Jackson Free Press

The old cliché that records are made to be broken just seems just perfect for sports. Nothing gets the fans attention more than when a seemingly untouchable record gets threatened or out and out broken.

Everyone pays more attention when an NFL team is undefeated near the end of the season to see if that squad can match the 1972 Miami Dolphins, when a hitter in Major League Baseball gets near Joe Dimaggio's 56-game hit streak, or when a horse wins the first two legs of the Triple Crown, like American Pharoah did last year.

Now that the NBA season is coming to a close, it is time for us sports fans to cast our attention to a potential record that could fall this season. The Golden State Warriors are now officially knocking down the door of matching or surpassing the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls.

Those Bulls did what seemed impossible, as they became the first team to win 70 games in a season. In fact, they won 72 games and lost just 10 games. That team is the standard to which every great team since in the NBA is judged.

The 1995-96 Chicago Bulls featured Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and the enigma Dennis Rodman, who all went on to enter the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. But the Bulls also had great role players in Toni Kukoc, Luc Longley, Ron Harper and Steve Kerr that season.

Interestingly enough, Kerr is the head coach for Golden State in its march toward the Bulls’ record. It seems fitting that a link to that great Chicago team would have ties to the Warriors squad that could steal the Bulls’ crown.

The Warriors have played 74 games this season and have eight games to go before they finish the full 82-game season. Golden State is one game ahead of where Chicago at this same point.

Through 74 games, the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls had a sensational 66-8 overall record. Golden State currently owns a 67-7 overall record as they enter play against the Utah Jazz tonight, March 30.

Chicago fell to the Charlotte Hornets by just a single point in game 75, making it the ninth loss of that fantastic season. If Golden State wins tonight, it would put the team two wins ahead of the Bulls’ pace.

The Warriors have yet to lose back-to-back games all season long, and the Bulls lost back-to-back games just once during their record setting season. Golden State jumped off to a 24-0 start to begin the season, which was better than Chicago’s 22-2 start in 1995.

If Golden State is going to get the record, the team will have earned it. In the Warriors’ final eight games, they will face just one team that is currently not in the playoffs and has a under .500 record —the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Warriors get the 37-37 Jazz on the road before returning home for five games. In that five …

College basketball will reach its climax from Saturday to Tuesday as both the men’s and women’s tournament play out the Final Four and championship games. None of the eight teams left will feature a team from our state.

That doesn’t mean you can’t get a taste of the Final Four from the past. Thursday night, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum will honor the 1996 Mississippi State University men’s basketball team that reached the Final Four in that magical season.

The event is sold out, but that doesn’t mean sports fans can’t catch the tribute. While you can’t be there in person, you can check the event out online.

Just like two seasons ago when the state was swept up in the great seasons unfolding at both Mississippi State and the University of Mississippi in football, 20 years ago, the state was swept up in the Bulldogs' astonishing run.

Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame coach Richard Williams led team that season, guiding it to a 26-8 record and winning the SEC Tournament over eventual national champions the University of Kentucky.

The Bulldogs defeated Virginia Commonwealth University (58-51) and Princeton University (63-41), reaching the Sweet Sixteen. MSU shocked No. 1 seed University of Connecticut, which future hall of famer Ray Allen led, for the 60-55 win.

In the Elite Eight, MSU took down No. 2 seed University of Cincinnati 73-63, reaching the Final Four. The Bulldogs were underdogs against both Connecticut and Cincinnati.

MSU’s run came to an end in a 77-69 loss in one of the national semifinals against Syracuse University. In a strange twist, the Orange and coach Jim Boeheim are in this year’s Final Four.

On the court, future NBA players center Erick Dampier and forward Dontae Jones led the Bulldogs. Dampier went on to have a long career in the NBA, while Jones spent just a couple of seasons before heading overseas to play basketball.

Sharp-shooting guard Darryl Wilson led MSU in scoring that season. He also went on to play overseas for several years.

Other important players on the 1995-1996 Bulldogs were point guard Marcus Bullard, forward Russell Walters, center Tyrone Washington, forward Whit Hughes and guard Bart Hyche.

MSU finished with a losing record the next season, and Richard Williams was gone after the 1997-1998 season. The Bulldogs haven’t reached the Sweet Sixteen since the 1996 run.

