021812 Corinth E-Edition by Daily Corinthian

Saturday Feb. 18,

2012

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Daily Corinthian Vol. 116, No. 42

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• Corinth, Mississippi • 16 pages • 1 section

Developer withdraws Dollar General plans BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com

A developer has withdrawn a plan to build a new Dollar General store on U.S. Highway 72 at the old Bonanza property. Ware Properties had sought and received approval for a zoning variance needed at the

corner of Highway 72 East and South Johns Street for what was planned to be a new store on the property. The developer would have demolished the old restaurant building. The city’s community development and planning department confirms the plan has been

withdrawn, and an alternate plan has not been submitted. The existing Dollar General store in Southgate shopping center on Cass Street would have relocated to the Highway 72 property, which was a Bonanza restaurant for many years and a string of other res-

taurants in later years. It has been vacant for some time. The developer had submitted plans for a new store with a corner entry. Accommodations for the nearby residential property included screening for HVAC units and a garbage bin enclosure.

The location was recently on the city’s property cleanup list when the city asked the property owner to deal with mounted lights that appeared in danger of falling in the parking lot. The problem was corrected and the possible adjudication action was dismissed.

‘Grant’ scam hits the area BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com

Staff photos by Steve Beavers

Marea Wilson (left) and Tammy Parker help serve soup and chili during the Jesse Clausel Soup Luncheon. The luncheon celebrated its 10th year.

Turning soup into scholarships BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com

The 4-H advisory council turned soup into scholarships during the Jesse Clausel Soup Luncheon on Friday. Money raised from the luncheon will help fund scholarships for graduating high school 4-H members. “The luncheon has really grown from our one-room office at the courthouse until now,” said Alcorn County 4-H agent Tammy Parker. Three scholarships were awarded last year with each recipient receiving $250 to further their education. Named in honor of longtime advisory council president Jesse Clausel, the luncheon celebrated its 10th year with a choice of chili, vegetable or potato soup along with drink and dessert. “I think this is great,” said Ruth Clausel, the wife of the late Jesse Clausel. “The children in 4-H were his main interest.” Clausel, who started the 4-H Awards Banquet, served as advisory council president for over 20 years. “These kids contribute a lot to their community and have so many things to choose from like public speaking, modeling and working with animals,” said Mrs. Clausel. “Jesse would be very proud.”

Being a good citizen has its rewards, but free money is generally not one of them. A phone scam is being reported locally in which people are told that “grant” money is coming their way. The scam is not new but seems to be on the increase in the last few weeks. Police Chief David Lancaster received one of the calls on his cell phone on Feb. 10. He was told he had been selected to receive a $10,000 grant because he is a good citizen and pays his bills on time. “It is definitely not legitimate,” he said. “As usual, if it sounds too good to be true, it is. Nobody is giving out free money.” The caller, who had a heavy foreign accent, told him that she was with the treasury department and that he could use the money for any “legitimate” purposes. The caller eventually requests banking details and other information.

“I told them I was a police officer and they hung up on me,” said Lancaster. In another case that was reported to him, the scam artist called back after the first call ended. “They said they knew where she lived at and were going to come get her because she was rude to them,” the chief said. One person who reported receiving a similar call is Sonny Boatman. He received a call from a person who told him he had been chosen to receive a $7,000 grant from an unspecified Christian organization. The caller was again a woman with a heavy accent. “She said it was a grant that I wouldn’t have to pay back and it was through the government but they were distributing it,” said Boatman. “She said that I could spend this money on house payments or renovating my house or a wonderful vacation or a car — as long as I didn’t spend it on liquor or Please see SCAM | 3

Corinth man faces child endangerment, felony drug charges BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com

Sandy Mitchell helps out during Friday’s 4-H luncheon to raise money for scholarships.

