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Person of the Day
Sen. Alice Harden
As the minority party in the Mississippi Senate, the conventional wisdom would suggest that Democrats don't tally many legislative victories.
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Politics
Legislators Return to Jackson
Legislators from across Mississippi are gathering in Jackson today for the beginning of the 2014 legislative session, and Jackson's leaders are going to be there to welcome them.
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Confusion at Walter Reed
The Washington Post ran an amazing two-part series about the lack of follow-up care for soldiers returning from war to Walter Reed Hospital over the weekend. It's written by really …
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Nickel Creek Recording / Chris Thile Tours With Edgar Meyer
Nickel Creek is currently in the studio with producer Eric Valentine, working on their third album for Sugar Hill Records. Their 2002 release, This Side, won the Grammy for "Best
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Business
New Law: Charities Using Paid Telemarketers Must Register
Officials on Monday reminded charities that hire telemarketers to seek new donors that they now have to register under Mississippi's no-call law.
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City & County
Woman Crashes into McDade's in Belhaven, Hits Worker Inside
Just after 9 a.m. today, a woman drove her car into McDade's Market on Fortification Street, crashing through the brick wall outside the cafeteria.
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U.S. Officials: Iran Not Eligible for Syria Meet
Iran has still not met the criteria to participate in an upcoming international conference on Syria hosted by the United Nations, and its invitation to attend must be withdrawn unless …
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Water Pollution Permit for Kemper Power Plant Reissued
State officials are affirming a permit that allows Mississippi Power Co.'s Kemper County power plant to discharge water into a creek during high rainfall.
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Politics
‘Surviving a Severe Political Butt Whooping’
"Jojo's Discount Dollar Store will host a series of weekly 'New Era Transition Holiday Sales Events.' Look out for weekly events in isle 7-and-2/5, starting with the 'Post Election Meltdown …
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France's Sarkozy Brands Burkinis a 'Provocation'
France's former conservative president, Nicolas Sarkozy, has branded the full-body burkini swimsuits worn by some Muslim women a "provocation" that he says supports radicalized Islam.
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Google Asks Judge to Block Miss. Attorney General's Inquiry
An Internet giant was scheduled to face off with Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood on Friday. Google will ask U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate to block an investigation by …
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Books
Sister Act: Margaret Walker and Eudora Welty
A strong part of Mississippi's literary heritage rests on the legacies of Eudora Welty and Margaret Walker Alexander. The two women share a simple yet striking commonality: the gift of …
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Federal Judge Blocks Nebraska's Gay Marriage Ban
A federal judge on Monday blocked Nebraska's gay marriage ban, but the decision will not take effect for a week and the state plans to appeal.
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Israel Leader Vows to Pass Nationality Law
Israel's prime minister vowed Monday to pass a contentious nationality law that has threatened the stability of his fragile coalition government, but he left the door open for negotiations to …
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German Prosecutors Close Merkel Cellphone Spying Probe
German prosecutors on Friday closed their investigation into the alleged tapping of Chancellor Angela Merkel's cellphone by the U.S. National Security Agency, saying they have been unable to find evidence …
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Dolezal Steps Down as NAACP Spokane President
The president of the NAACP's Spokane, Washington, chapter resigned as furor mounted over her racial identity that emerged after her parents said she falsely portrayed herself as black for years …
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Books
The Friendly, Film-School Slasher
"Director's Cut" (Dogwood Press, 2014; $22.95) is the fifth novel in the Oakdale series, suspense stories that share the same backdrop—a rural town in northeast Mississippi.
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Abortion protester Roy McMillan: 'Shoes Are Optional'
By Donna LaddSo, this morning we had a team of a reporter, an intern and photographer out at Mississippi's only abortion clinic. It's the morning after federal Judge Dan Jordan issued an injunction keeping the clinic open until at least July 11 because, in part, the folks who pushed it made it clear that their goal was to eliminate abortion in Mississippi -- which they focused on far more than on women's health and safety.
What was funny this morning, to us, is how Roy McMillan (the man who sits in front of the clinic every morning with big fetus posters and other signs) yelled at my folks to tell me that "shoes are optional!" along with various other criticisms of the JFP's coverage. He was clearly referring to this recent JFP editorial, which I wrote a few weeks ago criticizing McMillan and his wife, Dr. Beverly McMillan, for trying to make any form of hormonal birth control, including the pill and the morning-after pill, illegal.
I ended the editorial: "Dr. McMillan is as welcome to those views as her husband is to sit in front of a clinic when he could be out helping children that are already born, hungry and unwanted. But it is not her place to tell hard-working American women that their health insurance should not pay for their health-care needs because she'd prefer that they get pregnant. Whether Dr. McMillan also prefers them barefoot is still an open question."
It's good to know where they stand on that question.
What was funny is that I drove by not long afterward, not knowing about McMillan's messages for me, and snapped some photos from my iPhone. An anti-abortion couple sitting next to the gate told me that they appreciate the JFP's coverage of the controversy because we report all sides and include comments from everyone. So, I suppose, the anti-abortion movement isn't filled with people who all think alike, just like the pro-abortion rights movement isn't. And I rather suspect there are a good number of folks out there against abortion who know that easy access to birth control will actually lower the number of abortions in our state and America. Unlike the McMillins, who don't seem to care about that point.
Meantime, I encourage everyone to read former JFP assistant editor Casey Parks' indepth feature on the Pro-life movement in Mississippi. It includes very interesting reading about the McMillans (they liked this story then, they told us) and other people inside the movement, including lobbyist Terri Herring.
http://jacksonfreepress.com/users/photos/2012/jul/02/3378/
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Fun Over Flash
Unless one's been in a coma or the slammer, it's not news that the "Dancing With The Stars" competition began this week on ABC. It might be news, however, that …
