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EDITORIALEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

J.B. ST. JOHNstjohnjb@realstorypublishing.com

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THE REAL STORYP. O. Box 403

Columbus, MS 39703

Editorial 662.497.2914Advertising 662.574.3893

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by Joseph B. St. JohnEditor-in-ChiefEditor’sNote

In a world where it's okay to slander thepoor and the "innocent, until provenguilty”, the question remains: why doesthe government get a free pass? ere areno mug shots of the corporate/govern-ment officials who steal from the taxpay-ers and neglect their duties as publicservants. ere are no "Most Wanted" pic-tures of government officials who run updebt, then run out of town, leaving you,the tax payer, holding the bills.

Nope, but have your girlfriend call thePD on you and you're on the front page ofthe paper, bent over "the ol' squad car",with that "I am not having a good day"look on your face. And, that it is the stateof media in "THE USA TODAY" (all duerespect to Hank, Jr.)

We are tantalized by the "public stock-ade" mentality that beats down the poor,the disenfranchised and the unfortunate.We love to shame the underprivileged. Itmakes us feel better about ourselves.

But, what about the government - thosepeople who are elected and hired to pro-tect, serve and answer to the community?ey should have an active watchdog onthem, every day. No questions asked.

And, the media plays that role, everyday. It is the only reason that the mediaexists. Plain and simple. No other rea-son!

We are the "Watchdogs." e commu-nity owes it to themselves to stand up andbe counted. ere should be a "no B.S."directive toward the government, fromthe media and citizens. No holds barred.We, the media, are not, never should be,and never will be a friend of the govern-ment.

Almost every important "newsmaker" inour community, in one way or another,makes their living off the taxpayers’ sweat.So, none of them are doing anyone a favor,when they do their job. As a matter offact, it should be expected.

e City of Columbus has either offi-cially or unofficially enacted a "don't talkto the media" mantra to their employees.at's okay, McQueen and Smith. eReal Story has three words for both of you- Open Records Request - and you haveseven business days in which to respond.And, oh by the way, lie about or withhold

anything requested in that paperwork andwe will be at the Attorney Generals officequicker than you can say, "Who, me?What do I know about paving parkinglots?"

Game time is over. e reality is eReal Story is no longer on the ColumbusPolice Department’s Public InformationOfficer list. We have not been sent any-thing from the department in a fewweeks. e paper will live. e walls stilltalk.

So, Columbus public officials - don't getyour feelings hurt when we don't call youfirst, before we do a story. At e RealStory, the tail doesn't wag the dog. Wewill write the story, regardless.

Every organization that you read aboutdaily - whether it is e LINK, theCounty, the City of Columbus, the CCVB,CMSD and all the other organizations -are funded by taxpayers’ money. eseorganizations have a legal obligation toshare how they spend taxpayers’ money.ey are not being nice or polite, if theyshare this information.

In fairness, the County does seem tohave a more open policy and meetings arerun more efficiently. ere are usuallyseveral meetings aer the official meetingto clear up issues with the media and cit-izens. And, this adds an additionalamount of order to the gathering.

However, the question will always re-main, "Should you trust your local gov-ernment?"

Woodrow Wilson said, “Liberty hasnever come from the government. Lib-erty has always come from the subjects ofit. e history of liberty is a history of re-sistance."

It may sound extreme, but we shouldnot let local government move forward,without its every move being questioned.It is not okay to relax and let everythingbe. We have a school system and a citythat are in financial crisis, and we have tohold people accountable and keep peo-ple's feet to the fire to correct the problem.

We also need to support the people whohave to make the tough decisions andmake their organizations fiscally sound.You can't work toward financial stabilityand not have to make tough choices. Inboth the City of Columbus and theCMSD, the checks are due. Now, it's timeto pay the piper. e School district istrying. Let's see what happens at thisyear's City budget planning meeting. Itshould be interesting.

In the end, the government works for itscitizens, but somehow many leaders for-get this concept and think they are abovethe citizens and, in some cases, above thelaw. At e Real Story, we have made thecommitment to stay true to the cause ofwatching the leaders.

An incompetent elected leader is as dan-gerous to you as a petty crook. Using yourposition for personal benefit is as illegalas being a crack dealer. Let's show thesame consistency in worrying about ourleaders, as we do some minor thief. Iknow we are, at e Real Story.

As the great Bob Dylan sang, "Steal a lit-tle and they throw you in jail. Steal a lotand they make you king."

Joseph B. St. JohnMr. MoJo Rising

"WE ARE WATCHING"

Why Everything Matters

Woodrow Wilson said,

“Liberty has never come

from the government.

Liberty has always come

from the subjects of it.

The history of liberty is a

history of resistance.”

Visit OurWeb Site for Our New Polls!

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Chief MoJo, I’ve been busting at theseams wanting to say something, butI was concerned about how you wouldtake it. You being a former chief of po-lice and most everyone knowing yourexperience with the city, I know I was-n’t the only person who wondered,once you announced your intention topursue another path (into journal-ism), how you would handle the twomost important topics in the city atthis time; crime and politics. It wassaid to me many times that you wouldhesitate on both, based on events ofthe past. If you went too easy on thesubjects, you wouldn’t be consideredan effective journalist and couldn’t sellthe product of your efforts. If youlooked to be too harsh on either, thetired old song of “sour grapes” wouldrain down. I have heard that one,many, many times when I have com-mented on local politics.

Until and unless crime is no longera significant problem in our commu-nity, crime will be a front and centerpublic concern. Chief, I really don’tknow how god a journalist you are,and I doubt you are you are that famil-iar with the ins and outs of southernpolitics, but chief, you are a highlytrained law enforcement professional.Your opinion and critique of the nutsand bolts of how our local LE processis functioning can be both enlighten-ing and informative, from a former in-sider’s knowledgeable viewpoint.Make use of that and don’t listen to thevoices, internal or external, trying to

limit your expression of what youknow and what you feel. I’m interestedand I know others are as well.

You’re in a different arena now.ere is absolutely no way you canavoid offending somebody with everyedition, every article and every opin-ion. Just no way, so stop worryingabout it. If I think I can say somethingtech-related that might enlighten orhelp someone, I will do it and thosewho read it will either be interestedenough to check it out or not care forit (or me) and dismiss it. at is onthem. Just say it like you know it andfeel it and let the reader sort it out forthemselves what they are going to dowith it. In other words, you’re a jour-nalist now, don’t hold back. Just myhumble opinion.

-om Geiger

I have great concern that the Lown-des County School Board is going tosupport the unconstitutional law al-lowing prayer in schools. Indeed, theSchool Board was addressing the topicof prayer, and the Board’s support ofthe unconstitutional law that is work-ing its way through the Legislature, inJackson, and is, so far, un-named. It isgoing to be called either “the ReligiousViewpoints Anti-Discrimination Act”(RVADA) or the “Schoolchildren’s Re-ligious Liberties Act” (SRLA). What-ever they call it, it is illegal.

is topic dominated the other "im-

portant" issue addressed during themeeting - the “New Curriculum.” Re-ported by the Commercial Dispatch intheir Saturday, March 10, 2012 editionas “other news,” this little “New Cur-riculum” matter was intended to paylip service to promoting a nationwideeducational standard. Elementary Co-ordinator Dr. Robin Ballard, wasquoted as saying this “New Curricu-lum” concept would “affect every prin-cipal, every child, every parent, everyroom.” Dr. Ballard sounds like a dedi-cated soldier for the County schools,and must have tapped her foot might-ily to play second fiddle to the reli-gious agenda of this board.

is is the sort of legislative soapbox-shouting these elected officialsmust engage in to be re-elected. Whowants an anti-God school boardmember? “Damn the torpedoes, andthe First Amendment to the Constitu-tion (and any child who may worshipanother God), let’s cram Christianitydown their throats at school (or ostra-cize/bully them into it).” School BoardPresident Jane Kilgore says “I thinkthat’s a great idea. God needs to bebrought back into the schools.” eseso-called “free prayer laws” are de-signed to do just that, and any electedBoard member must agree, or face lifeoff of the Board. (ere was one ab-stention in this 4-0 decision - the loneabstention called by name).

When will our school officials puteducation first? When will Mississip-

pians realize that our forefathers andimmigrants today came/come fromdiverse socio-economic and religiousbackgrounds?

India’s population is projected toovertake China’s, soon. In this digitalage, with a world that gets smallerevery day, it seems like our educatorswould promote an education for all ofour citizens, and leave the religion forthe families to enjoy, on whatever re-ligious day their religion desires. Suchmyopic thought as the likes ofRVADA/SRLA imperils the very chil-dren the board is charged with educat-ing and promotes the bigoted agendaof our elected officials.

- A Very Concerned Citizen

Why is it that we hear, every day, thatyet another convicted criminal, eventhe Mayor's son, is allowed on thestreets of Columbus and in possessionof a deadly weapon? And, why did theChief not tell a local media outlet (eCommercial Dispatch)? Would a childof an ordinary citizen get such treat-ment? Or, is this special treatment?

In regard to the bomb threats atColumbus High School, can anyoneelse see that the main problem is kidswith cell phones at the school? Nochild needs a cell phone or iPod atschool. ey are there to learn. Pe-riod! Administrators put up with waytoo much from the students.

- Jim Dierking

Editor’s Note: is is our new forum where you, our readers, canexpress your opinion on a wide variety of topics. Please send comments for this page to rant@realstorypublishing.com.e first entry, below, is the one that prompted this new feature.

e Beauty of SpringAhh…spring in Columbus, Missis-

sippi…could there be anything asgood for the soul as stepping out ofone’s door, into the cool morning sun-shine of the coming day, thick withflowering scents and the pastel colorsof March?

Pilgrimage is around the corner,crappie fishermen are holding springtournaments, and visitors are flockingto our town, in search of discoveryand diversion from routine. Dog-woods, azaleas, and redbuds’ brilliantpurple stand out against the clear bluesky. Renewal is everywhere; evendandelions are welcome, poppingthrough the winter soil and reflectingthe hues of the sun. All around us, ourenvironment is bursting forth, givenas a gi, a visual delight…….

But wait….what’s that eyesore? I’llpretend that I didn’t see it; yeah, ig-nore it! Maybe my visitor didn’t see it…I can only hope. What an embar-rassment on our streets. It’s as bad asan unclean toilet in my house. A neg-ative reflection on us all. Everyoneknows that an unsightly mess in thecorner cancels a houseful of charm,and has a more lasting impact. is isour home.

ere is so much ugliness in life thatwe have no control over-- politics,world affairs, disasters, famine,drought and war-- but we do havecontrol over the environment wherewe live. We spend a lot of money andeffort in Columbus, trying to make it

an attractive and welcoming place, aplace we can be proud of and enjoy.But what some of us strive for, otherssquander and despoil. Why? What’sthe point? Is it carelessness, igno-rance, stupidity, laziness or just a dis-regard for others and the natural

See “SPRING” Pg. 5

Courtesy PhotoLitter along Lincoln Road.

Courtesy PhotoPond on Wilkins-Wise Road.

