Author: Craig Ford

Potential presidential candidate visits

Courtesy: Alex Thompson on X

Rahm Emanuel is looking at a run to be the Democratic nominee for president in 2028, and he spoke this week in Water Valley.

The former mayor of Chicago appeared with former state Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley at Wednesday’s event.

Axios national political correspondent Alex Thompson shared some of what was said.

Emanuel himself posted on X Saturday some of his comments from the Water Valley appearance.

Thompson added Emanuel’s biggest applause from that event came when proposing a national ban on social media for children under the age of 16.

He referred to Instagram and TikTok as being “worse than tobacco.“

Will they or won’t they?

Courtesy: Ole Miss Sports

Rebels reach the semis

With the win over Georgia in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, Ole Miss advances to the semifinals in Glendale, Arizona, at State Farm Stadium in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl against Miami. (I had to remind myself the Fiesta Bowl is no longer in Tempe.) Arizona is on Mountain Time, meaning it’ll be a 5:30 pm kickoff there/6:30 pm kickoff here. The winner of Thursday’s contest will face the winner of Oregon-Indiana in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta. The Ducks and Hoosiers play one night after the Rebels and Hurricanes.

As for the quarterfinals win, here’s the coach and quarterback in the locker room after the game.

A quick update

I’ve had some people ask how things are going concerning my cancer. My latest scan a couple of weeks ago revealed two new cancerous spots in my abdomen. The spots are small and are not affecting any major organs yet. The doctor recommended not doing anything for now and evaluating again when I return to MD Anderson in June.

The diagnosis is not a surprise. I was told after my 2023 surgery that since they were not able to remove it all, this cancer would eventually return and require additional surgery or treatment of some sort. I’m just glad I had two years before the cancer came back.

There have been many people praying for my health, and if you’re one of them, thank you. I’m truly grateful and ask that you continue to pray for me and for others dealing with health challenges. May God bless you as we start the new year.

One final run

They turned out in Downtown Columbus to see something that will never happen again.

People packed into the basement of The Commercial Dispatch to watch an old printing press run one final time.

The newspaper will no longer be printed in Columbus after more than 100 years.

Instead, it will be printed at the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal in Tupelo before being shipped back to the Golden Triangle for delivery.

Publisher Peter Imes says the move made sense since it is tougher to find parts and people to work on the 70-year-old printing press, which the newspaper bought used in 1969.

Imes adds delivery times will not change and the paper will have more color on its pages.

However, the paper will now come in a single section instead of two.

You can listen to the entire interview with Imes below about the decision to outsource the printing of the Golden Triangle’s main newspaper.

More progress made after Amory tornado

Baseball and softball teams at Amory High School have been playing away games since the 2023 tornado destroyed their fields. However, significant progress has been made toward again allowing those teams to play their games at home.

Construction started earlier this year on new facilities at the original location of those ballfields — construction that was delayed because the city had to wait on federal approval so it could transfer the property to the school district.

The Monroe Journal reported earlier this month work on those ballfields is on schedule,

Baseball and softball seasons for the Panthers will start in February.

Meanwhile, something else will come out of the ground not far from the high school.

A fence now surrounds the property on Highway 25 where the Amory National Guard Armory once stood before the tornado destroyed it.

It appears work has started on the site where the National Guard has plans for its new home to be built.

That home is now being referred to as a readiness center instead of an armory, a move the military made with its facilities several years ago.