The Alcorn Narcotics Unit made a marijuana bust at a Corinth address Wednesday. Tony Allen Burks, 34, of Mitchell Street, Corinth, was charged with two counts of sale of a controlled substance and felony possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell, all within 1,500 feet of a church. He was also charged with child endangerment for selling the marijua-

na in the presence of children. Narcotics Officer Darrell Hopkins said the arrest happened when the narcotics unit went to 1104A Mitchell St. in reference to complaints of the occupants selling marijuana with children present. The occupants gave consent to search, and officers found a quarter of a pound of marijuana along with packaging material, scales and other paraphernalia, he said. Bond was set at $20,000.

Graduate shares Shiloh High School memories BY MARK BOEHLER editor@dailycorinthian.com

SHILOH, Tenn. — For many school-aged children until 1954, learning about the historic Battle of Shiloh was just a few steps away. Thanks to a federal grant, plenty of fundraisers and school children asking Tennessee River excursion boat travelers visiting Shiloh National Military Park for donations, a school was built in 1928 on park property. Located near the present day Shiloh Methodist Church, the school was initially grades 1-10 but expanded to a 12th grade, producing many proud graduates of Shiloh High School until 1953.

Classmates hold a reunion every year on a weekend in June at Pickwick Landing State Park, where they reminisce of the times gone by of a place more known for its almost 24,000 casualties on April 6-7 150 years ago during the Civil War than its small number of graduates each year. “So many people don’t know there was a school at Shiloh,” said 84-year-old Thelma (Lambert) Tucker of Corinth, Shiloh High School Class of 1945. “When we are gone, that will be it.” The effort to build the school began in 1917, according to forPlease see SHILOH | 3

Photo compliments of Arcadia Publishing

Shiloh School on the grounds of Shiloh National Military Park was located behind Shiloh Methodist Church. An Iowa monument is just a few feet from the school’s front entrance. Students attended Shiloh School from 1928 until 1954.

Index Stocks........7 Classified......14 Comics...... 13 Wisdom...... 12

Weather........5 Obituaries........ 3 Opinion........4 Sports...... 10

On this day in history 150 years ago In Richmond, Va., the First Congress of the Confederate States of America is convened. The body replaces the provisional congress established by the secession convention. It was a two-house legislature patterned after the Congress of the United States.

Local

2 • Daily Corinthian

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Staff photo by Jebb Johnston

County Tournament Proceeds Local school districts received their share of proceeds this week from the Alcorn County Basketball Tournament, which has become an annual success for the venue. Shown from left are Keith Greene, Corinth High School basketball coach; Lee Childress, Corinth superintendent; Bill Strickland, board of directors chairman for Crossroads Arena; Gina Rogers Smith, Alcorn School District superintendent; and Steve Lyles, Kossuth High School basketball coach. “We think the citizens of Alcorn County enjoy having it out here because it’s ample seating, easy parking and plenty of space,” said Strickland. “The players like it because it’s a neutral court. It’s fair for everybody. We’re glad to have it and our board is really glad to be able to put it on.” Childress said the tournament probably drew some of the better attendance it has had at the arena this year. The school districts receive a portion of concessions and admission funds.

TEMA, NWS team up to promote severe weather awareness BY JEFF YORK For the Daily Corinthian

The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) and National Weather Service (NWS) are promoting preparedness for families, individuals and businesses during Tennessee Severe Weather Awareness Week, Monday to Saturday. “Tennessee has experienced two years of unprecedented natural disasters and individual preparedness is more important than ever, said TEMA Director James Bassham. “Emergencies and disasters can happen anywhere and anytime so we hope Tennessee citizens will take an active role in the preparedness of their families, their neighborhoods and their communities.” Throughout the week, NWS, TEMA and other support ing groups will conduct educational activities and drills to help peo-

ple prevent injuries and deaths from tornadoes, damaging winds, flash floods, lightning, and hail. TEMA is announcing the release of a new mobile, smartphone application, Ready TN. Ready TN is a tool to help citizens know the hazards in their community and the preparations they should take to be ready for any emergency. The application provides location-based information on severe weather, road conditions, open shelters and local government contacts. Preparedness tips for specific hazards and checklists for emergency kit items are also provided in the application’s content. The Ready TN smartphone application is currently available in the Android Market by searching for Ready TN. The application is under development for use on the Apple iPhone. The NWS will use the