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AL Enemies of the State

I tried, folks. I tried really hard to take pause, thisweek, and focus on lighter subjects. I even startedanother off-topic article that was going to poke funat silly inventions and gadgets. is tangent frompolitics included things as the Kitty Wig and theMotorized Ice Cream Cone. But, no longer. I leaveyou for seven days and you let the government takeaway your right to protest, the right to complain, theright to confront them on their own grounds andvoice our opinion and concerns. I've voiced my con-cerns about Rep. Lamar Smith. Well, there's anotherbastard in town, and he's been charged with the re-moval of due process and the continued efforts ofsilencing the voice of the people. Who's this? Hisname is omas J. Rooney of Florida.

e most recent act of tyranny proposed byRooney is H.R. 347, or Federal Restricted Buildingsand Grounds Improvement Act of 2011 (FRB). Un-like the snake-in-the-grass approach of our es-teemed Mr. Smith, Rooney likes to be short andsweet. He doesn't mince words, he doesn't mashseveral ideas into one bill, and he certainly doesn'tadvertise his apparent intentions. H.R. 347 removesthe right of the people to protest, and it directly at-tacks part of the reason for the right to bear arms toexist. FRB, if it passes and is enacted, will make it il-legal to "knowingly [enter or remain] in any re-stricted building or grounds without lawfulauthority to do so". Trying to stay positive, perhapsMr. Rooney thinks we are all vampires and that weshouldn't be allowed into his house without beinginvited. Perhaps he thinks we're going to drink hisblood, if we rally in Washington, D.C. against hiswill and the will of tyrants. Perhaps he's crazy. Per-

haps he's exercising a subversive form of legislativeterrorism. You be the judge. Let's hear the voice ofthe people.

But H.R. 347 doesn't stop, there. FRB attempts topunish, for up to ten years and, possibly, a fine, any-one who attempts to "impede or disrupt the orderlyconduct of Government business or official func-tions." Notice that while FRB's very name refers tothe federal government, this second statement doesnothing to distinguish between federal. state, orlocal governments. is is because this is intendedto be a nationwide edict. e name is a red herring.Moreover, FRB creates a terrible synergy with theNational Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) thatwent into effect on March 1st and Rooney's HR 388,Detainee Trials at Gitmo Act (DTGA). On the basis

that poor and vague wording of NDAA allows for in-terpretations and otherwise false reports of terroristactivity, anyone protesting our legislature in Wash-ington can now be shipped off to Guantanamo Bay,without due process, on the grounds that such dis-ruption is indicative of terrorist activity.

We're all just so sorry, Mr. Rooney; if the voice ofthe people is such a terrible inconvenience for youand your buddies who voted 383-3 in favor of thisstinker of a bill. But, we have a history of being stub-born and loud. It's called democracy. You should tryit sometime, Mr. Rooney. I remind you, Mr. Rooney,that aer the draing of the U.S. Constitution by theContinental Congress, Benjamin Franklin was asked

WWW.SUDOKU-PUZZLES.NET • SEE SUDOKU ANSWERS ON PG 14

See “ENEMY” Pg. 5

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A Truly Relaxing Experience

is past ursday night I was in-vited to A Taste of Art Studio, locatedat e Shops at Brickerton. OwnerShelly Harper welcomed me into theArt Studio and gave me a personaltour.

As I was touring the studio, I askedShelly what made her decide to openA Taste of Art Studio in November of2011, and she told me that she was aformer art teacher, here in Columbus.She wanted the people who live hereto have something to experience andshe also believes that everyone hasartistic ability within them.

I learned that, in addition to the reg-ular adult classes, A Taste of Art Stu-dio also offers teen classes, and can bebooked for corporate and birthdayparties.

Aer I sat down at an easel, Shellyintroduced me and the other studentsto instructor Kayla Dobb, who wasgoing to teach the painting class, thatevening. Kayla started off by telling usthat this wasn’t as hard as it looked.She instructed us to look at the canvasin front of us, and to notice that it wasa blank canvas with a pencil sketch ofa margarita glass on it. She indicatedthat, by the end of the two-hour class,we would have a finished painting. Ipicked up my brush and, since thiswas my first time doing this, I found ithard to believe that I could accomplishthis in just two hours. As the time pro-gressed, I was amazed at what I haddone. e painting was coming to-gether and it looked very similar tothose done by the people sitting on ei-ther side of me. By the end of the class,

I had a finished work of art that Icould display proudly in my home.

I would highly recommend thateveryone experience A Taste of ArtStudio. For more information or tosign up for a class, please visit theirwebsite @ www.brickertonart.com.

Photo by Shelly HarperThe artists display their finished paintings.

Pam Lewis’ very first painting. Rachel Richardson paints.

Kayla Dobbs teaches the class.

Kaitlan Downs and Derek Harper.

Kathy Cox works on her margarita glass.

Christy Traceyctracey@realstorypublishing.com

Christy is a wife and mother of four children andwants to capture Columbus one photo at a time.

Invino Veritasiveritas@realstorypublishing.com

Attempting to make sense of his universe, InvinoVeritas bubbles outward from the chaos,

sometimes submitting to its infinite whirl, andother times raging against its disregard for its

own elements. His writings incorporate multiplestyles and energies which can be found on his

own blog of random things at http://musingsfortheinsane.blogspot.com/

by a woman, "What kind of govern-ment do we have?". Benjamin Franklinlooked at the old woman and said, "ARepublic, if you can keep it."

Did you ever ask yourself why westarted out as a Republic? Here, I'll out-line the basic idea for you: people andlaw matter. Le to their own devices,they exist in harmony, though it maynot appear that way at all times. Whenwe begin to devalue one in favor of theother, or introduce a third element thatdevalues either entity, then the systemfails. I guess your plan is working, inthat case. Well, Mr. Rooney and Mr.Smith, I have my eyes on you, and ifI'm going to Guantanamo Bay, thenyou are going to Hell.

But then again, what's the difference?

world that would explain such callous treatment for one’ssurroundings? My mother told me that there is no shamein being poor, but there is shame in being a slob. Lookaround, Lowndes County. Rich or poor, we are slobs. Lit-ter is ubiquitous.

Now, in the spring, before the grasses grow tall alongour highways and hide last year’s refuse, it is evidenteverywhere I look. I walk through my neighborhood andpick up litter, stagnant in front of neighbor’s homes forweeks, until I get my collection bag out. How deep wouldit get if I overlooked it? Like cancer, it worsens if some-thing is not done, yet nobody seems to care. Too busy, Iguess. Businesses are carelessly surrounded by the litterof the products that they sold. Every road I drive is linedwith litter. As a kayaker on our rivers, lakes and tributar-ies, I have yet to launch my small boat without having toshove plastic bottles, cans or even rotting carcasses, aside.Once on the water, there is trash everywhere - from tires,

plastic and paper detritus to metal tanks, barrels and rust-ing washing machines. Our effluent is seen even in pro-tected backwaters and estuaries - snagged in deadfall,

“ENEMY” cont. from pg. 4 “SPRING” cont. from pg. 3

Courtesy Photo“Wetlands” near a local business.

See “SPRING” Pg. 6

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Why is Obama spending big money for attack adson Newt Gingrich and Sara Palin? I think he knowsthat they are the ones who have large bold ideas,with plans on how to implement them in order toget the USA back on track, and who have solid so-lutions to problems that have been put in place byhis (Obama's) administration's policies. He knowsa Gingrich nomination would upset his apple cart,big time.

e good ol’ boy establishments in both parties areobviously afraid of Newt, too, and do not want himever coming back to DC, again. ey rememberhow effective he was before, by making them actu-ally balance a budget, and you know how most ofthem love to borrow and spend. ey rememberhow he kept his promise, by fulfilling the first "Con-tract with America", and they know he has a newone for the 21st Century that they will have to workon, when he comes back as President. Now, that willupset a whole bunch of apple carts in DC, but willbe good for the USA.

e vote held on Tuesday of last week was livingproof that “we, the people” for Newt, were strongerthan big money and lies against him. It plainly upsetsome apple carts in MS. Let me say that I am proudto be a resident of Lowndes County, because Newt

was the winner here, which shows we have somevery smart people living here, don't you agree?

I think Romney's campaign was the biggest cartturned upside down in MS, and in Alabama, too.Even aer spending millions of dollars on false, mis-leading, negative ads and robo-calls against Newt,and being endorsed by the MS Governor, Lt. Gov-ernor and Sec. of State, Romney still lost to Mr.Newt in MS and in Ala too.

Santorum was spending some money on negativestuff about Newt, too; plus, many folks who nor-mally vote for Democrats crossed over and voted forRick, but then will vote for Obama in November,just like some did in other states, this year, becausethey want Obama to have it easy in his attempt fora second term, by wiping the floor with Santorumin the debates. It would be a cinch for Obama to dothe same with Romney, too, because they are notvery far apart on some of the issues. I haven't seenany ads of Obama attacking Santorum, because hedoesn't fear him or Romney.

Evidently, he does fear Newt; especially Newt's en-ergy plan that will take us back to low gas prices,$1.75-$2.50 per gallon in his first year in the WhiteHouse versus prices going up as high as $10.00 pergallon, during a second term with Obama. Now, if I

was Obama, I'd be shaking in my sneakers even atthe thought of having to face Mr. Newt in seven 3-hour Lincoln/Douglas-style debates, and I'm think-ing that might be exactly what's on his mind. us,attack ads, already, against the undaunted Speaker.

Now, that's a good sign, folks; meaning Newt Gin-grich is the best man to be our, “we, the people's”President. He is smarter than the whole bunch ofthem put together; so, be strong, Newt supporters,and keep up the good fight. Newt has a plan and aGod-given vision for the USA, to get us back ontrack and lead us to prosperity in the 21st Century.

e 1st half isn't even over yet, and Newt is posi-tioned just right for the second half of the Primaryelections. We'll let Mitt and Rick continue to buttheads, while Newt continues to reveal the massiveseparation and difference between him and Obama,all the way to the convention in Tampa, where Newtwill become our Nominee.

Raymond Gross

“From the Citizen” is a column that will appear, periodically, in the print edition of e Real Story, and will feature commentary from members of the

community, and from both ends of the political spectrum.Individuals who are interested in submitting commentary for this column should

write to stjohnjb@realstorypublishing.com.

Ingredients2 (14 ounce) cans artichoke hearts,drained2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese1 cup grated Parmesan cheese1 cup mayonnaise1 teaspoon dried parsleyDirectionsPreheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).Drain the artichokes, squeeze the juice out of them, pull them apart and placein a 1-quart casserole dish. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine Moz-zarella cheese, Parmesan cheese and mayonnaise. Pour this mixture into thecasserole and mix well until the artichoke hearts are mixed in well. Sprinklethe parsley over the top. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 40 minutes,or until the dip is brown on top

The Cheesy, Cheesy,Cheesiest Artichoke Dip

Prep Time: 10 MinCook Time: 40 Min

Ready In: 50 MinServings: 6 to 8

Website Poll Results from March 16, 2012Q: Do you plan to attend any Spring Pilgrimage events, later this month?Yes – 40% • No – 40% • Not Sure 20%

washed onto the shoreline or floatingdownstream on the current. It neverceases to amaze me how muchgarbage is discarded and remains for-ever in our local waters…among ourpristine wildlife. Sad, really, to see na-ture’s abundance - deer, possum,beaver, nutria, egrets, herons, whitepelicans, grebes, ducks, turtles andfish - all living, nesting and feeding inour filth and floating garbage. Muchof it was washed into gutters, only toend in the wild. is is supposed to bea sanctuary, not a sewer. ey don’tdeserve to live like this; it is a violationof their natural state. e situationworsens as the litter piles up, year aeryear aer year.

