Things that make you go hmmm......

Looks like Mississippi politics is heating up a little bit. Remember the Voter ID bill that was killed in the Senate by four Republicans, even though it's been a Republican crusade for some time? Apparently there is more to the story than the feeble reasons they gave for their vote. It's no secret Voter ID is one of Delbert's pet projects. It's also becoming less and less of a secret that Delbert is being looked at for Governor and Lieutenant Governor and not just by the media or Delbert.

It seems there is a reason our current Lieutenant Governor has been rather lukewarm in his support of a Voter ID bill, while at times appearing as if he couldn't rein in four Republican Senators. Sources have informed JJ the Senate shenanigans on Voter ID were an attempt to slap down Delbert a little bit. Hewes is looking at running for Lieutenant Governor and Bryant will either run for re-election or instead run for Governor. As these parties have a vested interest in Delbert's political future, Voter ID was torpedoed by Bryant's gang of four so they could deny Hoseman a legislative victory on something that would have resonated with the base and carried a great deal of publicity for the Secretary of State.

What the gang of four failed to realize was it made Bryant look weak, as he couldn't control his own party, something one could never say of McCoy, Dye, or other past legislative leaders. They also managed to anger many Mississippi Republicans who have struggled long and hard to get a Voter ID bill passed only to be backstabbed when in sight of victory.

About those Chrysler dealership closings.....

It's starting to get the attention of more than a few, that there seems to be a political bias involved in the closing of Chrysler dealerships. Financial blog Zero Hedge attempted a statistical analysis and came up with an interesting little factoid:
"This puzzled us. Why would there be a significant and highly positive correlation between dealer survival and Clinton donors? Granted, that P-Value (0.125) isn't enough to reject the null hypothesis at 95% confidence intervals (our null hypothesis being that the effect is due to random chance), but a 12.5% chance of a Type I error in rejecting a null hypothesis (false rejection of a true hypothesis) is at least eyebrow raising. Most statistians would not call this a "find" as 95% confidence intervals are the gold standard for this sort of work. Nevertheless, it seems clear that something is going on here. Specifically, the somewhat low probability that the Clinton data showing higher survivability of Clinton donors could result just from pure chance. But why not better significance with any of the other variables? Why this stand out?

Then we got to thinking. Steven Rattner, the Car Czar, is married to Maureen White, one-time national finance chairman of the Democratic National Committee. What does Maureen do now? From her website:

Maureen White is currently Chairman of the Board of Overseers of The International Rescue Committee (IRC), a member of the North American Advisory Board for the London School of Economics, and a National Finance Chair of the Hillary Clinton for President Campaign. (emphasis ours)

That website looks dated, but you get the idea."
Story

Is anyone surprised? This smells like the Clintons.

Update: Here is a critique written by someone who knows a thing or two about statistics.

Update II: Zero Hedge released more of the methodology and data used. Update

It's Sunday morning

Rumor mill has shifted a little

It's no longer Harvey hiring Faye Peterson as City Attorney, but instead he is looking to hire her as City Prosecutor.

For the Thacker crowd.....

For all you wimps who went to Canton for bluegrass last night....

Crime report of sorts

From JPD crime stats: Weekly crime stats

Since someone mentioned downtown yesterday, let's look at those crime stats:

May 18-24, 2009
Tombigbee: 2 auto burglaries on May 21, 2009
200 block of S. State Street: 2 auto burglaries on May 20, 2009
700 block of N. Congress Street: 1 auto burglary on May 22, 2009
Pearl Farish: 2 auto burglaries on May 24, 2009
George Congress: 1 auto burglary on May 22, 2009
Congress & Pearl: 2 auto burglaries on May 20, 2009
200 block of East Amite: 2 auto burglaries on May 20, 2009
300 block of Greymont Avenue: 6 auto burglaries on May 23, 2009

18 auto burglaries.

Note: There were a few on N. State Street but I wasn't sure about where the blocks were so I omitted them. Also, looks like someone robbed Frank's house. Report states 2 Carter Grove Circle was robbed on May 21.

Week of May 11-17,2009
Capitol & West: 2 auto burglaries on May 17, 2009
Capitol & Farish: 2 aggravated assaults on May 11, 1009
200 block of Commerce Street: 2 auto burglaries on May 13, 2009
100 block of E. Capitol: 2 business burglaries on May 14, 2009
300 block of E. Rankin: 1 business burglary on May 14, 2009
1100 block of Lamar: 1 business burglary on May 15, 2009
400 block of Greymount: 2 auto burglaries on May 14, 2009

8 auto burglaries, 4 business burglaries.

Week of May 3-10, 2009
400 block of Capital Street: 1 AutoTheft May 9,2009
100 block of E. Capitol Street: 12 Auto burglaries May 7-9, 2009
East River Place: 1 auto burglary, May 9, 2009
400 block of Greymont Avenue: 2 auto burglaries, May 5, 2009
Pearl & Roach: 2 auto burglaries, May 10, 2009
700 block of South State Street: 1 business burglary May 6, 2009
900 block of South State Street: 1 grand larcney May 6, 2009

16 auto burglaries, 1 business burglary, 1 grand larceny.

Palin speaks.

Part 2, Part 3 , Part 4, Part 5, Part 6 , Part 7
Part 5 is pretty good.

Regions rumor mill gets into gear

"NEW YORK, May 29 (Reuters) - Regions Financial Corp (RF.N), a large U.S. southeast regional bank, canceled a Friday appearance at an industry conference, citing a "last-minute scheduling conflict." Reuters story

Over at Barrons, Bob O'Brien reported:
"The lateness of the cancellation, coupled with the lack of concrete information about the cause of the scheduling conflict, fed into the kind of anxieties that usually accompany these kinds of episodes. Investors naturally conclude that the bank has backed out of its appearance because of some new development that it doesn’t want to disclose.
There’s every chance it could be a good development - a takeover offer came in over the transom? - but the suspicion is that it’s a less-than-constructive development.
Regions recently issued common equity to help close the $2.5 billion capital shortfall the government ordered as the result of its findings following the stress test of the banking system. It successfully executed on the issuance - a positive - but ended up issuing more stock than expected, meaning an even-heftier dilution to common shareholders, and at a steeper discount to where it was trading - 18% below its previous price - than analysts had anticipated..."

Needless to say, the rumors are flying.

Does Chancellor Dewayne Thomas owe some money?

Section 23-15-807 of the Mississippi Code:
"(a) Each candidate or political committee shall file reports of contributions and disbursements in accordance with the provisions of this section. All candidates or political committees required to report may terminate its obligation to report only upon submitting a final report that it will no longer receive any contributions or make any disbursement and that such candidate or committee has no outstanding debts or obligations. The candidate, treasurer or chief executive officer shall sign each such report.
(b) Candidates who are seeking election, or nomination for election, and political committees that make expenditures for the purpose of influencing or attempting to influence the action of voters for or against the nomination for election, or election, of one or more candidates or balloted measures at such election, shall file the following reports:
(i) In any calendar year during which there is a regularly scheduled election, a pre-election report, which shall be filed no later than the seventh day before any election in which such candidate or political committee has accepted contributions or made expenditures and which shall be complete as of the tenth day before such election;
(ii) In 1987 and every fourth year thereafter, periodic reports, which shall be filed no later than the tenth day after April 30, May 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31, and which shall be complete as of the last day of each period; and
(iii) In any calendar years except 1987 and except every fourth year thereafter, a report covering the calendar year which shall be filed no later than January 31 of the following calendar year...."

Hinds County Chancery Judge Dewayne Thomas has apparently failed to follow the law and file his annual reports as required by law since he never filed a terminating report. Judge Thomas won election to his office in 2006. He last filed a report in periodic report on January 10, 2007.

The Mississippi Code specifies a candidate shall be fined $50 a day per violation up to $500:
"Section 23-15-813 (a)(ii) Beginning with the tenth calendar day after which any report shall be due, the Secretary of State shall assess the delinquent candidate and political committee a civil penalty of Fifty Dollars ($50.00) for each day or part of any day until a valid report is delivered to the Secretary of State, up to a maximum of ten (10) days."

Considering Judge Thomas has not turned in annual reports for 2008 and 2009, it seems he might owe $1,000 to the Secretary of State in fines.

List of Thomas's reports

Update:
Apparently another judge violated the law:
Judge Wise

South Jackson residents have had it.

Good story by Monica Hernandez on WLBT on how South Jackson residents are sick of crime.

Cavaliers invade Guadalcanal

33 second mark. Cavalier King Charles Spaniel (Blenheim) invades Guadalacanal. Thats what I call a bad-ass dog, not that I'm prejudiced towards the breed.

Mississippi Circuit Clerks shirking their duty?

Is Hinds County Circuit Clerk Barbara Dunn breaking the law? It sure seems that way when it comes to turning in campaign finance reports to the Secretary of State.

Section 23-15-805 of the Mississippi Code states:
"(b) Candidates for county or county district office, and every political committee which makes reportable contributions to or expenditures in support of or in opposition to a candidate for such office or makes reportable contributions to or expenditures in support of or in opposition to a countywide ballot measure or a ballot measure affecting part of a county, excepting a municipal ballot measure, shall file all reports required by this section in the office of the circuit clerk of the county in which the election occurs. The circuit clerk shall forward copies of all reports to the Office of the Secretary of State."

While looking through campaign finance reports on the Secretary of State's website, I noticed there were no reports available for county officials (Judicial candidates are under a different set of rules.). I called the SOS's office and was told they didn't have the reports (at least they weren't in the appropriate folders and could be buried somewhere else) for any of them. It was also clear under the law that the Circuit Clerks are supposed to provide copies to the state. Looking through the website, it seems that of the counties examined: Warren, Lamar, Forrest, Madison, Rankin, Hinds; none of the Circuit Clerks submitted the reports as required by law.

What is interesting about the law is there is no penalty for a Clerk who fails to do his duty. Thus the law tells him to file the reports with the state, but if he doesn't, well, the State doesn't do anything about it. Even if there is not even a slap on the wrist for an offending clerk, the law is not being followed and Mississippians are denied their right to see exactly what goes on in their government.

Market Ticker on Kim Wade

Missed Karl Denninger of The Market Ticker (website) and The Kingfish on Kim Wade last week? Here is the broadcast. Enjoy:



Start at ten minute mark. Doesn't work? Here is the link

I hate it when this happens.

I have a friggin' craving from hell for pound cake batter and I don't have what I need to make it.

This really sucks.

