| Magee Courier-Simpson County News

By Robert St. John, READ MORE > 683 Reads
On Mon, 02/23/2026 - 10:18 AM

Robert St. John reflects on his son’s choice to build a life in the business his father gave his life to.

Most people know they need to try other restaurants when they’re in a great food city. So do I. And yet every time the tortilla soup arrives at Frontera Grill, that plan is out the window.

Harkins: Ensuring a private ballot vote on unionization efforts - Setting clear expectations for taxpayers’ dollars

By Josh Harkins - Magnolia Tribune, READ MORE > 231 Reads
On Mon, 02/23/2026 - 09:52 AM

Below is a political opinion column by Josh Harkins:

State Senator Josh Harkins says when taxpayer dollars are invested, Mississippi has the right to define the terms of that partnership — including the expectation that workers’ choices about representation are made through a private ballot.

Harkins: Ensuring a private ballot vote on unionization efforts - Setting clear expectations for taxpayers’ dollars

By Josh Harkins - Magnolia Tribune, READ MORE > 231 Reads
On Mon, 02/23/2026 - 09:52 AM

Below is a political opinion column by Josh Harkins:

Cox: Why I am for all students, not just those in my public schools

By Laurie Cox - Magnolia Tribune, READ MORE > 362 Reads
On Mon, 02/23/2026 - 09:48 AM

Below is an opinion column by Laurie Cox:

Communities flourish when all their children can learn in an environment well-suited to their individual needs.

I am a former public school teacher of more than 30 years and a member of the school board in the Florida county where I live. Public schooling is in my blood; I am a product of our public schools and I’m very proud of the many, many students who’ve benefited from the public schools where I grew up and taught.

Cox: Why I am for all students, not just those in my public schools

By Laurie Cox - Magnolia Tribune, READ MORE > 362 Reads
On Mon, 02/23/2026 - 09:48 AM

Below is an opinion column by Laurie Cox:

Communities flourish when all their children can learn in an environment well-suited to their individual needs.

Rice & Brown: Mississippi’s independent workers deserve better. House Bill 1072 is the answer

By Justan Rice & Starla Brown - Magnolia Tribune, READ MORE > 228 Reads
On Mon, 02/23/2026 - 09:38 AM

Below is a political opinion column by Justan Rice & Starla Brown:

The concept is straightforward: let hiring parties make voluntary contributions to portable benefit accounts owned by independent contractors.

Rice & Brown: Mississippi’s independent workers deserve better. House Bill 1072 is the answer

By Justan Rice & Starla Brown - Magnolia Tribune, READ MORE > 228 Reads
On Mon, 02/23/2026 - 09:38 AM

Below is a political opinion column by Justan Rice & Starla Brown:

The concept is straightforward: let hiring parties make voluntary contributions to portable benefit accounts owned by independent contractors.

Yet another initiative bill dies

READ MORE > 280 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 03:06 PM

Citizen initiatives are not the topic that will get the most attention among those who watch what the Mississippi Legislature does. Still, the persistent unwillingness to replace the initiative process ruled illegal by the state Supreme Court five years ago makes it clear lawmakers aren’t interested in this issue.
On Feb. 11, the full Senate in a voice vote tabled a concurrent resolution that would have allowed citizens to propose new state laws, or amend or repeal existing ones. The tabled bill missed a deadline for action and died the next day.

The outrage President

By Robert Wise, READ MORE > 359 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 11:06 AM

The outrages keep piling up day after day. On February 6, 2026 at 5:44 in the morning, the Truth Social Account from “Donald J. Trump@realDonaldTrump” tweeted a 62-second video of former President of the United States Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as hairy, muscular apes, swaying in a jungle to music. I do not know how many overt racists there are in the United States of America. I venture there are not enough to keep either the President or his party in power.

The outrage President

By Robert Wise, READ MORE > 359 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 11:06 AM

The privilege of giving to the poor

By Johnathan Kettler, READ MORE > 493 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 11:02 AM

When I was a student teacher, I had a conversation with a science teacher I worked with about natural selection. I asked if she thought this process of survival of the fittest was a good thing. “Oh yes,” she replied quickly, “natural selection helps weed out the weaker of a species and makes the species stronger, which serves the greater good of the group.” I then asked her a follow-up question I had been genuinely curious about for a while.

The privilege of giving to the poor

By Johnathan Kettler, READ MORE > 493 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 11:02 AM

Open records law is under assault

By Layne Bruce, READ MORE > 433 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 10:58 AM

Every few years, it seems some folks wake up one morning and decide the real problem in Mississippi is that citizens know too much about what their government is doing.
This is one of those years.
The Mississippi Public Records and Open Meetings Acts are called our “Sunshine Laws” for good reason. They preserve the rights of citizens to know what their government is up to.

Open records law is under assault

By Layne Bruce, READ MORE > 433 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 10:58 AM

Stat jobs reflect national trends

By Bill Crawford, READ MORE > 407 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 10:52 AM

The boom in manufacturing jobs President Donald Trump forecast last April has yet to loom much yet boom. “Manufacturers shed workers in each of the eight months after Trump unveiled ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs,” the Wall Street Journal reported this month.
In April 2025, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 12,847,000 manufacturing jobs. By October the number had fallen to 12,702,000 (seasonally adjusted), dropping to 12,692,000 in December (preliminary).

Stat jobs reflect national trends

By Bill Crawford, READ MORE > 407 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 10:52 AM

Regulate drugs and sports betting

By Christina Dent, READ MORE > 258 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 10:48 AM

Online sports betting is poised to become legal and regulated in Mississippi. Interestingly, the reasons given by many of our legislators for legalizing something that can be incredibly destructive are the same reasons many of us believe illicit drugs should be legalized and regulated.

Regulate drugs and sports betting

By Christina Dent, READ MORE > 258 Reads
On Thu, 02/19/2026 - 10:48 AM

New Jackson chief has a strong will

By Wyatt Emmerich, READ MORE > 574 Reads
On Wed, 02/18/2026 - 04:58 PM

Jackson Mayor John Horhn has selected Dr. RaShall Brackney to be the new police chief of Jackson.
Most of Brackney’s career, 30 years, was in the Pittsburgh Police Bureau. She later served as chief of campus police at George Washington University and, most recently, police chief in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Brackney takes over from interim chief Tyree Jones, also serving as Hinds County Sheriff. This week she visited Jackson where she spoke to various groups and was shown around town by Mayor Horhn.