Maybe there are more importantthings to worry about; all kinds ofproblems facing society, but this par-ticular problem seems elemental tome. If we aren’t able to prevent some-

thing as simple as trashing our naturalenvironment, what hope is there fordealing with more complex, societalproblems? Start locally. Pick it up;even if you didn’t put it there, it’s yoursnow - in your neighborhood and town- a community blight in your back-yard. Mississippi is the worst I’ve seenfor litter; maybe it’s a question of re-spect for ourselves and where we live- I don’t know. What I do know is thatwe can do better than this embarrass-ing display. I love what Mississippi hasto offer us all, but it hurts me to thecore to see our dirty, discarded laun-dry hung out along our pathways. Asmy Mom told me, there is just no ex-cuse for being a slob.

“SPRING” cont. from pg. 5

Laird BagnallLaird Bagnall is a military retiree since

1993 and a Columbus resident since 1995.He is a 2002 MUW graduate, with a

degree in Fine Arts. His interests include:visual and performance arts, photography,

biking, travel, kayaking, camping and national politics.

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SafetyTipsTips for Staying Safe at Work• Keep your purse, wallet, keys, or other valuables

with you at all times or locked in a drawer or closet.

• Check the identity of any strangers who are in your office. If anyone makes you uncomfortable, inform security or management, immediately.

• Don’t stay late if you’ll be alone in the office. Create a buddy system for walking to parking lots or public transportation aer hours, or ask a security guard to escort you.

• Report any broken or flickering lights, dimly lit corridors, broken windows, and doors that don’t lock properly.

• If you notice signs of potential violence in a fellow employee, report your concerns to the appropriate person. Immediately report any incidents of sexual harassment.

• Know your company’s emergency plan. If your company does not have such a plan, volunteer to help develop one.

• If the company does not supply an emergency kit, keep your own emergency supplies (flashlight, walking shoes, water bottle, nonperishable food, etc.) in a desk drawer.

• If you work at home, in addition to making your home safe and secure, you should hang window treatments that obstruct the view into your office. You don’t want to advertise your expensive office equipment.

• Review your insurance policy—almost all policies require an extra rider to cover a home office.

• Mark your equipment with identification numbers, and keep an updated inventory list (with photos, if possible) in a home safe or a bank safe-deposit box.It’s a good idea to keep backups of your work in a secure, separate location as well.

• Exercise the same caution with deliveries and pickups that businesses do. Anyone making a delivery to your home office should be properly identified before you open the door. Do not let the person enter your home. If you own the company, take a hard look at your business—physical layout, employees, hiring practices, operating procedures, and special security risks. Assess the company’s vulnerability to all kinds of crime, from burglary to embezzlement. Follow basic crime prevention principles, and work with local law enforcementto protect your business.

Special to e Real Story

“What?! When is that scheduled for?”

Over that past few years, I have re-ceived that response (or a similar re-frain) countless times, upon asking afriend or colleague whether they willbe attending this-or-that event. It al-ways amazes me, because the event inquestion, usually, has been promotedon TV, radio, in newspapers, and onthe internet.

is conundrum has prompted us,at e Real Story, to do somethingabout it! In the next few days, we willbe launching a dynamic, interactive,comprehensive calendar on our web-site.

We are going to call it Do662*, be-cause it will be the source to turn to,when you want to know what there isto do in northeast Mississippi.

I t will include information on eventsand activities of all kinds: sports, ed-ucational, civic, recreation and, ohyes, arts and culture. (You didn’tthink that we would neglect loyalreaders of “Culturally Speaking”, didyou?)

Readers of e Real Story are goingto be amazed at the number of activ-ities taking place in our area. Why,on any given day, there is the distinctpossibility that you will have to makesome difficult choices, because thereare multiple events that are scheduledat the same time.

In order for us to undertake a proj-ect of this magnitude, and be as suc-cessful as we are committed to being,we are going to need your help. Doyou serve on the staff, board, or acommittee for a local organization? Isyour company sponsoring an eventto raise funds for a particular cause?Does your favorite sports team havea game, coming up? Well then, crackthose knuckles, loosen up your fin-gers, and send that information to us!Paired with this new calendar will bea user-friendly form, which you canuse to provide us with all of the infor-mation that we need to “spread theword”.

Now, as always, we reserve the rightto edit or reject any information, dueto space considerations or for anyother reason. Still, we believe that ourcalendar is going to be the #1, “go-to”source for what’s happening in north-east Mississippi!

Get out and get yourculture on!

*e name Do662 has been gra-ciously loaned to us by a friend of eReal Story.

Special to e Real Story

Beneke Magnolia, Inc. Acquires Sanderson Plumbing Products, Inc.Beneke Magnolia, Inc., announced Friday, March

16, 2012, that it has acquired Sanderson PlumbingProducts, Incorporated (SPPI). SPPI is the oldestmanufacturer of toilet seats, starting in 1893, whenit was located in Chicago and operated under thename Findeisen-Kropf Manufacturing Company.Henry Beneke Sr., purchased the company in 1939,and moved Beneke Manufacturing Company toColumbus, Mississippi, where it has been in contin-uous operation for more than 119 years. BenekeCorporation merged with Beatrice Foods Companyin 1969. Sanderson Plumbing Products, Inc. ac-quired Beneke Corporation, a division of BeatriceFoods Company in 1983.

e purchase of SPPI will allow for the continuedoperation of the company and Beneke Magnolia,Inc. will retain SPPI’s current infrastructure and lo-cation. e acquisition was accomplished throughthe assistance of the Columbus Lowndes Develop-ment Link and Mississippi Development Authority.

“We feel that these jobs and this facility are invalu-able to Columbus, Lowndes County and the State ofMississippi, and we look forward to growing and ex-panding our business,” said Tom Whitaker, chief ex-

ecutive officer of Beneke Magnolia, Inc. e com-pany currently employs more than 400 people at itsColumbus location.

Beneke Magnolia, Inc. is a full line manufacturerof toilet seats, producing molded wood, injectionmolded solid plastic, aircra, healthcare, manufac-tured home, OEM and so vinyl toilet seats. BenekeMagnolia, Inc. toilet seats are sold worldwide. ecompany was the exclusive supplier of toilet seats tothe NASA Space Shuttle Program.

Special to e Real Story

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On the third ursday of each month, a localchurch offers a hand in feeding the homeless atthe Loaves & Fish building.

Ms. Dawkins, a member of Mt. Zion church,issued a personal invitation for us to join themfor lunch. When we arrived, we were greeted bythe smiling faces and warm hearts of truly Chris-tian people, who wanted to make a difference.

I noticed Lisa Martin wiping tables off and get-ting them ready for the next person to sit downand eat. As she did this, I asked her what she re-ceived from donating her time to the people andshe explained ‘is is a way for our church to

offer a hand and it’s a true blessing to know thatyou have helped others.” She and Terry Lile planthe monthly feeding of the homeless. I learnedthat Terry Lile does all the cooking of the foodthat they offer. “is is a group effort,” she stated.Lisa and Ms. Dawkins want to thank everyonethat is involved in making this happen.

If you would like to donate, or for more info,visit http://mzbaptist.com/contact.html.

Chefs Lisa Martin and Terry Lile

The Mt. Zion Church Group at Loaves & Fishes, this past Thursday.

Several folks got to enjoy a hot meal.

Elton McCray, Daryel Lavender, and John Barksdale The Real Story staff sit down to enjoy a meal together. Annie Hicks

Mary Roby, Jimmy Roby, and Jakhyila Shinn

Carl Brewer and Mary Harris

Mt. Zion Church Offers Hand to Feed the Homeless

Christy Traceyctracey@realstorypublishing.com

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AT TUCKER’SPLAY & LEARN

On ursday, March15th, I observed BeyonceMcCray holding a whitesign on the side of AlabamaStreet, inviting me in tohave my car washed. WhenI pulled in and spoke toLoretta Tucker, the ownerof Tucker’s Play & LearnPreschool, she explained tome that these studentswere hosting a carwash toraises money for numeroussummer trips. is is a wayfor the students to earn themoney, themselves, insteadof their parents having tocome up with the funds forthe activities, and so theycan learn some responsibil-ity, at the same time.Tommy Williams, Pastor ofBibleway Church on Mili-tary Road, was also onhand to offer assistancewith the carwash.

Tucker’s Play & Learn would like to extend a thank you toeveryone who patronized the carwash.

Christy Traceyctracey@realstorypublishing.com

Beyonce McCray holds a Carwash sign as she shouts,

“CARWASH”. She hopes to earn money for summer trips.

Beyonce McCrary, LaurettaTucker, and Toriana Savors.

The group from Tucker’s Play and Learn carwash.

Students Learn theValue of a Dollar

Let’s take a look into the future, here inColumbus. It’s late June of 2012. You are sittingin your own lawn chair or reclining on a soblanket, on the East Bank of the John C. StennisLock and Dam, at the Tennessee TombigbeeWaterway, in Lowndes County. You and thou-sands of other music lovers are bathed in thestrains of Mozart’s “Grand Serenade”, as youbreathe in the fresh night air.

Is this a dream? An elaborate fantasy, perhaps?e answer is, it’s neither.

You really are experiencing the magnificentsounds of the American Wind Symphony Or-chestra, which is performing aboard a specially-designed barge, complete with a music shell,and which is moored at the water’s edge.

at’s right – for the first time since 2002, thisinternationally-renowned orchestra returns toColumbus on June 20th, to delight the commu-nity with a series of workshops at local schools,mini public chamber concerts, and a gala publicperformance of the full orchestra on June 23rd.

e vessel upon which the 45-member orches-tra will be performing is the 195-foot-long Point

Counterpoint II, which has served as the group’svenue since 1976. e barge is outfitted with a75-foot wide stage, the roof of which is raisedby hydraulic lis at performance time.

e musicians are arrayed in a series of stain-less steel sculptured “trees,” so that all of themare visible to the audience. Even the percussion-ists perform right out front, with their gleamingbatteries of timpani, drums, mallet instruments,chimes and bells.

e orchestra will be performing classicalworks, Broadway medleys, newly-commis-sioned works, and even Sousa marches.

Robert Austin Boudreau, who grew up inMassachusetts, is the maestro of the orchestra,and has been with the company since the earlydays of its 53-year existence.

Orchestra members will be staying in thehomes of local families during their four-daystay in Columbus.

Sponsorships for businesses and individualsare available, with patrons being invited to tourthe vessel’s art galleries, as well as attend an on-board reception.

For more information on the concert or spon-sorships, call Agnes Zaiontz, Business Managerfor the Tenn-Tom Waterway Association andone of the committee members for the Orches-tra’s visit, at 662-328-8936.

American Wind SymphonyOrchestra to Visit Columbus

Special to e Real Story

Courtesy Photos ©Graule Studios

Website Poll Results from March 15, 2012Q: How concerned are you about crime in Columbus?Very – 93% • Somewhat – 7% • Not at All - 0%

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Y Character and Moral Values:The Foundation for Social Progress

David Brooks, in the New YorkTimes, has written an article on JamesQ. Wilson, the social scientist and po-litical theorist on whom I have com-mented recently in another article,entitled “Moral Sense”. Wilson was soinfluential a thinker, and ahead of histime in understanding the nature ofcharacter in society, that I thought Iwould cite this article by Brooks andoffer some commentary.