week to focus on severe weather preparedness, safety and warnings. Specific weather threats such as tornadoes or lightning, along with NOAA Weather Radio and Skywarn storm spotters, will be highlighted on individual days. This year’s statewide tornado drill will be initiated with a special NOAA Weather Radio test around 9:30 a.m. Wednesay. “Tennessee is vulnerable to virtually every type of weather hazard imaginable”, said NWS Warning Coordination Meteorologist Tom Johnstone. “It is critical that our residents understand the threats, have multiple ways to receive severe weather warnings, and have a plan to quickly get to a safe place when a warning is issued.” Jointly, NWS and TEMA plan to distribute the 2012 Severe Weather Awareness brochure to schools, businesses and individuals.

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Miss your paper? To report a problem or delivery change call the circulation department at 287-6111. Late, wet or missing newspaper complaints should be made before 10 a.m. to ensure redelivery to immediate Corinth area. All other areas will be delivered the next day.

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Local

3 • Daily Corinthian

Deaths James Pruitt James Pruitt, 84, of Corinth, died Friday, Feb. 17, 2012, at Magnolia Regional Health Center. All other arrangements are incomplete and will be announced by Patterson Memorial Chapel.

Marnia Hazlewood TISHOMINGO — Funeral services for Marnia Hazlewood, 58, are set for 3 p.m. today at Ludlam Funeral Home in Iuka with burial in New Prospect Cemetery. Mrs. Hazlewood died Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2012. She was preceded in death by her parents, Malmoth and Elatrice Pounders; and a brother, Clylon Pounders. Survivors include her husband, Jerry Hazlewood of Tishomingo; two daughters, Erin Hazlewood and Anna Hazlewood; a brother, Melvin Pounders and wife Vonnie of Iuka; and a sister, Sarah Wigginton Bishop and husband Charles of Iuka. Bro. Tim Ryan will officiate. Visitation is noon until service time today.

Nell Moore IUKA — Funeral services for Nell Moore, 82, are set for 1 p.m. today at Cutshall Funeral Home Chapel with burial in Mt. Moriah Cemetery. Mrs. Moore died Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012, at North Mississippi Medical Center. She was a member of Gospel Lighthouse Pentecostal Church and

SHILOH: $10,000 federal grant was added to the $8,000 the community raised through dinners, plays

was a longtime Iuka resident. She was a sought after caregiver who enjoyed fishing and traveling. She was preceded in death by her husbands, Milford Moore and Roy Vaughn; a grandson, SGT. Jason Walter; her parents; two brothers; and a sister. Survivors include a son, Walter Vaughn (Patty) of Iuka; a daughter, Alisa Parsons (Terry) of Iuka; a step-daughter, Linda Carson (Charles) of Corinth; a brother, Jim Goss of Iuka; four grandchildren, Karisha Devlin (Dan), Logan Vaughn (Kristina), Brigitte Lange (Kris) and Justin Parsons; two step grandchildren, Stacy Sitton (Scott), and Chris Carson; two great grandchildren; and three step grandchildren. Bro. William Burcham and Lance Foster will officiate.

Beatrice “Bee” Prather IUKA — Funeral services for Beatrice “Bee” Prather, 90, are set for 4 p.m. Sunday at Cutshall Funeral Home. Mrs. Prather died Friday, Feb. 17, 2012 at Tishomingo Manor Nursing Home. She loved working in her yard and spending time with her family. She was preceded in death by her husband, Frank Rix; a brother, Ray Lewis; and her parents. Survivors include three sons, Jerry Prather (Barbara) of Iuka, Frankie Prather (Shelia) of Iuka, and Ricky Prather (Dewonia) of Booneville; 10 grandchildren; and nine great grandchildren. Bro. Stanley Magill will officiate. Visitation is 2 p.m. until service time Sunday at the funeral home.

