JACKASS- Of the DAY(Reason to not give your child a Camera Phone)

Your comments are welcomed!

Even you, can prevent this.........whatever you want to call THIS^!

RUMOR HAS IT.......................

Rumor has it that our beloved sheriff is on house arrest....for of all things....DOMESTIC VIOLENCE!

Said to have been seen out sporting a nice ankle bracelet over the weekend. 

Comments and info are welcomed. 

GO!

Update: Seems as though this is not due to DV but due to an issue with an old, let's just say this, CASE FILE, that he was on. Well, either way, SUCKS TO BE HIM!

JACKASS-Pic of the day

So tell us how you REALLY feel about the moves our beloved police department make when they seize things. This is one of them. GO!

Started from the bottom..........NOW were moving in the right direction.

There’s good news for the children of Mississippi; their state is no longer the worst place to be a kid. That’s because a new set of annual rankings on children’s welfare says New Mexico has dethroned Mississippi's perennial hold on the bottom ranking of the Kids Count list.

For the past 24 years, the Annie E. Casey Foundation has used a series of 16 indicators to rank the well-being of children in all 50 U.S. states. This year’s edition is the first to not place Mississippi at 50 out of 50 on the list, citing gains in health and education. However, Mississippi is still No. 49 on the list.

The foundation also noted that a third of Mississippi’s children continue to live in poverty. By comparison, 13 percent of New Hampshire’s children are listed as living at or below the poverty level.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts finished at the top of the children’s well-being list.

“While we are not where we need to be, the fact that our child and teen death rate, along with some decrease in the percentage of children without health insurance has been helpful,” Mississippi Kids Count Director Linda Southward told the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal.

There also appears to be an overall improving trend in the South. Louisiana, which was 46th on the list, is the only other Southern state to finish in the bottom five. However, the Southwest has fared less well—three of the bottom-five states are New Mexico, Arizona and Nevada.

Southward said Mississippi saw its gains through improvement in the number of children enrolled in preschool and general student improvements in math for eighth-graders and reading for fourth-graders. Overall, Mississippi was 48th in the Kids Count educational rankings. However, it did not see any economic gains during the same period, continuing to rank 50th on that list.

“The evidence is clear—we help children by helping families,” Southward said. “The importance of quality child care, fully funding education opportunities for children and promoting evidence-based practices, underscored by economic development, is crucial to continued outcomes.”

This year’s rankings were based on national data compiled between 2005-2011. For those years, Mississippi’s numbers improved across eight of the 16 statistical areas measured. Overall, the United States improved in 10 of the categories during the same period.

Mississippi saw other gains on the list, including a drop in teen pregnancy rates and a drop in its infant mortality rate that has shown an improvement outpacing the national average.

“We are still woefully behind the country in reading proficiencies, and the high percentage of high school students not graduating on time continues to be of concern,” Southward said.

Source credit-Yahoo News

To PROTECT or SERVE......their own agenda.

It is not uncommon to hear, its more common to see, as the tax base of the city of Jackson shrinks, some things are becoming more forward standing to others thought process. Today, we will talk about the city's police. We call this piece to Protect or Serve.....their own agenda. 

Every place in the world has crime and issues surrounding it. The city of Jackson has a bit more than most. Consistently ranked every year in the list of the most violent cities in America, we wonder does anyone feel the need to change the way things are working, and is that even possible. The reason we put this piece together is to speak about one of the things we see and hear about most. The lack of what seems to be motivation amongst our police force. From constantly seeing them posted up on corners instead of patrolling to seeing some make rounds of lunch breaks on more than a once a day occasions. We will speak about  issues that people which are employed there feel they are justified in holding a particular type of stance on the issue as well as the things that can be done to move forward. So let us begin.

1. They don't pay enough

Constantly we hear a lot of officers and people who think of becoming officers gripe about pay. Here is the number. 

Police Recruit - $23,750.00 (Annually), after successful completion of a 14-week training program. $28,887.00 (annually), after one year of employment.

