Ellington

September 9, 2004

HELLHOLE NO MORE: On Sept. 1, the world turned upside down. Suddenly, Mississippi had the most provocative business climate in the U.S., hell, the world. The governor had to send the National Guard to police the borders as all the doctors started pouring across state lines to set up practice in tiny little Delta hamlets, far, far from good movie theaters and Thai restaurants. And, most amazingly, medical malpractice insurance rates dropped dramatically, as did the number of frivolous lawsuits. Suddenly, the "hellhole" was history.

THE JURY IS OUT, WAY OUT: Actually that was the governor and The Clarion-Ledger waxing illogically about the amazing effects of the Tort Reform Act of 2004, which went into effect Sept. 1. In a special session earlier this summer, Barbour, the Republican Senate and The Ledge pushed through a package of "tort reforms" designed to benefit industry and limit the amounts of pain-and-suffering damages a Mississippian can collect after a company or doctor has lost a civil lawsuit (not much about "frivolous" lawsuits here, notice). Lobbyists for industry convinced the state's mass media that limiting damage pay-outs to victims (what the guv calls "lawsuit abuse") has lowered medical malpractice rates in states like California—misinformation that did not include the fact that insurance rates have kept going up in states after damage caps. (In California, voters finally decided to cap insurance rates of all sorts—thus, the lower rates.) Still, the tort-reformers are now declaring that Mississippi is—voila!—no longer trapped by the "perception" of "runaway juries" and "jackpot justice" and good ole "hellholism." Ah, the P-word again. Stay tuned for the plummeting malpractice rates.

SPEAKING OF LAWSUITS: Also on Sept. 1, 49 men and women filed a lawsuit in Hinds County Circuit Court against AmSouth Bank, alleging that the bank and a former bank broker, James Moorehead of Starkville, pushed elderly clients and others not familiar with investment matters into poor investments. They are charged with violating legal obligations to put their clients' interests first. The complaint says that, for nearly 10 years, AmSouth has misled investors. Earlier this year, Mississippi Secretary of State Eric Clark fined AmSouth Investment Services Inc. $225,000 for misconduct in its Starkville office. The lawsuit seeks a jury trial and an unspecified amount of actual and punitive damages.

COME CLEAN WITH YOUR TAXES: If you owe delinquent taxes, now is the time to come clean. State Tax Commissioner Joseph L. Blount, has announced that Sept. 1 through Dec. 31 is "Tax Amnesty" time. "During the amnesty period, any individual or business can pay all delinquent state taxes that were due after January 1, 1999, without any penalty being added or any criminal charges being brought against the individual or business as long as total payment of all delinquent taxes is made," Blount explained. Additional information about the Tax Amnesty Program can be found on the State Tax Commission Web site, http://www.mstc.state.ms.us, or by calling 923-7000.

A LIVING MEMORIAL: On Sept. 7, the city of Jackson partnered with Entergy Mississippi and the Jackson Senators to dedicate $11,000 in playground equipment at Poindexter Park at 825 West Capitol St. The park has never had a playground. The equipment is donated in honor of firefighters and police at the city, state and national levels.

IT'S YOUR SCHOOL: Jackson Public Schools wants community input in the planning of School Building Improvements. Attend a Sept. 15 meeting at Northwest Middle School, Hwy 49 N., from 6-8 p.m. Other meetings will be held throughout the community plus there's an online survey at http://www.jackson.k12.ms.us for those unable to attend.

THIS LITTLE PIGGY WENT CRUISIN': TrueMajority.org—started by Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry's ice cream—thinks Bush is, well, a pig, and they're prepared to push him out of the White House this November using, well, a pig. The group has constructed a giant Pig Mobile that is making its rounds through the U.S. The Pig Mobile consists of three different-sized piggy banks strung together to illustrate just how big a financial disaster the Iraq War has turned out to be. The largest pig shows the financial cost ($200 billion) of America's attack on Iraq, including the projected minimum cost of reconstruction. The smaller pig illustrates how much the federal government spends on K-12 education ($34 billion). And the third pig, which is a wee little pig, shows America's dedication to lessening world hunger and poverty ($10 billion). This protest-art is coming to Mississippi this month, so if you'd like to sign up to drive the pigs or allow them to park in your space overnight, check out http://piggies.kintera.org/driver

GO, KIWON, GO: For Morrison Academic Advancement Center student Kiwon Williams, the printed word spells success. As a part of Morrison's 25 Book Campaign during the 2003-2004 school year, Williams read 66 books, checking many out from the school's library. Williams has already started reading for the new school year's campaign. So far, he's checked out "Fairway Phenom," "Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism" and "How to Disappear and Never Be Found," among others.

GOING PUBLIC: The Association of Alternative Newsweeklies' story-sharing site is going public at altweeklies.com. The Association, of which the JFP is a member, features stories from alternatives all over the United States, including the JFP.

SIGNS OF LIFE: The new Crossroads indie film series. See page 4 for schedule and poop.