Delta Scoop

Sunset on the Delta

2011-07-09T18:45:00.013-05:00

Dear Scoop Readers and Contributors,

Sorry about the long absence, but I have finally gotten settled in my new home... in Savannah, GA. It has been quite an ordeal... finally selling my family home, and most of my possessions to seek "greener" pastures in my latter years.

Greenville will always be my home, but it has changed... and unfortunately not for the better. I am near retirement and will be doing consultant work in a local hospital. Savannah is breathtaking and reminds me in some ways of the quaint "old" Greenville that I knew as a child.

I leave behind many good friends, co-workers and no doubt many enemies who have disagreed with my "opinions" over the last 7 years. The important thing to remember is that they were "opinions"... things that we all have, but rarely get to share in a public forum. The "Delta Scoop" has truly been an enjoyable outlet and forum for me to host... but it is time for me to step down as blog master. I wish nothing but the best for Greenville and its residents. I hope someone will continue this forum, perhaps under a new name with "new" ideas to stimulate conversations.

I can honestly tell you that hosting a blog is not difficult with today's technology and Google. I have genuinely enjoyed hosting the "Scoop" and believe that WE have contributed to the betterment of Greenville... through our opinions, criticisms and recommendations, needed changes came about. Our voices were heard!

I have always been loyal to the complete anonymity of myself and all contributors. It is not important who said what. It is important to simply let your voice be heard! I will not take down the "Delta Scoop" for those who enjoy the comments section. Hopefully, someone will come up with a new blog, but until then, you can continue to post your comments here on the Scoop. I wish you all peace and prosperity in the future. I will never forget my home town.

I am not good at good-byes, so I leave you with this quotation from former President Carter at his farewell address to the nation:

"We live in a time of transition, an uneasy era which is likely to endure for the rest of this century. During this period we may be tempted to abandon some of the time-honored principles and commitments which have been proven during the difficult times of past generations. We must never yield to this temptation. Our American values are not luxuries, but necessities – not the salt in our bread, but the bread itself."

Forever,

Forthright

2011-06-06T21:25:00.004-05:00

Heather Goes to Washington...

2011-04-16T19:41:00.017-05:00

Mississippi's longest serving congressman, Bennie Thompson, is likely to be challenged in 2012 by a fellow Democrat with name recognition in the Delta.Greenville Mayor Heather McTeer Hudson told her hometown newspaper, the Delta Democrat Times, that she's preparing to run in the 2nd Congressional District, where Thompson has been the incumbent since 1993.

Thompson, the ranking Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he is seeking re-election next year.

"The good thing about America is that people have choices," Thompson said in a written statement. "Those who are qualified and wish to seek public office can. I am busy protecting the district's interests in the upcoming Farm Bill, and fighting to save Head Start, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security from Republicans who are trying to end those programs.

"I look forward to continuing my work with local elected officials who have demonstrated a commitment to bettering their communities," he said.

Hudson was attending a fundraiser Monday night in New York and said she has hired a national Democratic political strategist and pollster, Celinda Lake.

Thompson faced his last significant Democratic primary challenge in 2006, when he received about 65 percent of the vote to defeat state Rep. Chuck Espy of Clarksdale.

Thompson won the 2006 general election with roughly the same margin over Republican Yvonne Brown, who had been mayor of Tchula.

Mississippi has four U.S. House districts and the 2nd is the only one with a majority-black population. Historical voting patterns show Republicans struggle in the district. In November, Thompson easily defeated Bill Marcy of Vicksburg, a black Republican who courted tea party voters.

Thompson and Hudson are black, as are Espy and Brown.

Thompson ended 2010 with nearly $1.7 million in his campaign fund, according to his latest report filed on the Federal Election Commission website.

Kathie Stromile Golden, a political scientist and head of the international studies program at Mississippi Valley State University, said Tuesday that no member of Congress, including Thompson, should be surprised by drawing an opponent.

"I think quite a few people will be excited by the fact that here you have a black female who currently holds a political position who has some national exposure," Stromile Golden said of Hudson. "She's known within the Democratic Party. She's young and she's energetic."

Hudson, who's now in her mid 30s, was elected Greenville mayor in 2003 and 2007. She said in January that she won't seek a third term.

Thompson, 63, was chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee from 2006 through 2010, when Democrats held the majority. With Republicans now in the majority, he's the committee's ranking Democrat.

The 2nd District is more than 200 miles long, stretching through the cotton and soybean fields and catfish pond areas of the historically poor Delta. The district wanders through the Civil War battlefields of Vicksburg and down past the Grand Gulf nuclear power plant in the woods outside Port Gibson. The district also encompasses most of Jackson.

If anyone in Mississippi could beat Bennie Thompson, it might well be Heather... particularly after a few phone calls from "Daddy". She has all of the qualifications: black, female, rich daddy with political pull, and a proven track record of incompetence in city government! What more could we wish for?

Bennie takes a more "optimistic" view of this situation stating that in America, we still have choices... and he is quite right. As the political satirist Lewis Black so aptly states, "we now have a choice between two bowls of shit."

Either way, for Greenville, this will be a win-win decision. We will have proven that "black, female, and well educated" are not the essential qualities of a good mayor for our city... and we will save thousands of tax-payer dollars on eliminating body guards!

"Heather goes to Washington"... what great potential for a movie sequel! I can see it now as the black screen illuminates into early dawn... the sun rising in the distance as the camera pans slowly onto a parked pick-up truck in Arlington... Cemetery...

Forthright

The Sins of Our Forefathers...

2011-03-06T14:32:00.012-06:00

At 52 years old, I've discovered that enslaving blacks was absolutely the worst thing that could have happened to this country. Over 200 years later, they are still complaining about it with hard feelings. If our forefathers had only realized what a terrible thing they were doing to the country by bringing the blacks here and enslaving them.

The black people are over 80% of our prison population, 80% of our public assistance programs, yet they say they are only 13% of our total population. What have we done to these poor people to make them behave like this? The majority of them are all driving new cars, thanks to the welfare programs they are on. The police departments probably spends 70-80% of their time picking on the poor black man for minor offenses like armed robbery, rape, murder, drug dealing. They should leave these poor black people alone, they are saints.

It's us, the white people who get up and go to work everyday, who are to blame for all of this. We have left them no choice but to behave like this. After all, we've only offered them the same educational opportunities our kids have for the last 50 or 60 years. We all have to realize why they run in gangs and beat up the White children. It's because of us, the white despicable bastards, who won't give them more.

Look at affirmative action for the last 50 years, giving jobs to under qualified blacks instead of qualified whites to make up for what was done to their forefathers. Now look at our government agencies, just try to get something done where the blacks are running it unless you're another black. Affirmative action does not work. The Rev. Al Sharpton says we should give each child $25,000 to put them on a level playing field with white people. The poor black farmers have only gotten close to $150,000, also to bring them up to a level playing field with the white farmers. That's not counting the 40 acres and a mule they were given after the Civil War, something the whites were not given.

Where would are country be without them? ... A lot better off in my opinion. President Lincoln wanted to send them to Panama. Too bad he got assassinated before he got this done. If you are around black people and you don't see anything wrong with their culture or the way they behave, you are just like them.

Why didn't we just pick our own damn cotton??? Just my thought for today.

Working stiff

While I do not agree with "working stiff" that our country would be better off today without "blacks", I do see merit in his assertion that it is time for "affirmative action" programs to come to an end. "Quotas" for certain racial and ethnic groups are no more fair than discrimination on the basis of gender or religious belief.

A famous Sociologist once noted: "The societal pendulum of America must swing just as far to the left as it does to the right, before it eventually comes back to the middle." By my clock, in the 21st century, we should be very close to plumb center by now.

When I was in school, I went to major universities which challenged me to study, learn and achieve. These universities were open to all students of any race who had a sincere desire to learn and improve their lot in life. I went to school for 2.5 years to earn my master's and 4 more years to achieve my doctorate degree... a total of over 10 years in universities for my education.

Today, I see traditionally "black" universities which are simply "degree mills". They grant Bachelor's degrees in 2 years, Master's and Doctorate degrees in 9 months! Most of these student's emerge from these degree mills with 3rd grade reading and math skills. They annihilate the English language, both written and spoken, and have essentially no knowledge of "cultural diversity" since they have never been exposed to any other culture than "black".

Instead of trying to improve the quality of education, the instructors at these "black universities" are more concerned about watering down the curriculums and meeting the quotas of graduates needed to secure their jobs. Ignorance begets ignorance... and the cycle goes on and on!

The "entitlement mentality" is the chief product of these degree mills. Armed with a worthless piece of paper, these graduates enter today's work force with only a minimal ability to read and write.

When they can't get a job, it is never because they "chose" one of these degree mills over a true university; NO... it is pure and simple... discrimination!

At least in the post Civil War era, most blacks would have known what to do with 40 acres and a mule. Today, I would pity the mule.

Forthright

Exodus: The Final Chapter

2011-02-07T18:10:00.008-06:00

From the Delta Democrat Times:

The population of Washington County has decreased by 18% according to the 2010 census. The truth hurts. Washington County is losing its population faster than anywhere else in the state. It is a daunting statistic and one that we can’t ignore. What does it all mean? It means that our once great city and county have lost the one thing that determines its future, the prosperity of its citizens. Gone are the days when manufacturing companies would clamor for our non-union, lower paid work force. Major corporations have found an even cheaper place to make their wares – away from the borders of the U.S. While this is the general cause for the root of our problems, generally the residents of Washington County can blame no one but ourselves. Once the writing was on the wall and we saw that plants were losing and jobs were leaving town, our community leaders should have tried to come up with a plan to help stem the tide.

Unfortunately they were unsuccessful. Now we must put the past behind us, and step up to the plate. It is time we come together and make some hard decisions on what Washington County is, and what we want its future to be. We need to come together, draw the line in the sand and say enough is enough. Here are some things we need to think about over the next year to address the issue:

1) It’s an election year. When you make your choices in the election of our county and city leaders, make sure they have vision. Let’s just not elect the lesser of two evils. We need leaders to help provide solutions and welcome the ideas of others. We do not need status quo.

2) We need a strong Delta Economic Development Center. The EDC is important because it is supposed to be run by people who have no agenda except to see our town grow. A strong businessperson is always looking for growth, and no matter what type of business they have, more customers means more business. Providing the community with more opportunity should be the sole purpose of the EDC. The EDC leadership should have no political agendas. The EDC needs a strong executive board that will provide that leadership for our community. Hopefully the new director will provide Washington County with a good first step.

While most people will point to a poor school system, or high crime rate as the reason for our population decline and lack of new job creation, the truth is that these are just bi-products of our lack of vision. The problems Greenville faces are not unique and it needs strong leadership to help show us the way. While we face an uphill battle, we do have some strong positives that we need to leverage into the future. Our solid agricultural foundation provides a great base for us to grow. And with commodity prices on the rise, what better place to be than in the Delta – our soil is one of the best in the world.

We are also the retail hub for the entire region – we have more retail stores than any other town or city within 100 miles – and we should use that to our advantage. While good political leadership would be helpful, it’s the community leaders and pro-active residents who can take us to a place of greatness that can be even better than before.

While I am not quite as "optimistic" about Greenville's future as the above author, I do suspect the accuracy of the 2010 census figures.

Contrary to popular belief, not everyone in our state wants to "stand up and be counted". If you are a participant in any type of welfare fraud, the last thing you want to do is tell the truth about who you are, where you live, your employment status and how many dependents you have! Revealing any of this information could get you and your family kicked right off the "Gravy Train". This group is not worried about the number of seats in the house and senate; they are worried about THEIR seat at the at the ever-growing table of fraud and abuse.

Recently, I was in a local restaurant and overheard an irate woman complaining to her friend. The gist of the conversation was that her "no good" daughter had rushed down to the tax office the first week of January and claimed all 7 of her "deductions" (children). Then when the complainant recently tried to claim these same "deductions" on her tax form, the government refused her!

Apparently, our government applies a "first come, first serve" policy with regard to dependents. Once the SS# has been used as a deduction, it's off the table, regardless of legal custody or birth-right.

Now, I do not doubt that Greenville's population is significantly changing, but I would consider it more of a "shift"... from "taxpayers" to "tax-recipients". With a population reduction of 18% one would expect to see similar reductions in crime rates, unemployment and welfare costs? Not so in Greenville! The only thing decreasing in Greenville is the revenue generated from tax-paying citizens.

Now... who wants to be Mayor? Is there anyone left who would consider the job, other than those Hudson flunky wanna-bees? What about a successful businessman or a competent attorney? Hell, what about a house-wife who can balance a checkbook? The bar is currently set rather "low".

It is almost "amusing" to me that in my home town, the most controversial issue has become the banning of plastic flowers in the cemetery. Somehow, I think this speaks volumes about the direction in which Greenville is looking...

Forthright

America, home of the lazy, disrespectful, free-loaders!

2011-01-06T19:55:00.003-06:00

Why is it that people can break every rule in the book yet people who follow rules and work hard seem to get disrespected? People who break rules and take everything for granted pass through life with ease while everyone else who takes pride in what they do, works hard, and respects earning everything they have has to jump through hurdles, in the snow, bare foot, both ways, with one arm tied behind their back. Can you see where I’m going with this?

Let me tell you a story. I worked for a company for nearly 4 years and truly enjoyed my job. Like so many other manufacturing plants in this area, it went out of business. Everyone was laid off. This, however, spawned a great opportunity. I was told I could go to college and would receive unemployment benefits until I graduated. I hate the idea of living off the government. However I would much rather have had my job back. This was not something I asked for. Well, a year from graduation and the government backs out of their end of the bargain. So the people we elect to represent us pass garbage like NAFTA to allow all our jobs to go overseas and then give you a kick in the butt back home. No big deal, work is good for you. Ill get a job. A friend of mine got me a job working third shift at a furniture factory. It’s a bottom of the totem pole, manual labor, sweat dripping job. I have learned from watching my dad to put as much effort into everything you do, regardless of what it is, work hard, respect others and you will be rewarded. For the past 2 months I have been going to school full time during the day and working full time at night. I know a few other people doing the exact same thing. its tough but I know it will be worth it in the long run, right dad?

Now here it gets a little more personal. This part is about one of the toughest women I have ever met. My soon-to-be mother-in-law. Lets just say Jane-doe. Jane and her husband each held a full time job, acquired some land, and built a house. The American dream. A couple years later her husband develops a condition that prohibits him from working. To save the house and family, she steps up and gets a second job. She toughs it out and after another couple years her main employer goes out of business as they cannot compete with China (sound familiar?). Everyone was laid off. Now after a few months of job searching she has no luck in finding a permanent full time job. Why is it that hard working, prideful people always seem to be the ones pushing this heavy boat?

So lets flip the coin for a minute and talk a bit about the people IN the boat. You probably know someone who doesn’t work by choice, someone who thinks everything should be handed to them, someone who thinks they don’t need to work hard. I have run across several. I have overheard conversations about people bragging about how much food stamps they get and then complain about working too many hours. I have heard someone say “don’t get that second job, you can make more in food stamps.” I see people buying $7 steaks with food stamps and selling what they don’t spend. No, I don’t have a problem with feeding the hungry….IF feeding the hungry is actually what is going on. I have seen first hand a friend of mine refuse to flip burgers but spend the gas money making countless trips to the social security office attempting to get on disability.

So the place in which I work. These people lurk there too. A week after I was hired, the company announces a small lay-off, volunteers first. After everyone was informed of being eligible for unemployment, there were more volunteers than they need. There are also those who do not think they should follow rules. If I’m not mistaken rules are established for a reason, right? Workers get a paycheck for DOING work, right? Not the case at my current job. There are a few “chosen ones” who seem to have special privileges working folks only dream of. But it doesn’t stop there, some are lucky enough to get into management positions. Put it all together, throw in a few complaints by hard working individuals, and what do you get? Lazy, disrespectful, poor workers defending lazy, disrespectful, poor workers with no disciplinary action taken. It a shame to see people who don’t work hard when we live in an economy with record unemployment.

I am often dumbfounded at how others think with no logic and no (not so common) common sense. When did we lose pride in this country? When did we take the notion that settling for whatever is free is the best thing to do? When did we lose our American culture? My grandfather told me that if its not worth doing right then its not worth doing at all. One of the greatest quotes of all time, JFK said “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” I am tired of supporting everyone who puts forth no effort in bettering themselves or the ones around them. I’m tired of pushing the boat while a steady flow of people jump in. I’m tired of seeing people with the drive and heart to succeed being kicked to the curb while everyone else is given opportunity ,after opportunity, after opportunity. It is time we step up. It is time we start having a little personal accountability. It is time we start taking pride in what we do. Its time we all start contributing to society instead of being a leach. It is time to re-define the word AMERICAN!

I don't think I can add anything to this commentary... except "Amen!"

Forthright

A New Day for DRMC

2010-12-09T18:16:00.005-06:00

Delta Regional Medical Center named J. Stansel Harvey as its new Chief Executive Officer and President Wednesday.

Stancil, who grew up in Ruleville, will assume his new post on Jan. 3, 2011.“It feels good,” said Harvey, who signed a two-year deal. “I’m coming back home.”

Harvey, who has a Master of Health Services Administration degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, is leaving his job as a healthcare consultant in Granbury, Texas. However, he has more than 28 years of hospital leadership experience, including nine years as president of Harris Methodist Southwest Hospital, a 229-bed facility in Fort Worth, Texas.

“We have the right man for the job,” said Billy Schultz, DRMC’s Board of Trustees chairman. “We looked at about 10 candidates and began to narrow our
search down from there. “The board of trustees unanimously selected him based on his proven leadership in hospital administration and positive track record in financial and operational accomplishments,” he said.

Harvey succeeds Mazie Whalen, who became interim CEO and president on April 15. She will return to her post as Senior Vice President of Nursing Services. “It was a good experience for me,” said Whalen. “It was a challenge but we have someone to take over.”

Schultz said he and the board were pleased with Whalen’s job. “She was fantastic,” said
Schultz. “This is nothing against her at all. In fact, she didn’t want the job. I can’t say enough praise about what she did.” Harvey and his wife, Lisa, have a son, Ben, who lives in Arkansas.

Welcome Mr. Harvey and your family. You have an incredible opportunity to provide DRMC with the leadership and integrity that has been lacking for many years. As the Delta's largest medical center, DRMC has some truly great employees who have long been hoping to have a leader who is both fair and honest.

Change comes slowly in the Delta, but it can come. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer... and always be sure that you can discern the difference between these groups.

Boards and doctors don't run a hospital, but they will if given half a chance. Trust your instincts and administrative knowledge to make needed changes. Listen to your employees. As Henry Ford once stated, "I never learned anything about car making sitting in a board room. Most of what I know today, I learned from listening to the men on the line."

Best of luck in your new position.

Forthright

Speak Up!

2010-12-03T18:33:00.008-06:00

The news of my death has been greatly exaggerated! I am not dead, just bored. I maintained this site after its former owner became disenchanted with it. I saw the "Scoop" as a viable medium for us "Deltans" to express our views of what really concerns us... and for the most part, it has done just that.

My initial goal for the "Scoop" was to inform and raise awareness of local issues that "advertisers" will NOT allow to be printed in the local press. The "Scoop's" promise of anonymity has been strictly enforced and we have gained hundreds of loyal readers and contributors over the last 6 years. A blog is no better than its topics and its contributors. Lately, it seems that we have become somewhat complacent and rather stale.

Here's the challenge: Give us your opinion on any topic and let's get a lively debate going! Okay, it's a local blog about the Delta, but there are many national issues which will affect all of our lives in the future. Haley Barbour for President? "Don't ask, don't tell"... the "Tea Party"?

I love the "Scoop" and many other blogs, because they are open venues for expressing my likes, dislikes, opinions or just rants and raves. In my varied careers, I have been forced to say many things that were politically "correct", but basically contradicted my personal beliefs. When I discovered the "Delta Scoop" and several other good blogs, I felt liberated! Finally, I could say whatever the hell I wanted and simply not give a damn whether I got an "Amen" or a "F-U".

Someone provide me with their "argument" for or against any issue. I will give you front page coverage and let's see how you fair. It is your chance to be be heard and rally either support or disdain for your opinion. At the end of the day, the one trait that all "Deltans" possess is their opinion!

Forthright

County Taxes Short $10 Million!

2010-09-17T19:06:00.010-05:00

Collection of county taxes is down — way down and county officials would like to know why.

Mark Seard, Washington County Tax Assessor delivered the news to the Washington County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news,” Seard said. “I have compiled a yearly report of Ad Valorem Assessments of the county and from September of 2009 until September of this year we are down over $10 million dollars in taxes.”

Seard said $2.5 million was down in public taxes, another $2.2 million in realty and $5 million in personal taxes. “It’s hard to say what is the one factor why these numbers are so high,” Seard said. “These numbers are alarming.”

According to Seard more than $3 million of the $10 million shortage is in automobile taxes. “We have really seen a decrease in our car tags for the county,” said Seard. Paul Watson, board president, asked Seard to do a comparison of tax assessments to surrounding and neighboring sister counties.

Washington County Tax Collector, Patricia Lee said it’s not that county residents are not paying their taxes, it is that more people are not purchasing new cars.

“We have done more tag renewals this year than in years past,” Lee said. “If people do not purchase new cars then the value of that depreciates and goes down every year. We have not had as many new car tags purchases this year. We actually did an audit in June and everything was intact. We are in good standing.”

After speaking with sales representatives from local car dealerships, some said the Cash For Clunkers or now known as CARS (Community Assistance to Recycle and Save) gave the car industry a shot in the arm but hindered future potential car sales.

Seard said a combination of depreciation, non-collected taxes and fewer new auto sales are contributing factors to the county’s $10 million less in total taxes year to date. “Also we’ve been noticing a higher number of out-of-state tags in the county and around the city of Greenville,” Seard said. “Tags from Louisiana, Arkansas and a rising number of blue car dealer tags are all things we need to look at. These factors are just a percentage of the problem for the city.”

On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors adopted a county budget of $29.5 million dollars, over the complaints of citizens who attended a budget hearing.

Walley Morse asked the board about the proposed budget and said that in the past five years the city has lost more than 10,000 people yet the budget for sheriffs department increased by 37 percent with the decrease in people.

Sheriff Milton Gaston Sr., acknowledged the lower population but said there has not been a drop in crimes being committed in the county.

Barbara W. Clark, a retired counselor/educator at Coleman Middle School, shared Morse’s sentiments and questioned the supervisors’ compassion on raising taxes on county residents. “I am retired, along with these other ladies who are here in attendance,” Clark said. “We didn’t retire as educators to pay you all, all of our money. People can’t afford this, already citizens are having trouble paying their water and electric bills.

Clark said being a retired educator after 28 1/2 years of service, to see her property taxes jump in 2009 from $1,200 to more than $1,600 is too expensive. “I’m being depleted,” said Clark. “The people remaining in the county are being taxed to death. Citizens like myself and others are hurting with this wasteful spending the county has put taxpayer’s dollars’ into like those casinos and title loan companies.”

Morse and Clark questioned the supervisors’ loyalty to citizens of the county — that sparked every county supervisor to speak.

Paul Watson, board president said, it is and always has been the boards’ responsibility to do what is best for citizens of the county. “We work hard to be impartial to everyone,” said Watson. “We don’t want to sit up here on this board like we’re some ‘fat cats’.”

Jesse Amos, District 4 supervisor spoke of how so many jobs that have left the county and country now are located oversees. “I am going to be honest, this city has turned into a service station,” Amos said. “With Wal-Mart and K-Mart being here it is hard to see jobs coming back to this area. The only way I see jobs coming back is if the ‘big people’ gotta go broke and come together as one group regardless of race; black, white blue or brown.”

Al Rankins, District 5 supervisor said he has been on the board for more than 20 years and has always tried to look out for the best interest of the people of this community. “We go into these budget hearings with no secrets,” Rankins said. “There are just some things, some essential services that we must provide to citizens of Washington County. We have cut this budget to the bare. I’m a conservative person and I spend this county’s money as if it were my own...

Ernest Holmes, District 5 Supervisor told the county residents that their voices can be heard and impacted next year being an election year.