When Wilson began looking at so-cial policy at the University of Red-lands, the University of Chicagoand Harvard, most people did notpay much attention to character.The Marxists looked at materialforces. Darwinians, at the time,treated people as isolated prod-ucts of competition. Policy makersof right and left thought abouthow to rearrange economic incen-tives.

Wilson worked within this tradi-tion. But during the 1960s and ’70s,he noticed that the nation’s prob-lems could not be understood bylooking at incentives. Schools wereexpanding, but James Colemanfound that the key to educationsuccess was the relationships athome and in the neighborhood.Income transfers to the poor in-creased, but poor neighborhoodsdid not improve; instead, familiesdisintegrated. The economy boomed and factory

jobs opened up, but crime ratesskyrocketed. Every generation hasan incentive to spend on itself, butnone ran up huge deficits, until thecurrent one. Some sort of moralnorms prevented them. “At root,” Wilson wrote in 1985 inThe Public Interest, “in almostevery area of important concern,we are seeking to induce personsto act virtuously, whether asschoolchildren, applicants for pub-lic assistance, would-be-lawbreak-ers or voters and public officials.”

What Wilson wrote is even truertoday, than ever. While most policy-makers still assume that social prob-lems can be best addressed fromoutside the community – i.e. social oreducational programs – few are willingto recognize that the root cause of thedysfunction in many communities isthe lack of adherence to majoritynorms. ese norms, as I have writtenbefore, have been common to success-ful human society for millennia – astrong social order built on mutual re-spect. ere is no way for a society orcommunity or the individuals withinit to progress, if it is characterized bylack of respect, aggressive individual-ism, and lack of a moral compass. Intoday’s troubled neighborhoods, toofew religious or secular leaders arewilling to condemn anti-social behav-ior and to identify the roots of com-munity regression and failure as

coming from within, not from with-out.

ere is only so much that schoolsand other public institutions or well-meaning remedial programs can do, ifthe basic values of discipline, hardwork, respect, aspiration, honesty, andduty are absent. “It is as if it were amark of sophistication for us to shunthe language of morality in discussingthe problems of mankind,” Wilson re-called in his earlier days; and was sur-prised at the label his colleagues gavehim:

When Wilson started talkingabout character, he was surprisedthat many in the academy re-garded him as an archconserva-tive. Why should character beconservative?

I, too, have wondered at the thunderfrom the Le when I raise this issue.Part of the criticism comes from thosewho believe in a social determinism –people are poor because of a dysfunc-tion in the larger society rather thanwithin their own communities orwithin themselves; black inner-cityneighborhoods are dysfunctional be-cause of persistent racism.

ere is no doubt, however, that ex-ogenous factors play a role. I havespent the greater part of the last tenyears visiting the South and readingSouthern history, to try to understandthe roots of racism and how the legacyof slavery persists today. ere is nodoubt that the Civil Rights and VotingActs and the vigorous efforts of federalauthority helped to dismantle racism.I also understand that the legacy ofslavery – deliberately broken homes,the focus on fertility as an economicimperative, the oen brutal rule ofwhite overseers – cannot be erased eas-ily; and that slavery really only endedin 1965, not 1865.

is does not change my view, norwould it change Wilson’s, I imagine.Understanding a legacy is not the sameas addressing it with the same instru-ments over time. Civil legislation hadits day. Affirmative action had its day;but aer almost fiy years of social in-terventions to remediate the povertyand dysfunction of inner cities, mostof which have had little success, it istime to look elsewhere, to look at theproblem for what it is today, not whatit was yesterday or last year or last cen-

tury. At some point, communitiesmust adopt – or return to – the socialnorms that have characterized everysuccessful society or civilization in thepast.

Character, of course, does not onlyapply to inner-city neighborhoods.e avarice, unalloyed individualism,and lack of moral sense – i.e. a break-down in character – were clearly a fac-tor in the recent Wall Street collapse.How can one explain an Enron, aBernie Madoff, a Lehman Bros., with-out looking at character? Yes, the fed-eral watchdogs were asleep at theswitch. Yes, Wall Street, like good cap-italist institutions everywhere, is allabout stretching the law to the limit.Yet, there had to have been individualswithin these institutions who legit-imized or justified their immoral be-havior by exclaiming “Everybody’sdoing it” or “If I didn’t do it, someoneelse would” or the more venal “Just thisonce, until I get out of the hole I’m in”.

Wilson lived in an individualisticage, but he emphasized that char-acter was formed in groups. As hewrote in “The Moral Sense,” his1993 masterpiece, “Order exists be-cause a system of beliefs and sen-timents held by members of asociety sets limits to what thosemembers can do.”

When this set of beliefs is out ofsynch with the rest of society, problemsbegin. If a culture of street “creds” re-places a culture of excellence – and noone calls it out for the poverty of itsprinciples – there is a problem. If aculture of greed permeates a corporateculture – and no one calls it out be-cause it appears to represent the bestaggressive spirit of America – it isdoomed, because we are at heart, asWilson has said in Moral Sense –moral.

Encouraging moral values is not thesame as promoting a slavish conform-ity to social norms. e activists of theSixties, although they are vilified by theRight, today, were very moral in theirconvictions about civil rights and thewar in Vietnam; and their challenge toa previous social order, which in itsPuritanical conservatism restrictedthought, feeling, and action, wastimely, necessary, and important. eydid not challenge a credo of morality.

See “FOUNDATION” Pg. 19

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A TimelineAll photos courtesy of Carlos Rosales

June 1940 - Representatives fromLowndes, Clay, Monroe, Oktibbehaand Noxubee counties form the PrairieBelt Council, with the sole purpose ofsecuring worthwhile projects for thearea and supporting the war, at thesame time.July 1940 - Civil leaders are workinghard to obtain a local airport. CaptainSam Kaye, the city's local WWI flyinghero, and Mr. Herman Owen, are thetrail blazers.February 1941 - Citizens from Ab-erdeen, West Point, Brooksville,Macon, Starkville and Columbusgather in Columbus to organize an as-sociation focused on obtaining defenseindustries. ey send Ed Kuykendallto represent them in Washington D.C.,to ask that Columbus be consideredfor a new air base. ree sites are cho-sen as possible locations for the airbase, and on March 13, 1941 Gen.Walter R. Weaver, Commander of theArmy Air Forces Southeast TrainingCenter, Maxwell Field, Alabama, ar-rives to pre-inspect the three sites. Helikes the site located on Highway 45,north of Columbus, but the site is woe-fully short of the acreage needed forthe air base. Later this spring, the citi-zens of Columbus pass a $100,000 sup-plemental bond issue and the processof procuring the necessary land begins.July 1941 - Commandant Col. LouieC. Mallory and his executive officer,Major Joseph B. Duckworth, arrivewith the main body of the Army Engi-neers to oversee construction.Ground-breaking occurs at this time,and actual construction begins in Sep-tember.August 1941 - e land that is to be-come Columbus Air Force Base isleased to the United States for the priceof $1 per year.September 1941 - e St. Louis andSan Francisco Railroad begins work ona railroad spur to transport construc-tion supplies from near Lolola Springsto the air field. e line is completedin November 1941.

November 1941 - Base headquarters are established on Highway 45, which,at this time, runs through the base.

December 1941 - Fiy buildings hadbeen completed and over 1,700 work-ers are employed. About 75% of theairfield and 95% of the streets havebeen graded. e attack on Pearl har-bor takes place on December 7th. Allwork comes to a halt and, the next day,the base is placed on "alert status."Leave is canceled and guards are dou-bled on-base. Highway 45, which runsthrough the middle of the base, is per-manently closed to through traffic. Atemporary bypass is constructed andthe permanent bypass opens in 1944.

January 1942 - e base is officiallynamed Kaye Field and the base is acti-vated. Eventually, the name of the airfield is changed, because of confusionbetween Kaye Field and Key Field inMeridian.

February 1942 - e first training classbegins, with about 25 cadets, who havealready completed most of their basictraining. Kaye Field is an advancedtraining school. e graduates receivetheir coveted silver wings as pilots inthe US Army Air Corp and their goldbars as Second Lieutenants.

August 1945 - Aer the end of the war,the number of personnel continues todecrease and the base is finally placedon "temporary" inactive status. A min-imum number of officers and civiliansremain, to keep the base operating. September 1947 - e base's name isofficially changed to Columbus AirForce Base.

February 1951 - e base is reacti-vated, with the onset of e KoreanWar. April 1955 - Air Training commandturns over control of Columbus AirForce Base to the Strategic Air Com-mand (SAC). An extensive buildingprogram begins, to prepare the basefor its new mission.

July 1969 - e base once again be-comes a pilot training facility, and the3650th Training Wing assumes com-mand.

June 1972 - e 3650th PilotTraining Wing is deactivated,and the 14th Flying TrainingWing is activated in its place.1980 - Columbus Air ForceBase graduates its firstwomen student pilots.October 1998 - DynCorpTechnical Services is hired toprovide aircra maintenanceat Columbus Air Force Base.Eventually, they begin oper-ating under the name Dyn-Corp International; theycontinue to handle all of theaircra maintenance, to thepresent day.

Over the years there havebeen many upgrades in tech-nologies, planes and methodsof instruction and CAFB hasmaintained the highest levelof excellence. As you lookback over the years you cansee how the entire commu-nity came together, in a jointeffort, to make what is nowknown as Columbus AirForce Base something to beproud of for each and everycitizen in this area.

Fran Andresenfandresen@realstorypublishing.com

Fran is a homemaker who enjoys experimenting and creating tastefuldiabetic and kidney-disease-friendly

recipes. She is married to John Andresen and likes to crochet in

her free time.

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesSign at Columbus Air Force Base entrance.

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesCmdt. Col.

Louie C. Mallory

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesBirney Imes, Sr.

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesCapt. Kaye

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesCol. Mallory and Clark Gable

The History of Columbus Air Force Base

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesThe crew of the Memphis Belle.

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesFour cadet students

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesMotor Pool 1942

Courtesy Photo • Carlos RosalesAirmen with the TB-25

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the first class, 42-C, to graduate atColumbus on March 6, 1942, earningnot only their wings of silver, but alsotheir Second Lieutenant bars. All butfour of the newly commissioned flyingLieutenants stayed at Columbus totrain subsequent classes of student pi-lots,” stated Sonic Johnson, 14th Fly-ing Training Wing, Chief of PublicAffairs, in his press release.

e keynote speaker, U.S. Sen. RogerWicker, R-Miss., reminisces back to atime when he trained at the base, serv-ing in the Air Force from 1976 to1980. Sen. Wicker also served in theAir Force Reserve from 1980 to 2003,when he retired as a LieutenantColonel. His fond memories ofColumbus Air Force Base brought tomind a time when tales were told ofthe rigors of training, USO dances andvisits to "e Drop-In Hangar."

e "Drop In Hangar" was in thebasement of one of our local antebel-lum homes, Whitehall, which, at thetime, belonged to Mr. T. C. Billups.He renovated his basement to create alounge where the cadets could relaxand visit with the Billups family.

Wing Commander Barre Seguin andVice Commander Col. Matt Isler,along with Capt. Keith Napolitano,70th Ball Committee Chairman, aswell as others in attendance, made thevisit back in time more real by wearingvintage Army Air Corps uniforms andstreet attire from that time.

