Congressional Leaders Seek Release of American Pastor Unjustly Detained in Turkey
78 Senators and Representatives Urge President Erdogan to Return Andrew Brunson

WASHINGTON – Leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations and House Foreign Affairs Committees sent a letter signed by 78 members of Congress to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan seeking the unconditional release of American pastor Andrew Brunson, who has been unjustly detained in Turkey since October and denied regular and appropriate access to legal counsel and American consular services. The letter was led by Senators Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Representatives Ed Royce (R-Calif.) and Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), the chairman and ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Other members of Congress who signed the letter include: Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), John Boozman (R-Ariz.), Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Shelly Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), Christopher Coons (D-Del.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.), Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Ron Paul (R-Ky.), David Perdue (R-Ga.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), James E. Risch (R-Idaho), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Mark R. Warner (D-Va.), Roger F. Wicker (R-Miss.), and Todd Young (R-Ind.); and Representatives Robert B. Aderholt (R-Ala.), Brian Babin (R-Texas), Gus M. Bilirakis (R-Fla.), Mike Bost (R-Ill.), Brendan F. Boyle (D-Pa.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), David N. Cicilline (D-R.I.), Gerry E. Connolly (D-Va.), Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.), Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.), Garret Graves (R-La.), Bill Flores (R-Texas), Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), Thomas A. Garrett Jr. (R-Va.), George Holding (R-N.C.), Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), Randy Hultgren (R-Ill.), Walter B. Jones (R-N.C.), David P. Joyce (R-Ohio), Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill), Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.), Tom Marino (R-Pa.), James P. McGovern (D-Mass.), Patrick T. McHenry (R-N.C.), Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), Robert Pittenger (R-N.C.), Ted Poe (R-Texas), David E. Price (D-N.C.), Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.), Peter J. Roskam (R-Ill.), Steve Russell (R-Okla.), Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), Christopher H. Smith (R-N.J.), David G. Valadao (R-Calif.), Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), Ted Yoho (R-Fla.), and Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.).

Text of the letter is included below. A signed copy is available here.

February 15, 2017

Dear President Erdogan,

We write to request that Mr. Andrew Brunson, an American citizen who has been unjustly detained in Turkey, be immediately released and deported.

Mr. Brunson has worked peacefully in Turkey since 1993. There appears to be no evidence to substantiate the charges against him for membership in an armed terrorist organization. Moreover, your government has repeatedly denied regular and appropriate access to legal counsel and American consular services.

Mr. Brunson’s imprisonment has been raised repeatedly by U.S. Government officials with officials of the Government of Turkey. Unfortunately, high-level efforts to secure Mr. Brunson’s release have been unsuccessful. We have closely followed developments with this case, and are deeply disappointed.

The United States and Turkey have benefited from a close partnership for decades, and we hope to be in a position to continue strengthening these ties. Now is the time for our countries to reaffirm respect for fundamental freedoms and the rule of law while reasserting our shared commitment to addressing security challenges through partnerships and cooperation.

In this spirit of partnership, we respectfully ask you to consider Mr. Brunson’s case and how the recent treatment of Mr. Brunson places significant strain not only on him and his family, but also on the robust bilateral relationship between the United States and Turkey.

We appeal to you to inquire as to the options for promptly deporting Mr. Brunson and to act on them expeditiously.

Sincerely,

Life can change in a blink…as we all know.  I received a call last night that my two-year-old grandson had broken his leg!  Dickey, Lynda and Hudson were scheduled to leave Friday at 6 AM on a flight to Florida to see their boys.  Plans change…Dickey is going and I am going to help Lynda.  Everyone is sad…here is this sweet little boy who will be wearing a cast…here are two precious boys waiting in Florida for their dad, step-mom, and brother.

No one knows more than me how precious life is and how fast one’s world can be turned upside down!

Prayers for the family…each one of them are dealing with very emotional situations.

I know “we will survive”…that is what you do…but during survival, life sure can be tough.

Magee High School will have a course fair Tuesday, February 21, 2017, at 5:30 pm.

This is for every department  to show what has been taught and business to explain what is done at their business and what requirements are needed to be able to work for their business as far as a technical degree or college degree.

All business are encouraged to come set up a table and tell students about their business.

For additional information please contact Magee school at 601-849-2263.

Happy Birthday Susan! A Blast from the past.

Hope you have a great day!

From your friends, family, BJ and MageeNews.com.

WLBT and representatives from Midland Radio will be at Walgreens Thursday, February 23, 2017 from 4-6:30 pm.

