| Friday, October 12, 2018 |
| Barrier islands absorb impact from hurricanes | |
 | Mississippi State's Anna Linhoss writes for The Conversation: When storms like Hurricane Michael make landfall, the first things they hit often are barrier islands -- thin ribbons of sand that line the US Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It's hard to imagine how these narrow strips can withstand such forces, but in fact, many of them have buffered our shores for centuries. Barrier islands protect about 10 percent of coastlines worldwide. When hurricanes and storms make landfall, these strands absorb much of their force, reducing wave energy and protecting inland areas. Many barrier islands have been developed into popular tourist destinations, including North Carolina's Outer Banks and South Carolina's Hilton Head and Kiawah. Islands that have been preserved in their natural state can move with storms, shifting their shapes over time. But many human activities interfere with these natural movements, making the islands more vulnerable. |
| County Road 11: Templeton Music Museum at Mississippi State | |
 | The Charles H. Templeton Music Museum on the Mississippi State campus in Starkville showcases a collection of musical instruments, recordings and sheet music amassed over several generations. It's featured on County Road 11. According to its mission statement, the Templeton Museum's goal is to tell a story about the business of music, the moods music generates, and the influence it has on today's society. "It's divided into three parts," said Lynda Graham, the events coordinator for the MSU library. The first part is the players. There's 200 players in the collection. The second is the playable art. There's over 13,000 pieces of paper rolls, cylinders, and vinyls. The third part is sheet music." |
| Three area teams to compete in BEST robotics challenge; RoboJackets seek 7th state title | |
 | When Camille Smith started her junior year of high school, she knew she wanted to help the environment. But it wasn't until she joined the robotics team that she decided to become an environmental engineer. Smith, 16, joined the Starkville High School's RoboJackets team because of her friend. Now, she works on the marketing team to sell her robot to a panel of judges during the state competition at Mississippi State University Oct. 19-20. Smith also serves as the "field scientist" during the robotics matches by collecting rubber ducks and sea turtles the SHS robot catches during the competition. She said finding a place on the team wasn't as difficult as she first imagined. The RoboJackets have participated in BEST for the past eight years -- winning six state and two Southeast regional competitions in that span. |
| Higher tax withholdings point to more jobs filled; Mississippi sectors index shows gains | |
 | The value of an index tracking Mississippi's key business sectors rose a full 1 percent in August, maintaining an upward trend that began five months ago, state economists said in the October "Mississippi Business Report." The growth in value tracked in the Mississippi Lead Index, or MLI, occurred in all sectors other than manufacturing, said Corey Miller, Business Report author and economic analyst for the University Research Center of the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning. And even with manufacturing, the Mississippi Manufacturing Employment Intensity Index showed its first growth in a half year, according to Miller's report. Most of the sector gains are homegrown, a plus for self-sustaining growth, Miller said. |
| Stocks Regain Ground After Selloff | |
 | U.S. markets opened with a bounce on Friday morning, as major indexes rose more than 1%, calming jittery investors who had been weighing whether this week's deep selloff was the beginning of a broader downturn or simply a two-day blip. Equity markets around the world this week have suffered the biggest shakeout since February on concerns around the steep rise in bond yields, higher oil prices and escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China. New data released on Thursday showed consumer prices rose less than anticipated last month, allaying fears that the Fed would be begin increasing rates more quickly. The consumer-price index rose 0.1% in September after rising 0.2% in August. Meanwhile, news that the U.S. Treasury Department next week is expected to find that China isn't manipulating the yuan raised hopes that a further escalation in trade tensions may be averted. But some analysts remained concerned that the conflict over trade will continue to ebb and flow in the coming weeks and months. |
| Gaming group transformed Isle of Capri, and now they've bought an Irish-themed casino in Tunica | |