Carlos and Roberto Rosales havebeen working on a documentary onthe history of Columbus Air ForceBase. e guests were privileged to geta sneak peek at the movie. Once com-pleted, the movie will be donated tothe Air Force Historian.

Once the formal part of the programwas completed, the Itawamba Com-munity College Jazz Band playedswing and jazz music for the enjoy-ment of the guests.

Looking back over the last 70 years,the history is rich; there is not enoughtime to give it the attention that it de-

serves, so we will try to give you a briefdescription of how Columbus AirForce Base became a vital force in ourcommunity.

In 1940, Columbus civic leaders,known as e Prairie Belt Council,wanted to secure an airport for ourcity. Captain Sam Kaye (pronounced"Coy"), the city's WWI flying hero,and Mr. Herman Owen were the twoinnovators.

As the U.S forces were preparing forwar, the need for pilots increasedgreatly. With the national needschanging at a rapid pace, e PrairieBelt Council changed their focus andstarted to work for a military flyingfield, as well as a commercial airportfor this area. In early 1941, a group ofcitizens from Columbus and all thesurrounding areas met at the GilmerInn to form an organization to securedefense industries. Mr. Ed Kuykendallrepresented the organization in Wash-ington, D.C., asking that Columbus beconsidered as a site for a new air base.In preparation for an inspection byWar Department officials, there werethree sites selected for evaluation.Ralph Webb, Birney Imes, Sr. and EdKuykendall were appointed to a sub-committee and contacted GeneralWalter R. Weaver, from Alabama, tovisit Columbus and pre-inspect the lo-cations.

General Weaver liked the site thatwas located on Highway 45, but foundthat this area was woefully inadequate,in terms of size, to meet the needs of amilitary flying field. e City ofColumbus got busy, passing a$100,000 supplemental bond issue,which was used to secure additionalparcels of land that were adjacent tothe original site. By late summer, thispackage of land, which was to becomeknown as Columbus Air Force Base,was leased to the United States for $1a year and construction started soonthereaer.

e Commandant, Colonel Louie C.Mallory, and his executive officer,Major Joseph B. Duckworth, arrived

with the first wave of Army Engineers,to oversee the construction. ColonelMallory set up headquarters in a tem-porary US Army Corps of Engineers’building on Highway 45, which, at thetime, ran through the base.

e St. Louis and San FranciscoRailroad constructed a railroad spur,so that construction supplies could bemoved to the air field. As you can see,every aspect of the constructionprcoess was a joint effort by the entirecommunity.

Fiy buildings had been built andover 1,700 were employed at the site,by the end of 1941. e air field wasnear completion, and many of theroads had been graded; then the De-cember 7th attack on Pearl Harbor oc-curred, and everything changed. enext day, the air base was put on fullalert, through traffic was halted (re-member, that means Hwy. 45) and allleaves were canceled. e base wasrunning 24 hours a day, and the firstclass of cadets were due to arrivewithin a month, so it became neces-sary to pick a name for the base. ename “Kaye Field” was chosen, inhonor of Captain Sam Kaye; it soonbecame necessary to change the nameto Columbus Army Flying School, toavoid confusion with Key Field inMeridian.

e first class to graduate from KayeField received their coveted silverwings as pilots in the U.S. Army AirCorps and their gold bars as 2nd Lieu-tenants on March 6, 1942.

roughout the years, ColumbusAir Force Base has been deactivatedand reactivated many times, but al-ways has been on the ready to providetraining to pilots who are tops in theirfield.

In late 1998, DynCorp TechnicalServices assumed maintenance dutiesfor the aircra fleet, an arrangementthat continues to this day.

As an alternate landing site forNASA's 747, which carries the shuttleorbiter vehicle, Columbus has been

utilized 12 times, hosting the SpaceShuttles Atlantis, Columbia, Endeavorand Discovery.

Continually changing and updatingequipment and teaching methods,Columbus Air Force Base continues tobe a leading force in pilot training inour country.

…Ahhh, the Glenn Miller musicdris back into my head, and I returnto the present day. Mr. Tandy Wilson,89, a 2nd Lieutenant during WWIIwho trained at Columbus Air ForceBase, reflects back on his assignmentsduring the war and how the traininghe received saved his life on some ofthe missions he flew.

e lights dim, the music rises and,as the evening draws to a close, cou-ples are dancing with a backdrop ofold World War II training planes. Webid Columbus Air Force Base a goodnight, with promises of future accom-plishments and successes. is hasbeen a night of both reflection and cel-ebration.

“Happy 70th Anniversary to Colum-bus Air Force Base from the citizensof Columbus and our surroundingareas and, most especially, from thestaff of e Real Story Publishing!”

Editor’s Note: We want to give aspecial thank you to e ColumbusAir Force Base's Public Affairs De-partment and to Carlos, Robertoand Chris Rosales for their willing-ness to share their pictures and helpwith dates and information. With-out these wonderful people therewould be very few pictures and thestory of Columbus Air Force Basewould not have been nearly as in-teresting.

Fran Andresenfandresen@realstorypublishing.com

Fran is a homemaker who enjoys experimentingand creating tasteful diabetic and kidney-disease-friendly recipes. She is married to John Andresen

and likes to crochet in her free time

“ANNIVERSARY” cont. from pg.13

WWW.SUDOKU-PUZZLES.NET • SEE SUDOKU PUZZLE ON PG 4

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Across1: Bridge position5: To-do9: Medic’s moniker12: Pronounce indistincty13: “Thin Man” dog14: Leather punch15: Not different16: Day’s midpoint17: Grazing spot18: Shirt sleeve20: Sick one’s desire22: Canada’s Nova __25: Before, poetically26: Questioning word27: 1/60th of an hour29: St. ____ (Santa)33: “... ___ good night”(2 wds.)35: Gloss recipient37: Portion (out)38: Disorganized jumble39: Scrooge’s cry41: Pasty42: Nile serpent45: Summarizes

47: Correct50: Color cloth51: Acress Ullmann52: “Don’t!” (2 wds.)54: Aviator’s stunt58: Gobbled up59: It’s a sign60: “Smallville” damsel61: Deep longing62: Paddles a boat63: Vocal

Down1: 19th letter2: Pie ___ mode (2wds.)3: Addition total4: Dutch ____5: Letters to Brad Pitt(2 wds.)6: GI entertainmentcenter7: Shop8: More reasonable9: Cowgirl Evans10: Had debts11: Sculptor’s material19: Basketball hoopedge

21: Darn socks22: Counterfeit23: Old King ___24: Nocturnal birds28: Quill tip30: Minnesota’s neighbor31: Thank a per-former32: Griffey et al.34: Boss’s impatientabbr.36: Forgives40: Shout for atten-tion43: Mexican mister44: Product endorsement46: Violin’s kin47: Stage drama48: Baptism, e.g.49: Muffin maker’sneed53: ___ and improved55: Rowing tool56: “Snakes ____Plane” (2 wds.)57: Close friend

ANSWERS IN OUR NEX T ISSUECROSSWORD 03.21.2012

For years, people have been told - bydoctors, family, friends, and themedia, as well as the voice in theirhead that reminds them that theirclothes are too tight - that they needto exercise for better health. ey arealso reminded that the number thatshows up on the scale, every time theystep on it, is too high. So, the searchto find the “right” solution to thismonumental problem of “how to loseweight” begins. For the most part, thefitness and nutrition sector has soldproducts based on only partial truths.ey also encourage the belief that theresults can be attained almost in-stantly. People have spent thousandsof dollars on workout equipment,DVDs, diet plans and weight lossproducts, only to find that the resultsthey expected are difficult to attain.People are le feeling discouraged andcontinue their search for the one thingthat will work instantly. Unfortu-nately, there is so much informationavailable on exercising and diet, that itcan be overwhelming to si through,in search of the “right” things to do foryou and what actually works.

To put this into the proper perspec-tive, the accurate measurement ofbeing considered overweight and un-healthy is through your body fat per-centage and measurements. e truthis NOT found in the number on thescale. Excess body fat isn’t just a cos-metic problem, it has negative effectson every part of our life, including:

• Increased risk of heart disease, strokes, diabetes, etc.

• Increased risk of cancer• Poor circulation

• Lower emotional health and self-esteem

• Decreased mobility and agility• Increased risk of bone fractures• Decreased sexual and

reproductive health

Exercise and nutrition are the waysto reduce body fat.

e cornerstone of your exerciseprogram should be strength training.Strength training is also referred to asresistance training or weight training.is resistance includes weights, kettlebells, one’s own body weight, resist-ance bands and resistance/ weight ma-chines. When women gain leanmuscle mass, they will look tighterand firmer. Men will look strongerand more athletic. Muscle burns fatand increases the metabolism, duringactivity and at rest. Muscle mass islost over time, due to the lack ofstrength training. So, basically, the oldadage of “use it or lose it” applies here.Cardiovascular exercise is important,as it does increase the metabolism forseveral hours aerward. If cardio ex-ercise is being done in conjunctionwith strength training, it should bedone aerward, because muscle en-ergy should be used on resistance first.

e benefits of strength training in-clude:

• Reduced body fat• Improved overall health• Improved balance, mobility and

strength• Increased metabolic rate• Increased energy• Decreased risk of injuries• Reduced diabetes

• Improved self esteem• Decreased bad cholesterol and

blood pressure• Improved bone density

e primary focus of strength train-ing should be on performing each ex-ercise correctly, so that maximumresults are achieved, with no injuries.Workouts consist of sets of repetitions,with the average number of sets rang-ing from two to four, and with eight tofieen repetitions for each exercise.e amount of weight used for eachexercise depends on using properform and ability, to finish the desirednumber of repetitions. ewhole body should beexercised, as well,which includes chest,shoulders, back, legs,butt, arms andabdominals (core). A basic exercise program would consist ofthree days aweek of strengthtraining and two tothree days a week ofcardiovascular exer-cise.

Depending on one’s fitnesslevel and goals, an exercise pro-gram can be developed inmany ways.

If you are not sure of how toreach your goals and developa quality exercise program,

consult a recommended fitness pro-fessional, who can design an individ-ualized program for you. Propernutrition must be followed, in con-junction with your exercise program,to get successful results. is will cre-ate a healthy lifestyle that will have far-reaching benefits over the course ofyour life.

ere is no better time to make alifestyle change, than now.

The Real “How To” of Exercise

Melinda Duffieis a certified

personal trainer,with additional

expertise in nutri-tion counseling and

life coaching, aswell as a B.A. in

Business.

Melinda Duffiemvpfit@yahoo.com

Do you want to stay “in-the-know” on what’sgoing on in northeast Mississippi? e best wayto accomplish that, is also the easiest!

Simply sign up for our e-mail notifications. Notonly will you have the most comprehensive newsat your fingertips, but you will also stay in com-plete control – how oen you are notified, the for-mat of the notifications, and even the topics thatyou want to stay informed about.

All that you have to do is visit www.realstory-publishing.com. Right there, on the Home page,

is a simple sign-up box. Just enter your e-mail ad-dress, click “Subscribe”, and you are on your way!

Even if you have signed up, previously, we askthat you do so, once again, as we are also updatingour records to account for any information thatmay have been lost in the move to the new web-site.

One last thing – e Real Story will never sell,rent, loan, or give your personal information toanybody!