Radios can be purchased and programmed or if you have a weather alert radio you can bring it by and have it programmed.

Do not let a storm catch you off guard.  Be prepared!

Maranatha Baptist Church is having a wild game supper on March 11 at 6:00pm. We will have door prizes for all ages. Fish will be Served along with various wild game dishes. A youth bow shoot will precede the dinner.  The shoot will begin at 4:30pm.

Lee  Roy   Martin , 68, of  Mendenhall passed away Friday, February 17, 2017 at his  residence  in Mendenhall. He was born Monday, October 4, 1948 in Tallahatchie County , MS.
Visitation will be held Saturday, February 18, 2017 from 5:00 PM until 8:00 PM at Colonial Chapel Funeral Home of Mendenhall.
Funeral services will be held Sunday, February 19, 2017 at 2:00 PM at Colonial Chapel Funeral Home of Mendenhall. Burial will follow in Merit Cemetery. Bro. Danny  Dickerson will officiate.  Colonial Chapel Funeral Home of Mendenhall is in charge of arrangements. (601)847-4401

Mr. Martin is preceded in death by his father Dewey  Martin; Brothers Butch Martin and Bobby Martin,
Mr. Martin is survived by his Wife – Angie  Martin; Mother – Ruby  Nell Holland; Step-Sons – Aaron D. Hayes and Kendrick  L. Mangum;  Brother – Michael  Moorman and one niece Debbie Ainsworth,
Pallbearers will be Bennie Blair, Richard  Barker, Reggie Barker , Daniel  Anderson, Jeffery Williams and Wade Hayes

MSU African American Studies hosts ‘James Meredith and the March Against Fear’

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State’s African American Studies program is continuing its 10th anniversary celebration with a special Wednesday [March 1] panel discussion.
Taking place at 6 p.m. in historic Lee Hall’s Bettersworth Auditorium, “James Meredith and the March Against Fear” will feature U.S. Air Force veteran James Meredith and fellow activists Flonzie Brown-Wright and Hollis Watkins who participated in the major 1966 Civil Rights Movement demonstration.
In addition to the College of Arts and Sciences’ African American Studies program, the panel discussion is supported by the university’s Office of Public Affairs and the James Worth Bagley College of Engineering’s Office of Diversity Programs and Student Development.
The panel will be moderated by MSU Associate Professor of History Jason Morgan Ward, author of “Hanging Bridge: Racial Violence and America’s Civil Rights Century” (Oxford University Press, 2016).
Also making remarks during the evening program will be Aram Goudsouzian, University of Memphis history department chair and author of “Down to the Crossroads: Civil Rights, Black Power, and the Meredith March Against Fear” (Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2014).
A Kosciusko native, Meredith became the first African American admitted to the University of Mississippi in 1962. On June 5, 1966, Meredith started the “March Against Fear,” a solo march from Memphis, Tennessee, to Jackson, Mississippi, to increase awareness of civil rights violations in the Magnolia State. He was shot on the second day of the march and unable to continue.
Major civil rights organizations resumed the march. Along with Martin Luther King Jr., community organizers Brown-Wright and Watkins were among those who aided the march.
A Jackson community organizer who inspired “March Against Fear” participants by singing freedom songs, Watkins became the first Mississippi youth to join the 1961 Voting Rights Project of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.
Based in Canton, Brown-Wright provided shelter and food to King and other “March Against Fear” participants. She became the first black woman to hold elected office in Mississippi when she was named Madison County election commissioner in 1968.
Meredith later rejoined the marchers in Jackson, where he walked alongside King and other civil rights leaders.
Along the way, civil rights activist Stokely Carmichael uttered the phrase “Black Power,” which became a national slogan following the march.
For more information, contact LaShundra Townsend, African American Studies administrative assistant, at 662-325-0587 and ltownsend@aas.msstate.edu.
Part of the College of Arts and Sciences, MSU’s African American Studies program offers courses leading to a minor in African American Studies. For more, visit www.aas.msstate.edu.
MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.

The 2017 edition of the Armstrong-Branch Distinguished Lecture Series at The University of Southern Mississippi will feature famed actress and activist Jasmine Guy Tuesday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. in Bennett Auditorium on the University’s Hattiesburg campus. Admission is free.

Guy earned six consecutive NAACP Image Awards for her role as Whitley Gilbert on the popular television sitcom A Different World, which aired on NBC from 1987-1993. Today, she directs as well as acts on stage, in film, and on television. She is author of a 2004 biography of Afeni Shakur, Black Panther activist and mother of rapper Tupac Shakur.