Now, that's not that bad of a number, if you look at the shrinking tax base in the city. So let's see how they match up to surrounding municipalities

Ridgeland- $31,002 - $46,503

Madison- Salary levels are competitive and are based on the results of periodic salary adjustments.  Salary levels are also dependent upon officers' rank within the Department.

Clinton-$31,200.00

So according to these numbers, the city seems to be under about $3,000 of what the norm is. But, with that being said, you know what you are getting into before you sign up for it, so why sign up and complain. Especially when it will not change anything. 

2. Work Ethic

Whether it is actually pursuing a criminal, or just sitting back and logging paperwork, a lot of officers lack for the better word, proper motivation. And let's not begin to talk about the scandals and other issues. For example, one officer and a higher up have a relationship while on duty on a regular basis, and its known to the entire precinct but no one says anything or does anything until it hits the fan and they break up. Now they have to be separated for unit cohesiveness reasons. Or how about the fact that no matter how out of shape a person is, if they get into recruit training, they cannot be dropped. Which leaves a bunch of out of shape and improperly educated personnel on force. The look of your establishment can sometimes determine how 

people treat you or determine how much respect people have for you. Just look at the sheriff's department personnel. They look more in shape and carry themselves a lot differently that city police do. All of these elements are valuable to the look and functionality of your force. Shape it up. Because the failure to do so is looking at us daily. 

Furthermore, some may inquire, "Well, what do they do?" Come to the scene, look around, give me a card, and never come back. I can personally say, I have been on the receiving end of that card exchange more than I would have wanted to. Never got a call back and never got the case solved. Its a wonder crime and other issues are as high as they are. These are the things that have to change and fast. In any other municipality, if you don't get anything done, or you are unhappy with the service provided, a phone call or email can give you results that are better than the service you got. But a lot of the leadership does not even answer those. Huge catch 22 on that piece. 

3. "I'm just here for the benefits"

WE have heard this on occasion ourselves from parties in and out of uniform. The whole objective of police is to protect and serve. But some seem to want only to serve their own agenda. They will not get involved in any danger or do anything that they feel will bring them harm when they are off the clock. Is this TRULY the spirit of our city. Have we amassed a catalog of "I ONLY WANT MINES" employees who don't care to protect. True you will have bad apples in any police force, but do some digging and I bet you will find more here than in any surrounding ones. I mean look, if there was guaranteed overtime to anyone who wanted it, why not do the job. Its not you who has to pay the cost. The city is over budget and not well managed and this type of attitude needs to be removed from our law enforcement. 

In closing, we hope you pass this on and give a little more insight on how you feel about the force and the people working with it. If you think we can rid the department of a bunch of extra costs, say so, you never know who may be reading. 

#GETINFORMED

P.S. Road blocks don't solve or deter crime. Let's see if we can limit those. 

Protect YOURSELF-How the new open/carry law may affect citizens.

Now before we get started, I will attempt to tell this from 3 sides. The opinion of the people, the opinion of our staff, and the facts of the matter at hand. Strap up, no pun intended, keep and open mind, and let's #GETINFORMED.

Effective July 1, the new open/carry law will be effective in the entire state of MS, not just in Jackson. The law clarifies what was already placed in the state constitution in 1890.

-The new law allows any Mississippian, who is not otherwise disqualified, to openly carry a gun, with or without a permit. A permit is still required if the weapon is concealed.  The new law allows any Mississippian, who is not otherwise disqualified, to openly carry a gun, with or without a permit. A permit is still required if the weapon is concealed.  

Now this is the point where it get's a little sketchy.

THE PEOPLE
It was the talk of the day. We are heading back to the days of the O.K. Corral; It just makes no sense. Open any social network feed and follow friends and you will see somewhere that the news has spread. It has a lot of people up in arms, and about the same amount feeling as if nothing has changed. The feeling that things are going to get extremely violent has some understanding. But, Jackson crime statistics report an overall downward trend in crime based on data from 11 years with violent crime decreasing and property crime decreasing. Based on this trend, the crime rate in Jackson for 2013 is expected to be lower than in 2010.