Let’s see… property taxes just went up, car tags are the highest in the state, water and sewage rates are going up in October and real estate values are down 40% from where they were ten years ago. And we wonder why the Director of Economic Development just quit?

The last time I purchased my car tag, they wouldn’t even take a check… CASH only. As I counted out the $874.00, the worker stated, “I bet that’s the most money you ever paid for a little plastic sticker.” I replied, “Not really… I paid a lot more last year.” As I walked out of court house I thought to myself, “I wonder how much of that cash will ever make it to the county?”

Here’s an epiphany for Mark Seard… The reason tax collections are down by $10 million dollars is because tax payers are fleeing the area, leaving fewer and fewer to support the growing majority of residents who feed on our system and pay no taxes! Seard blames a combination of "depreciation, non-collected taxes and fewer new auto sales for the loss"!

What depreciation? The assessed value of my house for tax purposes went up this year! The only thing that depreciated was the appraised “value” of my house which is now less than I paid for it ten years ago.

As for non-collected taxes, whose problem is that? If paying county taxes has become an option, I would like to opt out. The simple truth is that our city and county “officials” can’t (or choose not to) enforce the tax laws. There are no consequences for some residents who don’t pay these taxes. We simply write off this revenue as “noncollectable” and then raise taxes on the remaining few who do pay.

And the “fewer new cars” ruse is the best! Who can afford a new car when they are paying for the most expensive car tags in the state… and driving on the worst roads? I am too busy keeping my tires aligned every three months from our dilapidated infrastructure!

As for our “Supervisors” comments, the only one who speaks even a word of truth is Ernest Holmes, who told the county residents “that their voices can be heard and impacted next year being an election year.”

While grammatically incorrect, the message is clear. Unfortunately for Ernest, he may have just sealed his own fate!

Forthright

From Dr. Laura to Chris Rock... Just Quit!

2010-08-25T19:17:00.007-05:00

Ronnie Agnew of the Clarion Ledger offers this...

I was in high school when a man, a white man, stopped by to visit my parents, whom he had not seen since the years they had worked as sharecroppers. While my parents had left behind that life, he possessed a hardscrabble look, signifying he had not quite shaken tough times.

Unkempt and dirty, he reflected with great detail the backbreaking tedium of the cotton fields, where the rows stretched for miles, assuring the promise of a next day's work. He was comfortable that day, too comfortable in fact.

"You know what," he said to my parents with my brother and me sitting near, "y'all were the hardest-working niggers I have ever seen in my life." He said it without blinking an eye, without any sense of regret or shame. My brother and I sat there in shock, my parents embarrassed that a man would visit their home and use the most hateful word in the English language to describe them.

We later concluded that his ignorance was such that he didn't know any better. There have been plenty who do know better who have exercised the same ignorance - even greater because of the assumption that in their world travels, they should have learned something.

Radio talk show host Dr. Laura Schlessinger is the latest. When an African-American woman married to a white man called for advice on dealing with racist remarks by her husband's friends and family, Schlessinger gave insensitivity new meaning. Again and again she used the racial epithet to justify that since some black folks use the word nigger, why should the offending parties be held accountable.

There's a lofty doctor's degree in front of her name and a 40-year career indicating that she has reached some level of accomplishment. She proved, however, that classrooms and sheltered life experiences are incapable of conveying the hurt caused by that word. It doesn't matter who says it, black people or white. To this day, the words still sting from that day 30-plus years ago when the visitor disrespected people who would never have dishonored him.

There's the wrong-headed presumption Schlessinger and others make that black people are OK with the use of the word nigger because of its use among black rappers and comedians. It hurts just as much, in fact, when black entertainers and regular folk gratuitously use it.

Dr. Laura, who says she will end her show at the end of the year, could not be more wrong in defending her answer to the caller. If she's right, then the tears that well in my eyes when I hear the word nigger must not be real. Knowledgeable she may be on some subjects, but on this one, she knows nothing.

While most agree that there is no acceptable context in which this word should be used today, Agnew's parable demonstrates how the word has evolved from ignorance to hatred.

Thirty years ago, the term was used by a generation who inherited it from parents who simply knew no better. It was not so much a racial slur as it was an unfortunate slang term for "Negros", which is now considered offensive by many.

The "N-word" evolved into the racial epithet that it has become today from the same ignorant culture that believes that when the term is used "inter-racially", that it is acceptable... and often humorous. The "N-word" will never go away as long as we deem it "acceptable" in ANY situation... from classrooms to comedy clubs!

It is hard to believe that anyone in 2010 does not realize that this word is offensive to the majority of our civilized world, but as long as we permit its use, by any race, in any context, for humor or hurt...it will not go away!

Forthright

Love Him or Hate Him... Pat's Opinion

2010-08-19T18:25:00.007-05:00

BUCHANAN TO OBAMA

By Patrick J. Buchanan

Barack says we need to have a conversation about race in America. Fair enough. But this time, it has to be a two-way conversation. White America needs to be heard from, not just lectured to.... This time, the Silent Majority needs to have its convictions, grievances and demands heard. And among them are these:

First, America has been the best country on earth for black folks. It was here that 600,000 black people, brought from Africa in slave ships, grew into a community of 40 million, were introduced to Christian salvation, and reached the greatest levels of freedom and prosperity blacks have ever known... Wright ought to go down on his knees and thank God he is an American.

Second, no people anywhere has done more to lift up blacks than white Americans. Untold trillions have been spent since the ' 60s on welfare, food stamps, rent supplements, Section 8 housing, Pell grants, student loans, legal services, Medicaid, Earned Income Tax Credits and poverty programs designed to bring the African-American community into the mainstream.

Governments, businesses and colleges have engaged in discrimination against white folks -- with affirmative action, contract set-asides and quotas -- to advance black applicants over white applicants. Churches, foundations, civic groups, schools and individuals all over America have donated their time and money to support soup kitchens, adult education, day care, retirement and nursing homes for blacks.

We hear the grievances.

Where is the gratitude??

Barack talks about new 'ladders of opportunity' for blacks... Let him go to Altoona? And Johnstown, and ask the white kids in Catholic schools how many were visited lately by Ivy League recruiters handing out scholarships for 'deserving' white kids...? Is white America really responsible for the fact that the crime and incarceration rates for African-Americans are seven times those of white America? Is it really white America’s fault that illegitimacy in the African-American community has hit 70 percent and the black dropout rate from high schools in some cities has reached 50 percent?

Is that the fault of white America or, first and foremost, a failure of the black community itself?

As for racism, its ugliest manifestation is in interracial crime, and especially interracial crimes of violence. Is Barrack Osama aware that while white criminals choose black victims 3 percent of the time, black criminals choose white victims 45 percent of the time?

Is Barack aware that black-on-white rapes are 100 times more common than the reverse, that black-on-white robberies were 139 times as common in the first three years of this decade as the reverse?

We have all heard ad nauseam from the Rev. Al about Taiwan Brawley, the Duke rape case and Jena. And all turned out to be hoaxes. But about the epidemic of black assaults on whites that are real, we hear nothing.

Sorry, Barrack, some of us have heard it all before, about 40 years and 40 trillion tax dollars ago.

Just like Dr. Laura, Pat always has an opinion! And just like Dr. Laura, he gets a lot of criticism for expressing it. President Obama does not speak for all black Americans, just as Pat Buchanan does not speak for all non-black Americans. What both are very good at is debating and it would make a great media event to see these two address this issue on live TV.

Don't race to your TV Guide to look for this show anytime soon... but you can express your views here on the "Scoop".

Forthright

"The Help" Filming in Greenwood

2010-08-10T19:23:00.005-05:00

Going back...

Based on the beloved New York Times bestselling novel, "The Help," is the story of three extraordinary women in the deep South in 1962. Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but her mother will not be happy until Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid, Constantine, the woman who raised her, but she has disappeared, and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.

Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both hearts may be broken. Minny, Aibileen's best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody's business, but she can't mind her tongue, so she's lost yet another job.

Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new boss has secrets of her own. Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and their times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.

Emma Stone	...	Eugenia 'Skeeter' Phelan
Bryce Dallas Howard	...	Hilly Holbrook
Mike Vogel	...	Johnny Foote
Allison Janney	...	Eugenia's Mom
Jessica Chastain	...	Celia Foote
Sissy Spacek	...	Missus Walters
Anna Camp	...	Jolene French
Viola Davis	...	Aibileen Clark
Chris Lowell	...	Stuart Whitworth
Octavia Spencer	...	Minny Jackson
Ahna O'Reilly	...	Elizabeth Leefolt
Brian Kerwin	...	Robert Phelan
Aunjanue Ellis	...	Yule Mae
Cicely Tyson	...	Constantine Jefferson
Leslie Jordan	...	Mr. Blackly
Harriet Sansom Harris	...	Grace Higginbotham
Roslyn Ruff	...	Pascagoula
Wes Chatham	...	Carlton Phelan
Tiffany Brouwer	...	Rebecca
Tarra Riggs	...	Gretchen
Ritchie Montgomery	...	Bus Driver
La Chanze	...	Rachel Jefferson
Carol Sutton	...	Cora

If you haven't read this book, you should. There is something in it for everyone, regardless of where you were in the 1960's.

This is a major motion picture being filmed in the Delta... and we should be proud! It not only recognizes the literary achievement of Mississippians, but gives us a true snapshot of what life was like in the segregated south.

I was in Greenwood last week and met several of the cast and crew. All were quite delightful and complementary of the Delta. Aside from the 100 degree plus temperatures they were enduring in costume and make-up, they found Greenwood very "charming".

Filming will go on throughout October and the movie will be released in early 2011. This is a very positive happening for the Delta. Some good news at last!

Forthright

Barriers Between Us

2010-06-20T17:48:00.003-05:00

GREENVILLE - The Rev. Frank Hall felt that the Delta Democrat Times’ recent community forum at the Washington County Convention Center, was good for Greenville. However, he was disappointed with the turnout of a segment of the city’s population.

The forum on home invasion was held May 20.

“I felt there should’ve been more African Americans there,” said Hall, pastor of Friendship Missionary Baptist Church. “Many of the crimes that occur in the city, like it or not, happen to African Americans and, like it or not, happen in the African American community. It was disappointing to see the turnout didn’t have more African Americans, especially when you consider that the city is 70 percent African American.”

Because of the poor showing, Hall is hosting a community forum on crime at the church, 322 North Street, June 24, at 6 p.m.

“I want everyone to come out,” said Hall. “And I do mean everyone. It is open to everyone because the crime problem in this city is everyone’s problem.

“I’ve had whites at my church, and they have been welcomed and will most certainly be welcomed at the forum,” he said. “We need to hear from everyone.”

Hall decided to hold the forum because “perhaps people couldn’t get to the convention center for whatever reason,” he said. “By having it in the community, at a community church, we’ll be able to reach those people.

“A lot of good ideas and information was shared at the last forum,” said Hall. “ Many of the people in the African American community should’ve been there to hear what was said.”

If I am not mistaken, this forum was originally scheduled at a local high school. It was subsequently moved because of the concern that the "white" community would not venture into the location of that particular high school.

Now the African American community is claiming low participation at the forum because "people couldn't get to the convention center for whatever reason". I think this speaks volumes about the state of race relations in Greenville.

The truth is, that neither race wants to accept responsibility for what Greenville has become. Sure we can all gather at the convention center (or in a cotton field) to celebrate the blues... because it is the one remaining thing that is marketable about the Delta. The area that was once noted for its culture, art and literary figures is now touted as the "Crime Capitol of the State".

So, how did we get there? Was it "white flight" from integrated schools over the past 30 years, or was it the "entitlement mentality" of reparations that society still owes a great debt? The answer is both! It is quite clear by now that changing the "color" of our local leaders has had no effect on Greenville's spiraling demise.

With the race card out of the way, you have to look at cultural values to define Greenville... and that is where there is a great divide! You can not expect cultures to ever mesh when the two races work so hard to be separate. If the residents of Greenville can not even agree on a common location to discuss the fact that crime is ruining every one's lives, there is little hope left to turn Greenville around.

Forthright

Upping the "Ante"

2010-05-13T17:52:00.006-05:00

If you are one of the lucky Mississippians who is required by law to contribute to "PERS" (Public Employees' Retirement System), your contribution is going up from 7.25% to 9.00% on July 1, 2010. On a salary of $30,000 per year, that translates into an additional $525 per year that comes out of your check.

Of course the reason for this increase is because the state of Mississippi is essentially "broke" and can't afford to pay those who are currently drawing state retirement. So, if you are ten years away from retirement... does PERS sound like a wise investment to you?

Anyone who works for the State (teachers and civil servants) knows that Mississippi salaries are among the lowest in the country. A 1.75% decrease in take-home pay is a significant hit to these employees, who have no option but to contribute to PERS.

In the private sector, where salaries are significantly higher, most employees can't afford to contribute more than 5% to an IRA or 401K... but at least they have the choice. The vesting schedule for the state is now 8 years! That's a long time to keep a job in a state that is essentially "broke".

Hold on employers... before you start smiling, YOUR contribution is also going up from 12.00% to 13.56%. However, because our Governor was worried about the economic "impact" this would have in our state, employers' rates won't go up until 2012. (It seems pretty clear that Haley is not too concerned about the "little" people.)

The legislature passed a number of other bills that restrict the benefits of PERS. If you are near retirement, you may want to check them out at www.pers.state.ms.us. It is always good to know what you won't be getting in the future!

Forthright

Health Care or Your Job?

2010-04-11T15:37:00.006-05:00

A reader comments:

I know that many Americans are "giddy" over the passage of the president's health care bill. As an employer, I can tell you that my peers and I are anything but excited. All we can see is that we are now going to have an additional expense and liability regarding people that we hire.

Thus, what those who are employees need to understand is that they may well have health coverage, but there is a very good chance that they will not have a job.

In most businesses the three most expensive things to deal with are inventory, taxes and people. Very candidly, in most businesses people are the greatest expense; therefore, when one is trying to curtail costs, people are the first expense to go. Many of my peers will spend the next several months figuring out how to begin downsizing ether through eliminating jobs that are not essential, or not replacing workers who leave because of attrition.

Employers also don't know what the playing field is yet, only that we now have an additional expense. The president's jobs bill is less than no incentive; thus, it will make absolutely no difference in the unemployment rate going down in the future.

So, please remain giddy that we have now surrendered one-seventh of the U.S. economy to the federal government. Keep in mind that the federal government runs the Veterans Administration, Medicare, Medicaid and the bulk of the U.S. rail service. Coincidentally, all of them are broke and can't pay their bills.

H. Barnes

Some large employers may consider lay-offs in dealing with the new health care reform bill, but the Delta has few large employers. A more realistic threat is that employers may decide to pay the $175 fine per employee for NOT offering health care and let the employees go find their own.

If you currently have employer funded health care, you know that it costs your employer significantly more than $175 to provide you with health coverage. Actually, other than salaries, it is the second largest expense that employers currently face.

Insurance costs will continue to rise for all of us, including employers. You can't add 750,000 people to Mississippi's insured roll without someone having to pay for it... and that will continue to be the taxpayers!

These newly insured will continue to use our hospital ERs like primary care clinics, running up exorbitant bills for their convenience. ER Docs in this state are already practicing "defensive" medicine by over utilization of expensive tests and procedures to keep them out of our "Jackpot Justice" courtrooms. Insurance costs for the newly covered will continue to be passed on to those currently insured (just as it has been for the past 75 years!)

Will we have enough primary care physicians? No. There are currently so many disincentives for doctors to practice in Mississippi that taxing the system further will only add to that list. We didn't need health care reform, we need "system" reform! Clean up the waste and abuses in our Medicaid system; quit paying people to invent "disabilities" that don't exist; stop those who have made welfare a "way of life" as an option to employment!

Once again, in our democratic rush to "fix" something, we have missed the mark. Nothing in this reform package does anything about stopping the waste and abuse in our system; nothing addresses the spiraling costs of pharmaceuticals or hospital stays.

In essence, we have "fixed" nothing that was broken! All this reform bill will do is increase the current costs of health care, while reducing its availability and quality. We should all be proud.

Forthright

The Next Great Hospital...

2010-03-13T17:27:00.009-06:00

Take off those blinders!

All that has been said it absolutely true! He was ran out of Hattiesburg, for misappropriations of funds. The Doctors were not getting paid! He was out of work for nearly two years before Greenville Board of DRMC hired him. I personally saw his resume online and when trying to make people aware, it was mysteriously removed.

The DRMC Board did not connect the dots to the time line of when he left and how long he had been out of work or apparently care to investigate why!

The man is insane. I personally had a conference with him in 2005 in complaints of patient care for my loved one. During this conversation, he told me all about his dreams of a third hospital. I looked at him like he had three heads. DRMC had only months before purchased KD and had all; but vacated it with bare minimum staff left behind. When I asked him why he wanted this and what his intentions were to do with DRMC building, if it were to happen, his response was to "rent" it out!! He has two vacant hospitals and built a third and he thinks that someone, some business, would want to rent one or either of them??? For what??? He said the new hospital was needed because the old one did not meet code!!!!!

I responded, "First, we, Greenville, can not afford a new hospital bill on our taxes, if the old one doesn't meet code, then why all the remodels, year after year, for as far back as I can remember. If it doesn't meet code that is the your fault and the Board's faults for wasting money all these many, many years!!!"

Then I explained that if his goal was accomplished, as was happening to the KD area as we spoke, businesses would close, the abandoned hospital would be an albatross and those who now live around the hospital for the convenience and "free" medical care would have to move to south Greenville. Those moves would close more businesses in the neighborhood, the Health Dept. would move and all of the clinics would either shut down or move.

He did not care about any of that, just his mission to build this hospital in south Greenville. Already money has been spent in anticipation of this move and now he is leaving town????

What happened? No kickbacks coming through?? Funny business with the funding?? There must be a BIG reason for this action, cause he has been working on this for all these years. Makes no sense for him to walk away now.....unless....hmmmmm...very interesting! Time will tell what the real reason is. Either way, as a citizen and potential patient, glad to see him go. I just hope his pockets are not lined with our dollars as he goes!

9:28 PM

Anonymous said...

Ok, board of supervisors...now it's time to start cutting the extra top heavy management team Ray has compiled during his reign. I say take the senior leadership team and get rid of all of them except for Mr. Phillips. Does Meridian need a new human resource director? We all hope!!! Wonder what Allyson Williams is thinking about Ray's exit? And for the writer who thinks Ray has done an "extraordinary job", you must be on his 6 figure payroll ledger.

Get a grip and join the rest of us who actually work and care for patients all day. This is a good day, lots of smiles at DRMC after the news was out!

Well, it looks like the votes are in... and there won't be a big "going-away" party for Ray-Ray. Personally, I view this as a very positive change for Greenville and DRMC. As I previously predicted back in 2005, Ray's empire has finally crumbled... and yes, an immediate outside audit is what the public should demand! As one contributor stated... "Nobody leaves a good job."

According to Ray, he is going to Meridian to be near his mother who is in a nursing home. Commendable if it is true, but Greenville also has nursing homes. It seems a rather drastic move for such a dedicated servant of the people.

As for the anonymity of Scoop writers, I can assure you it is very much intact, as is the first Amendment of the Constitution. Years ago, I received letters from Ray and DRMC attorneys threatening to sue the Delta Scoop for derogatory comments being made about Ray.

The problem then, as it is today, is that not even Ray could find out who hosted this blog... nor the identities of those who contributed. Sure, he threatened all DRMC employees with termination if they read, discussed, contributed or even mentioned the "Delta Scoop" at work. This was the action of a paranoid dictator whose world was being gradually destroyed... by the truth!

In fairness to all readers, I offer the following post:

Regardless of what you think; Ray Humphreys is a fine man. While his "vision" may not be justified by some or many on here, 11:34 is correct in saying that the grass is not always greener. I do not know him personally, but have met him; unlike 9:28 said I had a very productive meeting with Ray about a family member complaint. He was very sincere regarding our issue and made sure that it was attended to. He didn't mention anything about the new hospital or what he was planning. He just simply took care of our complaint and I've never had better service. To each his own, but I for one just hope that the next guy or gal is as attentive as he was with me. I wish him the best.

No, you obviously do no know Ray personally, but we will all miss Ray when he is gone. He alone generated the greatest readership and response that the Delta Scoop has ever experienced! Other than Heather, who is running a close second, Ray still takes the "Gold"... (pun intended!) Time will tell...

Forthright

Humphreys Resigns!

2010-03-12T17:21:00.002-06:00

According to the local news, Ray Humphreys is resigning from DRMC. No details have been released yet. Let's follow this story as it breaks...

Forthright

Why Ask, Why Tell?

2010-02-28T19:32:00.009-06:00

The gay rights debate and in particular the controversy over “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” has reached the boiling point.

In his State of the Union speech, President Obama repeated a promise he made during his campaign to dismantle the military’s current policy allowing gay men and lesbians to serve their country only if they don’t reveal their sexual orientation to anyone. The president — like many people today — apparently realizes that trying to hide such an intrinsic part of someone’s life is next to impossible, particularly when military officials are attempting to flush the information out in the open so they can discharge gay personnel.

In response to the president’s declaration, opponents of repealing the policy are battling to persuade the public it would be unwise. The centerpiece of their argument is that it is not a good time for the policy to be repealed when the country is at war, even though polls show that most Americans today support the planned repeal. Opponents claim it would be “divisive.” undermining the morale of the military.

“Put this on the back burner,” the opponents say. “Don’t selfishly sacrifice the country’s security to accomplish your goals of equality.”

In response, gay rights leaders and supporters of repealing the policy reply that opponents are attempting to stall the inevitable by creating a smokescreen. They respond that more than ever before, the country’s military needs every able-bodied individual on board who is willing to risk a life for the country.“The time has come,” they say. “We’ve waited long enough.”

The truth is that gay men and lesbians have always served in the military, and it generally did not cause a problem until the self-righteous decided to make an issue of it — either by tormenting them with verbal and physical attacks or trying to run them out of the service through legal channels.

Conservative commentators argue that sexual orientation should not be a legally-protected class in discrimination law because it is different from being black, or Jewish or female. That’s true. It is different, no matter whether you believe homosexuality is a matter of choice or of genetics.

But there are no differences between the motives of people who would discriminate or physically attack someone because of their race, religion or sex, than from those who discriminate against gay men and lesbians. They are attempting to suppress another group of people because they are different from them.

The bottom line is that gay men and lesbians are a well-established community in our society, and the trend is toward greater acceptance in the military and everywhere else — no matter how hard that will be for some.

Well, here is a new topic! Who among us does not know someone who is gay or lesbian... most likely someone in our own extended family! In our current society, we boast about being non-discriminatory about all issues of race, gender, religion, ethnicity, etc. But, how do we really feel about homosexuality?

For those of you who still consider it an individuals free "choice", please leave this blog and search for a Billy Graham re-run on TV.

To those who understand the actual issues involved in this "genetically predisposed lifestyle", let's talk.

Dismissing the bible-thumping BS that is taught in organized religions, personally, we all know gay and lesbian people who are good and talented friends. Who could possibly believe that a human being would wake up one day and say, "Damn, I don't have enough stress, drama and hardship in my life, I think I will turn GAY"?

The truth is that if we can obliterate the "N" word, the "Q" word should be next. Quit judging people by whom they love or how they live... focus on the psychopaths, sociopaths and evil people in our society... those who are totally against our cultural mores... and their numbers are enormous!

Let's hear from some of you who have gay/lesbian family members or friends. How do you feel about them... or judge them?

Forthright

What's the Scoop Delta?

2010-02-23T20:13:00.006-06:00

Okay Delta... let's move on! This blog depends on its contributors to provide a "scoop" that can be discussed... your opinions, compliments or complaints about local issues. Sometimes we get a bit "blogged down" on one issue so we need to move on!

Someone give us new fodder for discussion. I need a new "front page" and I know there are many issues in Greenville and the Delta that need to be debated.

This is a great format for discussion and debate. Tell me your issues and I will put you on the front page!

