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CD: Police: No leads in tire vandalism

February 26, 2010 By EHarris Leave a Comment

TIM PRATT

100226_tiresSTARKVILLE — The Starkville Police Department is still searching for a suspect or suspects who slashed tires on a half-dozen vehicles last weekend.

The incidents occurred late Saturday night or early Sunday morning, SPD Sgt. Chadd Garnett said.

The suspect or suspects slashed the front and rear passenger-side tires of a vehicle parked along Lampkin Street, Garnett said. Tires on five other vehicles parked near the intersection of South Nash Street and Lummus Street in the Cotton District also were slashed, Garnett said. One vehicle on Nash Street had both rear tires slashed, while the remaining four vehicles each had only one tire slashed, Garnett said.

Police believe a flathead screwdriver or knife with a small blade was used in the crimes. Six different vehicle owners reported the incidents to the Starkville Police Department Sunday between 11:51 a.m. and 12:36 p.m.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Filed Under: Happening Now

CD: Oktibbeha County’s WWII vets honored

February 24, 2010 By EHarris Leave a Comment

TIM PRATT

STARKVILLE — Andrew Lee Smith can still remember the bombing runs.

Flying over enemy territory during the height of World War II, Smith was a fresh-faced 22-year-old from Mantee, serving as an Army Air Force navigator on a B-24 bomber. His job, along with the rest of the B-24 crew, was to “uproot everything we could,” he said Tuesday evening from his table at Starkville Cafe, whether it meant bombing rail lines in Italy and Germany, enemy fuel supplies in Romania, or any number of other targets.

Now 88 years old, Smith moves a bit slower than he once did and his hearing has deteriorated a bit, but his eyes still light up when he recalls his time overseas, sometimes returning to base with his plane riddled in bullet holes.

“There was fear and all, but that was part of being in the service,” he said with a smile.

Smith was one of about 30 veterans who congregated Tuesday at Starkville Cafe for a ceremony to honor those who served in World War II. The celebration came on the 65th anniversary of the day U.S. soldiers erected an American flag at Iwo Jima — an action photographer Joe Rosenthal depicted in the photo that has become an iconic image of World War II.

“A moment like this, when you’re in a room full of World War II veterans, is the type of moment that gives you chills,” Starkville Mayor Parker Wiseman said from the packed dining room in Starkville Cafe. “You realize all of the wonderful things we enjoy about this country and the world today were made possible by the tremendous sacrifices of their generation.”

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Filed Under: Happening Now, Local News

CD: MSU partnering with Choctaw Nation on green projects

February 24, 2010 By EHarris Leave a Comment

TIM PRATT

PEARL RIVER — The Smith John Justice Center is a place where juveniles on the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians’ Neshoba County reservation are sent when they run afoul of the law.

By this spring, youth offenders at the facility in Pearl River will spend time learning the farming techniques of their elders and, hopefully, develop responsibility and job skills for the future, Director of Court Services Daniel Mittan said.

The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians is working with the Environmental Collaborative Office at Mississippi State University and the U.S. Justice Department to build a traditional Choctaw garden at the Smith John facility. Choctaw elders will work with the 13- to 17-year-old offenders housed at the facility to plant a garden featuring corn, beans and squash, which is known as the “three sisters,” Mittan said.

Plans also are in the works to begin building community gardens next year in each of the reservation’s eight communities, Mittan said, with youth and elders working together on a new plot of land annually. A greenhouse also is in the works, though it is still in the planning stages, he said.

Mississippi State’s Environmental Collaborative Office is assisting with technical advice and planning for the project, ECO Director Jeremiah Dumas said. A $700,000 U.S. Justice Department grant will help fund the endeavor, Mittan said.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Filed Under: Happening Now, MSU

Mississippi Report Card for Starkville Schools

February 24, 2010 By SNEditor 4 Comments

Want to see how Starkville schools stack up against the rest of the state?

MSreportCard.com

It includes a variety of demoographic and academic data. The drop-out rate quoted (26%) is from 2004-05 9th graders (would-be class of 2008).

FWIW, the drop-out rate for Oktibbeha schools was 19.7% for 2004-05 9th graders (would-be class of 2008).

Filed Under: Happening Now

CD: Police search for computer thieves

February 23, 2010 By EHarris Leave a Comment

TIM PRATT

100223_thievesThe Starkville Police Department is searching for two men suspected of stealing four high-end touch screen computers from Wal-Mart over the past three months.