Verdie Dunn

Elizabeth Ferrell Unger

Funeral services for Verdie Hastings Dunn, 77, are set for 2 p.m. Sunday at Memorial Funeral Home Chapel with Bro. Ronald Wilbanks and Bro. Randy Holmes officiating. Burial will be in the family cemetery. Mrs. Dunn died February 16, 2012 at Whitfield Nursing Home. She was born in Alcorn Co. and was a homemaker, and a member of Theo Holiness Church. She was receded in death by her husband, David Dunn; her parents, Waymon and Roxie Hastings; four brothers, Guy, Marlin, Bill and Zack Hastings; and three sisters, Jessie Gurley, Louise Holmes, Lois Hancock. Survivors include her daughters, Deborah Moss and her Dunn husband Jerry, and Pam Beckham and her husband Harold; a son Steve Dunn and his wife Yi qi; a sister Bobbie Glidewell and her husband Ray; grandchildren Jayson Null, Juston Null, Blake Moss, Haley Copeland, Roxy Beckham, and Jade Null; great grandchildren, Morgan and Tate Null; sister-in-law, Carolyn Hastings; and a host of other family and friends. Pallbearers are Mike Dellinger, Vickie Mitchell, Kenny Hastings, Jeramie Roach, Scott Roach, Tim Chapman. Visitation is today from 5-8 p.m. and Sunday from noon until service time. Online condolences can be left at www.memorialcorinth.com

Funeral services for Elizabeth Ferrell Unger, 85, are set for 2 p.m. today at Memorial Funeral Home Chapel with Bro. Tim Edwards and Bro. Donald Sculley officiating. Burial will follow in the Henry Cemetery. Mrs. Unger died February 16, 2012 at Magnolia Regional Health Center. She was born July 9, 1926 in Hayti, Mo. She was retried from Holly’s restaurant after 25 years as a waitress, she moved to Corinth in 1987. She was a member of Shady Grove Baptist Mission, loved cooking, spending time with her animals and family. She was preceded in death by her husband, Rudy Unger; her parents, Charles and Willie Ann Faulkner; and Unger a sister-in-law, Evelyn Faulkner. Survivors include her son, Charles “Chuck” Ferrell and his wife Sarah; a brother, Charles Faulkner of Mi.; grandchildren, Randy Ferrell and his wife Lantz, Lisa Jones and her husband Johnny, and Brian Ferrell and his wife Lisa; great grandchildren, Lauren, Jessica, Mark, Ben, Andrew, Eli Ferrell and Annie Jones; and a host of other family and friends. Grandsons and great grandsons will serve as pallbearers. Visitation is 11 a.m. to service time at the funeral home. Online condolences can be left at www.memorialcorinth.com

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anything illegal.” He was told the money would have to be transferred electronically. Boatman said he is concerned that the calls are targeting senior citizens. Lancaster said one thing to watch for is a blocked telephone number or a number that looks unusual when it shows up on caller ID Some of the perpetrators use technology that

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from where the school once stood. Shiloh students were a close knit bunch, she remarked. Ms. Tucker’s fondest memories were walking to nearby Rhea Springs, a peaceful spot with a fresh water spring and creek, and walking to Andy Shaw’s Restaurant for ice cream in the summer months. School children knew their Shiloh battle history, noted the alumnus. When history students in Sloan Jobe’s class asked a Shiloh question, “we’d go get on the bus and go to where we were talking about,” explained Ms. Tucker. “I remember it so well. We’d ask a question because we wanted to get out of class,” the history pupil said. “But when we got back, we always had a test.” “There was a time when I knew so much about Shiloh, I could answer just about any question,” added Ms. Tucker. “It was neat.” Students had a daily reminder of the school’s connection with the battlefield. An Iowa monument stood just a few feet from the school’s front entrance. The monument remains today, plus a marker erected several years ago by Shiloh alumni on the spot where the school once stood. The roar of the cannons made Shiloh famous, but for many area residents who lived near the famous battlefield, it’s the sound of a school bell which makes them most proud. (One photo of Shiloh school is published in the book “Images of America: Shiloh National Military Park.” It is available at retail outlets or can be ordered at www.arcadiapublishing.com.)

