The Art of Denial
I was a junior in high school when my mom came into my room visibly shaken. "I can't keep doing this. There is going to come a time when we are going to leave, and I need you to help me get your sisters and not say a word," she pleaded.
Don't Feed the Stalker
Since the JFP launched eight years ago, we have witnessed many disturbing examples of vicious and personal attacks and libelous smears on websites, our own and others, and usually by people who refuse to use their real name on their electronic missives. We've also witnessed how the attacks are usually aimed at women who express opinions or who are in public or office.
[Stiggers] Progress Is a Process
Smokey "Robinson" McBride: "Greetings, fellow members of the Ghetto Science community. I want to thank you for your support and tolerance during my term as congressman for the Ghetto Science Team District 7 and 2/3rds. As you know, election time is right around the corner. And I'm here to give a friendly reminder about the progress made under my administration.
[Dennis] Mimic Registers
It's a postcard-perfect October afternoon, and I am outside enjoying it with my young son. Today, we are sitting together beneath a river birch tree enjoying a cool fall breeze. We make motor noises in stereo as we plow the dirt with our wooden toy tractors.
[Balko] Guilty Before Proven Innocent
Last week, USA Today published the results of a six-month investigation into misconduct by America's federal prosecutors. The investigation turned up what Pace University law professor Bennett Gershman called a pattern of "serious, glaring misconduct."
Hello, Neighbor
On a recent visit to Oktoc, Miss., my aunt showed me a relic from my family's past. If this archaic machine could talk, it would tell stories about a community that had to rely on its neighbors before modern-day conveniences.
Reject FAIR's Immigration Agenda
Mississippi has a golden opportunity to become a nationwide leader, while putting to rest some of its not-too-distant hateful past.
[Stiggers] Teabonics and Wii the People
Miss Doodle Mae: "These days my boss, Jojo, is happy because the hot summer has transitioned into the cool fall. And he's ready to please critically thinking and financially challenged shoppers with inexpensive and thought-provoking items. It's time for the ‘Get Your Mind Together' arts, crafts and games sale."
[Kamikaze] Madison: Beware the Karma
So, what do we do? Do we just lie down and concede defeat? Do we turn a deaf ear to the detractors? Or do we say nothing and become what they say we are?
[Hendry] Crash
At first all I heard was a crash. I looked up and saw a young woman carrying a child. I saw the Kroger grocery buggy's contents going in her direction, but she stopped in time. I didn't register right away that a car had hit my buggy. My main concern was that the woman and child were OK.
[Balko] How to Record the Cops
This summer the issue of recording on-duty police officers has received a great deal of media attention.
[Dennis] Our National Family
Among the 42 brand-new and very proud American citizens at the swearing-in ceremony in Vicksburg National Military Park, Friday, Sept. 17, was one special lady of Argentine descent who I am honored to know as my sister-in-law.
Sanctuary City
Stop the presses. They're calling Jackson a "Sanctuary City." The only one in Mississippi. Pass the Champagne!
No More Innocents Punished
The news was almost unsurprising: Last week, DNA evidence exonerated three more Mississippi men—one of whom died in 2002—imprisoned for three decades for a rape and murder none of them committed.
[Stiggers] Decoding the Code
Boneqweesha Jones: "Welcome to the early morning edition of ‘Good Morning Ghetto'. My guest is Brother Hustle, Ghetto Science Team senior business and economics consultant."
[Balko] The Case for Bifurcated Trials
In July, the Texas Forensic Science Commission found that arson investigators used flawed science in the trial of Cameron Todd Willingham. Willingham was convicted of setting a 1999 fire that killed his three children. He was executed in 2004, despite serious questions about his guilt. The case garnered national attention last year after a David Grann investigation in the New Yorker argued that Willingham was innocent and that there was no evidence the fire was intentional.
‘Working Together Works'
It happens that in the same week that the JFP is celebrating its eighth anniversary, the Fondren Association of Businesses (FAB) celebrated its own milestone--the second-annual members' meeting, this time in the newly re-monikered Duling Hall.
Do It for Jacksonians
Over the last several years, the Jackson Free Press has followed a tradition of celebrating our birthday every September by dedicating the issue to the city's progress. Our birthday cover stories typically explore just how far the city has come over the last year.
[Stiggers] Same Process, New Taste
Bill "Munchie" Wilson: "Greetings, Crunchie Burga World customers. I'm Crunchie Burga World's head dietician, here to introduce you to our new fall processed-foods menu. The dietary staff and I worked very hard to provide customers processed food with a new taste.
[Kamikaze] Do It for Bralynn
Bralynn Jamila Franklin turned 6 months old this past week. And as her mother and I prepare to celebrate our first wedding anniversary, I've found my thoughts have turned more toward the future. Not so much for her parents but for a baby that will soon grow into a young lady and then a woman living in the city of Jackson.
[Skipper] Our Jackson
"I am Jackson." It's emblazoned on a T-shirt sold at F. Jones Corner on Farish Street. And it's a motto for the growing force of Jacksonians working to make Jackson what we want it to be. The future of this city is partly reflected in my Jackson story, but what makes me so confident in its future is that my story is not unique."
[Balko] Killed on a Technicality
In 1994 Eddie Lee Howard was convicted of raping and murdering 84-year-old Georgia Kemp. Firefighters found Kemp dead in her Columbus, Miss., home after a neighbor noticed smoke coming from the house. Investigators determined the fire was intentional.
Shame on JPD and the Media
In August, a 13-year-old Jacksonian was charged with aggravated assault for shooting a 17-year-old friend in the head. Thankfully, the friend lived.
[Stiggers] Taken My Blues
Chief Crazy Brother: "I always thought no one would mess with history. I truly believed that history is absolute like science and math.
Change is Here
Change is a good thing, but it can be a hard thing to do. When you are stuck feeling like you are spinning your wheels, then it is time to do something drastically different.
[Dennis] Politics in 3-D
Disclaimer: The following article is a bizarre exploration briefly documenting my own thought processes as I, a self-proclaimed Rankin County Republican, daytime computer geek and mediocre math student, attempt to construct my own simplified conception of a political model.
A Taste of Something Sweet
My earliest memories come to me in pictures. The drawings and etchings in the huge old book of German fairy tales my grandmother read to me are clearer in my mind's eye than the stories they illustrated. I can see the glitter on the colorful advent calendar hung over my crib. Too tempting, I pulled myself up to its bright, sparkling colors and promptly yanked the calendar down on the floor. Screaming out my frustration, I brought my mother running.
[Balko] Trust Me: You Can Trust Us
In April I wrote a column about the secretive habits of three large police departments in Virginia's Washington, D.C., suburbs: Fairfax County, Alexandria and Arlington. As Connection Newspapers reporter Michael Pope showed in a series of reports that began in March, they are among the least transparent departments in the country, having interpreted Virginia's Freedom of Information Act in a way that allows them to turn down nearly all requests for information.
Same Picture, Different Frame
Friday, the rain wouldn't stop as I drove down Highway 49 South. I wondered where the sunshine or a rainbow was. "Stories about hope and inspiration always have sunshine and rainbows," I said to myself, as I headed toward the Mississippi Gulf Coast. That's what I was looking for.
What's the Real Cost?
Last week, Gov. Haley Barbour called a special legislative session to have Mississippi lawmakers vote on a $45 million incentive package for KiOR, a company that produces a crude-oil substitute.