The lecture series is named for Gwendolyn Armstrong Chamberlain and Raylawni Adams Branch, who made history as the first African American students at Southern Miss when they enrolled in 1965.

“We’re honored to have Jasmine Guy presenting at this signature event as we celebrate Black History Month and the integration of The University of Southern Mississippi,” said Southern Miss Dean of Students Dr. Eddie Holloway. “She is a multi-talented artist whose work on screen and stage is phenomenal, and we await her visit to campus with great anticipation.

“We are also excited about the return Gwendolyn Armstrong Chamberlain and Raylawni Adams Branch to Southern Miss for this event, and look forward to having a large audience welcome them home.”

Guy has appeared on Broadway in productions of Beehive, Leader of the Pack, Grease, The Wiz and Chicago. She has recurring roles in both If Loving You is Wrong, Tyler Perry’s hit drama series on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network, and as Grams on the popular CW series, Vampire Diaries. Her other television performances include Dead Like Me, Melrose Place, NYPD Blue, Fresh Prince of Bel Air and Single Living. She has traveled throughout the U.S. as a motivational speaker, often called upon to share her story openly with those who may benefit from her trials and triumphs.

The 2017 Armstrong-Branch Lecture will be presented by the USM Office of Multicultural Programs and Services, the Honors College and the Dean of Students Office. For more information about this event, contact the USM Dean of Students Office at dos@usm.edu.

USM Professor Named Chair of Speech-Language-Hearing Medicaid Committee

Dr. Kimberly Ward, assistant professor in the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences at The University of Southern Mississippi, has been elected chair of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association’s Medicaid Committee.

In this role, Ward will oversee a committee whose mission is to assist the Government Relations and Public Policy (GRPP) Board and the GRPP cluster in determining current economic issues and developing goals as related to audiology and speech-language pathology services specifically covered and reimbursed by Medicaid. The committee is comprised of speech and hearing sciences professionals from across the nation to serve the 186,000 members on issues related to Medicaid.

“I am honored to have been elected to serve as the chair of the ASHA Medicaid Committee. ASHA is making tremendous strides in helping its members advocate for themselves, their pediatric clients, and their adults clients,” said Ward. “I feel assured the Medicaid Committee will provide constant support for Medicaid related issues to our members, as well as advocate on a federal and state level for most appropriate reimbursement rates, best practices in Medicaid billing, as well as practice management during a time of change on healthcare across the nation.”

A native of Elba, Ala., Ward has been employed at Southern Miss since September, 2012. She teaches a number of graduate and undergraduate courses ranging from Pediatric Audiology to Cochlear Implants to Auditory Processing Disorders. She also serves as the Doctor of Audiology program’s Audiology Clinical Education Coordinator.

This is Ward’s third year to serve on the ASHA Medicaid Committee, but her first as chair for the 2017-18 year. She has participated in the ASHA Student Empowered Professional (S.T.E.P.) program as a mentor as well as a participant in the ASHA Mentoring Academic Careers Program.

FAITH IN GOD

Have you ever had confidence in something or someone they let you down?  The reason you were let down is faith was not applied.

Our devotion today comes from 2Corinthians 5:7.  For we walk by faith not by sight.  A blind man was walking down the street with his cane.  Someone stopped him and said sir how do you walk without site.  He told them by faith.  I have faith in God will see me through no matter what I face.

When you walk don’t you have faith you will make the next step?  Because a task looks hard that does not mean it is.  The task is what you make of it.  Have a blessed and victorious week.

Rev. Richard Kight

Magee, MS

Congratulations to Brennan McNair who placed first in the biochemistry division at the Regional Science Fair held at USM. Brennan is the son of Josonda and Fountaine McNair of Magee. Brennan is a student at Magee Middle School.

Congratulations to Elaine Flagg. Elaine place 4th in the 9th & 10th grade Division of Organic Chemistry. The Regional 1 Science and Engineering Competition took place at USM. Elaine is the daughter of Audarshia and Patrick Flagg of Magee and a student at Magee High School.

Students enrolled in non-traditional programs of study at the Simpson County Technical Center toured the Technical programs on the Co-Lin campus on Friday, February 17.

Always fun to explore new places and opportunities.