Forthright

Separate, but "Unequal"

2010-01-26T19:49:00.008-06:00

GREENVILLE — A rally is planned for 10 a.m. Thursday in the rotunda of the state Capitol to protest two controversial bills calling for the merger of Mississippi Valley State University and Alcorn State from merging with Jackson State.

At a town meeting Sunday at the Elks Lodge, 1818 East Alexander St., State Senators David Jordan and Willie Simmons and state Rep. John Hines and Historically Black Colleges and Universities alliance chairman Othor Cain called for the rally.

“It’s time that we show up and show support for our historically black schools,” said Cain. “If we don’t, then we have no one to blame but ourselves. We can’t sit back and not do anything to prevent this from happening.”Recently, Jackson State University President Dr. Ronald Mason, Jr. has voiced approval of the merger. He reportedly cited Hines as one of his backers but the District 50 representative said that is not true.

“I don’t know where he came up with that, but I want to make this perfectly clear so that everyone will understand,” said Hines. “In no way do I support this merger. I have met with Dr. Mason, and we have talked, but never have I voiced being in agreement with him on this.”

Jordan and Simmons talked about past struggles and victories during the Civil Rights Era. They feel the time for protesting has returned.

“I’m willing to do whatever it takes,” said the fiery Jordan, who received a standing ovation during his address before the packed audience. “We’ve been through this before. We know what to do.”

Simmons says the problem is not the schools but inadequate government funding. “They would never think about merging Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Southern Miss so why should they consider merging Jackson State, Alcorn and Valley? Those three schools have a tradition and a need.

“The problem has been that Jackson State, Alcorn and Valley haven’t received the funding that the other three have. That needs to change.”

Maybe the problem is that these schools are "degree factories" which are cranking out illiterate graduates by the hundreds? I have a problem with "black", "white", or "women's" colleges in the 21st century!

I personally know several people who teach at the Valley and JSU . They all state that these "black" schools have very low standards and expectations. Basically, they sell "degrees" to improve the socio-economic status of their students. The English language is optional to most graduates, who expect a "degree" after completing (paying for) so many hours.

These schools do a disservice to their students.... a "degreed" idiot is still an idiot in our competitive work world. Skills and performance will get you a job these days... not a worthless diploma that only proves that your checks cleared!

Forthright

New Restaurant!

2010-01-12T19:55:00.010-06:00

Okay, enough with the racial rants and raves! I hear a bit of good news for Greenville. The former Fermo's Restaurant will soon be re-opened by another party. They have much restaurant experience and plan to bring it back to its once noted venue!

Greenville has a lot of opportunity for new and experienced entrepreneurs! Sure it is a bit gamble, but so is life. I wish them well as all of Greenville should do also. The economy is difficult and Greeville is a "hard" market! I hear the opening will be in April. Get out and support these new owners' efforts... or shut up and keep waiting in the "drive-thru" lanes!

PS... Scammers, get off of this website... I will delete you every day!

Forthright

2010: Time for a Change!

2009-12-26T18:02:00.009-06:00

Transplanted Midwesterner said...

I don't feel like the amount of property tax is really the issue here. The value and return those dollars fail to generate should be the focus of our ire, not the actual dollar amounts. I did a little research and found that the Mississippi Delta counties containing larger towns (Washington, Bolivar, Coahoma, Sunflower, and Leflore) do tend to have higher tax rates in comparison to other Mississippi counties. Tunica County is the exception, but I think we all know why. Yazoo County is a little lower as well, and I haven't quite figured that one out.

Nevertheless, the "high" tax rates in these Mississippi Delta counties pale in comparison to many across the country. I checked my native county in the Midwest, and its tax rate is just shy of double that of Washington County. However, they have usable roads, storm sewers that function, an effective police force and sheriff's deputies, and a variety of city and county services that bring value into the equation.

Herein lies the problem with property taxes in Greenville and Washington County, the value proposition is just not there. The tax issues are most certainly enhanced by the ineptitude of our local leaders and a huge disparity of wealth found in the county, and I really don't have a hard line solution for these problems. As has been discussed in this forum ad nauseum, the entitlement masses far outweigh the taxpaying minority when it comes to the polls.

I don't have a smooth segue into this next point but here goes. In my mind, the major problem in Greenville can be summarized into a relatively simple statement. Greenville is a micropolitan area with metropolitan problems. Based on Greenville's small size and rural nature, we have a limited ability to generate the funds needed to offset the costs of the more traditionally urban problems and programs that are needed to provide for all of its residents. Granted, the state and federal governments provide the lion's share of the funds required to support the personal needs our impoverished masses, but there is still a sizeable load to bear for the local government.

Think about the cost of infrastructure maintenance alone for those areas of Greenville that do not generate or generate a minimum number of tax dollars.

Obviously, the lack of industry in Greenville is at the root of the issue for generating tax dollars. Individuals and retail businesses can only be taxed to a certain point before they flee or close their doors, respectively. We have read many times on the Delta Scoop about people pining for our local officials to "bring in" industry. In my mind, this is no different than the welfare mentality criticized by those same individuals that want an industry "brought in."

What we need to do is build industry in Greenville. We need to utilize what resources we have, however minimal, to their fullest potential. The biggest example of this, likely, is the port of Greenville. Hopefully, the forthcoming expansions of the port are a step in the right direction for the port and Greenville.

I often hear people in Greenville state that the biggest problem in Greenville is a lack of jobs. I have to disagree. Gone are the days of unskilled and semi-skilled labor in the United States being overcompensated for their toils. Unskilled and semi-skilled labor is largely what Greenville can provide, as can China, Mexico, India, and a host of other Asian and Central American countries. We simply cannot be competitive in the global marketplace due to our higher cost of living and their willingness to use suspect governmental and business tactics.

The problem for Greenville, in my mind, is a lack of businesses and/or industry that can generate tax dollars for Greenville’s coffers. These businesses do not have to employ scores of people to generate the dollars needed to make progress toward the ultimate goal of a better Greenville. As far as I’m concerned, there are few basic tenets that can be applied to building industry in Greenville:

1. Scalability – We need to be building businesses that can employ 3-5 people, then maybe 30-50, and ultimately 300-500.

2. Independence – We need an industry not connected to those already prevalent in the Delta. Specifically, we are talking about businesses not solely dependent on agriculture, aquaculture, or forestry. These types of industry are already present in the Delta and would easily be transplanted into Greenville as other industry begins to take a foothold.

3. Minimal start-up cost – The matter of fact is that it’s a lot easier to get someone or some entity to invest $500,000 in an enterprise than $5,000,000.Of course, the best laid plans can be thrown out the window when personal responsibility is replaced with entitlement, and that is the first major hurdle we must overcome. If we can find a way to eliminate gettin’ by on the government dole for a large number of our residents, without being called racists, then many other things can fall in place. Any suggestions?

"Transplanted" makes some very valid points about Greenville. Compared to other similar sized communities throughout the country, our taxes are relatively low... but as he also points out, these communities get certain services for their tax dollars, such as roads, sewers, police, garbage pick-up, and education. Here is where Greenville differs. All of these services are "substandard" at best in Greevillie and yet our taxes continue to rise.

Why? Well, in the past 20 years, Greenville has shrunk from a population of almost 55,000 to its current 42,000, and with them went the tax base.

Most residents have lost hope and trust in our leaders! In one fell swoop, Heather broke through the age, gender and race "glass ceilings"; however, today, we are none the better for her pioneering efforts. Have we learned anything from this experience?

"Gettin' by" on the government dole is a way of life in the Delta, proudly transferred from one generation to another. The stereo-typical image of a welfare recipient as being poor, starving and destitute, simply doesn't exist here. The system works to their advantage and they know how to work it well!

We are losing the battle of "Entitlement v. Work" by mere numbers. We all agree that there is corruption and waste at every level of government... so why don't WE do something about it?

How about a bill that limits the number of illegitimate children a person can have that the state will support? How about mandatory monthly drug screens for all public welfare and Medicaid recipients? How about mandatory prison sentences for first time drug and weapon convictions?

Why have we not demanded any of these things? Because, as "Transplanted" states above, we would all be called "racists". We continue to "fold" every time the race card is played, so there is no way we will ever win the game. Until we change the laws that support and promote "Gettin' by" we will continue to pay the price as taxpayers.

Greenville doesn't need another city election. It needs a revolution!

Forthright

Hope for Downtown Greenville

2009-12-14T20:08:00.007-06:00

Just take a look at paducah, ky, startkville, ms. oxford, ms. thomasville, ga., several small cities in North Carolina and many many more small cities I have traveled through have made a big turn around by shutting down building more and more strip malls.

G'ville must stop the movement to the south if we want to begin to grow the downtown area. The city needs to call or visit these places or ones like the cities mentioned above. It works and they can help us to jumpstart our city by learning from them.

It's not by steadily fleeing south but improving the downtown area. Whatever it takes it must be done to save G'ville. The downtown committee and the chamber of commerce need to work together along with the commercial real estate people. They are the first to know who is looking for a place to open a business. They should recommend the downtown area first and foremost. Then have grants and incentives for them so good it would be impossible for them to turn down.

The writer speaks the truth... for most small communities, but the one thing lacking for Greenville is hope. Most residents have totally given up on the belief that our downtown will ever come back. Much of that belief has to do with our downtown's proximity to major crime, drug dealers and the poverty that surrounds it.

Casinos only made it worse by attracting alcoholics and drug users to their "domain". The few establishments that remain are churches, banks, Jim's Cafe and Mr. Nelkin's Greenville Museum, which is a wonderful treasure... that most Greenvillians have probably never seen.

When the Greenville Mall closes, and it will soon, perhaps we will reconsider that we have failed as a "metropolis", but may have hope to once again become a charming community. If it takes three guards on every block of Main and Washington, it will still be cheaper than Mall rent!

Greenville is on life-support... but to abandon the downtown area as our future is simply pulling the plug on our last hope.

Forthright

Say What?

2009-11-30T20:33:00.008-06:00

GREENVILLE — The phones will soon be ringing at one new business, after all, that is its business.

Call Center Outsourcing Solutions, 747 W. Alexander, is scheduled to hold its grand opening 4:30 p.m. Tuesday,

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour is scheduled to be on hand for the ribbon cutting; entertainment will be provided Eden Brent and Mississippi Slim.

“I’m extremely excited,” said Regina Luke, CEO, Call Center Outsourcing Solutions. “It has finally come together after three months of lots of hard work.”Call Center Outsourcing Solutions will be a fully operational call center taking inbound and placing outbound customer service calls. Luke said the business currently holds contracts with 28 Fortune 500 companies.

“We recently went to the Global Outsourcing Expo in New York City and we were the only English speaking call center there,” Luke said. “We had people lined up at our booth wanting to speak with us and to see what we could do for their business.”

One of Luke’s clients is happy to have made the move because according to Luke, the company was losing eight percent of its customers monthly due to language barriers.

“More and more of these jobs are coming back to America because of language barriers,” she said. “Customers get fed up with dealing with someone who they can’t understand, and this is good news for us.”

The call center will open their lines for business with 15 new employees and will add an additional 10 new employees each month until they’re up to 50, said Luke.

“We’ve had to temporarily outsource some of our contracts to other centers because of the delay in being able to open,” Luke said. “But we’re ready now and our business will increase over the next few months and we’re still actively seeking new clients.”

According to Luke, a positive for attracting new clients is that the business is a minority-owned American company, Luke said.

“We’re getting lots of positive feedback from the clients we already have and even potential ones,” she said. “The clients love the fact that we’re in an area that so desperately needs jobs. They like us because we’re an American owned company and that our customer service representatives are native English speakers.”

The public is invited to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Language barriers? I am a native Deltan and I can barely understand our "native" language! "Let me axked you a nudda querstion bout dat"?

Who in the hell is going to use this service? Okay, I get pissed when I call Dell Computer Service center and get someone from India with a heavy accent, but they are generally polite, patient, articulate and educated, so you get the job done.

Physically, this new "business" still looks like a deserted building. "Call Center" is a generic word for everything from credit card scams to porn! They are generally a venue for businesses to disguise their identity from both the customer and the IRS.

Does anyone know what the actual "business" of this call center will be? It's not that I don't trust our city council to have done "due diligence" regarding this enterprise, but as P.T. Barnum once noted... there is one born every second!

Forthright

The Truth Hurts!

2009-11-23T19:00:00.012-06:00

Gov. Haley Barbour didn't just present his annual executive budget Monday: He proposed remaking state government with what he termed "very significant, major, dramatic ways to reduce spending."

"What I propose is to change the way we do a lot of things," he said.

That might be an understatement. His proposals would include:

Merging Mississippi University for Women into Mississippi State University.

Merging Mississippi Valley State University and Alcorn State University into Jackson State University.

Reducing the number of school districts from 152 to about 100 districts.

Closing mental heath crisis centers and four Department of Mental Health facilities.

Cutting state agencies an average 12 percent.

Changing community college governance.

These are just a few of the proposals. Politically, any one of the proposals on Barbour's budget list would create a political firestorm. Proposals to close or merge MUW and Valley in the past left legislators bloodied and bowed. Reducing the number of school districts involves community pride, sports not to mention politics.

But while the proposed cuts are dramatic, the budget situation facing the state is dramatic as well.

Revenue for this fiscal year that began July 1 is $371 million below estimates.

That deficiency for the next budget year is expected to be $715.5 million.
The 2012 budget, which will be written in an election year, will be more difficult, Barbour warns.

For 2012, the gap could grow to $1.2 billion.

The options?

There are no good ones for lawmakers.

It means Barbour's cuts, their own cuts or finding new revenue. New revenue can only come from new taxes or fees, raiding special funds, using all of the state's "rainy-day" funds or a combination of all of those. None is politically popular.

Barbour has done lawmakers a favor by proposing politically unpopular cuts. That could make whatever they do more acceptable. The alumni of schools and other affected constituencies now will begin intense lobbying. But all Mississippians will be affected by this budget.

Lawmakers should not dismiss this executive budget. Some of these proposals - such as school district consolidation - make sense despite the budget problems. But, they also must not allow budget problems to reverse decades of progress in areas of education, health and public services.
Any course taken will be painful. It's time for ideas, innovation and political courage.
The governor's budget offers a starting point.

Like him or not, the Governor's budget is probably very conservative. No one likes to talk about cuts and consolidations, particularly when they directly impact your life and income, but it's time for us to pay the fiddler!

School consolidations are long overdue. Why pay Presidents and Superintendents hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to do what? Consolidate public school districts and universities and get rid of the top heavy administrative costs... we can no longer afford them.

Health care... get ready to pony up also! Mississippi's Crisis Centers have become holding tanks for the few state hospital beds. There will always be a need for inpatient mental health facilities, but most patients could be treated more efficiently at community out-patient facilities. Crisis centers are a luxury that we can no longer afford!

And for those hospitals who feed at the Medicaid trough... guess what, it's dry! Obama-care or not, cost-containment and accountability are the new buzz-words for 2010.

For the last 20 years, Mississippi politicians have spent like drunken sailors, funding pork barrel projects that keep them in office and their "friends" employed. Well, that era is over. With taxpayers and jobs fleeing Mississippi on a daily basis, dark clouds are gathering over that "rainy day" fund that provides us with such false security.

I am not a fan of Haley Barbour, but his figures are correct! The only option we have is to cut spending drastically in this state, or suffer the consequences. There is waste in every public department of this state and most of us know it. In 2010, we will barely keep our heads above water due to millions in stimulus dollars. In 2011, they will remove our "life preservers" and see if we will sink or swim.

If we do not make significant cuts now, we will all be visiting the Titanic!

Forthright

How to Survive a Hospital Stay

2009-11-12T18:37:00.008-06:00

It's not just DRMC...

Hospitals are scary places! If you have ever worked in one, you know this; however, most have not and still regard doctors and nurses as "saints". Nothing could be further from the truth... for the most part, they are overworked, under-educated, stressed out, human beings who have to work in totally unsafe environments called hospitals. Sure, many of them are doing the "best that they can", but when your loved one dies as a result of "preventable medical errors", that is little consolation.

You have probably heard about the frightening number of deadly medical errors that occur in hospitals nationwide. The key to preventing medical errors in hospitals is by being proactive and involved.

We aren't trained to be proactive when it comes to health care. Health care is rapidly changing and everyone needs to be involved in their own care. In many cases, doctors and nurses are "temporary" employees who move from place to place to earn a living. Often, they are thrown into jobs in which they receive no orientation or supervision.... and here's where the problems start.

What you may not know is that you do in fact have control over what happens to you in the hospital. Asserting yourself by asking questions and overseeing your own medical care is now essential. The life you save could be your own.

Nearly a quarter of a million deaths in hospitals nationwide were found to be preventable (The Fifth Annual HealthGrades Patient Safety in American Hospitals Study, 2008). The good news here is the word "preventable".

Here are 12 tips on how to survive a hosptial stay:

1. Enlist a family member or good friend to act as your advocate. Ask this person to show up on a regular basis and get involved to oversee and monitor your care. He or she will act as your eyes and ears while you are in the hospital. More than 150 doctors and nurses I interviewed said this: "Hospital care is in crisis. You must have someone with you at all times in the hospital. Loved ones are patient's best advocates."

2. Get a notebook. Record your daily progress, medication names and dosages, procedures, treatments, and medical professionals names and contact info. Take notes on conversations with doctors and nurses. You can't remember everything that is discussed. You are recovering!

3. To prevent medication mistakes. Medication errors are among the most common medical errors, harming at least 1.5 million people every year (Institute of Medicine). Write down your medications and dosages. List what the medication looks like, the shape and color of any pills, the names on the labels of bottles or IV bags. Create a detailed description as labels and bottles can look alike. Make sure that you recognize the medication when it is administered. If you don't, ask questions. Be assertive. Also make sure your allergies to medications are in your chart. Repeat this information to your primary nurses and physicians.

4. Meeting with your doctors. You want a face-to-face interaction with your doctors not only establish a relationship (doctors see so many patients and you want them to put faces with names) but to get a list of medications, treatments and procedures directly from this medical professional. This way, you can accurately go through a checklist to prevent medical errors. Ask your loved one to join you during doctors' rounds so he or she can also make a list and help you go through your checklist. It's handy to have someone there to ask questions you may have forgotten. Have your notebook handy. Prepare questions ahead of time about the your diagnosis, treatment and prognosis.

5. Establish a relationship with your primary nurse. No other nurse will do. Hospital staff dress alike so make sure you know the registered nurse who is responsible for your daily care. Get personal. Show appreciation to your primary nurse. The more good will you express to this professional, the more attention you will receive. And more attention translates to the probability of fewer errors. Your advocate can ask if he or she can help with your care. This also reinforces involvement on the part of family and friends. Doctors and nurses I interviewed all said that if a patient has involved family members, they will get more attention. Have a loved one bring in a few thank you cards for you. Address them to your primary nurses (a different one at night and during the day and you could have a new nurse every day) with a note from you about how much you appreciate their good care of you.

6. Humanize yourself to your primary nurses and physicians. Think about how many patients these medical professionals see in a year. You want the medical professionals to see you as a human being, not as the "shoulder surgery" in room 209. You want a personal connection. Offer details about yourself, your friends and family, but keep it brief. What do you do for a living? How many children do you have? Do you have animals at home? Ask the nurse or doctor about him or herself. Find common ground.

7. To prevent the spread of hospital-acquired infectious diseases Among the most virulent are MRSA and pneumonia, ask every person who comes in contact with you, including the physicians and nurses, to wash their hands or put on a fresh pair of disposable gloves before touching you. Create a sign that is placed above your bed that says, "Please wash your hands before touching me." Place antibacterial gel next to your hospital bed and ask everyone to use it. If you can arrange for a private room, do. It cuts down on the number of people who travel in and out of your hospital room and decreases the spread of disease.

8. To prevent surgery on the wrong body part. Before you enter the operating room, you or your advocate should ask to see the surgeon to go over your name, birth date, type of surgery, and the correct site on your body to be operated on. If the surgeon is not available, ask to see the anesthesiologist and nurses involved in your case and repeat this same checklist with each one.

9. Holidays, weekends and nights. Medical errors increase at these times. Nurse-to-patient ratios increase and doctors can be away. Ask your advocate to be with you as much as possible or ask them to hire a sitter, companion or private duty nurse to fill in.

10. Ask questions. Many people are afraid to question their nurses and doctors. Don't be. If a medication looks new or different, ask what it is and what it is for. If something seems amiss, or you are surprised by some piece of information such as orders for discharge when you thought you were going to be in the hospital for another two days, ask questions. As long as you are polite and respectful, your request should be met with acceptance. If you don't understand something, ask questions. This is your health and well being we are talking about. Be assertive.

11. Form a Family Advocate Team. If your loved one who acts as your advocate works or is too busy to be with you 24/7, ask that another two to three family members or good friends share shifts to be at your bedside. Keep the notebook in your room and ask that everyone share the task of taking notes and acting as watchdogs.

12. To prevent bed sores. If you've had surgery or if you're recovering from an illness, you may be in bed for a period of time. If you are not turned frequently enough you could develop bed sores. Ask your primary nurse§ or nurse's aid to turn your body often enough to prevent bed sores. Some 503,300 patients admitted to U.S. hospitals in 2006 suffered from a bedsore that developed either before or during their stay, reported by the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

The bottom line is trust no one! If you or your loved one needs around the clock care... you better be willing to provide it, because hospitals can not meet that need. We have no problems questioning our car mechanics, plumbers or home repairmen about their skills and qualifications, so why do we "revere" health care workers?

A competent doctor or nurse will not take offense by your questions and will usually be receptive to your interest. Any health care professional who is evasive, rude or simply refuses to help you understand the disease process is a "red flag" who needs to be immediately reported to hospital administration.

The safest place to be when you are ill... is in your home.

Forthright

Mississippi's Next Great Hospital

2009-11-09T19:29:00.014-06:00

GREENVILLE — Delta Regional Medical Center is outperforming hospitals on both the state and national levels according to Joint Commission reports, Ray Humphreys, the hospital’s chief executive officer told the Washington County Board of Supervisors last week.

He said the hospital’s Joint Commission report was very good. The Joint Commission accredits and certifies more than 17,000 health care organizations nationwide, and its certification is recognized as a symbol of quality that reflects an organization’s commitment to meeting certain performance standards.

“We’ve had a very good year, and we’ve got a lot to be excited about,” said Humphreys. “We’ve seen significant growth in our emergency care and within the heart center.”

There’s been so much growth in those areas that Humphreys referred to it as “booming.” The renovation of the two departments has garnered growth in utilization of the facilities, allowing DRMC to enlist the services of a board-certified emergency physician — there are only nine in the state. In addition, Humphreys said, DRMC ahs received a verbal commitment from a heart surgeon to join the staff of the hospital’s heart center.

“Heart procedures have been increasing and our heart center is outperforming state and national averages with ‘door to balloon’ procedures which is the time a heart patient arrives and to the time they’re being treated for a heart emergency. The average is 90 minutes, and our time at Delta Regional is 59 minutes,” said Humphreys.

July 2010 is the anticipated opening for the Delta’s only neonatal intensive care unit which will provide a high level of intensive care to premature infants. There are currently 11 NICU’s in the state, and Delta Regional has hired a neonatologist to fill this dire need.

“It is unacceptable to have the highest death rate among infants in the state,” Humphreys said. “If Delta Regional doesn’t do it, it wont be done.”

Humphreys too reported that DRMC could see a higher profit on it’s bottom than anticipated. He said the hospital could see approximately $800,000 more than their $3 million estimate for the end of the fiscal year. The final numbers according to Humphreys should be available from the auditors by the end of December.

Atta boy, Ray! Baffle them with BS when you need statistics on your side. The truth is that the "Joint Commission" is an elective, purchased certification that costs the hospital upwards of $40,000 a year. It increases the hospital's reimbursement they recieve from Federal programs and is the equivalent of having a "player's card" in a casino.

Now, if you pay me $40,000 a year to "certify" you as a safe hospital, the chances are good that you will pass! It's like hiring your brother as your home inspector... duh?

Sure, DRMC is doing well! It is the only show in town. The numbers of sick and indigent patients are steadily increasing while taxpayers are fleeing the Delta. Medicaid and the state are broke and we are about to experience Obama-care, which will "level" us all.

