Jackblog

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.

Haley Barbour, Environmentalist

This column is running in the Hattiesburg American. It would seem that the Barbours are helping the hunters and fishermen on the Coast, if not poor people who need housing down there:

La Fiesta Loca: Straw Men, Piñatas and Race Cards

One of the responses to my last immigration blog was that I had made strawmen out of GOP candidates Phil Bryant and Delbert Hosemann, for interpreting their anti-illegal alien rhetoric as merely anti-immigrant (and, more to the point, anti-Latino). In a recent column for The Clarion-Ledger, however, Bill Minor sees the real straw men of the immigration debate as Latinos, in an extension of the Southern Strategy race politics that exclusively targeted blacks.

‘Corporate Controlled Press' Hiding Barbour's Flaws?

I was just reading the comments under the Think Progress Barbour "corruption" thread and saw this comment that deserves more discussion:

Funny How Things Come in Waves

-----Original Message-----

The juvi-trolls are back at it, folks. Obviously, I did not go to John Eaves' Web site and send these e-mails out to people:

Update: ‘Jena 6' Sentence Overturned

Update: Today a Louisiana appeals court overturned the conviction of Mychal Bell, one of the "Jena 6" who were facing severe charges for their end of a racially tinged feud at a school in Jena, La. Read more here. Maggie Burks of the Jackson Free Press has been covering the case since early August, when she went to Jena to cover Al Sharpton's visit there in support of the young men. Read her Aug. 8 story here. Read the Wikipedia entry on the case here

Radio JFP at Noon Thursday; Crisler May Appear

Councilman Marshand Crisler is joining Donna Ladd and Todd Stauffer today at noon for Radio JFP on WLEZ-FM (103.7 or http://www.wlezfm.com for a live stream)—if he can get out of city budget meetings long enough. If he makes, we'll discuss the city budget woes and his devotion to Buy Jackson. Regardless, we will also discuss our cover package of stories this week about revelations about Gov. Haley Barbour and the tragic case of Heather Spencer's murder, and what needs to be done to present other such murders. Tune in at noon, or check the site later for an audio file.

Laurel Mayor Is Endorsing Eaves, NOT Barbour

In a turnabout, the Democratic mayor of Laurel is denying reports that he and Barbour were planning to jointly announce his endorsement of the governor. The Associated Press is reporting that Barbour's campaign had told them that, but the Laurel mayor is now denying:

Barbour Used Ledger to Excuse Non-Disclosure

Be sure not to miss the juicy tidbit in Adam's cover story this week about BlindTrust-gate, which I also talk about in my editor's note about Barbour. That is, Barbour's attorney Ed Brunini actually used the original Clarion-Ledger editorial defending Barbour back in January 2004, saying he had cut all ties to his lobbying firm, as an excuse—an exhibit even!—in his response to Attorney General Jim Hood look year, when Hood told Barbour he legally had to disclose his financial holdings and the companies he had interest in. Really breathe this in now: The Clarion-Ledger wrote an editorial defending Barbour and pooh-poohing concerns about his ties to major clients (that he has worked to benefit as governor), and then Brunini uses that editorial as so-called proof that there is "universal" approval of the way he's handled his "blind trust" among the state's media. Wacky circular logic there.

Let's Talk Domestic Violence

Let's talk, Mississippi.

In honor of Heather Spencer, who was beaten to death by her boyfriend who almost beat her to death a couple months back with nothing done about it by the police, let's talk about the realities of domestic violence. We can at least honor the life of this woman, and others like her, by being brutally honest about how bad this problem is, especially in Mississippi, one of the most violent for women in the country. How do attitudes about women, and keeping your family together no matter what, play into this problem? How do economics in the poorest state keep women in violent situations? How do our laws, and lax enforcement, make the problem worse? How does the threat of even more violence when a woman tries to leave keep women in abuse situations? How does the ability of richer families to cover up their problems (or send them off to rehab instead of jail) tie in?

Black woman survives hate crime in West Virginia

Megan Williams was stabbed in the leg, called racial epithets and forced to eat rat droppings and dog feces while held hostage in a tool shed for a week or more. The victim is currently hospitalized, and they expect for her to be released in a few days. Six of the eight suspects, all white, have been apprehended. Authorities are still trying to determine how Williams ended up in the shed, and they believe she may have been tricked by someone she met on the Internet.

Barbour Touts Tort Reform; Insurance Reformers Answer

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Today, Gov. Haley Barbour held a press conference to declare a victory for his controversial tort-reform legislation. Barbour's statement is verbatim below; a PDF of a 10-page response by the Americans for Insurance Reform is linked here.

Discussion About Mississippi, and Stereotypes, on Frommers

Someone just sent me this link to a Frommer's thread about Mississippi. There's some intriguing talk over there, revealing that everyone has their own prejudices. Quite compelling to consider. My advice, though, is not to jump on them; it's vital to remember that everyone has their own stereotypes to overcome; going toe to toe with dueling stereotypes helps nothing:

The NAMIWalks fundraiser is almost over. Give today!

Original post here.

There's still time to give if you haven't done so already. Go here to donate. I'm $65 away from my goal, so please help me reach it before October 6. Thanks!

Clarion-Ledger Gets Homicide Facts Wrong

To boot, this is a dramatically wrong statement. (Thanks to golden eagle for catching it.)

In a front-page story today, The Clarion-Ledger reported on the city's rising homicide rate, warning that the 36 to date this year is approaching the "record of 57 in 2004"—incidentally when Mayor Harvey Johnson was presiding over dramatically dropping crime, even as The Clarion-Ledger was downplaying the progress.