Wednesday, November 30, 2011

just got a tip.

just got a tip that former governor waller passed away today. now confirmed.

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Support the Boys & Girls Club

The largest fundraiser of the year for The Phoenix Club of Jackson is the Holiday Greeting Card Campaign. Each year the Phoenix Club of Jackson selects works of art from 6 Mississippi artists, whose works are printed on holiday cards offered for sale to local residents and businesses. In each of the first three years of the Holiday Greeting Card Campaign, the Phoenix Club of Jackson sold approximately 25,000 holiday cards to businesses and families across Mississippi. These sales have contributed, in large part, to the donations of $20,000, $30,000, and $30,000 in the last three years respectively to the local Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi. Link to website to purchase cards.

In addition, the Phoenix Club of Jackson has partnered with TinyPrints to offer an exciting new option for the 2011 Holiday Greeting Card Campaign. Simply access TinyPrints through the Phoenix Club website to create fully customizable greeting cards with a portion of the proceeds going to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi.

As we continue our mission of supporting the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi, we hope that you continue your support by participating in our 2011 Holiday Greeting Card Campaign. For more information and to order Holiday Greeting Cards from the Phoenix Club of Jackson, benefiting the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi, please visit phoenixclubofjackson.com.

This post is a paid advertisement.

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Be a playa with the Lynch Street Profit Gang

Warning: Graphic language, partial nudity, drugs

So you got a Lynch Street Profit Gang franchise. Set up at the corner of Plantation and Concorde. You hit the jackpot. Customers 24/7, profits, new ride, all the toys. Even the Homeboy Shopping Network is calling you. The LSPG has a special perk just for you. If you achieve the level of a Crunk Star Producer, you get to be a play with the Lynch Street Profit Gang. What does that mean? Why, it means you get to hang with them and be like this:



What other franchise offers this kind of life? The Lynch Street Profit Gang. Coming soon to a street corner near you.

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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Romney v. Romney

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Controversy for CARA in Chase contest

There was recently a little bit of controversy in the Chase Community Giveaway. Chase gives away cash prizes to non-profits that receive the most votes. Nice little program and a good way for deserving charities to obtain much-needed funding. Questions were raised about some of the votes for CARA, a local well-known "no-kill" animal shelter.

An online website, Digital Journal, published a story claiming the program was "rife with fraud". Link to story The story focused on CARA's votes and claimed no comment could be obtained from the organization. The story has some weaknesses, such as the fact it claims there are saved "screen shots" to support the allegations. However, the question must be asked why the story did not include several of the pictures as they would have supported the subject's story. I'm not publishing excerpts of the story here, just making you aware of it and what I consider to be its weaknesses.

WJTV reported on this story last week. Videos won't embed for some reason so here are the links to them. Story #1, Story #2

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Coming to a street corner near you

The Lynch Street Profit Gang is now selling franchises. Perfect for that special individual looking to become a successful entrepreneur. Here is a presentation video by the company owners. (WARNING: LANGUAGE)



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Monday, November 28, 2011

Latest crime stats

Jackson's have not been updated since October 16, 2011.

City of Madison crime reports through October 25, 2011.

City of Byram crime reports hrough November 19, 2011.

Then there is this little tidbit from the Clarion-Ledger about Judge Tomie Green and grand jury meetings:

"District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith began convening grand juries every month when he took office in January 2008 to move cases more quickly through a system criticized for its slow pace and backlog.

"If it was up to me, I would have them meet twice a month," Assistant District Attorney Armstrong Walters said in court recently.

But when Judge Tomie Green became senior circuit judge in January, she set six criminal terms with the county grand jury convening during the last week of each term. Therefore, a grand jury meets once every two months.

Green pointed out the district attorney can convene a special grand jury at anytime. But Green said she believes it would be unreasonable to have a grand jury meet monthly in Hinds County because of the paperwork required of court administrators and others since they also have to deal with civil cases. Green said the frequency does not limit the number of cases that can be heard.

So far, how often Hinds County grand juries are convening has not reduced the number of new indictments this year compared with last year, according to county records. For the first 11 months of this year, Hinds County indictments are up slightly from a year earlier. There were 2,206 indictments through Nov. 11, compared to 2,175 for the same period in 2010, according to county records.
" Article

No, the reduced number of meetings will not necessarily reduce the number of indictments BUT its a slap in the face of crime victims everywhere as criminals get an extra few months to prowl the streets of Jackson and justice suffers further delays- all thanks to a Judge who is more worried about bureaucrats than the people she was elected to protect. Of course, we are talking about a judge who breaks the law to give breaks to daughter-rapers.




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Sunday, November 27, 2011

Time to get drunk.

It's that time of year and you know what it means: It's time for my award-winning egg nog recipe:

Ingredients: 1 cup bourbon 1 cup brandy 1 cup Tia Maria
12 eggs, quart cream, quart half & half, 1/2 lb powdered sugar
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Directions: Separate eggs and combine booze and yolks and
whisk in 1/2 lb of powdered sugar.
Store in fridge for 24 hrs. Keep the whites chilled also.
24 hrs later, whip cream in large bowl until thick,
then add half & half and the yoke/booze mix.
Add the egg whites and whip till frothy.
Chill for a while before serving.

Get blowed up or bring to your next pancake social.

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Ouch. Just ouch.

Check out this interview with the wife of the Auburn offensive coordinator. Some people should not be allowed near a microphone.




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Friday, November 25, 2011

UNDEFEATED!!!



Then there is this little punk move by Petrino:



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Report from the PERS October Investment Committee meeting

Here are the video and reports from the October meeting of the PERS Investment Comittee.* The committee meets bi-monthly and is where the real nuts and bolts of PERS are. I haven't had time to review the reports but here is a nice little document downpour for you guys that are interested in reading them. I apologize for the poor quality of the video and audio. PERS implemented a policy requiring me to place camera at the back of the room, regardless of how many people are in the audience. That's right. Even if no one but me is in the audience, I still have to sit at the back. So much for sunshine.

Notes from the market update posted below:
1. 2nd quarter GDP was 1.3%, 3rd quarter estimate is 2.5%.
2. Headline & core inflation increased 3.9% & 2.0% in last twelve months.
3. Markets as of October 21, 2011: S&P YTD: Up 1.0, Russell 2000: Down 8.2%, MSCI EAFE Index is down 9%, MSCI EM Index is down 18.3%, BCAG is up 6.1%, TIPS is up 11%.
4. S&P 500 was down 13.9% for the third quarter.















Now for the reports.




















*Before we get started on what took place at the hearing, here are the basic facts about PERS according to its most recent audited financial statements and Executive Director Pat Robertson's comments at a May luncheon videotaped by this website. All figures are based on the financial statements for the year ending June 30, 2010. READ THIS BEFORE YOU READ ANYTHING ELSE.

Employees: 165,644
Average years of service is 31
Average age is 59.

Asset allocations:
47.8% in US equities
25.4% in debt securities
4.6% in real estate
19.5% in non-US equities

Total assets: $21.2 billion on May 1,2011, $17.1 billion in 2010 ($15.5 billion in 2009, $19.7 billion in 2008).

Investment rate of return: 14.1% for 2010.
3-year rolling average: (5.5%)
5-year rolling average: 2.1%
10-year rolling average: 2.3%
20-year rolling average: 7.4%
30-year rolling average: 8.7%

Investment performance since 2000:
2000: 8.4%
2001: -7.1%
2002: -6.6%
2003: 3.5%
2004: 14.6%
2005: 9.8%
2006: 10.7%
2007: 18.9%
2008: -8.2%
2009: -19.4%
2010: 14.1%

Current funding level of actuarial accrued liability: 64.2%. Ms. Robertson said 80% is considered to be the "benchmark of a well-funded plan." Ms. Robertson stated at the May 3 luncheon PERS' accrued liabilities have doubled since 1998 (thanks to the legislature's increase in benefits in 1999 with no additional improvement in "funding mechanisms"). 2010 audited financial statements

Page 8 of the 2010 audit states PERS spent $409 million more in benefits payments than it received in contributions although that does exclude the $2.1 million income from investments. PERS lost $3.7 million in investment income in 2009.

