Democrats gamble on midterm elections with more state funds

By returning to Washington to give the green light to another round of taxpayer-funded state aid, congressional Democrats are betting voters will reward, rather than punish, them for helping their cash-strapped states cover the costs of health care programs and teachers' salaries.

With the House abruptly interrupting its month long recess for Tuesday's debate and vote, Democrats are casting the $26.1 billion plan as a win-win proposition.

They say the bill does not add to the national debt and - in overcoming Republican opposition - they have saved the jobs of tens of thousands of teachers, firemen and police nationwide.

"Why wouldn't House Republicans want to keep 310,000 teachers, first-responders and private-sector workers on the job instead of on the unemployment lines?" House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat, said Monday.

Mrs. Pelosi made her comment a few days after the Department of Labor released a report showing that the country had shed 131,000 jobs last month.

But GOP leaders have been quick to point up the political risks of the special vote to approve more government spending, in the face of voter sentiment for the government to tighten its belt.

"The American people are screaming at the top of their lungs to Washington, 'Stop, stop the spending, stop the job-killing policies,' and yet Democrats in Washington refuse to listen to the American people," House Minority Leader John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press."

On Tuesday, the Democrat-controlled House is expected to pass the measure, which in part relies on ending foreign tax credits for multinational companies and money from last year's stimulus bill to pay for $10 billion in teachers' salaries and $16.1 billion for the extension of the Federal Medicaid Assistance Program (FMAP). More than a dozen states are counting on the money to balance their budgets and to keep about 140,000 teachers nationwide on the payroll.

Rep. Chris Van Hollen last week shrugged off the suggestion that approving the measure might come back to haunt the party in the midterm elections this fall.

"It is not a gamble," the Maryland Democrat told The Washington Times. "It would be gambling our children's education to have them go back to school and find no teacher in the classroom and with larger class sizes."

Read more at WSJ

Jackpot Jackson Jury decides it takes a village, but not parents.

A Hinds County Circuit Court jury has awarded $4.7 million to the parents of two children who nearly drowned in 2007 in the swimming pool at the La Quinta Inn in Jackson. The jury found that the parents were only 15 percent to blame despite the fact that the parents left the 8 and 9 year old kids at the hotel alone. It's also important to note that the kids, who could not swim, were told by their parents not to go near the pool, but they disobeyed. It's also important to note that if not for the quick action of hotel employees the children likely would have drowned.

So, who's to blame, again?

$4.7M award in near drowning at Jackson motel


Motel blamed in swimming pool accident

A Hinds County Circuit Court jury has awarded $4.7 million to the parents of two children who nearly drowned in 2007 in the swimming pool at the La Quinta Inn in Jackson.

After a two-week trial, the jury returned an award of $5.6 million, affixing fault at 85 percent to the Inn and 15 percent to the parents. The percentage attributed to the parents reduced the award to the $4.7 million, said Ashley Ogden, attorney for the family.

"We hope this jury verdict will tell hotels that set up their own rules for safety ... to follow them," Ogden said Thursday.

The parents said in the lawsuit that the hotel was negligence. The crux of their case was that the gate on the fence surrounding the pool was supposed to be locked when the pool wasn't in operation - per company policy. The pool's operating hours were 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., according to court records.

Also, testimony during the trial established a self-latching device on the pool gate wasn't working, according to Ogden. Employees testified they did not lock the pool that night, according to the lawsuit.

Also, the lawsuit said La Quinta's corporate policy required the hotel manager, Dave Lehman, to maintain CPR certification, but his certification had lapsed.

La Quinta officials argued there was no duty to lock the pool gate during nonpool hours and that the children were not left in their care that morning.

Also, they said Lehman responded quickly to the emergency and helped saved the lives of the children.

Charlene Priester, one of the attorneys defending La Quinta, said no decision has been made on an appeal.

The near drownings took place July 30, 2007, at the La Quinta on Briarwood Drive. The children, ages 8 and 9, and their parents were staying there at the time..

The children were left at the hotel while their father, Robert Sproles Jr., took his wife to work at Central Mississippi Medical Center.

The parents said the children had been warned to stay away from the pool. Neither child knew how to swim.

Security footage from the hotel showed the Sproles left about 6:34 that morning. Sometime between that time and 7 a.m., the children ended up in the pool.

CL

Opinion Editorial: More Government Spending; Less Jobs

BY: Congressman Gregg Harper

Before I was elected to serve in Congress, I employed three people at a small business in Pearl, Mississippi. In my office, we had a budget. I had to make daily decisions to live within that budget, including making a monthly payroll.

