Daily corinthian E-Edition 032912 by Daily Corinthian

Thursday March 29,

2012

50 cents

Daily Corinthian Vol. 116, No. 76

Thunderstorm Today

Tonight

• Corinth, Mississippi • 16 pages • 1 section

House fire victim dies at Med BY BRANT SAPPINGTON bsappington@dailycorinthian.com

A Booneville woman has died just over a month after she and her husband were severely injured in a house fire. Rena Brumley, 42, died last Friday, March 23, at the Regional Medical Center (The Med) in Memphis, Tenn., where she was airlifted following the Feb. 26 fire at her home

Childress gives update on district

on Main Street in Booneville. Brumley suffered severe burns over a large portion of her body in the fire that broke out at the home just across from Booneville City Hall around 5:30 a.m. that Sunday morning. She was transferred by helicopter to The Med where she had been listed in critical condition since the fire. Brumley’s husband, John Brumley, was also seriously in-

jured in the fire and transported to The Med where he has been recovering from his injuries. Three children in the home at the time of the fire escaped serious injury and were treated and released from Baptist Memorial Hospital-Booneville. Fire officials have ruled the fire an accident and believe it started in a living room area near a heater. Funeral services for Rena

Brumley were held Tuesday at McMillan Funeral Home followed by burial in Jumpertown Cemetery. Immediate survivors include her husband; three sons, Hunter Brumley, Gunter Brumley and Paden Brumley, all of Booneville, her mother, Sue Lambert Womble of Corinth; one sister, Pam Lambert of Corinth; and one brother, Butch Lambert of Morton.

Pedal Power

Tourism board approves funding

BY BOBBY J. SMITH bjsmith@dailycorinthian.com

Corinth Schools Superintendent Lee Childress presented a district update at Tuesday’s Kiwanis Club meeting. The superintendent focused on enrollment, upcoming construction projects and the district’s adoption of the Excellence for All model of instruction. Between the 2010-11 and 201112 school years the district’s enrollment increased. This year’s enrollment is up to 2,353, partly due to the addition of pre-kindergarten classes at Corinth Elementary School, Childress said. Factoring out the preschool additions, the district has grown by 75-100 students this year. “Because of the growth we have had, we have been able to get an increase in our state appropriations that we have received each year, which has cushioned us as a school district along the way and allowed us to continue without having to ask for a millage increase from the city,” Childress said. “It’s very important to see continued growth for your school district, because it’s your attendance that drives that formula.” Attendance in the city schools runs generally in the 96-97 percent range, Childress said. He discussed the district’s upcoming construction projects which will be paid for with Please see CHILDRESS | 2

Rena Brumley

BY BOBBY J. SMITH bjsmith@dailycorinthian.com

The St. Jude program is a week-long safety curriculum that helps children learn safety lessons from animated characters such as Bikewell Bear and Pedals the Bunny. Children also become more familiar with safety habits through stories, coloring books, posters and a DVD. Young riders gain sponsorships leading up to the ride. During the conclusion of the week-long fun about safety, children bring their riding toys

The Corinth Area Convention & Visitors Bureau approved over $5,000 worth of funding requests from local organizations to help promote upcoming events which will bring visitors to Corinth. On Tuesday, the tourism board voted to contribute to promotional efforts for the Crossroads Museum, the Corinth Symphony Orchestra, the Corinth Artist Guild Gallery and Crossroads Arena. The largest sponsorship awarded was $2,000 to the Corinth Symphony Orchestra. The funds will go to help meet the costs of advertising and musicians for “The Power of History” — the orchestra’s Civil War concert. “We feel, with the reenactment at the beginning of April, this should be a great way to round out the month — with a powerful concert featuring the full symphony and appealing to the historical significance of the sesquicentennial,” explained Lee Ann Story Sikora, the president of the Corinth Symphony Orchestra’s

Please see TRIKE-A-THON | 3

Please see TOURISM | 3

Staff photo by Steve Beavers

Tilden Studdard cruises around the church parking lot during Oakland Baptist Church’s third annual Trike-A-Thon to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Hospital.

