Shelby County is one step closer to adopting a wage theft ordinance that would make it easier for employees to reclaim lost or stolen wages. Hannah Sayle has the story.
Month: October 2012
Shelby County is one step closer to adopting a wage theft ordinance that would make it easier for employees to reclaim lost or stolen wages. The ordinance, proposed by County Commissioner Steve Mulroy, passed on its first reading at the Shelby County Commission’s general government committee meeting today.
Kyle Kordsmeier of the Workers Interfaith Network was present at today’s committee meeting to stand in support of the ordinance; Herbi-Systems owner Kenny Crenshaw of “Lemme Kill Your Weeds” fame showed up to say, “lemme kill your ordinance.”
The county ordinance is scheduled to go up for its second reading next Monday. But the real test will be next Tuesday, when an identical ordinance, sponsored by Memphis City Councilman Myron Lowery, goes up for its first reading at city council. Because the Shelby County ordinance would only cover unincorporated Shelby County, the same ordinance must also pass in the city council for it to have an effect on wage theft in Memphis.
The Grizzlies put out an official release this afternoon to announce the completion of the purchase by a group led by Robert Pera, who will be introduced locally at a 10 a.m. press conference on Monday.
The full text of the statement:
MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES SALE TO ROBERT PERA-LED INVESTMENT GROUP COMPLETED
Introductory Media Conference to be held at 10 a.m. Monday, November 5 at FedExForumMemphis, Tenn. — The Memphis Grizzlies announced today that the sale of the team to a group led by Robert J. Pera has been formally completed. Pera, founder and CEO of Ubiquiti Networks, a publicly-traded next-generation communications technology company, has officially assumed control of the Grizzlies and leads a group of well-respected investors.
“The Grizzlies are here to stay in Memphis,” new Memphis Grizzlies Chairman Robert Pera said. “We are thrilled to assume ownership of the Grizzlies. We see enormous potential and understand the role the Grizzlies play in bringing Memphians together. We are committed to building a winning team with a best-in-class organizational culture, finding new and creative ways to engage with our fans, and making a positive and meaningful difference in the community.”
“Owning the Memphis Grizzlies has been one of the most rewarding business endeavors of my career,” Michael Heisley said. “I am confident that the franchise will continue its development toward being a perennial championship contender and an important member of the Memphis community. I am particularly gratified that we have put together a team which is poised to continue its improvement. In Robert, we have a new owner who has expressed a total commitment to build on our success in Memphis. Although my time as owner has come to a close, I will remain a part of Grizz Nation and will continue to support this franchise that will always hold a special place in my heart.”
An introductory media conference will be held at 10 a.m. this coming Monday, November 5. Pera and members of the new ownership group will be on hand for their first event at FedExForum to tip-off a new era in Memphis Grizzlies basketball and both media and the general public are invited to attend. For those members of Grizz Nation unable to attend in person, the press conference will be streamed in its entirety online at grizzlies.com.
The Grizzlies open their 2012-13 regular season home schedule against the Utah Jazz that evening at 7 p.m. Fans are encouraged to arrive early and enjoy the Opening Night Plaza Party. Beginning two hours prior to tip-off the Plaza Party will feature music, inflatables, face painters, balloon artists, official Grizzlies merchandise, sign-making stations and an interactive video game trailer. Other highlights include appearances from Grizz, the Grizz Girls and Claw Crew. Also, the first 10,000 fans through the doors will receive a Grizzlies T-Shirt presented by First Tennessee Bank.
Fans who want to support the Memphis Grizzlies and purchase tickets to Opening Night, 2012-13 Season Tickets, or 10 and 20-Game Packs can do so by calling (901) 888-HOOP or going online to grizzlies.com. Tickets for the Plaza IV and Terrace IV sections are already sold out.
As a Halloween treat for rap-starved fans, Memphis MC Don Trip released his second full-length mixtape of the year today, Help is On the Way, which follows the excellent Guerrilla from earlier this year. Trip has a third full-length collection, a sequel to his Step Brothers collaboration with Nashville rapper Starlito, in the can, which could see the light of day in the near future.
In an interview with the Flyer last month, Trip described Help is On the Way as as “honest and dark,” with more “Chris Wallace” (Trip’s real name) and less “Don Trip” in the songs. The 16-track mixtape features producers such as Cool & Dre and Young Ladd and guest appearances from rappers such as Starlito, indie-scene fave Danny Brown, and Memphis mainstay Juicy J. Help is On the Way is available as a free download from the mixtape site datpiff.com. You can get it here.
Memphis has a diverse and enduring dance community, and some of the cities brightest exports and most exciting regional innovations are have their roots in a full-on collision of classical dance, music, and street cultures.