 | Most of the members of Foundation Gaming Group in Gulfport worked together to transform the Isle of Capri from two riverboats in Biloxi to one of the major casino companies in the country. About a decade ago they formed Foundation Gaming and began advising others in the casino industry. Now these Gulfport executives operate two of their own Mississippi casinos as Foundation Gaming & Entertainment. In late August, with Mississippi one of only five states to offer sports betting and a new interstate creating opportunity, they purchased Fitz Casino & Hotel in Tunica. Known as Fitzgerald's when it opened in 1994, the resort sits on 50 acres along the Mississippi River. It has a 500-room hotel, indoor pool, a pet play area, a 38,000-square-foot casino, three restaurants and an event center that recently hosted concerts by Dionne Warwick and Keith Sweat. Sports betting will start there in about a month, said Les McMackin, chief operations and marketing officer for Foundation Gaming. |
| Higher taxes on hybrid, electric cars draw attention | |
 | Some drivers of hybrids and electric vehicles have been alarmed to discover that the state legislature without much fanfare imposed a tax increase on these vehicles during a special session in August. The Department of Revenue has mailed notices to drivers with vehicles subject to what the department calls "a new annual tax." Electric vehicles are now subject to additional taxes of $150 each year. Hybrid vehicles are subject to $75 of additional taxes each year. Beginning in 2021 and every year following, the amount of the tax for each category of vehicle is to increase by an amount equal to U.S. inflation during the previous year. Despite very wide margins of support in the state House and Senate, some critics emerged. State Sen. Chris McDaniel, from Ellisville, is running for U.S. Senate and highlighted the issue this week on his Twitter account. He pointed to his vote against the infrastructure spending package and reiterated his opposition to the new taxes on hybrid and electric vehicles. |
| Following the money: How Mississippi Senate candidates are spending campaign cash | |
| In the heart of southwest Jackson, obscured amidst fast food chains, a Walmart, an elementary school and a nursing home, whirs one of the most important institutions in Mississippi politics. Located just off U.S. Highway 18, A2Z Printing is housed in a white one-story building. In the past few years, the print shop has been hired by most Mississippi U.S. Senate campaigns to print posters, yard signs, lapel stickers, direct mail, postcards, fundraising letters, fans and other campaign materials. Of the major-party candidates on the ballot this November, only state Sen. Chris McDaniel, R-Ellisville, and Tobey Bartee of Gautier has hired A2Z, campaign-finance records show. But Allen Taheri, cofounder of A2Z, makes it clear that they don't see Democratic blue or Republican red -- just dollar green. In all, campaigns have spent $64,546 at Taheri's shop during the current cycle, according to records. |
| David Baria: 'I'm Running Against Roger Wicker, Not Donald Trump' | |
| In what his campaign calls an "aggressive statewide ad campaign," Mississippi House Minority Leader David Baria, D-Bay St. Louis, announced a five-figure television ad buy for his U.S. Senate campaign Wednesday. In the 30-second ad, which is set to begin airing on local stations across Mississippi on a date to be announced, Baria seeks to make it clear that his campaign is against the incumbent Republican senator---not the president. "I'm running for the Senate against Roger Wicker, not Donald Trump," Baria says, standing in a room of supporters. "I'll support the president when he's helping our state, like rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, but I'll oppose the president if he's hurting Mississippi, like starting a trade war that's costing our shipyards and farmers." |
| Apathy, distrust run deep for south Mississippi voters | |
| Vern Smith chuckled as he chewed on the butt of a burned out cigar and cast a line into the Escatawpa River from a dock at the Moss Point Community Center. Smith, a 65-year-old resident of Gautier, recently retired as an electrician at Huntington-Ingalls, the shipbuilding megacorporation a few miles south of where he fished on a late September afternoon. Right before he cast his line, he was asked if he followed politics much. "I try to stay away from politics because to be a politician, you've got to be a good liar," said Smith, who caught two fish during an 18-minute interview. Mississippi Today sent reporters to all corners of the state to ask citizens about the most important issues in their communities. In six of the southernmost counties of the state, a large number of people we interviewed were largely unfamiliar with the candidates and only vaguely aware that the midterms are approaching. |