Earlier PERS posts:
PERS charts
PERS budget hearing
PERS Commission hearing
August PERS Investment Committee video and reports
Resolution to study PERS passes
SLRP fund has over $11 million
What is SLRP?

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The Occupy crowd gets dumber and dumber

You can't make this up:

"Organizers are encouraging consumers to either occupy or boycott retailers that are publicly traded, according to the Stop Black Friday....

"Keep in mind that we are not occupying small businesses or hardworking people—we must make a distinction between the businesses that are in the pockets of Wall Street and the businesses that serve our local communities.

We are NOT anti-capitalist. Just anti-crapitalist
."

What do they think capitalism is? Dumbasses.

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Thursday, November 24, 2011

Prayers for Dandy Don

Long-time LSU observor Dandy Don wrote this on his website yesterday for his annual Thanksgiving Day message:

"As those of you who have been following this site for the last 15 years know, I become very reminiscent and a little sappy at this time of year as I think of the many gifts in my life for which to be thankful. I hope that in sharing the following thoughts and stories you will be reminded of the many gifts in your own lives.

This Thanksgiving Day is particularly special to me because it very well could be my last. As most of you know, I’ve been battling colon cancer for quite sometime, and if my doctors’ prognosis is correct, it is unlikely that I will be around this time next year. With that in mind, there are many people I’d like to thank for their love, their support their friendship and their prayers
." Rest of his poignant message.

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Wednesday, November 23, 2011

And now a word from our sponsor

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FOOD FIGHT!!!

Downtown Jackson Trash blog and Chip Matthews square off in the comments section. Enjoy.

My take on this whole deal is the friction is inevitable when you have bars that are not so nice next to upscale residential development. Having the Locker Room next to the King Edward probably is not the best idea in the world. The Dock faced a similar problem once when it allowed bands to play on the deck- at night- and this was when it stayed open until the weeeeee hours of the night. The residents in the Breakers raised hell about it and the Dock took the nighttime music inside. Same type of problem with a criminal element added to it.

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Mississippi near the top in disability payments.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday Mississippi ranks fifth in Social Security disability payments as a percentage of a state's population. The article provided an interactive map stating 7.6% of Mississippi's population received such payments. Only Arkansas, Alabama, West Virginia, and Kentucky ranked higher. Interactive Map.

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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

More comes out at Penn State

The Wall Street Journal published a story today about Coach Paterno's clashes with the administration with disciplining his players. Apparently the coach thought he should be the one to decide whether or not they could play in games even if arrested. Paterno also thought the administration should have no part in their discipline and threatened to have one official fired for her refusal to back down from him. The newspaper reported:

"Legendary Penn State football coach Joe Paterno clashed repeatedly with the university's former chief disciplinarian over how harshly to punish players who got into trouble, internal emails suggest, shedding new light on the school's effort to balance its reputation as a magnet for scholar-athletes with the demands of running a nationally dominant football program.

In August 2005, Mr. Spanier, the university president, suggested that Dr. Triponey meet with Mr. Paterno. Athletic director Curley, assistant athletic Director Fran Ganter and Joe Puzycki, the assistant to Dr. Triponey, also attended the Aug. 11 meeting, according to two people knowledgeable about the meeting. Mr. Paterno loudly criticized Dr. Triponey at the meeting for meddling, these people say.

The following day, Dr. Triponey sent an email to Messrs. Spanier, Curley and Puzycki summarizing the meeting and sharing her thoughts and concerns. In the email, which was reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, she said that football players were getting in trouble at a "disproportionate rate" from other students, often for serious acts. She said her staff had tried to work with the athletic department, sometimes sharing information, but that whenever her department initiated an investigation into a football player, the phones lit up. "The calls and pleas from coaches, Board members, and others when we are considering a case are, indeed, putting us in a position that does treat football players differently and with greater privilege."

Dr. Triponey also wrote that Mr. Paterno believed that the school's code of conduct should not apply to any incidents that take place off campus—that those should be handled by police—and they shouldn't be allowed to affect anyone's status as a student.

"Coach Paterno would rather we NOT inform the public when a football player is found responsible for committing a serious violation of the law and/or our student code," she wrote, "despite any moral or legal obligation to do so."...

In 2007, as many as two dozen players broke into an off-campus apartment, sparking a melee that captured headlines and prompted the police to file criminal charges against six Penn State football players. "Pretty much the entire Penn State defense broke in and started swinging bar stools and stuff," says John Britt, then a third-year criminal-justice major who was beaten up in the incident. Mr. Britt says he took a beer bottle to the back of the head—and that players apparently continued to beat him after he'd lost consciousness. (Now 25, Mr. Britt serves warrants for state court in Philadelphia.)

Dr. Triponey's department began an inquiry. According to a Penn State employee's record of the proceedings, Mr. Spanier was involved in at least nine meetings with representatives of the judicial-affairs department, and Mr. Paterno was involved in at least six.

In a meeting with Messrs. Paterno and Spanier and others, Dr. Triponey complained that the players were stonewalling her and suggested that Mr. Paterno ought to compel them to be truthful, according to one person familiar with the meeting. Mr. Paterno angrily responded that his players couldn't be expected to cooperate with the school's disciplinary process because, in this case, they would have to testify against each other, making it hard to play football together, these people say.

In the end, police dropped many of the charges against the players, and two pleaded guilty to misdemeanors. The school's inquiry led to four players being suspended for a summer semester. They did not miss any games
...."
Rest of article.

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Nothing like a good meltdown.

Shout out to my boy Campbell Robertson at the New York Times who turned me on to this site. Check out the meltdowns. The Texas fans are the worst. This site is definitely not safe for work or kids. Meltdown time. Warning: the essay is fine but the comments are pretty bad and crude. Just a glimpse into how some nuts react to a loss.

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Council refers Occupy Jackson to committee. Video of entire hearing.

The Jackson City Council referred an appeal by Occupy Jackson to the Planning Committee yesterday. The Permit Division rejected an application by Occupy Jackson. The group wanted to occupy Smith Park 24 hours a day, seven days a week, until December 26. Councilman Tony Yarber presided over the meeting.

City Attorney Peter Teeuwissen told the council if they approved the application for 24/7 demonstrations for several weeks, then they would have to approve the exact same applications from other groups that the council may find to be hateful and extremist.

The meeting grew heated at times as Councilman Quentin Whitwell advocated rejecting the application out of hand while Counciman Chokwe Lamumba compared him to white supremacist and former Governor Theodore Bilbo. The council voted 4-2 (Whitwell, Simon) to reject Mr. Whitwell's bid to reject the appeal.

Mr. Yarber said it was obvious a compromise was the solution and referred it to the Planning Committee. The committee meets today at 1:00 PM. Several people spoke at the hearing. Former Mayor Kane Ditto opposed the group's application. He said they had camped out in his buildings, torn down signs,and used the restrooms. Mr. Ditto was the only person who spoke in opposition to the group. No representatives from the Downtown Neighborhood Association or Downtown Jackson Partners spoke at the hearing.

Meeting starts at 13:10



Public comments start at 11:00. They get quite entertaining. The one at 20:00 demands portopottiess and "sound amplification". He admits people have defecated in the park. Yeah, instead of simply not crapping in the park, he demands we pay for his bathrooms.



Public Comments end at 1:00. Bilbo comment is at 21:53.









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Monday, November 21, 2011

Nothing like a good clean protester.

Occupy Jackson member James Parker told the Jackson City Council today: Occupy Jackson actually has hygiene classes at Smith Park for "participants". See for yourself.



You can't make this up.

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Lamumba compares Whitwell to Bilbo (video)

You read that right. Jackson City Councilman Chokwe Lamumba compared fellow Councilman Quentin Whitwell to racist former Mississippi Governor Theodore Bilbo at a meeting today.

The Jackson City Council met this morning to discuss a permit application Occupy Jackson. Occupy Jackson wants to stay in Smith Park until December 26, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The permit division rejected the application. The group appealed to the council. The council ignored the recommendation and referred the appeal to the planning committee. The committee meets at 1:00 PM tomorrow and will work on a possible compromise.