disguises their area code Do Not Call Registry at and can make it appear donotcall.gov. that they are calling from Washington, D.C. The Federal Trade Seating Birthday Parties Online Tickets Commission notes that All Stadium Saturday, February 18 & Sunday, February 19, 2012 scam artists also some- GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE (NON 3-D) (PG13) 1:10 4:15 7:10 9:25 No pass THIS MEANS WAR (PG13) 1:25 4:30 7:20 9:35 No pass times advertise “free JOURNEY 2 (NON 3D) (PG) 1:05 4:10 7:05 9:20 No pass grants” in printed pubSAFE HOUSE (R) 1:30 4:35 7:25 9:55 No pass lications, and a real govTHE VOW (PG13) 1:20 4:20 7:15 9:35 No pass ernment agency will not BIG MIRACLE (PG) 1:00 4:05 7:00 9:25 ask a person to pay a proCHRONICLE (PG13) 1:15 4:15 7:15 9:15 No pass cessing fee for a grant. THE WOMAN IN BLACK (PG13) 1:25 4:25 7:30 9:45 The FTC says it’s a THE GREY (R) 1:30 4:30 7:20 9:55 good idea to get home RED TAILS (PG13) 1:00 4:05 7:05 9:45 and mobile phone 662-284-9915 numbers listed on the 2505 S. Harper Rd.

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a year later in 1952. A sixth child, the late Buford Lambert, was also a Shiloh product. But the school closed his senior year and he became a Southside graduate in 1954, noted Ms. Tucker, who worked for 31 years at Corinth’s ITT in the accounting department. During Ms. Tucker’s high school years at the school from 1941-1945, many of the graduates were females because males were serving their country during World War II. Her graduating class of a dozen seniors in 1945 had just one male, her brother Thurman, who had physical limitations. “Our boys were off fighting the war,” she remembered. Shiloh’s most famous graduate was Ray Blanton, Class of 1947. He was a one-term state representative, threeterm U.S. Congressman and became Tennessee governor from 1975-79. Blanton reached a peak when he beat Lamar Alexander in the governor’s race, getting the most statewide popular votes by any candidate up until that time. Alexander would later become governor, U.S. senator, president of the University of Tennessee and once U.S. presidential hopeful. Blanton’s tenure ended in controversy as staff members were convicted of selling pardons and Blanton himself served federal prison time for selling liquor licenses. Despite Blanton’s shortcomings, Ms. Tucker just remembers him as a “quiet, polite young man who was always soft spoken.” The ex-governor was proud to be from Shiloh, said the classmate, and is laid to rest in Shiloh Church Cemetery not far

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mer teachers Mr. and Mrs. Mancil Milligan in a history of the school titled “The Story of Shiloh School.” With the help of Shiloh National Park Superintendent DeLong Rice, a $10,000 federal grant was added to the $8,000 the community had raised through box suppers and play productions, according to the Milligans, who are now deceased. Rice became Shiloh park secretary in 1913 before the days of the term park superintendent. He and his 16-yearold son died in 1929 after a gas explosion at the park superintendent’s residence. A “modern” 10-room block school building with auditorium was complete in 1928. The Milligans were two of the first four teachers who educated students from the rural communities of Counce, Wayne, Childers Hill, New Hope and West Shiloh. The Class of 1931 would be the first to walk the line, while the last was in 1953 when a federal mandate was issued to close schools on government property. Students were then bused to Pickwick Southside School, which still exists today for grades 1-8. “The school had a short life span,” said Ms. Tucker, the daughter of a farming family from Counce who would produce seven children, five of whom would become Shiloh graduates. The children of Carl and Blanche Lambert, Herman was the first Shiloh graduate in 1944, Thurman and Thelma followed in 1945, Jeanette Lambert Durm received her diploma in 1951 and Burvil followed

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Opinion

Reece Terry, publisher

Mark Boehler, editor

4 • Saturday, February 18, 2012

Corinth, Miss.