The tribute to the 1995-1996 Bulldogs will feature highlights, team memories and a panel discussion. Farm Bureau, Weir Boerner Architecture and Mississippi State University sponsor the event.

View the livestream, which begins around 7 p.m. on March 31, at https://livestream.com/shorterproductions/events/5017289.

The Manning Center was the place to be this morning. Breaking a University of Mississippi Pro Day record, 63 NFL representatives from all 32 NFL teams descended on Oxford, Miss., to look at the three stars entering the draft after their junior seasons at UM.

Overall, there were 15 current and three former players who took part in the Rebels' Pro Day. Most of the focus was on offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil, wide receiver Laquon Treadwell and defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche.

One of the things everyone came to see was Treadwell run the 40-yard dash. He didn’t run at the NFL Combine, and this was the first chance all the scouts had to put him on a stopwatch.

Treadwell did run, but his times didn’t alleviate fears that he won’t have the ability to separate from defenders at the next level. His unofficial times were 4.65 or 4.69, depending on the scout, on his first attempt, and he had a minor improvement at 4.63 on his second attempt.

While his top-end speed might not get scouts' heartbeats racing, Treadwell does have other abilities that had to impress NFL teams.

He has a big body that he can use to position himself between the ball and defenders. He also has strong hands and makes each catch look easy. He is a solid run blocker in rush attack, and in fact, he might be above average in receiver blocking.

One thing to remember about Treadwell and his not-so-fast speed is the fact that he is returning from a serious broken leg that he suffered during his sophomore season. Treadwell still came out this season and put up great numbers as he worked himself back into the shape and got his football instincts back.

It is projected that an NFL team may draft him as early as the ninth pick or as low as the 20th pick. Some mock drafts have him going to the New Orleans Saints with the 12th pick. If you want an NFL comparison, think Anquan Boldin. Several teams could move up in the draft to get their hands on Treadwell since he is the near-consensus top wide receiver in the draft.

One player who didn’t run the 40-yard dash at either the NFL Combine or the UM Pro Day was Tunsil. The fact that he didn’t run at either event might not matter, as the offensive tackle is projected to go as high as the first pick but nearly guaranteed to go within the top five picks. He said in an interview that he didn’t run at the Pro Day due to a pulled hamstring.

Tunsil did an impressive 34 reps at 225 pounds in the bench press and added 10 pounds of muscle so far this offseason. There are very few knocks against the potential No. 1 pick, though his run blocking needs more work, and there are questions about his power.

However, there are no questions about …

The NFL owners recently approved two new rule changes that will be one-year test rules next season. Both were highly controversial, one among coaches and the other among players.

First, here's a look at minor rule changes.

All chop blocks, which are when one offensive player is blocking a defensive player high, and another hits the same defensive player low, are now illegal in the NFL.

Defensive players are at risk to major injuries because of the blocks and in most cases, the NFL already outlawed them. Offensive linemen can still cut block (a one-on-one low block) a defensive player.

Now, just one season after the NFL experimented with the idea, points-after-touchdown kicks ("extra points") are permanent from the 15-yard line. There were 71 misses on extra-point kicks last season with the new rule change, and 27 teams missed an extra point. The defense is still allowed to try and score on missed extra points as well.

The owners also tweaked the horse-collar rule. Now, it is a horse-collar penalty to take a player down by the nameplate or above to make a tackle. Again, this is a player safety rule, but it will have some effect on games next season.

Other changes include:

Eliminating the five-yard penalty for illegal touching after a player goes out of bounds and reestablishes himself inbounds. Now, it is just a loss of down.

Coaches can use the coach-to-player radio system whether they are on the sideline or in the coaches booth.

Teams will receive a delay of game penalty if they try to call a timeout when they aren’t allowed to.

Eliminating multiple spots of enforcement on double fouls after a change of possession.

Teams now don’t have to designate which player will return from short-term injured reserve, although teams can still only bring back one player each season from IR.

Now, here's some information on the controversial rule changes:

First, players or coaches can be ejected from a game after two personal foul penalties. Players and coaches met this rule with resistance, with coaches fearing that players would bait others into penalties.

Only certain types of personal foul penalties will qualify for the ejection. Throwing a punch, forearm or kicking an opponent, if contact is made or not, will be part of the new ejection rule.

Using abusive, threatening or insulting language to an opponent, official, teammates or league officials or using baiting or taunting acts or words to foster ill will between teams can now lead to an ejection with two fouls.

