News - Friday, June 26, 2009

The Main Street Journal Website

News - Friday, June 26, 2009

MEMPHIS MAYOR WILLIE HERENTON RESIGNS: From WREC AM600, the audio and audio of City Council President Myron Lowery. Raw video of the whole press conference from WMC. The Mayor’s resignation letter. (PDF document) The Commercial Appeal’s real-time blog from Thursday.

The regular news reports: Tri-State Defender, Memphis Business Journal; the Flyer’s John Branston and Jackson Baker; Fox13; WMC, Eyewitness News, WREG, Daily News and the Commercial Appeal.

Early pre-press conference speculation from the Flyer. WREG has compiled an archive of their coverage. What’s next for the mayor. The FBI investigations will still go on.


REACTIONS: Mayor Willie Herenton himself on his legacy and meaning. Former politicians and political observers, from the Flyer. The Fox13 Insiders discuss the man. Joseph Kyles and Mike Fleming live and unedited on the breaking news. Regular, everyday people speak out. A wealth of video reports on political reaction from WMC.


Who Will Replace Him? A look at Myron Lowery, from his position as Chairman of the City Council. A breakdown of the special election process, to replace Herenton; price tag could hit $1 million. If Mayor A C Wharton resigns to run for or to become City Mayor, who becomes the interim County Mayor? More on this angle from Eyewitness News and the CA. Some of the issues that will carry over to the next mayor.

The Flyer looks at possible and declared candidates. Fox13 runs down their list. Similar stories from WMC, WREG and the Commercial Appeal. Mayor Herenton discusses the “two titans”.


Bloggers React to the Herenton Resignation: Newscoma, LeftWingCracker, Doug Johnson, Smart City Memphis, Thaddeus Matthews, Tom Guleff, The Daily Docket.


The Herenton Legacy: Les Smith of Fox13 on the change Herenton wrought. How much would the special mayoral election cost? Fox13 compiles a video retrospective. One neighborhood went from LeMoyne Gardens to College Park. A collection of photos from the Commercial Appeal of Mayor Herenton through the years.


NEW! Main Street Journal : On the Block: Today –Which office holds more power, the 9th U.S. Congressional District or Memphis Mayor?. Mid-South leaders respond.


Politics: US Rep. Steve Cohen delivers an ethnic slur to a Republican testifying before his committee. Dr Brandon Dodds, owner of Dodds Eyecare in Newbern, has announced an independent run for governor. Did Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Haslam play a role in killing the legislation that would allow Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey to raise money during legislative sessions?

More of the bills Governor Phil Bredesen has signed into law here and here. He signed the State budget yesterday.


Orpheum Theatre: The run of Broadway’s Wicked is expected to bring $7 million to the Memphis economy. Orpheum website.


ESL: A look at the Shelby County Schools’ efforts to teach English to an increasingly diversified district.


Tennessee: For those of you traveling north this weekend, the TN Highway Patrol is holding sobriety checkpoints in Dyer County today. Another city, Martin in this case, is offering a municipal prescription drug plan to citizens.


Playhouse on the Square: A sold out performance this Saturday of Rent is a fundraiser for the Hope House. There will also be a silent auction.


Bartlett: The storms of two weeks ago actually generated more debris for the city than did Hurricane Elvis six years ago!


40 Watt Moon: A novelty song by the Memphis band about Squawk Box host Becky Quick got them some national attention! Watch the video here.


Real Estate: National new home sales fall .6%. While still low, mortgage rates are rising.


Millington: The city, along with Millington City Beautiful, will be opening a recycling center.


NEW! Main Street Journal June Issue: An online-only special from Joe Saino, the Memphis Watchdog: The Budget Farce in Memphis and Shelby County. Now online from our June issue: Michael Roy Hollihan’s Red State, Blue State; on the proof that TN is a conservative state.

You can peruse the Table of Contents and read County Commissioner George Flinn’s suggestion, How to Use the Pyramid and Jonathan Devin’s feature, Breaking Ground: How building projects in Shelby County are progressing despite the economy.


City of Memphis: From the Tri-State Defender, a profile of CFO and director of the Memphis Division of Housing and Community Development Robert Lipscomb.


Orange Alert! Don’t forget, during today’s code orange air pollution alert, all city bus and trolley rides are just 25 cents. More in the Commercial Appeal. MATA website.
 


Unemployment: The unemployment rate for Memphis during May was higher at 9.6%; more in the Daily News and the Commercial Appeal. State report on umemployment for May here. In related business news, the Federal Reserve Bank’s Burgundy Report is out and the news is still gloomy.


FedEx: Eight states have asked the company to properly classify their drivers. More from the CA.


Shelby County Election Commission: More on the new majority-Republican commission’s efforts to bring openness to the office. County Commissioner Steve Mulroy is urging the Election Commission to move quickly to replace optical scan voting machines with those leaving paper audit trails.