So, here we go again Ray! More promises of new services and delusions of grandeur. If DRMC opened a tattoo parlor and bought out all of the competition... that would make DRMC the BEST tattoo parlor in Greenville!

Gotta luv it!

Forthright

If It Walks Like a Duck...

2009-10-31T19:36:00.007-05:00

Dominick Cross of the DDT offers this:

I saw a young man walking down the street recently. He was wearing a T-shirt and shorts and shoes. His T-shirt was un-tucked, much the way I wear my T-shirts. But that’s where our fashion similarities end.

I had to do a double-take because I couldn't’t believe my eyes. Between the bottom of his T-shirt and the top of his shorts was a pair of spindly legs. It was extreme sogginess to be sure; or perhaps a cure for extreme jock itch.

He was also waddling like a duck, or the way a baby walks after he makes a deposit in his diapers. In his defense, though, I’d say that his feet were splayed (with each step, at that!) to prevent his shorts from sliding to his ankles and tripping himself. It’s more of a functionary motion than, say the “Keep on Truckin’” strut, which back in the day, was all form over function.

But the main reason he walked that way is he did not slyly utilize either of his hands to hold the shorts in place. When one’s pants have not a belt, or the appearance thereof, it is proper saggy etiquette to hold up the article of clothing seemingly succumbing to gravity as inconspicuously as possible.

Not this guy. His arms just swung at his side during his effort-ridden attempt at a casual stroll as daylight peeped between his shirt and shorts. It’s difficult to walk with your shorts around your thighs. Really, I felt sorry for the guy. Trying so hard to look cool, yet failing miserably. Unless, the innate struggle to keep covered while sagging is part of the fashion statement’s statement.

I’m very well aware the saggy look is simply a style of some sort. Still, like mood rings, tube tops and Kriss Kross, I just don’t get it. Ok, I got tube tops.Still, I do not think there should be a law to address the saggy situation because I believe you can’t legislate fashion, or willful ignorance of common sense when it comes to dress. Heck, I’m all for mini-skirts and revealing blouses — preferably at the same time.

Anyway, I really couldn’t care less if sagging is based on the dubious rumor of jailhouse attire. No matter where the style came from, quite frankly, it’s utterly ridiculous. I mean, has anyone, like say these guys’ girlfriends, told their guys just how absolutely goofy they look waddling down the street?

Part of me wants to warn these young men that, like over-sized bell bottoms and platform shoes in the days of yore, that one day they’ll realize, too, just how absolutely dim-witted they look. I know, I sound like my dad.

However, despite myself and in an effort to understand, I tried on this post-pubescent fashion statement in the privacy of my own home. My pants on the down low, I walked to and fro, with and without a sly hand. I found it uncomfortable and totally inconvenient. It reminded me of trying to get to the phone (before cell phones) when otherwise preoccupied.

But I did feel a certain swagger as I reached for my cell phone in one pocket and car keys in the other, both relocated around my knees.

I think that everyone in the Delta has observed this "fashion statement" with equal curiosity and disdain. Purple hair...okay, pierced everything... sure it's a statement about your individuality, but who the hell wants to see your underwear?

I too, have observed the"duck-walk" among these fashion-plates in a usually unsuccessful attempt to keep their pants from eventually falling to their ankles. Recently, a young man entered my place of business to request a job application. As he bent over to sign-in, his pants dropped to his ankles. Undisturbed, he continued to sign-in before readjusting his trousers.

How do these buffoons not realize how stupid they look...walking around in public holding their groins in an attempt to keep their pants up? Okay, perhaps it is intended to make a statement about themselves? Well, it does and the statement is, "I am a moron!

Greenville is full of "ghetto-fabulous" citizens who want to make statements, from their custom painted "whoopee-rides" to their stereos blaring obscenities in public places... from their $150 nail jobs clutching EBT cards, to their cultural house color palettes announcing their arrival in your neighborhood!

I am not a fan of stereotypes, but we have all witnessed this fashion faux pas throughout the Delta and it is hard for me to believe that the participants want to be anything other than members of the "gang"!

Forthright

It's a SNAP!

2009-10-27T18:52:00.010-05:00

Clarion Ledger:

Mary Loyd of Hinds County and Sheretta Johnson and Jacqueline Smith, both of Washington County, have pleaded guilty to food stamp fraud and must pay combined restitution of more than $33,000, the state Department of Human Services announced today.

Special Hinds County Circuit Judge Breland Hilburn ordered her to pay $26,290 in restitution, according to a news release from DHS. Her guilty plea is being withheld until she completes three years of supervised probation. She is disqualified from receiving benefits for 12 months from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as the food stamp program.

A Hinds County grand jury indicted her on felony fraud in the SNAP, and the Hinds County Sheriff’s Department with help from DHS’ Office of Fraud Investigations arrested her.

Johnson and Smith pleaded guilty Oct. 20, in Washington County Justice Court. Judge Laverne Holmes Carter ordered Johnson to pay $3,166 in restitution and fines and Smith to pay $3,909. Both are disqualified from the SNAP program for 12 months.

Ouch! Disqualified for food stamps for 12 months... now that really hurts! These poor women will have to fake disability claims to offset that kind of punishment. And, they have to pay back over $33,000 to DHS? Now I know DHS will be waiting by the mailbox each month for those checks to roll in.

No wonder food stamp fraud is a "SNAP"! These people should be barred from every state and federal welfare program for life! They have admitted to being "criminals", so why do we think 3 years of "supervised probation" is going to change them? DHS (taxpayers) will never see a penny of restitution and in 12 short months, these gals will be back on the gravy train.

We are not a country of bad people... just bad laws. Like looters during Katrina, these are people who make a mockery of our system of democracy and take advantage of every one who pays taxes. They think of no one but themselves and what they can get from our "system".

THEY are the reason Mississippi is broke. Their entitlement mentality makes them believe that these crimes are not "stealing", because "everyone" does it... or at least everyone "they" know.

So, what will these criminals have learned about welfare fraud from their 12 month slap-on-the-wrist? Simple... be more careful the next time!

Forthright

Everyone Bond Together (EBT)

2009-10-19T19:13:00.009-05:00

Anonymous says...

The only restrictions for food stamp recipients is they they can only buy human food items and no alcohol. That means that they can buy prime rib or junk food; they can buy anything considered human food... and if you have a pet, just purchase "human food" to feed them. (Pets don't complain or report.)

You can't buy toilet paper or soap with your EBT (electronic bank transfer) card, but you can buy all the soda, junk food and chips your buggy will hold. If you need alcohol, illegal drugs, clothes or anything else, you have to find an EBT broker, which will provide you cash... and it is not difficult to find a broker in the Delta.

The "broker" will give you $80 cash for your EBT pin number and your card... they in turn charge $100 on your EBT card (for legitimate food purchases, which they then sell for a nice profit).BINGO! You get the Government to pay for your alcohol, drugs, or whatever and no one is ever the wiser!

The EBT broker makes 20% profit from you and then turns around and sells the food purchases for yet another profit!!!Gotta luv it! So, how do you find an EBT broker? Check with your local pastor, or friend who works at Wal-Mart. They all know how the system works and can find you a broker within minutes. After all, it's not stealing, it's just reparations for when you were a slave.

Just like our SS disability system, food stamps can become a nice second income if you know how to work it. Personally, I know a woman who "brokers" 26 different EBT card "customers"... she just bought a 2009 Escalade and has three children enrolled at the Valley. She too is on "welfare" and has her own EBT card. She told me she doesn't even need her card, because of all the food she gets from her "business"

.So... you can't get rich on Welfare?

Sure you can because the government thinks that everyone on welfare is stupid! Yea, stupid like a fox!

We are the stupid ones for allowing this to go on. Every cop, the Mayor and city council person knows about this scam... and do nothing.

Hell, it's not rocket science, it's just big business for the "entitled". My "broker" friend makes twice what I do in my job of 13 years.

Maybe I need to reconsider my career options.

As disconcerting as this information is, there is documented evidence in Greenville's very own police station that this kind of "scam" is quite prevalent throughout the Delta. The state switched to the EBT card in an effort to curb some of the "food stamp" fraud that was rampant, but as this author states, welfare recipients are not stupid!

Any "system" can be beat, but Mississippi just makes it easier than other states. One way to combat the above scenario would be to simply require photo ID for any EBT card purchase? If you write a check, they want to see ID; if you use a credit card, they want to see ID... but if you use an EBT card and know the pin... you are home free!

Aaahhhh, but this would be an invasion of their privacy (like asking for ID when you vote), so, it will never happen. At ALL costs, we must protect the privacy and dignity of our welfare recipients! If they choose to buy alcohol and crack with YOUR tax dollars, what the hell... aren't they entitled to the same "freedoms" as taxpayers?

Okay, back to reality...

Like any good thing, we have taken "freedom" to a point which is about to consume our lives as Americans. Because the majority of prisoners at Parchman is black, we pretend to ignore it; because the majority of crime in Greenville is committed by blacks, we overlook it; and because we are totally afraid of "appearing" racist in requiring TRUE equality among our citizens, we permit this kind of welfare fraud to continue, unchecked!

We have become hostages to our "freedoms" and are close to losing sight of the meaning of "equality for all". If you have nothing to hide, why would anyone object to showing proof of their identity... to vote or simply buy food. For cigarettes and beer, we can ask for your ID, but to buy catfish and corn dogs... well, now we have crossed the line!

God protect us from ourselves!

Forthright

Cheers!

2009-10-13T19:44:00.011-05:00

Anonymous says...

I think that anyone that visits this site cares about Gville or they would not be here. I also think that comments whether positive or negative have value to them. We all have our own ideas on how to make Gville a better place to live and that makes most on here correct in what they say. I guess some just express themselves better than others and some are just just so disgusted they want to argue.

Lee Owen just lost his position on council not because of experience or hard work while in office but because of the people wanting a change at city hall. Agree or disagree for Gville to change you must change leadership. Changing leadership means from the top to the bottom and the voters in Lee Owens precinct have sent out that message. Now the question is will voters in the other precincts go to the polls and send out the same message. Like it or not the majority of voters in Lee Owens precinct are majority white, tax paying, working class voters. Will the voters in the precincts that are majority black government assisted voters do the same? Probably not ! WHY ?

They do not care who is elected as long as it does not affect their check ! "FACT" With Greenville being majority black it will never move forward until we get the correct black and white leadership working together at city hall.

To clean up Greenville our elected officials have to first recognize that we do have problems and correct them no matter whose feet you step on.Imagine this ! A drive around Greenville with all property clean and neat, no trash, parks mowed and trimmed, no loud music, no speeding, car insurance, children under age in car seats, handicapped parking spaces being used by the handicapped, no hanging out in vacant lots and in front of a business, police officers that were friendly, a city hall willing to smile and say good morning, a mayor that was available, garbage pick twice a week etc.

These are things that are a beginning to a better Greenville. Oh and clean up the public schools !

These are things that cost very little but are necessary for Gville to even think about jobs and industry back in Gville.

Amen! This blog allows all people to express their opinions... whether positive or negative. I am sure that we all know someone who has left Greenville for "greener" pastures. Some find it and some don't.

What I take from the comments posted here is that most citizens are tired of the current ineptitude of the local government. They are tired of the excuses they are given as to why Greenville is stuck in the last century. They are weary of paying local taxes for nothing and they are devastated by watching their financial investment in Greenville, crumble!

I welcome all comments to this blog. We have finally gotten beyond the fear of "who said what" and into a lively discussion of local issues... which if nothing else, will make us "think" about alternative views of our community.

The underlying message that I interpret from those who have left Greenville is that they loved Greenville, but could no longer tolerate the poverty, ignorance and racism that continues to grow here in the 21st century.

What I love about Greenville is our propensity to unite about matters of little importance, to rally together for the immediate moment, but when faced with a significant challenge, we separately raise our glasses and toast each other!

Forthright

Candidates Announce

2009-09-30T10:38:00.011-05:00

GREENVILLE — With the 2009 Greenville City Council primary elections for Ward 3, 4 and 5 just over a week away, incumbent candidates and their challengers are working to clarify their views for voters.

The Delta Democrat Times talked with each candidate about their backgrounds, accomplishments and reasons for seeking office.

Ward 3: In the Ward 3 Republican primary, longtime incumbent Councilman Lee Owen is being challenged by Carolyn Weathers. Owen, who first moved to Greenville in 1974 to take over as manager of Charles Connerly Shoes, has served continuously on the city council since 1998. The councilman says he initially decided to seek office as a result of his involvement in successfully fighting to create a buffer between neighborhoods in his ward and the U.S. 82 bypass.

According to Owen, one of his proudest accomplishments on the board was facilitating the negotiations over concerns about building the Wal-Mart Supercenter on Mississippi 1. He said he is also proud of being able to keep scheduled street paving and other infrastructure projects online over the past five or six years, regardless of the tough economic circumstances facing the city.

“It is all about being able to deal with the many infrastructure problems that arise in the most productive and affordable way that can be found,” Owen said. “I am a businessman trying to help my community, not a politician. I try very hard to look at the nuts and bolts of how we go about the business of running the city and am very involved with the budget process and funding mechanisms used to finance the projects we need to make our community a better place to live.”

Weathers, who is making her first bid for public office, is a partner in Weather’s Farms, a mother and grandmother, and a volunteer in various projects.She has lived in Greenville for 37 years and said she decided to run this year because she wanted to be a part of moving the city in a more progressive direction. One specific idea Weathers has is using federal stimulus money to hire local contractors for infrastructure work as opposed to spending the funds on changing the color of the city’s water.“I really want to clean things up in the city and make it more accessible for outside visitors,” she said. “I would like to see us become more-consumer friendly for people coming into town and work harder to clean up all the trash and garbage.”

The winner of the Ward 3 Republican primary will face Democrat Lewis Martin in the general election on Dec. 14. Martin has lived in Greenville since 1951. He is a businessman who built and ran Lewis Martin Air Conditioning, the same company his son currently operates.Martin says his primary motivation to seek office is to open up much of decision-making processes to the public.

“I think City Hall has become a closed society to the people of Greenville,” Martin said, “and if I am elected that is what is going to be changed. I don’t have a bone to pick with anybody on the council necessarily, but I do have something against the way they hide things. If elected, whatever I do is going to be an open book. People can come and ask me what is going on and I don’t care who it hurts, I am going to tell them because they have a right to know.”

Ward 4: In the Ward 4 primary, two Democrats - incumbent Betty Watkins and challenger Carzell Akon - will be squaring off Oct. 5. Watkins, who has served on the council since 2004 when she ran to fill the seat of the former Albert Hemphill, has lived in Greenville and Ward 4 all her life.

Watkins spent a 28 year career working as a coordinating nurse for the Washington County Health Department before moving into politics. When asked about her time on the board, the councilwoman said she is especially proud of the renovation improvements and new technology equipment she has helped bring to the Rounds Recreation Center. S

he says she is a strong proponent of ongoing education, and as an example, points out she is a recent graduate of the Mississippi Municipal League.“I have served in this position for five years and believe I am the best qualified for this job,” Watkins said. “Greenville is my hometown and I love it. I desire for Greenville to be a place where anyone can come and live; a safe and well-rounded place where people can come and have activities to take part in and not become bored.

Akon, who is now retired after a 33 year teaching career in the Hollandale School District, has lived in Greenville since 1969. Akon initially made her first bid for the city council four years ago, and says she decided to run again this year out of a desire to bring long overdue changes to many areas of Ward 4.

“I have serious concerns about my community, especially where I live,” says, Akon. “Of course I would like to see a change in the crime rate but my concerns are also on the level of making sure the city is kept up like it should be and improving our streets.”

There is no Republican candidate who has qualified for the Ward 4 general election.

Ward 5: For the Ward 5 primary, incumbent Independent candidate Ann Hollowell is unopposed. A native of Louisiana who has lived in Greenville for more than 30 years, Hollowell will be entering her second term in office. In addition to serving on the city board she works as an account executive at WXVT television.

“There are a lot of things I think we have accomplished since I have been on the board but just working to balance the budget and maintaining the budget is of course a big achievement,” Hollowell said. “It is always a struggle to come up with the money and time to take on infrastructure projects, and every ward is in need of street and sewer projects.”

Okay, some old and some new faces, but who is going to stand up to the Mayor? From recent "Scoop" comments, it is our Mayor who needs to go (meaning leave her job, as opposed to leave "on a trip".)

Greenville needs a very strong leader who is a risk taker and not part of the current political machinery. That person will not be easy to find among the few remaining leaders in Greenville.

Maybe we can elect someone qualified this time... now that all of the "cards" (age, race, gender) have already been played. Perhaps we can find someone with proven leadership who truly has an interest in being the Mayor of Greenville, MS.

This next mayoral election will probably be Greenville's last chance to get it right. Five of my friends moved out of Greenville over the past three months. All were lifelong residents, but simply couldn't continue to watch Greenville fall into utter disgrace.

Forthright

Say It Ain't So, Ray!

2009-09-13T19:04:00.021-05:00

Michael Arthur Newdow (born June 24, 1953) is an American attorney and emergency medicine physician. He is best known for his efforts to have recitations of the current version of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools in the United States declared unconstitutional because of its inclusion of the phrase "under God". He also filed and lost a law suit to stop the invocation prayer at President Bush's second inauguration and, most recently, he filed a lawsuit to prevent references to God and religion from being part of President Obama's inauguration.

Newdow is an

atheist and an ordained minister of the Universal Life Church. In 1997, he started an organization called FACTS (First Amendment Church of True Science), which advocates strong separation of church and state in public institutions.

Personal background:

Newdow grew up in the

Bronx and Teaneck, New Jersey, from where his nominally Jewish family moved in 1960. He graduated from Teaneck High School. He told Brown Alumni Magazine that he can’t remember ever believing in God, saying, "I was born an atheist."

After graduating from high school, Newdow attended Brown University, where he received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology in 1974. He then attended the UCLA medical school, earning his M.D. in 1978. He has worked as an emergency room physician at numerous hospitals, and holds medical licenses in California and five other states.

Newdow later enrolled in the University of Michigan law school, earning a law degree in 1988. He took and passed the bar exam in 2002.

Litigation:

Pledge of Allegiance:

Main article: Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow
Newdow is best known for the lawsuit filed on behalf of his daughter against inclusion of the words "under God" in public schools' recitals of the United States' Pledge of Allegiance. The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit found that the phrase constitutes an endorsement of religion, and therefore violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. However, the decision was later overruled by the U.S. Supreme Court on procedural grounds, citing that Newdow did not have custody of his daughter and therefore did not have the right to bring suit on her behalf, nor did he meet the Court's prudential standing requirements to bring the suit on behalf of himself.

Newdow filed suit again regarding the same issue, but this time on behalf of three unnamed parents and their children. Citing the

precedent set by the Supreme Court in the course of Newdow's previous suit, U.S. District Judge Lawrence Karlton ruled that Newdow did not have standing to bring his lawsuit, but the other plaintiffs did have standing. Based on the previous ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the judge ruled that the pledge is unconstitutional when recited in public schools.

After the 9th circuit decision, Newdow received numerous death threats and other abusive messages on his phone answering machine. His daughter, then eight years old, was living elsewhere for her own safety.

In God We Trust:

In November 2005, Newdow announced he wants to have "In God We Trust" removed from U.S. coins and banknotes. In a November 14, 2005 interview with Fox News's Neil Cavuto, Newdow compared "In God We Trust" appearing on United States currency with racial segregation (specifically separate drinking fountains), saying, "How can you not compare those? What is the difference there? Both of them [whites and blacks] got equal water. They both had access. It was government saying that it's okay to separate out these two people on the basis of race. Here we're saying it's okay to separate two people on the basis of their religious beliefs."

In June 2006, a federal judge rejected this lawsuit, on the grounds that the minted words amount to a secular national slogan, and they do not dictate anyone's beliefs. Newdow stated that he would appeal the ruling.

Although, it should be noted that Aronow v. United States was decided on the same grounds in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the lower court was required to return the same ruling, likewise the Ninth Circuit does not traditionally overrule previous Ninth Circuit rulings.

On December 4, 2007, Mr. Newdow argued before a three judge panel of the Ninth Circuit to remove both "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance (Roe v. Rio Linda Union School District), and "In God We Trust" from US currency.

In a 2006 interview on the day that the United States House of Representatives passed the Pledge Protection Act, Newdow told WERS-FM's David Goodman,[citation needed] "A few hours ago, the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States of America voted 260 to 167 to completely gut the U.S. Constitution of its separation of powers and violate numerous other clauses because they thought it was important enough to keep 'under God' in the Pledge of Allegiance. I don't think people would've done that for our political heritage or anything else. They did it because they want God in their government because it stands for a religious view that they adhere to, and they want to see that religious view espoused by government, which is exactly what the Establishment Clause forbids."

Newdow also filed a lawsuit in

federal court after Franklin Graham gave the invocation at George W. Bush's 2001 inauguration. The lawsuit claimed that inaugural prayer was an unconstitutional endorsement of religion. It also was unsuccessful.

California textbook case:

Newdow also represents California Parents for the Equalization of Educational Materials (CAPEEM), a group that has filed a lawsuit against the officials of California Department of Education and the California State Board of Education. The lawsuit challenges the teaching of biblical events as historical facts and was brought upon by CAPEEM which was formed by Hindu parents in California.

Obama inauguration:

On December 31, 2008, Newdow and 17 other people, plus 10 groups representing atheists, sued Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts and others involved in the inauguration ceremony of Barack Obama. The first count of the suit sought to prevent the Chief Justice from saying "so help me God." The Constitution specifically defines only this single oath of office of 35 words, that do not include these four words.

The Associated Press ran several reports including one picked up by the Washington Post, Yahoo News and many other affiliates that inaccurately stated that the suit was an attempt by atheists to prevent the President from saying "so help me God", while the suit specifically states that the president is not a subject of the injunction, rather it is the Chief Justice.

In addition, in other counts was the demand to end all religious prayer at the inauguration based on the establishment clause of the first amendment, which he had sued to prevent in the two previous inaugurations unsuccessfully.
Federal District Judge Reggie Walton refused to grant Newdow's motion for a preliminary injunction on the basis that he, as a United States District Court Judge, did not feel he had the authority to issue such an order against the Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. He also reasoned that the inclusion of such words is an exercise of the incoming President's right of free speech, although the president's right to express his private prayer in words of his choosing was specifically not challenged in the law suit.

Newdow later reported that he would not challenge the denial of his preliminary injunction motion, but will appeal the case through the appellate court.

Well, it seems that no one is willing to confirm that we have the real Dr. Newdow, but he certainly fits the profile. Ray would hire a three-legged dog if it would help him keep his dynasty alive... even if it goes against all of his bible-thumping beliefs!

But...let's not be to hasty to dismiss Newdow as a qualified ER doc. After all, we do support the separation of church and state and during my most recent visit to an ER, the last thing I was thinking about was the Pledge of Allegiance.

Whether your ER Doc is lesbian, Hindu or Atheist, if you are in crisis, you need a skilled physician to keep you alive, so personal belifes quickly becomes a "non-issue". We are in the 21st century and we need to be more tolerant of political and religious views.

When my heart stops beating, I will forego the interview of the person trying to revive me... in hopes that he/she won't ask me the same questions! At the end of the day we are all mortal beings, subject to the same rules of life and death... and we need to remember that!

Forthright

"Boil the Mayor" Alert?

2009-09-11T20:02:00.008-05:00

Wow! I had minor surgery over the last three weeks, but it pales in light of the "dissection" our mayor has taken on the Scoop! She and Obama seem to be in a race to the bottom for public approval.

On the mend now, I have to catch up with the "calling a spade a spade" political arena... both locally and nationally. Unfortunately, the Med in Memphis does not have wireless Internet, so I have become delinquent in my duties as blog master.

Glad to see the "sparks" becoming "fires" in the Delta... Fall brings both change of season as well as hope.

Forthright

Council Makes Good Decisions

2009-08-29T17:19:00.007-05:00

GREENVILLE — City Council dipped into the general fund and casino gaming revenue and managed to come up with a clearer image Thursday of what next fiscal year’s budget will look like. Thursday’s workshop on the city’s finances was the last before the council hosts a public hearing on the budget 5 p.m. Wednesday.