The federal government is broke. By the White House’s own admission, the federal deficit could reach $1.47 trillion for Fiscal Year 2011, borrowing 41 cents of every dollar you send to Washington.

This unhealthy announcement comes after a failed $862 billion stimulus package that the Democrats claimed was designed to keep unemployment under eight percent, a trillion dollar health care overhaul that Nancy Pelosi said would create 400,000 immediate jobs, and an overreach of the financial system that assumes the federal government knows best how local financial firms should invest their assets.

Now – with nearly 15 million people unemployed – the Democratic leadership in Washington ignored their responsibility to produce a federal budget. The failure by the majority to sensibly construct a budget resolution threatens job creation, explodes spending and deficits, and intensifies America's debt crisis.

House Republicans understand the importance of balancing their checkbook. We also realize that the federal government’s checkbook is your checkbook. This is why we have launched AmericaSpeakingOut.com. This unprecedented initiative asks you – the taxpayer – to give your input and help direct the policies being debated in Washington.

Just around the corner, the Democrats have plans to enact the largest tax increase in American history. That’s right. On January 1, 2011, every single tax bracket is scheduled to increase. This means if you run a small business and pay 35 percent on your taxes, next year you will pay 39.6 percent. And if you file in the lowest tax bracket, next year you will be subject a 50 percent increase in your tax rate, not to mention the estate tax and the capital gains tax will return to their previous rates.

The President’s spokesman recently said, “I don’t think there’s an economist that believes there’s a stimulus to, or a good reason in terms of economic growth to, extend those tax cuts.” Ironically, the chairwoman of the President’s own Council of Economic Advisers has noted, “In short, tax increases appear to have a very large, sustained, and highly significant negative impact on output...the more intuitive way to express this result is that tax cuts have very large and persistent positive output effects.”

It appears that at least one of the President’s advisors share the same beliefs as me, Washington must give Americans immediate tax relief.

There is no denying that the economy is still fragile. But the verdict is in on government spending. America cannot borrow, spend and tax our way out of this economic downturn – plain and simple.

My family has a budget, my small business operated on a budget, and today my congressional office operates below our budget – voluntarily returning nearly 10 percent of my Members’ Representational Allowance. I urge Congress to follow this example by providing taxpayers with a fiscally responsible budget that spends much less, cuts taxes and reduces our national debt.

Gregg Harper represents Mississippi’s Third Congressional District. The freshman Republican serves on the House Budget Committee.

Officer rules against St. Dominic Madison hospital

An administrative hearing officer is recommending St. Dominic Hospital not be allowed to build a 71-bed hospital in Madison County.
In a 48-page recommendation released today, Cassandra B. Walter says the hospital hasn’t justified its case for a certificate of need from the state Department of Health to move 71 beds from its Jackson campus to Madison County.

HMA-owned Madison County Medical Center, which will open as Madison River Oaks next summer in Canton, opposed St. Dominic’s plans and welcomed Thursday’s recommendation.

State Health Officer Dr. Mary Currier has up to 30 days to make a final ruling.

CL

Yazoo Co. man, woman jailed for drug embezzlement charges

A Yazoo County man and woman are behind bars in connection to a drug embezzlement case.

Thirty-year-old Tanya Leal of Satartia is charged with felony embezzlement of and conspiracy to possess 460 dosage units of hydrocodone and xanax.

She is suspected of embezzling the prescription medications from an area drugstore where she worked as a pharmacy technician.

Leal's alleged co-conspirator is 38-year-old Dewayne D. Townsend of Bentonia.

He is charged with felony conspiracy to possess the same drugs.

Both are being held Yazoo County jail under $100 thousand bond.

WLBT

NRCC's 2010 Race of the Day: Mississippi's 4th District

This November, voters in Mississippi’s Fourth Congressional District have a prime opportunity to take back a Republican seat in this traditionally conservative district. For the past seven years, the Fourth has been held by Democrat Gene Taylor, who, despite the region’s reputation as a Republican stronghold, has managed to maintain his grip on this district. This fall, Taylor faces off against popular Republican state Rep. Steven Palazzo—putting Republicans in the perfect position to take Mississippi’s Fourth on Election Day.

Covering the southeastern region of the state, Mississippi’s Fourth is rated by the Cook Voting Index as R+22, making it one of the two most Republican districts in the nation currently held by a Democrat. Extending across the coastal southern edge of Mississippi from the Louisiana border to the Alabama border, the district spans fifteen counties in total. It also includes three of Mississippi’s most heavily populated cities: Gulfport, Biloxi, and Hattiesburg. Showing a Republican voting trend in both of the last presidential elections, George W. Bush swept this district with 68% of the vote in 2004, while John McCain won with 67% of the vote in 2008.

