackson: "Don't go downtown." "Don't walk the streets at night." "Be gone before …
Kicking It UpI have a confession; lately I haven't been living in the moment. Here at the JFP we have a million ideas and staff members who work insanely hard because of their commitment to doing good work. I think all of …
Take the Next Step on the PearlThis week the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers seemed tofinally and forcefullymake clear its stance on flood management for the Pearl River, repeating what the Jackson Free Press has been reporting for months now.
[Stiggers] A Dream DeferredMiss Doodle Mae: "Greetings, shoppers! Jojo asked me to be his spokesperson for a new program called 'Working It Out' at Jojo's Discount Dollar Store. This program is for a growing population of new workers called senior citizens.
[Kamikaze] Thinking BigMomentum can be described as the impetus of a non-physical process, a process that could be either an idea or a course of events. Any time you have momentum, there has to be energy, some force behind that momentum.
[Israel] State Needs Health ReformElizabeth, of Jackson, is a single mom and among the roughly 20 percent of Mississippians who are uninsured or 37 percent of Mississippians under age 65. She works at a small business that does not provide health insurance.
[Miller] Coal Plant: Unnecessary, Expensive and DirtyThe Mississippi Sierra Club, AFL-CIO and NAACP strongly oppose Mississippi Power Company's proposal to build a $2.4 billion "clean coal" plant and adjoining mine in Kemper County.
Higher GroundAmid all the bellowing anger and finger-pointing and insults and threats to shove tennis balls you-know-where, last week I was fortunate enough to participate in something remarkable in downtown Jackson.
Barbour: Stop the Lame GamesGov. Haley Barbour butt-thumped a community organization devoted to poor people this week.