Vote for the Hottest Defendant in Mississippi

(Top to bottom, left to right: Sheral Smith, Lisa Pendergest-Holt (2), Tyshuna Cooper, Lisa Pendergest-Holt, Dana Johnson, Karen Irby (2) )

Mississippi has many fine-looking women and our criminal justice system is no exception. Vote for our one of these women in our "Hottest Defendant in Mississippi" poll. If I've missed anyone worthy of being in the poll, please email me a pic and a copy of or link to an article reporting her arrest.

A picture is worth a thousand words

While the ship sinks and employees are furloughed at the Clarion-Ledger, Publisher Larry Whitaker is kicking it up in style at the Bacchus Ball this year. Thought his employees might appreciate this while they are enjoying their um, unpaid vacations.

Vegas collapsing?

MSNBC smears Palin

Ready for this? Here ya go:
"Modeling agencies clueless about Levi Johnston
There’s been plenty of speculation that Levi Johnston, the father of Tripp, Sarah Palin’s first acknowledged grandchild, has been giving interviews to the likes of Larry King and Tyra Banks so that he can land an endorsement or modeling deal. Vanity Fair did some poking about to see whether a modeling contract could be in Johnston’s future, and the prospects look bleak."
MSNBC April 26, 2009 Story

That's journalism? This earlier post shows exactly what the reporter was doing as she was trying to be sneaky and smear Bristol as being the mother of Palin's infant son. Disgusting.

Update on Warnock lawsuit against Madison Misfits & Google

Called the Circuit Clerk's office in Madison County this morning to get an update on Rudy Warnock's lawsuit against Google and John Does #1-10. The clerk told me the last filing was in November, 2008 for discovery (Depositions, interrogatories, etc).

The Madison County Journal reported in February:
"A $5 million defamation lawsuit has been filed by Madison County Engineer Rudy Warnock accusing an unknown party of posting information on an Internet blog that caused him to suffer "great mental suffering and emotional distress as well as shame, humiliation and embarrassment." The lawsuit was filed in Madison County Circuit Court on Oct. 31, 2008, and subpoenas have been issued to the Internet search engine company Google to release information on the party that owns and operates the blog..." Story

Neither Google nor any of the John Does have filed a response. The only thing in the file is Warnock's complaint and the motion for discovery.

Only 34% in JJ poll think Sheriff McMillin is doing a good job.

JJ recently asked if you thought Hinds County Sheriff Malcolm McMillin was doing a good job. Only 34% thought he was while 48% said he was doing a bad job. 15% said his performance was mediocre.

The totals:
Very good: 51 (18%), good: 45 (16%), mediocre: 43 (15%), bad: 73 (27%), really bad: 57 (21%)

Some advice for the Mississippi Tea Party

Want to attract some of us? Then the next time you have an event run by Republicans that bashes the Dems for all of the bailouts and spending, throw in Chip Pickering's name since he was the ONLY member of our Congressional delegation to vote FOR the bailout last fall even though the calls to his office were heavily against the plan. No Republicans in Mississippi have yet to condemn him for his vote. That means the next time I see Phil Bryant and Rita Martinson up there leading a Tea Party rally and bashing big spending in Washington, then they better call out good ole Chip. If we are truly sick of what both parties have done to this country and our economy, then politicians like Pickering should be thrown under the bus with the rest of those that that voted to put us in this mess.

Redstate: Republicans shown up by Cheney

There is an interesting column over at Redstate about Cheney's swapping blows with Obama and some recent polls.

First he delves into some recent polling numbers:
"According to a new poll from McLaughlin & Associates, Americans Want A Check On Obama’s Agenda, Americans are looking to Republicans to provide a foil to Obama’s more radical policies. According to this poll a 51% majority now are willing to vote Republican so they can act as a check on Obama’s agenda. 47% are presumably fine with a socialist bent of this Administration. According to the article, that’s a 17% shift in the answer to the same question asked just five months ago.
Surprisingly the biggest drop came among Democrats 86% of whom said they would vote Democrat in January as opposed to only 75% today. ...
Finally…and most infuriating to me is that so called Moderates and Independents went the other way…today 3% more Moderates and Independents would vote Democrat to help Obama while 12% more DEMOCRATS would vote for Republicans.
To me…this begs the question…why are we moving left to attract more Moderates and Independents when that group shows more loyalty to Obama than even Democrats do? Why aren’t we moving right…or at least trying to hold our ground to attract the Democrats who would vote Republican and outnumber the Moderates and Independents willing to vote Republican as a Percentage of those polled by 8%
So…after all is said and done…Republicans have piled up 11% of Democrats and 4% of Republicans while the Dems picked up 3% more moderates and independents......"

Then he moves on to Cheney's re-emergence and what it means for Republicans:
"Then there’s that right wing extremist the establishment big wigs have been trying to ignore and shut out of the party. You know…he’s that big mouth that makes them blush in shame every time he opens his mouth and was most recently our Vice President of the United States, Favorable Opinions of Cheney Rise. Though still not over 50% approval, Cheney’s approval numbers have climbed 8% since he’s been out counter punching against the Obama Administration and their constant attacks and finger pointing at the Bush Administration on the issue. Of course he’s improved his numbers by fighting like a man rather than shutting up and cowering in a corner like the MSM tools who call themselves Republicans have advised him to do. Over the time he’s been out there fighting the Obama Administration almost singlehandedly. All the while, the cocktail circuit has been abuzz attacking him and the Republicans for having nothing else to offer than the most unpopular Vice President in American History!..."

He then contrasts Cheney's behavior with the current Ship of Fools that exists in the Republican Party leadership:
"So Cheney is out there all alone fighting the good fight and gaining in popularity for telling it like it is…yet we have no equivalent to him on Fiscal issues at a time when the Obama administration is involved in the wholesale nationalization of the Banking, Credit Card and Auto Industries. We have no champion on the subject of fiscal issues as the Obama Administration are busy on raising taxes using Cap & Trade and global warming as cover. We have no voice to oppose the Obama Administration as it quadruples the annual deficit. There is no one to point out Obama’s lies about cutting the deficit in half in four years using the astronomic numbers he’s run up since being in office. By his math…we start with a $500 Billion annual Deficit. He increases spending and vastly expands the Government and run’s the Annual Deficit up to $1 Trillion and makes the absurd claim that allowing the deficit to fall back to $531 Billion is cutting the Deficit he supposedly inherited in half without nary a peep from the clowns running The Republican Party and directing it’s message!"

What do you expect? Napolitano labels half the Republican base security threats in her Homeland Security report and Boehner can't even fight for a resolution condeming her actions. Voters are not sold on Obama's policies yet the Republicans don't seem to realize we don't trust them after the 1998 budget deal, Medicare expansion, No Child Left Behind, the deficits, the spending, and of course, the bailouts. Its going to take much more than saying no to Obama and offering 300-page plans filled with nice little charts and statistics.

Rescue Mission

While looking for Memorial Day stuff today, I came across these videos about what is now a little-known rescue of American soldiers in a Bataan Death Camp in the Philipinnes. The Mission was to rescue 500 soldiers. There were 1000 Jap soldiers a mile to the east and another 7,000 soldiers 4 miles to the west. 120 Rangers were selected to carry out the mission. The camp was 30 miles behind enemy lines. Quit watching the crap on tv or surfing the net and watch these videos. The story is quite riveting.




Part 2
Part 3

Happy Memorial Day.

In honor of Memorial Day and our fallen soldiers, here is Victory at Sea, Episode 9. The Allies invade North Africa (believe it or not, we had to fight the French).

Part 2
Part 3

Reagan's Tribute to the heroes of D-Day:

The new economy?

Pretty good article in the American Thinker about how corporatism and fascism are two names for the same thing. Too often when people use the word "fascist" they are calling someone a tyrant or a Nazi. This article delves a little bit more deeply into what exactly is fascism and how the American economy is morphing away from a free-market oriented system to one that combines crony capitalism and central planning:
"Fascism should rightly be called Corporatism, as it is the merger of corporate and government power." Benito Mussolini
Some members of the Republican National Committee have recently wondered aloud what others of us wonder privately. What name do we give to the direction in which Democrats and the Obama administration are taking America?.....
Meanwhile, the consumer -- once king in the capitalist system -- becomes the benefactor of the wisdom of the bureaucrat to whom, according to Marx, "the world is a mere object to be manipulated by him."
So, what's our future to be? Expanding collaboration between big business (With GE's Immelt as the poster boy) and bigger government moving in tandem toward a kinder-and-gentler fascism?..." The new economy?

Meanwhile, Mish calls Geithner a liar.

No comment.

DWI listing in Baton Rouge paper today:
"Richard Nutt, 24, 17533 Reachwood"

It's Sunday morning

Battle of Britain newsreels

Hard to believe England was once this courageous.

Power

"Bloggers beware"

The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday on the increasing use of lawsuits against bloggers:
Bloggers are increasingly getting sued or threatened with legal action for everything from defamation to invasion of privacy to copyright infringement. In 2007 -- the most recent data available -- 106 civil lawsuits against bloggers and others in social networks and online forums were tallied by the Citizen Media Law Project at the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, up from just 12 in 2003. There have been about $17.4 million in trial awards against bloggers to date, according to the Media Law Resource Center in New York, a nonprofit clearinghouse that tracks free-speech cases.
Many lawsuits are thrown out of court or settled before trial, but not before causing headaches for the accused. Though the likelihood of a plaintiff winning a lawsuit is not high, "you could go bankrupt" just from defending against them, says Miriam Wugmeister, a partner at Morrison & Foerster LLP and a privacy and data-security law expert. (Note to anyone getting any ideas: I have my own law degree and don't have this problem. I'll be more than happy to stay up til 3:00 AM writing every motion I can legally support.)
The number of blogger lawsuits is likely to keep rising as the number of people who post online continues to grow, says Sandra Baron, executive director of the Media Law Resource Center and a media-law attorney. Social-networking sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook and MySpace -- which is owned by News Corp., the parent company of The Wall Street Journal -- and microblogging services like Twitter are making it easy for impetuous remarks to reach thousands of users in a matter of minutes. In March, fashion designer Dawn Simorangkir sued rocker Courtney Love for libel in Los Angeles Superior Court, accusing Ms. Love of posting disparaging remarks about the designer on Twitter and MySpace.....
At the same time, companies are increasingly employing automated technology to scour the Internet for copyrighted material and negative remarks. As a result, Web sites that purport to rate everything from college professors to doctors and contractors are being sued by recipients of disparaging reviews, according to the Berkman Center....
Civic gadflies and self-styled watchdogs who accuse local politicians and companies are getting slapped with lawsuits. People who post messages in chat rooms, online forums and blogs can be held liable for invasion of privacy or for making defamatory statements, which are damaging, false statements of fact....."
Article

I've warned a couple of local bloggers about getting sued. Unfortunately they replied they can't get sued, especially for comments made by other people. I think one day they might find out otherwise. Of course, the incentive here will be for bloggers to use screen names and keep their identities private.