| President Trump, Joe Biden head for Kentucky -- for a 2020 preview? | |
 | Sure, they're in Kentucky to campaign for other people. But President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden will provide a preview of a potential 2020 presidential race as they appear in the state to urge voters in their parties to turn out next month in a hotly-contested congressional race. Biden, who will attend a fish fry and rally in Owingsville on Friday with Democratic House challenger Amy McGrath, earlier this week didn't rule out challenging Trump in 2020. In a speech in London, he didn't mention Trump by name but warned that "democracy, freedom, and openness" is under threat from what he called "phony nationalism, populism, and xenophobia" in many western democracies. Trump, who will campaign in Richmond on Saturday for Rep. Andy Barr, R-Kentucky, McGrath's opponent, has called his potential challengers "real beauties" and dubbed Biden "One Percent Biden" for his lackluster performance in previous presidential bids. |
| Kanye West delivers jaw-dropping show in Oval Office | |
 | Live from the Oval Office, it's Kanye West with a jaw-dropping performance. The rapper didn't rap. But, seated across from President Donald Trump at the Resolute Desk, the musician delivered a rambling, multipart monologue Thursday that touched on social issues, hydrogen planes, mental health, endorsement deals, politics and oh so much more. Seizing the spotlight from the typically center-stage president, West dropped the F-word, floated policy proposals and even went in for a hug. It was a surreal scene even by the standards of a non-conventional White House. West's mental health has been a question of speculation since he was hospitalized in 2016. In a bizarre performance last month on "Saturday Night Live" he delivered an unscripted pro-Trump message after the credits rolled. |
| Michelle Obama Wanted Democrats to 'Go High.' Now They Aren't So Sure. | |
 | In 2016, Michelle Obama's words became the Democrats' defining creed to counter Donald J. Trump's battering ram of a presidential campaign: "When they go low, we go high." Two years later, the appeal of "high" seems low. As much as any policy tensions or messaging debate within the party, this question of tone -- of how to combat Mr. Trump effectively without slipping into a pale imitation -- is perhaps the central divide of this Democratic moment (and the next one, with the 2020 campaign looming). How will Democrats choose to revise Mrs. Obama's sentence, with Mr. Trump heaving insults from the White House and the rally stage -- his pre-midterm bully pulpit? Few but Mrs. Obama seemed inclined to defend the original refrain. "Fear," Mrs. Obama told NBC on Thursday, "is not a proper motivator. Hope wins out." But for many Democrats, it does not seem to be winning out, at least for now. |
| Mexico Beach, Florida wiped out by 'apocalyptic' Hurricane Michael | |
| The small Gulf Coast community of Mexico Beach was known as a slice of Old Florida. Now it lies in splinters. Hit head-on by Hurricane Michael, homes in this town of about 1,190 people were shattered or ripped from their foundations. Boats were tossed like toys. The streets closest to the water looked as if a bomb had gone off. What the 9-foot storm surge didn't destroy, the 155 mph winds finished off. Now, rescuers and residents are struggling to get into the ground-zero town to assess the damage and search for the hundreds of people believed to have stayed behind. John Humphress, a storm chaser and drone pilot, arrived in Mexico Beach around 5 p.m. Wednesday, a few hours after Michael slammed into the coastline. He had one word to describe what he saw: "Apocalyptic." State officials said 285 people in Mexico Beach had refused to leave ahead of the hurricane despite a mandatory evacuation order. |
| Sociologists' report finds bias concerns on U. of Mississippi campus | |
 | Four sociology professors published a report titled "Microaggressions at the University of Mississippi" earlier this week. This report stems from the UM Race Diary Project, which examined almost 1,400 diary entries written by students during the 2014-2015 academic year about their observations of racism, misogyny, homophobia and other discrimthinatory behaviors on- and off-campus. According to associate professor of sociology and African-American studies Kirk Johnson, it was his wife, associate professor of sociology and anthropology Willa Johnson's, idea to conduct the study. She felt the best way to go about the study would be to go to students who encounter discrimination issues everyday. Willa Johnson said the worst thing people could think is, through this study, she and the other professors wanted to destroy the place they've worked in for years. "It's not about that. It's about building up not tearing down," Willa said. |