Main Street Journal: A luncheon, held with Teen Challenge and Center Aisle Leaders, had as keynote speaker Tom Phillips, whose company gave over $2 million to various non-profits last year!


Delta Air Lines: Credit rating agency Fitch’s has downgraded the airline to B-.


Small Business Chamber: Incoming executive director Andre K. Fowlkes is profiled by the Daily News.
 


Mississippi: The state’s unemployment rate is 9.6%. Governor Haley Barbour abruptly rejected a call from US Congressional Reps. to not divert money from a Hurricane Katrina housing project. A look at what services might be cut or curtailed if the State’s budget isn’t passed in time.


Business: YRC Worldwide hopes to enter contract negotiations with the Teamsters next week. If the electric vehicle plant proposed for Tunica actually met those projections, it would singlehandedly meet all US need!

People in Business, from the CA.


Good Morning Memphis: The Mid-South Health Fair is family health fun. Upcoming shows, and more, all free, at the Levitt Shell. Street Reach is a program in North Memphis helping to stop violence. Advice on auto accidents. The National Civil Rights Museum is holding a conference on the Guantanomo prison’s future. The Memphis Zoo has a number of ongoing Summer events. If you’re a running addict, here’s some advice.


Ghost River Brewing: Not even a year old and already expanding.


Center City Commission: More on the body’s change of marketing direction.


DeSoto County: The Site Selection Committee’s first choice for a new County jail site is … the present jail site. More on that from WMC. Another Tea Party protest is planned for Hernando on July 4th. A reminder to Horn Lake residents: debris removal is free!


Circuit Court Judge Lorrie Ridder: The Daily News reports from her swearing-in ceremony.


Stanford Financial Group: R. Allen Stanford pleads not guilty. More from WMC.
 
 


University of Memphis: They are now offering an online MBA program beginning this Fall.


Ruby Wilson: An update on the Queen of Beale Street’s recovery from a stroke.


Alliance for Non-Profit Excellence: April Carson, of the Alliance for Justice will speak Tuesday at a workshop on advocacy.



Picture of the Day

Packing light, from 16 Balls in the Air by Em. © 2009.


Opinion and Blogs

Joy’s Life and Times: Travelling to East TN for her Ironman training; a graph of something training related.


Kenneth S. Robinson: The motive for the charter school expansion push in the Legislature was rescuing children from failing schools. (via the Commercial Appeal)


BEEB: A report from the Malco Kidfest movie experience for kids.


Click (Daily): An anniversary in Oxford, in mysterious photos.


Cwabs! A great but not-thought-out idea. A humorous but slightly naughty picture.


joelarkins: Two celebrity farewells and a newpaper reporter shoutout.


Xspectre8: Amid the many celebrity deaths today, he notes the passing of a true hero, “Shifty” Powers.


Otis L. Sanford: A quick rundown of recent mayoral elections in Memphis and a prediction of “chaos” to come. (via the Commercial Appeal)


Scribblescrawl: It’s been one hectic news day, so here’s a cut cat. Also, Project 365: The Lazy Version debuts.


Wendi C. Thomas: She remembers Michael Jackson. She joins the ranks of those who fear for their jobs.


theology & geometry: It’s all funny until someone gets hurt and the lawsuits fly! Early moviegoing experiences.


Squeaky Wheel Seeks Grease: The bad health news grows worse.


Smart City Memphis: Taking apart Bobby Webb’s arguments against charter schools.


The Chubby Vegetarian: He was interviewed by the Daily Helmsman. And, a recipe for a Mexican-styled duck egg scramble.
 


Rustmeister’s Alehouse: A reminder of the upcoming Tea Party protest, July 4th.


Ask Myron: Can you fit Memphis soul into a violin? (via the Tri-State Defender)


Ramblings of a River City Resident: Her beloved Lolo is 88 now, and a bit wobbly on her feet.


Commercial Appeal: It’s “springtime for Memphis” as the count down the days until Herenton is gone.


Wendi C. Thomas: Don’t plan your Herenton party until he’s actually, assuredly gone. Mayor Herenton’s Crazyland. (via the Commercial Appeal)


Pretty in Pink Megan: Making a new house a home — with plates.


Persian Pit Bull: Don’t give a blogger bad food. And, pictures from a Michael Jackson concert she attended years ago. Lastly, four very brief movie reviews.


Paul Ryburn’s Journal: The usual this’n'that about Downtown. Oh, and he’s in the paper!


Doug Johnson: A two-fer post: Why you never, ever give bad customer service to a blogger and thoughts on speed stops.


Notes from Memphis: Did anyone else catch the Bagpipe Busker?


LeftWing Cracker: Meet the next governor of TN: Mabel.