While coaches or players won’t like the ejection rule, it isn’t likely to cause many, if any, ejections. A similar rule exists in college football but rarely comes into play as far as ejections go during games.

The biggest rule change that will affect every game is the new kickoff rule. Now, touchbacks after kickoffs will come out to the 25-yard line instead of the 20-yard line. …

Last week, the Mississippi film community lost a legend.

On Thursday, March 16, Jim Dollarhide's home near Lake Cavalier in Madison went up in flames, and on Wednesday, March 23, Madison County Coroner Alex Breeland confirmed that they found the filmmaker’s body in the wreckage.

Dollarhide was born in 1952 in Greenwood, Miss., where his father, Roger Freeman Dollarhide, ran a record store called Dollarhide Music Shop.

Jim attended Murrah High School and originally planned to become a photographer. When he learned that the United States Army was going to reinstate the draft, he joined to be part of the photo corps. Ultimately, he only spent six weeks in the army and later earned his GED. After that, he received a full scholarship for photography at Hinds Community College.

After Dollarhide dropped out of college, his friend, Sergio Fernandez, asked him about working on a TV commercial. It was then that he discovered his love for cinema.

In 1977, he founded Imageworks. After Jackson flooded in 1979, filmmakers Vilmos Zsigmod and Mark Rydell asked Dollarhide’s company to shoot footage for a 1984 film called "The River," which starred Mel Gibson and Sissy Spacek.

After years of working under the Imageworks moniker, Dollardhide closed the company in 1998, though he started Dollarhide Film only a short time after.

Besides national commercial spots for brands such as Scope and NyQuil and award-winning campaigns, including his anti-tobacco spots, Dollarhide was best known for his documentaries. He scored an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary with the film "LaLee's Kin: The Legacy of Cotton," which made the connection between poverty and the lack of education opportunities for African Americans in the Mississippi Delta. The film won an award for Excellence in Cinematography at the Sundance Film Festival in 2001. He also won the award for Best Director in the 1995 International Monitor Awards for "Harmonies: A Mississippi Overture."

In more recent years, Dollarhide created a B.B. King documentary for the B.B. King Museum in Indianola. The museum won a Muse Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement in museum media, for the film in 2009. Dollarhide, along with filmmaker Gregg Wallace, had been working on updates to the documentary since King's death in 2015.

A wake for Jim Dollarhide will be at Hal & Mal's (200 Commerce St., 601-948-0888) Thursday, March 24, from 5 to 9 p.m.

Every NFL team wants to have stability at a few important spots in the franchise, from ownership to general manager to head coach to quarterback.

This morning, the New Orleans Saints made sure one of the major pieces of their stability was staying in town a little longer. Head coach Sean Payton announced during the NFC’s coaching breakfast that he and the Saints had reached a deal for a five-year extension.

ESPN’s Ed Werder said in a news article that the new deal will keep Payton in New Orleans until 2020 and pay him more than $45 million over the length of the deal. Payton was already one of the highest-paid coaches in the NFL and made $8.5 million a year on his last contract with the club.

In the 10 years he has been with the Saints, he has put together an 87-57 record and led the franchise to its only Super Bowl title. Payton has been with the Saints since 2006, which ties him with Mike McCarthy of the Green Bay Packers for third-longest tenured head coach in the NFL.

Payton slides to fourth place if you discount the 2012 season in which he was suspended for the whole year as part of the Bountygate. New England’s Bill Belichick has been with the Patriots since 2000, and Cincinnati’s Marvin Lewis has been with the Bengals since 2003.

While in New Orleans, Payton has guided the Saints to the playoffs five times, and he had a 6-4 playoff record. He will forever be linked with the Saints' quick turnaround after Hurricane Katrina devastated the gulf coast.

After last season, in which the Saints finished 7-9, people speculated that New Orleans might try to trade Payton. That notion was quickly dispelled when Payton himself said he wanted to finish his career as New Orleans head coach.

New Orleans has missed the playoffs for the last two years, but with this contract, Payton can keep working on his vision to keep the Saints' championship window open. Part of that vision is sure to include quarterback Drew Brees.

Reports are that the Saints and Brees are working on a four-year extension to keep him in New Orleans until 2020 as well. A new extension for Brees also might help ease some of his cap burden for the next season, which is currently $30 million.