| Southern Foodways Alliance convenes 21st annual symposium at UM | |
| Kicking off with a Thursday cocktail hour on the grounds of Rowan Oak, the Southern Foodways Alliance will bring writers, thinkers, artists and eaters from all over the South to Oxford this weekend. The nonprofit organization documents, studies and explores the diverse foodways of the changing American South. A member-supported organization based at the University of Mississippi's Center for the Study of Southern Culture, SFA collects oral histories, produces films and podcasts, publishes great writing, sponsors scholarship, mentors students and stages events throughout the year that serve as progressive and inclusive catalysts for the greater South. The 2018 symposium explores Food and Literature, employing a broad definition of the latter that spans modern soap operas, menu narratives, novels, poetry and narrative song cycles. |
| U. S. Surgeon General visits Tougaloo College | |
| Tougaloo College celebrated the 20th anniversary of the George A. and Ruth B. Owens Health, Wellness and Human Resources Center Wednesday night, with an appearance by the United States Surgeon General. Vice Admiral Jerome Adams was meeting with mayors around Mississippi about his public education campaign to combat the opioid abuse crisis; saying his effort is in direct alignment with the Tougaloo College Center's commitment to promoting a healthier Mississippi. "One of my jobs as Surgeon General is to go around the country and find out where folks are doing it right and for twenty years they've been doing it right here at the Owens Center," said Vice Admiral Jerome Adams. "No where in the country are the health statistics as harrowing, but no where are the partnerships as great and that's what we learned about and what we're celebrating today." |
| Accountability grades approved for most, but not all Mississippi schools | |
| After delaying the decision for a month, state education officials put the stamp of approval on most district and school grades for the previous school year. Last month the State Board of Education voted to delay approval of statewide accountability ratings so members had more time to examine grades. After about 30 minutes of discussion, the board officially approved them Thursday, with the exception of four schools and one school district. "The SBE will consider grades at its November 8 meeting for the Mississippi School for the Deaf, the Mississippi School for the Blind, the Harrison County Child Development Center, the Pascagoula-Gautier School District's Exceptional School and the Corinth School District after learning more about the provision in the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) that requires all schools and districts receive grades," reads a news release from the Mississippi Department of Education. |
| U.S.-China trade wars are affecting Midwestern farmers, panelists at U. of Missouri say | |
 | Sharon and Ken Schneeberger have seen how the United States' trade fight with China, a country across an ocean and thousands of miles from the Midwest, is altering their lives. Sharon Schneeberger's brother, who's grown cotton and wheat for 40 years in Oklahoma, has seen his crop prices drop by about 20 percent, as global leaders raise the stakes, imposing new tariff hikes on each other's goods. "As he says, 'That's my profit,'" Sharon Schneeberger said. "He is really thinking about what is his next step." For Ken Schneeberger, director of the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources' international programs, he's seen the tension between the U.S. and China stall six Chinese scholars' visas for a scientific cooperation exchange. The Schneebergers were two of dozens that attended a panel of experts and politicians on Thursday night to hear them discuss how U.S.-China relations are affecting the Midwest. The event was sponsored by the American Enterprise Institute at MU, a university branch of the conservative think tank supported by Charles and David Koch. |
| AAUP analysis: About three-quarters of all faculty positions off the tenure track | |
 | Some 73 percent of all faculty positions are off the tenure track, according to a new analysis of federal data by the American Association of University Professors. "For the most part, these are insecure, unsupported positions with little job security and few protections for academic freedom," reads AAUP's "Data Snapshot: Contingent Faculty in U.S. Higher Ed." The report is based on the most recent data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, from 2016. AAUP's report discusses long-standing concerns about the decline of tenure and what that means for academic freedom, as well as the "casualization" of academic labor and the unbundling of the traditional faculty role. But it also provides an up-to-date picture of who is teaching, under what conditions, where. |