Unlike the past two election cycles, Taylor faces an electorate that is fed up with what his party is doing in Washington. By casting his vote for Nancy Pelosi, Taylor ushered in Pelosi’s reckless liberal agenda that is killing jobs and ruining the economy. Supporting Pelosi and other Democrats like Barney Frank of Massachusetts proves Taylor is a Blue Dog in name only. Further confirming that Taylor has lost touch with his conservative constituents is the fact that 70% of Taylor’s political donations come from out-of-state committees. Failing to represent his voters and tarnished by his support for the Pelosi agenda, 2010 is the time to retire Gene Taylor.

Stepping up to the plate to take down Taylor is state Rep. Steven Palazzo. He learned the value of public service early, enlisting in the Marine Corps Reserves in 1988 and spending time in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait while serving in the Gulf War. Today, Steve still serves in the MS National Guard and recently spent a year supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Rising from a modest middle class upbringing to become a leader in the business community, Palazzo knows the value of hard work--and a dollar. His knowledge of the corporate world as well as his military experience set Palazzo above the competition. He will fight to promote job creation, free market principles, limited government, and fewer taxes for small businesses.

Enrolled in the National Republican Congressional Committee’s Young Guns program, Steven Palazzo is the perfect candidate to represent Mississippi’s Fourth District voters. He will represent “Mississippi values”—God, family and country—and bring fiscal responsibility back to Washington. Steve and his wife, Lisa are the proud parents of three young children.

I hope you’ll take a few minutes to learn about Steven on his website, and become a fan on Facebook to stay updated with the latest news and information from his campaign.

Townhall

New Principal at East Flora, other Madison County Schools invite students and parents to "Meet the Teachers"

Meet the Teachers


Students head back to classrooms next week

Madison County teachers and principals are counting down the days until school begins Aug. 11.

For Capucine Robinson, the new principal at East Flora Elementary, she's eagerly anticipating "meet the teachers" on Monday. "That's when I get to meet my little ones," she said.

Robinson comes to the K-5 school after two years as assistant principal at Velma Jackson High School, but she has 18 years of previous elementary experience in Jackson Public Schools. "I'm really, really excited about being at East Flora," she said.

When students come through the doors two days before actual classes begin, Robinson will be there with a big smile to greet them and start learning who her students are.

"Every child wants you to know their name," she said. "I'm giving myself a month to learn all their names."

Before early morning bells signal the start of learning next Wednesday, most county schools offer students a sneak peak at the year ahead with back to school nights and opportunities to meet teachers. Upcoming school schedules are:

• Ann Smith Elementary will host meet-the-teacher night Aug. 9, 4-6 p.m.
• Camden Elementary will hold an open house Aug. 10, 5-6 p.m.
• East Flora Elementary invites students and parents to meet the teachers Aug. 9, 4-6 p.m. On Aug. 19, the school will hold back-to-school night, starting at 6 p.m.
• East Flora Middle holds its back to school night Aug. 16 at 5:30 p.m.
• Germantown Middle School will allow students to pick up their class schedules 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Aug. 9. A week later on Aug. 16, the school hold back to school night starting at 5:30 p.m.
• Highland Elementary has scheduled meet-the-teacher for Tuesday, Aug. 10, 4-6 p.m. The come-and-go event offers students and parents the opportunity to meet their teachers for the school year and to visit their school rooms. School supplies may be delivered to classrooms then.
• Luther Branson Elementary on Aug. 26, 6-7:15 p.m., invites parents to come meet teachers and learn what's ahead for their children in the school year.
• Madison Avenue Elementary will hold its annual prayer walk 2-4 p.m. on Sunday. From 4-6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 9, the kindergarten, first- and second-graders at the school can come meet their teachers for the coming year. Kindergarten will hold parent's night Aug. 12 at 5:30 p.m.
• Madison Avenue Upper Elementary students can find out who their teachers are and greet them Aug. 9, 4-6 pm. Back-to-school nights for parents will be at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 30- 31.
• Madison Central High School students will pick up their schedules this week: Seniors can go to the school today 9-11 a.m. while juniors can go 1-3 p.m. Sophomores can pick up schedules Friday, 9-11 a.m. Students who miss assigned times can get their schedules Aug. 10, 5:30 p.m. Also on Aug. 10 is new student orientation. Back-to-school night is set for Aug. 23 at 6:30 p.m.
• Madison Crossing Elementary posts class lists Aug. 8 at 4 p.m., Then on Monday from 4-6 p.m. students will be able to meet their teachers and bring school supplies. Parent orientation for all grades is set Aug. 30 at 6 p.m.
• Madison Middle School will hold open house for sixth-grade parents Aug. 16 at 6:30 p.m. while open house for parents of students in the other two grades is Aug. 17 at 6:30 p.m.
• Madison Station Elementary students can meet their teachers Aug. 9, 4:30-6:30 p.m. Parent orientation for grades 3-5 is Aug. 30 and for grades K-2 is Sept. 2.
• Mannsdale Elementary students will learn their teachers this year Aug. 9, 4-6 p.m. Then at 6:30 p.m., there will be a new student reception in the cafeteria.
• Northeast Madison Middle will have its open house Aug. 18, 6-8 p.m.
• Olde Towne Middle will hold an open house on Aug. 19 at 6 p.m. in the gym.
• Ridgeland High School for the first time offers students an early look at their schedules. Students whose parents join the PTO for $20 can get a copy of class schedules today, 5-8 p.m. or Friday, 8:30-11 a.m.
• Rosa Scott students will have freshman orientation today, starting at 5 p.m. Also, students can pick up schedules 5-7 p.m. today. The parent prayer night follows at 7 p.m. Back to school night is Aug. 24.
• Velma Jackson High School holds open house Aug. 17 at 7 p.m.