Also, if you want to play devil's advocate, numbers don't lie. Here is another fun fact. 

The city violent crime rate for Jackson in 2010 was higher than the national violent crime rate average by 144.39% and the city property crime rate in Jackson was higher than the national property crime rate average by 158.62%.

Furthermore, In 2010 the city violent crime rate in Jackson was higher than the violent crime rate in Mississippi by 265.76% and the city property crime rate in Jackson was higher than the property crime rate in Mississippi by 154.88%.

So given these statistics, its understandable why some people are scared that this clarity law will make things worse. 

THE STAFF'S TAKE

PROTECT YOURSELF! The choice is simply this. WE know that we reside in a city where the law enforcement is under trained and not able to perform the simplest crime fighting tasks at hand. We spend so much time living in fear of so many things. In this case, some of the fear makes sense. There are more stories than we can count of how at time JPD has done too much on a simple issue and not enough on bigger issues to ensure the safety of the people. And people at this point are calling it as they see it. Will gun violence increase inside city limits. In our opinion, maybe. But one thing that is true about this whole situation is that the law has been on the books for well over 100 years. Its just simply being clarified. With other states having the same law, I don't worry about us seeing a huge increase in numbers. But there is a personal responsibly one has to take with his own life as well as his or her families. If you feel like you cannot and do not want to rely on the local authorities to take action on your behalf, then lock and load and take care of your home and your own life yourself. With the sheer size of the force, they cannot be in certain places at all times, but how they manage to miss the things they do is not an upstanding look. We will cover that story later. Uninformed and under trained personnel can and will make this issue a highlight in the coming months. Mark our words. 

The Facts:
Things are bad, but not as bad as we see in major metropolitan areas. Should we wait for it to get so before we start telling our children and fellow neighbors what to do and how not to act? This is a question that has to be answered on a person to person basis. But in our opinion, the media should do a better job of covering this and informing the demographic on what is and is not about this new law and point out some of the soft spots. All people do not share information like they should. But for some reason, we LOVE to listen to the news. The leadership needs to do mail outs and press conferences to call and relax people about this issue and assure them that they are in control and there is nothing to worry about. The WRONG thing to do in this situation is say NOTHING and let people form their own opinion on what they think. The facts are out there and they are real. There will not be mass shootings and gun wielding crazy people. There are laws that prevent certain things like discharging a firearm in public and endangering the public for no reason.  This is a state law. Now outside the city demographic, one may worry a little more but that is a deeper story. We hope you enjoyed the conversation. Lets carry on. 


#GETINFORMED601

Turn the other cheek.......

Accountability-the quality or state of being accountable; especially : an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions

We begin this piece by simply asking this one question. 

Why is it, that when the truth comes out or someone questions the record of something political, that no one has very much to say. But yet, when everything looks good and is going well, everyone has something to say. 

The things that have been unearthed in Washington, DC over the past month and a half are not only alarming, they are quite scary. People are getting a daily dose of what accountability and failure to have it or take it is doing to this country. What does this have to do with the Bold New City. EVERYTHING! You see some see politics as black and white. Those that have and those that do not have. WE see it differently. Its Right vs Wrong, Lies vs Truth, and lastly crooks vs accountable. In the great city, just as Washington, when someone lies, it falls to the wayside as though no one can do anything. Do we not have any power as people who elect our officials. 

Some people would rather defend a person, stating that they are doing a great job when things are truly at their worst of points. And yet, a lot of today's citizens where I live do not understand that the freedoms that we were once granted freely, are being stepped on and feel that the government has to do their job. We only ask that people be accountable. Not to step on us or our way of living in order to see themselves succeed with more power against a weaker strain of people. I wonder sometimes what would happen on a local level when things become awry. Will people take a stand, or will it take the loss of an innocent life to wake people up to what is going on around them. 