Trike-A-Thon raises funds for St. Jude BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com

Over 50 Oakland Baptist School youngsters spent part of Wednesday pedaling to help other children. The kids climbed on their tricycles and bikes to help raise funds for St. Jude Children’s Hospital with its third annual Trike-A-Thon. “The kids were so excited to help those children with cancer,” said school director Tina Crigger. “The Trike-A-Thon is a fun program that serves as a fundraiser while teaching other children the proper riding safety habits.”

Staff photos by Jebb Johnston

Exhibit features ‘Civil War Impressions’ A collection of “Civil War Impressions” is featured at the Corinth Artist Guild Gallery to coincide with ongoing sesquicentennial activities. An opening reception is today from 6 until 8 p.m., and the exhibit continues through April 28. The featured artists are Jesse Ables, Tony Bullard, Kenneth Lee, Victor Moore, David Rickman and Ray Tinsley. The exhibit also includes “The Key to Corinth,” above left, a commissioned work by Keith Rocco depicting Col. William P. Rogers at Battery Robinett. Also included in the exhibit are newly colorized versions of some of Jesse Ables’ black and white drawings and a selection of reenactment photographs taken by Ray Tinsley. Prints and some of the originals will be for sale. Jesse Ables’ depiction of “The Texas” locomotive is one of the Civil War-themed pieces on display, above right.

Index Stocks........7 Classified......14 Comics...... 12 Wisdom...... 11

Weather........5 Obituaries........ 3 Opinion........4 Sports........8

On this day in history 150 years ago At Glorietta Pass, New Mexico Territory, three days of light fighting culminates in the burning of 90 Confederate supply wagons and the killing of 800 draft animals. Faced with starvation, the Confederates are forced to return to Texas.

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Local

2 • Daily Corinthian

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Tishomingo makes drug, burglary arrests BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com

IUKA — A combined effort led to the arrest of several individuals in Tishomingo County. The Tishomingo County Sheriff’s Department along with the Iuka, Burnsville and Belmont Police Departments partnered in the investigations and arrests. Those charged with felony counts were: ■ Lisa Deaton Baswell, 43 of Iuka, for two counts of sale of a controlled substance. Baswell was charged

with one count of sale of Hydrocodone and one count of sale of Klonopin. She remains in custody. ■ Kevin Armstrong and Alex Hester for conspiracy to manufacture Methamphetamine. The arrest occurred on Jericho Road in Itawamba County after information was developed from a methamphetamine related arrest in Tishomingo County. The Itawamba County Sheriff’s Department and the North Mississippi Narcotics Unit assisted in the arrest.

■ Gary Lee Harris, 31 of Alcorn County, for conspiracy to manufacture Methamphetamine. Harris was arrested at a local business on a grand jury indictment. He was released after posting bond. ■ Jimmy Grimes, 45, for conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine. The Burnsville Police Department, Mississippi Department of Corrections and the Tishomingo County Sheriff’s Department made the arrest of Grimes, who remains in custody with the Tishomingo County

Sheriff’s Department on a hold by the corrections department. Additional arrests are anticipated in the case, according to the Tishomingo County Sheriff’s Department. ■ Michael Adam Byrd, 30 of Burnsville, for burglary. The arrest occurred after a report was filled and Byrd was identified as a suspect. The Sheriff’s Department executed a search warrant and recovered all items that were reported stolen. Byrd remains in custody at this time and a

hold has been placed on him by the Hardin County Sheriff’s Department. The Burnsville Police Department assisted in the investigation. ■ Daniel Gorman, 27, of Cherokee, Ala., for burglary. The Sheriff’s Department also arrested Misty Lewis, 26, for accessory after the fact of burglary. Both subjects remain in custody at this time. Gorman also has a hold placed on him from Colbert County Ala. for an additional burglary. The Sheriff’s De-

partment recovered over $6,000 in cash and a firearm from the Tishomingo County burglary and two firearms and other items from the burglary in Colbert County. The Tishomingo Police Department and the Mississippi Highway Patrol assisted in the investigation. “We are working closely on a daily basis with the surrounding sheriff’s departments and want to thank them for their cooperation,” said Tishomingo County Sheriff Glenn Whitlock.