Am I nuts?

Am thinking of tackling this Two Lakes project and trying to figure the whole thing out. I might get a case of that wine below if I do.

Starting to lose it

Watch the pupils and notice the giggles in the background. Watch the whole video. Macke is not quite all there.

His column explains his distress a little better as he says GM's CEO is off his rocker.

Looking for a nice red?

Looking for a nice red under $20 this weekend? Kats has this wine in stock for $15:
"2003 Escudo Rojo (Chile): Escudo Rojo is a wine from Chile from Baron Philippe de Rothschild. This red shows all the power of the fine 2003 vintage as well as being the first vintage to reap the benefits of their new plantings in the Maipo Valley. Made from a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmnere, Syrah, and Cabernet Franc, the Escudo Rojo has plenty of ripe "new world" fruit tempered with "old world" style and elegance. I like this wine with a variety of grilled meats like lamb or beef." (K&L Wine Merchants)

I tried a bottle last weekend and it was very nice. Has the full body of a Cabernet Savignon, very smooth with a little spice that appears as you swallow it. Go by Kats and pick up a bottle.

One more thing about Crisler......

People seem to think I dislike or hate Crisler. It's not that I dislike or hate Crisler, it's that I don't respect him. I don't respect someone who is using getting shot as an obvious and gross campaign ploy, just as I also don't respect people who shirk their duty. Duty? What do you mean, Kingfish? It's quite simple.

In August of 2007, his unit in the Mississippi Air National Guard received orders to deploy overseas ( I will not divulge which county but will say it was a former Soviet republic). The deployment was from January of 2008 to August of 2008. When the orders were issued, Crisler submitted his letter of resignation within a few days and by that I mean within a week. This is not hearsay. This is not internet chit-chat or talk radio gossip. This information is personal knowledge coming from me. You can consider me to be the primary source.

I am posting this because frankly I have had it up to here with people talking about what a great soldier and warrior he is when they have no clue about his actual service record. As a former soldier, I can say I didn't appreciate one bit the fact that friends and relatives of mine were forced to deploy to a country not too far from combat theaters while he decided to stay home. It's pretty obvious he didn't want it to affect his "political viability". (Do you remember that phrase, my fellow Clinton-haters?) While everyone talks about his Iraq duty, they fail to notice Crisler had none of his former fellow soldiers giving testimonials for him. I still seethe with anger over those guys leaving their homes and families to deploy near Russia while he sat at home playing the politician.

There is a word I and my former fellow soldiers have for officers who let their troops go to the front without them and that is a "REMF". It was a favorite term of the late Colonel David Hackworth who felt little love for perfumed princes and REMF's. Also remember the Vichy French were led by WWI veterans and Margaret Thatcher never once served a day in the military. Bismark treasured his soldiers and knew when to stop a war while the Kaiser saw war as a big game to be played by Kings. The point is, character is character and time in service is no substitute for it. He joined the MANG so he wouldn't be shipped anywhere, then when he found it was going to happen, he immediately retired. REMF.

State Representative Jim Evans

Here are some of State Representative Jim Evans' campaign finance reports. Anyone notice anything?

2003 Pre-election report, 2003,2003, 2003, 2003, 2007 pre-election, 2007, 2007, 2007, 2007, 2007, 2007

Factchecking.Its.not.that.hard.

Unless you work at the Jackson Free Press and try to do math:
"To my knowledge, although most of the money reported by the Better Jackson PAC came from Two Lakes people, they did not do mailers about the development project. They used the money to run ads about crime, trying to scare people into voting for Crisler -- presumably so the Two Lakes project would get undying support.
And they didn't use the actual FBI crime stats, which show how much crime dropped during Johnson's tenure; they used Wilson's favorite old Morgan Quitno rankings, which mean nothing when actually analyzed.
I shudder to think about this kind of sleight-of-hand trickery.posted by ladd on 05/21/09 at 12:25 PM"

Well, since she has a copy of the campaign finance report, she knows the PAC raised $22,250. McGowan gave $6,000.

27%. I guess progressive math means that is a majority.

Santelli schools bubbleheads

3:00 minute mark and on, Rick schools the CNBC D-bag.

Karl Denninger will be on KIM Waaaaaaaaade today

5:10 to 6:00 PM CST on WJNT, 1180 AM.

Karl Denninger of the Market Ticker will be on Kim Wade's show today with me and Kim Wade. Should be very interesting as Karl will probably go against all the money honeys spouting the recovery nonsense. Problem is, Karl has been right. Here are two posts from him if you want to get up to speed on what he has been discussing lately:
Unintended consequences
No Green Shoots

Link to his forums: Ticker Forums

Wall Street Journal is now three bucks a copy.

Price had doubled in less than a year. Thanks Rupert.

The control freak speaks

"Jackson Needs Truth and Transparency Now — Join Us?
The false campaigning, flyers, mailers, anonymous posts on blogs, radio appearances and so on in the 2009 city elections in Jackson has encouraged many of us to get together and call for more truth and transparency in local government, campaigns, media and on personal blogs.
So today on Elction Day, the JFP is announcing the Jackson Truth and Transparency Initiative as a community project going forward. We invite you to join us, regardless of your political leanings. We want your ideas, your energy and your support for this very important initiative.
Going forward, we hope the project becomes a way to encourage Jacksonians to stop spreading so many falsehoods and to factcheck information before putting it out there. We hope to develop a "best practices" for local blogs to voluntarily sign on to pledge that they will not spread unsubstantiated rumors and operate as breeding grounds for anonymous posters to spread lies for their own personal benefit and vendettas. We want to encourage more people to post on Web sites under their own names wherever possible and avoid anonymity, and the abuses that often accompanies it (much as people already do on Facebook.....posted by ladd on 05/19/09 at 02:46 PM "

I've never seen a publication that smears people, gets its facts consistently wrong, outright lies, and slants its coverage the way that rag does. Then there is her latest habit of ripping off this blog which she seems to have developed in the last few weeks. Donna Ladd is the last person in this town who should be calling for truth and transparency from others. I have a feeling this is more about her trying to control the competition from other blogs that didn't exist a few years ago. Looks like she did learn a few tricks from Gannett after all.

As far as I'm concerned she can take her intitiative and shove it up her ass.

Awesome classics

Precinct totals for Wards 1 & 6 in Mayor's Race

Very interesting results

very interesting. While Crisler won Ward 1, Harvey doubled his votes in the same ward.

Congratulations Harvey Johnson

Congratulations to Harvey Johnson, who won a third term yesterday at the polls. It was a hard-fought race and soon-to-be-Mayor Johnson did all the right things in crushing Mr. Crisler. I predicted he would win 60% of the vote and I wasn't too far off as he received 63%. To put in even better perspective, Johnson was roughly 2,000 votes shy of doubling Crisler's votes. It was an ass-whupping no matter how you slice and dice it. And yes, I voted for Harvey.

Some random thoughts about the election:

All over Northeast Jackson last night there were gasps of shock as people couldn't believe Crisler lost so badly after so much money was poured into his candidacy. However, local elections are never just about money. While the money train works at the statewide level and above, it only goes so far at the municipal level. Money poorly spent can't overcome demographics, a machine already in place, and boots on the ground that will get out the vote.

Crisler not a good candidate
To put it mildly, Crisler was not a good candidate. He had no experience whatsoever managing a budget, much less one of $350 million. He has been a street-level cop for over 15 years. He served in the military and saw combat but that is still no substitute for experience in running a business or government agency. The city council is weak by design, making it hard for a would-be mayor to gain the executive experience needed to run a city. What is ironic is the businessmen who were touting his abilities as a candidate even though he had no applicable experience would never hire him to replace themselves in their businesses.

If anything, Crisler has been a follower, not a leader. When interviewed by the Jackson Free Press, he favored commuter or occupational taxes. When suddenly supported by the business community, he stood against them. He never rose to a top position in the Hinds County Sheriff's office. He could never mention any real accomplishments showing what he could do as a Mayor. David Watkins can point to his projects. Harvey Johnson can rattle off statistics and little factoids about his previous service as Mayor. Beverly Hogan can mention her landing the Civil Rights Museum for Tougaloo as well as what has happened at Tougaloo under her tenure. LeRoy Walker has his track record as a businessman. Mr. Crisler has years of service in government but what was actually accomplished?

Money, money, money
Another lesson about the race is the role of money. Money is the lifeblood of any campaign and the Crisler campaign was rolling in the dough as they outspent Harvey more than 4:1. However, the campaign made critical mistakes. First, they brought in a campaign manager from out of state who was last seen running Gary Anderson's campaign, a campaign known for its ineptness. It seemed the campaign had no control over surrogates or those who didn't want to see Harvey win. The money was spent like an Obama bailout: money thrown at everything while nothing is actually accomplished.

The campaign should have been prepared for the issue of Crisler's 2000 bankruptcy but oddly enough didn't deal with it as they hoped no one would notice. They ignored a fundamental rule of electoral politics: if there is a public record with your candidate's name on it, it will be found by the opponent or the media. Crisler ignored changes to appear in the media in friendly venues. He bought two days on a local radio talk show this week then backed out at the last minute. Apparently the prospect of answering a tough question scared them off as the Crisler camp preferred settings where their baby boy wouldn't get hurt. Fox40 wanted to interview him about his goals and policies in detail. It was meant to be friendly and not "gotcha" journalism. He wasn't interested. As the campaign wore on, Crisler looked more and more managed and not his own man.

The money people failed to realize several things. One is that by donating so much money to Crisler, they became the targets and Crisler suffered for it. They figured they could just dump a bunch of money as they do for a typical Republican candidate with little notice. Unfortunately, more than a few noticed. Crisler never appeared to be his own man as did Melton when he raised over $600,000. Melton rolled in the dough but never gave the impression he was managed by others. They should have copied a trick from Jim Evans, racist extraordinaire, and funneled the money to Crisler through a bunch of people in amounts of $200 or less (which doesn't get reported).

The Better Jackson PAC was a perfect example of this thinking. While others can ruminate over their filing issues and grand conspiracies, what is interesting is how the PAC's money was spent. Circulars and ads. Nothing for a get out the vote effort. Nothing to get voters to the polls or phone banks. Harvey had a machine designed to get out the vote, Crisler's was designed to get out a message. Messages are nice but don't always translate into votes. Republicans make fun of the buses but the point is, the buses are carrying votes.

If I was advising Crisler, I would have made the following recommendations:
1. Run for Congress last year even though you will lose. The goal is not to win but instead use the race as a dress rehearsal. Meet the voters. Learn the district. Get the name out there. Learn what works and doesn't work. Apply those lessons to the Mayoral election.