The exchange between the two councilman is in the video posted below. Councilman Tony Yarber presided over the meeting and talked over Mr. Whitwell's objections, ordering him to be quiet. Just watch. The Bilbo reference is at 4:48.





By the way, I just checked the websites of the local tv stations and newspapers. Not one single mention of the Bilbo comments. Not one.


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Suit accuses Canton Mayor of intimidation and police chief of passing out racist flyers

Warning: Racist language used in posted documents. May not be safe for work.

The Canton Circus is back in town. A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court accuses Canton Mayor William Truly and others of depriving Jerry Lousteau of his constitutional rights and engaging in a campaign of smears and intimidation against Mr. Lousteau. Mr. Lousteau owns radio station WMGO and has covered Canton politics for over ten years. The lawsuit also includes a flyer that was allegedly distributed to Canton residents. The flyer claims Mr. Lousteau using racist language and spreading KKK "propoganda". Mr. Lousteau is white. The defendants are black. Attorney Barbara Blackmon represents the city. Copy of lawsuit

The lawsuit claims one or more of the defendants

  • Referred to Mr. Lousteau as "the son of the devil" at one meeting of the Board of Aldermen and Mayor.
  • Used official city meetings to urge citizens to "file FCC complaints against Mr. Lousteau and his radio station" and Mayor Truly said "he would assist anyone who wanted to do so."
  • illegally went into executive sessions for the sole purpose of "excluding Jerry Lousteau so he could not question the city officials or report on their actions". (Why wasn't a complaint filed with the Ethics Commission on this one or was one filed?)
  • "physically assaulted" Mr. Lousteau "and/or threatened to inflict bodily harm upon him".
  • had him arrested for investigating alleged voter fraud and charged with disturbing the peace. The suit accuses the city of conspiring with the municipal court to delay adjudication of the charges for over a year. Mr. Lousteaud entered a plea of nolo contendre and appealed to County Court. The case was dismissed after the witnesses failed to appear in court.
  • The most damning charge is the suit accuses Chief of Police and the City Clerk of engaging in a campaign of "retaliation against Jerry Lousteau by distributing flyers such as the one attached as Exhibit 6" (Posted below). The two individuals are black.
The suit seeks two million dollars in damages. What is interesting is how the Clarion-Ledger reported the flyers. The newspaper reported yesterday

"Earlier this year, the police chief and city clerk distributed fliers aimed at limiting Lousteau's reporting.

The fliers said Lousteau threatens the progress Canton has made by attempting to divide the city racially and economically. The fliers said he highlights crimes and villifies black people and uses the radio to mislead the public
." Article.

Um, yeah. Here are what the flyer actually aaid:

"He speaks negatively about the Black citizens of Canton daily, using racial slurs and Ku Klux Klan propoganda, often referring to Black people as "monkeys".

That statement was at the beginning of the flyer. The flyer alleges Mr. Lousteau refers to blacks as "The Uglees" and "villifies blacks who are arrested despite the fact he has been arrested several times himself". The flyer accuses him of "lowering the self-esteem of children subjected to his message of hatred and intolerance." The flyer is posted below (If the flyer does not appear, click on this link. Especially for you Ipad users.). Its a little bit different than what the reporter would have you believe it to be.






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Sunday, November 20, 2011

Saints fan takes wrong turn.

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Don't laugh

and don't drink anything when you click on this link and read what the Sooner fans are saying on their boards.

That was pretty damn funny last night. Stoops stops the clock instead of running it out so Baylor can run more plays. He chokes, once again. As for the scrimmage in Oxford, well, I will follow Les's example and not say a word.

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Saturday, November 19, 2011

The knuckleheads weigh in on Penn State




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Dear Tate and Philip,

You want to show you are different than the Democrats? You want to show Mississippi you believe in transparency and open government? There is one simple thing you can do in January. Make Section 25 of the Mississippi Code, the public records statutes, applicable to the Legislature. The Legislature is exempt from the law and is allowed to make its own rules. Set an example and remove the exemption.

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Friday, November 18, 2011

Help the ARF win $100,000 from Chase.

The Animal Rescue Fund needs your help. The Chase Community Giving program is donating over $3 million in grants to 100 small charities. Here is how you vote. Go to the programs Facebook page. Click here. Click on the "Find Charities" button. There is a tab at the top of the page and a green button in the middle of the page. Click on one of those two. Then enter "Animal Rescue Fund" in the search box and select the one in Jackson, Mississippi. The ARF will win $100,000 from Chase if in the top ten. You can vote up to ten times. Animal Rescue Fund is in fifth place. There are four days left in the voting.

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Thursday, November 17, 2011

Mississippi Republicans sell out to housing lobby

So much for cutting spending and bashing the Democrats for fiscal irresponsibility. Guess what your congressional Republicans did today? Voted to increase the FHA loan limits in select areas from $625,500 to $729,750. The housing industry made a huge push for this bill and believe it or not, was very disappointed the legislation did not include Fannie and Freddie loans. Senators Cochran and Wicker and Representatives Harper, Nunnelee, and Palazzo voted for the increased loan limits.

What was it they said about Louis XVII? Forgot everything and learned nothing? Apparently we don't have enough exposure since the government backs over 95% of the mortgage market. These guys voted to put you, the taxpayers, on the hook for more exposure.

The Wall Street Journal editorial page had a few things to say about this boondoggle:

"The National Association of Realtors is lauding this idea as great for housing "stability," by which it means that the taxpayer subsidies for its industry will keep coming, even for fancy homes. The median sales price of existing single-family homes nationwide in the third quarter was $169,500, according to the Realtors's own data. Politicians from higher-cost regions argue that higher loan limits are needed, but even Los Angeles has seen median prices fall to $324,800 from $402,100 in 2008—well below $729,750.

This FHA payoff to the housing lobby comes as the agency has had to publicly reveal the extent of its financial travails. In its annual report to Congress Tuesday, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and an independent auditor reported the FHA has a 0.24% capital reserve, well below its statutory 2% minimum for the third year running. Take $1.1 trillion of outstanding loan guarantees divided by $2.6 billion in capital reserves and you get a 422-to-1 leverage ratio, up from 33-to-1 in 2009. By this standard, Lehman Brothers was risk-averse.

So how much would a bailout cost, even before the proposed loan-limit increase? University of Pennsylvania real-estate finance professor Joseph Gyourko noted in a paper last week that FHA "systematically" underestimates future default risk, not least because it lends to borrowers with very little equity in their homes and uses rosy economic assumptions. Mr. Gyourko estimates that FHA is "materially underreserved by at least $50 billion, with the true figure likely higher."

These numbers are no surprise, given FHA's inherently risky business model. It provides 100%, explicitly taxpayer-backed mortgage loans to first-time, moderate- to low-income borrowers. Down payments can be as low as 3.5%, at a time when most private lenders are prudently insisting on 20% after the housing bust. In fiscal 2011, 85% of FHA loans had a down payment of less than 5%.

Like Fannie and Freddie, the housing collapse hit FHA hard. The difference is that the FHA has since become the political class's main substitute for the private subprime lending it once encouraged. As subprime lending vanished after the crash, FHA became the major lender for marginal borrowers. The share of new mortgages it insures has risen to 24% in July, the latest data available, from 6% in 2007.

In September, FHA said it had 635,096 seriously delinquent loans, or 8.7% of its portfolio, up from 8.4% the prior year, and 8.3% in 2009. When we first questioned the FHA's rapid loan expansion in 2009, then FHA Commissioner David Stevens lectured that there was nothing to worry about. Acting FHA Commissioner Carol Galante still claims the fund is "actuarially sound," which makes us wonder what an unsound fund would look like.
..."
Article

There is one word for these so-called conservatives representing us in Congress: sellouts.

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Penn State update.