Read the entire article at MCHerald

Canton nurse practitioner’s clinic hearing postponed until August 16

CANTON — A public hearing on a nurse practitioner’s request to operate a medical clinic out of a historic home in Canton has been postponed until mid-August.

Donald Lawrence, city zoning administrator, says the Canton Zoning Commission was scheduled to hear Mary Allen’s special exception and dimensional variance request Monday night, but there was a problem with the advertisement of the hearing.

Lawrence tells The Clarion-Ledger that the hearing instead will be held Aug. 16 in Canton City Hall.

Allen’s proposed medical clinic has drawn criticism from some Canton homeowners who say the home located in a historical residential district is more than 100 years old and should not be converted into a business.

Allen has said she would not alter the structure as to compromise the historic character of the home.


MBJ

Opinion: Building A Mosque Two Blocks From Ground Zero Is A Grievous Insult To The People Who Died On 9/11

BY: John Hawkins

On 9/11 radical Muslims murdered almost 3,000 Americans in the name of Islam. Now, Islam is going to be allowed to profit from those attacks? Manhattan liberals say "yes,"

A New York community board has resoundingly backed a controversial plan for an Islamic cultural center and mosque two blocks from Ground Zero.

The non-binding vote by the Manhattan community board late Monday passed 29:1 with 10 abstentions in a strong endorsement of the planned project.

The equivalent of this would be building a "tribute to Japanese military history" at Pearl Harbor. Why do you think they're building a mosque on that spot? They're not blind to the symbolism of it. It's to send a message: "We killed your people and benefitted from it. In your face!" How many smirking radical Muslims will go to that mosque, so that they can laugh over the graves of dead infidels? It won't be a small number. You know it, I know it, and the people who want to build that mosque know it, too.

The liberals who are turning a blind eye to this are not just wrong; they're doing something that's extremely provocative, potentially dangerous, and utterly immoral. Isn't it ironic that the same liberals who are always going on and on about sensitivity don't give a d@mn about urinating on the graves of the thousands of Americans who were murdered by radical Islamists on 9/11 by building a mosque at Ground Zero?

RWN

Dry, hot weather withering crops in the field

According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service in Mississippi, there were 5.6 days suitable for fieldwork for the week ending Aug. 1, and record-breaking heat has caused the conditions of Mississippi’s crops to further decline.

AgFax reports scattered showers helped producers who were lucky enough to receive them, but non-irrigated plants are withering in the field.

The rainless weather has caused fields to mature sooner than usual, and farmers have already begun harvesting corn.

Soil moisture was rated 16 percent very short, 39 percent short, 35 adequate, and 10 percent surplus.

MBJ

Morning blaze destroys Madison County home

Fire officials are investigating what sparked a morning blaze that destroyed a Madison County home Monday.

It happened in the 1200 block of Sharon Road, just outside the Canton city limits. 

Madison County Sheriff Toby Trowbridge said the home was covered in flames when fire officials arrived on scene.

Trowbridge said no one was home at the time, and no one was hurt.