2. Hire a local campaign manager, someone who knows the players, the hot buttons, and what the big no-no's are. Hire someone who wins at machine politics and actually has a winning track record. Resumes don't lie.

3. Push for some major reforms or legislation while on the City Council even if you lose. Show yourself as a fighter. Jeff Weill has assumed the role of government watchdog in less than two years, something Crisler has never done in eight. Doing so would have built up his "street cred" and gained him respect from the voters.

4. You lost. Politicians lose races and recover from them all of the time. Harvey lost to Ditto. Reagan lost to Ford. Mac lost to McAdory. You can recover from this and win. State Representative Wooten will be running for re-election in two years. Its your ward, you can win this race. Take a few months off, then start working to run for that office. You lost the Mayor's race. Learn from it. Go out and beat her as she has not exactly set the world on fire since she unseated Reeves.

Just some rambling unsophisticated musings after enduring yet another election season. Feel free to discuss or fire away. I'll probably add some more to this post as I think of them.

Don't worry, Jackson Jambalaya is here

Don't worry white folks of Jackson, Jackson Jambalaya is here to help you after Harvey's win tonight. I predicted Harvey would win 60-40, and was pretty close to the final results. Now some of us are making preparations in earnest to help those who will be in need of assistance after Harvey's win.

With the help of several NJammers such as Wilson Carroll, Colonel David Sanders, the Y'all Politics nation, Ben Allen, and Sonjay Poontang, Jackson Jambalaya is setting up an underground railroad to help white people escape Jackson. This will be a traumatic time for many, as Harvey and his mob force them to leave their homes, but don't worry; JJ will be ready to help those in need, thanks to several grants provided by MEMA. The starting point for the underground railroad will be provided on this website tomorrow. In the event Harvey decides to ship them back to Europe, JJ has worked out a deal with the federal government whereas a special booth will be set up to expedite passports to a same-day level of service, so refugees are not held up at Gitmo and can go back to Europe. Free booze will be provided by Better Jackson PAC sponsor Fenian's as it literally liquidates its inventory. Stay tuned to this website for further details or listen to the Gallo Radio Show, as Paul Gallo broadcasts on his new underground radio station (WFMN goes to Perez as he will bring back the Q).

Note: JJ has been unable to determine if there is any truth to the rumor that the Johnson administration will be setting up re-education camps in NE Jackson for black NJammers.

Election night open thread. Fire away.

More docs on Better Jackson PAC

Better Jackson PAC organizational Documents

Turns out it was faxed in but to Tillman, as the fax confirmation sheet shows, although the cover sheet has the correct number.

I report, you decide.

Ladd committing plagiarism in 3...2....1......

Precinct totals from Ward 1

These totals were taken in the last 45 minutes:

Precinct 32: 208 votes
Precinct 33: 313 votes
Precinct 34: 516 votes
Precinct 45: 540 votes.

Louise Williams at Precinct 44 was very rude. Unless I was an actual reporter or with a campaign and had credentials, she would not let me have a total.

Here are the totals from two weeks ago taken between 3:00 and 4:00 PM:
Precinct 45: 614 votes
Precinct 34: 536 votes (Updated at 5:00 PM) 1016 votes in 2005.
Precinct 33: 465 votes (6:45 update)

Better Jackson PAC campaign finance report filed

Just received email from Wilson Carrol (Whom I've never spoken to or met) containing the campaign finance report for the Better Jackson PAC. It raised $22,250 in contributions and
spent 18,210 as of May 12, 2009.

The donor list is a diverse one as hit contains liberals and conservatives, individuals and local businesses:
William R. James (principal in Pruett Oil): $1,000
John Piggot (attorney): $1,000
James H. Creekmore (principal in Cellular South): $5,000
Fenians Pub: $1,000
C. Victor Welsh, III (attorney): $500
J.E. Roberts, Jr. (attorney): $500
Crymes Pittman (attorney): $2,000
Mrs. W.E. Walker, Jr.: $250
John W. McGowan (Do I need to say it?): $6,000
Ann & Ricky Calhoun: $1,000
Business Park, LLC: $1,000
William Lamar: $1,000
Richard & Kristen Miller: $1,000

Copy of report

**Exclusive: Must credit Jackson Jambalaya. Jackson Free Press: That means you**

Does this even deserve a comment?

"We need best practices policies for local Web sites and blogs; we need a pledge that all politicians sign saying that they will help root out all the secret trash being hurled in their names; we need a special cell number that people can call when they see suspicious activity (like someone papering the windshields of churches on the Sunday before election day).This is happening, folks. Othor and I are going to convene meetings about how to proceed. Let us know if you want to help. posted by ladd on 05/19/09 at 11:30 AM"


Does she really want to go there?

What's good for the goose........

Over at the Jackson Free Press:
"Someone claiming to be Northside Sun columnist David Sanders has just come out as a member of Better Jackson PAC on a Jackson Jambalaya thread (which I'm not linking here, as it's 50 messages and starts off as a rant against Donna, but if you really want to see it you can email me and I'll send you the URL):David Sanders said...I am a part of the Better Jackson PAC. There is nothing secretive about it. I will have a column in this week's Northside Sun commenting on this non-event that has the JFP so exercised.May 18, 2009 10:00 AMI would say that if the names are secret, there is by definition "something secretive about it"...
posted by Tom Head on 05/18/09 at 09:32 PM"

Tell you what Tom, how about we have some full disclosure here and have you fess up to all the anti-Donna Ladd comments you made over here under screenames such as "I Believe in Donna Ladd" while you are kissing up to her over there. If I remember correctly, you've probably made over two dozen of them.

So Kalunda tells me last night

after he's drunk a twelve-pack of Moosehead that if Harvey wins, Faye is in as City Attorney and Mac is trying to get his lawyer daughter hired at the D.A.'s office. Hmmm...now I wonder what could motivate him to do such a thing.

Sanders Speaks!!!

The Jackson Free Press is currently covering a story about a PAC mailing anti-Harvey Johnson circulars in Northeast Jackson. One member of the PAC, David Sanders (No relation to Enoch) wrote a column defending the committee, to be published in the next edition of the Northside Sun (due out Thursday). As the column will appear after the election, Mr. Sanders, with the Sun's permission, has provided me with a copy of his column. It should also be noted Projack wrote a post Friday on JJ denouncing the mailer. Below are excerpts from the column:

"Of particular local interest is the claim that raising the subject of crime is really only a covert way of raising the subject of race in an inflammatory fashion. In fact, the left increasingly identifies any subject it does not want examined as a surrogate for racial animus.....
Thus it unfolded that, when some of us who support Marshand Crisler in the current race for mayor formed a PAC (Political Action Committee) to campaign in support of our candidate, in part by pointing out the shortcomings of his opponent during the latter’s previous sojourn in office, we inevitably ran afoul of the local keepers of the mantra that any mention of crime constitutes an attack on black people in general. Chief among the local keepers of the leftist orthodoxy is a tabloid and on-line publication called the Jackson Free Press. Our PAC sent a mailer to parts of the city where crime is a salient issue, pointing out that our opponent failed to hire a police chief for fifteen months, while crime ran rampant in our city. The mailer also cited quotes from the Clarion Ledger referencing a study by an outfit called Morgan Quitno that ranked Jackson as one of the country’s most dangerous cities during that period when our opponent was mayor.
A commonly employed device at the JFP is to attack any document or publication it does not like by obsessively chanting that it is “taken out of context” or “misused,” without ever disproving any of its substantive conclusions. Thus, the Morgan Quitno study is definitively dismissed as “discredited,” much in the same way that the global warming hypothesis is enshrined as a “scientific consensus” even while thousands of scientists dispute it. Further proof – as if it were needed – that our PAC is contaminated by conspiratorial malice is that it includes one of the JFP’s leading bête noires, local lawyer Wilson Carroll, who had the effrontery to run for District Attorney against (Gasp!) a black woman supported by the JFP. The JFP “discovered” and trumpeted this damning connection between Carroll and our PAC, as if some attempt had been made to conceal it.
the folks at the JFP seem to think they have made some decisive, game-changing point merely by “revealing” that white people in northeast Jackson are talking about crime. From my eighteen years as president of our neighborhood association, I have first-hand knowledge that crime is the single issue most on the minds of people in northeast Jackson. It is not an irrational fixation: one of my neighbors on his daily pre-dawn walk recently had a car stop beside him, from which alit a young entrepreneur of crime who pressed a pistol to my neighbor’s temple and demanded valuables. My neighbor considers himself fortunate that he was not shot for failure to maintain on his person at all times an amount of money sufficient to relieve the financial distress of an indigent criminal....
So, after the high drama of the Melton years, we thought that the memory of the good ol’ Harvey Johnson days may have faded somewhat. So we set about to remind folks of that halcyon time, when we had a police chief who spent most of his time and energy arguing that the people he was selected to protect had overblown “perceptions” of crime and should just chill. And yes, we sent the mailer to areas where we thought that the message would resonate. (Our deviousness knows no bounds!) By election day (I am writing this on Sunday before the election) we will have also dispatched “robo-calls,” recorded messages urging recipients to go vote for our candidate. And, get this: we will run radio spots on Monday and Tuesday urging people to get out and vote. (The horror!) But that’s not all – we will run these spots on stations that we think will be heard by more people likely to vote for our candidate than for his opponent. (The inhumanity!)
And if it hadn’t been for the dastardly Jackson Free Press, we would have gotten away with all of this scandalous behavior right under everyone’s noses. How could we anticipate that they had such advanced skills as using the Internet to check an address? Curses!.......
Jackson, in my view, has a better racial climate than most other places. This arises in part from the division of political and economic power. Blacks have virtually all of the political power in Jackson and Hinds County, while whites still have a disproportionate share of the economic power. Each wants some of what the other has, which leads to trade-offs and bargaining, which leads to real relationships. Just as trade among nations generally produces peace and prosperity, so it is among groups of people. Jackson will probably have black mayors for as long as anyone can see into the future, or until such time as race truly no longer matters. That does not mean that white voters do not have a stake in matters or that their voice should not be heard. The JFP can indulge in all the flatulence its readers can stand about the “creative class” and other leftist fantasies. The people Wilson and I represent have equally legitimate political and social objectives. This is our city, too. Deal with it.

R. David Sanders

May 17, 2009"

More on the Crisler bankruptcy

Fox40 broadcast a story Friday night about Marshand Crisler's 2000 bankruptcy. It was a very thorough piece and at times had Crisler on the ropes. However, there was one question that would not go away and that was exactly how did Fox40 have the entire file? I went to PACER and only a two page summary sheet was available.