In recent weeks dance fans have seen classical companies like Ballet Memphis and New Ballet Ensemble taking their place on larger stages.
New Ballet Ensemble students ages recently performed with the Memphis Symphony at the Cannon Center and 13-year-old TJ Benson joined the world renown cellest Yo-Yo Ma for the encore.
Yo-Yo Ma has previously performed with NBE alum Li’l Buck.
Meanwhile, Ballet Memphis’ River Project lands some high praise and some prime real estate in the New York Times. An excerpt:
An introductory film suggests that the plan for these three new ballets was to reflect three zones through which the river passes: one ballet (Steven McMahon’s “Confluence”) on the central area around Memphis, one on the Delta and New Orleans (Julia Adam’s “Second Line”), and another on — what? This third ballet (Matthew Neenan’s “Party of the Year”) proved the least obviously river-connected: its setting was a party in Los Angeles. This didn’t make it a disappointment, however. Instead, it was both the evening’s biggest hit and one of the most beguiling new American ballets of our day.
This week dance fans can check out Company D’s “Let it Be a Dance” or the work of MacArthur Genus grant-winning choreographer Bill T Jones, both at the Buckman.
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Unified School Board Endorses Tax Hike
John Branston reports on Tuesday night’s Unified School Board meeting.
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The Perils of “Halloweek”
Andria K. Brown says this year’s Halloween is nearing too much of a good thing.
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It’s “Halloweek”
I need to make this quick, because I have to finish building a four-foot-tall crayon from Amazon boxes and craft paper. I’d say that this creation will be my daughter’s Halloween costume, but the truth is, it’s one of several costumes she has worn or will wear this year. It’s like a Lady Gaga concert around here this Halloween.
Some time back, I actually had the thought “Oh, it’s too bad Halloween is on a Wednesday, it’s going to pass without notice.” But no, thanks to some unknown force that I suspect is housed in the stock room of Walgreens, instead of having one quiet schoolnight holiday, we’ve somehow turned it into Halloweek.
Festivities have been going on consistently since last Thursday – fall festivals, friends’ parties, neighborhood parades, classroom celebrations. And at each of these events, a costume is required, so we’ve been rotating through a wardrobe of thrift store and dress-up chest finds.
Plus a costume isn’t really a costume without proper hair and make-up. As the rightful heiress to a former Mary Kay lady who diligently applied Wicked Witch greenface and Popeye tattoos, this is a job I take seriously, but I’m beginning to get a callous from sketching eyeliner scars on tween zombies.
To add to this year’s Halloworkload, my daughter decided that she wanted an actual factual homemade costume this year – something not store-bought or premanufactured. Of course, her only frame of reference for such a thing was apparently Foto Hut prints from the early 1980s, so the only option for a hand-made costume she was aware of was a Crayola crayon. It’s like the costume equivalent of a fruitcake; no one likes it, but it’s just always there. I guess I’m lucky she hasn’t seen To Kill a Mockingbird yet or I’d be fashioning a papier-mâché ham right now.
As I realized I’d drawn my perfect freehand rendition of the Crayola logo in landscape instead of portrait orientation, I plowed ahead, trying not to think of how ashamed Jason Smith would be of such work. Jason is one of my oldest and dearest friends, and my earliest memory of him is from Halloween, 1986. I’d thrown on a bowler hat and a mascara mustache and called it a day. Jason, however, was in a perfectly rendered Ewok costume. Not some pre-fab number, either; a family friend had hand-sewn it from fake fur. Ever since, Jason’s Halloween costumes have set the bar impossibly high – he’s been highly realistic versions of Teen Wolf, the Iron Giant, and my personal favorite, the 1960 Democratic National Convention.
Well, my next-to-favorite. Jason’s costume this year was at a whole new level. A very proud new papa, he combined his love of Halloween with his love of his baby girl and came up with a costume concept that was heard ‘round the interwebs. If you saw the picture of a baby commanding a bright yellow Caterpillar Power Loader from Aliens, that was Jason and his daughter. Pictures and video of the outfit went viral, showing up everywhere from the Huffington Post to Wil Wheaton’s Twitter feed.
The reaction was astoundingly positive. In an online world where a troll is waiting under every comment field, feedback has been almost universally supportive. As it should be. The whole thing is unabashedly awesome. And during a week when the news is filled with dire warnings, both from meteorologists and political pundits, it’s incredibly refreshing to bear witness to someone bringing some light and happiness into the world, with no agenda but a hope to delight. Plus he wrote the Internet a lovely thank you note.