The New York Times reported a "critical break" in the Sandusky case came from reading the internet. Yup. Here it is:

"Investigators with the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office had by 2010 already come to the conclusion that Sandusky, the longtime defensive coordinator for Joe Paterno’s Nittany Lions, was a serial molester, according to two people with knowledge of the case. But what had started with a complaint of sexual assault from a high school freshman had grown to include another matter altogether: whether Penn State had acted to cover up Sandusky’s behavior, even crimes.

Working off the brief mention on an Internet forum where people chatted about Penn State athletics, according to the two people with knowledge of the case, investigators narrowed their list of coaches likely to have seen something to Mike McQueary, then an assistant coach and the football program’s recruiting coordinator.

State College is a close-knit community. Word would get around that a Penn State coach had met with investigators. So investigators set up a meeting in an out-of-the-way parking lot, according to those with knowledge of the case.

There, one day a little over a year ago, McQueary unburdened himself, the two people said. He needed little prompting...
.." Rest of the article.

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Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Taxpayers pay for House Black Caucus to have fun in Chicago (Video)

Update: Speaker McCoy unilaterally named 15 representatives and 4 staff members as "delegates" to the convention and approved the reimbursement for their travel expenses to the Chicago convention despite the Management Committee's actions this morning. The Speaker can spend money from the House budget under his own authority without Committee approval. Mr. McCoy did so after the meeting was concluded. Original post: The House Management Committee* removed from the agenda at a meeting today a travel request from Representative Omeria Scott (D-Jones). Ms. Scott submitted a travel request (See page 5 of the documents posted below) on October 4 asking the House to pay for nearly the entire House Black Caucus and several African-American House employees to attend a conference in Chicago next month. The House Management Committee banned reimbursement for all travel out of state for members and employees in May 2010. May 2010 post. "I am writing to request travel arrangements and reimbursement; for the attendance of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators Annual Conference to be held in Chicago, Il December 7-11, 2011. The following MS. Legislative Black Caucus members have confirmed their interest in attending..." The letter then lists the following Representatives: Omeria Scott, Billy Broomfield, Earle Banks, Edward Blackmon, Jr., Kelvin Buck, Clara Burnett, Credell Calhoun, Bryant Clark, Alyce Clarke, Linda Coleman, Mary Coleman, Reecy Dickson, Tyrone Ellis, Chuck Espy, Jim Evans, George Flaggs, Frances Fredericks, David Gibbs, Esther Harrison, John Hines, Gregory Holloway, Robert Huddleston, Robert Johnson, Walter Jones, David Myers, Willie Perkins, Walter Robinson, Rufus Straughter, Sara Thomas, Percy Watson, Adriene Wooten. and the following staffers: Lisa Davis, Carolyn Bailes, Luvenia Adams, and Brenda Dew. The request states they play an important role in the national conference. The request even claims "it is imperative that they attend." The meeting started at 10:30 AM and only lasted a few minutes. The request was pulled from the agenda and not discussed. Several sources informed this correspondent the matter was withdrawn due to my presence. I arrived twenty minutes before the meeting and set up my camera in the corner of the room.
*Representatives in attendance: Speaker McCoy, Reynolds, Perkins, Martinson, Omeria Scott, Linda Coleman, Pro-Tem Compretta, Watson, Calhoun, Richard Bennett, Clerk Don Richardson (Did not recognize several Representatives if anyone wants to help.).

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The Fall of the Tribe of Hotty-Toddy

And there arose to the north of Eden a tribe called the Hotty-Toddys, who were also called metros. And the Hotty-Toddys were very displeasing; they didst place centerpieces on their banquet tables, and didst exalt themselves much. And they didst glorify the southern kingdom of the past.

And for a brief time they didst enjoy success on the battlefield. But in the second year of the reign of John son of Joseph, a man named James, of the house of Meredith, of the nation of Cush, didst attempt to enter the seminary at Oxford. But the Hotty-Toddys despised and oppressed the Cush-ites, and refused him entry. But the Judges decreed that James must be allowed to enter. And the Hotty-Toddys rose up with great vengeance and furious anger, and didst burn their own city, and even slew two aliens in their midst. And the LORD saw that it was no good, and was much angered, and uttered a curse upon the Hotty-Toddys:

"THOU SHALT TASTE VICTORY ONCE MORE, THEN NEVER AGAIN SHALL THOU BE FIRST AMONG THY BRETHREN"

And after the following harvest, they didst enjoy their last great victory, then their warriors became lost in the wilderness. And a man named Elisha, who was also called Archie, didst attempt to lead them back to glory, but was wounded in the land of Eden and tasted not the fruits of victory. Then a great famine fell upon Oxford, until Eli son of Archie arrived upon a white horse. Eli led the Hotty-Toddys to many small victories, and girded his loins against an invasion by the warriors from Eden.

But Eli fell backwards*. And a great roar arose, and Johnny of the house of Vaught, the great king of the Hotty-Toddy past, didst ask "What be the meaning of this tumult?" For Johnny was a very old man, 93, and nearly blind. And the Hotty-Toddys cried in despair, "The invaders from Eden hath carried off the West championship! Our curse is still upon us, and the Heisman shall never come to the house of Manning."

And the LORD then caused a great delusion to fall upon the tribe of Hotty-Toddy, and they drove their general David from their midst, even though David had led them to victories for the first time in forty years. And they chose a recruiter of warriors from a western land, Bay Bay of the house of Yawyawyawyaw, because their delusion kept them from seeing he was a fool. And Bay Bay disdt tear his garments, and shout words none could understand. And the LORD loosed against the Hotty-Toddys bands of Cowboys, and Bulldogs, and even Commodores, who laid waste to Oxford. And the Hotty-Toddys continued to exalt Bay Bay, even as half his warriors disappeared from Oxford, and rued the days of Cutcliffe. And finally Les of Eden came to Oxford and destroyed it once and for all
1 Samuel 4:3


Yeah, I know. LSU has no losses and Ole Miss sucks this year. This IS LSU-Ole Miss. The series is also a tough one from the LSU side. Don't believe me?

2001: Ole Miss win.
2002: LSU by 1.
2003: LSU by 3
2004: LSU by 3 despite a record-setting rushing performance by Broussard.
2005: LSU blowout because Ole Miss quits on Orgeron.
2006: LSU in OT
2007: LSU comes back in fourth quarter
2008: Ole Miss ass-kicking
2009: Les Miles can't tell time.
2010: LSU wins at the end of the game.

Therefor, I expect a very close game Saturday.

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Looking for real gas?

Here is a list of ethanol-free gas stations in Mississippi.

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Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Legit finance deal or shell game?

Remember that bond financing deal for Hinds County we discussed a few days ago and the ruckus between Peggy & George over hiring a financial adviser? Supervisor Hobson-Calhoun sought to hire a financial adviser to restructure and refinance $50 million of bonds to help fund the Byram-Clinton corridor project. Well, posted below are some of the details of the proposed deal. Go to page 6. The savings column.

Once again, financial advisers recommend doing a deal that will bring in millions of dollars to Hinds County - in the near future. Just one problem: The deal will cost $5.4 million after the bonds expire. The deal will pay Hinds County $1.8 million in 2013 and $2.0 million in 2014 and $2.0 million again in 2015. Hinds County then has to pay $292,000 a year for twelve years. Hinds pays $3.0 million in 2028, $1.15 million in 2029, $3.1 million in 2030, and $550,000 in 2031.

HOWEVER, the net present value savings are $1.0 million. Standard cash flow analysis states if the net present value is above zero, then the project should be accepted. Tony Stovall of Rice Financial Products made this point in the video below when Supervisor Phil Fisher brought up the $5.4 million cost.

27:00 in this video:



and the beginning of this clip:





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My Fair Lady comes to Jackson this week



This post is a paid advertisement.

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WSJ: Cities misappropriate money from bonds

It seems some local governments are not using money received from bonds for their intended purposes. The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday:

"When the recession squeezed Miami's budget in recent years, officials reached into funds raised for road repairs and other projects to plug the shortfall.

Now, the city is paying a price. The moves triggered lawsuits and a federal investigation, in a brouhaha that holds ramifications for how municipalities nationwide maneuver around unprecedented money problems.