Payton’s extension also helps the club entering the NFL Draft next month. New Orleans can focus on both short and long-term plays knowing that their head coach will be in-house for the next five years.

The New Orleans Saints have the 12th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. Overall, the Saints have seven draft picks to use in this year’s draft.

The Mississippi State's women's basketball team defeated Michigan State 74-72 in the second round of the 2016 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament on Sunday. The reward for that win is a date in Bridgeport, Conn. to face No. 1 overall seed the Connecticut Huskies at 10:30 a.m. on ESPN.

UConn defeated Duquense 97-51 Monday, March 21, and moved to 34-0 on the season. The Huskies also won their 71st straight game and reached the Sweet Sixteen for the 23rd straight time. Connecticut scored at least 20 points in all four quarters, and the Dukes never topped 20 points in a single quarter.

There might not be a more dominating force in all of sports right now than Connecticut women's basketball. The Huskies are seeking their fourth straight national championship.

Just how dominant have the Huskies been this season?

UConn has defeated every team on their schedule by 10 or more points this season. Only Notre Dame and Maryland lost by 10 points, and South Carolina lost by 12 points. The Gamecocks beat Mississippi State by six and 14 points in their two meetings this season.

The Huskies haven't had a game where they failed to score 75 or more points all season long and have topped the century mark five times this season. UConn has also defeated nine ranked teams as they steamrolled the competition.

Even Las Vegas is all in for the Huskies to win it all. Just to win $100, you would have to bet $900 that UConn wins it all. One Vegas sports bookie is allowing those who bet to take the field or UConn, where a $100 bet against Connecticut would net $600 should the Huskies loose.

Things don't get much better for the Bulldogs due to the site of the game. UConn is 54-1 in games played in Connecticut and 9-1 in Bridgeport, where Mississippi State will play.

All of these numbers don't mean the Bulldogs can't shock the world and beat the mighty Huskies. What it does mean is that Mississippi State has to play the best game in program history.

The Bulldogs have to be perfect on defense, force turnovers, get steals and don't under any circumstances give UConn easy baskets. On offense, Mississippi State has to hit shots and can't go cold from the field for long stretches like it did against both Chattanooga and Michigan State in the team's first two tournament games.

It would also help if the Huskies had an off day and played a little sloppy and were cold shooting. Because even if everything goes right for Mississippi State, it will take a monumental effort to defeat the Huskies.

A win by Mississippi State would be the biggest upset in NCAA Tournament history for men or women. It would surpass, in my mind, the biggest upset ever when North Carolina State defeated heavily favored Houston and Phi Slamma Jamma and won the title.

If the …

Jackson City Councilman De'Keither Stamps, of Ward 4, says he voted against the Trilogy Engineering Inc. contract to do a corrosion study for the city last week because it is an "unfunded mandate" by the State of Mississippi—and one the taxpayers cannot afford. In two videos on his YouTube channel, Stamps said his main priority wasn't who was getting the contract, but that the State was demanding that the City suddenly pay $400,000 for a corrosion study, instead of helping the capital city.

"I know several of the subcontractors personally," he says in the most recent video (see below). The issue is I don’t want to spend $400,000 when we don’t have it. This is an unfunded mandate from the State of Mississippi. If they can help us, I’m all for it. … It’s not something we’ve budgeted for."

Stamps, who has unsuccessfully asked for an emergency declaration over the lead issue several times, says the City needs stand and/or federal assistance in order to make sure Jackson residents are safe, especially in areas where 90 percent of the water tested positive for at least trace elements of lead.

"I want to test every child in the whole city that’s in these affected areas," he said in the second video below.

After 18 years in the international alternative music scene, Motion City Soundtrack has announced that the band will enter an indefinite hiatus following its upcoming 29-date United States tour.

The tour will begin May 5 in Portland and end June 24 in Minneapolis, the city where vocalist Justin Pierre and guitarist Joshua Cain, the two remaining founding members, first began playing together as Motion City Soundtrack in 1997. Over the course of the band's career, Pierre and his cohorts released six studio albums, the most notable being 2007's "Even If It Kills Me," which reached No. 16 on the Billboard Charts, and 2010's "My Dinosaur Life," which debuted at No. 15. The group released its final album, "Panic Stations," on Sept. 18, 2015.