1 Election Code Update – Technical updates to the Election Code as well as substantive revisions, such as the implementation of a certified poll manager training program; staggering of election commissioners’ terms; reduction in the number of paper ballots required to be printed and machines to be used; shortening of the timeline for political committees to file statements of organization to forty-eight hours (48) after receiving or spending funds; increasing transparency by requiring filers to itemize payments made to credit card issuers, banks, or online payment portals; and placing sanctions on political committees failing to make required filings with the Secretary of State’s Office.
◦ HB 467, sponsored by Rep. Bill Denny, has passed the House and has been transmitted to the Senate.
2 Vulnerable Adult Amendments to the Mississippi Securities Act – Under the Mississippi Vulnerable Persons Act, investment advisers and broker-dealers must notify the Department of Human Services if they know or suspect a vulnerable person has been or is being abused, neglected, or exploited. This proposed amendment to the Mississippi Securities Act will require investment advisers and broker-dealers to also notify the Secretary of State’s Office, and allow them to notify a designated third party or delay disbursements if they reasonably believe financial exploitation has been attempted or has occurred. This amendment, along with its immunity provisions, will create incentives to encourage firms to report potential financial exploitation as early as possible.
◦ SB 2911, sponsored by Sen. Sally Doty, passed the Senate and has been transmitted to the House.
3 Increasing Security Violation Penalties – Under the Mississippi Securities Act, securities firms are required to reasonably supervise their employees and failure to do so is a violation of the Act. This bill amends the Act to clarify if a firm fails to supervise an employee for more than twelve (12) months or fails to supervise multiple employees these failures result in multiple violations of the Act rather than a single violation.
◦ HB 1002, sponsored by Rep. Hank Zuber, passed the House and has been transmitted to the Senate.
◦ SB 2423, sponsored by Sen. Joey Fillingane, passed the Senate and has been transmitted to the House.
4 Public Improvement Districts (PID) Amendments – Amends the Public Improvement District statutes by reducing PID board member terms; removing board members who fail to attend meetings or fail to pay required PID assessment fees; limiting contribution agreements made by counties or municipalities; determining voting interest by the number of tax parcels or acres owned; allowing the county or municipality to dissolve the district, appoint a new board, or take other action; and providing for property to be stricken to the PID if assessments are unpaid and unredeemed at the county tax sale.
◦ HB 1308, sponsored by Rep. Jason White, passed the House and has been transmitted to the Senate.
5 Davis Bayou Land Transfer – Allows the Secretary of State to transfer to the National Park Service the water bottom (approximately 1.08 acres) beneath its pier and boat launch in the Davis Bayou Area of the Gulf Islands National Seashore in Ocean Springs.
◦ HB 1225, sponsored by Rep. Casey Eure, passed the House and has been transmitted to the Senate.
6 Business Law Clean-Up – Amends the Mississippi Business Corporate Act to allow for winding up after a corporation is administratively dissolved and removes the ten (10) year limitation on voting agreements.
◦ SB 2350, sponsored by Sen. Sean Tindell, passed the Senate and has been transmitted to the House.
7 Mississippi Entity Conversion and Domestication Act Clean-Up – Makes technical amendments clarifying documents to be filed with the Secretary of State and removes charitable non-profit corporations from the list of entities eligible to conver

 
◦ SB 2327, sponsored by Sen. Sean Tindell, passed the Senate and has been transmitted to the House.

Some may remember in the mid to late seventies a record shop in Magee named The Music Machine.  Well in the fall of 1976 on one of my many trips there, I was struck with a big decision.

I only had enough money for one new album but which one do I choose.  A friend that I had taken with me was going to purchase the new KISS album “Destroyer ”
While I was thinking about a different album from a new and virtually unknown band ” Boston”.
I admit I didn’t know much about them and the only song I knew was “More Than A Feeling “. I wanted the album but didn’t want to waste my money on what might be an unknown band with a one hit wonder!
I remember my friend saying “Don’t be stupid, they’ll never make it and you’ll be sorry.”

Decisions, decisions… oh well, I bought the Boston album and loved it.   Apparently, so did a lot of other people.
The album’s singles, most notably “More Than a Feeling” and “Long Time”, were both AM and FM hits, and nearly the entire album receives constant rotation on classic rock radio. The album has been referred to as a landmark in 1970s rock and has been included on many lists of essential albums. The album has sold 17 million copies in the United States alone and 25 million worldwide.

I hear at least three songs a week from this album on my local classic rock station , 98 Rock / WACL – Elkton .
Now I can’t say that all my albums decisions have turned out as good , but this one sure was a winner.
Sometimes you just gotta go with your gut. You never know when it’s ” More Than A Feeling.”
Don can be reached for comment at ddwalker88@comcast.net