STARKVILLE — It’s easy to blame the Mississippi Legislature for the state’s current prison system woes, but the truth is that such finger-pointing is inaccurate. The state’s current prison mess has been at least 25 years in the making.
A nonprofit organization’s analysis of public school funding in America surprised no one when it noted wide differences among the states in the amount of money schools get.
A major theme at this weekend’s annual march in Greenwood to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a call for unity.
Roads and bridges
If there’s anything positive about the recent violence in Mississippi prisons, it’s that the continuing news coverage makes it more likely that substantial assistance is coming soon.
The best of Greenwood was on display last week. That’s always the case for the annual meeting of the Greenwood-Leflore County Chamber of Commerce. This year the event was held last Thursday at the Leflore County Civic Center. Locals who display a strong commitment to the Greenwood-Leflore c…
OXFORD —The likely November rematch between Cindy Hyde-Smith and Mike Espy for one of Mississippi’s U.S. Senate seats is a reminder that Mississippi lacks the power it once had at the nation’s Capitol.
JACKSON — Mississippi has a lot of wonderful people. One of them is Sam Polles, 27-year executive director of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks.
Mississippi Today recently published an in-depth look at the state’s restitution centers, or at least as in-depth as reporters can get without being let inside the four facilities, including one in Greenwood.
Hooray for the Mississippi Board of Education in rejecting a recommendation that it eliminate the U.S. History exam from the state tests students are required to take.
Mississippi traditionally leads the nation in health professional shortage areas, which means that we do not have enough health-care providers for the population. One notable inclusion to this health disparity is the lack of dental coverage, especially in rural areas.
Congratulations to the LSU Tigers, whose football team won its third national championship in the past 17 seasons.
Editor, Commonwealth:
MERIDIAN — Mississippi’s prison crisis is about to teach new legislators a hard lesson.
RIDGELAND — In October 1982, I made a long-awaited pilgrimage to Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson. After touring the house, I walked with others to his gravesite.
The banquet hall at the Country Club of Jackson was full last week to hear writer Andy McCarthy speak at a function hosted by the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.
Editor, Commonwealth:
Editor, Commonwealth:
STARKVILLE — Tuesday’s inauguration of newly minted Republican Gov. Tate Reeves ends a 33-year career in public service in Mississippi by his predecessor, former Gov. Phil Bryant. Or does it?
COLUMBIA — Sid Salter makes some good points about outgoing Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant’s affability, which has served him well in working with legislators and state business leaders, and the stronger economy in the state now than when Bryant took office eight years ago.
Maybe The Associated Press knows something that nobody else does. That’s about the only way to explain the opening sentences to one of its stories that hit the wire earlier this week:
Medical marijuana
OXFORD — Many Mississippians, if given a Mississippi history test, would be just as apt to win the new Mississippi lottery as to identify Neilah Massey Bailey.
Looking back on the eight-year tenure of Phil Bryant as Mississippi’s governor, the evaluation is mixed, as it probably is with anyone who holds public office for very long.
The Leflore County Board of Supervisors has been spending a lot of time talking about garbage over the past year.
COLUMBIA — The South’s population grew faster than any other region from 2018 to 2019, census estimates released last week show, driven by migration from colder, more expensive Northern states.
Members of the Mississippi State Board of Health have sent out a letter urging people to vote against the medical marijuana constitutional amendment this coming November.
INDIANOLA — The Mississippi Department of Corrections claimed the State Penitentiary at Parchman was on lockdown last week.
Marriage is dead? Not in America” read the optimistic headline of a recent op-ed column by two individuals who keep tabs on this vitally important social institution.
John Dowdy’s troubles with the state auditor probably won’t strengthen his chances of keeping his job as director of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics.
Prison crisis
JACKSON — The recent rise in violence from Parchman and other prisons has become a leading issue of the day in Mississippi. Right in time for the start of the 2020 legislative session.
At the risk of irking Mississippi’s schoolteachers, we pose this question: If there is not enough money in the state treasury to both raise the pay of teachers and raise the pay of prison guards, which is more important right now?
STARKVILLE — State voters in 2019 chose a new governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, and state treasurer along with significant turnover in both the state House and Senate.
Our reaction to District Attorney Doug Evans’ decision to recuse himself from deciding whether to try accused killer Curtis Flowers a seventh time can be summed up in four words.
Editor, Commonwealth:
Lead pipes
OXFORD — At least the New Year, 2020, has a nice ring to it.
Here’s a grim report to start the new year from The Washington Post on the social and emotional well-being of Americans:
Litter is not just a big problem in Mississippi. Neighboring Alabama has more than its share of thoughtless residents and visitors who think the great outdoors makes a great trash can.
Haven’t gotten your tickets yet to the Tate Reeves inaugural? Don’t sweat it.
One of the reasons Joe Biden may not survive the long haul of the Democratic presidential nomination process is his regular failure to think through what he’s about to say.
When the United States ratified the 16th Amendment in 1913 allowing a federal income tax, the balance of power shifted from the states to the federal government. The power to tax is the power to dictate.
JACKSON — My heart sank when Tim Kalich texted me the news that Donnie Brock had passed away. I sat in my chair, and my mind flew back to another age.
COLUMBIA — Proximity is one of the standards of newsworthiness. That is, the closer you are to the topic, the more interested you are in it. That can be physical proximity — if you live in Columbia something that happens in this city is bigger news to you than if it happens in Sumrall — but …
Incoming Gov. Tate Reeves has apparently decided to change the direction of several state agencies, including the Mississippi Department of Corrections.
Donnie Brock
JACKSON — This New Year’s brings a new decade. It’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years. It goes by fast.
There will be a lot of changes, starting next week, coming to the Mississippi Capitol. Among them will be a new governor, a new lieutenant governor and several new committee chairs.
New Year’s Eve can be one of the more hazardous times to be out on the road. That’s because the end of a year usually brings an increase in inebriated drivers.
Editor, Commonwealth:
Editor, Commonwealth:
Medical marijuana
Less than a week before Christmas, I received a double-barreled dressing down.
Falling ACT scores for Mississippi high schoolers further illustrate that the increase in graduation rates, so touted by education officials and politicians, is an illusion created by decreased standards rather than an actual improvement in what students are learning.
Mike Hurst, the U.S. attorney in Jackson, wasn’t wrong when he complained a few days ago that judges release too many of the city’s violent offenders on bond and that city officials sometimes deny Jackson has a problem with crime, gangs and drugs.
Doug Evans
JACKSON — The last time the Mississippi Legislature overrode a veto was 2002. Democrat Ronnie Musgrove was governor. Democrats held a majority in the House and Senate, yet the required two-thirds majority in both chambers voted to overturn Musgrove’s vetoes — four times in 2002.
A congressional effort to again make certain states, including Mississippi, preclear any election-related changes with the federal government before they are implemented is probably going nowhere.
For a good example of how the attendance at a college football game matters less than it used to, just watch a few minutes of almost any of this year’s bowl games.
OXFORD — Reading aloud the newspaper headline, “House votes to impeach Trump,” my wife said, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
It’s easy to be cynical and critical of the money machine that college sports has become. And it’s just as easy to cast a skeptical eye upon the players, coaches and the rest of the cast in our culture’s beloved sports drama.
In addition to Christmas spurring greater monetary generosity, it also stimulates a kinder, gentler spirit.
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