The vast majority of funds taken from the general fund Thursday went to the Mid-Delta Regional Airport, which at the time the meeting started was $35,000 in the red. That deficit however was a big fiscal improvement for the airport, which was running close to a $267,000 deficit earlier this month, mostly for want of a fire suppression system.

To reduce the deficit, Lane Rodgers, airport director, offered a compromise last week. He suggested putting a “Band-Aid” on the airport’s current fire pumps instead of investing $219,000 in a new system. The patch-up job ran a tab of $30,000, and with other cuts and compromises, the airport’s deficit was significantly reduced.

To eliminate the remaining negative balance, the city took $33,000 from gaming and $2,000 from the general fund. The council also dipped into the general fund for computer technology, granting almost $11,000 to the police department for computer equipment and giving the Information Technology department almost $16,500 for maintenance contracts.

Council took another $18,090 from the general fund to supplement the city’s health insurance plan with Air Evac services. After Councilman Errick Simmons issued a proposal to repair the roof of the Brent Day Care center, council scooped another $5,000 from the general fund for that purpose. The city owns the day care’s building, and Simmons said that when he last visited the center six buckets were dispersed to catch water from a leaking roof throughout the property.

“These are children we are talking about,” Simmons told the council. Although the money won’t be enough to replace the roof, it will suffice to make needed repairs, Public Works Director Brad Jones said. With all the proposed cuts, the general fund cushion will run at about $20,000.

I know how we can save over $300,000 a year... elect a mayor who does not need body guards or an international visa! All of the above expenditures will benefit citizens far more than "Hudson's Horsemen".

I hope we get it right in the next election, because Greenville is spiraling down faster every day!

Forthright

Educational "Reparations"

2009-08-02T17:58:00.010-05:00

GREENVILLE — Have you ever wanted to receive credit for a school course that you failed? At a July 28 meeting of the Greenville Public School District Board of Trustees, a new program, known as the credit recovery policy, was discussed.

The policy would allow students to earn credit for courses they previously failed. Each student is given a preliminary assessment of his or her strengths and weaknesses before mastering the weaker course objectives. After mastery, the student receives credit for the course.

According to the School Board, the credit recovery program can be an effective way of helping students get back on track toward graduation and hopefully encourage students to stay in school.

Dr. Leeson Taylor, deputy superintendent, said the program has been in the works for about seven months. He said he hopes the program prevents kids from being discouraged after failing a course.

“We can’t have kids fall through the cracks,” Taylor said. “We want kids to have every opportunity to be successful. ”

The program comes with specific rules and regulations. Admission to the program requires parental consent and a committee review determining a student’s motivation, aptitude, reading level and need. The program cannot be used to improve GPA. Students cannot be in the program for more than one year and cannot have a grade lower than 50.

Students must complete the program with 80 percent mastery. The credit recovery grade is factored with the original failing grade to obtain the new final grade.

The program is computer based, with content help from trained certified teachers and facilitation provided through non-certified staff.

Thus far, the board has only given the policy a first reading. However, board President Henri Tillmon said the program can be approved after the start of the school year.

Great... another "give-away" program for the ignorant. Is this really an effort to "make our kids successful" or is it just another ruse to divert attention from the the deplorable conditions of our public schools?

Today, education has been watered down so much that basic literacy is no longer a criterion for graduation. And it doesn't stop at high schools. We are cranking out college graduates with Bachelor's and Master's degrees who can barely read, let alone speak in coherent sentences.

In our eternal effort to provide "equality for all", certain educational institutions are now giving away degrees to anyone whose check clears the bank. This kind of travesty makes college degrees all but meaningless in our competitive job market... they are just another "entitlement"... signifying nothing!

Instead of holding public school students accountable for their education, we just keep lowering the bar!

Forthright

...Priceless!

2009-07-22T19:01:00.013-05:00

GREENVILLE — After several phone calls to city officials and two Freedom of Information Act requests, the city refuses to fully disclose how much it spends on security detail for Mayor Heather McTeer Hudson. While the city did respond to the second FOI request, the exact cost of the security detail remains undetermined.

Hudson said she has been receiving death threats since first coming into office in 2004.

Hudson said the Police Department has also provided her with training in gun use and self-defense. “I’ve really had to change my lifestyle, where I go, and what I do in my time, to adjust to these threats,” Hudson said.

Hudson, who is considering a run for lieutenant governor or governor, said overcoming such threats is important for her. As a black political figure, she said she must try to show that she can persevere.

As Hudson’s status as the first black female mayor in Greenville attracted attention, so has the city’s regular use of police officers assigned to protect her. But the issue of how much is spent on the mayor’s security detail comes during an economic crunch.

This year the city has not yet been able to find funds to reopen its only public swimming pool and sales tax revenues are decreasing due to an economic downturn.

The DDT then submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to Wicks’ office, which was denied. In a written response, Wicks said that hours and pay scale for officers were not listed according to what particular divisions the officers served.

The DDT asked if it was possible for Wicks and Patterson to add up the salaries of officers on security detail, and provide a lump-sum figure without disclosing any names. That request was also denied. A second Freedom of Information Act, submitted after the DDT sought legal consultation from the Mississippi Press Association, did however yield some results.In response to the second FOI request, Wicks issued a spreadsheet anonymously detailing the salaries of seven officers who work on the mayor’s security detail.

According o those figures, the city’s combined total expenses for salary, overtime pay, pension and federal withholdings that the city pays for these officers has been close to $200,000 between Oct. 1 and July 16.

At that rate, the city will have paid about $252,000 to these officers by the fiscal year’s end.The figures that Wicks disclosed did not say how much it costs the city to pay for security detail training or travel expenses.

Wicks noted that the $200,000 is not limited to payment for security detail duties, as the officers on Hudson’s detail also perform all other duties required of first class police officers.

Because there are no numbers disclosing which hours are dedicated to security detail and which hours are spent working on regular police duties, the cost of the mayor’s security detail is still very much unclear.

Hudson has argued that any controversy over how much the city spends on bodyguards may stem from the fact that in addition to her security detail there are police officers assigned to protect City Hall.

The latter group of officers, she said, are not personally assigned to her. Rather, she said, they serve to defend the property and personnel of City Hall. One other city pays for bodyguards.

Greenville’s population, according to a 2006 U.S. Census Bureau estimate, is about 37,000. The DDT called cities of comparable size or greater to determine whether they had security details assigned to their mayors.

According to these telephone interviews, Tupelo with a population of 35,000 does not pay for regularly attending mayoral bodyguards. Neither do Meridian, population 38,000; Biloxi, 44,000; Hattiesburg, 50,000; nor Gulfport, 64,000.

Although officials in Hattiesburg said the city does not provide an ongoing security detail for Mayor Johnny Dupree, who is black, they did say that security details are provided in cases where Dupree receives threats.

The only Mississippi city of comparable size or greater than Greenville that regularly assigns security detail to its mayor is the state capital, Jackson, whose population of 176,000 is more than five times that of Greenville’s. Jackson, however, has a violent crime rate of 86 per 10,000 population, which is nearly 2.5 times higher than Greenville’s.

During Hudson’s early years in office, however, the crime rate was much higher here. According to a Uniform Crime Rate report from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in 2004 Greenville’s crime rate was 62 per 10,000 population, while the violent crime rate today is at 36 per population of 10,000.

It is in this earlier, high-crime atmosphere that Hudson said she and City Hall in general first began receiving threats.

It is hard to believe that Mayor Hudson is the most targeted victim of crime in Greenville. If incompetence and apathy were factors in being "targeted", she should be about 15th in line!

Ego, paranoia and "Daddy" are the driving factors behind this incredible waste of money. Murders in Greenville are rarely racially motivated. They are primarily black on black and drug related.

So, why in a majority black city, run by a majority black leadership, should we have to pony up $200,000 a year to "protect" a black mayor?

I would bet that for $200 grand we could have an indoor, Olympic size, heated swimming pool, with security... in case the mayor wished to visit.

I think that race should be a non-issue with regard to whom we elect as mayor in Greenville; however, a price-tag of $200,000 a year for security, might be a factor we need to consider in the next election.

Perhaps, we just can't afford Mayor Hudson...

Forthright

Another One Bites the Dust!

2009-07-15T19:17:00.011-05:00

GREENVILLE — A historical landmark was demolished Tuesday.The Finlay House, once the oldest residence in Greenville, is now a pile of rubble, drawing rage from the house’s previous owner and criticism from the Washington County Greenville Joint Historical Preservation Commission.

Walley Morse, the commission’s secretary, called the demolition of the house at 137 N. Poplar St. shameful.“It is a trend that has been going along in Greenville for a long time,” he said. “It’s such a shame to be seeing those great old buildings being torn down for proposed future development that never gets done.”

The Finlay House was the property of the South Delta Regional Housing Authority, which purchased the house from Hank Burdine, of Greenville.

A local construction contractor, Burdine said he not only lived in it, but spent years renovating the home, trying to keep its post-civil war and Italian-styled architecture preserved.

SDRHA Executive Director Ann Jefferson said her organization had the house demolished because of complaints of vandalism and crime that the run-down building was attracting.

Jefferson added that SDRHA was issued a permit from the city of Greenville to destroy the house.“If the house was a historical landmark,” Jefferson said, “Do you think the city of Greenville would have issued us a permit? This doesn’t make any sense. If it was a historical landmark, wouldn’t the city of Greenville have known about it?”

Calls to the city of Greenville’s Permits and Planning Department were directed to the department’s director, Carlon Williams, who was not in.

But a quick Internet search does reveal the Finlay House to be listed on the National Register of Historical Houses. Benjy Nelken, curator of the Greenville History Museum, said he believes the house dated back to the 1870s.The prominent Finlay family of Greenville, who owned several drugstores in Greenville for many years, lived in the house and owned it at a Shelby Street location.

The house, Nelken said, became apartments in the 1950s, with tenants renting the upstairs and the downstairs as separate units. The house was sold to SRDHA by Burdine, who himself purchased the house to save it from demolition and moved it to the Poplar Street location.

Burdine said he sold the house to the SDRHA because he believed that SDRHA would make sure the house was properly maintained.

“I said to myself, ‘Here is an organization that has the wherewithal and the integrity — and I emphasized integrity — to keep it going.” But he said in the 1990s he noticed the house was deteriorating. Subsequently, he helped the SDRHA find several people who were willing to purchase the house. But they were all turned down.

Burdine said three weeks ago he noticed that workers had boarded up the house and that dumpster trucks were parked close to it.“I told those workers that if they don’t restore this house, if the allow it to fall, it would have a better faith burning down,” Burdine said. “They took a piece of my heart with that house.”

Jefferson said no one has ever approached her during her 2-year stint at SDRHA to buy the house. “We were willing to give it away and couldn’t,” Jefferson said.

Another prime example of why Greenville is dying... we have no respect for our history. Throughout the Delta, towns are trying to preserve their history and capitalize on a bygone era, but NOT Greenville!

The statement that Jefferson made about not being able to give it away, certainly rings true. The sad reality is that if you have a house anywhere in Greenville that you are trying to sell, you are in trouble.

Forthright

Haley Barbour: No Friend to Health Care

2009-07-11T16:30:00.012-05:00

Mental health services slashed by Barbour veto:

Clarksdale’s Region I Mental Health Center received news July 1 that may literally cut it off at its knees and cause serious problems for the four counties its serves and its 3,000 mental health clients.

Governor Haley Barbour vetoed a bill passed by the Mississippi House and Senate to fund the state’s regional mental health facilities, leaving them without the $29 million matching funds to run the facilities.

According to Karen Corley, interim director of the Regional I Mental Health Center in Clarksdale, this is devastating news and could possibly mean a shut-down of the area’s only non-private mental health facility along with the lay-offs of all 158 people on staff.

“We don’t know what is going to happen. The legislature is going back into special session this Friday and we are hopeful that our funding will be included,” Corley stated. “If it isn’t, we do not know what we are going to do. We are right now just working to get everyone behind us to get the funding. If not, this could be catastrophic.”

Region I Mental Health Center provides services to approximately 3,000 mental health patients, most needing life supporting medications and therapy. According to David Cook, clinical director, most of the 3,000 patients currently using Region I Mental Health Center will end up on the street with no medication, which could lead to psychotic breakdowns.

“We have people who come here on a daily basis to receive life altering medications. Many of our clients have major psychoses, have no insurance, and could end up not functioning. There are no hospitals to service our clients and state facilities are extremely backed-up. It could be weeks or months before anything opens up for them. They will probably end up on the streets, in jail, or in Whitfield, if anything is available,” Cook stated.

The staff is currently juggling to stave off the potential shut-down of the facility rather than worrying about their own jobs. If the legislature chooses not to address the problem, all 158 people currently on the staff will probably lose their jobs.

The Region I Mental Health Center is an independent, public, non-profit agency which receives 56 percent of its funding from the Federal Government, but must match the funds. The matching funds, which have come from the state, are what Barbour vetoed. These monies from the state are then paid to the federal government (matching medicaid funds).The Mississippi State Department of Mental Health disburses the money to the Regional Mental Health Centers.

DMH has notified the Department of Medicaid that some of the community mental health centers cannot pay the match and others do not plan to pay the match because of the legality of the request.“For some centers, the lack of funding will have immediate consequences. None of the centers can provide services as intended and survive any length of time,” said Jerry Mayo, executive director of Pine Belt Mental Health in Hattiesburg and president of the Mississippi Association of Community Mental Health Centers.

“Current Medicaid rates do not cover the full costs of most of the services provided as it is. Without the match, services provided by our centers would have to be reduced drastically. Such a reduction in services is likely to contribute to long waiting lists for state hospital beds and an increase in the number of citizens being held in jails awaiting those beds,” said Mayo.

The fifteen community mental health centers operate as individual businesses serving defined counties and not as state-owned institutions or a division of the Department of Mental Health. The centers throughout the state serve more than 100,000 citizens per year including residential services for the seriously mentally ill and addicted. These will likely be some of the first programs that will need to be reduced if the lack of funding goes unaddressed, according to Mayo.

As the name implies, community mental health centers provide services in community settings such as schools, homes, correctional facilities and churches as well as outpatient clinics and facilities in every county of the state. Programs range from intensive services for the seriously mentally ill, behavioral interventions for children, and residential treatment of drug and alcohol addiction, to HIV testing and counseling, prevention programs and specialized services for the elderly.

“We have in good faith worked with the legislators over the years. The House has been very receptive and supportive. It is apparent that others have placed politics above the needs of the seriously mentally ill, developmentally disabled, children and elderly,” said Mayo.The Clarksdale staff requests that citizens contact state officials and request that the funds be made available to continue the services.

As if taxing our hospitals to death were not enough, now our Governor Barbour has turned his wrath toward our community mental health centers. Although the above article refers to Region I (Clarksdale's) possible closure, all 14 Regions in the state face the same woes if his "lunacy" is not stopped.

Throughout the state, thousands of adults and children depend on our community mental health centers for counseling and medications to remain functional members of our society. What will happen to these people? Inpatient treatment is outrageously expensive in comparison to the cost of the outpatient treatment offered at our current facilities.

Where will these patients go... to the hospital ERs which are already crowded with non-emergency patients. That will only increase their costs, not to mention that ER staff members are not qualified to deal with psychiatric patients.

Failing to fund our mental health centers will adversely impact every public institution in our state. Crime will increase, hospitals will incur additional costs, schools will suffer as un-medicated children become disruptive, hundreds of jobs will be lost and most importantly, our friends, family and loved ones will incur great suffering.

If you have never needed the services of our community mental health centers, you are among the fortunate; but, I would bet that you know someone whose life and future happiness depends upon their existence. Mental health disorders are some of the most debilitating maladies that we face today and to withdraw services to these patients will have catastrophic results!

Since Barbour refuses to discuss this matter with either the senate or the house, it is difficult to discern his actual motives; however, the results of his actions are quite clear: Increased crime, major job losses and untold human suffering.

If you feel strongly about this health care travesty, get on line and write your state Representatives and the governor and let them know how you feel. Barbour is no friend to health care and if we allow him to go unchecked, he will completely destroy what has taken Mississippi so long to achieve.

http://www.mississippi.gov/

Forthright

The Cost of Independence

2009-07-03T19:07:00.009-05:00

GREENVILLE - Washington County residents due to renew car tags in July and after will have to wait until Wednesday to do so and then will see the cost go up.

The price hike will be due to a reduction in legislative tax credit signed into law as part of the state's new budget, said Washington County Tax Collector Patricia Lee.

For close to eight years, Lee said, a legislative tax credit has given vehicle owners a discount on their car tags.

To deal with budget shortfalls, however, the legislature reduced the legislative tax credit from 5.5 percent of a vehicle's assessed value to 4.25 percent. Lee said although the diminished tax credit was effective July 1, when the new fiscal year began, the delay until Wednesday occurred because of two reasons:

*The Legislature did not pass the budget, which contains the new diminished tax credit, until late Tuesday night.-- There is a general delay caused by the time it takes for county tax collector offices to upload the new state tax credit rates into the county's computer systems, and for the formulation used to calculate those rates to be tested.

I thought this was supposed to be prevented by the new tobacco tax? Just another tax on the "rich" in our Sherwood Forrest economy!

Forthright

Workin' the System

2009-06-29T18:57:00.009-05:00

Anonymous said...

Those of us who work hard and pay for insurance through our tax paying jobs cannot afford to get sick. We would lose our homes, and in turn be ineligible for the "entitlements" that non taxpayers receive so readily.

Morbid obesity should not be a disability. It is directly caused by putting food in your mouth and the wrong foods. I say we have stores where food stamps can be used to buy healthy necessary items to make nutritious meals. I work hard and yet cannot afford a new car with air conditioning and see young people driving Grandmas car with the disabled tag playing loud music with lyrics I do not want to hear.

I see teens giving birth to baby after baby to get their checks. People have no reason to change. The government will support them. And the government will leave the taxpayers going into bankruptcy to support these selfish lazy bums.

And by the way, I am not from here and there are plenty of places in this country where public education is wonderful and private schools other than parochial do not even exist.

There is no hope unless we crack down on these criminals stealing from us. Let's change the rules overnight and see the morbidly obese, teen mothers, and other abusers of the systems beg us for jobs so they can survive. Let's make welfare recipients ineligible to go to anything other than charity... hospitals.

Let's see the children see hope for a better life through their "parents" opting to become a productive member of society.

The author above is correct in his/her observations of the blatant abuse of our welfare system... but here's the problem: We created this system to atone for the sins of our past and now it is being used as the biggest ponzi scheme in history (yes, even bigger than Bernie's).

Under our current system, having children can make you big money. From the time that they are born, these children are subsidized by the government.

Medicaid pays for the cost of their birth and all of their subsequent health care needs. Food is provided free via WIC, food stamps, TANF, free lunch programs, ADC and a variety of other programs. Free education begins at age three in Headstart and continues into our public schools (no need to pay extra for something that is provided free from taxpayer dollars).

At about age six, they have to insure that their children keep earning this free money, so they have to "find" each child's disability. Some of the most popular are ADHD, morbid obesity, fallen arches and severe learning disabilities. (Your local public schools and other "club members" can assist you with this.)

Remember to get your disability claims filed early in life, because once they are "determined" disabled, you can get a large back payment check from the age of onset.

Multiply all of this by 6, 7, or 8 and it can add up to some real money. Don't worry about the physical burden of having all of these children... that's what grandmas are for!

And if these children get involved in drugs, sex and crime.... hey, it was good enough for you... let 'em learn their own lessons! They can always ride the welfare train as long as we keep providing the fuel.

Warning to Welface recipients: Do NOT get a job! You will lose all of your and your children's benefits... and you can't buy all of this for $7.25 an hour.

Understand?

Forthright

Greenville's Claim to Fame

2009-06-24T19:00:00.013-05:00

Anonymous said...

Gville is 2.5 times the national poverty rate in the country. Most that live in Gville, MS, with no job, their primary economic goal is to get on some type of program, food stamps, SSI or any type of free money because it pays more than a 40 hour per week job.

That is the REAL reason no business will ever make it in Gville, MS, because the end answer is private education and big company management are not going to pay for education, grades 1-12 @ $400.00 per month per child.

Anonymous said...

Actually, Big Company management has and does pay for private education. They know that it's the only way to get quality people here. (U.S. Gypsum is one example.) And for the record---to those who may claim that the private schools caused the end of quality PUBLIC education---when the private schools started up in '69/'70, the white kids were in the minority.

Some fled to the Catholic schools to be under the protection of the Church while segregating themselves from a majority-black school system (and they still do). Others stayed with Weston and GHS and paid a price. Others went to the privates and paid a price that couldn't be measured in money. Greenville's public schools won't be saved by private schools closing or by white students returning to the public schools.

The current teachers, students, and administration have to work hard, be honest, be diligent, set high standards, and expect results. Unfortunately, much of this must begin in the home.

And that's where the difference lies.

Both writers make good points and they are connected by one common thread... the entitlement mentality. There is so much corruption, fraud and waste in our "welfare" system that being unemployed has become one of the most lucrative "jobs" in the Delta!

Becoming "disabled" is a major source of the fraud for many area residents and certain "doctors" play a major role. People are getting large checks for disabilities such as Attention Deficit Disorder, fallen arches, and morbid obesity! How does a government check abate any of these "disabilities"?

There are families that net over $4,000 per month in SSI and disability income and spend their days shopping at Wal-Mart and McDonald's. Morbid obesity is NOT a genetic disorder... it is a societal result of ignorance and apathy!

Education, for the entitlement mentality crowd, is free daycare with 2 free meals. Why should they value an education, when they make more on "the system" than most do with a college education!

Yep, we are on a slippery slope and going straight down hill in the Delta. It will not change until WE demand that the abuse of welfare be stopped!

Forthright

What's the Scoop?

2009-06-23T18:36:00.005-05:00

Hel..loooo?

Has everyone grown tired of the Scoop? Surely there is something going on in the Delta that we can discuss, rant or rave about. I love a lively discussion, but the Scoop has grown a bit cold of late.

The contributors to this blog are what keeps it popular. Everyone has ideas, opinions, complements or grips... and this is your public forum. Let's hear from you! You know I don't' make this stuff up (although I have been accused of it).

Tell us what is on your mind... vent... it lowers your blood pressure and is fun!

Forthright

S.O.S.

2009-06-06T18:58:00.010-05:00

Mayor Update said...

Well, here we go...the traveling Mayor is at it again! She leaves soon with local kids to Germany on a summer excursion...how nice?

Good thing that there are no issues here at home for her to be dealing with, good thing our economy is booming to pay for her trip, good thing we have bountiful staff in place to take up her slack....NOT!!!!

We have got to find someone to run against this crazy woman in 2012! Putting her back in office for a third time would be insane and a death sentence to Greenville.

If you know of anyone, who has good business sense, good marketing skills, good management skills and cares about Greenville...please!!! Let's start working NOW to get them in office in the next two years! Otherwise, be prepared to watch this city fail!

This Mayor is a self serving, egotistical, maniacal, diva, self important, spoiled rotten, childish wretch and she has got to go!

Anonymous said...

The citizens of Leland woke up from their funk and replaced their Diva mayor. After several years of a three ring circus of local politics, Leland is moving forward. The good thing is that they elected a qualified candidate. And he is a black gentleman.

So for all you conspiracy theorists out there you can forget the race card. It is all about being qualified and having the best of interest for the Town of Leland!

I must congratulate Leland citizens for pulling together to rid their local government and school administration of self-serving tyrants. It should send a positive message to other Delta communities that change CAN happen when people come together to the benefit of all, rather than voting by race or for special interest candidates.

As for Greenville's mayor, I am afraid that she will be a tough cookie to beat... until she is ready to move on to the next position that "Daddy" arranges. She is young and has time on her side... unlike Greenville!

The "Queen City" is sinking so fast that I doubt whether our "Captain's" presence will make a hair's breadth of difference. The majority of the voting public in Greenville is totally ignorant of the "issues", so they vote for the candidate who "looks" most like themselves. Regardless of who runs against Heather McTeer Hudson in the next election... this fact will not change... and believe me, it could get worse.

