Jackson Jambalaya

Worry, worry, worry.  It seems its all we do some times.  The drug companies have made a fortune off worrying as Americans down Xanax and other pills by the ton every year.  Well, there is a cheaper and yes, better way to handle worry.  The late Dr. Frank Pollard preached "don't worry about it." That's right, turn those problems over, quit worrying about them, and enjoy life as it was meant to be enjoyed.    Speaking of joy, enjoy the 1997 sermon posted below.  

Scenes from nature's destruction yesterday.

The latest effort to reduce the overwhelming number of state agencies, boards, and commissions fizzled. So, we’re headed up again, not down?

 The name of Joe Valachi dominated front pages everywhere, even those of the Clarion-Ledger, in the fall of 1963.  Valachi was the first member of the Mafia to squeal and squeal he did before a Congressional committee on the inner workings of La Cosa Nostra.  To think it all started with Vito Genovese giving him the "kiss of death" while serving time together.  Forget The Godfather, this is the real story of the mob.

 An areal east of Magee suffered an earthquake that registered 3.0 on the Richter scale.  The U.S. Geological Survey reported: 

A bill that will help law enforcement prosecute squatters and phony realtors unanimously passed the Mississippi State Senate Wednesday.  

Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens issued the following statement.

Remember when cool was cool? High school and Hollywood were cool. Substance had nothing to do with cool. Popularity is the key to cool. It’s not necessarily what somebody has. Many times it’s what cool people don’t have unlike all of the rest of us. Most of us are not cool. We’re just regular folks.

Some people try to make where they live a better place.  Dallis Ketchum is one of those people.  The creator of Neighborhouse in Belhaven discusses his hopes for Jackson and what can be done to achieve them on the Empower Mississippi podcast with Grant Callen. 

Warning: Graphic video posted below.  May not be safe for work or kids.  

When will it be last call for Last Call? 

 The southwest corner of the intersection of Highway 51 and Weisenberger Road in Gluckstadt remains wilderness as no steps have been taken to build a $100 million sportsplex developers passed a year ago.  

The Mississippi legislature has a clear conservative mandate yet sometimes struggles to get things done. Why?

 I love Pasta! Did you know, if you use the Italian word for the shape and style of pasta you use in a dish, Folks will think you are some kind of hotshot cook? At that point, your meal will be halfway toward a successful effort. 

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba is seeking donations for his legal defense fund.  WLBT reported: 

 A woman described a scene in South Jackson last night as "World War 3."  

 A JPD officer stands accused of pointing a gun at his girlfriend and forcing her to crash into another vehicle as he chased her down the road.  

 Worried that Broadway might not return to Jackson next year? Consider this option.  

 Something shiggity was going on between a man and his dog.  Action 5 News in Memphis reported: 

 State Auditor Shad White issued the following statement yesterday. 

 Can you spot the mistake? 

 MDAC Commissioner Andy Gipson issued the following statement. 

Our Agriculture Commish wants to embark on a new project: Singing.  MDAC Commissioner Andrew Gipson announced on Facebook: 

The bill is coming due for all the shenanigans in the DHS scandal.  The federal government told DHS to repay $101 million misspent at DHS.  

There are only a few moments in life when time slows down enough to let you take it all in. For me, this past weekend was one of those moments.

 Meanwhile, over on Canton Mart Road in broad daylight......

On March 7, the Democratic Minority of the bipartisan and congressionally created Joint Economic Committee—one of two economic advisory committees established in 1946—released a report detailing their concerns about where the Republican Majority has signaled they might go to accomplish theiroverall tax cut goals.

 It's time for a Jackson food fight.  Malcolm Johnson said he is going to wear out Othor Cain on his Facebook page at 9 tonight. Might be some fireworks. 

 Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones issued the following statement. 

 The University of Mississippi Medical Center issued the following statement. 

 Man bites dog is an old story.  But what if dog......

 A motorcade of first responders escorted the transport of the AirCare employees who died in the helicopter crash yesterday in Madison County from the Madison County morgue to the State Crime Lab. Theres Apel managed to videotape the procession.

 Dax Owens managed to get himself arrested yet again.  Must be something in the blood.  

 UMMC Vice-Chancellor Dr. Louanne Woodward is holding a press conference right now on the AirCare crash today.  It is live-streamed below courtesy of WLBT. 

 A UMMC medical helicopter crashed in a heavily wooded area south of Highway 43 and north of Pipeline Road. 

 A UMMC nurse posted this horrific message on her public Facebook page:

Let the feeding frenzy begin.  Mockingbird Cannabis accused its former CAO and CFO of looting over $8 million from the company in a lawsuit filed in Hinds County Circuit Court Friday.   

Credit: Mockingbird Facebook page

What Facebook giveth, Facebook can taketh away.  Facebook send out this little warning over the weekend: 

 You read the correctly.  The one and only Hank Williams, Jr. is coming to Brandon. 

 Apparently a  high school track athlete saw Rollerball a few too many times.  

 "It's a terrible thing when faith becomes graceless. It's a terrible thing when faith degenerates from keeping fellowship to just sort of saying we got to keep the rules," preached the late Dr. Frank Pollard in 1997.  His sermon discussed how some become modern-day Pharisees, more concerned with being "heretic hunters" or "watchdogs of orthodoxy" to the detriment of all, including their faith.  Just think Mary in Young Sheldon. Enjoy the sermon as Dr. Pollard preaches from John 5: 1-30.  The scripture is posted below.   

What impact will President Donald Trump’s tariffs and Elon Musk’s DOGE layoffs and contract cancellations have on Mississippi? It’s too soon to tell, but the risks of major impacts are high.

 Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens issued the following statement. 