Obama touts phony recovery BY DICK MORRIS AND EILEEN MCGANN President Barack Obama, faced with no recovery from the recession as he enters an election year, has come up with a handy political gimmick: Fake the statistics. The economic data which portend recovery are totally and completely inventions of Obama’s political operation. The reality is that no recovery is taking place! Economist James Fitzgibbon of the Highlander Fund explains how cooked the economic statistics on which the president bases his claims of recovery really are. Begin with “gains” in the stock market. Fitzgibbons explains they are no indication of changes in the public mood because the public isn’t doing the investing anymore. He notes that high-frequency trade computers now “account for 80 percent (of the market’s) daily business. No one else is left because they lost their money in 2008, and the public has fled the market ... Total NYSE volume is 67 percent lower on average than in 2008. Volume is 29 percent lower this year compared to 2011. The prices (have) no serious meaning.” Have consumers, as alleged, started borrowing again? Not really. Fitzgibbons explains that “credit use has surged only because the Obama administration changed the student loan program to a direct program, and those loans are now counted as part of this metric. It is not comparable to anything prior to 2011.” And, he adds ominously, “massive credit card use as measured against actual verifiable sales shows the increase is in borrowed funds to pay for food! Not my idea of a healthy sign.” How about lower unemployment figures? Fitzgibbons calls them a joke. He says that the Bureau of Labor Statistics has “completely changed the ... metrics as of January 2012. None of the current percentages are relatable to anything prior to 2012!” He points out that the January unemployment data is heavily adjusted for “seasonal variations.” He notes that “the actual data shows (that the economy) lost 2.7 million jobs in January.” And that’s just the numerator. For the denominator — the number of people in the workforce — the data “also shows about 1.2 million people magically left the workforce.” He says one has to go back to the early 1980s to see labor force participation at the low it is now. Auto sales? Fitzgibbons says that “auto sales are when the manufacturer dumps cars and trucks on a dealer. Inventory stuffing! It has no relationship to actual sales to a consumer. Thanks to Obama, GM dealers are drowning in product no one wants to buy. It is a meaningless data point. Only dealer-to-consumer data is useful. It is not showing any growth at all.” Housing? According to Fitzgibbons, positive news in this sector is unreliable. “The raw data we get shows it is worse than last year and in some regions worst ever since the ‘60s.” So it appears that Obama’s reelection strategy hinges on asking people to believe the data he puts before them rather than the evidence before their own eyes. It won’t work. Any economic recovery is only publicly noticed eight to 12 quarters after it has taken place. Ask Bush 41, who lost the 1992 election despite very positive economic news at the end of his tenure. Or ask Clinton, who lost Congress despite two years of favorable job-creation numbers. It takes a while for the good economic news to sink in. And when there is no good news — only faked government propaganda — it takes even longer to sink in! People will understand that Obama’s data are a lie. The economy is not some abstract issue. Real people do not depend on changes in the unemployment rate data to gauge their mood. They are more interested in whether they can get a good job themselves. Obama’s attempt to rig the statistics won’t work. Indeed, it is a pathetic attempt. Dick Morris, former advisor to the Clinton administration, is a commentator and author of “Rewriting History.” He is also a columnist for the New York Post and The Hill. His wife, Eileen McGann is an attorney and consultant.

Prayer for today Thank you, God, for your all-inclusive love and for Jesus’ humility as examples of how to relate to others. Amen.

A verse to share How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! I try to count them — they are more than the sand. — Psalm 139:17-18 (NRSV)