After seeing a true human rights activist in Edward Snowden, one can only hope that the rest of the world is watching and waking up as he did. I call him no traitor. I call him human. One who believes in the basic principles of the constitution. Today's post is not as thought inquisitive as others, but WE do want feedback. Answer the following questions.

1. Why are we so slow to accept facts when they are revealed? 
2. Why do we take whistle blowers as traitors in some cases?
3. Given the history of our nation, why are less people stepping outside of themselves and thinking about others when it comes down to the rights and wrongs of government on local and a national level. 


Freedom is not FREE, and the moment that you no longer have it, you will then realize you have been walking dead for far too long. 

There's an app for that-How the city is losing the battle with technology.

Just launched yesterday, the city of Ridgeland released its first app in the state for its municipality. Amazing for the most part, but what we can say more than that is how informative it is and great for cities that have applications to support their everyday activities and support. During the mayoral race, neither candidate mentioned how they would work with technology groups and technology itself to help move the city forward into the future. Technology is important. A lot of the things the citizens of the city do on a day to day basis can be contained and managed there. From paying utility bills, to even paying tickets if they created the program to do so. It was once said that in the school district of jackson, that the children were not learning because of the lack of better technology and the accessibility thereof.

The preceding years have seen that statement thrown to the winds as the district has invested hand over fist in fully supplying the technological needs of the children of the district, even without the best results in the world. So why has this element been overlooked for the tax paying citizens of the city. A lot of conversations that are held in different neighborhoods revolve around the premise that there is NOTHING TO DO IN JACKSON. But if you drive downtown, you may, or may not, see signage for the next big event sponsored in part by companies that are working together to bring light to the city. But what about those who don't go into that area? What about those who are just home bodies simply because they don't feel the need to travel because after all, there is not much to do. When we made a post about the arts/entertainment side of Jackson, Phillip Rollins responded with a list of things we knew not much of that were thriving without much support in the city.

Imagine an app similar to the city of Ridgeland's that puts it all right at your fingertips on the who,

what, where, and how to get in contact with any and everything that is going on. Its easier than reading the paper for some or even asking for insight from their cubicle neighbor. But, you do have some that feel like the city is old fashioned. That new things are not welcomed and unwanted. I would challenge those to research how the Duling district and Fondren after 5 are thriving with monthly event just by mainly their own social media outlets. This is the day of technology. It make so many things easier. Just look at all the places that have apps. Restaurants, retail stores, car dealerships, cable companies, and the list goes on. Why does the leadership of the city feel that this should not be priority one for the city. Even the local news stations have apps to keep people informed.

The benefit that it would do for the municipality would be great. Imagine a portal for people to sign up for events and RSVP for special occasions with the swipe of a finger and the input of their personal information. Technology is a tool to bridges where there are oceans to cross. To get the attention of outside businesses and keep the inhabitants informed in the activities and entities that make the city great. What would it require. For those who know much about it, the only requirement is capitol and time to plant a seed and watch it grow. With a tourism board, you would think that these things are already being taken care of. But the JCVB keeps their site updated with only things visitors and citizens may want to see. Its time to go mobile with the city and the people in it. Failure to do so will leave a lot of the population waddling in the mud looking as if they had no idea we were so behind the power curve.

We have to compete, and we have to become what other areas are. For this simple tool, a data center and the proper hands maintaining it is all that is required. Aid people in stepping up their business
avenue as well as their look. It is the least the city should do for those who are still here fighting. There are a massive amount of tech companies located in and out of the metro. We have nowhere to look but in our own business support pool to make this happen. No back door deals, no shady communication. Let this not be another David Watkins ghost project where money is spent and nothing gets done. Push the issue. Stand up and be counted.

 #BBJ
Bring Back Jackson

 Comments and questions are welcomed
 GetInformed

Sidebar: I look forward to the next political debate to be streamed and taking questions from a live audience. What are you waiting for?

Sidebar 2: With overloaded court rooms, wouldn't it be  easier to have a portal for citizens to pay court fines online?