Things to do today Civil War packets Anyone needing information on upcoming events pertaining to Civil War Reenactments or other Civil War events can stop

by the Alcorn County Welcome Center. Civil War Packets are available with information on the 150th Sesquicentennial celebrations. There is also literature on statewide events

and attractions. The Alcorn Welcome Center is open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. or call 1-662-286-3443 or visit www. visitmississippi.org/wc---

alcorn.aspx.

Pickin’ on the Square

to the old East Corinth School auditorium, corner of Third and Meeks Streets. Admission is free but donations are ac-

Pickin’ on the Square has moved for the winter months

Please see EVENTS | 3

CHILDRESS: Facility improvements include landscaping, indoor renovation, and sidewalk and roof repair CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

the $5 million in qualified school construction bond funding recently approved by the Mississippi Department of Education. The funds come from a pool of money that remained available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. District facility improvements include: ■ Construction of a girls softball and athletic field complex on Farmington Road. ■ Major landscaping at the middle, elementary and high school. ■ Sidewalk, floor and roof repairs at the middle

school this summer. ■ Brick cleaning at Corinth Middle School. ■ Indoor renovation at the middle school. ■ Major renovations to the middle school gym. ■ Painting the 7th and 8th grade wing of the middle school. ■ Interior painting at the high school. ■ Window and door replacement at the high school. ■ Installation of a system of locks at the high school that will allow the entire building to be locked instantly. ■ Removing the middle school’s drop ceiling. ■ Resurfacing the ten-

nis court. ■ Replacing the roof at Corinth High School within the next three years. The funding for the projects comes also from local district financing. Childress emphasized that the projects will not lead to a tax increase. “I think that’s very important that we keep that in mind in this day and age,” he said. “The key is there’s money out there. Let’s take advantage of it. Let’s make it work to our advantage to do the things we need.” Another main topic Childress discussed was the district’s participation in Excellence for All — a pilot

program in place in several states that could be the beginning of basic changes in high school structure, curriculum and testing in school’s nationwide. “Prior to this if you’d gone into a high school and looked at what was going on in the classroom, what you would’ve seen is very similar to what you would have experienced when you were in high school,” Childress said. “And if you can think of how your job has changed, or how your life has changed, or how technology has become a part of our lives today, you would realize that maybe, in many cases, we were not preparing children for what they were going to see in the future.” The superintendent cited the standing of American students in various international assessments. “You would see that we’ve gone from being one of the leaders in terms of how our students scored to being at the middle of the pack — and even in some cases toward the bottom,” he said. The Excellence for All program is a step toward redefining the nature of instruction in American high schools in order to better prepare students for the future. The program is based on research by the National Center on Education and the Economy, a

think-tank strongly dedicated to viewing American students in the context of a worldwide economy. “Basically the issue is our children in Corinth today are not going to be competing against children in Boston or San Francisco in order to have a job. They’re going to be competing with children from all over the world,” Childress said. “And if we continue to educate children with the blinders on as we have done in the past, then we are going to put our children behind.” The Excellence for All model looks at making American students competitive with students worldwide. It will give the opportunity for some students to exit high school at the end of the 10th grade and give them an opportunity to go into the workforce or community college as an alternative to dropping out during their final years of high school. Childress said the district is working with the state department of education to develop the criteria that will make a student eligible for exiting high school at the end of the 10th grade. Basically, he said, the student will have to show a high enough level of proficiency to be successful in English, language arts, math, science and social studies areas. This will be determined based on a series of exams.