Cities and states across the country are using money designated for specific purposes—such as fixing roads or sewers—in order to fill financial holes elsewhere, according to public officials and records. The moves are exposing municipalities to controversy, as federal regulators and local auditors are more heavily scrutinizing their finances to protect bond buyers and taxpayers.

In Miami, the Securities and Exchange Commission is wrapping up an investigation into whether the city used funds intended for roads and other purposes to fill budget gaps elsewhere, according to people close to the probe. Bondholders are suing, saying the moves obscured the city's true finances. The city's former budget director is also suing, claiming he was fired for cooperating with the SEC and the Federal Bureau of Investigation
...." Rest of article

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Monday, November 14, 2011

Latest crime stats

Crime stats for Jackson for week ending October 16, 2011.

Jackson major crimes overview for week ending October 16, 2011. Home burglaries up 24% YTD in Precinct 4.

City of Madison crime reports through October 19, 2011.

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Cute little campaign trick.

Saw several of these on election day and no, the Tea Party stickers were not put on the signs by the Dennery campaign.


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Sunday, November 13, 2011

It just gets sicker.

You won't believe this. The only good news is Texas wants to see if he did anything on the trips to the Alamo Bowl.

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Eyes on the Prize is on Youtube

Found Eyes on the Prize on Youtube tonight. Award-winning series about the Civil Rights era. Worth watching if you've never seen it before. Here are the clips.





























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WSJ: Online schools spread

The Wall Street Journal reported this weekend on the spread of online schools in public education:

"In a radical rethinking of what it means to go to school, states and districts nationwide are launching online public schools that let students from kindergarten to 12th grade take some—or all—of their classes from their bedrooms, living rooms and kitchens. Other states and districts are bringing students into brick-and-mortar schools for instruction that is largely computer-based and self-directed.
Journal Community

In just the past few months, Virginia has authorized 13 new online schools. Florida began requiring all public-high-school students to take at least one class online, partly to prepare them for college cybercourses. Idaho soon will require two. In Georgia, a new app lets high-school students take full course loads on their iPhones and BlackBerrys. Thirty states now let students take all of their courses online...

It's all part of a burst of experimentation in public education, fueled in part by mounting budgetary pressures, by parental dissatisfaction with their kids' schools and by the failure of even top-performing students to keep up with their peers in other industrialized countries. In the nation's largest cities, half of all high-school students will never graduate.

Advocates say that online schooling can save states money, offer curricula customized to each student and give parents more choice in education.

A few states, however, have found that students enrolled full-time in virtual schools score significantly lower on standardized tests, and make less academic progress from year to year, than their peers. Critics worry that kids in online classes don't learn how to get along with others or participate in group discussions. Some advocates of full-time cyberschools say that the disappointing results are partly because some of the students had a rough time in traditional schools, and arrive testing below grade level in one or more subjects
...."
Article

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New poll

New poll. Vote for your favorite fitness center. Vote early and often.

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Saturday, November 12, 2011

More fireworks at the Hinds BOS Thursday (video)

Here is the video of the Hinds County Board of Supervisors meeting last Thursday. Needless to say, the entire video is worth watching as Peggy and George sparred for over an hour. Pour a drink and watch as it gets quite entertaining.

Hinds County Economic Development Director Blake Wallace (17:00 in Part 1) told the board Phase II E911 would be implemented by the end of the year. The fun starts at 24:30 in Part 1. Supervisor Hobson-Calhoun had attorney Tony Gaylor address the board about financing the Clinton-Byram corridor. Tony Stovall of Rice Financial Products then came to the podium.

Hinds County is considering issuing $50 million in bonds for the project. Mr. Stovall asked if the county had a financial adviser. Supervisor Hobson-Calhoun proposed hiring a financial adviser. Supervisor George Smith opposed hiring one as he said the board "needed more information".

The Clarion-Ledger reported:

"All of the pieces are not together. All of the information is not on the table. We do not know exactly what the financial part of the project will be," Smith said. "We have no idea."

On Monday, Smith said much of the same when he recessed the board's meeting until Thursday to get more information on Calhoun's proposal that the county sell $50 million in general obligation bonds to continue construction of the parkway.

Calhoun vehemently disagrees with Smith, saying project details have been discussed repeatedly and paid for.

"We paid Neel-Schaffer (engineers) over $70,000 to do a study of the corridor, and they came up with an estimate of $96 million," she said. "We have a copy of the corridor plan that we paid $120,000 for. The study has already been done," she said.

Calhoun said a financial adviser, a standard hire for bond issues, would gather and calculate the detailed financial information Smith says he must have.

Supervisors in the past have split on how to pay for the corridor, but for the most part haven't spent $30 million in federal funds awarded to get it off the drawing board. The 18-mile, multi-lane parkway would go from the Siwell Road exit off I-55 South at Byram across to the Norrell Road interchange off I-20 West at Clinton
." Article

Meeting starts at 14:14.







Graham gets upset at nepotism question at 2:30


Editorial opinion: I think George Smith is holding up everything until he can get his guy hired.

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Friday, November 11, 2011

Remembering Veterans Day

One of my favorite reads. Written by a Vietnam Veteran, not your typical memorial. He writes with acid and has a few things to say and earned the right to say them.

"I begin to weary of the stories about veterans that are now in vogue with the newspapers, the stories that dissect the veteran's psyche as if prying apart a laboratory frog-patronizing stories written by style-section reporters who know all there is to know about chocolate mousse, ladies' fashions, and the wonderful desserts that can be made with simple jello. I weary of seeing veterans analyzed and diagnosed and explained by people who share nothing with veterans, by people who, one feels intuitively, would regard it as a harrowing experience to be alone in a backyard.

Week after week the mousse authorities tell us what is wrong with the veteran. The veteran is badly in need of adjustment, they say-lacks balance, needs fine tuning to whatever it is in society that one should be attuned to. What we have here, all agree, with omniscience and veiled condescension, is a victim: The press loves a victim. The veteran has bad dreams, say the jello writers, is alienated, may be hostile, doesn't socialize well-isn't, to be frank, quite right in the head.

But perhaps it is the veteran's head to be right or wrong in, and maybe it makes a difference what memories are in the head. For the jello writers the war was a moral fable on Channel Four, a struggle hinging on Nixon and Joan Baez and the inequities of this or that. I can't be sure. The veterans seem to have missed the war by having been away in Vietnam at the time and do not understand the combat as it raged in the internecine cocktail parties of Georgetown.

Still, to me Vietnam was not what it was to the jello writers, not a ventilation of pious simplisms, not the latest literary interpretation of the domino theory. It left me memories the fashion writers can't imagine. It was the slums of Truong Minh Ky, where dogs' heads floated in pools of green water and three-inch roaches droned in sweltering back-alley rooms and I was happy. Washington knows nothing of hot, whore-rich, beery Truong Minh Ky. I remember riding the bomb boats up the Mekong to Phnom Penh, with the devilish brown river closing in like a vise and rockets shrieking from the dim jungle to burst against the sandbagged wheelhouse, and crouching below the waterline between the diesel tanks. The mousse authorities do not remember this. I remember the villa on Monivong in Phnom Penh, with Sedlacek, the balding Australian hippie, and Naoki, the crazy freelance combat photographer, and Zoco, the Frenchman, when the night jumped and flickered with the boom of artillery and we listened to Mancini on shortwave and watched Nara dance. Washington's elite do not know Nara. They know much of politicians and of furniture.

If I try to explain what Vietnam meant to me-I haven't for years, and never will again-they grow uneasy at my intensity. "My God," their eyes say, "he sounds as though he liked it over there. Something in the experience clearly snapped an anchoring ligament in his mind and left him with odd cravings, a perverse view of life-nothing dangerous, of course, but...The war did that to them," they say. "War is hell." Rest of the essay

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Sick. just sick.

Sandusky update. Click on this post at your own risk.