Greenville is a house divided, fixated in a political mentality circa, 1950. Propelling it into the twenty-first century will be a slow and arduous process!

Forthright

Doctor! Doctor! Give me a Break...

2009-05-29T18:26:00.015-05:00

Up Clarksdale way...

A county supervisor in the Mississippi Delta thought he was meeting two prostitutes from SugarDaddyForMe.com when he pulled into the Shady Nook truck stop, but instead was arrested by the FBI, federal agents said in court documents.

Coahoma County Supervisor and Clarksdale cardiologist Dr. Roger Weiner was charged with the federal crime of soliciting prostitution across state lines Sunday and arraigned Monday.

A federal investigation began in December when Weiner’s former colleague gave FBI agent Justin Newsome the doctor’s ‘‘electronic communications’’ from a work computer the two shared, according to a seven-page affidavit filed Monday in federal court.

The agent began monitoring SugarDaddyForMe.com, which he described as an online chat room for wealthy ‘‘Sugardaddies’’ to meet ‘‘Sugarbabies’’ for ‘‘companionship and entertainment.’’ Newsome said in court documents he found Weiner’s ‘‘attempts to solicit sexual acts and companionship from female members in exchange for gifts and monetary payment.’’

The information was used to obtain a search warrant to view Weiner’s e-mails.Weiner did not immediately respond to messages left Tuesday on his cell phone and at his office, the Weiner Heart and Cardiovascular Institute. Weiner’s lawyer, Kevin Hovan, said the allegations will be investigated. He declined further comment.

The affidavit describes the investigation in salacious detail, alleging that Weiner promised to pay women hundreds of dollars per sexual tryst. An FBI agent posing as a prostitute began communication with Weiner on the Web site in January, according to the affidavit, under the screen name ‘‘wild—ginger.’’ Weiner gave the agent his e-mail address to set up a meeting.

At one point, the agent wrote that ‘‘you can expect to be treated like a king but this princess can only meet if she knows she is getting at least $500.’’

‘‘500 is no problem,’’ Weiner responded, according to the affidavit. ‘‘If you are truly ’wild’ and good looking your potential for spoiling is enormous.’’

Then on May 11, another undercover officer who began chatting with Weiner agreed to set up a ‘‘threesome’’ with Weiner and another supposed prostitute, court records state.

Authorities say Weiner called a few days later and offered to pay the women $400 each. But when Weiner pulled into the truck stop Sunday morning in his black BMW coupe, he was arrested. Authorities said he was carrying nearly $1,100 in cash.

He was arraigned in federal court in Greenville on Monday and released on $20,000 bond. A hearing is scheduled for Thursday in U.S. District Court in Greenville.

Weiner came to Mississippi from Philadelphia and opened his medical practice in the late 1990s, according to the clinic’s Web site. He was elected supervisor in 2007.

I suppose that the "good" news is... this didn't happen in Greenville! It is difficult to imagine that the same person in whom we trust our cardiovascular health, frequents the Shady Nook truck stop in his spare time. What happened to golf?

To further add insult to injury, we elected this sleazy surgeon as Supervisor which leads one to wonder whether some of his political cronies may have also had a finger in this pie... (sorry).

The sad news is that this article made national news, which will help perpetuate the stereotypical view of Mississippians as uncultured reprobates.

At any rate, this entire saga is prime fodder for a book and a mini-series... perhaps: "Surgeons and Sugarbabies", or simply, "Shady Nooky". The final chapter of this Delta novel will star an equally sleazy Southern lawyer who successfully defends the good doctor by quoting Johnny Cochran's now infamous line... "If it don't fit, you must acquit!"

Forthright

Who's Watching the Kids?

2009-05-13T19:45:00.009-05:00

GREENVILLE - A four-day work week was unanimously adopted at Tuesday's Greenville School District Board of Trustees meeting. According to interim school Superintendent Joyce McNair, the four-day week will begin June 1. The move affects 240-day employees, such as principals, secretaries and custodians. Recently, the School Board adopted a reduction of force policy.

A four day work week is a great concept to save money... but in a public school? Do you think that the kids may figure out that when the principal is away, it might be easier to "play"? Secretaries generally run a school office, so who is going to deal with all of those issues? As for custodians, they are too few in number already... duh?

Sure, public schools are financially challenged, but these "reductions in force" will only denigrate the entire system. Examples: A bomb threat is called into your child's school... who is in charge if the principal is "off" that day? Who deals with the irate parents who storm in daily to speak to the person in charge? Who cleans the restrooms on a daily basis to prevent infectious waste from spreading disease and illness?

My view is that these "cuts" are ill-conceived and will ultimately cost the districts more money in "ancillary costs". Educating our children is not a part-time job... especially in the Delta.

Forthright

Location, location, location!

2009-05-07T18:14:00.012-05:00

Greenville Real Estate agent said...

Having personal family photos out, during a showing, makes people uncomfortable to feel that they are invading a family's privacy. It shows "ownership" and discourages that customer imagining their family or themselves in that home. Get it out of there, store it.

As for staging, that is the best and most attractive placement of furniture, decor and accessories to play up the best points of the home. So many times, people accumulate so much "stuff" that the rooms in the house are overwhelmed with clutter or too large furniture. In the end, a buyer only sees that and not the rooms. The rooms may be average or above average in size, but who can see it?? This applies to all the rooms, bathroom and kitchen. Too many chachkis or decorative items can block the eye of the buyer. Clean out closets, cabinets, etc. to show that spaciousness.

Minimal is highly encouraged in staging. Spaciousness is the goal sought for the buyer to see, airy, light, CLEAN rooms, it is critical.

Get the floors in shape, take up the ugly carpet or replace it, if the underfloor is in good shape, clean it, repair or replace with more updated products for flooring. Buy area rugs! In the front and back yard, clean up is key! Rake, keep mowed, weed and trim up! Put the toys up, get rid of the yard art and any other clutter. Plant some new flowers or bushes, landscape and trim back bushes away from the windows and house, put down stepping stones to designated outdoor relaxing areas. Clean up the patios and porches. Have none? Set up an outside garden or yard entertainment area, to show the joy of outdoor living.

Fountains are so popular today and don't have to be expensive to be enjoyed. The water sounds encourage relaxation and will be pleasing to the buyer.Get rid of junk, old lawnmowers, old useless bikes, and trikes, "crapola". Clean out the garage or carport, so the buyer can see that there is, indeed, room for two vehicles.Curb appeal is critical to that first impression of the buyer. If it looks bad on the outside, they will never call to see the inside.

Paint, paint, paint! Do a professional job or hire one! Paint inside and outside, with attractive, neutral colors that anyone would accept. No outlandish colors on the inside or outside, not everyone wants a pink house, walls of installed mirrors or purple bedrooms.

How about the roof? Does it need to be replaced? Most homeowners insurance will cover the delta homes for years of past hail damage, windstorms and winds of hurricanes. All you have to pay is the deductible and claim roof damage. YOUR POLICY WILL NOT BE CANCELLED for making a roof claim! That is what you are paying your premiums for! Call your Ins. agent or if in doubt, call a roofer to see if a new roof is required, if not, ask him for a statement of roof condition for the potential buyer. One less worry for a buyer!

Defunk any home odors from pets and children. Get rid of any mold or mildew, insects, rodents, inside and outside.Burn candles during showings to be sure their are enticing aromas and not horrid smells. Take out the garbage before a showing!! Just because YOU don't smell it, does not mean it does not smell! Be sure the temperature in the home is comfortable. If not, no buyer will hang around to take in the house sweltering or freezing! (Maintenance is important too! If it makes noises or is not working properly, get it fixed or replaced!)

Most of all of this is a matter of elbow grease, common sense and a few dollars. Most can be done by the seller and family, but if you need help, there are decorators in town, part time and full time, who can help you pull it all together to look its best. It is worth the investment of a few hours of their time for consultation advice or decorating for you, that will pay off in a big way to make that sale happen at the end! If you can not afford it, find a friend who has a great knack for home decor to help you see what you no longer see.

By the way, FYI, trailers are very hard to find financing for through the banks, nearly impossible, due to depreciation. Be prepared, make the price right to attract cash buyers or see if financing it for the buyer is an option.

Good luck!

Great advice for selling a house in a competitive market. The one tip that this local realtor left out is... "Location, location, location!"

Unfortunately, Greenville has few prime locations left. Even residents of stable neighborhoods like Gamwyn Park are "getting out" due to crime and plummeting home values. Look what has happened to Washington Avenue and Main Street. Sure, there are some real bargains on the market right now, but who wants to buy a house whose value will only depreciate over time?

A home is generally the largest purchase that we make and most people expect to be able to recoup their initial investment, plus improvements, over time. This is where the "location" piece of the puzzle becomes important!

For people to purchase homes, they must have jobs. For jobs to exist, there has to be a skilled workforce. To obtain a skilled workforce, you have to have quality "public" education. Greenville has none of these, which is why students who pursue "higher education" never return to Greenville.

Greenville has become a welfare community. "Entitlement" is the most prevalent source of income for most of our residents and this "life-style" is being passed on to subsequent generations at an alarming rate. Until this cycle is broken, Greenville will continue to decline.

To my "rose-colored" glasses fans, I apologize for my candor and "negativity", but these are the realities of Greenville's evolution. If you want "smoke and mirrors", I suggest you attend the next city council meeting.

Forthright

Greenville Pride!

2009-04-26T17:55:00.013-05:00

GREENVILLE DDT: More than 40 potential bidders and subcontractors attended a pre-bid conference for the Washington County regional jail Thursday at the Washington County Courthouse.

The pre-bid conference with architects and members of the Board of Supervisors gave bidders a chance to meet while obtaining information about seven bid packages covering different aspects of construction.

The turnout pleased and surprised county officials.“I wasn't expecting as many people as we had to come out,” said Washington County Board of Supervisors President Paul Watson Jr. “It shows that there are a lot of people out there very interested in this project.”

The Bids are scheduled to be opened during the regular Board of Supervisors meeting on May 18. The new prison, a 500-inmate facility, will house 300 state prisoners and 90 from the city.

The remainder will be county inmates. Plans call for the facility to be built on five acres of land on King-Stokes Road, just off U.S. 82.

Now here's a project of which we should all be proud! What better place to build a prison than in Greenville? Water parks, restaurants, recreation facilities... forget about 'em... what WE need is a prison!

A prison will help keep Delta families (gangs) together. When these felons check out, they will return to their native streets and hoods, having perfected their "trades" in the big house. As prisoners, they will have access to free education and physical fitness, so when they emerge, they will be better educated and more physically fit "felons".

Employers will be eager to hire these reformed cons for their newly learned skills and trades, so the new prison is just a "win-win" for everyone! RIGHT?

Forthright

P.S. I hear the city council is considering installing speed bumps on the newly paved Washington Avenue, to deter its latest use as a motorcycle drag strip. Wow, another Epiphany of logic... transforming concave pot-holes into convex "bumps". Gotta love 'em!

Praise for ER Staff!

2009-04-15T19:17:00.020-05:00

Appreciative patient said...

I want to say a positive for the DRMC ER STAFF. I recently had a severe allergic reaction to medication with a BP of 70/40. I was obviously very ill and covered in hives and splotches. I had to be ambulanced from the clinic to the DRMC.

The Ambulance staff were very kind and alert to my needs before, during and at the end of my transportation across town. Once arriving, the DRMC staff immediately took action to admit me and determine the cause of the reaction. Every one was attentive, courteous and professional. When questioned they answered an explanation or offered it, before the question occurred.

Knowing how low my BP was, I was scared to death and doing a lot of mental praying to God from the ride in the ambulance to arrival at DRMC. Within a short time, the physician, Hilton O'Neal and staff had my symptoms back under control. I had arrived around 4:30/5:00 PM and was treated and released in much better shape by 6:30PM.

At the end of the evening, I was splotch free and feeling sooo much better!!! I was truly relieved and impressed by everyone taking care of me. Thanks to all on the ER day staff on April 14th, 2009!!

It is great to hear a positive note about DRMC. The truth is that DRMC has some excellent doctors and nurses who are very talented and dedicated to their jobs. Positive ER experiences are rarely shared... because good service is what we expect from all health care providers.

Almost all of the criticism directed toward DRMC seems to be centered around its administration and their seemingly wasteful expenditures and unappreciative attitude toward staff.

It is hard for doctors and nurses to take pride in their jobs if they are not "appreciated" by the leadership of the hospital. Sure, both physicians and nurses make very good salaries, but if you dread going to work every day because of the bureaucratic BS from above, you can not perform your job effectively.

Health care dollars need to be spent "at the bedside" rather than in the "boardroom". If you look at any successful hospital in the country, you will see the "teamwork" starts at the top. When leaders lose sight of the fact that the patient is THE most important person in the hospital, quality care is compromised and the hospital's reputation will eventually suffer. Such is the case at DRMC.

I commend the employees of DRMC for their dedication to patient care in the face of administrative "abandonment". One of the first lessons in medical school is how to differentiate treating the causes of an illness rather than its "symptoms". To blame the many talented clinical staff members at DRMC is to attack the symptoms of a problem... without ever addressing the actual cause.

Forthright

Another Financial Folly?

2009-04-08T18:31:00.011-05:00

GREENVILLE - The wait for medical personnel to arrive at an accident scene may have been considerably reduced now that Delta Regional Medical Center has merged with Air Evac Lifeteam.

As a result, the Delta now has emergency air transportation.“This is something that is needed,” said Ray Humphreys, CEO of DRMC. Beginning in July, an Air Evac helicopter will be based at the DRMC Pavilion. The helicopter and its crew will be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Humphreys said the hospital sees about 50,000 trauma patients in a year, representing about 10 percent of those seen in the state.

The closest Air Evac helicopter is based in Batesville. The new Greenville facility will reduce reaction time to and from an accident scene.“This is so valuable to Washington County in terms of the lives that it will save,” said Washington County Board of Supervisors Mike Gordon.

Emergency air transportation is not cheap.

According to Bubba Bell, a former Greenville firefighter who will be the program director of the DRMC operation, and DRMC Board of Trustees member Bill Schultz, an average flight is around $15,000.

While no one who needs the helicopter service will be denied, there will be a membership program. For $50 a year, an individual will not have to pay for an Air Evac flight if needed. Membership costs $55 per couple and $60 for a household of three or more. “It's a very smooth flight,” said Schultz, who flew in for Monday's lunchtime press conference. “I wasn't worried at all.”

The concept here is great and could prove to be a life-saving service. However, my concern is not the wait time for transport to DRMC, but the wait time once you arrive at the ER... and the quality of care. Inadequate staffing (both nurses and physicians) remains a major problem at DRMC.

At a cost of $15,000 per flight, it will take 300 "members" to pay for one uninsured, non-member's flight. The majority of patients treated at DRMC are medicaid or "self-pay" (which equates to "no pay"), so this will rapidly become a very expensive venture for our county hospital. Since no one will be refused this service, there is no incentive for the the uninsured or under-insured to pay the very reasonable price of membership.

I am afraid that given our demographics, the membership fee would need to be at least $1,000 per year to offset the massive costs of indigent care that will be provided... and we all know who eventually pays for "indigent care."

Don't get me wrong. In a medical emergency, we are all thankful for every service that can be provided. The issue is cost... and who will eventually pay the price. Is this something that Washington County can afford and is it a prudent expenditure in this time of national economic crisis. Medicaid is already operating in the red and hospitals are facing additional taxes to support these programs for the indigent.

As much as we dislike thinking of hospitals as "businesses", they are, and the leaders have to be responsible with the public funds which support them. Once again, my advice to DRMC is to focus on their quality of basic acute patient care and quit having delusions of becoming a "TV Emergency Room."

If I were ever a member of the DRMC "flight club" for $50 a year, I would tip the pilot $1,000 to just take me to Memphis!

Forthright

A Head with a Heart

2009-03-27T18:40:00.013-05:00

The following is an article taken from the Boston Globe in March of 2009. The author is Kevin Cullen and it demonstrates that even in an economic crisis, the "whole" is more than simply the sum of its parts. No ones job in unimportant and that caring can extend beyond one's inner circle. Several Scoop readers suggested that Paul Levy's innovative thinking would be a great model for DRMC.

It was the kind of meeting that is taking place in restaurant kitchens, small offices, retail storerooms, and large auditoriums all over this city, all over this state, all over this country.

Paul Levy, the guy who runs Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, was standing in Sherman Auditorium the other day, before some of the very people to whom he might soon be sending pink slips.

In the days before the meeting, Levy had been walking around the hospital, noticing little things.

He stood at the nurses' stations, watching the transporters, the people who push the patients around in wheelchairs. He saw them talk to the patients, put them at ease, make them laugh. He saw that the people who push the wheelchairs were practicing medicine.

He noticed the same when he poked his head into the rooms and watched as the people who deliver the food chatted up the patients and their families.

He watched the people who polish the corridors, who strip the sheets, who empty the trash cans, and he realized that a lot of them are immigrants, many of them had second jobs, most of them were just scraping by.

And so Paul Levy had all this bouncing around his brain the other day when he stood in Sherman Auditorium.

He looked out into a sea of people and recognized faces: technicians, secretaries, administrators, therapists, nurses, the people who are the heart and soul of any hospital. People who knew that Beth Israel had hired about a quarter of its 8,000 staff over the last six years and that the chances that they could all keep their jobs and benefits in an economy in free fall ranged between slim and none.

"I want to run an idea by you that I think is important, and I'd like to get your reaction to it," Levy began. "I'd like to do what we can to protect the lower-wage earners - the transporters, the housekeepers, the food service people. A lot of these people work really hard, and I don't want to put an additional burden on them.

"Now, if we protect these workers, it means the rest of us will have to make a bigger sacrifice," he continued. "It means that others will have to give up more of their salary or benefits."

He had barely gotten the words out of his mouth when Sherman Auditorium erupted in applause. Thunderous, heartfelt, sustained applause.

Paul Levy stood there and felt the sheer power of it all rush over him, like a wave. His eyes welled and his throat tightened so much that he didn't think he could go on. When the applause subsided, he did go on, telling the workers at Beth Israel, the people who make a hospital go, that he wanted their ideas.

The lump had barely left his throat when Paul Levy started getting e-mails.

The consensus was that the workers don't want anyone to get laid off and are willing to give up pay and benefits to make sure no one does. A nurse said her floor voted unanimously to forgo a 3 percent raise. A guy in finance who got laid off from his last job at a hospital in Rhode Island suggested working one less day a week. Another nurse said she was willing to give up some vacation and sick time. A respiratory therapist suggested eliminating bonuses.

"I'm getting about a hundred messages per hour," Levy said yesterday, shaking his head.

Paul Levy is onto something. People are worried about the next paycheck, because they're only a few paychecks away from not being able to pay the mortgage or the rent.

But a lot of them realize that everybody's in the same boat and that their boat doesn't rise because someone else's sinks.

Paul Levy is trying something revolutionary, radical, maybe even impossible: He is trying to convince the people who work for him that the E in CEO can sometimes stand for empathy.

2009-03-20T15:14:00.008-05:00

DDT Editorial:

We appreciate the restraint that four Greenville City Council members exhibited last week when they decided to forgo spending the city's money on travel to the Mississippi Municipal League's annual conference in Biloxi in June.

Three will not attend; Ward 1 Councilman Kenny Gines, Ward 3 Councilman Lee Owen, and Ward 5 Councilwoman Ann Hollowell. Ward 2 Councilman Carl McGee will travel at his own expense, although not a huge expense as he explained later.

He has access to housing accommodations there.“There's no halo over my head,” he quipped.

Ward 4 Councilwoman Betty Watkins will attend, but because of her retirement status she already saves the city $6,000 per year, as she explained during the council meeting at which the trip was discussed.

Ward 2 Councilman Errick Simmons was absent from the meeting and his name remained on the list of those attending. Mayor Heather McTeer Hudson also will attend and urged the others to do the same, but they were not swayed.

In this time of tightening budgets, up and down sales tax revenue returns, and economic hardships, it's good to know that our City Council representatives are thinking ahead to a time when they may have to ask city employees to make sacrifices as well. They are leading by example.

It's not as if MML conferences are without merit. Members of city councils and boards of aldermen from around the state attend this conference each year to network, but more important, to educate elected city officials.“The league represents the collective interests of cities and towns to the state legislature, provides timely information on crucial municipal issues, offers certification and training for elected officials and provides valuable networking opportunities,” according to its Web site at http://www.mmlonline.com/.

We recognize the value of this opportunity, but we also are grateful to those who will save the city several thousands of dollars by not attending this year.

Everyone knows that these "conferences" are part work and part vacation; otherwise they wouldn't be held in resort areas. Can you imagine the statewide attendance if the conference were being held in Greenville, which is far more centrally located than Biloxi?

In private organizations, when they need to cut costs on travel, they send one or two representatives to the conference. In return, they are charged with presenting the information attained to the entire leadership group. Most conferences offer free PowerPoint presentations to facilitate the sharing of education provided. You eliminate hotel, travel and meal costs, but still get the training.

The days of "perk" trips are over. If the city can't afford garbage pick-up twice a week, they shouldn't be spending $7,500 on travel/training when there are more cost effective ways to accomplish the same goal. In an economic crisis, everyone needs to cut back a little. I commend the council-members who declined to "feed at the trough". As for our mayor... drop us a postcard!

Forthright

The "Costs" of Business in Greenville

2009-03-17T19:02:00.009-05:00

Anonymous said...

My college-age son and I were watching the local news and heard that the local Pizza Inn, A&W, and Long John Silver's all had closed recently. He commented that it was no wonder, as he had not visited any of those places in all the years he's been independently mobile---they simply did not interest him. I quote: "If people want to have a successful restaurant in Greenville or anywhere else, why don't they simply appeal to the desired demographic?"

There are HUNDREDS of local folks---and thousands beyond our city limits---who crave a nice location for a meal, someplace they don't have to be ashamed to take a date, someplace that is as much a destination as a diner. How hard would it have been to open a McAllister's deli rather than a silly A&W/LJSilver combo. Totally wrong demographic!

If you want your restaurant to survive, then appeal to the group that has the money to spend. We don't want another hot wings trailer or tamale shack. We want a location, a place to spend a pleasant evening with friends.

We don't want another national pizza franchise---we want Lost Dog Pizza! We don't want another Taco Bell---we want Newk's Express or Sweet Pepper's Deli. Pay attention!!!! Heather, Betty Lynn, Ed: get the word out, please. We will THROW money out of the car window as we drive up! Just give us some better options.

The author makes some very good points. We would all like to see some up-scale restaurants in Greenville, but let me ask you this: Would you open a restaurant in Greenville?

The fact is that these franchises cost between $250K to $750K to open, over and above the cost of land and construction. Then you have the problem of labor. There is no labor pool from which to draw in Greenville... only the welfare pool who are perfectly content to milk the system rather than work, but they will take a job for a while, just to become eligible for unemployment. They know the system!

Think about the last time you went through a fast food drive-thru and could barely understand the person speaking. Did they get your order right? Probably not... do they care? NO! They have no work ethic and know they always have welfare to fall back upon if they are fired.

The difference between Greenville and Cleveland is that Cleveland has a large pool of educated college students from which to draw. They are trained in their job as wait-staff and appreciate the chance to make even a meager income on their way to enhancing their lives and education.

Anyone who has been in the restaurant business in Greenville will tell you that the biggest obstacle to making a profit is the employees. Take a day off and your restaurant becomes a free food pantry. What they don't give away to "friends", goes out the back door to their homes. Employee theft is considered just another entitlement of the low paid... another perk of "club membership".

No business can make a profit when you are being robbed on a daily basis... by your own employees! Greenville will never have any of these up-scale eateries because of the ignorant and unethical work-force we have produced. As long as it pays more not to work, than work, we are doomed!

Forthright

Color-Blind America?

2009-03-08T19:06:00.008-05:00

GREENVILLE - City Council members are speaking out about their votes last week over whether to approve funds for travel/training requests.

