What the Mamas Taught Us
When I heard 40 days before Election Day that the "No on 26" folks were trying to hire a spokesperson, I just knew women didn't have a chance. Thankfully, I was wrong.
Love Thy Neighbor? Buy Local
The programs are called all sorts of things these days--Think Local First, Small Business Saturday, Shift Your Shopping, Keep Austin Weird, Keep Fondren Funky--but they all point to one thing: the need to shop local* during the holidays. (Not to mention all other times of the year.)
[Stiggers] Shop Without Shame
Jojo's Discount Dollar Store is ready to have another entertaining and enlightening 'Post Thanksgiving (not Black Friday)' sale. Jojo has stocked the store with plenty of inexpensive gift items, and he invites the 'new poor' (aka the middle class) to shop without shame.
[Gregory] Don't Mess With Mamas
"The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world." —William Ross Wallace
Home at Last?
When I was small, my parents seemed to think that moving to a new city to give my dad better job opportunities was a pretty cool thing to do.
Vote ‘Yes' on the Tollison-Bell Amendment
The worst dirty trick we saw this last election wasn't a campaign ad, a robo-call or an "astroturf" campaign from a shadowy coalition of instigators and carpetbaggers. (Of course, all three happened.) In fact, this dirty trick didn't happen in the lead-up to the election at all.
[Stiggers] Spinning Your Favorites
Don't let the bad, sad and terrible news mess with your mood. Come on down to Clubb Chicken Wing's 'Mid-Week After Hours Job Fair, Networking Session and Disco' and do the 'loose booty' with me and the Unemployed Dee Jays. We'll spin your favorite old school tunes to help you get rid of the blues.
[Outlaw] Home on the Ranch
Feel free to judge, but I've lived in eight different places since 2004. Yes, I'm aware that makes me sound like a Gypsy, but I can defend myself. Justin and I talked about home ownership the way some heterosexual couples talk about having kids—one day, just not today.
The Best We Can Be
Last week, I attended one of those uniquely Jackson events that national media never seem to know about when they paint us with a broad brush. It was a performance of "Defamation," a play by a Chicago playwright that allows the audience to act as jury and decide whether a black woman or a Jewish man should win a defamation suit she brought against him because he assumed she stole a watch from him and then caused her to lose business as a result.
Building Business
Gov. Haley Barbour has long been bullish on Mississippi's business environment, announcing every new business his administration brings into the state—large and small—and every new development with great fanfare.
[Stiggers] Oh Lord Have Mercy
I realize that your current situation is hard to take, but do not be despondent. Remember that life is a period of adjustments. I suggest you adjust by becoming critical thinkers and challenging the motives of predatory capitalism. Also, think about acquiring the skills you need to get back to work and readjust your traumatized and stress-filled life.
[Kamikaze] Let's Talk, Dems
Hey, Mississippi Democratic Party: Can we talk? We've heard some pretty strong accusations that you aren't as powerful as you used to be. In fact, a few folks are whispering that you've become a shell of your former self.
[Skipper] Being the Best
Craig's spirit extended to each person he encountered.
[Stiggers] Pass It On
If you've experience a rude awakening, Aunt Tee Tee and I want to help you through your economic and vocational perils. As associate dean of the Aunt Tee Tee Technical Institute, I invite the newly unemployed unskilled and skilled individuals to learn together at the Each One Teach One Vocational Institute.
[Queen] It's About Women's Rights
I find it laughable that the state of Mississippi is even considering asking us to vote yes on Initiative 26. Really? We are being asked to make a law to give up our constitutional right to choice. Really.
[Barbour] Danger Looming Large
We lost the possibility of children; we did not lose children.
If Not Now, When?
Next Tuesday is Election Day in Mississippi. If voting trends hold true, fewer than 40 percent of those eligible to vote will actually cast ballots. It also means that progressives probably won't see many victories over conservative candidates.
Finding What's Right
It's easy to criticize. I know this intimately. In fact, I'm considering hiring a private detective to search for that half-full glass.
The Dems' Missed Chances
We've said it before: It's tough to be even marginally progressive in Mississippi. It's as if the DNA of old habits has gotten into our water, and it won't work itself out. Politicians in our state, right and (so-called) left, think the only way to win elections here is to play to the ridiculous-right on about every issue, the rest of us be damned.
[Stiggers] Breaking Bread
So, if you're affected by the recession, come and break bread with your friends from the Ghetto Science Team Hunger Task Force.
[Kamikaze] Good Food for Good Work
There's not much going on in Jackson that I don't know about. I try to stay up to speed on all of the good things that the city has to offer, but occasionally, I'll run across something that really sparks my interest. It might be something that I never knew about at all. And of course, when I'm turned on to great things, I want to pass that good news on.
[Blom] What Revolution Looks Like
Wednesday, Oct. 26, marks the 40th day. The Occupy Wall Street protesters in Zuccotti Park and Mayor Michael Bloomberg have been playing tug-of-war for control of New York City's streets. And the wave has washed over the entire globe. That's right, even to Antarctica and right here in Jackson.
Guns for Safety?
Also see: JFP Crime Blog
It so happens that in the past few weeks, a number of people with ties to the Jackson Free Press—staff and former staff—have encountered the same piece of advice from Jackson Police Department officers. The advice: Buy a gun.
Relationships, Not Gates
I would like to claim that Broadmeadow United Methodist Church first reached out to the neighborhood, but the truth is that the neighborhood reached out first to Broadmeadow.
[Stiggers] Quell the Anxiety
As you know, many in our community and around this nation struggle with economic imbalance. Many people suffer at the hands of some insensitive, uncaring and greedy individuals. Therefore, your non-judgmental solidarity with the poor, middle class and common folk reflects the proverb that says, 'Whoever is kind to the needy honors God.'
[Oppenheim] Time to Listen
On Oct. 22, youth from all over Mississippi, but mostly Jackson, will gather at Metrocenter Mall for a special event: the first Art, Poetry and Justice SLAM. The event is part of National Youth Justice Awareness Month and brings together the Southern Regional Office of the Children's Defense Fund, the Southern Poverty Law Center, the ACLU of Mississippi, the NAACP of Mississippi, The Young People's Project and F.A.I.T.H. Inc.
Craig Noone, Crime Fighter
A few weeks ago, Jackson State University professor Noel Didla was sitting outside Parlor Market in downtown Jackson waiting for friends. Suddenly, Craig Noone, the young visionary and chef who created the restaurant, saw her and came outside to talk to Noel. He mentioned the current issue of BOOM Jackson magazine in which Noel was photographed at her desk for a small "At Work" feature. Craig asked Noel to autograph his copy and told her how much he liked the small piece.
No Tea Party of the Left, Please
The pent-up frustration caused by not speaking out in a clear voice finds a venue this Saturday when some Jacksonians will gather in Smith Park for Occupy Mississippi, a localized version of the Occupy Wall Street protest movement that spread to other U.S. cities in recent weeks. We fear, though, that many of the frustrated protesters could lack focus and are venting.
[Stiggers] Double-Dutch Convoy
The church buses are ready roll to take the people where they need to go. It's time to let the establishment know that we won't take it any more. Let's join in solidarity with the 99 percent.
[Spiehler] Where Is the Line?
"What about life-saving abortions?"