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Graham takes offense to Fisher asking banker if he is related to a superivsor

The Hinds County Board of Supervisors met yesterday to discuss a proposed bond issue for the Byram-Clinton corridor project. More will be posted about the meeting later but there was an interesting exchange at 2:30 in the video below. Supervisor Hobson-Calhoun recommended Mr. Norwood (at the podium) to the board for consideration as the financial adviser. Supervisor Phil Fisher asked him some basic questions as he was not familiar with his resume. Supervisor Graham took great offense when Mr. Fisher asked if he was related to anyone on the board (He answered "no".). Mr. Graham said the question was out of order and appeared agitated. Here is the video:




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Mississippi GOP Press Conference

The Mississippi Republican Party held a press conference yesterday. JJ sent a correspondent to videotape the event. Here ya go.

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Thursday, November 10, 2011

Wicker aide arrested for strip show at club

Update: Wicker Communications Director Rick Curtsinger called me back and said Mr. Laird was placed on unpaid administrative leave.

Original post:
An aide to Senator Roger Wicker was arrested in September by JPD for allowing a strip show to take place at a nightclub. JPD charged Saleem Baird, Age 30, with one count of violating a city ordinance requiring a license for stripping.

The police arrested Mr. Baird on September 3, 2011 at 1:40 AM at 105 Capitol Street. 105 E. Capitol Street is the address for the Level 3 nightclub. JPD arrested three women from New Orleans for stripping: Anastacia Webber (age 21), Holly Hill (Age 20), and Angelle Marriro (Age 22).

Mr. Baird is a "legislative correspondent" for Senator Wicker and is paid approximately $50,000. This correspondent attempted to reach Communications Director Rick Curtsinger for comment but was unsuccessful. The police report stated Mr. Baird is the "manager" of the Level 3 nightclub.

The police report (posted below) states
"Officer Timothy Bailey, along with Vice and Narcotic Detectives were conducting night club checks of Jackson's night clubs, making sure the clubs had their permits and licenses up to date. Upon arrival at the above location, they noticed three females on stage nude. They were arrested for stripping without a license. A male identified himself as Saleem Baird advisted that he was the manager and in charge. He was also placed under arrest for Violation of City Cordinance."






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Tollison switches

Tollison switches to republican party.

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Jefferson County blows up

Jefferson County filing bankruptcy:

"Jefferson County, Alabama, filed the biggest U.S. municipal bankruptcy after an agreement among elected officials and investors to refinance $3.1 billion in sewer bonds fell apart.

The county, home to Birmingham, the state’s most-populous city, listed assets and debt of more than $1 billion in Chapter 9 papers filed today in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Birmingham
."

Article

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Somewhere out there, Jackie Sherill (NSFW)

is thinking karma's a __________ and probably REALLY wants to kick Parterno's ass. . Remember this quote?

"When asked about retirement, Joe Paterno once said that he would not, because it would leave college football in the hands of "the Jackie Sherrills and the Barry Switzers". Paterno apologized to Switzer for the comment, but wrote in his book that he "didnt give a damn about what Sherrill felt."

Here is the grand jury report on Sandusky and I'm going to warn you, its disgusting, sickening, and very graphic. Not safe for work and it will upset some of you physically. Repeat: I can not exaggerate how revolting and sickening this report is.

Grand jury report

Old SI article about Sandursky in 1999: Article

and his apology and explanation for writing it: Article

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Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Check out CPR in Maywood Mart.

Just want to recommend CRP REpair in Maywood Mart. They repair cellphones and all types of similar gadgets (Sorry pineapple crowd, not those gadgets). Needed to replace the battery on my Iphone. Took it in at 10:00 AM when they opened today. Replaced it in less than 15 minutes and charged $55. Thirty bucks or so cheaper than the Apple Store. Here is their link. Need service, try them out. Very nice and friendly. They didn't pay for this, they just did a good job and I thought they were worth promoting.

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WJNT this morning

Appeared on WJNT this morning to talk about the election results with Larry. Kent was not in the studio today. Here is the audio.



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Post-election mortem

60-40 seemed to be the rule rather than the exception in statewide races. Personhood amendment went down in flames (I voted no) but the Voter ID (I voted yes) and the Eminent Domain (I voted no) initiatives were approved. Denny beat Carson by 1,000 votes. I have not checked the overall legislature so I do not know if the Republicans gained seats in the House or Senate although I predicted they would fall short in the House.

I haven't looked at precincts but it would not surprise me if Madison County carried the day for Denny. I got my butt kicked like I said I would and John Dennery lost by 400 votes. I visited precincts between 2 and 4 yesterday to check turnout as I usually do. The District has changed quite a bit even in twelve months. Republicans can count on only five strong boxes: Casey, Willie Morris, Spann, St. Phillips,the Fire Station on Lakeland Drive, and maybe a sixth, Christ United Methodist, but that is rapidly changing. Congratulations to Don Palmer and yes, Robert Graham. They went out, did what they had to do, and won. No sneaky tricks, no shenanigans. They put a team together and got the job done. I have all the respect in the world for that. Those that helped me, thank you very much. You were very much appreciated.

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Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Open thread for election night.

Here ya go. Your election night open threat. My predictions: Phil gets 57%, Lynn gets 57%, Hood gets 56%. Hall ekes out one over Crisler by four points. Denny beats Carson by six. I think the Republicans in Ridgeland will buffer the Democrats in Northeast Jackson. Local races? I think John Dennery ekes one out. Me? I get my butt kicked but that's ok. Amendments: Voter Id and Eminent Domain passes. Personhood? Wins by 8.

Here are precinct totals taken from NE Jackson and Belhaven today. Started at 2:00, PM, ended at 4:00. Added times where I remembered, just add five minutes as a rule of thumb for the amount of time it takes to get from one precinct to another.

#78 (Asc. Lutheran): 383
Christ United : 1144
St. Phillips: 778
New Jerusalem: 539
Willie Morris: 760
#79 (Ridgewood Fire Station): 476
Mcleoud Elementary: 352
Spann: 727
Casey: 352
#32 (Lakeland Fire Station): 410 at 3:30
McWillie Elementary: 370 at 3:35
#9 (Belhaven College): 500 at 4:00
#1 (Eudora Welty): 256

Oh, and New Hope gave 66 votes to Dennery and over 1,300 to Graham. Tougaloo was 743 for Graham, 24 votes for Dennery. I predict Willie Morris, Spann, and St. Phillips will go over 1,000 and it would not surprise me it Christ United Methodist was near 2,000 or over.

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Bankruptcy trustee alleges fraud by Investlinc fund operated by Wolfe & Harrington, promoted by Paris.

Bankruptcy trustee Derek Henderson filed suit against the Investlinc/TFC Income Fund in February. Mr. Henderson alleged bankruptcy fraud on the part of Investlinc, as he claimed it looted Steadivest as the company collapsed and investors lost millions of dollars. The fund was operated by Marshall Wolfe and Jack Harrington. Lee Paris was the promoter.

Steadivest was a Ponzi scheme operated by Marshall Wolfe and Jack Harrington. The Secretary of State issued a cease and desist order and heavily fined the two individuals. The Steadivest companies filed bankruptcy in 2009.

The Steadivest officers and Investlinc, a Lee Paris-owned company, established the Investlinc/TFS Income Fund. SEC filing The Investlinc/TFS Income fund was used to purchase rental properties. The fund would then sell shares to investors. The investors would receive shares of the overall rental income in exchange for their investments. Several investors sued Investlinc/TFS Income Fund, the Steadivest companies, and various officers. Mr. Paris was a promoter for the fund. His role was to sell shares to investors and handle private placements for Investlinc/TFS. FINRA recently imposed a $10,000 fine on Mr. Paris and suspended him from working um, under his own supervision for six months. FINRA ruled he sold shares of failing investments to investors after he should have known, or did know they were in default on paying investors.

Mr. Henderson claimed right before Steadivest filed bankruptcy (which took place only a few days after the investors filed a lawsuit in Rankin County), Investlinc suddenly placed liens on properties held by Steadivest. In effect, Investlinc suddenly took possession of Steadivest properties. Such an action would deny the ability of creditors to recover against them in bankruptcy court. It should also be noted that Mr. Paris replaced himself as the majority owner of Investlinc Securities with Meadowbrook Capital. Meadowbrook would thus appear at first glance the majority owner for Investlinc even though Mr. Paris is the owner of Meadowbrook. Ah, the shell games.