Betty Watkins, Carl McGee and Errick Simmons on Tuesday voted to send Police Chief Charles Patterson, Capt. Andrew Kaho and Lt. Xavier Redmond to Jackson to attend the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Region III conference. The cost is $288.50 each.

Ann Hollowell, Kenny Gines and Lee Owen voted against.

However, the motion passed when Mayor Heather McTeer Hudson broke the tie by voting in favor of approving the travel expenses.** (end of article by Terri Ferguson of the DDT)

I have a problem with our city tax dollars paying to go to ANY Race specific event. I would be more likely to agree a need, if the conference had been for Police Leaders in General and not "Black Only". Same goes for the city paying for the Mayor attending "The Black Mayor's Conference". Our tax dollars should be specifically related to the population in general. If these people want to attend a race specific event, then they should be willing to pay their own way. If Lee Owens requested funds to attend a "White Council conference", can you imagine the roar from those who do the same???

If we are going to get past racism, we need to get at least past the tax dollars paying to support race specific events and groups.

African Americans who continue to differentiate themselves as members of "black" organizations are simply perpetuating the stereotypical views of "separate, but equal". Are there black and white "laws" and are they enforced differently by our police officers?

Do black mayors manage cities differently than white mayors? What are these "members only" secrets that need to be segregated by race?

This "labeling" only perpetuates racism and serves to further divide our communities. However, as for our mayor's approving these "black" travel requests, I am afraid that she would appear a bit hypocritical had she not voted to approve any one's travel requests, given her last year in office.

Continuing education is a good thing which should be supported by community leaders; however, the stink about this issue is the use of the term "black" as somehow being "different". If we are all truly equal, why do we need to differentiate ourselves as black, white or purple?

We will never get beyond racism until all races quit pointing to our differences, rather than our similarities.

Forthright

Patricia Lee: "Not Guilty"

2009-03-04T18:06:00.007-06:00

A third trial for former county Tax Collector Patricia Lee ended today in Washington County Circuit Court with a verdict of "not guilty" to all charges. Lee was arrested along with eight former clerks in 2007 after an investigation found employees of the tax collector's office were placing car tag purchasers in cheaper tax districts to provide them a discount. A jury was seated for the trial on Tuesday.

Lee was being prosecuted by the state attorney general's office, which investigated the car tag discount scheme. Her defense attorney is Johnnie Walls. In addition to Lee, eight have been charged as a result of the investigation. Lee's two previous trials have ended in mistrials.

Now who would have predicted this verdict? Eight other employees in your department are participating in this "discount scheme" and you don't know about it?

What can I say? This is just another example of the perks of "club membership".

Forthright

How to Stimulate Greenville... Tell Us!

2009-02-23T19:00:00.015-06:00

Heads up - Greenville wish list for stimulus money said...

Copied from web site shown below: Projects in Greenville, Mississippi. Below are the "shovel-ready" projects for which this city submitted in the 2008 U.S. Conference of Mayors report. You can click on a project to read (and add to) its description.

You can also discuss the project and vote on whether you believe it is critical or not. The total cost of all the projects submitted by Greenville is $337,850,000. Copy and paste to go to web site or just click on this link: http://www.stimuluswatch.org/project/by_city/Greenville/MS

Thanks, "Heads up" for the web address. This is a great site for information about how our city funds will be spent, plus you can rate the importance of each project and state why you believe the project is needed or a waste of money! As with the "Scoop", all responses will be anonymous unless you offer your name (which many have done).

Everyone should at least vote on these expenditures. Here's a tip... Click on the up and down arrows in the "vote ratio" column of the page. This will order the project from the least or most important projects. When you click on each project, you can vote "yes" or "no" to its importance and below, you can offer comments as to why you believe as you do.

Here's a great chance to become more informed about our city projects and to let your voice be heard. Your votes may become very useful in future debates about what Greenville residents really want. Check it out.

Forthright

No Easy Answers!

2009-02-19T17:56:00.023-06:00

Lincoln was no saint nor hero, just a politician! said...

All this hero worship of Lincoln is quite disconcerting, if you know the facts. An educated man like Obama might want to study his "Hero" a bit closer! Check out the web site and quotes below to learn the facts and not read more myths. http://www.americanstalin.com/

-- Abraham Lincoln in speeches at Peoria, Illinois ....

My first impulse would possibly be to free all slaves and send them to Liberia to their own native land. But a moment's reflection would convince me that this would not be best for them. If they were all landed there in a day they would all perish in the next ten days, and there is not surplus money enough to carry them there in many times ten days. What then? Free them all and keep them among us as underlings. Is it quite certain that this would alter their conditions?

Free them and make them politically and socially our equals? My own feelings will not admit of this, and if mine would, we well know that those of the great mass of whites will not. We cannot make them our equals.

A system of gradual emancipation might well be adopted, and I will not undertake to judge our Southern friends for tardiness in this matter."

Abraham Lincoln later said, in discussing the options of colonizing them with segregated areas of Texas, Mississippi and South Carolina: "If we turn 200,000 armed Negroes in the South, among their former owners, from whom we have taken their arms, it will inevitably lead to a race war. It cannot be done.

The Negroes must be gotten rid of." Ben Butler responded to this by saying: "Why not send them to Panama to dig the canal?" Lincoln was delighted with this suggestion, and asked Butler to consult Seward at once. Only a few days later, John Wilkes Booth assassinated Lincoln and one of his conspirators wounded Seward.

It is fairly common knowledge that Lincoln was not the "great emancipator" as history claims. He had very mixed emotions about slavery, not so much as to its inherent "wrongness", but more with respect to how to correct a problem without creating chaos.

Basically, it was a political hot potato which had to be dealt with very delicately in order to appease two warring segments of our country. Obviously, the immorality of owning another human being was not a difficult position to defend. The quandary was what to do with these "disowned possessions".

Lincoln's strength was in considering the rights of both sides in this debate. It was very difficult to solve a problem that was so morally ill-conceived as slavery, but he knew that to do nothing would perpetuate a war that was very unpopular on both sides.

Lincoln's death came at a time in which history might have been rewritten. For Lincoln, it was the "problem" of the Negros that needed to be "gotten rid of"... and quickly in order to prevent national anarchy.

Presidents Lincoln and Obama share one very astounding similarity in their presidential challenges. No matter what decisions they make, many Americans will suffer and it will take years for this country to recover from some incredibly horrific decisions made by their predecessors.

Forthright

More "Club" Perks...

2009-02-11T18:24:00.014-06:00

Care and make an effort said...

The citizens of Greenville who care need to take action when they see someone littering. Call 911 and report the tag number, if it happens driving or while parking. Maybe, if we all did this, some of these jerks would finally get the message...oh wait, these same people leave small children and pets unattended in cars, their children ride in their laps while they drive or the children stand in their moving vehicles and wear NO seat belts...in comparison, litter would be last on the list, but it is a start!

I called the cops one night when leaving Wal Mart. As I approached my car I found 4 small children, all under the age of 10 years old, left unattended at on a hot July evening, mosquitoes out in force. The doors were unlocked, windows down and the baby was crying for momma, while the siblings tried to cope. The mother came out as I stood by waiting for the cops to appear, she denied that the kids were alone as if I was nuts and jumped in her car and took off.

Luckily, I had already made note of her car tag. When the cop got there, I am not kidding now, his response to my story was that there was nothing to be done about it, that was just how Greenville was!!!!! I pushed and made him make out a report, later I called the then Chief with not much better response. As a last resort, I called the welfare office, I heard the cop getting her name from the tag. I reported her for child neglect and they said it would be investigated by one of their Social workers. Who knows if any thing came of it, but at least I tried and did not just walk by that night. More of that needs to happen in this city, people have to care to make it better!

Anonymous said...

Now that brings up a whole other conversation. The Dept. of Human Services around here is so overworked and underpaid that they probably looked at your report and rolled their eyes. You'd be lucky if that parent recieved some training in how to parent, because there surely was no threat to lose her kids for what she did. If we lived in most other states, there would be something to answer for if she left her kids in the car alone on a hot, summer evening!!

Anonymous said...

hot or not no responsible parents should leave children in a car alone. you can bet if something happened to those children they'd be the first to sue wal-mart, call a lawyer or call the police all the while never admitting they did anything wrong. Parent is the wrong word for these people. they are not parents. all they did was give birth and collect welfare and ssi payments. these are not children to them--they are ways to make money. have you heard them "talk" to the kids, it's nothing but screaming and cursing. If you criticize them, you are being racist or insensitive. I feel so sorry for the kids!

I know that the first author has the best intentions, but if I called 911 and reported someone littering, they would probably come and arrest me. Sure there are laws against littering; just as there are laws regarding seat belt use and child restraints, but they are generally overlooked (for certain citizens).

There are numerous laws on the books for which people get a "pass" in Greenville. How many times have you been behind a vehicle bilging smoke, has no tail lights or muffler, crushed windshield, parts dragging underneath... but a brand new inspection sticker on (what's left of) the windshield? I find myself having to change lanes every 500 feet in Greenville to keep from being asphyxiated from the vehicle in front of me.

In most cities, the police don't care if you drive a $200 "hooptie" or a $50K Hummer, the laws apply the same. Not in Greenville! It's another "club" perk where if you can't afford a car that is "legal", it's okay to pollute the environment and endanger other drivers.

My daughter was pulled over last week for "following too close". There was nothing wrong with her vehicle, she wasn't speeding and in her estimation, she was four car lengths behind the car in front of her. She was informed by the officer that it was at his discretion as to what constitutes "tail-gating" and that she best not argue with him. She didn't get a ticket because she shut her mouth. I guess I have taught her something in 19 years.

The point being, when were the police charged with interpreting the law? Probably 40% of the cars in Greenville should be removed from the road for blatant motor vehicle safety violations, and yet... it ain't gonna happen to club members!

Once again, we have two standards. If you can afford to abide by the laws, then you must; but if you are "doing the best you can", you get a pass... and that is at the individual officer's discretion! Democracy in action?

Forthright

Premium Parking?

2009-02-06T19:20:00.010-06:00

GREENVILLE - “It can't be done.”

That's what Mayor Heather McTeer Hudson says to the question: “Why can't we have diagonal parking on Washington Avenue?”

A memo to the mayor from Lorenzo Anderson, interim city engineer, explained the city's position on the issue of parallel vs. diagonal parking.

“As previously discussed concerning the diagonal parking on Washington Avenue from Walnut Street to Delesseps Street, the MDOT's (Mississippi Department of Transportation) Roadway Design Manual requires 27 feet for diagonal parking maneuver.

“In order to have only two lanes of traffic with diagonal parking on both sides,” Anderson wrote, “we will need a total of 80 feet from curb to curb. Currently the width of the street is 67 feet from curb to curb. The current width of the street is not adequate to safely accommodate diagonal parking on both sides of the street.

”The city must comply with state and federal regulations when it uses state and federal funding, Hudson said. The fact that some cities still have diagonal parking in tight spots doesn't matter, she said, because if such situations arose now, where a city was basically reconstructing a street using federal dollars, that entity would have to abide by the new standards.

“The street is only 67 feet wide,” Hudson said. “The numbers just don't add up. Basically, you need 80 feet across to have diagonal parking, we only have 67.”

Where did the space go? There was diagonal parking on alternating sides of the street. Considering there are only about ten businesses left on Washington Avenue, this shouldn't be rocket science.

In as much as we are the "fattest" state in the nation, it might do us well to have to walk half a block!

Forthright

Aahhh... Paris in Spring!

2009-02-04T14:40:00.008-06:00

Delta Democrat Times reports:

A request for funding to replace a heating and air conditioning unit in a building owned by the city sparked debate about where the money will come from at Tuesday's City Council meeting.

Brad Jones, public works director, asked for $3,800 for a HVAC replacement for Brent Neighborhood Facility. The money had not been budgeted, Jones said.“Take it out of the travel/advertising budget,” said Councilman Kenny Gines.

However, Mayor Heather McTeer Hudson urged the council not to deplete that portion of the budget.“Please do not sacrifice your entire (travel/training) budget,” she said, adding that she would be asking council members to accompany her on some trips as the city pursues federal funding for numerous projects.

Councilwoman Ann Hollowell asked if the city had reduced the rent for the daycare in exchange for the renter's making some repairs themselves. Councilman Carl McGee said no, saying it was still the city's responsibility to take care of the building.

“We're going to find this money,” Hudson said.

Councilman Errick Simmons made a motion to approve the request for funding, which Jones and Hudson said they will find. McGee seconded the motion, which passed.

The question of funding for a travel/training request for $245.09 that was turned down last month by the council came up again, but this time Hudson was present to explain the request. She said her trip to the Mississippi Delta Grassroots Caucus in Little Rock, hosted by the Delta Regional Authority Thursday and Friday, is not merely a speaking engagement, but an opportunity to lobby for funds for the port city.

“The city of Greenville requested to make a presentation to this organization about a lot of our infrastructure projects, but also transportation,” Hudson said. “This is the organization that has given us the most recent funding for the Washington Avenue project, the second half of that project.”

However, she said she was not going to ask for travel expenses again for the trip. She said a third party has agreed to pay for it. The council turned down the request at the Jan. 20 meeting because some members said they did not believe the city should pay expenses for the mayor's speaking engagements. Hudson was in Washington, D.C., for the inauguration during that meeting.

"Save the travel budget!" is the latest cry from our globe trotting mayor. This was our mayor's response to a recent request to replace an HVAC system at a city owned child care facility.

Hudson promised to "find" the money elsewhere rather than deplete our (her) travel and training budget. In the same meeting, the council voted not to reimburse the mayor for a recent two day trip to Little Rock which she claimed was an opportunity to lobby for funds for the port city. The mayor stated that she had found a "third party" to pay for the trip.

As for Hudson's Washington DC trip, just how much "work" do you think actually occurred on the days before and after Obama's inauguration? With the entire country's economy headed toward a depression, I doubt that the Mississippi Delta's woes were on anyone's short list.

Everyone needs to take advantage of Mayor Hudson's "open mic" Wednesdays. Ask questions and demand answers to our city's plight. You had better hurry though... I hear Paris in spring is quite beautiful!

Forthright

Hudson and Humphreys: What a Team!

2009-01-30T15:07:00.014-06:00

Local officials are working toward a Feb. 19 deadline to prepare plans and bids ready submission to the federal government for a portion of the $825 billion economic recovery stimulus package proposed by President Barack Obama.

Ray Humphreys, CEO of Delta Regional Medical Center, said the hospital has a master plan for land purchased several years ago. The property is on Colorado Street south of Lowe's, which is on Mississippi 1. “The primary purpose of that purchase was to find a location for a new hospital when we have the funds to build that,” Humphreys said. “The 180-acre campus would also have room for and has plans for other facilities to be on that campus.”

Humphreys said the facilities could include doctors' offices, a cancer center and various medical support businesses.“Those businesses like to locate near hospitals. What we want to do is go ahead and do something that will cause that development to start,” said Humphreys. “We can't build a new hospital right now, but let's go ahead and get an entrance road in there with underground utilities in place so that people can go ahead and start developing their facilities on that campus. We want to make it development ready.”

Although DRMC has been involved in a $6 million renovation for the past couple of years, the hospital is 55 years old and does not offer the kind of facilities necessary to attract some doctors practicing in specialties, he said.“This community needs a modern, new health care center so that we can address the needs in this area more adequately,” he said, adding that Mississippi leads the nation in incidences of many health problems, such as diabetes and hypertension." We've got to have the facilities from which to operate to attract doctors,” said Humphreys.

Humphreys said DRMC has had talks with University Medical Center and William Carey College about the School of Osteopathic Medicine they are developing to use the hospital as a residency and a training program.“We need to do those kinds of things,” he said. “It's kind of hard to attract medical specialists if you have old, out-of-date facilities. It doesn't give them the ability to practice the kind of medicine that they were trained to do.”

No thanks! said...

My response is more of a question. For all the millions spent on DRMC why is it out of date???? No, I do not want a new hospital on the south end of town....why?? For one, my taxes are stretched to the limit, as it is in this city. The last thing we need are more taxes through the city and county to pay for this new hospital.

Second? Let's see, go to any city, not just Greenville, and where ever that hospital is located you can bet the worst part of town is nearby. Most welfare recipients and all of the low income follow hospitals as to where they want to live because of convenience to get free medical attention when needed. The closer they are the less need of transportation or the cheaper it is for them to get there. I honestly am not trying to be racist, this applies to whites or blacks.....be honest and you will see what I am talking about.

Most hospitals were built years ago, the neighborhoods then were usually upscale and high class. Now those same neighborhoods are run down and the original owners are long gone.

Think of Jackson, the VA Center, Univ. Med Center....all dangerous areas to be visiting loved ones in the hospital.So, please, fix up, update the DRMC and keep the crime rate where it is without it expanding more to the south, thanks but no thanks!

There he goes again! $6 million dollars in renovations; $4 million for an ad campaign and now Ray wants a new hospital! Does this man ever quit?

NICU - Failed; Heart Center - Flop; Burn Center - Gone; KDH... why? When will Ray learn that hospitals are not about shiny new buildings, but about qualified medical staff who are treated fairly and are proud to work at that facility. The way to keep good nurses, physicians and ancillary staff is to create a work environment that is safe, non-threatening and fair to all. That's where DRMC fails.

In terms of having state of the art equipment, DRMC is doing rather well. Sure, everyone would love to have a new medical center, but would it improve health care in the Delta? Would building all new schools improve our educational system? I think not.

So, in the last two years, we have spent $10 million dollars to "build the next great hospital in Mississippi" and now Ray has realized that none of his ideas have worked. So now he is back in his field of dreams asking for money to build an entrance road with underground utilities. Another "road to nowhere" funded by guess who?

Forthright

In Good Hands?

2009-01-28T17:34:00.008-06:00

Concerned Citizen writes:

On Dec. 2, I called the Greenville Water Plant to report that raw sewage was backing up into my downstairs bathroom. City workers came by that afternoon and checked the sewer line at the south end of the street, but they did not let me know anything.

A few days later I reported to the water plant again that raw sewage was still coming into my downstairs bathroom. Workers came out again and told me to call a plumber. Plumbers came by, opened the manhole by the street at the end of my driveway, and showed me that the city sewer line is clogged or has collapsed north of my property, causing the raw sewage to overflow and back up into my house.

To make a long story short, city workers have been here; representatives from the Health Department have been here; Brad Jones has been here; plumbers have been here; Lee Owen has tried several times to help - and still nothing has been repaired. The plumbers did dig a trench in my front yard and left my clean-out valve open so that raw sewage will no longer come into my house.

The city workers and Brad Jones all admit that this is a city problem, but they have no idea when the sewer line will be repaired. In the meantime I have paid my plumber $433.35 for digging an unsightly (but necessary) trench in my front yard. The city should reimburse me for this expense since the obstruction is in the city sewer line north of my house, but Brad Jones tells me that the city probably will not reimburse me.

In mid-January I asked Brad again when the repairs will be made to the sewer line on my street. He admitted that he has no idea. He went on to say that there are many jobs on the list before this one.

Something tells me that this job will be like so many other projects in Greenville - the downtown improvements, the Bass renovation, the city street repairs, etc., etc., etc.

Something tells me, you're right! The really sad fact is that while residential streets and sewers are in total disrepair, we can still find money for the downtown "road to nowhere." The residential sections of Washington avenue (from DRMC to Hwy 82) are horrendous. This section is designated as our "historical" district for which tax payers pay dearly and yet the avenue is almost impassable.

Look at Bowman Boulevard. For the total costs of "patching" that street over the past ten years, it should be paved in gold. Instead, it is a roller coaster of bumps and ruts. The city has been working on Main Extended for 3 years and every time they patch a section, water starts oozing from from another and there are still several open "craters" that will jar your teeth.

If the past election has taught us a new buzz-word, it is "transparency". We should demand to know how our road and property taxes are being spent. Go down to City Hall and ask for a copy of a line-item budgetary expenditure report for 2008. Keep track of how many people you have to ask for this report as well as the number of excuses you get of why that information is "not currently available".

Actually, it would be a very good question for the Mayor herself during her weekly open forum visits with the residents. "Transparency" in our city and county governments is not something we will see in our lifetime.

Forthright

Over the Line

2009-01-20T18:54:00.018-06:00

DRMC employee shares:

It is no wonder there is poor morale at DRMC which affects patient care. The way employees are mistreated and abused by upper management with reckless disregard for the DRMC Code of Conduct, not to mention federal laws, is just a drop in the bucket.

Recent events at "holiday parties" are good examples of upper management's misconduct with no accountability. Employees were attending a departmental Thanksgiving party held at the home of a supervisor. A revenue director became inebriated and in a drunken stupor told a hospital worker she was going to beat her ass and added there were other asses there that she was going to beat.

This is clearly indicative of upper management's Neanderthal mentality, and misconduct regarding rules against threat of violence to employees. If this was not bad enough, at a departmental Christmas party held at the home of the revenue director, the financial administrator became inebriated and in his drunken stupor told a worker and her husband that he needed to go home and take care of "that thing" before she had surgery.

This is clearly indicative of upper management's disdain, and misconduct regarding rules against lewd remarks and sexual harassment.

Sounds like DRMC employees had a bit too much holiday cheer! As for lewd remarks and sexual harassment, you should report this officially to Mr. Alphe Wells, whose job it is to insure that these incidents are investigated completely and appropriate action taken.

Unfortunately, this is just another example of the lack of sophistication and crudeness tolerated in "upper management" positions at DRMC. Humor is one thing, but when does it cross the line? I would suggest that the two examples of behavior above are about ten steps OVER the line.

We should demand more of our community "leaders".

Forthright

Congratulations President Obama!

2009-01-19T14:56:00.011-06:00

It won't be all festivities and celebrations for Mayor Heather McTeer Hudson when she arrives in the nation's capital for the presidential inauguration of Barack Obama.

Sure, there will be inaugural balls and such, but Hudson is also going to work.“We're going to the inauguration on Tuesday and I've got meetings on Wednesday morning.”

Still, the historical significance of the event isn't lost on the mayor.“It's wonderful to be able to celebrate the first African-American president of the United States,” said Hudson. “It's truly momentous.

At the same time,” she added, “it's exciting to celebrate the president who is ready to come to work.”Hudson will continue her efforts to bring funding to Greenville for a variety of projects. The president-elect has pledged funds to help the nation's crumbling infrastructure, something the two-term mayor knows a lot about.Hudson will meet on Capital Hill with other mayors and congressional leaders.

“Specifically for me, it's the Greenville community and other communities around Greenville, making sure that our infrastructure needs are there at the table,” Hudson said. “We're not going seeking theme parks and seeking things that have come under fire by the larger media, that some of the cities are looking for.

“We're going for base infrastructure: streets, sewer, water,” she said. “And we don't want to be left out. We've got to hit the ground running from day one, making sure that our needs are there.

Hudson believes her plan will work.“How better to improve the United States of America, both from an economic standpoint and from a structural standpoint, than to put the money into infrastructure,” said Hudson. “(Obama) is working not only with state governments but also local organizations, mayors, city council members, - organizations that have actual input, have hands-on contact - with how these dollars would be spent in our community.

“He's really getting a good idea of what it's going to take to get the structure of this nation back into play,” Hudson continued. “But also how many jobs is that going to create, what's the amount of money that is going to go into that?”

Hudson said when Obama unveiled his infrastructure stimulus package, he emphasized the need for information for projects that would be ready to start quickly. Going on the belief that “if you don't ask, you won't get it,” or possibly, “dream big,” Hudson has a wish list totaling nearly $338 million.

Hudson recently began a new feature at City Hall, “Open Office with the Mayor.” Citizens are invited to visit with the mayor at to discuss concerns, ideas, or plans they have regarding Greenville. Open Office is designed to give citizens the opportunity to just stop by and chat.

“I want citizens to feel free to stop by and share their ideas, compliments and complaints,” Hudson said. “In a city with over 40,000 residents, it can be difficult at times to get to every single person. This will allow us a day each week dedicated to just hearing from our citizens and improve our overall communications.”

The sessions will be held every Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the mayor's office. No appointments are necessary. Persons will be seen on a first come first serve basis.