Reece Terry publisher rterry@dailycorinthian.com

‘Often wrong but never in doubt’ Standard Oil Com(This continues the pany lower rates for ’Progressive’ legacy shipping their oil. series.) At a time when oth“Often wrong but ers shipped their oil never in doubt” is a in barrels, Standard phrase that summarizes much of what Thomas Oil shipped theirs in was done by PresiSowell tank cars — which required a lot less work dents Theodore RoosColumnist by the railroads than evelt and Woodrow loading and unloadWilson, the two giants of the Progressive era, ing the same amount of oil in barrels. a century ago. Theodore Roosevelt was Their legacy is very much alive today, both in their also morally offended by mindset — including gov- the fact that Standard Oil ernment picking winners created “enormous forand losers in the economy tunes” for its owners “at the and interventionism in for- expense of business rivals.” eign countries — as well as How a business can offer specific institutions created consumers lower prices during the Progressive era, without taking customers such as the income tax and away from businesses that the Federal Reserve System. charge higher prices is a Like so many Progres- mystery still unsolved to the sives today, Theodore Roos- present day, when the very evelt felt no need to study same arguments are used economics before interven- against Wal-Mart. The same preoccupation ing in the economy. He said of “economic issues” that with being “fair” to high“I am not deeply interested cost producers who were in them, my problems are losing customers to lowcost producers has turned moral problems.” For example, he found anti-trust law on its head, it “unfair” that railroads for generations after the charged different rates to Progressive era. Although different shippers, reaching anti-trust laws and policies the moral conclusion that have been rationalized as these rates were discrimi- ways of keeping monopolies natory and should be for- from raising prices to conbidden “in every shape and sumers, the actual thrust of anti-trust activity has more form.” It never seemed to occur often been against busito TR that there could be nesses that charged lower valid economic reasons for prices than their competithe railroads to charge the tors.

Theodore Roosevelt’s anti-trust attacks on low-price businesses in his time were echoed in later “fail trade” laws, and in attacks against “unfair” competition by the Federal Trade Commission, another agency spawned in the Progressive era. Woodrow Wilson’s Progressivism was very much in the same mindset. Government intervention in the economy was justified on grounds that “society is the senior partner in all business.” The rhetorical transformation of government into “society” is a verbal sleightof-hand trick that endures to this day. So is the notion that money earned in the form of profits requires politicians’ benediction to be legitimate, while money earned under other names apparently does not. Thus Woodrow Wilson declared: “If private profits are to be legitimized, private fortunes made honorable, these great forces which play upon the modern field must, both individually and collectively, be accommodated to a common purpose.” And just who will decide what this common purpose is and how it is to be achieved? “Politics,” according to Wilson, “has to deal with and harmonize” these various forces. In other words, the gov-

ernment — politicians, bureaucrats and judges — are to intervene, second-guess and pick winners and losers, in a complex economic process of which they are often uninformed, if not misinformed, and a process in which they pay no price for being wrong, regardless of how high a price will be paid by the economy. If this headstrong, busybody approach seems familiar because it is similar to what is happening today, that is because it is based on fundamentally the same vision, the same presumptions of superior wisdom, and the same kind of lofty rhetoric we hear today about “fairness.” Wilson even used the phrase “social justice.” Woodrow Wilson also won a Nobel Prize for peace, like the current president — and it was just as undeserved. Wilson’s “war to end wars” in fact set the stage for an even bigger, bloodier and more devastating Second World War. But, then as now, those with noble-sounding rhetoric are seldom judged by what consequences actually follow. Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305. His website is www.tsowell.com.

Why Houston’s beautiful voice is gone and urge people to The media have reject narcotics is no bleepin’ clue how considered uncool. to cover the death of How many young Whitney Houston. performers do we That’s because she see doing public serwas slowly dying for vice announcements years and many in the Bill warning children to press simply averted O’Reilly avoid intoxication? their eyes. Right now, I can’t It was ultra-disThe O’Reilly turbing that a beauFactor think of one. The national metiful woman blessed dia pride themselves with an extraordinary singing voice chose a self- on being non-judgmental destructive path in full view unless you are against of the world. I mean, here is abortion. Then you are disa person who signed a $100 missed as “anti-woman” or million recording contract, as a religious zealot. But in actually sold 170 million the arena of personal bealbums and commanded havior, there’s an excuse for high six figures to deliver a just about every nonviolent 90-minute concert. Hous- activity and bad decision. There is no question that ton was a genuine international star, and yet she often some of us have a history was seen in public dishev- of addiction in our families. eled and confused, her sub- There are folks who can use stance addiction apparent. drugs casually and avoid The media simply did not dependence, but they are the exception. know what to say. Once a person decides to We live in a time in which addiction is categorized as dabble in cocaine, or opia disease, and to do what ates such as heroin and Nancy Reagan once did OxyContin, they are putting