The trustee asked the court to reverse the transfers and called the Investlinc/TFS Income Fund a classic Ponzi scheme. The lawsuit is fairly complex but the interesting stuff starts on page 17, paragraph 41.



Here is a copy of the complaint:



JJ speculated whether bankruptcy fraud took place in a 2009 post:

"Did Steadivest seek to shield some of its properties from creditors in bankruptcy court? Steadivest filed a petition for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on March 23, 2009. Earlier post about bankruptcy filing for Steadivest However, another company with the same owners, management, and address as Steadivest placed liens on several properties owned in Hinds County by Steadivest. The transactions were:

111 Carolyn Avenue Lienholder: Investlinc Inc./TFS Income Fund; $87,730.
2822 Engelside Drive Lienholder: Investlinc Inc./TFS Income Fund; $37,109
222 Lea Circle Lienholder: Investlinc Inc./TFS Income Fund; $20,831
(KF note: Much longer list in link to earlier post posted below)

The Carolyn Avenue transaction is typical for these properties. On March 5, a deed of trust was issued for Steadivest as owner of the property and a lien held by Investlinc Inc./TFS Income Fund, LLC. The deed of trust list them both as having the same address: 4 Country Place, Pearl, MS. The lien is for $87,730 (click on link above for the deed of trust. Filler pages were omitted from upload). The deed of trust only mentions a lump sum is owed, no payment schedule or loan terms are mentioned in the document. On the signature page, Marshall Wolfe signs for both Steadivest and Investlinc, stating he is a member of each LLC. The total amount of these liens is $145,670.

Investlinc Inc./TFS Income Fund, LLC is a firm that provides "financing for real estate investment and development" according to its SEC filing. Its principal address listed with the SEC is 4 Country Place, Pearl, Mississippi 39208. It was created on December 26, 2007. Patrick McRaney, a member of Steadivest, is listed as the Executive Officer. Marshall Wolfe is listed as an Executive Officer. Lee Paris is listed as Promoter. Jack Harrington signed the filing as the Chief Financial Officer of the firm and is also listed as an Executive Officer.

Patrick McRaney is also listed as the registered agent for Steadivest Capital, LLC and the officer of the the Steadivest Contrarian Fund. Jack Harrington is listed as the member/officer of Steadivest Resources, LLC and Steadivest, LLC. Marshall Wolfe is listed as the member/officer/director of Steadivest Capital, LLC, Steadivest Properties, the registered agent of Steadivest Development, LLC, and the officer of Steadivest Lending (now defunct). Lee Paris, listed as a promoter, is not mentioned with any other companies of which Wolfe, McRaney, and Harrington are members. Investlinc, Wolfe, Harrington, and McRaney are defendants in a lawsuit alleging investment fraud filed by several plaintiffs last week in Rankin County Circuit Court. Earlier post about lawsuit

What is odd about these deeds of trust is they were executed less than a month before Mr. Wolfe submitted his bankruptcy petition for Steadivest. If the properties have liens, the properties are somewhat shielded from other creditors in bankruptcy unless the Court rules these are fraudulent transactions and cancels the liens. The fact Mr. Wolfe used another company he ran that was in the same office to place liens on properties on properties he owned a month only a few weeks before he filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy makes these dealings highly suspect." Earlier post with more extensive list of properties.

In other words, the Investlinc/TFS Income fund looted Steadivest of its properties right before it filed bankruptcy by suddenly placing liens. Liens that would protect them from other creditors. What is interesting is nineteen days before the bankruptcy filing (March 4), Mr. Paris established Meadowbrook Capital, LLC. Mr. Paris replaced himself as the majority owner of Investlinc Securities with Meadowbrook Capital even though Mr. Paris is the majority owner of Meadowbrook. The result is at first glance, Mr. Paris's name is scrubbed from the ownership rolls of Investlinc at the SEC or FINRA's website. One has to look up Meadowbrook Capital itself in the filing to find Mr. Paris's name.. The SOS website reports Meadowbrook Capital is the "manager" of Investlinc/TFS Income Fund. Mr. Paris is listed by the SOS as the sole member of Meadowbrook. Investlinc claimed in a court filing it was victimized by Mr. Wolfe as the other investors were." Earlier post

Soooo....... how much snake oil has Mr. Paris sold?

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If you went to St. Phillips to vote this morning and left

They are bringing out new machines and using paper ballots. You CAN go back and vote.

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Editorial: Vote Denny

Northeast Jackson lawyer Dorsey Carson has run a very effective campaign for the House seat belonging to Bill Denny. Dorsey is a nice guy, good family man, and obviously very smart. Mr. Carson cares about social issues and clearly is a concerned citizen who wants to do more. However, character and concern are only two thirds of the equation as the choices Mr. Carson will make are the third part of the three "C"'s.

Mr. Carson will likely back Cecil Brown or Bobby Moak for Speaker. If you are in that camp or vote Democrat, then you see nothing wrong with picking Mr. Carson. If you want Republicans to take the House or pick a new speaker and were going to vote for Mr. Carson because he says the right things, ask yourself who he will support for Speaker as a Democrat. Mr. Carson seems to avoid that issue because when you get down to it, the choice he makes will be to vote for a Democrat for Speaker.

Then there is the matter of what happens (which I predict will be the case) if a Democrat is Speaker. When the Speaker calls on Dorsey, a rookie legislator, to vote to raise taxes or do something else that is poisonous to conservatives, do you really think Mr. Carson will say no? Do you think Mr. Carson will buck Ed Blackmon or Steve Holland? When you listen carefully to Mr. Carson's ads, you hear one thing over and over: spend more money. Spend more on fighting crime, more on education, more on this, more on that. No mention about different methods or what should be done differently. Mr. Carson does a good job of recognizing what our problems are. Crime. Illiteracy. Economic development. He knows they are problems, unlike some Democrats. However, there are no new solutions offered or different methods sought. Mr. Carson. Buzzwords taken from polling to appeal to conservative voters in a conservative District. Then make it home to redistricting where he can hopefully get a favorable outcome from a favorable Speaker and presto, you Republicans that voted for him find yourself in a district where the Democrats will treat you the same as those in Bennie Thompson's District.

One final question. Mr. Thompson wants to add Northeast Jackson to his district. What do you think Mr. Carson thinks about that little fact? Will he fight against his party and for his constituents? Just a thought. Just consider this when you are voting today in District #64.

Note: Yes, Mr. Carson advertises on this site. I've opposed others who advertised. I allow candidates of both parties to advertise on this website. If it seems this website promoted Mr. Carson, its because he created a bunch of ads, had a bunch of social events, and sent them in to me to post. He's worked hard for this seat and been very aggressive in campaigning. I will not vote for him today but he has earned my respect.

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New John Dennery ad



This post is a paid advertisement.

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Monday, November 7, 2011

Dan Jones email: Boone & Nutt out (Updated)

I know some Ole Miss fans are going to be celebrating all day long. So much so they might be taken for LSU fans. Here is the email:





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Robert Graham: Dennery is a burger flipper.

Won't say a word. Just check out his latest mail piece.

Dear Hinds County Friends,

In April 2008, when the tornado came through Northeast Jackson, what was your Supervisor doing?

* He was at the intersection of Old Canton and Canton Mart passing out water to citizens of his district.
* He was near Woodlea subdivision passing out tarps to those who lost their roofs.
* He was near Ridgewood and Old Canton volunteering for the Red Cross.

Where was his opponent?

* He was flipping burgers and pouring wine at his restaurant.

We don't need a cook. We need a supervisor willing to work.

We need Robert Graham.

BTW, he was not at the Board of Supervisors meeting this morning.