At the same time the model will allow more academically successful students to take advanced classes and participate in dual enrollment — earning college credits while still in high school. “It’s a very nice model that we think can work and be very beneficial to the students,” he said. Another important facet of the Corinth School District’s development is the addition of early childhood education. The superintendent called this addition “the greatest thing to reduce dropouts.” Corinth Schools now have five “pre-K” classes with 20 students in each class. Due to the strong literacy component to the pre-K classes, district officials are looking at ways to revamp the kindergarten program in a way that will be beneficial to the students with more advanced reading skills. The discussion ended with a demonstration of one of the district’s Prometheus Interactive Whiteboards. The Prometheus machine is similar to a giant iPad combined with a digital whiteboard that allows teachers to incorporate more interactive content into lessons. “It’s absolutely amazing what they can do,” Childress said. “They really bring the world into the classroom.”

Correction A story in Tuesday’s Daily Corinthian misidentified the organization responsible for donating the trees used in an Eagle Scout project by Mitch Mitchell planting trees at the Lighthouse Foundation. The trees were donated by Modern Woodmen of America.

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3 • Daily Corinthian

Local/State

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Partial veto complaint dismissed BY JACK ELLIOTT JR. Associated Press

JACKSON — A legal challenge to Gov. Haley Barbour’s partial veto of a 2009 appropriations bill for the Highway Patrol has been dismissed. The Mississippi Supreme Court, in an order issued Tuesday, said both sides had agreed to end the litigation. The Supreme Court did not address any of the issues raised in the dispute. The case had been

scheduled for oral arguments April 4. Barbour, who left office in January of this year, had vetoed an allocation of $3 million in the MDPS budget to cover overtime pay for Highway Patrol troopers. Barbour said the bill would restrict MDPS’s management authority. As far as troopers are concerned, the issue was resolved when Public Safety Commissioner Steve Simpson restructured the pay scale for

troopers to ensure they get their additional pay. Barbour said Simpson’s actions were acceptable. “Because the troopers were paid, there is no need to continue the litigation,” Attorney General Jim Hood said Wednesday. “The Supreme Court has already said many times that a governor cannot use his/her veto authority to remove the legislative language directing how money must be spent and still keep the money. A

governor may only veto an entire appropriation.” Lawmakers and the attorney general’s office had sued the governor contending the partial veto was unconstitutional. However, the issue before the Supreme Court was not the validity of the partial veto. The court was to hear arguments on Hinds County Chancery Judge Pat Wise’s denial of Barbour’s motion to disqualify the attorney general from pursuing the case.

Deaths Polly Peich

BURNSVILLE — Funeral services for Opal “Polly” Hodum Peich, 80, are set for 1 p.m. Friday at Memorial Funeral Home Chapel with burial in the Fairview Church of God Cemetery near Cairo. Mrs. Peich died Wednesday, March 28, 2012 at her residence. Born January 14, 1932, she was a former factory worker, packer for Morgan Moving and a sitter. She was preceded in death by her parents, Raymond and Mamie Hodum; brothers, Buddy, Jake and Billy Hodum; and sisters, Shirley King, Violet Allen, Bobbie Jean Hodum. Survivors include a daughter, Carol (Doug) Motley of Cairo; a son, Don Smith of Corinth; brothPeich ers, Danny Hodum, Wayne Hodum both of Corinth, Eugene Hodum of Memphis, Tenn., and Travis Hodum of Tennessee; sisters Rachel Spencer of Southaven, Judy Davis of Corinth and Mary Jones of Olive Branch; grandchildren Chuck (Beth) Oathout, Carla (Bobby) Dees, Connie (Joe) Miller, Brenda (Stevie) Baker, Glenda (Mark) Baker; and 18 great grandchildren. Bro. Gary Hodum and Bro. Jason Pellizzer will officiate. Visitation is 5-9 p.m. today and Friday from 10 a.m. to service time.

EVENTS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

cepted to help pay rent. Pickin’ starts at 7 p.m. every Thursday night. Pickin’ moves to the Courthouse Square in April.