WLOX

Fun in Flora set for August 28th

The annual Fun in Flora will be August 28th from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM in front of Flora UMC.  The theme for this year's festival is "Building for the Future by Focusing on Christ".  There will be the ever-popular silent and live auctions.  But this year, there will also be a raffle for a 2 night stay for two at Monmouth Plantation in Natchez. Raffle tickets are only $5.00 per ticket!  This year's festival, as in years past, will have a variety of opportunities for kids with games, a space jump, a water slide and a rock climbing wall. 

Live gospel music will be provided by local groups and individuals. A chicken plate lunch will be served with all the fixings from 11:00 AM-1:00 PM.

The Morning Circle will sponsor a Country Store with homemake baked and canned goods and homemade ice cream. Organizers hope to also have the Flora Fire Department fire truck on site and Fire Department Officials to discuss fire safety with children.  

"This is a great event for our church and community," said Harold Miller, who is heading up the event this year for Flora United Methodist Church.

The proceeds will go to the building fund and missions.

For more information contact the church office at 601-879-8642.

Opinion: The Children Of Illegals Have No Business Demanding Anything

They took their protests right to the steps of Congress. Hundreds of students, including ten from Georgia, lobbied at the nation’s capitol for “The Dream Act,” which offers undocumented students a chance to become legal citizens.

I contend we don’t need “Immigration Reform” but “Enforcement Reform”, meaning the federal government should do its job and enforce the existing laws on the books. However, the children of illegal aliens believe they should get a pass because they didn’t do anything wrong.

Here’s my analogy on this situation….

Let’s say one day a family wakes up to the sound of the front door of their home being bashed in. The father is handcuffed and escorted out of the home by federal law enforcement officials and is audibly charged with embezzlement. The family is told they have five minutes to gather their most personal belongings and then vacate the premises because their home and automobile is being seized because stolen money is believed to have purchased said assets.

The family soon finds out their bank accounts have been frozen because they too may contain monies as a result of the father’s possible theft.

Who should the family be mad at, the federal government that suspected the father of theft or the father for putting the family in the precarious position they find themselves in now? I suspect the wife would be rightfully furious with the husband, as would be the kids. But when it comes to parents who knowingly violated our sovereign border, no blame is being issued to them by their children. No, it’s the federal government’s fault for not letting those kids have their way and let them operate freely in a country they are in illegally.

For this reason (as lacking in compassion as is sounds) I have no sympathy for the offspring of illegal aliens who are being denied in-state tuition for colleges, or admittance at all. They have no business protesting a college, state legislature, congress or citizenry of a state or the nation. If anything, these kids should demand their parents explain why they decided to break the law and hide out for decades knowing it could hurt them in the long run.

The federal government wouldn’t drop the charges against an embezzler because it would inconvenience his or her family.

Illegal aliens aren’t deserving of amnesty and their kids are in no position to make demands.

Black and Right

If those who forget history are doomed to repeat It, then what happens to those who never learned it to begin with?

The Soak-the-Rich Catch-22

Tax reduction thus sets off a process that can bring gains for everyone, gains won by marshalling resources that would otherwise stand idle—workers without jobs and farm and factory capacity without markets. Yet many taxpayers seemed prepared to deny the nation the fruits of tax reduction because they question the financial soundness of reducing taxes when the federal budget is already in deficit. Let me make clear why, in today's economy, fiscal prudence and responsibility call for tax reduction even if it temporarily enlarged the federal deficit—why reducing taxes is the best way open to us to increase revenues.
—President John F. Kennedy,
Economic Report of the President,
January 1963

If only more of today's leaders thought like JFK. Sadly, in the debate over whether to extend the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, and if so whether the cuts should be extended to those people who are in the highest tax bracket, there is a false presumption that higher tax rates on the top 1% of income earners will raise tax revenues.

Anyone who is familiar with the historical data available from the IRS knows full well that raising income tax rates on the top 1% of income earners will most likely reduce the direct tax receipts from the now higher taxed income—even without considering the secondary tax revenue effects, all of which will be negative. And who on Earth wants higher tax rates on anyone if it means larger deficits?

Columnist Kimberley Strassel discusses Nancy Pelosi's plan to have a tax vote before November, and OpinionJournal.com assistant editor Allysia Finley reports on the battle to reform state spending.

Since 1978, the U.S. has cut the highest marginal earned-income tax rate to 35% from 50%, the highest capital gains tax rate to 15% from about 50%, and the highest dividend tax rate to 15% from 70%. President Clinton cut the highest marginal tax rate on long-term capital gains from the sale of owner-occupied homes to 0% for almost all home owners. We've also cut just about every other income tax rate as well.