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themselves at grave risk. And they know it. There are legions of famous people who wound up dead just like Houston. From Elvis Presley to Michael Jackson, the signposts are impossible to miss. No matter how rich and powerful you are, drugs can and will destroy you. The current medical marijuana ruse is a great example of a society walking away from a responsible position. Ask any drug rehab counselor, and he or she will tell you that pot often leads a person to harder drug use and is mentally addictive itself. Yes, most people can function while stoned. But the more you alter your mind the more your perspective on life changes. Believe me, I know people who get stoned or drunk every day. They become incredibly desensitized to those around them. On the kid front, the situation is dire. Once a child

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enters the world of intoxication, their childhood is gone. Presto, they are jaded. That’s how dangerous drugs and alcohol are to immature minds. Society has an obligation to protect its children, not to tacitly accept or embrace mind-altering agents such as marijuana. Houston, however, was an adult who made a decision to embrace the drug life. Reports say she tried to rehabilitate herself a few times, but you know how that goes. Once a person enters the hell of addiction, there is no easy way out. And that’s how the Whitney Houston story should be covered. As a cautionary tale. Another life vanquished by substance abuse. Veteran TV news anchor Bill O’Reilly is host of the Fox News show “The O’Reilly Factor” and author of the book “Pinheads and Patriots: Where You Stand in the Age of Obama.”

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Editorials represent the voice of the Daily Corinthian. Editorial columns, letters to the editor and other articles that appear on this page represent the opinions of the writers and the Daily Corinthian may or may not agree.

Daily Corinthian • Saturday, February 18, 2012 • 5

6 pardoned by Barbour after Parole Board said no BY EMILY PETTUS Associated Press

JACKSON — The Mississippi Parole Board recommended against 16 inmates’ requests for pardons before they were given full pardons by Republican Haley Barbour during his final days as governor, according to a nonpartisan legislative watchdog group. The Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review examined Barbour’s pardons at the request of Democratic Rep. Cecil Brown of Jackson. Brown released the PEER findings on Thursday, although PEER itself did not issue a report. Barbour, who once con-

sidered a 2012 presidential run, pardoned 198 people shortly before ending his second term as governor Jan. 10, including four convicted killers and a convicted robber who had worked as Governor’s Mansion trusties. He also granted 13 medical releases, one suspension of sentence; one conditional, indefinite suspension of sentence; and one conditional clemency. Barbour said in January that 189 of the people he pardoned were already out of prison, and some had completed their sentences years ago. PEER found that the 16 rejected by the Parole Board but pardoned by Barbour had been convicted of crimes ranging from

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methamphetamine possession to murder, Brown said Thursday. It also found that in 13 of the 16 cases, the Parole Board voted unanimously to reject the inmate’s request for a pardon. In the vast majority of cases examined by The Associated Press, the Parole Board did recommend a pardon, though sometimes by a split vote. Parole Board members did not immediately return calls seeking comment Thursday. State law does not require a governor to follow Parole Board recommendations in granting pardons. Several lawmakers this year, including Brown, are proposing such a requirement, along with other possible changes

to the gubernatorial pardon power. Democratic Rep. David Baria wants to ban any governor from issuing a pardon during the final 90 days in office. Brown said PEER found that files for five of those pardoned could not be located. AP reported Jan. 25 that pardon files are missing or don’t exist for the five mansion trusties who were pardoned and released. Barbour’s lawyers said in court records that there are no files containing the Barbour’s reasons for pardoning the trusties, and that the trusties have “in a sense ‘living files”’ through observations of Barbour and his staff. Barbour has said his Christian faith teaches re-

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that there is proper documentation of all the relevant facts.” Attorney General Jim Hood, the lone Democrat in statewide office, filed a lawsuit challenging the validity of Barbour’s pardons. Hood says some of the people who received pardons failed to fulfill a public-notice requirement. Section 124 of the Mississippi Constitution says that a person seeking a pardon must publish notice of that their intent for 30 days in a newspaper in or near the county where the crime occurred.

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6 • Saturday, February 18, 2012 • Daily Corinthian

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