Senior Bingo Senior Bingo for ages 55 and over will be held at Arby’s every Thursday from 2:30-4 p.m.

Country music night The Joe Rickman Band will be playing on Thursday nights from 6:30-9:30 p.m. at the Burnsville city park building. Admission is $3, single and $5, couple. There will be concessions. The event is family-friendly with no smoking or alcohol. Proceeds go toward the community center.

Staff photos by Steve Beavers

Maryn Latch was one of 52 students to take part in the Trike-A-Thon for St. Jude on Wednesday, above. Oakland Baptist School student Kayla Plunk cools off from the Trike-A-Thon with a popsicle.

TRIKE-A-THON: School has raised more than $6,200 in last 2 years CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

to school and practice what they have learned. Over the last two years, the school has raised $6,269.13 for St. Jude. “The fundraiser makes it possible for St. Jude to treat patients regardless of a family’s ability to pay,” added Crigger.

Trike-A-Thons are held throughout the year, but reaches its peak during the Week of the Young Child which is April 2228. Established in 1971, the Week of the Young Child is an annual celebration focusing public attention on the needs of young children and their

families and the early childhood programs and services that meet those needs. The program is sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the world’s largest early childhood education association. NAEYC currently has

more than 100,000 members and a network of nearly 450 local, state and regional affiliates. Over 8,600 preschools and day care centers across America participate in the Trike-A-Thon program. Their efforts contribute more than $7.7 million to St. Jude every year.

TOURISM: Concert will feature music of Antonin Dvorak, Civil War era CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

board of directors. Featuring the music of Antonin Dvorak and the music of the Civil War era, the concert will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 28, at the Corinth High School Auditorium. The tourism board approved a $1,270 sponsorship to help advertise the Crossroad Museum’s upcoming events. The grant will go toward promoting the Breakfast with the Troops event, the museum’s Civil War exhibit, the Crossroads Museum Annual Photo Contest, the museum’s Summer Camp Program and various periodical and billboard advertising. A $1,000 sponsorship

was officially approved for the Lone Star Rodeo at the Crossroads Arena, held March 23-24. The funds went to pay for newspaper, radio and other promotions. The board voted to award $850 in funding to the Corinth Artist Guild Gallery to continue paying for its advertising in “VIP Pickwick Lake Magazine.” The magazine ad has been successful in encouraging art enthusiasts to visit the downtown art gallery, according to Sonny Boatman, the organization’s president. “Approximately 2,400 visitors signed our guest book last year, and many didn’t sign,” said Boatman. “Of these, approximately 800 were from out

of town. Most of our larger purchases are made by people from Memphis by way of Pickwick.”

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Shiloh National Military Park is seeking volunteers to help with activities on Saturday April 7, 2012. In commemoration of the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Shiloh, park staff and volunteers will be placing and lighting 23,746 luminaries around the battlefield, which will represent the total casualties of the bloody two-day fight. Anyone interested in volunteering at the park is asked to call ranger Heather Smedley at 731689-5696 or email her at heather_smedley@ nps.gov to sign up. More information on Shiloh Battlefield’s sesquicentennial events is available at www.nps.gov/shil.

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The Bishop Activity Center is having the following activity today: Bingo. Senior citizens, age 60 and above, are welcome and encouraged to attend. Daily activities include crafts, jigsaw puzzles, quilting, table games (Dominoes and Rook), washer games and Rolo Golf.

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The Corinth Artist Guild Gallery is located at 507 Cruise Street in downtown.

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www.dailycorinthian.com

Opinion

Reece Terry, publisher

Mark Boehler, editor

4 • Thursday, March 29, 2012

Corinth, Miss.