Despite all the huffing and puffing after the media reported how candidates such as the Jackson Mayor abuse filing campaign finance reports with no accountability, the legislature killed all bills that would put some teeth into Mississippi's almost non-existent campaign finance laws for local candidates.  Supervisors and Mayors throughout the state can rejoice. 

You know that war over there that nobody talks about over here? Yeah, the second war Biden botched during his first year as president. Nowadays everybody’s talking about President Trump ending that war with a press conference in the oval office. In just over a month, Mr. Trump has closed our borders with Canada and Mexico, renamed a mountain in Alaska, and created a new body of water on our southern border. He has simultaneously baffled every woke person in America with whirling dervishes.

Posted below are the 2021-2024 campaign finance reports of Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba.  JJ published pictures of the reports last month as yours truly could look at the reports but had to file a public records request for a printed copy.  

A measles outbreak began in Texas recently.  Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.  urged parents to get the MMR vaccine for their children if they had not been vaccinated.  Mr. Kennedy promoted the vaccine in a column on the Fox News website: 

But you must have something you hunted to cook. I do understand some hunt the isles of their grocer, but this one may require a visit to a quail hunting field. 

 July 13, 2026 will be a day of reckoning for Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba, Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens, II, and Jackson Ward 6 Councilman Aaron Banks.  

 Despite opposition from some Democrats, a bill cracking down on squatters and phony realtors cleared a Senate committee this week.  

 Canton police charged a man with rape of a child under 14 years old.   

A hearing will be held tomorrow in USA v. Jody Owens, II, Chokwe A Lumumba, and Aaron Banks.  A federal grand jury indicted them in November on public corruption charges.  The docket states: 

 Some people should really not sing.  At all. 

 An 18 wheeler caused a bit of a problem in Northeast Jackson today.  The Capitol Police issued the following statement. 

 The feud between Jay-Z and Houston superlawyer Anthony Buzbee spilled over into Mississippi when one of Jay-Z's lawyers sued Mr. Buzbee for defamation in Hinds County Circuit Court yesterday.

A black Richland High School student generated waves when she used the "N"* word in her Black History Month speech at the school. 

 Rankin-Madison District Attorney Bubba Bramlett issued the following statement. 

 All things, good and bad, must come to an end. 

 The Justice Department issued the following statement. 

 If you want to see some of the seamy underside of Jackson, check out Karterpound's Instagram page.  Our man posted yet another video of some um, shenanigans in the hood.  

Life tends to deliver milestones in clusters, never spreading them out at a leisurely pace, but stacking them up all at once. This week is no exception. On Saturday, my daughter is getting married—a once-in-a-lifetime event. Then, two days later, I board a plane to spend the next eight weeks working overseas. It’s not ideal timing, but that’s the nature of my life. In the coming months, I’ll host six trips across Europe—Spain, Tuscany (twice), a Tuscany trip I call Tuscany 2.0 where I host guests who have already travelled with me in Tuscany but with all new adventures, Holland/Belgium, and England/Scotland. Some of these trips I’ve done before, some are newer variations, but I love what I do, no matter how many times I do it. And while those familiar streets, piazzas, and villages bring me joy, my mind isn’t on travel at the moment. It’s on something far bigger.

Rankin County Sheriff Bryan Bailey issued the following statement. 

Empty coolers on grocery store egg product shelves, dramatically higher prices when you can find eggs, and angst and dread among those who make their livings in Mississippi’s robust poultry and egg industry – that’s the new reality.

 Rankin-Madison District Attorney Bubba Bramlett issued the following statement. 

 The tyranny of the trans movement reared its ugly head in Maine when a state representative lost her right to speak and vote after she dared speak out about a trans male/female who demolished the female competition in the state championship track meet.  

A Madison County woman faces over $10,000 in fines for contempt of court after she failed to turn over  required documents in her divorce case.  However, she blames her former lawyer, Bridget Todd, for failing to keep her informed in what is becoming a familiar story.  Ms. Todd gained prominence for her representation of Carly Gregg last year.  

A Rankin County college student was allowed to plead guilty to cyberstalking after the prosecution withdrew his indictment for sexual battery of a minor and statutory rape last year.  

 Well, well, well. It appears the Mexican drug cartels are not too happy right now.  The New York Times reported Sunday: 

 Madison police arrested Thaddeus Clayton Cochran today and charged him with trespassing and contempt of court. 

 The horror stories about the Jackson office of the United States Postal Service are true.  

 Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens issued the following statement. 

Local media personality Barbie Bassett took her shot at her former employer, WLBT.  WLBT said thank you, very much, now we will take our own shot.   The two sides will continue to war as a recent settlement conference failed. 

Credit: Vicksburg Daily New

 Jacksonian John Zehr created a poll for the Jackson mayoral election online.  Feel free to go vote.

Pete Perry authored this post.  Given the recent flareup over early voting among our elected officials, JJ thought it might spur debate if someone presented the case against early voting.  

 Meanwhile over in Texas.....

Is it ok to be rich? Is it all right to have ambition? What about things? Is it ok to want things? What do these questions have to do with the Sermon on the Mount? Watch the late Dr. Frank Pollard's 1997 sermon posted below to get the answers to these questions and more. He will also explain what the Sermon on the Mount has to do with being a clown.  Enjoy. 

Are they auditioning in Washington for a Saturday Night Live skit?

 You wanted it, you got it.  Posted below is the Clarksdale Press Register editorial that generated so much controversy.  Enjoy.  

Some JPS teachers squalled about school closures at the Mayoral candidate forum held at Duling Hall last weekend.  As they complained, the candidates bobbed and weaved as everyone tried to avoid dealing with reality.  Perhaps it's time to educate these "educators" as well as our would-be leaders with some simple math.