Story
32 Teens Escape from Nashville Detention Center
Thirty-two teens "overwhelmed" their minders and escaped from a juvenile detention center by crawling under a weak spot in a fence, a state government spokesman said. Hours later Tuesday, eight …
Story
City Faces Homicide Spate
This past Sunday, Michael Jerome Williams, a 28-year-old suspect in a double homicide, turned himself in to police after committing the city's eighth and ninth homicides in 10 days with …
Story
Heaven On Earth
For many people, the land of Timbuktu is a mythological one. They've heard the city's name, but don't realize it's an actual city—an actual society. Timbuktu, less than 10 miles …
Story
Manning Awaits Word on His Execution
Willie Jerome Manning awaited word Tuesday on whether the state will execute him later in the day.
Story
Democratic Leader Heads to Senate Rule Showdown
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid is driving his chamber toward rule changes that would help President Barack Obama win confirmation for some of his nominees for posts overseeing workers' and …
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Crime
Ex-Prisoners Get a Boost Amid MDOC Turmoil
Re-entry has to come into focus recently as the number of people let out of prison in Mississippi, which has one of the nation's highest imprisonment rates, is on the …
Story
Melton At Home; McLemore Still Acting Mayor
[Verbatim from city] Mayor Frank E. Melton will hold a 10:00 a.m. press conference at City Hall on Monday, January 14, 2008 to discuss his recent surgical procedure. In the …
Story
Dr. Alan Bean
By using narrative and story telling, Dr. Alan Bean hopes that others will start to evaluate the criminal-justice system and seek the truth.
Story
Saving Lives: One Month of Torture At A Time
I saw the title of this article and just laughed and laughed...
Story
Bring-Your-Bomb-To-Work Day
As you may have seen on the local news a couple of days ago, a Utica woman finds what appears to be a pipe bomb in her mailbox. Her solution? …
Story
Civil Rights
Southern States Join to Promote Civil Rights Tourism
Southern states that once fought to maintain racial segregation are now banding together to promote civil rights tourism at sites including the building where the Confederacy was born and the …
Story
Liar. Lucifer. Lock Her Up. GOP Denounces Clinton
Republicans may have mixed feelings about nominating Donald Trump for president, but one thing they can all rally around is a deep dislike for Democrat Hillary Clinton.
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City & County
Creating a Culture of Wellness in Jackson
When a company considers relocating or expanding to a city, it considers more than the conditions of its streets. The health of the population is also a factor because it …
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National
Syria Ceasefire Begins, Trump Eyes Cooperation with Russia
U.S. President Donald Trump called for expanded cooperation with Russia on Sunday, as a cease-fire brokered by the two powers and Jordan for southern Syria came into effect.
Story
Development
Lawmakers Move on Bonds Despite Complaints from Colleges
Mississippi lawmakers voted Monday to borrow $450 million for a range of needs, including $24.5 million to build an aquarium in Gulfport.
Story
Clinical Trials on Tap for Possible Ebola Vaccine
A top U.S. health official says long-anticipated clinical trials of a possible Ebola vaccine will start soon in West Africa, as the global response to the outbreak took on added …
Entry
Surprising, and Testy, Comments by Rep. Ryan on Crime, Guns
By Donna LaddToday I saw a tweet about Rep. Paul Ryan getting testy with a reporter and stopping an interview so I clicked over to see what he was saying. But what was most interesting was not the testy part; it was what he actually said before that in the clip.
Did a prominent Republican just say that President Obama isn't trying to regulate guns any more than a Romney-Ryan administration would? If so, the NRA is wasting millions on ads in swing states.
But more important, Ryan made an admission out loud, on a camera, that most Republicans never have: that "inner city" crime results from poverty. As someone who has studied the connections between crime and poverty for many years, as well as the political strategies around inner-city crime, I immediately recognized what a remarkable statement that was (even if it shouldn't be). Just go back and read anything written by Reagan and Bush drug czars about the hopelessness of "super-predators" (racist rhetoric now debunked) to see what I mean. Right here in Mississippi, conservatives won't admit that poverty leads to crime--or at least creates the conditions that make it much more likely.
Of course, if you keep listening, you'll see why Republicans don't like to admit the link between crime and poverty: because it takes resources and education to create the "opportunities" that Ryan said are needed in challenged communities. And when the reporter asked him a very logical follow-up of how that need fit with the Romney-Ryan plan for tax cuts, he got testy, accused the reporter of putting words in his mouth and ended the interview.
Meantime, Gov. Romney said in the debate last week that he would put all costs for education and health care back on the states. That means that poverty in Mississippi will go up -- because we can't afford to pay these bills. Just look at the state Legislature now: It won't even fund adequate education when it has the money to. "Adequate" education. And guess what: We have a crime problem in Jackson, and increasing in suburbs and rural areas, as a result. It's not just an African American problem (as conservatives such as Bill Bennett wanted us to think); we have a serious white gang meth operation in the state in areas like Florence.
This video was very instructive: Ryan gets it to a point, but he's not willing to do anything about it, even as he's not willing to do anything to make it a bit harder for about-to-be criminals to get their hands on firearms. Unaddressed poverty + lack of education + strapped state resources + a state soaked with guns = a much more dangerous place for all of us to live. How can you not be willing to address any of those issues if you have even a basic understanding of the roots of crime (which Ryan indicated)? Even if you …
Story
Vote, @#%$ It! (The College Student Voter Guide)
If every college student in the state of Mississippi voted this year, you would probably be the most powerful voting bloc in the state. Here's what you need to know, …
Story
Theater
Role Playing
When it comes to "Hairspray," having the right actor in the right role is everything.
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Education
Denim Day at JSU, USM 2018 Commencements and Tougaloo Two Rivers Gala
Jackson State University's Division of Student Affairs and the Latasha Norman Center for Counseling organized Denim Day on April 25 inside the Student Center to raise awareness about the nationwide …