The Easiest Way to Stay “In-the-Know”, is also the Best!

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For the past few years, MississippiUniversity for Women students haveparticipated in managing stock portfo-lios for the Tennessee Valley Authority,as part of its TVA Investment Chal-lenge.

eir hard workpaid off, recently, asthey won the mostrecent competition,earning a 14.94 per-cent return on theirportfolio. e sec-ond-place teamearned only 6.8 per-cent, according toDr. Andrew Luc-casen, assistant pro-fessor of finance andeconomics atMUW.

“MUW's TVA In-vestment Club hadthe highest return,for the calendar year2011, of the 24schools competingin the TVA Invest-ment Challenge,beating schoolssuch as MississippiState, University ofMemphis, Univer-sity of Kentucky, OleMiss and VanderbiltUniversity. eportfolio they man-

age is now worth over $500,000,” hesaid.

Based on the MUW InvestmentClub's performance, last year, the grouphas won $12,500, bringing its total

earnings to more than $40,000 over theyears, according to Luccasen. e clubfinished in eighth place in 2010.

TVA’s Investment Challenge is a part-nership between TVA and universitiesin its service territory that provides areal-world learning experience in port-folio management. e Challenge givesteams of students hands-on experiencein managing TVA stock portfolios.

Students actively manage TVA fundsby designing long-term investmentstrategies, placing trades and providingperformance reports to TVA—allunder the guidance of a faculty mem-ber.

To support the program, TVA utilizesthe expertise of some of its most expe-rienced financial managers and ana-lysts to provide guidance and resourcesto help students apply financial man-agement concepts to real-world situa-tions.

TVA representatives visit the class-

rooms to discuss the students’ logicand strategies behind their portfoliomanagement decisions, and offer con-structive feedback on strategies.

Club President Savannah Tubbs said,“is year’s win is our own sort ofproof that there is still hope in theeconomy. Being patient with the finan-cial market, and sticking by our choicesin stocks, is paying off in the end.”

Luccasen added, “ey have done agreat job, and I am very proud of them.”

MUW’s TVA Investment Club has 25stocks in its portfolio. ese stocks in-clude Apple, Nike and Starbucks.

e club meets twice a month to eval-uate its portfolio of stocks and decidewhether to buy or sell those stocks. It isopen to all MUW students.

For more information, e-mail aluc-casen@bu.muw.edu.

Special to e Real Story

Cockrell to Present Researchat Upcoming Conferences

Dr. Phillip Cockrell, Director of Stu-dent Life at Mississippi University forWomen, has been selected to presenthis research at two upcoming confer-ences.

As a recipient of the 2012 DoctoralStudent Conference Grant, Cockrellwill present at the American Associa-tion of Blacks in Higher Education(AABHE) conference in Atlanta, GA,March 22-24. He will participate inthe graduate student session.

Cockrell will also present at theNoel-Levitz and American CollegePersonnel Association 2012 Sympo-sium for the Recruitment and Reten-tion of Students of Color, to be held inDenver, CO, April 18-20. e sessionis entitled “e Impact of UpwardBound Programs-Summer BridgePrograms on African-American Col-lege Students”.

He said, “I’m excited about the op-portunity to share the experiences offirst-generation, low-income, African-American college students and theimpact Upward Bound Programshave on their secondary and post-sec-ondary careers. I know, firsthand, the

impact Upward Bound Programshave on these students’ experiences.

“As a high school student, I partici-pated in Upward Bound for fouryears, as well as completed the Sum-mer Bridge Program component atMary Holmes Junior College. eprogram provided me with the skillsand guidance to successfully matricu-late to and obtain a degree at Missis-sippi University for Women.”

Cockrell recently earned his Ph.D.in Urban Higher Education fromJackson State University. He receivedhis Master’s in Educational Leader-ship−Student Affairs Administrationin 2005 from Florida InternationalUniversity, and his Bachelor of Sci-ence in Family Studies at MUW in2003.

He serves as the Graduate Advisorfor the Alpha Omicron Alpha Chapterof Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., andadvisor for the National Pan-HellenicCouncil, National Society for Leader-ship and Success and the Young BlackLeadership Association.

Photo by Chris Jenkins/MUW Office of Public Affairs

Members of MUW’s TVA Investment Club include Terence Nichol-son of West Point; standing, Jase Sayre of Winfield, AL, ChunChen of Aberdeen, president Savannah Tubbs of Pascagoula,Lucy Oyeleye of Nigeria and Shristina Shrestha of Kathmandu.Seated are David Omotola of Nigeria and Dr. Andrew Luccasen,assistant professor of finance and economics at MUW.

MUW’s TVA Investment ClubWins Latest Challenge

Special to e Real Story

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New to DVD: Tintin Revives Movie Joye Adventures of Tintin wastes no

time. Beginning with its brilliantopening credits, the film is excitingand even intoxicating. Whereas Pixarfilms like WALL-E, Up and Cars 2 areslaves to agendas, formula and senti-mentality, e Adventures of Tintin isabout cra and entertainment.

I began to doubt director/producerSteven Spielberg’s gi for adventureaer Indiana Jones and the Kingdom ofthe Crystal Skull, which was a minordistraction at best. e Adventures ofTintin is a bold follow-up, as it is Spiel-berg’s first animated feature, but itreaffirms that he is one of the greatestfilmmakers in the world.

e plot concerns a boy reporter,Tintin, and his trusty, mischievousdog, Snowy. ey acquire a modelship that is connected to buried treas-ure and an old battle between a cap-tain and a pirate. e story doesn’treally take off until Tintin and Snowymeet Haddock, the captain’s descen-dent. is isn’t to say the film is boringat the start; there is always somethinghappening in e Adventures of Tintin.But, Spielberg saves the majority of hisimagination for the film’s second andthird acts.

Even though Tintin is likable andSnowy provides constant interest (younever know what the dog’s going todo), the drunken Haddock is an in-spired film creation. It’s his anguishthat drives perhaps the greatest scenein the movie (I say “perhaps” becausethere is a chase sequence involving a

hawk that must be seen to be be-lieved). Lost in a desert, Haddock hal-lucinates, as Tintin and Snowy lookon. Haddock’s mirage turns into aflashback of the battle between his an-cestor’s ship and a crew of pirates.Spielberg’s handling of this battle isnothing short of amazing. At times, itwas hard to believe I was watching acartoon, not a live-action film. isflashback is interrupted, but the scenereturns when Snowy gets Haddockmore than enough alcohol to fuel hisvision.

Spielberg demonstrates how filmadaptations and adventures should be

done. Based on a comic strip by Bel-gian artist Hergé, the film discardswhat would have seemed awkward toan audience (in the comic, Snowythinks in human words, for example),and retains the fast pace of the comicthat any movie adventure needs. Incontrast, most high-profile film adap-tations and adventures are fat storiesdesigned to appease rabid fans of con-tent - pacing and storytelling bedamned. e Adventures of Tintin cor-rects this assault on our senses.

From the beginning, e Adventuresof Tintin was planned to be a trilogyby its two big producers, Spielberg and

Lord of the Rings director Peter Jack-son. But, unlike the ending of Jack-son’s first two Lord of the Rings movies,Tintin’s conclusion didn’t make methirst for the next installment. Instead,it le me excited about what I had justwatched. Spielberg knows a movieshould make us feel like humans, notconsumers. Hopefully, upcoming hitslike e Hunger Games and eAvengers will follow suit.

David Laster, an electrician at Mal-one Electric Company, Inc. in Colum-bus, is in the process of fulfilling his“Bucket List”.

is past Saturday, as part of hisChristmas present, David drove 10laps in car #44 at Talladega, and wonthe fastest time!

Other items that he has checked offof the list include: skydiving; riding abull; and visiting Spain, Africa,Gibraltar and Portugal.

David was also featured in Rackmagazine and Buckmasters for a world and new Mississippi record in thevelvet category of Buckmasters’ Whitetail Trophy Records, with a deersporting 28 points, a 23” spread, and weighing in at 208 lbs.

Some of the experiences that he hopes to cross off of the list, soon, include:flying a fighter jet; taking his wife, Angela, to Hawaii; and getting a tattoo.

Jed Pressgrovejpressgrove@realstorypublishing.com

Jed Pressgrove is a technical writer and master’s student in sociology at Mississippi State University.

Courtesy PhotoThe Adventures of Tintin recalls the greatness of Steven Spielberg's first three Indiana Jones films.

Courtesy PhotoDavid Laster drove 10 laps at Talladega.

Courtesy PhotoDavid poses with the record-breaking deer.

Courtesy PhotoSkydiving

Local Man Fulfilling ‘Bucket List’ Wins Fastest Time at Talladega

Special to e Real Story

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by Mo & No-MoIf you have a local business or establishment you would like us to consider for review,

please e-mail us at: consumercorner@realstorypublishing.com. You will get our honest opinion of the business,

their personal customer service, and the services offered. We strive for fair, unbiased reporting, so we hope to hear from you.

A gentle scent of spices catches theimagination as you open the doors toe Golden Star Restaurant; flavorsonly dreamed of, as you swallow be-cause you are salivating from the aro-mas of the orient. Let's go on in andsample the delicacies offered at thisdelicious buffet.

e oriental decor is inviting and in-teresting. Pictures, lanterns and what-nots catch the eye and promotedreams of days gone by in foreigncountries. You are greeted by a warmand friendly host or hostess, who seatsyou pretty much anywhere you ask tobe seated. Customer service seems tobe the name of the game at this restau-rant and they know how to make theircustomers happy. We have been thereduring the week for an evening mealand on the weekend for a noon meal;the food and service exceeded our ex-pectations both times.

As you look at the buffet, you arestruck by the small portions in eachcontainer. As I sat back and looked atthis unusual aspect of a buffet, it be-came clear pretty quickly that this isdone with the intention of providingquality food for the customers, at alltimes. Most restaurants in our townfill the containers up and walk off andleave the buffet until somebody com-plains that they are out of food – thisis not true at e Golden Star. Em-ployees constantly work the buffet,

filling containers with just enough toprovide their customers with ampleservings, but not enough for the foodto become stale, dried out or burned;but to remain fresh at all times. ereis a wide range of flavors and foods totry, all of which are good. My per-sonal favorite - the green beans -are todie for; but it is all good.

No matter whether you have agroup, are there as a couple, or just byyourself - walk on in and try eGolden Star Restaurant, located inLeigh Mall (where Garfield's used tobe) for some of the best oriental foodin town. Eat a green bean for me!

Visit our website and share yourpoint of view with our online polls!realstorypublishing.com/category/polls

Results from March 21, 2012

Q: Should Cal-City Grocery be allowed to sell beer?

Yes – 92%No – 8%

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Education Part II:Changing the Course of an Illness

If you haven’t been living under arock or in a cave, you know that aboutone-third of our population either hasdiabetes or is destined to develop it. Inthe majority of cases, it comes fromeating whatever we want, as much aswe want, and not exercising.

On top of this, many families seemto harbor the genes that make themlikely candidates. But, not always. Weknow too much about nutrition togive up and say, “Well, so many of mykin folks have diabetes, so what can Ido about it? I’m gonna eat whatever Iwant! It’s the easy way. I’ll worryabout it when my doctor tells me thatit’s time.”

e same thing is occurring, rightbefore our eyes, in education. e sys-tem is sick, and we know it. We’vebeen told, by the doctor, that if wedon’t change the way that we educateour children, we are doomed.