Other Views

Authorities maintain campuses are safe despite life’s risks Students on two Mississippi public university campuses are mourning the deaths of fellow students — both victims in unrelated shootings. According to police: ■ A fight at an off-campus pool party may have led to the shooting death of a Jackson State University freshman on March 25. Nolan Ryan Henderson, 19, of Atlanta was killed at the Palisades apartments at 1400 Valley St., which is within walking distance of the JSU campus. ■ John D. Sanderson, 21, of Madison, was shot multiple times March 24 outside a dorm room on the first floor of Evans Hall on the Mississippi State University campus. We like to think of our universities as peaceful oases that exist removed from the world at large. As the shootings bring home: That’s not an accurate reflection of reality. But are Mississippi’s public universities safe? University authorities maintain both campuses are safe. While JSU is an urban campus with all that entails, violent incidents on campus are relatively rare, and Henderson’s death occurred off campus. The 2010 campus shooting of Andrea Scott, a JSU researcher, shocked the campus and renewed attention to safety. University officials say about $1 million has been spent on security upgrades in recent years. Mississippi State is located in the much smaller city of Starkville. While that city has its own crime issues, as does any city, the campus is known as a pastoral site. “This is the first time in our school’s history ... a student being shot on campus,” MSU president Mark Keenum said. Nonetheless, tragedies occur. Whether it’s an altercation that gets out of hand, or a dormitory fire, or a case of drunken behavior that results in an accident, students are at risk. Mississippi authorities try to minimize risk, for example, the drug and alcohol crackdown by University of Mississippi officials in 2006 after a campus police officer was killed in a traffic incident. But no one — student, teacher, visitor — can live in a vacuum. Real life intrudes no matter where we live. — The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson

Prayer for today Thank you, Lord, for giving us peace as we work to help others. Thank you for the opportunities you give us to be a part of your work in their lives. Amen .

A verse to share Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. — Matthew 6:20-21 (NIV)

Sound Off Policy Effective immediately, the Daily Corinthian Sound Off policy will be the same as its Letter to the Editor Policy. Sounds Offs need to be submitted with a name, address, contact phone number and if possible, email address, for author verification. The author’s name and city of residence will be published with the Sound Off. Sound Offs will only accepted from those who wish to have their names published with their opinion. All other Letter to the Editor rules apply for Sound Offs.

Letters Policy The Opinion page should be a voice of the people and reflect views from a broad range in the community. Citizens can express their opinion in letters to the editor. Only a few simple rules need to be followed. Letters should be of public interest and not of the ‘thank you’ type. Please include your full signature, home address and telephone number on the letter for verification. All letters are subject to editing before publication, especially those beyond 300 words in length. Send to: Letters to the editor, Daily Corinthian, P.O. Box 1800, Corinth, Miss. 38835. Letters may also be emailed to: letters@daily corinthian.com. Email is the preferred method. Personal, guest and commentary columns on the Opinion page are the views of the writer. “Other views” are editorials reprinted from other newspapers. None of these reflect the views of this newspaper.

Reece Terry publisher rterry@dailycorinthian.com

Point was to save lives, not hype tragedy It is not often that I agree with Geraldo Rivera, but recently he said something very practical and potentially life-saving, when he urged black and Hispanic parents not to let their children go around wearing hoodies. There is no point in dressing like a hoodlum when you are not a hoodlum, even though that has become a fashion for some minority youths, including the teenager who was shot and killed in a confrontation in Florida. I don’t know the whole story of that tragedy, any more than those who are making loud noises in the media do, but that is something that we have trials for. People have a right to dress any way they want to, but exercising that right is something that requires common sense, and common sense is something that parents should have, even if their children don’t always have it. Many years ago, when I was a student at Harvard, there was a warning to all the students to avoid a nearby tough Irish neighborhood, where Harvard students had been attacked. It so happened that there was a black neighborhood on the other side of the Irish neighborhood that I had to