Then there is this latest robocall from Robert Graham about John Dennery. The call says about Robert Graham:
"Hello, I'm Dustin calling about Hinds County Supervisor. Protecting Hinds County Citizens is what Robert Graham does best. When Robert Graham serves the people of Hinds County, he stands by us, helping those in need. "He doesn't just serve us another glass of wine and ask about dessert." When you vote for Hinds County Supervisor, think of those who has served the people or served his patrons. Be sure to vote for Robert Graham tomorrow."

Precious must have written this script.

Ooooooook.

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Sunday, November 6, 2011

Guest column on Personhood Amendment

Pro-life Ridgeland attorney Tony Giachelli submitted this column stating why he is voting against Amendment 26. It is posted below and worth reading by both sides of the debate.



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This picture says it all.

This map shows in red which counties provide Phase II E911 service. Notice anything about Hinds County?

Phase II E911 service allows responders and the police to use GPS to pinpoint your location if you call 911 on your cellphone and are unable to talk or tell them where you are. All the counties in red provide this service. Both the previous and current boards neglected the needs of Hinds County while they played their usual politics and cut sweetheart deals with their friends. Even the Delta counties have this service. You pay a tax for this "service" on your cellphone bill.

We were told a year ago it would be in place within six months and six months after that date we still do not have this vital service. Hinds County residents pay the highest taxes yet can't even get basic services such as this one. Remember that little fact come Tuesday.

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Friday, November 4, 2011

Irby case dismissed.

Madison County Circuit Judge William Emfinger dismissed the indictment against Stuart M. Irby, Sr. on November 2, 2011. Mr. Irby was indicted for cyberstalking Lehman Bounds, III, ex-husband of Karen Irby, after he sent him a picture of his seventeen year old daughter's face photo-shopped on the upper body of a swimsuit model. Earlier post with copy of indictment and the rest of the story.

The District Attorney requested an independent psychiatric evaluation of Mr. Irby in September. The doctor said he suffered from "severe, permanent brain injury as a result of the trauma" and that he "lacks the ability" to "intelligently confer and consult with his attorney with a reasonable degree of rational understanding". The report states he is "incapable of making reasoned decisions".

The order drives the nail into the indictment's coffin:

"At the time of the act constituting the alleged crime charged against him the Defendant did not have the mental capacity to distinguish between right and wrong in relation to such act."

Sources informed this correspondent the frontal lobe of Mr. Irby's brain was damaged. In layman's terms, this means the part of the brain that regulates behavior has been severely damaged and Mr. Irby is incapable of distinguishing between right and wrong even if his cognitive skills are less impaired.

One question not answered is why Investigator Vicki Curry and the Madison Police Department stated in the police report Mr. Irby cyber-stalked Mr. Bounds' daughter when in reality Mr. Bounds was the victim. Mr. Irby never contacted the daughter. It will be interesting to see if further action against Ms. Curry and other officers is taken by Madison PD or Mr. Irby's lawyers.




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Trollfest '09

Trollfest '07 was such a success that Jackson Jambalaya will once again host Trollfest '09. Catch this great event which will leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Othor Cain and his band, The Black Power Structure headline the night while Sonjay Poontang returns for an encore performance. Former Frank Melton bodyguard Marcus Wright makes his premier appearance at Trollfest singing "I'm a Sweet Transvestite" from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Kamikaze will sing his new hit, “How I sold out to da Man.” Robbie Bell again performs: “Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be Bells” and “Any friend of Ed Peters is a friend of mine”. After the show, Ms. Bell will autograph copies of her mug shot photos. In a salute to “Dancing with the Stars”, Ms. Bell and Hinds County District Attorney Robert Smith will dance the Wango Tango.

Wrestling returns, except this time it will be a Battle Royal with Othor Cain, Ben Allen, Kim Wade, Haley Fisackerly, Alan Lange, and “Big Cat” Donna Ladd all in the ring at the same time. The Battle Royal will be in a steel cage, no time limit, no referee, and the losers must leave town. Marshand Crisler will be the honorary referee (as it gives him a title without actually having to do anything).


Meet KIM Waaaaaade at the Entergy Tent. For five pesos, Kim will sell you a chance to win a deed to a crack house on Ridgeway Street stuffed in the Howard Industries pinata. Don't worry if the pinata is beaten to shreds, as Mr. Wade has Jose, Emmanuel, and Carlos, all illegal immigrants, available as replacements for the it. Upon leaving the Entergy tent, fig leaves will be available in case Entergy literally takes everything you have as part of its Trollfest ticket price adjustment charge.

Donna Ladd of The Jackson Free Press will give several classes on learning how to write. Smearing, writing without factchecking, and reporting only one side of a story will be covered. A donation to pay their taxes will be accepted and she will be signing copies of their former federal tax liens. Ms. Ladd will give a dramatic reading of her two award-winning essays (They received The Jackson Free Press "Best Of" awards.) "Why everything is always about me" and "Why I cover murders better than anyone else in Jackson".

In the spirit of helping those who are less fortunate, Trollfest '09 adopts a cause for which a portion of the proceeds and donations will be donated: Keeping Frank Melton in his home. The “Keep Frank Melton From Being Homeless” booth will sell chances for five dollars to pin the tail on the jackass. John Reeves has graciously volunteered to be the jackass for this honorable excursion into saving Frank's ass. What's an ass between two friends after all? If Mr. Reeves is unable to um, perform, Speaker Billy McCoy has also volunteered as when the word “jackass” was mentioned he immediately ran as fast as he could to sign up.


In order to help clean up the legal profession, Adam Kilgore of the Mississippi Bar will be giving away free, round-trip plane tickets to the North Pole where they keep their bar complaint forms (which are NOT available online). If you don't want to go to the North Pole, you can enjoy Brant Brantley's (of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance) free guided tours of the quicksand field over by High Street where all complaints against judges disappear. If for some reason you are unable to control yourself, never fear; Judge Houston Patton will operate his jail where no lawyers are needed or allowed as you just sit there for minutes... hours.... months...years until he decides he is tired of you sitting in his jail. Do not think Judge Patton is a bad judge however as he plans to serve free Mad Dog 20/20 to all inmates.

Trollfest '09 is a pet-friendly event as well. Feel free to bring your dog with you and do not worry if your pet gets hungry, as employees of the Jackson Zoo will be on hand to provide some of their animals as food when it gets to be feeding time for your little loved one.

Relax at the Fox News Tent. Since there are only three blonde reporters in Jackson (being blonde is a requirement for working at Fox News), Megan and Kathryn from WAPT and Wendy from WLBT will be on loan to Fox. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both and a torn-up Obama yard sign will entitle you to free drinks served by Megan, Wendy, and Kathryn. Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required. Just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '09 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.


Note: Security provided by INS.

Trollfest '07

Jackson Jambalaya is the home of Trollfest '07. Catch this great event which promises to leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Sonjay Poontang and his band headline the night with a special steel cage, no time limit "loser must leave town" bout between Alan Lange and "Big Cat"Donna Ladd following afterwards. Kamikaze will perform his new song F*** Bush, he's still a _____. Did I mention there was no referee? Dr. Heddy Matthias and Lori Gregory will face off in the undercard dueling with dangling participles and other um, devices. Robbie Bell will perform Her two latest songs: My Best Friends are in the Media and Mama's, Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to be George Bell. Sid Salter of The Clarion-Ledger will host "Pin the Tail on the Trial Lawyer", sponsored by State Farm.

There will be a hugging booth where in exchange for your young son, Frank Melton will give you a loooong hug. Trollfest will have a dunking booth where Muhammed the terrorist will curse you to Allah as you try to hit a target that will drop him into a vat of pig grease. However, in the true spirit of Separate But Equal, Don Imus and someone from NE Jackson will also sit in the dunking booth for an equal amount of time. Tom Head will give a reading for two hours on why he can't figure out who the hell he is. Cliff Cargill will give lessons with his .80 caliber desert eagle, using Frank Melton photos as targets. Tackleberry will be on hand for an autograph session. KIM Waaaaaade will be passing out free titles and deeds to crackhouses formerly owned by The Wood Street Players.

If you get tired come relax at the Fox News Tent. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both will entitle you to free drinks.Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required, just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '07 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.

Note: Security provided by INS
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