By TERRI FERGUSON SMITH, Delta Democrat Times

Tuesday, January 20, 2009, will be a momentous day for this country and the world. A new era will begin ushered in by one of the most challenging economies since the great depression. President Obama will need the support of every American to achieve his goals. It is a time for all of us to put aside our personal views and stand behind the man we have elected as President.

No one man can clean up the mess we have "permitted" in Washington D.C., but I believe that we will see significant steps toward that goal under Obama's leadership. Between the economy and the war, I can not imagine why anyone would want the job of President, but Mr. Obama seems to think he can make a difference and we should all commend his dedication and fortitude.

With a little positive thinking and a great deal of support from all Americans, perhaps President Obama will be the catalyst for change that this country has needed for years. We need a leader to whom we can look to for strength, honesty and support of the freedoms on which America was founded.

I hope you join me in wishing President Barack Obama the best of luck as our 44th President of the United States of America.

Forthright

Education is the Key

2009-01-14T12:50:00.012-06:00

Anonymous said...

You can't blame the whites for leaving Greenville or the public schools. blame teenage pregnancy, one parent families, crime, gangs, welfare, parents who don't care, etc. i feel safe at ws. i don't feel safe at greenville public schools. Some of the parents are as scary as the students. i know that will be taken as racist, but it's how i feel. i want to go somewhere where i have the same lifestyle and values as the other parents. My family doesn't live off government handouts. I believe in working for what you get. I don't want to be around people who have an "entitlement" mentality.
9:05 AM

Anonymous said...

Private Schools were a blessing to this community. Oh yes a lot of parents cut budgets took a side job and worked extra hours to make sure our children got the best education available to them. My children went to private school and they are now well educated and contributing to their respective communities which by the way does not happen to be Greenville. I graduated from Gville High and got a good education. I was there before metal detectors and guards walking the halls.

I have watched classmates who come back for a reunion and have not been in Gville for 20 yrs or so just cry when they see the city now. In fact there are several upcoming reunions that are thinking about having theirs outside of Greenville because of the present condition of the city. They want to remember Greenville as it was when we had leadership in Greenville.

Whether you are black or white just ride around and look at your city and see if you are satisfied. Tell me your elected officials are making a difference. Ride down some side streets like S. California and tell me you like the way it looks or McCorkle Circle. Try 82 Hwy or Main St.

Just tell me at what point Gville was in this condition under white leadership. It is natural to defend your race but you sure as the devil do not have to vote for them if you want a better Gville for both black and white.
10:24 AM

Quality education is the key to a growing and prosperous economy. If you are lucky enough to receive a good education in the Delta, the first thing you do is "get out" (as the author above noted). Who can blame them? Today's Delta is the heart of poverty, ignorance and apathy. The local government is corrupt and their crimes go unpunished.

Local politicians stand in front of a TV camera and slaughter the English language. Some are barely literate. What message does that send to our children about the value of education? The only thing our "leaders" know how to do well is hold onto their jobs (which goes back to the "silent game").

I once had a black teacher tell me that "whites" could not teach "black" children. When I asked her to clarify, she stated, "Y'all don't know where we been; we have a different culture." Admittedly, this was several years ago, but it brings to light a very good question: If you perceive yourself as "different", then logically you expect different treatment... which is the basis for prejudice. What happened to cultural diversity... or is that a one way street?

It is sad to think that former students would consider moving their class reunion rather than have to face the reality of Greenville. Perhaps memories are the only things Greenville has left to offer.

Forthright

The Rise and Fall of Racism

2009-01-10T16:19:00.008-06:00

A Black Racist speaks said...

Very good insight from both of you. Now if I may, as a black Deltan who still has hope, I’d like to add my two cents. There seems to be a tradition in the Delta (and the whole country for that matter) where black people, unable to come up with a strong enough argument against a white protagonist, almost out of desperation calls the white person a racist.

This, of course, implies an unwritten assumption that black people are not capable of being racist and that all criticism of black people by white people is based on racism.Well, I think it is time to debunk that myth. Black people can be as racist, or even more racist, than some of the worst white racists.

I sincerely believe that black people use the race card when they are unable to come up with convincing arguments against white people. This is not to say that sometimes the criticism by white people of black people is not based on racism, but this is not always the case.

I believe that, by calling somebody a racist, it probably says more about you than about the other person.In any case, how in heaven’s name are we going to be able to have decent debates here if all white people are going to be scared to criticize black people? No one likes to be called a racist, and it is inevitable in the Delta for whites who criticize blacks to be tarnished with that label.

I try to deal with this issue by confessing that I am a racist. Once I have done this, I believe that it levels the playing ground for us to have a conversation about race and racism. And it is important for us to have this conversation. I believe that in our haste to become a “rainbow nation”, we did not deal with the issues that caused us so much pain in the past, and racism is one of those.

Unless we deal with the issues of race and racism, unless we talk about them, they will always come back to haunt us.

Now let’s say this together: I am a racist. You are a racist. Let’s talk.

And what better time to do it than now, before it gets worse for us here and more of the good ones that could lead in the future leave us.

The author makes a good point. To some degree, we are all racists. "Racism" being defined as a dislike of a group or groups of people based solely on their ethnicity. Here in the Delta, we generally label racism as black vs. white. In the mid-west, both blacks and whites are accused of racism toward Hispanic people.

Racism is simply another word for hatred and it only displays one's ignorance. It is easy to blame all of Greenville's woes on one race or the other; however, the real battle is not black vs. white, but educated vs. ignorant. The educated of both races are fleeing Greenville, leaving us with only those of an "entitlement" mentality.

The best thing that Mayor Hudson has done for Greenville is prove that neither the sex nor the race of a mayor matters at the end of the day. Greenville's decline started decades ago under mostly white leadership and has steadily progressed.

Perhaps now that both races have failed to produce the "magic strategy" to save Greenville; it might be a good time to join hands and work together.

Forthright

Welfare: The Other Bridge to Nowhere

2009-01-09T10:45:00.013-06:00

Local Reflector said...

I'll always pull for the Delta to succeed but I left there a few years ago as well. While there, the only way I really felt I could stir emotion and fight apathy was through Delta Scoop, so I launched it for $17 to buy an easy website that's now expired. I tried to physically help in the community. My participation wasn't welcome among the local civic leaders so, BOOM, the Local Reflector was born.

One can accuse many blog participants and commentators of doing nothing but talking negatively. From my perspective a few years ago, just offering an outlet was better than keeping quiet, being censored and saying nothing at all, thus guaranteeing no debate.

I'll challenge those who call existing residents "nay-sayers" to speak to the aspects in terms of civic, economic and educational policy matters. Real policy and real leadership - don't fall back on comments like Greenville has a great steak house,had local writers, a rich blues heritage and other philosophical anesthetics that prevent true issues discussions. The truth is that without discussing cultural offerings that really don't advance the economy or truly increase the overall quality of life (but would hurt it if they vanished), the issues are tough for Washington County.

REAL "meat n' potatoes" policy discussions cause pain right now. They did for my entire life in the Delta. I'll admit.....I wouldn't know what to do either.

The truth is that there is really not a lot any of us can do about the economy of Greenville. The welfare population is growing at three times the national average. Children are having children. Educated students (black and white) flee Greenville as soon as they are handed a diploma... vowing never to return. Tax payers are fleeing Greenville to secure what little savings and equity they have left in real estate.

So, who is left in Greenville? Primarily a group of uneducated, unmotivated, welfare "savvy" residents who ride free on the taxpayers' dollars. Many, not all, are quite comfortable with this system as it is all they have known for generations. Welfare was developed to be a "temporary bridge" between jobs. It has evolved into a way of life for many.

Under our current Welfare system, people are penalized for going to work. If you are unemployed, you get free health care for yourself and your children through Medicaid. You get food stamps and qualify for Section 8 housing in which the government pays all or part of your rent. If you have worked at all within the last 12 months, you can also draw unemployment up to $230 a week.

If your 15 year old daughter comes home pregnant, is that good news or bad? Economically, it is probably good news in that the unborn child will soon be converted to another "check" drawn from the "cash cow" we call welfare!

So, where is the incentive to go out and get a job? If you had free health care, free food, little or no housing costs and up to $230 per week for anything else you wanted... would YOU be pounding the pavement looking for a job?

The system is being abused and WE are permitting it. When was the last time you saw a starving child in the Delta? Most are obese because of their lifestyles and diets. Illegitimate children have become monetary rewards under our system that sets no boundaries to this economic "dole".

To flee Greenville is not to fix Greenville... as LR has noted; however, for many, it is probably the first step toward a brighter future. To those who complain that the "Scoop" is too negative, I refer you to LR's initial motive for founding the Delta Scoop, which was to provide an outlet and forum for debate. I have tried to maintain that tradition which seems to have been moderately successful.

I doubt that there are any simple answers in the debate over of how to "fix" Greenville... but when we stop asking questions, we are sunk!

Forthright

The "Mind Game"

2009-01-04T13:59:00.014-06:00

Local Reflector said...

Please, if you can, support the Delta Democrat Times and give new leadership a chance to prove itself. Granted, the early part of this decade saw the previous managers play deference to local politicians who don't want the public to get in tune with what's happening under their leadership. The perception was a reality, then, and may've contributed to philosophical disagreements between some subscribers and the publisher. It's one thing to cheer lead for a region, it's another to insist that the general public turn its head or be labeled as a malcontent.

Granted, there's a difference between attacking the newspaper emotionally and noting the growing number of wire stories being published daily. Remember, that media outlets are 100% dependent on local merchants to advertise with some national advertising purchases. As car lots find sales plummeting and other industries survive the recession, becoming monopolies with no pressure to market to a captive audience, you'll see media financial struggles. The result is fewer reporters with the same or growing demands of the readership.

TV news does make the spot news coverage dated in the newspaper but young television reporters may not have the time to dig deeper or sufficient training (at this stage of their career) to follow complex issues. Their audiences won't allow a slower news pace so it's "run and gun." However, advertising solely funds TV newsrooms to broadcast to larger audiences but there's no "pay per view" aspect to subscribing to watch local news whereas a daily paper subscription IS pay to view. There is a niche on which to capitalize. Is there enough of a paying audience and reading audience to justify advertising in local media and thus helping reporters earn a small living in Greenville? It's a dilemma facing newspapers and local broadcasters across this country as people forgo the knowledge of what's happening on their street in favor of nightly cable "political entertainment" shows many assume to be journalistic programs over editorial platforms on strictly national issues.

The DDT could learn much from the success of the "Delta Scoop" by and large. There's a lot of whining on here but there are always stubbles among the hay. News die-hards seek engagement when discussing the issues. They are few but they are empowering to reporters, each other and to those who are seeking better understanding and involvement.However, an independent media must be cultivated. It's not enough to silence "everyman critics and it's NO public service to for there to be no journalist watchdogs on city hall or the county courthouse. A hybrid relationship serves the same purpose for readers as having no newspaper or local news broadcast. One media outlet may disappear but if the existing news outlets don't tell it "straight," what's the difference?

Anonymous said...

Welcome back, LR. You've been missed.

Anonymous said...

Local Reflector I agree with all you have said and i have enjoyed our local paper for over 50 yrs.

Now let me state how hard it is to support our local businesses under the present leadership. Yes it is very hard! Mayor Hudson has created the worst disaster in Greenville since the 1927 flood. Yes Greenville survived the flood and flourished but under our present leadership we are on a path that will end in failure if the leadership does not change. Even if she resigns we will be no better off with Gines so we are literally in a no win situation.

Mr Jefcoat had us in descent shape and after he left it was all downhill. Mayor Hudson wants this city black and wants to do it with grant money and government assistance 100%. Well mayor Greenville was not built that way. Greenville was built by business leaders who loved greenville and wanted to make a difference instead of just getting elected for a pay check. There is not 1 successful business leader on council.

Sure there are some good people on council and some really want to make a difference but it has not happened under Hudson. The Morale in Greenville is terrible. It is no longer a place to come shop. The crime is terrible. The streets are terrible. No business wants to come here. The people who spend money do it outside of Greenville.Wake up Mayor!

The fact is 35 per cent of the Greenville population is paying 100 per cent of the taxes and the rest are unemployed and getting government assistance with no ambition to do better.The city is crumbling around us and regardless of economy and excuses the present leadership is responsible.

There is not a industry or business that could make a difference by locating in Greenville coming here until we clean Greenville up and have a major change at city hall. Bottom Line.

Local Reflector responds:

Greenville needs more of the entrepreneurial spirit, there's no question but that's a spirit that is cultivated or inspired as people believe in their abilities. Many times, grant monies short circuit the process by funding ideas or proposed ideas without a diligent audit of the grant recipients' ability or motivation to actually act on the proposal not to mention short-circuiting the natural forces that dictate whether a proposed program or project is an effective or "good" idea or whether it needs to be replaced with the next experiment.

Once grant recipients get acclimated to a steady paycheck via grant money, it KILLS the process entirely.Why would a non-profit agency or citizen "activist" want to solve community challenges if the existence of the challenge (and its worsening) means more money, more pay and more political clout for the supposed expert? Grants can do great things for cash-strapped communities....paving roads (but in a timely manner) is one such benefit.

But it depends on leaders at the local level actively working and not holding meetings, issuing soundbites and insisting that the public hear they're working hard yet are helpless in facing the situation at hand. These economic development meetings are basically the same meeting being held over and over and over. I believe a severely apathetic general public allows this to occur. Apathy allows the incompetent to reign without worry while cheating the community of brain power and intellect (as people choose NOT to offer possibly constructive ideas or honest "medicine").

If 35% of the people are paying 100% of the taxes, I don't think that fact is lost on Greenville leaders. I certainly do not believe they would purposely punish taxpayers though you taxpayers may feel punished. If they keep raising taxes, they risk greater outward migration of citizens with the financial means to move away from the fiscal policy. If they start cutting services, they'll alienate tax payers who believe they are getting NOTHING for their tax payments instead of the current disappointment.

In summary, your legacy families will stay and go down with the proverbial ship and don't have the answers - they ruled the area well before a second-term mayor. A new influx of new citizens, while openly supported, probably isn't so popular behind closed doors and at a personal level (where new residents would feel their sense of "home" when arriving).

So, how do you inspire a generation of people while instilling a work ethic and removing excuse? Civic leaders are talking a talk but the "walking" must be done by the displaced workers who'll earn a paycheck and then stimulate the local economy. Think Textron. Employees who said they needed work effectively ruined it making the Greenville plant not worth the company's efforts in spite of heavy economic development subsidies.

Local leaders really are helpless except to adjust or maintain tax rates and public expenditures to keep current taxpayers somewhat stable and attempt to hold population levels. I don't envy the job. I've never bought into the power of positive thinking without an effort to create a business-friendly environment (public school quality, acceptable crime levels, quality water & sewer and decent property tax rates to encourage relocation and home purchases).

Remember, if most of the people are on gov't. assistance....and most of the political and civic leaders benefit from the transfer of gov't. payment monies into their businesses (rents, gambling, etc), then it's an uphill climb to get potential workers to earn their way off the dole, cutting off guaranteed subsidies AND the guaranteed cash flow of local business and political interests who thrive of the steady cash transfer on a monthly basis.

I'm afraid your economy is based on low and no-income citizens transferring its finances (in tiny pieces) to smaller class of leaders who benefit financially and offering its subsequent apathy to current incumbents. It's a mind game, really.

Good to hear from our old friend "Local Reflector". As always, he has a firm grip on the current maladies that plague our community.

The prevailing mentality of our local government is "what's in it for me?" When fiscal misbehavior is permitted, it is in essence "promoted" and it quickly spreads throughout all aspects of local government. Soon, even an "honest" official realizes he has but two options: get on the take, or get out.

I agree with LR that we are caught up in a mind game... or as I would more aptly call it, "The Quiet Game." I keep quiet about what you do and you keep quiet about what I do... a "don't ask, don't tell" philosophy that has served its players well under Mayor Hudson's reign.

Is there hope for Greenville? Yes, there is always hope, but not without action from the few remaining taxpayers. Until we demand better, we should not expect it.

Forthright

A Changing Era

2009-01-02T12:28:00.008-06:00

Anonymous said...

Different subject, but has anybody seen a worse paper than the DDT. Everything is straight off the associated press, or editorials and articles from McComb, Greenwood, or Vicksburg. How about some human interest stories. Maybe we should just have a Wednesday and Sunday DDT..Things to ponder...

Anonymous said...

Give the new editor a chance. He's already made some noticeable improvements. And his editorials have been EXCELLENT. Eleanor Barkhorn and Laura Smith have been recent additions that have performed well, also. Laura seems to be making an effort to work with schools and community organizations to get their news in. Be patient.

Pick up the phone or send an email to the DDT. Give them your kind and considered suggestions. Ask appropriate and reasonable questions, and you might find that they are very responsive when they are not being unfairly (and anonymously) criticized.

No, I don't work for the DDT and never have, but I do recognize the need for a community-based newspaper that represents our interests while giving us access to news from the rest of the planet. I've learned that making an enemy of the editorial staff never helps. Play nice.

Much has changed in Greenville since the days of Hodding Carter. In the early 1950's, there was a sense of pride about living in Greenville. It was noted for outstanding literary figures, artists and its excellent local newspaper, the Delta Democrat Times.

Believe it or not, Greenville Public Schools was rated 12th in the nation for "best quality in public education." It was a simpler time, but there were many good things about Greenville. The DDT brought us much notoriety as a leader in innovative journalism and exemplary writing. Teachers actually used the DDT as a teaching tool as to the correct use of grammar and literary style (and they didn't have "spell check").

Greenville was a growing community and there was much to report in terms of the arts, culture and social change. The DDT was the primary source of news in the Delta and the quality and accuracy of its articles were well respected.

Today, Greenville has changed and so has the DDT. The Carters saw the end of an era coming and sold the newspaper to a syndicated conglomerate. Since then, the newspaper has changed hands several times and is no longer regarded as a source of journalist excellence. The DDT now competes with local television media that broadcasts four to five times a day. Most of what can be considered "news" is old news by the time we read it in the DDT.

However, as the above contributor noted, there have been some noted improvements in the quality of editorials and commentaries presented in the DDT, to which credit must be given. Personally, I would hate to see the DDT fail or be reduced to a biweekly publication. A newspaper can be more than simply "news", but it must stay in tune with its readership.

Forthright

Edent Brent: A Jewel in our Crown!

2008-12-27T18:08:00.011-06:00

Okay, some news is worth "stealing". Thanks to the Delta Democrat Times and Logan Mosby for this great article on one of the Delta's most incredible treasures! If you haven't heard Eden Brent play and sign... you haven't been treated to one of the greatest talents in the South. Thanks Eden for proving you don't have to be black... to sing the blues!

You can purchase Eden's DVD at several locations around town or at http://www.amazon.com/. You can even download it right onto your computer!

‘Mississippi No. 1' earns Brent blues nods By LOGAN MOSBY loganmosby@ddtonline.com
Wednesday, December 24, 2008 1:32 PM CST

Greenville blue artist Eden Brent has been nominated for four of the Blues Foundation's Blues Music Awards, including one for her new album, “Mississippi Number 1.” The ceremony will be in May in Memphis.

A Port City blues artist is making her way in the world and is picking up nominations left and right along the way.Most folks around these parts already had a head's up on Greenville native Eden Brent's talent, and now, with the release of her latest CD, “Mississippi Number One,” the rest of the world has been let in on the secret.

And it looks like the world, as well as the music industry, is standing up and taking notice. Tuesday, the Blues Foundation announced the nominees for the 2009 Blues Music Awards, and Brent has been tapped in four categories - Acoustic Album of the Year, Acoustic Artist of the Year, Best New Artist Debut and Pinetop Perkins Piano Player. “I feel so honored,”

Brent said Wednesday after learning of the nominations. “I've looked at the list of other nominees and to be recognized with the likes of B.B. King, it's just amazing.

“It is so nice to be mentioned among so many of my friends, as well as stellar artists that I have looked up to for so long. It was a wonderful surprise.”

Brent's love of music began at home with her family, and continued through high school, where she played flute in the marching band, all the way to the University of North Texas, where she earned a bachelor's degree in music.

But it wasn't until she began studying under the late, great Greenville bluesman Boogaloo Ames that Brent really found her musical footing. Brent spent 16 years learning the art form from Ames, earning the nickname, “Little Boogaloo.”

Since launching her solo career, she was named a 2004 inductee into the Greenville Blues Walk, the 2006 winner of the Blues Foundation's International Blues Challenge, and has headlined venues across the world, including the Kennedy Center, the British Embassy, and tours in South Africa and Norway. Brent has taken her success in stride, and this week's nominations have only reaffirmed her dedication to the blues and the Delta.

“I'm happy that I've been recognized with this album, ‘Mississippi Number One,' because it really is a tribute to Mississippi, and in particular, this area,” Brent said. “The Delta can really share in this recognition, because were it not for the people here, and the experiences I've had here, I wouldn't have anything to write about.”

Brent says that no matter where her career and success may lead her, Greenville and the Delta will always be her home.“I'm a Mississippi Delta gal, and I always will be,” she said. “I belong here, this place belongs to me.” The Blues Music Awards will be held May 7, 2009, at Cook Convention Center, in Memphis.

Get Eden's DVD... you won't be disappointed!

Forthright

Council Flubs it!

2008-12-18T15:16:00.007-06:00

City leaders waste tax dollars:

The council will continue to use Mississippi Municipal Liability for liability insurance that covers the city and the airport, despite Bill Andrews Agency's attempt to convince the council to use its services. “The MML plan required no deductibles from the city, whereas the Andrews plan required a $10,000 deductible per occurrence for both police and public officials,” said the mayor.

Council members Carl McGee, Lee Owen and Betty Watkins voted in favor of staying with MML, while council members Ann Hollowell, Errick Simmons and Kenneth Gines voted in favor of switching to Andrews, a Greenville-based agency founded in 1925. Hudson broke the tie by voting in favor of MML, which the city has used for the past four years.

But Bill Andrews, president of the Andrews agency, said his company's plan's premium was $53,037 lower per year than MML's. And because the city has had only two liability claims over the past five years, Andrews believes the council would have saved money by picking his plan over MML's.**

Seems to me a GUARANTEED savings of $53,037. as opposed to a potential $10 grand deductible would be worth the overall savings when considering there have only been two liability claims in five years. According to that, if we were insured through Bill Andrews in the past five years, we would have saved $265,185 and spent $20 grand for the two claims...let's see that comes to $245,185.00 in savings....that is a lot of mula!!! What are they thinking???? That is enough money to fund salaries for several employees or repair and improve at least a few streets!

Typical Greenville leadership strikes again!

Nothing new about this headline! Given the city's current fiscal shape, the council would be hard pressed to come up with $10,000 in any emergency, so they simply go with the higher price... after all, it is just taxpayer's money and it can be allocated each month!

This is the same mentality of the person who buys a new TV from the Rent-to-Own Center. At the end of the 2 year lease for a $300 TV, he has now spent over $1,200 for this same TV... but the payments were "so cheap", only $50 a month. Wow, what a buy!

The city is willing to "roll the dice" that Greenville will have five major claims in 2009. It is only a $53,000 wager (with an easy payment plan using our money). If there are no claims for the year, the council will all pat themselves on the back and attribute it to innovative safety measures on their part.

On the other hand, the city may be doing the right thing in forecasting a massive monetary exposure for 2009. If something isn't done about the basic infrastructure of Greenville, we will soon be losing entire automobiles into the vast sink-holes that are so prevalent on our roads. If everyone filed a claim against the city for the cost of car repairs caused by the city's irresponsibility and negligence, $50,000 would look like "chump-change".

Forthright

P.S. Not to be outdone by Alaska, Greenville will soon have it's own "road to nowhere" (Washington Avenue). It is truly impressive to stand at the old train depot and have a clear and unobstructed view of the boarded up and crumbling buildings that line both sides of the street. The new straight-a-way design will also assist the police in high-speed car chases of drug dealers and thieves.

So, just as soon as they can get those tacky 200 year old bricks covered with some fresh black asphalt, we can hold a "grand opening" celebration and, hand in hand, march down the freshly paved "road to nowhere".