pass through when I went to get my hair cut. I never went through that Irish Thomas n e i g h b o r Sowell hood dressed in the style Columnist of most Harvard students back then. I walked through that Irish neighborhood dressed like a black working man would be dressed -- and I never had the slightest trouble the whole three years that I was at Harvard. While I had a right to walk through that tough neighborhood dressed in a Brooks Brothers suit, if I wanted to -- and if I could have afforded one, which I couldn’t -- it made no sense for me to court needless dangers. The man who shot the black teenager in Florida may be as guilty as sin, for all I know -- or he may be innocent, for all I know. We pay taxes so that there can be judges and jurors who sort out the facts. We do not need Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton or the president of the United States spouting off before the trial has even begun. Have we forgotten the media’s rush to judgment in the Duke Uni-

versity “rape” case that blew up completely when the facts came out? If the facts show that a teenager who was no threat to anyone was shot and killed, it will be time to call for the death penalty. But if the facts show that the shooter was innocent, then it will be time to call for people in the media and in politics to keep their big mouths shut until they know what they are talking about. Playing with racial polarization is playing with fire. Much has been made of the fact that the teenager was unarmed. The only time I have ever pointed a loaded gun at a human being, I had no idea whether he was armed or not. All I knew was that I could hear his footsteps sneaking up behind me at night. Fortunately for both of us, he froze in his tracks when I pointed a gun at him. If he had made a false move, I would have shot him. And if it had turned out later that he was unarmed, I would not have lost a moment’s sleep over it. You know that someone was unarmed only after it is all over. If he attacks, you have to shoot, if only to keep the attacker from getting your gun. It so happened that the man I pointed a gun at was

white. But he could have been any color of the rainbow, and it would not have made the slightest difference. Let the specific facts come out in the Florida case. That is why we have courts. Have we forgotten the Jim Crow era, with courts making decisions based on the race of the defendants, rather than the facts of the case? That is part of the past that we need to leave in the past, not resurrect it under new racial management. Who is really showing concern for the well-being of minority youngsters, Geraldo Rivera who is trying to save some lives, or Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and others who are hyping this tragic episode for their own benefit? Race hustlers who hype paranoia and belligerence are doing no favor to minority youngsters. There is no way to know how many of these youngsters’ confrontations with the police or others in authority have been needlessly aggravated by the steady drumbeat of racial hype they have been bombarded with by race hustlers. (Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305. His website is www. tsowell.com.)

ObamaCare may be Founding Father’s last stand The shade of James Madison hovers over the ObamaCare argument at the Supreme Court. It is the system of limited and carefully divided government powers that he had a large hand in crafting -and defended so ably in The Federalist Papers -- that is at stake in the contest over the constitutionality of the individual mandate. If the mandate stands, it will be the latest blow to Madison’s scheme, which is the best architecture for self-government yet devised by man, but has been steadily worn down over time. It is a damning indictment of contemporary Washington that, overall, it is so hostile to the Madisonian ethos. He is a most inconvenient Founding Father since he tells us: No, the federal government can’t do whatever it wants; no, we can’t just all get along; no, we can’t rush to pass whatever legislation deemed a “can’t wait” priority by the president. Now, grow up. In the mind of contemporary progressivism, these words of Madison from The Federalist Papers simply don’t compute: “The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are

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to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite.” They are an Rich a n t i q u a t e d Lowery 18th-century sentiment National Review unsuited to our more complex and more sophisticated time, to be ignored when not actively scorned. But Madison thought this division of power so important for a reason: “In the compound republic of America, the power surrendered by the people is first divided between two distinct governments, and then the portion allotted to each subdivided among distinct and separate departments. Hence a double security arises to the rights of the people. The different governments will control each other, at the same time that each will be controlled by itself.” The entire system is meant to maximize accountability and competition in the belief that the undue accumulation of power in any one source is, in Madison’s words, “the very definition of tyranny.” The frequent Supreme Court swing vote Anthony