It feels like this last week has been an endless parade of spooky make-believe, but really, it’s only going to get worse in the week ahead. There are important issues to get resolved (and Minnesota, I’m expecting your A game), but there will be a lot of foolishness to wade through first. Maybe the best way to prepare is to remember the joy of not taking yourself too seriously.
And now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go try on a pointy crayon hat.
Happy (end of!) Halloween, y’all.
• “If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries.” I’ve been thinking of this quip lately in watching the Tigers struggle under first-year coach Justin Fuente. Bill Parcells delivered that line, of course, during his days as coach of the New England Patriots. He’d had some differences with Patriots owner Bob Kraft over personnel decisions and summarized the feud with the best kitchen analogy he could summon.
The line is pertinent this fall for Justin Fuente, as he’s cooking primarily with ingredients left behind by his predecessor, Larry Porter. Through Fuente’s first eight games as Tiger coach, exactly 11 players he brought to Memphis have played in blue and gray. Only five of them have started a game: Jacob Karam (QB), Anthony Brown (LB), Antonio Foster (OL), Wynton McManis (LB), and Jai Steib (RB).
This isn’t to serve as an excuse for the rookie coach. The lone win and seven losses are all part of Fuente’s record, not Larry Porter’s. But for a game that requires a minimum of 30 to 40 “ingredients” (read: players) to win consistently, the 2012 Tigers are dreadfully undermanned. A grocery sack half-empty.
• If you didn’t know better, you might think the Tigers play games with a brand of football a little more slick than those other teams use. The U of M has lost more fumbles (14) than any other team in C-USA. And the Tiger defense is tied with SMU and Tulsa for the most fumbles recovered (11) in C-USA. The combined total of lost fumbles through eight games is just shy of the total for last season, when the Tigers lost 10 and recovered 18. For what it’s worth, Marshall has only lost six fumbles this season.
• Saturday’s game at Marshall could get ugly. The Thundering Herd enters the game leading Conference USA in total offense (542.9 yards per game) while the Tigers are dead last (286.5). Marshall’s Rakeem Cato is the top passer in the league, averaging 368.6 yards a game with 23 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. On the ground, tailback Kevin Grooms averages 6.1 yards a carry.
On the other hand, the Herd defense won’t be confused with the 1985 Chicago Bears. Marshall has given up at least 45 points in five games (one of them a victory) and allows an average of 464.5 yards per game. For the Tigers to earn their first win in Huntington (they’re 0-3), they’ll have to eat up clock with their running game and give the Herd offense no extra series with turnovers.
- LARRY KUZNIEWSKI
- The season begins where the last ended: With Z-Bo and Blake Griffin battling on the block.
Revenge game? Nah. The Grizzlies can’t do anything tonight in their regular-season debut against the Clippers (9:30 p.m. tip) that would make up for those devastating Game 1 and Game 7 home playoff losses to the Clippers last spring. But that doesn’t mean they won’t be particularly amped for this one. And I do wonder if the Clippers, even in their home opener will have the same intensity given that probably half of their potential rotation — Jamal Crawford, Grant Hill, Lamar Odom, Ryan Hollins, Ronny Turiaf, Ryan Hollins, Willie Green — are new additions who didn’t participate in that series.
I probably won’t be doing many standalone game previews this season, but an opener with this kind of wattage deserves one. So here are three subplots I’ll be keeping an eye on tonight:
1. Zach Randolph vs. Blake Griffin: In last season’s Griz-Clips playoff series, an increasingly banged-up Griffin averaged 18 points on 53% shooting, while a significantly diminished Randolph averaged 14 points on 42% shooting. Given how close most of the games were, it isn’t much of a stretch to say that Randolph equalling Griffin’s offensive production would have tipped the series. So this opening night provides a very good first test for how far back to All-Star level Randolph is. For the Grizzlies to be a contender this season, they need a Randolph that’s roughly on the same level at his position as Griffin.
2. Mike Conley vs. Chris Paul: And speaking of good opening tests … Mike Conley looks fabulous in the pre-season — stronger, quicker, more confident. I was impressed enough that I tabbed him to be a top contender for the Most Improved Player award this season. So how about seeing the New Mike Conley stacked up against the best point guard in the world?
3. Jerryd Bayless vs. Backcourt Pressure: When last we saw the Grizzlies in a game that mattered, anyone not named Mike Conley was struggling to transport the ball safely up court against the defensive pressure of Paul and Popeye-armed back-up point guard Eric Bledsoe. This crippling problem, an even bigger pothole on the Grizzlies post-season path than three-point shooting, is something the acquisition of Bayless is meant to correct. Bledsoe has been even more of a beast in preseason and Paul is Paul. Bayless is likely to be checked by one of those players most of the time he’s on the floor. Let’s see how he handles it.