The most recent incident took place Friday evening, when a black male put two Hewlett Packard touch-screen desktop computers in a cart and walked out of the store without paying, despite a greeter’s attempt to stop him, SPD Detective Landon Stamps said. The man is described as middle-aged, between 5 feet, 10 inches and 6 feet tall, with a slender build.

It was the second such incident this month, Stamps said.

On Feb. 11, a different man, whom Stamps described as black, about 5-feet, 5 inches to 5-feet, inches tall and “younger” than the suspect in the Feb. 19 theft, also attempted to leave Wal-Mart with two HP touch-screen computers, but a greeter at the door stepped in front of the cart and put her hand on it to stop him, Stamps said. The suspect then left his cart and ran from the store.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Filed Under: Happening Now

Your Turn: Constitutional Government

February 23, 2010 By EHarris 5 Comments

100209_gardnerDaniel L. Gardner

Guest Columnist

America is approaching a stand off between people who believe in Constitutional government and those who believe Washington holds sovereign power. Hopefully, this stand off will be adjudicated through elections. More hopefully, those elected will lead us back into Constitutional governance.

CNN polling shows 86 percent of Americans believe “Government is broken.” President Obama’s approval numbers are diving into the 40s, and only Congress is seeing any improvement – moving from single digit approval ratings up into the teens. These and other similar polls are hardly partisan.

History teaches those who listen: centralized authoritarian government is the problem.

Our Founding Fathers knew this, and sculpted the Constitution to give minimum power to the federal government, moderate power to the states, and the majority of governing authority to the people. The last 110 years of progressive politics have turned this governing formula on its head.

Consider the ninth and tenth amendments:
“Amendment IX. The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”

“Amendment X. The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

Notice these amendments limit federal powers to those enumerated in the Constitution while allocating all other powers to the States or to the people.

Progressives believe federal government has power over all things. Conservatives believe federal government has grown well beyond limits set by the Constitution.

Thomas Jefferson said, “My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government. “
Out of all the problems America faces today, the annual deficit ($1 Trillion/year) and the national debt ($13 Trillion) are the biggest threats to individual liberties and our national sovereignty.

What is Washington’s response? Spend more money on healthcare reform, environment, and education; regulate more of our ‘free market’ businesses and industries, and keep raising taxes to pay for all these benefits.

Jefferson also said, “I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.” Americans are not happy with Washington today.

Does anyone believe Washington spends money wisely, efficiently, or effectively? What if all federal programs and bureaucracies not specifically listed in the Constitution were shut down?

Looking only at the E’s, we could save hundreds of billions of dollars annually. Shut down the Department of Education, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Department of Energy.

Education could be more effectively and efficiently administered if all dollars going to education (federal, state, local) were invested in efforts overseen by local teachers, parents and administrators.

EPA has cost taxpayers hundreds-of-billions of dollars, not to mention has impeded business and industry’s profitability.

How many hundreds-of-billions of taxpayer dollars have we wasted through the Department of Energy, and for what? Don’t we still have an energy crisis?

Washington has indebted all foreseeable generations of Americans to unpayable liabilities for Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid alone. No one in Washington has the wherewithal or backbone to reel in these liabilities.

Failure to stop deficit spending will lead us into a totalitarian Marxist state or anarchy. Washington must return to Constitutional government.

Daniel L. Gardner is a syndicated columnist who lives in Starkville, MS. You may contact him at PJandMe2@gmail.com

His column does not reflect the views of Starkville-Now.com

Filed Under: Happening Now, Voices

December Sales Tax Numbers

February 23, 2010 By EHarris Leave a Comment

CITY SALES TAX REVENUES
The City of Starkville, Mississippi
By Month as Collected at the Cash Register
(does not include 2% Restaurant Tax)

