Jackson Jambalaya

Down a rathole-

Where are the million$? Cayman I$land$? Briti$h Virgin I$land$? $witzerland? Under a mattre$$? In someone's nose?

The State of Mississippi/MDA got duped again. The delta has not been kind to MDA.

If you are looking for incompetence look no further than the idiots who “work” at MDA

The terms of the contract indicates that if the money was used properly, the state would not have received any of the money back anyway.

That's simply the risk we take when we roll the industrial-development, tax-abatement dice. The same risk we take when we build out a site, provide infrastructure (rail, air, highway, water access, utilities) and either nobody comes or prospects drop out or high-tail it to another location.

Oh, but Mississippi will claw back that money. Really? Ask David Oreck whose Oreck Vacuum Cleaner Company reneged on the same deal and left the Mississippi Gulf Coast for Tennessee.

But, if we don't have that ability in the proverbial 'tool-box' somebody else does and we automatically lose.

There will always be the clowns who claim this is a waste of money and corporate welfare. Imagine the jobs lost had this state never used this program. Ingalls was the first ever to use it. How many billions in job wages has that represented over the past 70+ years?

"The delta has not been kind to MDA."

Can't blame it on the Delta, Bozo.

The Mississippi Delta - where scams are spawned.

The State of Mississippi needs to be out of the “facilitating” business. Build sites, improve infrastructure and utility delivery, educate the workforce, make towns more livable and less generic, offer tax rebates. Stop giving our cash to companies that do not give a rip if they squander it.

Going to admit, I've read none of the posts on this express grain story.
Could someone give a synopsis of what's going on and why we should care?

11:14-No.

11:14, If you want to be informed, you have to take some initiative. That you first require someone to convince you that you should care before you lift a finger means you deserve to stay ignorant.

Can I get an Ooops?

10:46, the state money boondoggles of Twin Creeks, Kior, Stion, etc. were not in the Delta.

@11:14

This blog doesn't suffer fools gladly.

And they are lobbying the legislature to get their hands on Covid money so they can start an "angel investing fund" as if that's what is holding back economic growth.

Beef Plant
Alpha Gen

The "Gov" inks any ACE Fund project monies..... MDA loves the mayor up there and Milwaukee Tool..Viking etc

It never stops....

@10:36, actually no. The facilities at EG will be swooped up by an investor at some time soon for a lowball price and the storage facilities (maybe not the smashing and mashing bean plant) will be operational. What MDA put money into appears to be basic infrastructure (railroad siding, roads, etc) that will be of use to the next operator,and is a proper function of government.

Would agree with you totally if the money had gone into financing, working capital, or other project specific items - but government suppling water, sewer, roads, etc to businesses is a legitimate function and because the silos will surely be back in use soon it would appear that the rathole you envision is actually not that deep. (Unlike the bond money appropriated by the legislature to fund improvements at the Jackson Zoo years on end, stopping with the building dollars being used for employee salaries and animal food.)

@1:52 Milwaukee Tool and Viking are viable; Ecpress Grain not so much. Please educate yourself before commenting again.

Viking viable? I know what you mean but there was a bunch of fraud involved with the company.

The state of Mississippi has chunked tons of money into deep pockets of failed ventures.

Just as bad as the failed concepts are the money pimps who get a cut of the funds for "securing" the money for out-of-state companies. A few interesting names who have gotten windfalls for putting the failures and the state of Mississippi together.

Can someone tell me how many people at MDA have ever run a business, successfully. First step is to hire MDA employees that have experience, can you hear me Governor????

@1:52 pm

Great comment, except it makes no sense.

(1) Beef plant - a project passed by the legislature under Billy McCoy (D-Reinzi) as Speaker leadership with support from Steve Holland and other Dems across North Mississippi - which had nothing to do with ACE that I can find, and nothing to do with this Governor or any of the last three, so please give us the connection

(2) Alpha Gen - ????

(3) Viking - running as projected. Jobs created. All requirements met. Expansions occurred.

(4) Milwaukee Tools - same as above for Viking

So please. Come back and give us your great insight as to exactly the point you were trying ---- but obviously failed ---- to make about this Governor (BTW, all of the above were in the 'way back machine' of MDA, long prior to this Governor and actually long past a couple) and MDA with ACE

Thanks. I'm sure we will be hearing from you soon.

KF, sorry, but just read the next comment.

What fraud do you know about relative to Viking?

I challenge you to produce one suggestion to support your response. Did Freddie Carl sell the company? Yes, just as many other folks have done as their operations grew. But was there any fraud on the state for what they injected vs what they required in return?

Were there some local investors in the original deal that didn't like the outcome? Yes. Absolutely. Folks that Freddie got to invest in the early stages and put their money up (under specified conditions of the LLC, I'm sure) that made millions when it all ended. But, didn't like that he made more millions.

However - you used the "fraud" term. Back it up with specifics, or withdraw it.

Where is the link to the JJ Official Mississippi Business Hall of Shame? Or whatever it's called.

You'd think it would be easy to find.

I tried searching some combinations of KIOR, Beef Plant, Worldcom along with taxpayers and MDA. Didn't find it yet.

1) "A few interesting names who have gotten windfalls for putting the failures and the state of Mississippi together."

Really? Names?


2) "..there was a bunch of fraud involved with (Viking).

Really? 'a bunch of fraud? Care to specify?


3) "The Mississippi Delta - where scams are spawned."

The only thing 'spawned' in the Delta were catfish. And that was not a scam. Can you name others? Nope. But, that's OK. Scams are spawned in the Governor's office and the halls of our legislature.

The only thing 'spawned' in the Delta were catfish. And that was not a scam. Can you name others? Nope. But, that's OK. Scams are spawned in the Governor's office and the halls of our legislature

What about the Yazoo Backwater Pumps project? Are you claiming that the Delta had no involvement in spawning that turd? Several hundred millions of dollars of taxpayer money.

12:45 - Liberal politicians, led by Bennie and championed by Tate's Campaign Finance Chair defeated the pump project. You've obviously not followed the problem for years like most of us have. You're viewing things through the prism of the peanut gallery.

'Turd'? Mississippi is the only state on the Mississippi River without the pumps. Educate yourself...or at least allow yourself to be education.