Moving Forward

As I awake this morning, the news of our new mayor is the first thing to greet me as I log into a catalog of social networking sites and news feeds. It seems as though the whole country felt for once, Mississippi was news worthy for something other than obesity or murder. This race that has split the city into 2 racial divides, has seemingly still left a lot unanswered and just as much more to look forward to. Now before I begin, please note, I am not about black or white. I am for unity and the right person for the job. 

The things I saw, as well as others, throughout this political onslaught were quite awkward. It can be summed up by this phrase; Put black vs black and the race becomes about which of the two are MORE BLACK! A strange way to view things but this is not what I heard. This is what I saw. People who are willing to question another candidate's ethnic background as to why they would not vote for him. This race ended with friends of mine losing jobs, people ending friendships, and some people going radical racial in some cases. But only one man could win. And the people of Jackson, Ms spoke yesterday as they selected the civil rights activist Mr. Chokwe Lumumba. Almost immediately, social feeds began to populate with statements that felt strange as I read various timelines. "Jackson will RISE" Words from our new mayor came quickly from his Facebook feed as he thanked the people of the city for voting for him. But on the other side of that same node, racial tensions began to rise. Some say there were comments made on pages about Jackson being the new Detroit, and how the city would never get past a certain point or for the most part succeed because of who we voted for. Then you have others that countered those statements with their own. "If you don't like who is mayor, don't come to Jackson", was one post that I read. Another stated, "IF you do not like Jackson, don't clog up I-55 and Lakeland and other various transportation lines trying to get here for work." It was just that serious for some. Others, who know that the city is mostly fighting itself, just breathe a breath of despair. Happy that this election is finally over and people can go back to being normal.......so they hope, 

As we usher off another African American mayor and usher in a new one, I can only hope that the city can see more improvement in the next 4 years than it has seen in the last 8. Now I will not sit here and tell you we are going to become a better city because of whom we elected, but I will tell you that we have a laundry list of things to conquer if we are to even come close as a city to succeeding just like our neighboring counterparts. The following laundry list is one that we have come up with that we know if these things are tackled, the next 4 years will be a beacon for the city and how it CAN unite and GROW to the capital it once was known so great to be. 

1. Road/Highway Infrastructure

As high as the taxes are here in Jackson, something should be done about this ASAP! Bridges are being closed and not re opened, streets are impossible to drive on at times and car maintenance is not getting any lower. Let me be the first one to say this. A TOLL ROAD IS NOT THE ANSWER TO ANY OF THE PROBLEMS IN JACKSON! They are privately owned majority of the time and lets face it. There are 0 investors coming to save the day for Jackson. If you do NOT believe that, just look at the neighboring cities and look how they are thriving and expanding their highways to allow better traffic flow. I urge people to demand a better resolve to pot hole repair and true research into technology that will fix this longterm and not just from rainy day to the next rainy drenched day.

2. Crime (Prevention and Attention)

No disrespect to our law enforcement. BUT, WE KNOW YOU CANNOT DROP ANYONE IF THEY MAKE IT TO A RECRUIT CLASS FOR JPD. With that being said, this is one of the issues that is hurting this city. At times the police force is a joke and the butt of all puns. Meanwhile, South Jackson/ Compton is a fucking war zone. I can daily see police sitting in air conditioned vehicles, doing nothing and burning plenty of gas on our $$$. There are no foot patrols through these any neighborhoods and crime is not going to recess  because it is summer time. We appreciate the road blocks but we would like more for a better working police force. Response time is slow, and the daily operations at the emergency facility are outdated but the technology is not. There is a major disconnect here, and the people who pay the salaries for uniformed officers to just come out, NEVER dust for prints and hand them a case card, are beyond pissed and want this issue fixed more than others.