| Colleges concerned about high number of low-income students selected for federal aid verification | |
| Many scholarships, grants and other financial assistance given to low-income college students are usually offered on the premise that those students are already receiving federal aid to help pay tuition. But a growing number of colleges are finding more low-income students are being flagged by the Department of Education during the bureaucratic process of verifying income eligibility for federal aid, and that those students are not completing the application process as a result. College administrators are concerned that much-needed aid is being left on the table by frustrated and discouraged students who've given up on the cumbersome process of applying for financial aid. Financial aid experts call this retreat "verification melt," and many college administrators fear their neediest students may ruin their chances of earning college degrees and improving their long-term economic prospects. "How many times does a student or parent have to repeatedly prove they are poor," Michael Bennett, associate vice president of financial assistance services, at St. Petersburg College in Florida, said in an email. |
SPORTS
| No. 24 Mississippi State leans on its elite defense | |
| Mississippi State has welcomed its current off week as a chance to rest, regroup and tinker with an offense that's had its ups and downs through the first six games of the season. The defense has no such worries. It just needs to continue to doing what it has been doing. The 24th-ranked Bulldogs (4-2, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) have the nation's top defense in the country by at least one important measure --- scoring defense. Mississippi State is giving up just 12.7 points per game and has surrendered only seven touchdowns over six games. "Other than wins and losses, points per game is probably the most important statistic," Mississippi State's first-year defensive coordinator Bob Shoop said. "I think we've got a group of guys out there who take great pride in not letting a team in the end zone." |
| Bulldogs get their offensive 'stinger' back | |
| Joe Moorhead was just as befuddled as the Mississippi State fan base when the Bulldogs' offense struggled for two straight weeks. MSU generated just 201 and 202 yards in back-to-back losses to Kentucky and Florida and produced only one touchdown over that stretch. On the Sunday following the loss to the Gators, Moorhead sat down with his offensive staff in an effort to devise a game plan that plays to the Bulldogs' strengths. "As coaches, the first thing you have to do is point the thumb at ourselves because we put the scheme together to make the kids successful," Moorhead said. "We kind of did a personal inventory and evaluated our personnel and our schemes following the Florida game and said this is probably what's best for us moving forward." |
| Mississippi State's Cole Gordon excited about opportunities for 2019 season | |
| If Mississippi State's 2018 baseball season had not ended in Omaha, Cole Gordon might not be a part of the 2019 season. Last year was Gordon's fourth as a Bulldog, a time in which one can get more than enough of college baseball if they so choose. Every player must find a life after baseball at some point, and in the final weeks of MSU's run to the College World Series, Gordon wondered if his time had arrived. Yet, a few months later, he is taking swings in an indoor facility, preparing for one more ride. Gordon's choice to return to the team for 2019 is good news for both a bullpen and a lineup trying to break through for the program's first national championship. MSU concludes fall practice this weekend with its yearly intrasquad world series with scrimmages 4 p.m. Thursday, 7:30 p.m. Friday and 11:30 a.m. Saturday. |
| Bats carry Maroon team to Game 1 victory | |
| Dustin Skelton and Jake Mangum drove in three runs apiece to help the Maroon team beat their White counterparts 9-4 to take Game 1 of the Maroon-White World Series on Thursday afternoon. All nine players in the Maroon lineup had at least one hit and finished the seven-inning scrimmage with 12 total. Anthony Hickman led the Maroon team going 3 for 4 with three singles and an RBI while Benjamin Bell was 2 for 3 with a pair of singles. Skelton hit a solo home run to left field in the bottom of the third inning off White starter Jack Eagan for the Maroon team's only extra-base hit. Josh Hatcher and JT Ginn also added RBIs. Game 2 is schedule for Friday at 7:30 p.m. with junior right-hander Tyler Spring taking the hill for the Maroon team while junior righty Keegan James starts for the White. The fall finale is set for Saturday at 11:30 a.m. regardless of which team wins on Friday. |
