Alleged Racism at the CapitolWLBT reported"Leading the charge was Representative Ed Blackmon (D-Canton), a key negotiator of tort reform. Blackmon and other committee leaders say they never talk face-to-face with senate leaders and Govenor Barbour about important issues. They feel things are done behind …
Leland Speed Touts ‘Creative Class'A Clarion-Ledger story today about a Leland Speed speech talks about the "Creative Class" concept that we started talking about way back in our preview issue: "Other successes are discussed in The Rise of the Creative Class, by Richard Florida, …
Face-Off: The Battle for ‘Tort Reform'When Sen. Gloria Williamson walked up to the podium on the first day of the 2004 Extraordinary Session called by Gov. Haley Barbour, she had one goal. The senator from Neshoba County, a Democrat, wanted to convince the Senate—an assembly …
Should Tort Awards Be Capped?Tort law is used to determine who is responsible when someone is injured and how much a guilty party should pay an injured person. Our current tort system is designed on the principle that the responsible party should be required …
Tort Reform: Myths and RealitiesSome persistent myths seem to surround the tort reform discussion—even in media reporting—while other items are often offered as facts while they're closer to either assumptions or just simply guesses. Here's a look at some of the whoppers and some …
Coalition Calls for ‘Meaningful' Insurance ReformGov. Haley Barbour may be getting more than he bargained for in the 2004 Extraordinary Session he called to wrangle the House of Representatives into accepting his versions of tort reform and voter ID. A coalition of legislators, consumer advocates, …
[Ladd] Ask the $34,000-A-Day QuestionsIn January, I wrote an editor's note about the governor that miffed some Democrats around the city. They told me I went too easy on Barbour. I wrote then that although his wink-wink, race-tinged, nationally financed campaign tactics had really …
You Call That An Injury?Chicago Cubs corker Sammy Sosa threw out his back last week by sneezing. And he's not the first baseball player to sneeze his way onto the disabled list. But Darren Rovell writes that the leading cause of injuries among baseball …
Gatemouth Moore Funeral ServiceYou may have seen the press on Gatemouth Moore's passing on Thursday, a Yazoo City, MS resident. Rev. Moore's funeral will be on Tuesday, May 25, in Jackson, MS at the Pearl Street AME Church at 2519 Robinson Rd. at …
Bush Ratings Fall Steady, Predictable?In Salon this week, economist James K. Galbraith challenges the conventional notion that the relvelations of torture and prisoner abuse in Iraq have caused Bush's current record dip in the polls. He makes a case that the decline has been …
Boss ChickenWhat the hell does this have to do with sports? Nothing, but Doctor S thought it was funny and vaguely unsettling, especially when one considers the source. Have your way with this chicken.
[Lott] Base ClosureBy a razor thin 49 to 47 vote, the Senate narrowly missed an opportunity to put overseas military bases ahead of domestic facilities in the anticipated 2005 base closure round. I introduced this amendment because a growing number in Congress …
Traffic Ticket Amnesty DayThe City of Jackson Municipal Court Services will hold a Traffic Ticket Amnesty Day, Tues., May 25, allowing citizens who have failed to take care of parking/traffic tickets to come in and take care of those infractions without the theat …
Politech: ‘Insurance Reform,' Populism Surfaces in HouseWell, they can't say the House hasn't gotten a chance to vote on tort reform. They have, in the first day of the 2004 Extraordinary Session called by Gov. Haley Barbour. And they voted against it.
Voter Fraud ... Wink, Wink<i>The JFP's Ayana Taylor is the only journalist who has really gotten inside the Voter ID issue--and challenged its supporters to explain just why this regulation is needed. The issue is now before Gov. Haley Barbour's $34,000-a-day special session, along …