During this era of ubiquitous tax cuts, income tax receipts from the top 1% of income earners rose to 3.3% of GDP in 2007 (the latest year for which we have data) from 1.5% of GDP in 1978. Income tax receipts from the bottom 95% of income earners fell to 3.2% of GDP from 5.4% of GDP over the same time period. (See the chart).

These results shouldn't be surprising. The highest tax bracket income earners, when compared with those people in lower tax brackets, are far more capable of changing their taxable income by hiring lawyers, accountants, deferred income specialists and the like. They can change the location, timing, composition and volume of income to avoid taxation.

Just look at Sen. John Kerry's recent yacht brouhaha if you don't believe me. He bought and housed his $7 million yacht in Rhode Island instead of Massachusetts, where he is the senior senator and champion of higher taxes on the rich, avoiding some $437,500 in state sales tax and an annual excise tax of about $70,000.

Howard Metzenbaum, the former Ohio senator and liberal supporter of the death tax, chose to change his official residence to Florida just before he died because Florida does not have an estate tax while Ohio does. Goodness knows what creative devices former House Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel has used to avoid paying taxes.
The stern of John Kerry's yacht

In short, the highest bracket income earners—even left-wing liberals—are far more sensitive to tax rates than are other income earners.

When President Kennedy cut the highest income tax rate to 70% from 91%, revenues also rose. Income tax receipts from the top 1% of income earners rose to 1.9% of GDP in 1968 from 1.3% in 1960. Even when Presidents Harding and Coolidge cut tax rates in the 1920s, tax receipts from the rich rose. Between 1921 and 1928 the highest marginal personal income tax rate was lowered to 25% from 73% and tax receipts from the top 1% of income earners went to 1.1% of GDP from 0.6% of GDP.

Or perhaps you'd like to see how the rich paid less in taxes under the bipartisan tax rate increases of Presidents Johnson, Nixon, Ford and Carter? Between 1968 and 1981 the top 1% of income earners reduced their total income tax payments to 1.5% of GDP from 1.9% of GDP.

And then there's the Hoover/Roosevelt Great Depression. The Great Depression was precipitated by President Hoover in early 1930, when he signed into law the largest ever U.S. tax increase on traded products—the Smoot-Hawley Tariff. President Hoover then thought it would be clever to try to tax America into prosperity. Using many of the same arguments that Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are using today, President Hoover raised the highest personal income tax rate to 63% from 24% on Jan. 1, 1932. He raised many other taxes as well.

President Roosevelt then debauched the dollar with the 1933 Bank Holiday Act and his soak-the-rich tax increase on Jan. 1, 1936. He raised the highest personal income tax rate to 79% from 63% along with a whole host of other corporate and personal tax rates as well. The U.S. economy went into a double dip depression, with unemployment rates rising again to 20% in 1938. Over the course of the Great Depression, the government raised the top marginal personal income tax rate to 83% from 24%.

Is it any wonder that the Great Depression was as long and deep as it was? Whoever heard of a country taxing itself into prosperity? Not only did taxes as a share of GDP fall, but GDP fell as well. It was a double whammy. Tax receipts from the top 1% of income earners stayed flat as a share of GDP, going to 1% in 1940 from 1.1% in 1928, but at what cost?

We all know that there are lots of factors influencing tax revenues from the rich, but the number one factor has to be the statutory tax rates government tells the rich they have to pay. Not only do the direct income tax consequences of higher tax rates on those in the highest brackets lead to higher deficits, the indirect effects magnify the tax revenue losses many fold.

As a result of higher tax rates on those people in the highest tax brackets, there will be less employment, output, sales, profits and capital gains—all leading to lower payrolls and lower total tax receipts. There will also be higher unemployment, poverty and lower incomes, all of which require more government spending. It's a Catch-22.

Higher tax rates on the rich create the very poverty and unemployment that is used to justify their presence. It is a vicious cycle that well-trained economists should know to avoid.

Wall Street Journal

Flora Man Elected President of Mississippi Biomass and Renewable Energy Council

Pete Weisenberger among newly elected board members and officers of Mississippi Biomass and Renewable Energy Council

The Mississippi Biomass and Renewable Energy Council, Inc. (MBREC) recently elected new members of the Board of Directors and a new President at its annual conference, held this year in Tunica. New board members are: Brent Brasher, Kengro Corporation, Charleston; Tamme Bufkin, The Bufkin Company, LLC, Hattiesburg; Terry Dunlap, Piney Woods Pellets, Wiggins; Caroline Randolph, Mississippi Green Energy Initiative, Hattiesburg; Keith Williams, Molpus Woodlands Group, Jackson; Chad Winter, Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, Jackson. Returning board members are: Alan Kitchens, Kitchens Brothers Manufacturing Company, Hazlehurst; Dr. Randy Rousseau, MSU College of Forest Resources, Mississippi State; and Robert Thompson, Mississippi Polymer Institute, Hattiesburg.