A Short HistorySeth Godin, author of several books

about changes in our society, said,“e economy has changed, probablyforever. School hasn’t.”

To say that the present system is out-dated is an understatement.

Over 150 years ago, American fac-tory workers were concerned aboutchild labor, but not in the way that youmay think. e fact is that low-wagechild workers were taking away jobsfrom working adults!

Gradually, a transformation oc-curred, one that took the industrialistsa while to grasp. No compulsory edu-cation existed until 1918, and that wasbecause there was the realization, partof the aforementioned transformation,

that educated children would becomemore compliant and, subsequently,more productive workers.

e present widespread system ofstudents sitting in straight rows andfollowing all instructions to the letterwas no accident. It was an investmentin the nation’s economic future. As al-ways, there was a trade-off: short-termchild labor pay for longer-term pro-ductivity. It was meant to give stu-dents a head start in learning to doexactly what they are told. It was amild form of “necessary brainwash-ing.”

Doomed?Michael Spence, a Nobel Prize-win-

ning economist, tells of two maintypes of jobs: tradable (doing thingsthat can be done in other places, suchas building cars, assembling cell phonecomponents, and designing “apps”)and non-tradable jobs, such as cook-ing French fries in a fast-food chain.

Spence reports that, between 1990and 2008, the US economy added only600,000 tradable jobs. He said, “If youdo a job where someone tells you whatto do, he will find someone cheaperthan you to do it.”

e Big Question is are we going toallow our nation’s schools to continueto practice “safe school” and to keepproducing test-weary, desensitized,robot-like graduates who are fit towork in the factory, which in mostcases no longer exists?

As long as we are willing to allowand accept the practice of mass stan-dardized testing (usually for the ben-efit of politicians), then we arepreventing our students from living

up to their potential. As long as weharbor an unnecessary fear of science,we will continue to swim in thecesspool of mediocrity. And as long aswe seem to be afraid to teach leader-ship and free-thinking, we can goahead and declare ourselves Winnersof the “Race to the Bottom”.

A Call for Spine and Gutse picture of what’s going on in ed-

ucation in this country is not totallygloomy. ere are bright spots; oh yes, many. One is the Harlem VillageAcademy. (Yes, Harlem, for those ofyou who raised an eyebrow.) Charter,private, public schools, and institu-tions with a special focus are succeed-ing in preparing students forproblem-solving, logistics, and datamanagement - the types of jobs thatare available in the new workplacelandscape. e Edison schools, as wellas the Kahn On-line Tutoring Pro-gram, have le their marks in uniqueways, becoming “coaches” for theirstudents who, for the most part, be-come curious, responsible producers.

If you look closely at the people whorun these schools, you will find indi-viduals who stood up and said, “Nomore.” ey came from districtswhere doing things differently wasconsidered mutiny. ere were thosewho smuggled a few progressivestrategies here-and-there into theirclassrooms, and some who steppedout of the status quo and started theirown schools; they had guts. ey hadbackbone and saw the “Big Picture”.

at, my friend, is what it takes.Just as potential diabetics know what

is likely to happen to them down the

road, the American education systemalso knows. It’s just too easy, though,to ignore our bad habits, to keep doingthings the easy way, and to avoid en-gaging ourselves in some serious exer-cise.

e doctors say it’s time.And a final word to the 60 Colum-

bus school teachers who were told afew weeks ago that you will not have ajob here, next year. No one likes tohear that their job is gone, but thiscould be the perfect time for you tobecome an agent of change. If youhave a voice, some guts, and a dreamto help students learn how to read,write, think, argue, solve problems,and become curious responsible pro-ducers, then find a place to do that.You may have to move.

If you’re helping make the transfor-mation from the dangerous “EasyWay” to educate students, it reallydoesn’t matter where in the UnitedStates you teach, because the disease issystemic. Your work and that of yourstudents will become a healing forcethat our country so desperately needs.

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John Dorrohjdorroh@realstorypublishing.com

John Dorroh is a Columbusresident who presentlyworks and lives part-time inthe St. Louis area. He worksas an educational consultant, traveling in theMidwest and Southeast. He writes short stories, essays, and cheesy poetryabout people he has metalong the way.

ey challenged a social order whichhad perverted morality.

I once heard a Methodist ministerdefining the difference between blas-phemy and “taking the Lord’s name invain”. e two are oen confused, hesaid, but blasphemy which incites, inthis case, the anti-Christian behaviorof adultery, fornication, and disrespect

to the Bible – is far less egregious thanusing the name of Christ or Christian-ity to justify immoral behavior. Hecited the profligate invocation of reli-gion on the political stump. Summingup, the minister admonished his con-gregation for not being truly moraland focusing only on the superficial el-ements of religious expression.

It is this distinction which is impor-

tant. We need to focus on the princi-ples of character and morality – inWilson’s words “to be good” – whetherleading an uneventful life or challeng-ing received wisdom and social order.

Ron Parlatorparlato@realstorypublishing.com

Ron Parlato is a writer living in Washington, DC.

He has close ties with Columbus which he visits

frequently. His writings on literature, politics and culture,

travel, and cooking can befound on his own blog, uncleguidosfacts.com.

“FOUNDATION” cont. from pg. 10

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by Jeremiah ShortSportsTalk

As the 2012 NFL Dra approaches,there are, once again, two elite quar-terbacks at the top of the Dra—Robert Griffin and Andrew Luck. etwo athletes present contrasting stylesto evaluate.

Luck is a 6’3”, 234-pound prototypesignal caller, who embodies the classicNFL mold. He has been called the bestquarterback prospect since JohnElway, who won two Super Bowls -and played in three others. Luck, theformer Stanford Cardinal, also has agreat pedigree - being the son of for-mer pro quarterback Oliver Luck. eredshirt junior led Stanford to twostraight B.C.S. bowl games – high-

lighted by an Orange Bowl win in2011.

Griffin, on the other hand, is a dual-threat quarterback, who was clockedat 4.41 in the 40-yard dash at the NFLcombine; he also throws an elite-leveldeep ball - rivaling Saints quarterbackDrew Brees in that facet of the game.He, like Luck, won games, leading theBaylor Bears to a 10-3 record, this pastseason; the electric quarterback wasrecognized for his impressive accom-plishments by being awarded theHeisman Trophy, at the conclusion ofthe 2011-2012 season.

Upon reviewing the credentials ofboth quarterbacks, it’s hard to tell

which one is the superior player. NFLscouts and decision makers have al-ready made their decision: AndrewLuck, primarily because he fits theprofile that most evaluators look for ina quarterback. He is tall, sits in thepocket, and comes from a solid pedi-gree - sounds like something thatwould be heard in horse racing, butthis is the NFL way of evaluating.Luck, in their eyes, is the perfect quar-terback.

I ask, though, does the perfect quar-terback exist? And is the method usedto evaluate them flawed?

For years, I’ve heard the statement,“e only way you can win is with a

s t r o n g - a r m e dpocket passer”. estats, in my opin-ion, don’t supportthe claim. Sincewinning the SuperBowl is the ulti-mate goal of everyNFL team, I de-cided to go backand look at thewinning SuperBowl quarterbacks,over the past 20years. What I found was

that only threequarterbacks fit thetraditional NFLmold entering theNFL: Peyton Man-ning, Eli Manning,and John Elway -four if Troy Aik-man is included.Elway was in thelater stages of hiscareer and wasaided by star run-ning back Terrell

Davis. Other thanthose guys, the rest ofthe Super Bowl win-ners were never ex-pected to bring homethe Lombardi Trophy.

Tom Brady, SteveYoung, and DrewBrees are the mostprominent of thoseplayers, but none ofthem fit the traditionalmold, coming out ofcollege. Brady was a6th round pick andYoung was a dual-threat, like Griffin.Brees was allowed toleave the San DiegoChargers aer the2005 season, becausethe Chargers’ generalmanager had to provehis prototype quarter-back, Phillip Rivers,

was a smart pick. Rivers has done well,but I think Brees has proven to be thebetter quarterback, over the past sixyears.

Over the past two decades, SuperBowls have also been won by marginalquarterbacks, such as Trent Dilfer,Brad Johnson, and Jeff Hostetler.

Unconventional quarterbacks, likeMichael Vick, Donovan McNabb, andDante Culpepper, all had success, aswell - with McNabb leading the Eaglesto a Super Bowl, before falling short inthe big game.

Tim Tebow is the most recent case ofa quarterback “shattering the mold”, inthe words of ESPN commentator SkipBayless. Tebow has brought thespread-option to the NFL and led theDenver Broncos to an improbableplayoff berth, this past season.

He has forced everyone to re-evalu-ate how quarterbacks are judged. Withthe success of players like Tebow, Vickand Brees, I have to wonder - shouldthe evaluation system that tries to findthe perfect quarterback be discarded?

It would seem the best strategywould be not to look for a quarterbackwho fits the mold, but the one who ac-tually wins games.

Because, I wonder, Does e PerfectQuarterback Exist?

Courtesy PhotoAndrew Luck Courtesy PhotoRobert Griffin

Does the Perfect Quarterback Exist?

Jeremiah Shortjshort@realstorypublishing.com

Jeremiah Short covers Mississippi State Universityfootball and basketball.

Follow him on Twitter, @JeremiahShort26; or joinhis Facebook blog, Real Story Sports: J.Short’s Blog.

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ANSWERS FROM THE MARCH 14, 2012 CROSSWORD PUZZLE

Stansbury’s Departure Long OverdueBy now, the whole Bulldog nation

knows about Rick Stansbury’s retire-ment or forced retirement - depend-ing on the individual’s level ofskepticism. At the 1 p.m. press confer-ence, ursday, Stansbury cited hisdesire to spend more time with hisfamily as the primary reason for hisretirement.

However, if the press conferencevideo was played on ESPN’s Sportsna-tion, during the B.S. Meter segment,the meter would have been on 100. Ihave no problem with a coach caringabout his family, but any rat with oneeye can tell that’s not the reason Stans-bury called it quits.

I would cite, in response, the wide-spread criticism of Stansbury aer hisonce top-15 team imploded down thestretch. e Bulldogs failed to reachthe NCAA tournament, for the 3rdstraight year, and got bounced in thefirst round of the N.I.T. I think every-one knew something was coming,aer reserve power forward WendellLewis tweeted: " Laying here trying seeif I want to practice today” e apathyby one of Stansbury’s players onceagain struck a chord with detractors ofthe 14-year head coach, who alwayscriticized “the recruiter” (as some af-fectionately call him) for his inabilityto control a team. So, Stansbury madethe decision to hang up the whistle -giving the fan base what they’vewanted for years.

And I commend him for it; but,Stansbury’s departure was long over-due.

I wrote a column a few weeks back,asking the question: “Is just enough,good enough anymore?” Obviously,Rick Stansbury, himself, didn’t thinkhis best was good enough anymore -and it hasn’t been for years.