Kennedy has written that “federalism was the unique contribution of the Framers to political science and political theory.” It is exactly this contribution that has been trampled through the decades, and ObamaCare stomps on once more. Madison concerned himself with limits on government because “there is a degree of depravity in mankind, which requires a certain degree of circumspection and distrust.” So, as he famously wrote, “ambition must be made to counteract ambition.” He would have no patience for gooey discussions on the Sunday shows about the divisiveness of our political life. “The latent causes of faction,” for Madison, “are sown in the nature of man.” In his marvelous new biography of Madison, Richard Brookhiser calls him not just the Father of the Constitution but the Father of Politics because he was a pioneer in fighting the sort of partisan battles we now look down upon and rue. Nor would Madison be moved by the lamentations that Congress isn’t passing enough legislation quickly enough. He wanted a Senate -- that balky, frustrating upper body -- to check the

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rush to enshrine momentary causes into law. In a passage that could have been written as commentary on the handiwork of Nancy Pelosi’s Congress, he argued “it will be of little avail to the people that the laws are made by men of their own choice if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood.” In his book on Madison’s political thought, “American Compact,” Gary Rosen notes that “as Madison feared, utility rather than constitutionality has become the ultimate test for public policy.” The debate over ObamaCare at the time of its passage focused on its cost, its workability and its aggrandizing tendency more than its constitutionality. For Madison, Rosen continues, constitutional limits “were the deepest source of republican dignity, the bulwarks that he expected citizens to defend in order to remind themselves of their sovereignty.” Would that they were once again. (Rich Lowry is editor of the National Review. He can be reached via email: comments.lowry@nationalreview.com.)

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Daily Corinthian • Thursday, March 29, 2012 • 5

State Bryant revises budget for year Mayor charged BY EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS Associated Press

JACKSON — First-term Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant is revising his state budget for the year that begins July 1. In his new plan, released Tuesday, the Republican no longer asks local school districts to dig into their own financial reserves to offset state funding cuts. Instead, he proposes giving elementary and secondary schools, community colleges and universities the same amount of money next year as this year. He also suggests an extra $3 million for the Mississippi Highway Patrol and another $31.5 million to Medicaid, the government health insurance program for the needy and disabled. He said the Medicaid money would offset an expected loss in federal support. Bryant's original bud-

get, released in January, included 5.5 percent cuts to most state agencies. The new one has cuts of about 1.7 percent for most, which he called a “more comfortable” level. The revisions come a week after legislators increased the estimate of how much money the state will have available, based on experts' reports that the state economy is showing signs of slow improvement. “While it is encouraging to see a small increase in Mississippi's revenue estimate and while I am also hopeful that the increase is both justified and sustainable, we still must allocate our resources using sound, conservative guidelines,” Bryant said in a document accompanying his new budget. “Saving for the future is imperative, and fund increases should be appropriated to the state's highest priorities like public safety, education and obligations

to Medicaid,” he said. Lawmakers are expected to complete a budget by late April. At this point, the House and Senate have passed their own first versions of budget bills with the understanding that several details are expected to change during negotiations between the two chambers. Mississippi governors have a mixed record of being able to influence budget talks. Lawmakers took many suggestions from Bryant's two-term

predecessor, Republican Haley Barbour, but they also have joked in the past about putting other governors' budgets directly into the trash. The Joint Legislative Budget Committee voted March 19 to add about $99 million to the budget for fiscal year 2012, which ends June 30, and about $130 million to the budget for fiscal year 2013, which begins July 1. With the changes, the current year's budget will be 3.5 percent bigger than last year's.

Due to repairs at the treatment plant at the Kossuth water ofﬁce, customers from the Kossuth and Wenasoga area may experience some discolored water for the next two weeks. This excludes our customers from the Pine Mountain area and the Bethlehem area. We are sorry if this causes any inconvenience to our customers.

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HERNANDO — Southaven Mayor Greg Davis turned himself into authorities Tuesday for allegedly passing a stopped school bus. Davis went to the DeSoto County Sheriff's Department after misde-

meanor warrants were issued for his arrest earlier in the day. He left after about an hour. No hearing date was announced. Authorities said a school bus driver reported that Davis illegally passed a bus earlier this month.

6 • Thursday, March 29, 2012 • Daily Corinthian

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