I called the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Jackson today and confirmed my suspicions. The entire file, listing all creditors and other personal financial information, is not here in Jackson but is in Georgia. To obtain a copy of that file, one has to file a request with the court in Jackson. It takes a week to process that request. The request is then sent to Atlanta, where it takes on average 2-4 weeks for a copy of the file to be made and returned to Jackson.

In other words, someone filed this request probably more than a month ago for a copy of the file and then somehow it managed to make it to Fox40's broadcast the Friday before the election.

Tell me this wasn't a hit piece.

Next question is, who filed the request with the Court?

Here is the crime data for Jackson through 2002.

Open thread about the Mayor's race.

Fire away.

See any interesting election flyers?

Election day is tomorrow and apparently the flyer wars are raging. If you come across one particularly um, colorful, fax it to me at 901-328-9565. No cover sheet is needed. It's my fax to email service. I'm going to publish them Wednesday.

Sterne Agee: "Retrieve this bottle of wine"

It seems Mr. Robert Smith of Sterne Agee sent Councilman Jeff Weill a bottle of wine to show his appreciation in voting to refinance Jackson's bonds with interest rate swaps. Problem was, Mr. Weill voted no on the refinances. Mr. Weill even sent a letter to Mr. Smith that reads:

"Mr. Robert Smith
Sterne Agee
140 East 45th Street 18th Floor
New York, NY 10017
Re: Your recent gift
Dear Mr. Smith:
I recently received a bottle of wine from Sterne Agee with your handwritten note (a copy is enclosed) which says: “Thank you for the vote and the transaction. All of our very best, Robert Smith, Sterne Agee”. I’m not sure what vote and transaction you are referring to.
Under ordinary circumstances I feel perfectly comfortable accepting a small gift of appreciation. Under these circumstances the inference is that I am receiving this gift “for the vote and the transaction” which creates an appearance of impropriety.
On the same day I also received a fed-ex package which was empty. A copy of my letter to the sender at Sterne Agee is enclosed concerning that matter.
Please arrange to retrieve this bottle of wine at your earliest opportunity. "

Kudos to Mr. Weill for sending this letter for Sterne Agee. The more we learn about this deal the more it smells, and this bottle of wine was nothing but vinegar. It's nice to know we have a councilman who looks out for the rest of us.

Letter (Wordperfect format)

Earlier posts:
Sterne Agee V.P. son of Melton's physician
Copy of Sterne Agee contract
Jackson paying $4 million in fees
Will Jackson become like Jefferson County?
Municipal Carnage caused by Wall Street

It's Sunday morning

Now for the REST of the story about why Ladd dislikes Wilson Carroll so much.

Apparently Donna Ladd can't get over her obsession with Wilson Carroll. It's pretty obvious when she posts about him she has a special place in her heart for him, as her venom reaches a new level. What drives her to such histrionics? Probably it's because a few years ago she made a complete fool of herself.

Several of us around town have received emails from Madame DeLadd that are super-secret and off the record. I have one where she asks me to slant my coverage of the D.A.'s race towards Faye. Her emails always say "Off the record." Um, if I want something off the record I call the person and damn sure don't email him but that is just me.

Several years ago Wilson Carroll, the former candidate for D.A., joked on Mississippipolitics.com about how the JFP was one day going to "go down in flames." Most people would take such a comment to mean the JFP would one day fail and go out of business. However, some people take such descriptions literally or to be threatening, which she did.

She sent an email to Alan Lange, the owner of Mississippipolitics.com, with its usual disclaimers of "off the record", that was hysterical in talking about how her staff and their families didn't deserve such threats and how such jokes were "references to harm the JFP". She mentioned how crazies will read such things (with the inference being they will act on them). I'm not kidding. She even admits calling and yelling at him about this matter. She then spends a full page talking about how she doesn't care what people think about her. At the end there is a lecture on how he should responsibly monitor his website. She also says that she is sending a copy of her email and the alleged offenses to both Alan's and Wilson's wives. You got it, she decided she would interfere in their marriages. And she wonders why people dislike her so much. This email was 3 pages long and was one of several. As for Mr. Lange's response?

Let's just say it was perfect, short, and to the point.

By the way, here are the two posts that produced her histrionics:

"Johnny wrote:
Trolls, I don't know if there was any truth to the rumor, but didn't Donna
accuse someone, that is often posting on this site, of threatening to blow
up or burn down her office? January 9, 2006 08:05 AM

Greg wrote:
Johnny, That's true. I believe it was because someone suggested, in the context of
the JFP's abysmal record at picking political candidates, that they were
"going down in flames." You have to be careful what you say about the Fondrazon. You might be accused of threatening to drown her if you describe the JFP as being "up a
creek without a paddle," or of suffocating her if you say she's "in over her head," or of being a sophomoric egomaniacal neo-socialist busybody if you... well, you know."

Another Dallas classic

Ok, I owe an apology to Cheryl Lasseter.

WLBT broadcast a story on the bond refinancing Thursday night that has been heavily covered here. I got a couple of text messages and emails saying I was ripped off. I let my anger get the best of me and the next day wrote a post about the story that was very sarcastic, took the jackassery too far, and made some less than flattering remarks and insinuations about her abilities as a reporter. Sometimes we let our anger get the best of us and I'm no exception. She was given her assignment by the news editor and worked the story from scratch and she should be commended for doing so as this is not exactly easy to understand nor is it exciting. I took the post down for the simple reason it didn't include any new information and its not fair to Ms. Lasseter for someone using google one day to come across her name and the dreaded P word or something similar. I will post her actual story below and say its nice to see WLBT. It is important to cover this story as it might be boring stuff but its better than covering a story in a few years over how Jackson will have to triple its water/sewer fees because these little swaps blew up in our faces. The story will be much more exciting to report then but I don't think we want to go there. I don't mind making corrections here on JJ and when I'm wrong, I'll say I'm wrong and this is no exception. To Mrs. Lasseter, I humbly apologize.


"JACKSON, MS (WLBT) - On April 7, the Jackson City Council voted to enter into an interest rate swap package on a multi-million dollar bond. Jeff Weill and Margaret Barrett-Simon voted against it. Kenneth Stokes was not present. But it passed with the remaining four voting in favor.
The City's Financial Director, Rick Hill, says it's not the first time the city has chosen a variable and fixed rate mix to pay bond interest. This one is projected to save a million dollars a year until the public works bond matures in 2034, and the savings will go into a reserve.
Hill says FSA Insurance guarantees the bond, so FSA must approve all bond-related transactions. Right now, FSA AND Deutsche Bank are negotiating on the terms of the interest rate swap; in fact the swap may never materialize.
But one deal is sealed: certain financial interests will get paid a contingency just because the City Council voted in favor of the swap. City Attorney Sarah O'Reilly-Evans, Sterne Agee, Rice Financial Group, and others will get paid tens, even hundreds of thousands of dollars whether or not a deal is ever inked.
Ward 1 Councilman Jeff Weill says the terms of the fees payable aren't clear, and the Council should never have passed something it doesn't understand. "This is the first I've heard, when you told me this could fall through. If it fell through, I think that would be wonderful news," he says. "This isn't a simple adjustable rate. This is a derivative transaction which is far above the understanding of anyone in city government."
3 On Your Side found out hundreds of other U.S. cities and towns have gambled and lost on municipal bond derivatives, including areas of nearby Tennessee.
Even so, Hill assures us that the way Jackson's package is designed, the city will pay only a fixed rate on the bond when it's all said and done.
Hill says we should know by next week if the deal will materialize. "

Money quote of the day

Over at the Jackson Free Press:
"When both the Free Press and the Advocate endorse you, you have a pretty diverse support base. We seldom agree with the Advocate...... posted by ladd on 05/16/09 at 09:15 AM"

Yup, pretty diverse when the communists and socialists both endorse you.

Tonight, on Dallas.........

Crisler GOTV Effort Hypes Crime to GOPers

Is Marshand Crisler worried that NEJammers won't turn out on Tuesday?

I ask all readers how is this any different than the southern strategy?

Crisler filed bankruptcy in 2000

Apparently Jackson Mayoral candidate Marshand Crisler filed chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2000 according to PACER. A petition for bankruptcy was file on March 3, 2000 and discharged on June 16, 2000. PACER summary

Update: I watched the Fox 40 report on this tonight. This was a hit piece, no doubt. Only a summary sheet is available on PACER. Someone had to go down to the courthouse and copy the file as they had a copy of everything from the bankruptcy and I wonder if they have the files from 2000. Sometimes if the files are old enough they are placed in storage in another city and it takes several weeks to obtain copies. Frankly, Fox 40 gutted him pretty good as he gave some weak answers. Hold on to your seats boys and girls, it appears we are in for a ride between now and Tuesday.

GM taking a cleaver to Jackson

Just got word one of the three Chevy dealerships in the area will be on the chopping block today. Let's just say they are on pins and needles at all three. Pray for those working at these local businesses.

Democrats: driving us off the cliff

Barney Frank continues to cement his hold on the title of "Most Dangerous Congressman to the Economy" as he sponsors a bill to have the Feds guarantee all municipal bonds:
"Investors are concerned about ability of state and local governments to pay off their municipal bonds, and lately, some governments have even been experiencing trouble raising money through bonds.
Congressional Democrats will soon push measures for the federal government to reinsure, help purchase and regulate municipal bonds, according to Congressional staff and industry sources...
This latest intervention would:
Create a liquidity facility through the Federal Reserve to purchase municipal bonds, much like what the Federal Reserve does with mortgage-backed and federal government bonds.
Form a temporary federal government program to reinsure municipal bond insurers. Almost all municipalities buy bond insurance because it boosts their credit ratings. The cost of the insurance is usually lower than the higher interest payments that come with a lower credit rating. If the insurer runs into financial trouble, then the credit ratings on the municipal bonds drop because there is doubt about the insurance. Government backing would eliminate that concern. ...." Another Frank disaster

We've bailed out everyone else, now we should take over the entire municipal bond market. Just print up alot more money, its our printing presses after all. This is a bad idea for several reasons.

1. This will make all local governments that use bonds completely dependant on the federal government. Does a local government want to save millions because of the better credit rating? It will dance to the feds tune. Obama's recent tactic to force California to reverse pay cuts for its employees while it goes broke in exchange for stimulus money is a sign of what will happen if this bill goes through. Expect the federal government to place enough conditions on qualifying for such insurance that all local governments will become sub-units of the federal government. Working conditions, diversity, educational policies, salaries, and other forms of micromanagement will come from Vito and Bruno in D.C.

2. The only way the federal government can do this is to print more money on top of the trillions it will create to fund Obama's bailouts, deficit spending, and healthcare plans.