I don’t think anyone can deny thatStansbury got off to a strong start inhis Bulldog coaching career. He ledthe Bulldogs to four straight tourna-ments, from 2001-2005, but the pro-gram has been marred by inconsistentplay, chemistry problems, and off-the-

court drama ever since those days. Stansbury has always held on to his

job by blaming the problems of theprogram on supposed cancers: JamontGordon, e Delk Twins, Phil Turner,Renardo Sidney, Kodi Augustus, andRavern Johnson. I’ve long had prob-lems with Stansbury, for this exact rea-son. A coach is always supposed tostay loyal to his players, and Stansburynever did. I think this was his “RedHerring”; as if he were saying “we lostnot because of my inability to callgood offensive sets or manage person-alities, but because these bad applesruined my teams.” In some cases, theremay have been some validity to theclaims, but the constant excuse justseemed like the boy crying “wolf ”.

Stansbury was always able to some-how hold it together, mainly becauseof the presence of former lead assis-tant, Robert Kirby, who kept thingsfrom falling completely apart. Somehave even gone so far as to refer toKirby as the real coach of the Bull-dogs, with Stansbury being more of afigure-head.

It’s not hard to fathom, as Kirby per-sonally recruited most of the talent onthe roster - with little or no help fromStansbury. Kirby was truly, for the past12 years, the now-former Bulldoghead coach’s right-hand man.

Kirby eventually le the programaer the 2009-2010 season, and it wasonly a matter of time before everyonerealized Kirby’s true value. It didn’ttake long; two players got caught onESPN’s camera, fighting in the stands.Ravern Johnson, the team’s startingsmall forward, was critical of team-mate Dee Bost on Twitter. Sidneyretweeted the criticism. e seasonturned out to be a nightmare, withseveral suspensions handed downduring the year.

Many thought Stansbury shouldhave been relieved aer the 2010-2011season, but he was given one moreshot – this time sporting an impressiverecruiting class, headlined by 5-starplayer Rodney Hood. Stansbury’s

teams had always operated within themargins, talent-wise, but this teamwas talented enough to compete withanyone.

But, what is a Rick Stansbury team,without drama? Enigmatic center Re-nardo Sidney didn’t attend a five-gameoverseas exhibition trip; then ParadeAll-American D.J. Gardner was dis-missed, aer some profane tweetsfrom the highly-touted true freshman.I think everyone was thinking, “Herewe go again!”, but, surprisingly, theBulldogs came out the gate charging -going 13-2 in their non-conferenceschedule. e Bulldogs earned a top-15 national ranking, in that time pe-riod.

en, the SEC-portion of the sched-ule began, and the problems started.e SEC slate culminated with theteam nose-diving - losing five of itslast seven games of the season. eBulldogs proceeded to lose the firstgame of the SEC tournament to Geor-gia - subsequently playing themselvesout of a NCAA tournament berth.And the Bulldogs (to add insult to in-jury) lost in the first round of theN.I.T. to UMass.

All of this was, finally, too much, andStansbury retired. I give the adminis-tration kudos for allowing him tohang it up gracefully - consideringthey would have been justified in fir-ing him, years ago.

Aer the fan base is done celebratingin the streets, the subject at hand mustbe addressed.

Who will lead the Bulldog programinto the future?

Will it be someone like formerStansbury lead assistant Robert Kirbyor a young up-and-comer, like ShakaSmart, or some off-the-grid coach, likeBob Marlin?

Courtesy PhotoRick Stansbury

Jeremiah Shortjshort@realstorypublishing.com

Jeremiah Short covers Mississippi State Universityfootball and basketball.Follow him on Twitter, @JeremiahShort26; or join hisFacebook blog, Real StorySports: J.Short’s Blog.

Check out our website @ realstorypublishing.com

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Mississippi State signed what was,possibly, their best class of the DanMullen Era, this past February. erewere several impact players who couldsee early playing time. Richie Brown,a 6’2”, 233-pound linebacker, is one ofthose extraordinary talents. He choseto attend Mississippi State, spurningclose to 20 teams that offered him ascholarship.

Brown had a stellar high school ca-reer, tallying 522 tackles from hissophomore through his senior season.He led the state of Mississippi, with209 stops, his senior season.

I caught up with Brown, to discusshis tremendous high school career,signing with Mississippi State (includ-ing the drama leading up to it), andhis future goals.

e explosive linebacker, who hasbeen consistently timed at 4.4 in 40-yard dash, racked up an impressiveamount of tackles, during his career.Brown related how he was able to pro-duce at that level.

“My sophomore year, I realized I hadan ability to freeze an offense and getto the ball quick. I led State with 162,my sophomore year. at was the yearI got everything rolling, and figuredout I could do this and gained someconfidence,” said Brown.

“At the beginning of my sophomoreyear, my coach moved me to differentpositions. Aer that year, I was con-stantly in the middle. He didn’t set upthe whole defense around me, butonce he realized I could make thatmany tackles, he le me there”.

“ere were some games he wouldtry to free me up, more. I think, by mysenior year, we had it pretty much per-fected”.

Brown received an invitation to playin the Mississippi-Alabama All-Stargame, where he was the DefensiveM.V.P., making 13 tackles.

With the All-Star game out of theway, Brown focused on deciding onhis college destination. He took amore deliberate approach than mostrecruits.

“For one, I learned time kills all.Waiting so long to do my recruitingprocess, I think, really helped me out

a lot. As soon as I knew, I knew. Whenyou take your time, you see who reallywants you,” Brown said.

Brown signed with Mississippi State,although he never publicly committedto be a Bulldog before Signing Day.

“It was a fun day for sure; a big relief.I had been waiting, for a while, tomake it public to everybody. It was agreat day for me and my family,” saidBrown, on his signing day experience.

ere was some drama before sign-ing day. A.J. Jefferson, a fellow 2012signee and Brown’s good friendtweeted: “Me and Richie Brown are of-ficially Mississippi State Bulldogs!!!”

It caused a frenzy throughout Bull-dog nation, but it wasn’t true - at leastat that time.

“A.J. committed, and I told him thatState was at the top of my list, but don’ttell anybody. He went and tweetedthat, and I got onto him for it,” Brownsays, with a chuckle.

“I woke up to a lot of phone calls. Ididn’t commit until the next weekend”.

Aer Brown did make his choiceknown, he made all of the otherschools pursuing him aware of hisdestination. Mississippi State’s in-staterival was rumored to have told Brown

that, if he showed up on their campus,he would be escorted off campus bythe campus police.

“I figured Ole Miss would do some-thing to make a big deal out of it,” saidBrown, of the ordeal. ey had to dosomething to make themselves feelbetter. I mean, really, I called thecoaches; I was as respectful as I couldbe. I told them I thought MississippiState was the place for me. I told themthat I didn’t want to waste their time.ere was no point in me visiting theirschool, if I was 110-percent sure I wasgoing to (Mississippi) State”.

e Long Beach High School prod-uct is now focused on becoming a fac-tor as a freshman in the SEC, and,potentially, starting.

“I’m busting my tail right now. I’mup to 233 pounds; I weigh myselfeveryday and I’m consistently gainingweight. ey’re fine with me being230. ey just want me to keep my en-durance and speed up. ey sent me aplaybook; I’m going up there as muchas possible, and talking with CoachCollins. I’m doing everything I can,without being there, to get preparedfor this summer,” says Brown, onpreparing for the college level.

“I’m doing everything I can to com-pete. I know they want me to comeand start at middle linebacker; it iswhat they are talking about”.

Along with playing as a freshman,Brown has set high goals for his Mis-sissippi State career.

“It’s definitely to go to the NFL com-bine; nothing short of going to theNFL. My cousin Robby and I like toset goals. We have one for this year—All-SEC freshman for defense. It’ssomething we are shooting for and ifwe are close, that’s good. I just want todo something big and maybe lead theSEC in tackles in three or four years,”said Brown.

Courtesy PhotoRichie Brown

Brown is Setting High Goals

Jeremiah Shortjshort@realstorypublishing.com

Jeremiah Short covers Mississippi State Universityfootball and basketball.Follow him on Twitter, @JeremiahShort26; or join hisFacebook blog, Real StorySports: J.Short’s Blog.

Campbell Was Part of a Special Eraere was a time when Mississippi

State basketball was heading down theright track – appearing in four tour-naments in four years, from 2001-2005 - including a 26-4 season in2003-2004. One of the key membersof those teams was Marcus Campbell;the Albany, Georgia native averaged4.7 points, along with 3.3 rebounds,during his time as a Bulldog.

He went on to play in a few profes-sional leagues - with his most recentstop being in Iran.

I spoke with Campbell, a few weeksago, to discuss the 2003-2004 season,his time as a Bulldog, and his pro ca-reer.

Campbell came to Mississippi Stateas a highly-touted prospect, turning

down several otheroffers, to become aBulldog.

“I liked the re-cruiting style ofRobert Kirby, thebest former RickStansbury lead as-sistant. He wasvery aggressive andhad me feeling likeit would be a fam-

ily atmosphere. And that made mewant to come,” said Campbell.

e imposing big man played hisfreshman and sophomore seasons as areserve, although he expected to startfrom day one.

“I was promised on the visit that Iwould play the ‘five’ and Mario wasgoing to play the ‘four’,” Campbell said.

Campbell got his chance to start atthe “five” (center) entering his juniorseason, which turned out to be one ofthe seasons in Bulldog history.

“It was special. We had a specialbond. We worked hard in practice; thecoaches put a lot of positive things inus. It was a year where we all were onthe same page. We all wanted to dosomething special,” said Campbell,talking about the 2003-2004 season.

One of the more memorable games,that season, and in Bulldog history,was the January showdown with Ken-tucky, which the Bulldogs lost in aheartbreaker, 67-66.

“It was very hard. A lot of tears wereshed aer that game. A lot of uswanted to win that game,” said Camp-bell, on the loss.

Courtesy PhotoMarcus Campbell

See “CAMPBELL” Pg. 23

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e team lost the big game to Kentucky,but they were expected to make a deep tour-nament run. ey were eliminated, in thesecond round, by Xavier.

e team returned several key players, thenext season, including All-AmericanLawrence Roberts. ey were expected tohave success similar to what they experi-enced the previous season. But the 2004-2005 season was a disappointment, as theBulldogs got bounced in the second round,for a second straight year.

“We definitely thought we were going to bestronger. We did some things we hadn’tdone before. But, it’s all good,” said Camp-bell.

Campbell didn’t get draed aer his finalyear. He got a chance to play in the NBA De-velopmental League (or the D-League, as ithas been coined), along with several stintswith several teams abroad - including a re-cent stop in Iran. He talked about his expe-riences playing overseas.

“I think it’s something where if you’re notin the League (NBA); you should considerit. It’s an opportunity to learn different cul-tures and learn different things. Most of all,you learn a different brand of basketball,”

said Campbell. e Bulldog program has endured some

hardships since Campbell last stepped footin Humphrey Coliseum. e ugliest inci-dent was a fight between two Bulldogs, ElginBailey and Renardo Sidney, during the2010-2011 season.

“I don’t know, tempers can flare; these areyoung men. It looks bad, but, in a sense,these young guys are still learning to bemen. So, if tempers flare, nobody knowswhat the situation is all about. I don’t see itin a negative light – it’s just young guyslearning to be men,” Campbell said of theSidney-Bailey fight.

e program may be in dark times, butthere were bright days at one point in his-tory. Marcus Campbell is one of the resultsof that time.

“CAMPBELL” cont. from pg. 22

Jeremiah Shortjshort@realstorypublishing.com

Jeremiah Short covers MississippiState University football and basketball.Follow him on Twitter, @JeremiahShort26; or join his Facebook blog, Real Story Sports:J.Short’s Blog.

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