Senate Confirms Reeves to Federal Court
Newly confirmed Federal District Judge Carlton Reeves will keep his politics to himself, legal observers predict. Yesterday, the U.S. Senate confirmed the former Magnolia Bar president to serve as a Southern District Court judge in Mississippi, eight months after President Barack Obama appointed him.
Community Events and Public Meetings
Christmas Wish List Drive at Jackson Street Gallery (500 Highway 51, Suite E, Ridgeland). The gallery is collecting donated items for The Home Place, a senior citizens home in Madison through Dec. 20. Items needed include salon products, Kleenex and snacks. Contact the office for the full list. Donations do not have to be wrapped; they will be wrapped on-site. Donations welcome; call 601-853-1880.
Pam Greer
Pam Greer remembers what it felt like to not get any Christmas gifts. When she was a child growing up in Magnolia, Miss., her family couldn't afford them and were too proud to ask for help.
Senate Approves Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal
Gay-rights activists gained a victory Saturday when the U.S. Senate passed the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act allowing gays to serve openly in the military.
Sleep Inn Opens, New Downtown Hotel Pitched
The LEAD Group, a Jackson-based team of 12 African American investors, completed its first development project yesterday with the opening of a Sleep Inn & Suites in downtown Jackson. The 67-room hotel is located between Pearl, Pascagoula and Gallatin streets, where investors hope it will attract visitors from downtown and Jackson State University.
Chism Links Democratic Gains to Demographics
Political consultant Brad Chism predicts future Democratic gains in Mississippi, despite losses in the Nov. 2 elections, if Republicans continue to alienate minority voters over the next few decades.
Chaney Nichols
For Chaney Nichols, there is no better place to have a rock showcase than a hollowed out 1939 theater in the heart of Jackson.
Something for Everyone This Weekend
Kick off your weekend tonight with a wide choice of events. At 7 p.m., Ballet Magnificat's "A Christmas Dream" at Thalia Mara Hall is sure to get the entire family into a Christmas state of mind. Tickets run from $10 to $30. Call 601-977-1001. Also starting at 7 p.m., and at the other end of the cultural spectrum, the Esperanza Plantation Holiday Showcase at the Pix-Capri Theatre includes music by Tommy Bryan Ledford, Wooden Finger, Colour Revolt and more. Admission is $15. Where's the best place to start your search for things to do in Jackson? The JFP Best Bets page, of course.
Kemper Coal Plant Controversy Rises at Ground Breaking
As Gov. Haley Barbour, state leaders and officials from the Mississippi Development Authority celebrated the groundbreaking of a $2.4 billion coal plant in Kemper County yesterday, the Gulf Restoration Network and the Sierra Club flew an airplane banner over the event reading: "Dirty Expensive Unnecessary."
Mitchell: "Will the Real Voice of Small Business Please Stand Up?"
Good piece by Stacy Mitchell, a leader on "Think Local" issues and author of the book "Big Box Swindle." At issue here is whether the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (as distinct from local chambers of commerce) has any real interest in small business issues. The US CoC is a national organization famous for spending millions each election cycle on largely conservative causes, including electing anti-plantiff judges in Mississippi and anti-healthcare-reform politicians in this past cycle. (According to Mitchell, the US CoC spent $75 million on this past mid-term election.)
Metrocenter Renewal to Kick Off
Developer David Watkins says that his plans to renovate parts of Metrocenter Mall are unaffected by a last-minute rescue from foreclosure and the collapse of a proposed deal with Jackson Public Schools.
Wicker Opposes Bill With His Earmarks
Mississippi's Republican U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker said yesterday that he is not supporting a proposed $1.2 trillion spending bill because it is filled with earmark spending although he inserted more earmarks into the bill than almost any other senator.
James Anderson
James Anderson stands in front of a large Christmas tree, adjusts his scarf and gets into character while he reads Truman Capote's "A Christmas Memory." This holiday tradition is one Anderson has performed for nearly a decade.
Hood Announces DIRECTV Settlement
Jackson, MS--Attorney General Jim Hood and the Attorneys General of 48 other states today are announcing that DIRECTV will pay $13.25 Million to settle consumer protection allegations. The states alleged that the satellite TV provider engaged in deceptive and unfair sales practices. The State of Mississippi will receive $185,000.00 of the total settlement.
Confident Men
I can't decide whether Jeff Sharlet's "C Street: The Fundamentalist Threat to American Democracy" (Little Brown, 2010, $27) is pulp nonfiction about a scholarly topic, or scholarly nonfiction about a pulp topic. It's hard to write a book that hinges so heavily on three extramarital affairs--those of Mark Sanford, Chip Pickering and John Ensign--without a hint of the tabloid, but Sharlet manages to do it by writing with a generous spirit that lets him find the humanity in these insecure and narcissistic men. That is, in fact, the book's main accomplishment: Sharlet looks at Washington fundamentalists' sacred self-image, contrasts it with their profane behavior and meets them at a halfway point of tragicomic human fallibility.
The Best In Sports In 7 Days
Doctor S sez: Have we really seen the last of the Old Gunslinger, Brett Favre? I'd say it's a definite maybe. We'll see how he feels next summer.
Psonya and Timothy Hackett
Newlyweds Psonya and Timothy Hackett have different accounts of their first encounter at the Jackson County Courthouse in Pascagoula in 2004.
Yuletide Blessings
We use the word "blessing" a lot during the December holidays. We count our blessings, we send greeting cards with wishes for blessings, we receive blessings after religious services, instead of "goodbye" we say, "Have a blessed day," and we ask the blessing. We use this little word in many contexts without ever considering what it really means. After all, a blessing is just words, right?
The Suite Life
The bass thumps heavily and rhythmically and meets you at the door. The treble dances like a modern dancer who's in a zone. If your name's on the list, walk right in. If not, pay the cover, and it's all access granted for you, too.
Break Down the Wall
Wiz Khalifa is probably the hottest rapper in hip-hop today. Source magazine recently named him Rookie of the Year, and MTV named him the Hottest Breakthrough MC of 2010. "Black and Yellow," his current record, has spent time at No. 1 on the iTunes hip-hop chart and in the top 20 on Billboard's Hot 100 list.