Jackson Free Press

Poll: 80% Prefer Tobacco Tax Hike Over Barbour Plan

Sources tell the Jackson Free Press that a new poll by the anti-smoking group Communities for a Clean Bill of Health finds that 80 percent of Mississippians polled preferred an …

The Sign Stealer

I don't vent very often here, but I have got to get this out of my system.

On Saturday morning, I got up at 4:30 AM to help my mom prepare for a garage sale that was to start at 6 AM. She decided to have it …

Hood Wants Execution Date for Dale Leo Bishop

[Verbatim from Attorney General Jim Hood] Jackson, MS- Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood filed a motion with the Mississippi Supreme Court today requesting an execution date for Dale Leo Bishop …

State Diverting Katrina Funds Away from Housing

With 6,000 people still living in FEMA trailers on the Coast, Mississippi officials are diverting Katrina funds away from needed housing, the Associated Press reports:

Hmmmm…‘Frank Was Right'?

The Jackson Free Press received an anonymous letter (PDF) apparently sent to a variety of media and local churches this week. The letter called on churches, in particular, to do …

Will it still be called the "White House?"

If you are interested in how bad things will get, this is a pretty good indication.

The national news media is not really covering this story, but at the recent Texas GOP convention a vendor sold racist buttons with the quote "If Obama wins, will it …

Football: Jeremy Bibbs Seeks Third Chance

Jeremy Bibbs wants to play football again. Frank Melton wants to help.

Melton Protégé Pleads

Mayor Frank Melton says he will be waiting for Michael Taylor to get out of prison, probably before he is 21. "He is too good of a kid to give …

So, Does This Mean Bennett Will Walk?

So, it is possible that Mayor Frank Melton has fibbed again—this time about the suspect in the Memorial Day shooting confessing to him on tape. The D.A. doesn't have the …

Monitor Melton's Mentoring

Mayor Frank Melton's eleventh-hour call this week for the city to pay $1 million for young people to work for private businesses should put a vital issue front and center …

Awards, Web Sites and Special Pubs

Every so often I've just got to catch y'all up on what's going on with the Jackson Free Press—it seems like June is often one of those months.

Swell-O-Phonic

Whatever you do, don't call Swell-O-Phonic a skate shop; and definitely don't ask owner Chane, 38, his first name (Ron).

Tracking the Past

"Pelican Road" by Howard Bahr (MacAdam Cage, 2008, $25) is the story of a railroad man and his cohorts who work the rail lines between Meridian, Miss., and New Orleans.

CONTROL Issues

As an American over the age of six, I understand that the answer to why Hollywood does anything is almost always "money."

College Town Boy

"College town boy, get off your ass and do something," Dent May croons with a bit of humorous mockery and disdain.

Supervisors Split on Tax Hike

The Hinds County Board of Supervisors heard department heads' budget requests June 13. What they got was a long list of numbers that the county likely will not be able …

State Farm Pulling Policies

State Farm Insurance and Casualty Company said that it plans to pull home-insurance policies from part of the Gulf Coast. The decision leaves many current and potential homeowners, who live …

Old School Rappers Blame SouljaBoy for Killing Hip Hop

So, the latest uproar in hip hop is that Ice T and other rappers who reigned during a time when rap was extremely hard core and aggressive are blasting new …

[Kamikaze] Rapper's Ghanaian Delight

Faithful fans of my column knew of my now-infamous trek to the Czech Republic last summer. When I returned from what was, for me, a life-changing experience as an artist …

[Queen] Sweet Home Mississippi

I haven't always appreciated being a Jacksonian. I moved to New York City as a young girl, and it was difficult to admit that I was from Mississippi. I was …