| Mississippi State returns to Italy for World University Games | |
| Mississippi State's women's basketball team is returning to Italy for the second straight summer. But this time, Vic Schaefer's Bulldogs will be representing the United States in the Summer World University Games from July 3-12 in Naples. "We are humbled and honored to have the opportunity to represent the United States of America and all that means," Schaefer said. "We will do our very best to take advantage of that opportunity and represent this great country in the most positive way possible. We are going to go over there and compete for a gold medal." MSU will be one of 16 teams from around the world competing at the event and will be just the third full team to ever represent the USA at the event. |
| Bulldogs to represent United States in 2019 World University Games | |
 | This summer, Mississippi State will trade the Maroon & White for the Red, White and Blue as the Bulldogs will represent the United States at the 30th Summer World University Games in Naples, Italy. Mississippi State, the back-to-back NCAA National Finalist and 2018 SEC Champion who has posted a 126-22 record the last four years, was selected to represent USA Team by the United States International University Sports Federation (USIUF). "We are humbled and honored to have the opportunity to represent the United States of America and all that means," Vic Schaefer said. "We will do our very best to take advantage of that opportunity and represent this great country in the most positive way possible. We are going to go over there and compete for a gold medal." The event begins with the opening ceremony on July 3. The basketball portion of the event also begins that day and runs through July 12. Representing USA Team, MSU will be one of 16 women's basketball nations competing in the event. |
| Esports Experience at Texas A&M offers insight into going pro | |
 | Video game fans from Texas A&M, the local community and other universities gathered at Kyle Field's Hall of Champions on Thursday to compete and network as part of the A&M Esports student organization's first Esports Experience. Competitors could bring their own laptops and computer systems from home, or log in to a provided computer for "free play," enjoying popular tournament-friendly games such as League of Legends, Fortnite, Overwatch and NBA2K. Teams also went head-to-head in select tournaments hosted toward the end of the evening's event. Exhibitors and industry professionals were on site to visit with students and other burgeoning gamers, offering advice about the world of esports. A panel was held with some of these professionals, including recent Texas A&M graduates. |
| Louisiana State's $2.5 Million Man Isn't Even the Head Coach | |
| Big-time college football long ago whistled past the pretense that it is not an enormous business. It is a vast, intricate revenue machine whose essential parts require huge amounts of funding. So in Baton Rouge earlier this year, few were surprised by the four-year, $10 million contract extension (and potential modest bonuses) that Louisiana State gave to Dave Aranda, its linebackers coach, associate head coach and defensive coordinator. "There was a battle from Texas A&M; they came after him hard," L.S.U. Coach Ed Orgeron said. "But he likes what we're doing here. He believes we're going to win a championship." The deal kept Aranda, 42, as the highest-paid assistant in college football, with a salary of $2.5 million. "It's not even a blip on the radar screen to keep Dave Aranda," said Dave Landers, a founder and former head of the Tiger Athletic Foundation, an L.S.U. donors' club. "He's worth it." |
| UGA rewards women's basketball coach Joni Taylor with boost in pay, three-year extension | |
 | Georgia has extended women's basketball coach Joni Taylor's contract three years and given her a boost in pay that brings her annual compensation to $750,000. The new deal now runs through April 30, 2024. It comes after a season in which Taylor guided her team to a 26-7 record -- the program's best since 2006-07 -- finished tied for second in the SEC standings, reached the NCAA tournament second round and finished No. 19 in the coaches' poll. "We believe Joni has done an exceptional job leading our program," athletic director Greg McGarity said Thursday. "We're proud of what she's doing, proud of the way she represents us. She's done a tremendous job in the community in terms of a wonderful example for our young women to follow. We couldn't be more proud of the job Joni's done and we feel like these adjustments were a reward for her outstanding work." |
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