August 5th Election: Shelby County Election Commission’s chairman, Bill Giannini, provides a detailed response to charges and allegations levelled by the Shelby County Democratic Party. The Flyer’s Jackson Baker reports the back-and-forth of the County Commission’s effort to adopt a new “whistleblowers resolution”.

The Wharton Administration: Report from Mayor A C Wharton’s latest virtual town hall meeting via the CA . A Roadmap for Recovery lays out the problems and proposed solutions for the troubled General Services Division. The Commercial Appeal speculates if Wharton will face troubles that have brought down some other black mayors.

Downtown: After a pair of attacks, more real time cameras were installed Downtown.

DeSoto County: After getting a proposal from The Bass Federation, County schools are considering competitive fishing as part of the curriculum. The new director for Olive Branch Olde Towne, Bettie Puckett, starts Friday. Southaven police are cracking down on out-of-state tags; more from WREG. The County has issued a burn ban. Southaven starts RecycleBank this week. The Breastival is a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society.

Bartlett: Aldermanic candidate Paula Sedgwick says she misunderstood a statement from Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Haslam in claiming he was endorsing her. Bartlett police support the ban on texting while driving.

Mid-South Fair: This, like the recent Delta Fair, is getting much less media coverage this year.

Business: A business profile of Service Assurance, an IT and data storage company, in the Commercial Appeal.

The Commercial Appeal tells you What to Do. Today’s Events in the Daily News.

FedEx: One of the strategies in the company’s drive for double-digit growth in profits appears to be an increase in prices. More from the Daily News.

Delta Air Lines: Their flight attendants are voting on unionisation.

AutoZone: They announced they were buying back another $500 million in stock.

Real Estate: CB Richard Ellis will take over leasing and marketing of seven well-known Parkway Properties buildings.

Mississippi: Candidates for a new mascot for Ole Miss have been narrowed to three. You’ll be able to see the candidates here next Wednesday. State Rep. John Mayo (D-Clarksdale) is calling on President Obama to end America’s involvement in the war in Afghanistan. Middle-school students are being taught how to handle bullying. Immigration activists are calling on the State not to adopt an immigration law similar to Arizona’s.

Governor’s Race: Both candidates — Republican Bill Haslam and Democrat Mike McWherter — say they support mass transit around the state, but only once State revenues rise to support it. Haslam gets a surprise labor endorsement and a no-surprise endorsement from the National Federation of Independent Business.

National Urban League: They celebrated their centennial on Wednesday.

Financial: Local banks aren’t having any major problems, but neither are they prospering yet.

NEW! Main Street Journal Article: Senior writer Michael Roy Hollihan takes a survey of what’s to come with Redistricting and the November Elections.

NEW! Main Street Journal Book Review: Publisher and Editor in Chief Jonathan Lindberg reviews Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition by Daniel Okrent, on the failed American experiment and its lasting legacy.

Metro Charter Skepticism: Hank V. Savitch is the Brown and Williamson Distinguished Research Professor at the University of Louisville’s Urban & Public Affairs department. He’s also a skeptic with first hand experience of consolidation. He sent along the following articles for Shelby Countians to read, which take a “hard look” at Louisville’s change, to counter the arguments put forth by Rebuild Government: Beyond the Rhetoric: Lessons From Louisville’s Consolidation; Suburbs Without a City; and, Governing Metropolitan Regions in the 21st Century. Not light reading, but vital for skeptics of the proposed Metro charter!

Memphis City Schools: TCAP scores are being released and the results are, indeed, shocking.

Memphis City Council: More on the new spay/neuter law that was passed. And WMC on the new “Midtown Overlay” zoning guidelines; another report from the Daily News. The reworked MCS budget resolution has been sent to the State.

Shelby County Schools: Questions of ethics and conflict of interest in the resignation of school board member Teresa Price and her immediate hiring as a teacher by the system.

Spay/Neuter: If you are looking to comply with the City’s new spay/neuter law, here are some options. More from Eyewitness News, the Daily News. A story about an animal dumping ground in Hickory Hills.

Tennessee: Overgrown medians on the interstates are one consequence of tight State budgets. The State Senate hearings into the TN Board of Regents continue; they admit they could have handled the appointment of John Morgan better. Governor Phil Bredesen announced the replacement Regents; the State press release. He also announced $3.5 million in park and recreation grants.

Bugs: The sudden drop in temeratures this week means flying bugs are looking for new, warmer homes, like your house.

Memphis Habitat for Humanity: How various companies approach their commitment to build these homes.

Politics: A lawyer for Roy Herron, the Democratic candidate in the US Eighth Congressional District race has filed a formal complaint with the Federal Election Commission over a quarter-million dollar loan Republican candidate Stephen Fincher took. Herron’s youngest son sends out a campaign donation letter. Independent candidate Donn Janes talked to UT-Martin students this week.

Mid-South Tea Party leader Mark Skoda and Shelby County Democratic Party Chairman Van Turner talk Tea Party.

Shelby County Greenline: It hasn’t even been officially opened and already it’s a huge hit.

Arkansas: Lawyers for Damien Echols, one of the infamous West Memphis Three, will appear before the State Supreme Court to argue for a new trial; more from Fox13, WREG. A Federal grant worth $1.2 million will help seniors and their families navigate new health care options.

The Conservative Zone: Your Thomas Jefferson quote for the day. And he’ll be spending his weekend… gaming!

Steve’s Nude Memphis Blog: A long and funny rant on current politics, if you’re not liberal or Democratic.

Secret Agent Mom: She prepping for the Race for the Cure and starting from scratch.

Ramblings of the Mad Cow: This Sunday marks the end of WWI. Not a memorial event, but the actual end.

North Mississippi Commentor: He think Tea Party people are too ignorant to bother discussing things with.

moody redhead: It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Yeah, in September.

MemphisShelbyInform: How much does the City of Memphis’ legal bill run to? You probably don’t want to know.

Lean Left: A rant on experimentation in public education.

Just A Girl in the World: She’s beginning to realise that guys will always try for the easy way out when it comes to sex and dating.

16 Balls in the Air: No Elvis this Halloween. One of Mom’s many duties is teaching style. Why her family doesn’t have a dog.

Wendi C. Thomas: She goes after another of her hobby horses: organised religion. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Because I Said So: On playgrounds and fine weather.

Commercial Appeal: Hoping that new-style public housing will mean new-style behaviors from the tenants. Kudos for the new spay/neuter oridinance.

Confessions of a West Tennessee Liberal: BLIGHTWATCH continues to track down properties and their owners in Orange Mound.