Year 2006 2007 2008 2009

MONTH
JANUARY 356,027.54 386,233.16 394,274.00 405,289.88

FEBRUARY 387,430.64 396,509.76 363,017.09 422,317.42

MARCH 416,445.62 422,294.47 482,111.99 427,565.96

APRIL 404,697.54 417,670.67 418,889.42 428,268.92

MAY 408,710.05 392,259.54 409,541.27 387,521.75

JUNE 374,745.39 399,577.97 406,565.45 416,409.09

JULY 384,145.81 388,505.02 443,649.77 413,089.75

AUGUST 426,002.40 480,902.06 447,356.10 458,061.08

SEPTEMBER 424,790.93 409,501.30 446,216.16 442,673.00

OCTOBER 369,322.11 411,188.94 430,809.51 406,301.93

NOVEMBER 387,018.97 418,301.57 403,287.62 445,490.72

DECEMBER 486,249.48 480,023.96 485,515.93 476,767.60

Yearly Totals
$4,825,586.48 $5,002,968.42 $5,131,234.31 $5,129,757.10

Monthly Average for Year
$402,132.21 $416,914.04 $427,602.86 $427,479.76

% Change
06 to 07 07 to 08 08 to 09

JANUARY 8.48% 2.08% 2.79%

FEBRUARY 2.34% -8.45% 16.34%

MARCH 1.40% 14.16% -11.31%

APRIL 3.21% 0.29% 2.24%

MAY -4.02% 4.41% -5.38%

JUNE 6.63% 1.75% 2.42%

JULY 1.13% 14.19% -6.89%

AUGUST 12.89% -6.98% 2.39%

SEPTEMBER -3.60% 8.97% -0.79%

OCTOBER 11.34% 4.77% -5.69%

NOVEMBER 8.08% -3.59% 10.46%

DECEMBER -1.28% 1.14% -1.80%

Filed Under: Economic Development, Happening Now, Local News

CD: State universities launch tuition assistance programs

February 19, 2010 By EHarris Leave a Comment

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

JACKSON — Some of Mississippi’s public universities have started tuition assistance programs aimed at keeping students in school despite growing education costs.

Among the programs outlined in a report released this week by the state College Board is one at Mississippi State University that pays the base tuition costs not covered by a student’s financial aid. The Mississippi State Promise Program will assist eligible freshmen or community college transfers.

MSU plans to raise private donations to fund the program and use part of the money that comes from tuition increases that go into effect this fall.

“Through this program, we’re making a promise to Mississippi students who need our help: We’re going to make up the difference,” MSU President Mark Keenum said in a news release.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Filed Under: Happening Now, MSU

CD: Starkville aldermen hold off on school board appointment

February 19, 2010 By EHarris Leave a Comment

TIM PRATT

The Starkville Board of Aldermen was scheduled to interview the final candidates for a seat on the city school district’s Board of Trustees Thursday night, but instead delayed the appointment process due to questions over the eligibility of one of the candidates.

Candidate Ann Carr lives at 1108 Diamond Cove Lane, which is located outside Starkville corporate limits in Oktibbeha County, but in a portion of the county served by the Starkville School District. Eighteen percent of Starkville School District students and two school board members — Keith Coble and Bill Weeks — also live outside Starkville’s corporate limits, but within the school district’s boundaries, Ward 6 Alderman Roy A. Perkins said.

Carr is one of four candidates still in the running for the seat Board President Dr. Walter Taylor will vacate when he retires March 6. Conflicting opinions from the Mississippi attorney general’s office dating back to 1981, however, left the Board of Aldermen leery to continue with the interview process until it receives a new, official opinion from the attorney general’s office on Carr’s eligibility.

Attorney general opinions from 1991 and 2004 say anyone can serve on the school board as long as he or she lives within the school district. An attorney general opinion from 1981, however, states that only two school board members can live in an area added on to the original school district, like the portion of Oktibbeha County added to the Starkville School District, regardless of the percentage of the student population living there.

“What we have here is three attorney general’s opinions with one saying one thing and two saying the other,” City Attorney Chris Latimer said Thursday night. “The legality of this is more confusing in that the attorney general’s opinion from 1981 is tighter factually. It fits these facts more than the other two do and, in the opinion of the law, the more specific the law is, it’s going to control the more general law, even if the general law is more recent.”

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Filed Under: Happening Now

CD: MUW students, faculty welcome shared degrees with Miss. State

February 19, 2010 By EHarris Leave a Comment

GARTHIA ELENA BURNETT

Students in the Culinary Arts Institute at Mississippi University for Women said they were excited about a new partnership with Mississippi State, offering a degree in culinology.

“I think it’s cool,” said April Jackson of Greenville, a junior culinary arts major, as she worked Thursday in the Columbus university’s Culinary Arts Institute’s kitchen. Jackson hopes the partnership will mean the opportunity for more classes and additional funding to expand Mississippi University for Women’s current culinary arts facilities.

On Thursday, Mississippi State announced a joint degree program in culinology. The degree would blend courses from MSU’s food science, nutrition and health promotion department, which provides academic preparation for careers in food science, nutrition and health education; and MUW’s nationally recognized Culinary Arts Institute, which focuses on food preparation techniques, menu development and business skills.

A culinology emphasis, explained Chef Erich H. Ogle, interim director of MUW’s Culinary Arts Institute, focuses on food technology as well as culinary arts.

“It basically prepares students for work with your major food companies in research and development,” said Ogle, noting a handful of MUW students already were working toward a culinology certificate.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Filed Under: Happening Now, MSU

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