3. This creates a bogus credit rating. The feds are going to give all bonds the same level of insurance, which won't be priced for risk as the private insurers do. This will cost us even more money as it has in other areas when premiums didn't reflect risk (mortgage insurance for example).

4. This will make the Fed the only buyer of Treasuries as it will destroy the treasury market.

However, the Feds are just getting cranked up. Having learned nothing and forgotten everything of the last few years, they are about to destroy the FHA program. A homebuyer now can get an $8,000 tax credit for buying a home. The government is now going to allow homebuyers to use that tax credit for the down payment with an FHA mortgage. FHA requires a 3.5% down payment. FHA borrowers that do not put any money down have foreclosure rates that are three times as high as those that do. The number of FHA borrowers defaulting without even making a first payment is skyrocketing yet the Feds seem to think the only thing to do is to encourage the insanity to continue:
"Donovan (HUD Secretary) said the government will allow first-time homebuyers to use the $8,000 tax credit approved by Congress in February as a down payment on mortgages guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration. To qualify for the credit, purchases must be completed before Dec. 1." More insanity

Its going to get worse.

Sterne Agee V.P. Is Son of Melton's Physician and Nephew of Hinds County Supervisor

The details on the interest rate swap used to refinance Jackson's 2002 and 2004 bonds continue to bubble up to the surface of the swamp that is Jackson's political scene. While Jackson travels down the path to disaster, Jefferson County,AL, Houston, and other cities found out the hard way what happened when they went down the same path after listening to some smooth-talking shysters from Wall Street.

Sterne Agee is the "bond advisor" for Jackson on this particular deal. When the deal closes, Sterne Agee will reap $476,000 for its "advice." In addition to this fee, Sterne Agee will also receive at least $50,000 per year for four years to "monitor" the swaps. Nice grub if you can get it. Earlier post on Sterne Agee contract, includes copy of contract

One might be tempted to ask how Sterne Agee wound up with such a nice deal. It turns out there is a Mississippi Connection at Sterne Agee and it's not their local office. Robert A. Smith, Jr. is a Vice President in the Public Finance Group in the New York City office of Sterne Agee. His biography on the company website states: "He has over 13 years of experience in trading, sales, and deal structuring. Prior to joining Sterne Agee, Mr. Smith was employed at JPMorgan Securities, Inc. He earned a B.S. from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and holds professional license (Series 7 & 63)."

Sterling credentials. However, the 37 year-old Smith is also the son of Dr. Robert A. Smith, Sr. of Jackson, Ms and graduated from St. Joseph's High School in Jackson. Dr. Smith (read his life story some time, it's very impressive) was Frank Melton's personal physician. WAPT reported:
"During a hearing on Monday, Jordan heard from Melton's physicians, Dr. Myrna Alexander and Dr. Robert Smith, about the mayor's health." WAPT story There are numerous media stories citing Dr. Smith as Melton's doctor. Dr. Smith also happens to be the brother of Hinds County Supervisor George Smith.

Unfortunately, this is more proof this deal is a bad one for Jackson, as it's clear the local political bosses are only interested in looting Jackson as they bankrupt the city. Jim Evans' wife gets $60,000. Baker Donelson gets $120,000. Local attorney Anthony Simon gets $60,000. The firm that employs the son of Melton's physician gets $476,000 up front and at least another $200,000 in future years. All for refinancing bonds that when first issued, cost $2.5 million less in fees then they will now. Let the party begin.

Earlier posts:
Will Jackson become the next Jefferson County?
Jackson paying $4 million in fees
Municipal Carnage caused by Wall Street

Meredith Whitney calls out the rally

Think the rally is real? Guess again.

Here is the REST of the story, Bert.

WLBT video

Bert Case interviewed Sheriff McMillin yesterday about the issue of whether large campaign donations made to him by the Irbys affected the Karen Irby investigation. Mr. Case pointed out in his story they gave $9,000 to Mac in the 2007 election. Unfortunately, Mr. Case didn't bother to report what was in earlier campaign finance reports. If he had, he would have discovered they gave $23,600 to Mac's campaigns over the years. Regular readers of JJ already knew this from an earlier post, Toxicology reports & campaign donations.

It also would have been nice if Mr. Case asked Mac more pointed questions. What did he think he was going to say? "Yes Bert, I did allow their money to affect how she was treated by JPD." Please. How about asking him why he refused to release toxicology reports when most jurisdictions do release them in a timely manner. How about asking him about his stating he wouldn't arrest her because she couldn't go anywhere or how could the county be responsible for her medical bills why she is out on bond? She is still going to therapy and under the care of a doctor yet the county isn't paying for those bills now while she is out on bond. What changed? I'm being harsh and Mr. Case has a reputation over the years for asking tough questions. One wishes he has reported the campaign finance angle in more detail and asked some tougher questions.

WHAT THE HELL??????

"Playboy may no longer be a monthly magazine.
Faced with drops in circulation and advertising, Playboy Enterprises Inc. is considering reducing the number of issues as well as raising the price of its $5.99 flagship monthly magazine. " Story

WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON? You can take away the newspaper, Obama can screw up the economy and healthcare, Irby can go to Florida with Mac as a chaffeur all she wants but dammit, you don't screw with Playboy Magazine. I knew when Rankin County allowed a vote for liquor it was a bad omen.

Too funny.

Time to go back to what JJ does best.

Market Ticker: Green shoots are weeds.

The money honeys are now screaming the new mantra: "green shoots", "green shoots", the economy is coming back. If a stockbroker farted in an upward direction they would scream "recovery". Over the Market Ticker, Mr. Denninger has a few things to say about the green shoots. Normally I would post a quote but there are some many kernels of good information in this column by Denninger I will just post a link and say read all of it.

Telling it like it is

SEC going after JP Morgan for ripping off Jefferson County

Bloomberg reports the SEC is finally going after JP Morgan Chase:
"May 7 (Bloomberg) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. said U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission officials approved filing an enforcement action against it for securities law violations involving bond and swap sales for Jefferson County, Alabama.
Jefferson County, the home of Birmingham, faces bankruptcy on $3 billion of floating-rate sewer debt after interest rates surged when the credit ratings of insurers backing the bonds were cut amid losses on unrelated mortgage securities. The county is negotiating with creditors including JPMorgan to restructure debt payments. ..."
Bloomberg Story

Bloomberg reports JP Morgan overcharged Jefferson County by $45 million on fees related to the interest rate swaps. Read the rest of the story, it has a good explanation of how these instruments of financial destruction work. Meanwhile, Jackson goes full speed ahead on doing the same thing. Whoever wins the election is going to have some fun in a few years when these hit the fan.

For the last time: The Irby divorce petition is EXPIRED!!! GOT THAT WAPT & Clarion-Ledger?

KINN (Karen Irby News Network) got it wrong tonight:
"A clerk with the Hinds County Chancery Court said Monday that there is a divorce petition pending for the Irbys. The divorce petition was filed in Sept. 15, 2008 by Stuart Irby, court records show. The complaint alleges habitual cruel and inhuman treatment and irreconcilable differences. The couple has been married since June 11, 2005, but has been legally since September 12, 2008. However, they Irbys continued to live together in their Jackson home, according to the documents.
The Irbys have a 3-year-old son."
WAPT story

Just one problem. If WAPT had bothered to actually READ the file or ask the clerk on the phone if there had been service of process filed, they would've discovered there WAS no service of process filed and thus under the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure, the petition expired as there was no service filed within 120 days after the petition was filed.
Original post on divorce petition

Rule 4(h) of the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure states:
"(h) Summons: Time Limit for Service. If a service of the summons and complaint
is not made upon a defendant within 120 days after the filing of the complaint and the party on whose behalf such service was required cannot show good cause why such service was not made within that period, the action shall be dismissed as to that defendant without
prejudice upon the court's own initiative with notice to such party or upon motion."

Jimmie Gates of the Clarion-Ledger mentioned the divorce petition in his story Friday and made the same mistake, said it was pending. I have a feeling WAPT just copied the newspaper and got the clerk to verify. If they are going to report on these court documents, then they should actually READ them. Pitiful.

Was Karen Irby in Florida?

Was Karen Irby in Florida? Apparently the plane owned by Stuart M. Irby, Sr. made a trip down to Destin, Florida today (where the Irby's own a home on the beach). The plane had a layover of only 90 minutes before it returned to Mississippi, with a scheduled landing at the Yazoo County Airport (It was diverted to Jackson). Anyone want to bet the Irby's were in Florida last week while there was an indictment waiting to be served against her. Better yet, does anyone remember Mac defending not arresting her as he told WAPT "Where is she going to go?"

It's Sunday morning

A 14 year-old Aretha Franklin

A London Saturday night 69 years ago

Irby story was good example of what is wrong at Clarion-Ledger

Yesterday saw an episode of very sloppy and irresponsible reporting from the Clarion-Ledger when it broke the news about Karen Irby's indictment. Mrs. Irby was indicted for two counts of depraved heart murder and one count of aggravated assault. I can report the grand jury returned the indictment last week and that all of the local media knew about it through their own sources.

There is a very good reason why none of them reported it and that is because they had no copy of the indictment or a public record and no public official would go on the record to confirm the indictment. I knew about it, had my own sources, knew the counts, everything, but running with it would have been very irresponsible and then there is the chance I might've been wrong and that would have been fun, to say the least. The process for an indictment is the grand jury returns the indictment, its processed by the D.A.'s office, and then the indictment is delivered to the Sheriff who then has the duty of serving it upon the defendant. Only after service takes place is the indictment filed with the circuit clerk where it then becomes public record.

When the CL tried to break the story yesterday, there were NO public records available to the newspaper. It had not copy of the indictment. The newspaper reported she was indicted for two counts of vehicular homicide, NOT two counts of depraved heart murder, as shown by the saved screenshots above. Once they posted the sensational but wrong information, I made a post that corrected their gross negligence because the information was out there and picked up by the AP and USA Today, citing the CL as its source (and the depraved heart murder indictments were reported here first before the rest of the media reported on them). It was important at that point to report the correct information and correct the newspaper as it had already triggered a feeding frenzy.

The CL was told it was two counts of "murder", not two counts of vehicular homicide (and I know this for a fact.). It didn't have a copy of the indictment. It ran with this story based on an unattributed source and simply could not get the story right even after corrections were made:
"Chancery Court records show a divorce petition pending for the Irbys.
Stuart Irby filed the divorce complaint in September, alleging habitual cruel and inhuman treatment and irreconcilable differences."

The problem is (and regular readers of JJ will know this) is that if it had bothered to actually look at the file, it would have noticed there was no service of process. After 120 days, the petition expires, which it did in this case. There is no divorce petition pending because it expired before February.