"It has been a quiet winter for us," the band said in a press release. "We've had some time at home after a very busy 2015. With this time, we've been able to think about the past, present and future of Motion City Soundtrack.

"All of this thinking has led to several conversations, and these conversations have led us to a very bittersweet realization: We have no idea what the future holds, but for now we are done. Needless to say, we're feeling all the feels - you may be, as well. If so, or if you've ever been touched by our music, we ask you to come out and sing along with us one last time in 2016."

For more information, visit motioncitysoundtrack.com.

http://jacksonfreepress.com/users/photos/2016/mar/14/24930/

This afternoon is the deadline for general bills held on a motion to reconsider to pass through both the House and the Senate. The Senate calendar includes Jackson airport "takeover" bill and a bill that would prohibit "sanctuary cities" in the state, while the House could take up a bill that passed by one vote that would require the Attorney General to receive written approval from the Outside Counsel Oversight Commission for any lawsuit that would cost more than $250,000 in the amount sought.

The House passed the Attorney General oversight commission bill last Tuesday, but the bill was held on a motion to reconsider after it passed by a vote of 61-60. The Senate debated the airport "takeover" bill for over two hours last Thursday, and after it passed (mainly along party line votes), it was held on a motion to reconsider and not taken up on Friday. The House and the Senate both reconvene at 4 p.m. this afternoon.

This weekend, I've seen a lot of excuses for Donald Trump's bigotry and xenophobia from his supporters, who don't seem to have many reasons for supporting him other than they are sick and tired of the way things are now. One gentleman showed up on my Facebook page to defend supporting Trump, saying it's not about bigotry and calling me "intolerant toward those holding different opinions" because I was willing to call out Trump's blatant bigotry.

I looked at his Facebook page, and he had reposted a letter to the RNC supposedly explaining why Trump supporters are fed up. The gist of it was about getting rid of "rabid, messy, mean raccoons":

You’ve been on vacation for two weeks, you come home, and your basement is infested with raccoons. Hundreds of rabid, messy, mean raccoons have overtaken your basement. You want them gone immediately…You call the city and four different exterminators, but nobody could handle the job. There is this one guy however, who guarantees you he will get rid of them, so you hire him. You don’t care if the guy smells, you don’t care if the guy swears, you don’t care how many times he’s been married, you don’t care if he was friends with liberals, you don’t care if he has plumber’s crack…you simply want those raccoons gone! You want your problem fixed! He’s the guy. He’s the best. Period. Here’s why we want Trump: Yes he’s a bit of an ass, yes he’s an egomaniac, but we don’t care. The country is a mess because politicians have become too self-serving. The Republican Party is two-faced & gutless. Illegal aliens have been allowed to invade our nation. We want it all fixed! We don’t care that Trump is crude, we don’t care that he insults people, we don’t care that he had been friendly with Hillary, we don’t care that he has changed positions, we don’t care that he’s been married three times, we don’t care that he fights with Megan Kelly and Rosie O’Donnell, we don’t care that he doesn’t know the name of some Muslim terrorist.

When I asked the gentleman on my Facebook page (whom I don't know) who he thought the "raccoons" are, he said he "assumed" that the piece he was reposting meant "illegal immigrants"—perhaps not knowing that he is speaking of human beings that Trump has said the most horrible things about, especially the darkish ones south of the U.S. border. He also added: "Not agreeing on issues or politicians or political parties is one thing but when either side turns to vile hate towards others that don't agree with them then that is bigotry."

I'm seeing this argument all the time now from Trump supporters: It is just as "racist" — ??? — to point out someone's bigotry as it is to be the bigot, at least according to their twisted rationalization. In addition to being incredibly absurd logic, this is a straight-up defense of …

UPDATE: Boil Water Notice Lifted

The City of Jackson and the Mississippi Department of Health report that the boil notice for the NW Progress Parkway has been lifted as of March, 4. The water is now safe to drink, but residents are advised to first flush their system by running the faucets for at least two minutes before using.

Previous report: The City of Jackson issued a precautionary boil water notice Wednesday morning for a small part of north Jackson.

The release, posted in its entirety on the Mississippi Department of Health’s website, states that the notice affects only 5 connections around the NW Progress Parkway, located to the east of Hilda Drive and to the south of W. County Line Rd. The boil water notice was issued because the water pressure to the connections dropped.

