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John Arthur Eaves' Speech at the Neshoba County Fair
[verbatim] I'm John Eaves, and I am running for Governor because I believe it is time for a new day in Mississippi. I am tired of hearing our leaders tell the people of Mississippi to lower their expectations. I have seen far too many broken schools and witnessed our neighbors stuck in FEMA trailers along the coast for too long. And I'm sick and tired of Mississippi always being last in jobs, healthcare, poverty, and education and then hearing our leaders say, "What do you expect?" Well, I expect a whole lot more, and I believe Mississippians deserve much, much better. And so I am running for Governor to declare that this era of low expectations is over and a new day is dawning in Mississippi.
Radical Faith: The Revolution of John Perkins
Dust shimmers on the gray pickups and egg-crate-grille Chevrolets as tinsel and Christmas lights pierce the dark night.
[Breaking] Killen Sentenced to 60 Years
Moments ago in Neshoba County, Judge Marcus Gordon has sentenced Edgar Ray Killen, 80, to the full 60 years possible for his guilty verdict for manslaughter in the James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner case. The judge sentenced Killen to the maximum 20 years for each count of the indictment—or for the death of each young man. Gordon could have sentenced Killen to as little as one year for each count.
City's War on Sex Toys Is Back
Just when you thought that the Jackson Police Department isn't up to the challenge posed by escalating crime, they prove you wrong. Per The Clarion-Ledger tonight:
Fraud, Katrina Contracts Could Waste $2 Billion
The Associated Press is reporting on staggering waste and loss of funds due to no-bid and fraudulent contracts, especially to Republican supporters, after Katrina, as well as how few minority-owned firms got contracts due to Bush's initial waiver of contracting requirements:
Chip Pickering Leaving Congress
Rep. Chip Pickering, a Republican representing the Third District, announced today that he is not seeking re-election next year. One wonders if the Democratic Party will now go out on a limb and attempt to take the seat, or if they will allow perennial candidate Jim Giles to take the seat by default.
The 2009 JFP Interview With John Horhn
John Horhn, 53, recently reclaimed his District 26 Senate for a fifth term, but now he wants to be mayor of Jackson. A self-proclaimed "lifelong resident of Jackson," and a product of Jackson Public Schools, Horhn won the then-newly created Senate seat in 1993.
Report: Saddam Not In Pursuit of Weapons
AP is reporting: "Undercutting the Bush's administration's rationale for invading Iraq, the final report of the chief U.S. arms inspector concludes that Saddam Hussein did not vigorously pursue a program to develop weapons of mass destruction when international inspectors left Baghdad in 1998, an administration official said Wednesday. In drafts, weapons hunter Charles Duelfer concluded that Saddam's Iraq had no stockpiles of the banned weapons but said he found signs of idle programs that Saddam could have revived once international attention waned. 'It appears that he did not vigorously pursue those programs after the inspectors left, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity in advance of the report's release. Duelfer, head of the Iraq Survey Group, was providing his findings Wednesday to the Senate Armed Services Committee. His team has compiled a 1,500-page report. Duelfer's predecessor, David Kay, who quit last December, also found no evidence of weapons stockpiles."
Racist Names, Beware
Ward 2 Councilman Chokwe Lumumba said he voted with a majority of the council to remove a controversial petition requirement for the renaming of city streets or facilities because he felt city residents deserved a "more fair system" for changing street and place names.
[McInnis] Tiger Woods and Selective Naivete
I never understood the significance of Jackie Robinson breaking the color line in baseball, and baseball is the favorite sport in my household. Robinson's accomplishments in the integrated major leagues means no more to me than his accomplishments in the Negro League because I do not need whites to validate the genius of African people.
Measuring Progress: The Evolution of Downtown Jackson Partners
Downtown Jackson Partners President Ben Allen resembled a proud father during a presentation to downtown property owners at the Mississippi Museum of Art on May 26. A video displayed images of a vast cityscape, streets filled with smiling young professionals and renovated lofts.
Letters to the Editor
As I was telling the love of my life, Knol, the CL Letters to the Editor are the first thing I do every morning when I wake up. To quote someone, they're "the bestest thing ever". They also usually do one of two things to my mood. They make me laugh like no one is watching, or I get all fired up and want to pull someone's brain thru their nose. Neither is a bad mood to have going on in the morning.
O.J. Simpson in trouble again
Does anyone think this is the nail in O.J.'s coffin, or will he get out of this somehow?
Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably heard that Simpson has been arrested this past weekend for an alleged armed robbery in which he claims that he was retrieving stolen sports memorabilia that he says belonged to him. In the accompanying video, there are clips from an audio recording of the incident, courtesy of TMZ.com, where you can hear Simpson shouting expletives at his accusers. He is in isolation, and no bail has been set, which doesn't surprise me considering the white Ford Bronco chase that happened over a decade ago.
Bill Minor Rips Sid Salter, The Chipper, et al
Columnist Bill Minor rips the Ledge's Sid Salter a well-deserved new one over his playing into the partisan Mississippi-vs.-Louisiana rhetoric. This has been one of the toughest political games to watch since Katrina: one victim state pitted against another one. And it started immediately. (We also like the way Mr. Minor rips "the Chipper" for his FEMA flip-flop. Preach, brother.)
D.A. Peterson Concedes, Goes Home
With 98 percent of precincts reporting and Robert Smith leading by 1,183 votes, District Attorney Faye Peterson just conceded defeat in the Red Room at Hal & Mal's, saying that she hopes that the next D.A. will be as tough on crime as she was, because "Hinds County has a crime problem."
Barbour Criticized for Slavery Insensitivity
Gov. Haley Barbour earned the ire of many when he downplayed a controversy over state proclamations of Confederate History Month--which omitted any mention of slavery--in comments last weekend.
Predatory Mortgage Lending to Minority Homebuyers
Let's say you want a better life for yourself and your children if you have any. Even though you work two or three jobs to pay the bills and have a strict budget, you are currently living in deplorable conditions and want to move ASAP. You want to own a home, but you cannot afford a $650,000 home in the 'burbs and you don't have enough saved to make a large down payment. You go house hunting anyway, hoping for a miracle. You run across a quaint little 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom home near schools that you like. The sign in the yard says, "Just $500 down!" It's just what you were hoping for, right? Well, maybe - or maybe not if you're dealing with a shady lender.
Barbour: Outstanding Women ‘Rare'
Read the WAPT report.
"'There are some outstanding women but they're rare,' Barbour said. 'I'm not in the bean-counting business. As we fill out this administration, I feel very comfortable that people are going to say those are the right people, they work hard, they're very representative of the state, but I'm not in the quota business.' The co-president of the Mississippi League of Women Voters said Barbour should include more women in his administration. 'This is so important because women make up the 51 percent of the population in Mississippi,' league spokeswoman Fran Leber said, adding that women in Mississippi earn an average of 69 percent what men make."
Delta Blues Update
SAMPLE OF FUTURE "LIVE" BLUES EVENTS IN THE DELTA (full list at http://www.cathead.biz/livemusic.html )...
Daylight Curfew?
The Clarion-Ledger ran a piece today about the impact of Melton's state of emergency. The short version is that the state of emergency is more a rhetorical gesture than an actual change in policy.