Pete Weisenberger, T. P. Weisenberger & Company, LLC, of Flora was elected President of the group, joining Dr. Joe Jordan, Mississippi State University, Vice President; Kevin Mitchell, Strata-G, Oxford, Secretary; and Lydia Allison, Bagley College of Engineering, Mississippi State University, Treasurer.

Its signature event each year, in April, is the Southern BioProducts and Renewable Energy Conference, which this year was attended by more than 150 people from across the U. S. and Great Britain. April 2011 will mark the 10th anniversary of the event.

Biomass is Mississippi and the Mid-South’s distinctive competence in the realm of renewable energy. Forbes Magazine ranks Mississippi 5th in the nation in biomass resources. The Council offers a forum to share information for the purpose of assessing and communicating the available biomass and renewable energy resources within the state. It supports technology development and utilization to actively produce products and methods which encourage biomass and renewable energy related economic development. Council members include representatives from agriculture, forestry, recycling, energy production, state and local government, credit and finance, higher education, research, manufacturing, and individuals interested in developing economic opportunities for biomass and renewable energy, increasing energy security, and reducing biomass waste streams. MBREC was created in 1998 and incorporated in 2000 as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization.

For more information about MBREC, visit the website at http://www.ms-biomass.org/

Mississippi Paddler to Hit Century Mark on Big Black River to End First Month of Paddling for Alzheimer’s Awareness

Flora, MS. Saturday July 31, 2010—Mississippi paddler Keith Plunkett will mark 100 miles of paddling for the month of July Sunday afternoon after paddling 30 miles from Highway 16 to Highway 49 on the Big Black River. Plunkett is expected to arrive at the Highway 49 Bridge sometime late Sunday afternoon. The Yazoo County native and Flora resident announced in April the schedule for a year of paddling Mississippi’s waterways. The effort started on July 10 on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and will take Plunkett on a journey across 5 regions of the state ending in June of 2011. During the trips Plunkett is interviewing Alzheimer’s patients and caregivers in each region, and will highlight ongoing efforts by the Alzheimer’s Association and medical professionals to defeat the disease.  Video and photos of the trips are posted online at www.lucysrevenge.com.

Plunkett has been speaking with groups across the state to raise awareness, and to sign up corporate sponsors for the journey. He has set a goal of 600 miles, or roughly 120 miles per region, and hopes to entice a few others to join him on some of the excursions. Anyone interested can follow his travels on his Facebook page through a real-time GPS mapping service provided by the newest sponsor, I-Tech of Madison. 

“I think it’s a significant symbol to hit the hundred-mile mark in the place that my Mamaw always called home,” said Plunkett of the river that marks the Yazoo and Madison County border. “

Plunkett’s grandmother was Lucy Plunkett. The matriarch of the Plunkett family reared six children, and oversaw the upbringing of 9 grandchildren. She was a housewife and an active member of the rural community of Little Yazoo in Yazoo County.

Federal Court Rules Against Former Madison County Chancery Clerk In Lawsuit Against City of Ridgeland

Former Madison County Chancery Clerk Mike Crook has been credited with royally screwing up the land records in Madison County during his tenure as clerk, being a lawsuit happy landlord, and attempting to conduct a coup of the TEA party movement for his own meglomaniacal purposes, among other things. His most recent antics involved refusing to comply with police officers in Ridgeland, and then suing the City for arresting him over it.

Class Act.

Defense: 'No basis' to lawsuit

A federal court has set aside a clerk’s entry of default against the city of Ridgeland for failing to respond on time to an ex-alderman’s false arrest lawsuit.

Ridgeland can now proceed in defending itself against Mike Crook’s $700,000 lawsuit in The United States District Court of the Southern District of Mississippi. Crook is claiming civil rights violations, assault and battery, false arrest and imprisonment, malicious prosecution and intentional infliction of emotional distress in connection with his 2008 arrest for disorderly conduct.

In court papers, the city has said Crook’s claims have no basis.

The court’s opinion and order said Ridgeland’s failure to answer the complaint by the June 21 deadline was “neither willful nor intentional but rather was merely inadvertent.”

Saundra Strong, the city’s attorney in the case, had been given a 31-day extension to June 21 at her request.

She later filed an affidavit saying she could not respond by the extension date because of her infant fell ill and had to undergo surgery.

