I hope everyone reads this post today and takes just a moment to pop an email to these knuckleheads to let them have a piece of your mind like I will.

West Virginia ought to reform their civil litigation system. 

Last time I checked it was almost as bad as ours was 4 years ago, prior to Mississippi’s reforms.

West Virginia is already so far behind Mississippi that they continue to elect their Klan Kleagle, Robert Byrd (born Calvin Sale), to the United States Senate.  Ours, Edgar Ray Killen, was jailed for his crimes.

MS-1,000,000 WV-0

I called and talked to Nanya Friend and she tried to wiggle. by saying that I had taken it wrong, and she certainly did not intend to slam Mississippi, as she had said some good things about us. I told her I did not buy that, but if she wanted to say that, then it would be left for each person to decide. She then thanked me for taking the time to call.

The real embarassment will be when Mississippi surpasses
W. Va.
We have a great Governor with a mind toward improving
our economic status.
If only the “naysayers and pessimists” will just listen and
follow his lead, the benefits may be more far reaching
than any of us realize.
For an outside state to express embarrasment over the fact
that we are gaining on them had best spur them to action.
As Satchel Paige once said: DON’T LOOK BACK, SOMEBODY
MAY BE GAINING ON YOU.

Alan, you are unfairly bashing Nanya.  Why don’t you put the next paragraph up instead of causing a riot.  It is not her fault that Mississippi is last in per capita income and it is good news that Mississippi growing fast.  There’s a reason other southern states thank Mississippi because otherwise they would be last, but unfortunately we are, so they say thank goodness for Mississippi.  You never heard that?  Come on.

“Although it is still last in per capita income, Mississippi is growing fast, experiencing the third largest rate of growth in personal income in the nation last year at 6.7 percent. That cut West Virginia’s lead from $1,178 in 2006 to $692 last year.”

Goodness, “bashing?” Bashing would be, “Nana Friend is so absolutely stupid, she burned her face by answering the iron.” Personally, I think that if you are going to interact with the public, wearing your emotions on your sleeve is a really bad idea.

“Life is hard, wear a cup.”

I seriously doubt they will print this, but I did submit this today.

As a lifelong Mississippian, I was truly dismayed to see your reckless editorial treatment of Mississippi in your 3/31 editorial entitled “A long way to go in West Virginia”.  In a discussion of West Virginia’s rankings in per capita income nationally, the Daily Mail editorialized “And the embarrassing news is that Mississippi is catching up to West Virginia.” You then went on to make a valid point that Mississippi’s Governor Haley Barbour has made some changes regarding tort reform and job creation that have had a very positive impact on per capita income for our residents.  Why should the success of our state be an embarrassment to the people of West Virginia?

Mississippi has certainly weathered similar backhanded criticisms from self-serving political figures in recent months. 

Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) in pandering to Iowa voters in November declared “How can Iowa be ranked with Mississippi? That’s not what I see. That’s not the quality. That’s not the communitarianism, that’s not the openness I see in Iowa.”

US Rep Charlie Rangel (D-NY) in talking about federal transfer payments said in November 2006 “Mississippi gets more than their fair share back in federal money, but who the hell wants to live in Mississippi?”

The bottom line is that words mean things, and the words you chose were completely unnecessary to make your point and reflect your editorial staff’s collective bias.  Your publication’s characterization of my state as an embarrassment is wrong and unappreciated, and I believe it owes the people of the state of Mississippi an apology.  Should your readers care, we even have a formal press campaign started by those in the private sector that took similar offense to intellectually lazy press characterizations like this.  It can be found at MississippiBelieveIt.com.

Alan Lange
Editor
YallPolitics.com

Great write-up, Alan.

You negate your arguement by pointing out that she made a valid point, but Alan, she didn’t say one word about tort reform.  Why did you put that in there?  “Words mean things and the words you chose were completely unnecessary to make your point . . .”

Well, they did print one letter from Sam Hall in Brandon.  It was well written and the writer probably jives more with the Daily Mail’s political philosophy.  I am sure it was much easier for them to print a letter from someone who didn’t like someone they didn’t like either (Barbour).

Wasn’t Sam Hall the Mississippi Democratic party’s communications director a couple of years ago?  If so, then consider the source.

Well folks, the facts are squarely on the side of West Virginia.  I believe half the problem in Mississippi is a failure to recognize there is a problem.  The public education system is completely wrecked, NAFTA has sucked industry away faster than Haley can pay foreign car companies to replace it and political corruption is only topped by Louisiana.  Thank God we have them in that department.

Yes he was, RD.

Pappy, I’d agree with your assertions of problems that we have in Mississippi.  However, my point above about the West Virginia Civil Litigation system, remains.

Alan, Thanks for letting us know about this. Coming from a state that has reelected Sen. Byrd for the last 100 years what would you expect.

The fact that West Virginia compares their state to ours, is the epitome of silly.  “Robert Byrd.”

Other than the FACT that unemployment is down and average hourly wage is at the highest point ever, yeah, everything that Pappy says about NAFTA is correct, which means NOTHING he stated is correct.

Also, only one political party in Mississippi is corrupt.

And education will always be bad as long as we continue to grow the failing system.  Trying the very same things with progressively larger amounts of money, expecting different results is suicidal.  Read Charlie Mitchell’s op-ed in the paper today and quit being so stupid.

Abolish minimum wage if you want hopeychange to occur.

As long as the democrats insist on a one size fits all education system, then the schools will continue to turn out a sizable number of illiterates. That way, when they get old enough to vote, they will be stupid enough to fall for the line promising them Utopia.

Yes, Reagan Dem,the tort reforms are significant.  Hooray for the insurance companies...I guess since they run this state what is good for the goose is good for the gander.
Also, why does any discussion on education fall into two camps: 1.  The Democrats just want to throw money at the problem, therefore I refuse to do anything.  or 2.  Give us more money to throw into a failed system.  Both arguments are wrong, particularly the devil may care attitude of republicans whose children probably attend Academy schools that they perceive as superior simply because of the price tag associated with it

Yeah, that Charlie Mitchell is a HUGE Republican money man, he just hides that really well with the articles he publishes.

Most thinking people do realize that the government lunacy is to blame for all of the problems that are currently facing us.  They do understand that businesses, and by default insurance companies, are the solution.  By that I mean capitalism without goverment interference.  In my lifetime, really I have trouble coming up with one single problem government has solved.

And finally Pappy, my son goes to a private school that costs 1800 bucks a semester, plus books.  Man, that is just so much more than we spend on those public schools.  So, yes, private schools are superior because of the price tag.  Public schools do not even attempt to educate the kids, they are there to provide goverment jobs to people that cannot work in the private sector.