Unfortunately, the CL's irresponsible reporting caused the rest of the media to jump on the story and government officials finally decided to put them all out of their misery by confirming the indictments. The Clarion-Ledger will not apologize for such mistakes nor even mention a correction was made. It will simply act as if the new reality was always the old reality. Meanwhile, they wonder why they are going broke as readers become more disgusted with such yellow journalism.

Earlier Posts:
Karen Irby indicted
Irby indictment
Trick shot defense
Update
Review of the news
Mrs. Irby is home
Irby filed for divorce in September
We report, you decide
Toxicology reports and campaign donations
JPD: Toxicology reports could take months
Remembering Dr. Lisa Dedousis
No title for this one

Well what do you know....

The Jackson Free Press is working on a story about Crisler involving the questions surrounding his 1993 shooting. Jackson Jambalaya first reported on controversy regarding the incident and WLBT later followed up with its own report. The story will be written by Adam Lynch if published. Given the publication's endorsement of Harvey and the fact that elections tend to bring out the worst in their reporting (worst in terms of ugliness, see 2007 Hinds County D.A.'s race), does anyone want to bet this will not be a hit piece on Crisler or if they will write something just as critical about Johnson?

WLBT story
The post that started it all

Frank is Gone

I think this sketch by Marshall Ramsey yesterday, one of his best, says it all. Feel free to comment.

Karen Irby indicted

Karen Irby has been indicted on two counts of depraved heart murder and one count of aggravated assault (for Stuart M. Irby's injuries) for the wreck that killed two doctors on February 11. Hinds County Circuit Judge Tomie Green will hear the case.

JJ has also learned Ms. Irby's attorney is trying to negotiate a deal with authorities whereby Ms. Irby can turn herself in at the courthouse.

The CL reported just now she was indicted for vehicular homicide (two counts). However, JJ stands by the two counts of depraved heart murder reported above. The CL is wrong in its report.

The news media has been aware for several days Ms. Irby was indicted. However, the process of becoming public knowledge takes some time, as it has to be processed at the District Attorney's office and then delivered to law enforcement where it is then served on the defendant. The CL jumped the gun and announced the indictment based on sources it had. No media outlets have a copy of the indictment and they all were waiting until they had a public record or copy of the indictment to use before they reported the story.

Last week's post, includes discussion of possible charges.

Note:
"SEC. 97-3-19. Homicide; murder defined; capital murder; lesser-included offenses.
(1) The killing of a human being without the authority of law by any means or in any manner shall be murder in the following cases:
(b) When done in the commission of an act eminently dangerous to others and evincing a depraved heart, regardless of human life, although without any premeditated design to effect the death of any particular individual;
(3) An indictment for murder or capital murder shall serve as notice to the defendant that the indictment may include any and all lesser included offenses thereof, including, but not limited to, manslaughter."

Nearly Half a Million Dollars Not Enough, Sterne Agee Gets More Money For "Monitoring" Jackson's Interest Rate Swaps

Frank Melton gave us one last parting gift as Mayor of Jackson: a signed agreement with Sterne Agee to "monitor" our bond debt refinancing with Deutsche Bank and Rice Financial Products. On April 18, Melton signed an agreement (which JJ obtained in an FOIA request) with the following terms:

"the compensation for the services provided is at a cost not to exceed $10,000 annually for swap monitoring services related to the City's existing swap transaction and a 50% increase for any additional swaps; compensation for swap advisory fees related to policy and plan development and implementation will be provided at a cost of $300 per hour not to exceed $15,000; and compensation for assisting the staff in the evaluation of swap proposals and preparation of requests for proposals related to swap transactions and other financial advice as needed will be provided at a cost of $300 per hour not to exceed $35,000 annually. Expenses associated with services performed shall not exceed $5,000 annually."

The contract is valid for four years.

So in addition to paying Sterne Agee $476,000, Jackson could pay up to $50,000 or more annually to them for its monitoring services. One would think for half a million dollars, Jackson could have required Sterne Agee to include its monitoring services in that fee.

Copy of Sterne Agee agreement

Earlier posts on Jackson's interest rate swaps:
Will Jackson become the next Birmingham
Jackson paying $4 million in fees
Municipal carnage caused by Wall Street

Update on Crisler's shooter.

This just got real interesting. Apparently the only Anthony Dixon who was 21 in 1993 in Hinds County never was convicted of shooting Marshand Crisler. The only Anthony Dixon prosecuted by the District Attorney was an Anthony Dixon born September 26, 1971 (we have the same damn birthday) who DID serve 8 years for manslaughter several years after Crisler was shot and is currently under indictment for statutory rape. I figured the guy was a scumbag but if this Dixon, he is the same age as the one mentioned in the news reports who shot Crisler, was never actually prosecuted for doing so (although he was arrested for it), that does bolster my report that they served a warrant on the wrong apartment.

WLBT questions Crisler shooting
What is the rest of the story about Crisler's shooting?

No comment.

What happened in Pearl?

Didn't realize there was so much dislike for Foster. What happened?

Is it over? Yes.

Update: Here is the deal. Calls went out to several government officials mid-morning saying Frank had died. Makes complete sense as if the President died, the Speaker, the Chief Justice, the SecDef, etc are all notified. My source is an excellent source that has given very credible information in the past. This was not something picked up from chatter on police radios or a nurse at St. Dominics I might know. There are multiple rumors floating around. One is Frank is deceased. One if Frank was taken off the ventilator but the tough old bird kept breathing. Then there is the official line he is in critical condition. Was also told at City Hall there is mass confusion. I'm standing by what I was told and if wrong, will be more than happy to make the appropriate apology and correction. Some additional update: He was on life support yesterday morning and was dead when the post was made but for the life support. Was told by two sources the funeral home was called yesterday morning. They kept him on life support until the children made it to the hospital. Most of the media knew this yesterday but had nothing on the record they could use. Prayers go out to his family and friends. He meant alot to many people and helped many over the years.

Update: Frank has passed away. Just told by a very good source. Announcement will be coming soon from family or city.

Have gotten several text messages and emails saying Frank has passed away. I'm inclined to believe them based on what my source told me last night. He went into some detail on what the disease Frank has can do to a heart. Frank did die yesterday, was somehow revived, but the death itself caused so much damage to the muscle there was probably no way he could survive for long after revival and by long I don't even mean a day. Prayers are with his family and friends.

Here are the precinct totals

Totals from Hinds County Website

Clarion-Ledger report

More on Melton's heart attack.

Yes, it was a heart attack. He did code (that means die) but was revived. Good chance his heart is pumping less than 20% as he turned blue due to his condition. Was told that the heart muscle involved in his heart condition dies quickly after cardiac arrest so it depends on how long he coded before he was revived. If I'm betting based on what I was told, I'd bet against his survival. This post, by the way, is not based on gossip, but on an excellent source.

Election night thread.

Update: Last few precincts not turned in are from NE Jackson. Apparently Marilyn Avery is holding back a little. Sounds like New Orleans.

Update: Good vote total updates in the comments.

Did Frank finally have the big one? Will Frank win the race in Earl K. Long style? Can Crisler make the runoff despite having no base? How will the low turnout affect the results? Can I cover this without a drink? Can the Lamumba boyz help the Professor beat the Drunk? Is the Drunk finally punch-drunk or is there a surprise upset waiting to happen? Did Crisler learn how to plant votes or is he the Great White Hype? Or is there a magic bullet that will win him the race? It should be fun tonight.

Fire away.

Update: Barbie brought it tonight. She's definitely hot.

NE Jackson turnout down?

While running errands this afternoon I stopped at several precincts in Ward 1 and got vote totals between 3:00 and 4:00 PM.

St. Phillips: 614 votes
Firestation on Ridegwood (Precinct 79): 400 votes
Willie Morris Library (Precinct 34): 536 votes (Updated at 5:00 PM) 1016 votes in 2005.
Casey Elementary (Precinct 33): 465 votes (6:45 update)
Belhaven College (#9): 284 votes.
Spann Elementary: 492 votes (5:00 PM) 842 total in 2005

Its starting to look like the votes in NE Jackson are down a third or so from 2005. Not good news for Horhn or Crisler.

Robert Johnson for Mayor.

I am supporting Robert Johnson to become Mayor of Jackson. I am not basing my vote on who has the best chance of winning or who I don't want to see Mayor but who I actually think is the best choice for Jackson to make. That choice is Robert Johnson.

Jackson is at a crossroads. Crime is at levels last seen in the early 1990's as in 2008, there were 75 homicides, the fifth-highest on record. JPD is in shambles. The last thing Jackson needs is the same crime that drove out so many fifteen years ago to do the same to those now trying to make a difference. Jackson faces seemingly endless competition from the suburbs while its tax base declines. One term of Frank destroyed morale and wrecked city government. After years of decline, Jackson does have a glimmer of hope with the renaissance of Downtown and Fondren, a glimmer that can spread to the rest of the city. Our future is at a crucial point right now and its imperative this time we get it right at the ballot box. We can't afford leaders for whom the Mayor's office will be a first full-time job or simply a job-training program. We need someone serious. Someone who doesn't pander or worry about polls. Someone who knows how to listen to everyone yet has the backbone to make decisions when needed. Jackson requires not just someone who claims to be an expert on everything but who also knows what he doesn't know. Such a person will be more inclined to seek the advice and counsel of true experts for the betterment of us all. Jackson does not need a planner or manager sitting in that chair but an actual leader. Leadership learned through experience and skill.

There are many candidates seeking to end the Melton disaster. Harvey thinks the Mayor's office is something he is entitled to as he still doesn't realize why so many people voted against him. Harvey served his two terms, which is enough for any mayor. No one should think of being Mayor as a career. Jackson needs change and fresh thinking, not old leaders from the past who've had their day and were rejected. Horhn is a good man with a good platform but has never actually run anything of substance, much less a city with a budget over $300 million. Crisler has never been anything but a street level cop, has never even actually run a department, yet somehow he is supposed to be qualified to understand running a capital city. The same Char-loving shysters who say being a cop makes him qualified to be Mayor would never allow a paralegal to be the managing partner at Phelps Dunbar. Can one imagine Jeff Goode allowing a busboy or waiter to operate all of his restaurants because he's "been in the restaurant business" for years? Please. Then there is Melton. Crime. Wrecked budgets. The constant lying. No arrests for drug sales for a whole year. The drinking. A JPD that has become even more of a joke with Chiefs such as Tyronne Lewis pimping their jobs out at every chance while they are rewarded for it. Frank needs to be thrown out of office as soon as possible.