“This is a precautionary advisory,” the release stated. “This notice does not mean that your water is unsafe, but it does mean that you must take precaution and boil your water before use.”

The city will advise the public when it is safe to drink the water without boiling but did not indicate a timetable.

“All customers are advised to boil their drinking water until adequate pressure is restored to the system. “

Although it is perfectly safe to bathe, it may not be safe to ingest the water.

“Water should be brought to a rolling boil for one minute for the following: cooking or baking, making ice cubes, taking medication, brushing teeth, washing food, mixing baby formula or food, mixing juices or drinks, feeding pets, washing dishes and all other consumption.”

When the boil notice is lifted, it is important to flush the faucets for a total of ten minutes to ensure that the water from the home moves through, and fresh water replaces it.

Email city reporter Tim Summers, Jr. at [email protected] See more local news at jfp.ms/localnews.

This is a verbatim statement from Jackson State University:

The Spring 2016 Academic Calendar has been revised because of two high-profile speakers for the undergraduate and graduate commencements. The graduate commencement is Friday, April 22, 2016, at 6:00 p.m. in the Lee E. Williams Athletics and Assembly Center. The undergraduate commencement is Saturday, April 23, 2016, at 10:00 a.m. at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium.

Click here to view the revised schedule: See the Calendar PDF

A news release from the Mississippi State Department of Health about City of Jackson drinking water is reproduced in its entirety below:

Today the Mississippi State Department of Health– after consultation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Protection Agency, is advising all residents who receive their drinking water from the City of Jackson Water System to take the following precautions:

· Before using tap water for drinking or cooking, run your tap on cold for one to two minutes; for more detailed information visit www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/tips/water.htm; · Households should never use hot water for drinking or cooking; · Any child five years of age or younger and any pregnant woman should use filtered water (NSF53 certified filter http//info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU) or bottled water for drinking and cooking; · Baby formula should be “ready-to-feed” or prepared using only filtered water or bottled water; and · Parents with children six years or younger should contact their child’s pediatrician or primary care provider to ensure adequate lead screening and blood testing have been performed.

“Although the majority of home lead testing performed identified no lead, or lead below the action level of 15 ppb, we are issuing these recommendations as a special precaution for young children and pregnant women,” said State Epidemiologist Dr. Thomas Dobbs.

“It’s important to remember simple measures, such as flushing the faucet for one to two minutes, can markedly reduce lead levels in tap water,” added Dobbs.

The Mississippi State Department of Health will mail the above health recommendations about lead to all customers on the City of Jackson Water System, and will closely monitor the City of Jackson’s progress to reduce the corrosiveness of water. Corrosive water leads to leaching of lead in some older homes where plumbing contains lead pipes or lead solder.

“We believe these precautions should remain in place at least six months while the City of Jackson makes the necessary changes required to stabilize the alkalinity and pH levels in the system. These changes should ensure better optimization of corrosion in the Jackson Water System, which should lead to minimal leaching of lead in home plumbing,” said Director of Health Protection Jim Craig.

House Speaker Philip Gunn released a statement defending his position on the state flag, after all filed bills to change the state flag referred to the House Rules Committee died today. No Senate or House flag bill made it out of committee by today's deadline.

Gunn's statement is below, verbatim:

"For anyone to suggest I have surrendered or backed up on my position of changing the flag is simply not true," said Speaker of the House Philip Gunn. "I have not wavered in my viewpoint that we need a different flag to represent Mississippi. I have spoken with many House members both individually and collectively and have tried to convince them to adopt my view."

“I have explored every option from taking legislative action to change the flag to adopting two official flags, but we cannot get a consensus on how to address the issue,” he continued. "I will continue to stand by my view that changing the flag is the right thing to do. The flag is going to change. We can deal with it now or leave for future generations to address. I believe our state needs to address it now. I am disappointed that nothing took shape this year, but I will continue this effort."

If [the state flag][1] is going to change, lawmakers from either the Senate or House Rules committee will have to pass a bill through in the next 24 hours.

Chef Jesse Houston of Saltine restaurant in Fondren has been named a semifinalist by the James Beard Foundation for “Best Chef: South."

The much-anticipated Senate bill that would change the governing authority of the Jackson airport has attracted most of the attention in the airport "takeover" fight between Republican lawmakers and Jackson city officials and citizens, but Rep. Mark Baker, R-Brandon, filed a second airport bill earlier this week in the House of Representatives.