3. Education

We house the 2nd largest school district in the state. Why is it that we still cannot seem to give our kids the quality education that they need. The parent/administrator relationship needs to be overhauled. Along with the fact that people need to stop trying to sue anybody for anything said or done to their child. The school system is not a get rich quick program, but because of poor leadership, some feel they should be paid more than others and administration on all levels is grossly overpaid. Common sense says this. A teacher will never make as much as a person who works at Central Office or someone who holds a title before their name. Regardless of how ridiculous that title may be. The problem is not technology, the problem is not even monetary, the problem truly lies in the hands of the kids and the parents. The school board should be comprised of people who are actually concerned with the schools and people who have kids in the school district, not these #Hands that get a check just to show up and approve everything someone sends down the line. Everything except pay raises that is. At this current moment. the Information Technology department of JPS is at a standstill with employees. No raises and half of the administration has either quit or put in 2 weeks notice. Can someone put this on the news so it can be talked about openly.

4. Arts/Entertainment
This was once, a thriving city, with festivals of all types and events for every calendar month. Now all you may happen to get is some poorly promoted event thrown by the city of Jackson with lackluster results or an awesome fireworks show that get put on by major corporations that they allow the city to place their name on. This is an issue for me. Where is Farish St.? When will it be done? Why has no one been brought to justice for the amount of money that has been spent on this one streets so called entertainment district. Baptist hospital has built an entire new wing onto their hospital in a shorter amount of time this one stretch of street has had on building to be occupied yet. PISS POOR on the cities behalf. Because instead of taking control of the situation, they are seemingly confused as to what to do. Private funds build great things. Jackson has minimal amounts of investors that are willing to put their buck on the line to help the city thrive. They would rather just work around it. If you think this is an asinine statement, just take a look at pearl and Madison  BOTH growing in leaps and bounds. If the so called leader of this city does not attack this issue instead of Christopher Columbus in history books first, he will see minimal results in his 4 years as tenure as mayor of this city. Bring back the red beans and rice festival, Jubilee Jam, or CREATE SOMETHING NEW FOR THAT MATTER! Where is the creativity in our city. I can tell you where it is. Housed in various locations in and outside of the city waiting for an honest ear to listen and take a true business proposition seriously. The city cannot win hand over fist in everything that they do. You have to be willing to share the wealth and take ideas from the outside and let others do it. Why? Because we have no one in any streams of administration that I can see truly know what to do to bring the arts/entertainment district of Jackson back to full bloom.


5. Compete
Give the city some form. Everything is so outdated. Not once did ANYONE running for mayor mention anything about encompassing technology into the city's infrastructure more and everyday operations. WHY? This city is full of great ideas. The city needs form overhaul. From signage to code enforcement to proper policing of properties held hostage by investors and re sellers  NOTHING in our city looks uniform, which is where we should start. Enforce the laws, and create a new standard. You set the bar and enforce the standard its as simple as that. This is what and administration does and how a city runs. Time is not on our side on this manner, as you read this, South Jackson is limping and North Jackson has a broken arm. If nothing is done to either of these wounded entities, our city will become the new Detroit as some have said due to the fact that it will simply look like a ghost town/swap meet. Other than strip malls, the only other large retail outlet is in North Jackson, and it looks to be on a 5 year plan to fail if we do not fix it. I won't go into what the problem is out there, but I will say this. The same thing that killed Metrocenter, WILL kill Northpark. As cities around us thrive, we are becoming less popular and more laughable. And you can read where people will say, if you don't like it, don't come here. Well, that is happening. The only reason Jackson retains as many businesses as they do is because there is not a lot of office space in other areas. But rumor has it that Madison is working on a downtown area for their city.
And what do you think will happen once that is thrown up. Say goodbye! You see, a lot of places are here because there is just simply no other place to go, but that is beginning to be a thing of the past. Just look at Sams  Leaving Jackson and moving to Madison.

In closing, our mayor is only a man. Put no more trust in him than you would any other man. Do take a personal responsibility to put out great vibes and support but do NOT be afraid or shouted down because you question something you do not believe in. Do NOT lose friends behind debate, and finally KNOW that in order to GROW, you have to change things and change people. Some may not want to follow but they will fall in line. If not, they will be left behind. Let's strengthen ourselves and strengthen our city back to stardom.


All feedback is welcome.
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