Robert Johnson is a leader. While other candidate talk about their plans to fight crime, plans based on nothing but studies and ideas, Robert Johnson is uniquely qualified to lead Jackson in crafting a comprehensive crime plan based on actual experience. Johnson has always led from the front and doesn't need a consultant or mentor to tell him when or how to lead. One can look at Jackson's crime statistics for the last twenty years and see by the drop in crime when Johnson was Chief. Johnson ran the Mississippi Department of Corrections (with a budget comparable to Jackson's.). The two who performed best in the debates were the Brothers Johnson: Robert and Havey. Robert Johnson will put an end to a JPD run by pimps and rejects who can't get a job anywhere else. A Robert Johnson administration will make fighting crime a serious priority that will help all Jacksonians, not just those in a particular area or friends of the right politician.

While Johnson understands crime-fighting, he also understands how important economic development is to Jackson's future. Johnson sees the surrounding communities as neighbors and potential partners, not competitors. He knows how important the current projects are and how important a partnership with Jackson's business community is to our future. However, stopping crime is economic development as businesses will go where customers are and customers aren't going where they are in danger. Businesses and customers expect action and support from the city, not plans, excuses, or a Mayor telling them their problems are a "perception". Johnson is a straight-shooter who doesn't always tell someone what he wants to hear or allow himself to be "managed" by others. He'll stand up to business interests who seek to rip-off Jackson or politicians who try to kill business projects just to make themselves look good at our expense

Robert Johnson is not the best talker. He's not smoooove. He doesn't give the best speech. Begging others for money is not his forte. Being a lapdog so the press will like him as never been his style. He doesn't have 20 talking points that have been drilled into his brain for years with little other thought behind them as do other candidates. He's not even the best candidate.

He's just the best man for the job.

Has anyone noticed at Cups

that since Starbucks shut down the prices have gone up and they've cut back on the selections?

It's Sunday morning

WLBT questions Crisler shooting

WLBT story and video, includes copies of original news stories

Well, well, well. WLBT investigated Ward 6 councilman and mayoral candidate Marshand Crisler's claim about being shot in 1993. Jackson Jambalaya first questioned the circumstances surrounding his shooting. WLBT did a decent job in covering the story and was able to get Crisler to admit he was the unidentified deputy mentioned in news stories regarding the incident in 1993:

"Crisler says authorities arrested Anthony Dixon and charged him with aggravated assault.
Hinds County Sheriff Malcolm McMillin never released the name of the deputy who was shot.
The incident was one of three cases that were under investigation after reports of evidence-tampering.
Former Hinds County Sheriff Officer Scott Turner, who pled guilty to charges in a separate case, testified about the April 2nd shooting. He said "I stated the evidence was found in the defendant's right, front pocket. The defendant in that case did not possess crack cocaine. All he did was shoot my partner in the chest."
Crisler confirmed that he and Turner were, in fact, partners.
Crisler told WLBT news authorities later recovered 14 kilos of cocaine in a highway stop that they believe were headed for Metro Manor Apartments."

Actually Mr. Crisler, not so fast, because there are still a few questions that need to be answered.
1. You state Mr. Dixon was charged with aggravated assault. The April 1993 Clarion-Ledger story said he was charged with a drug charge and attempted murder. Which is it? You managed to leave out the fact the drug charged was dropped because the evidence was fabricated. Which leads to the second question.

2. What exactly did happen to the attempted murder or aggravated assault charge against Mr. Dixon? Was he prosecuted? Did he serve any time? If not, then why not?

3. Reliable sources have told me the raid was conducted on the wrong apartment. What Crisler stated was drugs were headed to the complex, not that particular apartment. Make no mistake, the guy who shot Crisler was probably a scumbag and a p.o.s., however, Crisler is the one who decided to use his shooting for political gain. So the question must be asked: is the address in the warrant the same as the house that was raided?

4. Was Crisler present or did he have any knowledge of his partner, Scott Turner, planting drugs on Mr. Dixon?

Crisler can use his shooting to his advantage all he wants (never mind how tacky and cheap such a trick is). However the fact remains he does not get his story straight on what the shooter was charged with, the fact no drugs were found, and that his partner admitted planting drugs on the shooter.

Earlier post: What is the REST of the story about Crisler's shooting

Irby Update

1. WAPT reported earlier this week Mrs. Irby was driving over 100 mph. In the comments on this post, No title for this one, the speed is mentioned. I was told what the speed was a week later and it was supposedly 110 mph. Friends who have owned Mercedes sedans told me when driving over 60 mph the ride was is so smooth you wouldn't notice driving much faster as you would in other cars. WAPT story

2. The grand jury heard the case and has probably made a decision. However, such decisions are rarely announced immediately. If forced to make a guess, I'll say we should hear what it is in the next two to three weeks.

3. WAPT reported her BAC as being .09. Yes, I know that is legally drunk but until a few years ago that was considered legally sober until the MADD nazis took their neo-prohibition crusade to another level. This post was my little ole way of getting out there what I heard the BAC levels were. My source was apparently wrong or heard wrong as I was told it was a .19, not a .09.

One thing WAPT got wrong is that she was found legally intoxicated hours after the accident. I dispute this because she was tested almost immediately after arrival at UMC. Before they can administer any drugs to her or perform any procedures, they need to know if there is alcohol or drugs in her blood so the standard procedure is for the blood to be drawn soon after admission.

4. Interesting question. Local attorney Joe Hollomon is representing Karen Irby. Now let's just speculate for a moment. Suppose they were fighting in the car. I don't know anything, no special knowledge or inside scoop, just playing the legal beagle and thinking out loud. Suppose they were fighting in the car, that could make Mr. Irby a potential co-defendant. If so, would the same attorneys representing both husband and wife here possibly have a lil' conflict of interest? If such did happen, what was Mr. Irby's BAC level?

5. Everyone has speculated on what Mrs. Irby could be indicted for: aggravated DUI, vehicular homicide, manslaughter, etc. However, there is one charge I came across while reviewing the code that has not been mentioned by anyone: depraved heart murder. I hear some bells going off as people realize they had forgotten about that one. Here is what the Mississippi Code defines as depraved heart murder:
"SEC. 97-3-19. Homicide; murder defined; capital murder; lesser-included offenses.
(1) The killing of a human being without the authority of law by any means or in any manner shall be murder in the following cases:
(b) When done in the commission of an act eminently dangerous to others and evincing a depraved heart, regardless of human life, although without any premeditated design to effect the death of any particular individual;
(3) An indictment for murder or capital murder shall serve as notice to the defendant that the indictment may include any and all lesser included offenses thereof, including, but not limited to, manslaughter." Code

Compare that to the definition for manslaughter in 97-3-27:
"The killing of a human being without malice, by the act, procurement, or culpable negligence of another, while such other is engaged in the perpetration of any felony, except those felonies enumerated in Section 97-3-19 (2) (e) and (f), or while such other is attempting to commit any felony besides such as are above enumerated and excepted, shall be manslaughter."

Vehicular Homicide (DUI) is found in Section 63-11-30:
"(5) Every person who operates any motor vehicle in violation of the provisions of subsection (1) of this section and who in a negligent manner causes the death..... shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a separate felony for each such death..... shall be committed to the custody of the State Department of Corrections for a period of time of not less than five (5) years and not to exceed twenty-five (25) years..." Code

Driving over 100 mph on a road in the middle of a neighborhood with posted speed limits of 40 mph close to a major intersection could be argued as being so depraved or reckless it fits the elements of the law. This is worse for a defendant than manslaughter or vehicular homicide. No evidence of driving under the influence is required. As I said all along, the speed alone will be enough to convict her and for this charge, it is all that is needed. Being legally intoxicated will just be the icing on the cake. Looking through the code, it is a reasonable assumption the D.A. might be going for depraved heart murder and not vehicular homicide or manslaughter.

While everyone speculates on what Mrs. Irby could be charged with, this is one charge everyone should examine. I had not even thought of this one until I pulled out my dusty ole green and black code book and started reading.

6. Where exactly has MADD been during this case? One of the most dangerous places in America is to be between MADD and a tv camera whenever a prominent case involving alcohol takes place. MADD has been very quiet during this whole ordeal. Not even demanding the release of the toxicology reports. The current Executive Director of MADD is Tricia Raymond, former Executive Director of Safecity. Think Ms. Raymond is going to take a public stand against one of her own?

7. WAPT missed parts of the story. Simmons was told by a reporter they were under medical care. If he had bothered to read other websites and this blog, he would've learned Mr. Irby has been getting his hair cut, going to Bible study, eating at River Hills Country Club.

8. One possibility has been ignored by the media. Stuart Irby was injured in the wreck. Could Mrs. Irby be charged for causing his injuries?

Previous Irby stories:
Trick shot defense?
Update
Review of the news
Mrs. Irby is home
Results of poll
Irby filed for divorce in September
We report, you decide
Toxicology reports and campaign donations
JPD: toxicology reports could take months
Remembering Dr. Lisa Dedousis
No title for this one

Jacktown Life Great in Ward 5?

The Clarion-Ledger began today a series of stories that will run between now and primary election day based on a poll recently completed by the Southern Research Group. SRG is a good general purpose marketing research and political consulting firm based here in Jackson on Briarwood Drive. They are not what I would consider to be a pollster along the lines of Zogby, Gallup, Mason-Dixon, Field, et al. But I have had the opportunity over the years to review the guts of other public opinion polls they conducted and have found their work generally good and practices sound.

Blair Goldstein reports that SRG's sample size was 472 people and the poll MOE is +/- 4.5%. (Sample size calculator. Jackson pop = 175,710) Respondents were contacted between Monday and Wednesday of this week and represented all Jackson council wards.

The Clarion-Ledger hasn't provided the guts to the SRG work. I wish that they would and urge them to do so. Because as I was reviewing the small amount of data that was included with Blair's story I couldn't help but notice the problem with the Ward 5 results. Take a look at the graphic below. The table is directly from the story and is the basis for the graph. Can you see the problem?

I don't know where the problem is without reviewing the data behind the poll. But I do know that there is a problem with the Ward 5 results. Even with the most generous interpretation of the results and margins the data for that ward falls far outside any range that could be considered reasonable.

Frankly I expect this basic level of analysis to get missed over at the JFP. But surely there is someone at the Clarion-Ledger who should have caught this. If not in their newsroom then there must be someone in their finance department with enough knowledge of statistics to see the problem.

As the C-L plans to use this same data on Sunday to update their readers on the actual race for Jackson mayor I'd hope they'd jump in with SRG, find out what happened in Ward 5 and fully disclose the nature of the problem.

AND, OR, they could release the detailed poll data to the public and let us take a look. Despite the flaws with his effort, kudos to Chism for doing so.