In 2005, Crook lost re-election to the Ward 3 alderman seat in 2005. The arrest happened 11 months prior to the 2009 municipal elections.

Crook alleged the timing of the arrest shows Ridgeland Mayor Gene McGee did not want him to run for alderman in 2009.

McGee has said he cannot comment because the matter is in litigation.

Crook is also a former Madison County chancery clerk.

The ex-official entered the complaint against the city in January and filed a nearly identical amended complaint in February. The city was served with the suit about 10 weeks later.

Having not answered by the deadline, the court’s clerk made an entry of default June 2 at Crook’s behest. The city submitted its answer later the same day.

Crook’s lawsuit stems from a June 12, 2008 incident, in which he was arrested for disorderly conduct after arguing with a Ridgeland policeman about why the officer needed to see Crook’s identification.

Crook was found guilty of the charge in Ridgeland Municipal Court, but the ruling was later overturned on an appeal.

His wife, Patty, is also named as a complainant in the suit. They are representing themselves in the case.

MC Herald

Jackson among cities expected to make bid for SEC baseball tourney

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Five cities are expected to make bids to host the Southeastern Conference baseball tournament.

The league sent bid packages to Hoover and Montgomery, Ala., Memphis, Duluth, Ga., Jacksonville, Fla., and Jackson, Miss., says SEC assistant commissioner Craig Mattox. Little Rock, Ark., also received one but said Monday it won't bid because its stadium doesn't meet the SEC's preference of at least 10,000 seats.

The tournament has been held in Hoover's Regions Park since 1998. It's set to remain there through next season.

Proposals are due Friday from other cities, but a decision could be months away.

It's the first time the baseball event has been opened up for bids.

Memphis, Duluth and Hoover all meet the 10,000-seat standard.

Sun Herald

3 face charges in voter fraud case in Canton

Three people are facing felony voter fraud charges in Madison County in connection with Canton's disputed municipal elections last year.
The individuals, whose names have not been released, were indicted by a grand jury, and more indictments are likely on the way in coming months.

"We expect more individuals to be presented to the next several grand juries," District Attorney Michael Guest said.

Ray Rosamond, an ex-alderman who lost the Democratic Ward 1 runoff election to Rodriquez Brown, has said the municipal elections - especially his race - were rife with fraud. He sees the indictments as a step toward long-awaited justice.

"I feel like they (district attorney's office) have got a good case," Rosamond said. "I think it's just the beginning."

State Rep. Ed Blackmon, the attorney for Brown against Rosamond's failed election challenges in Madison County court, said Rosamond's assessment of the indictments is premature.

"There've been no convictions yet," Blackmon said, adding that it has not been made public whether any of the indicted individuals voted in the Rosamond-Brown race.

Guest said all three indicted last week are convicted felons who either registered or voted after being convicted of a disenfranchising crime.

Together, they're facing multiple counts of false registration, voting by an unqualified person and voter fraud. The penalty is a maximum five-year prison sentence and up to $5,000 in fines.

The controversy surrounding Canton's elections began in May when Rosamond alleged people outside of Ward 1 and Canton voted in the race and that some voters were provided illegal assistance by poll workers, which he said aided Brown to victory.

Rosamond also charged that Ike Brown, Rodriquez Brown's uncle, interfered with the election.

Last year, during the court fight, Rosamond's attorney, Andy Taggart, said his client had a strong case that the "runoff primary results ought to be thrown out and that a special election ought to be called."

Taggart on Monday said he did not yet know the details of the indictments and could not comment.

Read the rest of the article at The Clarion Ledger

MBJ: MDOT chief arrested for public drunk

The Biloxi Police Department confirmed to the Mississippi Business Journal that a Larry L. Brown, Sr., 67, was arrested at the Beau Rivage Resort at 6 a.m. Friday and charged with public intoxication and disorderly conduct.

That’s the same name and age as Mississippi Department of Transportation Executive Director “Butch” Brown.

Reached on his cell phone Friday afternoon, Brown confirmed that he had “just left” the Beau Rivage. He said he had attended a planning session and had spoken to a group of economic developers.

Brown denied, however, that he had been arrested. “I haven’t been involved in anything drunk or disorderly,” he said.

A mugshot provided to the Mississippi Business Journal by the Harrison County Jail appears to be Brown, based on a photo of Brown on www.transportation.org, the website for AASHTO, a non-profit, non-partisan association that represents highway and transportation departments in the U.S. Brown is the president of AASHTO.

Calls to the Beau Rivage were not immediately returned.

Mississippi Business Journal