The House bill would dissolve the "municipal airport authority located in a municipality with a population of 173,514 according the 2010 federal decennial census" by June 2017. The only city in the state with that population is Jackson. Rep. Baker's bill goes on to describe a nine-member commission that would replace the municipal airport authority. The new "municipal-regional airport authority" would be made up of a representatives from 9 municipalities.

Rep. Baker's bill does not name municipalities; instead it uses 2010 Census figures to describe each separate municipality that would get representation on his proposed commission. Using 2010 Census numbers, the"municipal-regional airport authority" would be made up of one representative each from Jackson, Madison, Ridgeland, Flowood, Pearl and Brandon. There would be one Hinds County Board of Supervisors commissioner and two Rankin County Board of Supervisors commissioners if Baker's bill passes.

The bill was referred to the House Judiciary A Committee (which Rep. Baker chairs) and the House Ports, Harbors and Airports Committee.

So, what's going on with Columbus police? The Guardian has a report that police there have filed two different police reports for killing of Ball, who was African American. The Guardian reports:

*Since 26-year-old Ricky Ball was shot and killed by police in October, the black community in Columbus, Mississippi, has grappled with questions that don’t have clear answers.

Why did police shoot Ball that night? Why did a string of police officials resign in the months that followed? And why did police claim Ball stole a gun from a police officer’s home only after his death? Attempts to obtain police documents about the case have raised a new question: why did police release two different versions of events from the shooting?

Documents obtained by the Guardian show police altered a document labeled “uniform incident report” in Ball’s death. An initial version published by the Commercial Dispatch said an officer “tased” Ball before he fled. A new version of the incident report released to the Guardian does not include any mention of Taser use.

“One of these two reports is not true,” said Philip Broadhead, director of the criminal appeals clinic at the University of Mississippi law school. Broadhead said he’s never seen an incident report altered the way the document was in this case. “For police officers to offer up this type of information in the form of an incident report as sworn law officers … It’s a violation of their oath.”*

Also, an officer fired for the shooting filed a federal lawsuit over his firing yesterday. Read more here.

After cryptic statements here and there and word of a return to New York, Fondren's First Thursday founder Ron Chane announced that his monthly event would be back in Fondren once more, though rumors of its demise weren't entirely unfounded.

Chane, who also owns local businesses Studio Chane, Swell-O-Phonic and Soma Wilai, took to Facebook to tell the event's many attendees that FFT will be reinstated starting March 3 and will continue each month through December 1.

"A new monster is coming," he wrote.

"54 days ago, things were left in limbo. The load of running the event was bearing, and the need for support was eminent. Leaving FFT as a cliff-hanger was intentional as strategy, as well as not knowing for sure it would return (without community help). We proved it could be revived and thrive. The new challenge was to build it around community involvement with shared ideas.

"Hence, the future of a new FFT is now. We have divided the district into four main zones: Duling, Fondren Plaza, State Street and the Capri Strip. The hybrid energy of shared decisions in each zone will now fuel the ever-changing shape of the event. Zones will make their own decisions on activities, music, vendors, food, etc. This will take the load off for us, allowing FFT itself to focus on the PR and creative direction so necessary to offer you an out-of-the-box experience. We will still stand for the same platform of offering a positive night of neutrality and equal community without political, religious or social activism. The same community-conscious rules will apply for music, vendors, etc.

"We ask that our supporters please be patient as we put the finishing touches on the structure, protocol, etc. We are not open quite yet. Our FFT.city site will resurface with new information and direction next Friday February 5th by noon. All inquiries will then be greeted with an auto-reply that points you to the link necessary. Two-way communication will start at that point.

"FFT will now go all months March 3rd - December 1st (including July 7th) and will remain 5pm until. The event will focus more heavily on the arts now. Vendors will still be represented, now on a rotating basis due to increased activities and available spacing.

"I still plan to focus on split-timing in Brooklyn, N.Y., as a source of pursuing creative ventures and creative inspiration both for myself and the event. As stated before, we will soon play again as less than perfect adults (kids, dogs, community lovers, corporation-haters, weirdos, creative liberal minded scarf wearing types, etc.)."

"Thanks again for reading long posts with bad grammar and misspelled words and for supporting unrealistic ideas."