Some of the available stories for December 1999
Publisher's Commentary
2000 will be an interesting year in our state
legislature
As the buzz in Mississippi currently centers around
the pending House of Representatives vote to elect either Ronnie Musgrove
or Mike Parker as our next Governor in January, plenty of other power plays
are at work in our State Capital.
With some key members of the Legislature lost
to the ballot box or retirement and a new Lt. Governor-Elect making committee
appointments in the Senate, there will be a lot of new fresh leadership
faces. Having talked to some people around the state after the election,
the following is a bit of facts, speculation, and rumors about who will
be guiding the direction of our state for the next four years.
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A Farewell to Fordice
Fordice's pro-business stance will
long be remembered in Mississippi's history books.
The winds of political change blew across Mississippi
at gale-force velocity in November of 1991 leaving in their wake one disappointed
young Democrat, Ray Mabus. The calm after the storm produced Mississippi's
first Republican governor in over 100 years, Daniel Kirkwood Fordice.
Fordice, a successful businessman from Vicksburg, espoused the traditional,
conservative, Republican message throughout the months of 1991, stating
to anyone who would listen that Mississippi had to get its financial house
in order. On campaign stops and in media interviews, Fordice said, "We
are going to stop spending more money than we are taking in. The law says
'thou shalt balance your budget every year in Mississippi.'"
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Agricultural Business Leaders
Reflect on 1999 Crops
Industry experts cautiously optimistic
about 2000
BY Molly Matthews
Subsidies from the federal government helped
Delta farmers stay afloat in cotton, corn, soybean and rice crops while
pecan and catfish farmers had bumper crops. But forecasting 2000 crops
isn't easy, say agricultural industry experts. Woods Eastland of Staplcotn,
one of the oldest companies in Greenwood, said it's difficult to say how
this year's crops will fare "because our marketing year lasts until spring
and we don't have a good number yet on what the world production is in
some very important countries."
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Webb Native Finds T.V. Broadcasting
Opportunity
David Ellington finds niche in
Low-Power T.V.
BY Robert McFarland, Jr.
Just a few years ago with the advent of satellite
and direct t.v., industry analysts predicted t.v. would explode to would
be entrepreneurs because for the first time in history, viewers would be
offered an abundancy of channels offering more programing and advertising
that in return would create unlimited entrepreneurial opportunities. However,
back then these hotshots didn't foresee the Internet coming and also overlooked
the down side that more t.v. channels would create more competition.
Fast forward to today: things in t.v. land haven't gone as smoothly as
some had hoped and opportunities have not presented themselves as many
had predicted.Now, those nightly sitcoms seem to change with the wind as
the networks hopelessly try any and everything to hold viewers.
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The 1999 Gubernatorial Election:
A Civics Lesson for the ages
BY Dr. Mart Wiseman
With the millennium and the century drawing to
a close I suppose that it is only fitting that the 1999 gubernatorial election
provide us with one of the greatest living civics lessons in the storied
history of Mississippi government. In addition, as happens more often
than not in the world of politics those lessons are full of ironies.
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Emergency Medical Services Suffer
from BBA
BY Julie Speed
After Medicare denied most claims for EMS service,
Pafford Ambulance Service packed up and went home.
Jamie Pafford-Gresham of Pafford Ambulance Service
said repercussions of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 were not the reason
the 32-year old family business left the Mississippi Delta.
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Culture of Guilt is Destructive,
Counterproductive
BY Nancy Cotten Hirst
A recent sermon in church coupled with a number
of newspaper stories has had me thinking about guilt. People of my
generation always laugh about our propensity to feel guilty about almost
anything, a result of our parentsÕ methodology in child-rearing.
Guilt, in the aspect that it shows a conscience if one has misbehaved,
can be a healthy emotion. Our society, however, is taking it too
far.
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Balloon Promotions
BY LaNette Mize
What is the most unusual advertisement that you
have ever heard of? Well, Mark Bowie, owner of Balloon Promotions, knows
all about unusual advertisements due to the nature of his business. Bowie
markets hot air balloons to promote companies such as Bryan foods, Ball
Park hot-dogs, and Mossy Oak camouflage. "I had some friends of mine
introduce me to the sport," He said.
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