Tag: Arkansas

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CannaBeat: Arkansas Recreational Pot Issue Gets Support, Faces Headwinds, Ahead of Tomorrow’s Election

Credit: Toby Sells

Two Tennessee District Attorneys General — a Democrat and a Republican — asked Arkansas voters to approve a ballot initiative for recreational cannabis Tuesday.

Arkansas Issue 4 would amend the state constitution to allow adults to possess and use cannabis in the state. If approved owning and selling cannabis would be remain illegal under federal law, but the law would allow licensed dispensaries to sell cannabis to adults beginning in March 2023.  

Ahead of the vote, Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy, a Democrat, and  Republican DA Frederick Agee, of the 28th Judicial District (Crockett, Gibson, and Haywood Counties) issued a joint statement in support of Issue 4.

We need to stop wasting time prosecuting marijuana, which is no more dangerous than alcohol, and refocus on violent crime.

Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy

“We need to stop wasting time prosecuting marijuana, which is no more dangerous than alcohol, and refocus on violent crime,” Mulroy said. “That’s true on both sides of the border, which people cross in both directions daily. This could also make things easier for persons with medical needs in West Tennessee, where medical marijuana remains illegal.”

Agee said Arkansas voters have ”an opportunity to right a wrong by voting to end marijuana prohibition which has been an utter failure for over 50 years in our country.” 

“Marijuana prohibition much like alcohol prohibition has destroyed lives and ripped families apart particularly in communities of color,” Agee said. “It’s simply bad policy for our states and federal government to continue wasting taxpayer resources trying to defeat a plant. 

It’s simply bad policy for our states and federal government to continue wasting taxpayer resources trying to defeat a plant.

28th Judicial District Attorney Frederick Agee

“Common sense regulation works and prohibition doesn’t. Vote to legalize recreational marijuana in Arkansas.”

The issue earned support from PGA pro golfer Jon Daly in a tweet earlier this month in which he said cannabis has been legalized for recreation ”in 19 states and the sky didn’t fall.”

However, the issue seems to be facing headwinds. University of Arkansas researchers found that 59 percent of those polled in its annual Arkansas Poll opposed recreational cannabis and only 41 supported it. 

University of Arkansas
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At Large Opinion

Red Summer in Elaine, Arkansas

Photo: Bruce VanWyngarden

Join me today for a trip to Elaine, Arkansas. It’s a long drive, and I could use some company.

As Highway 61 winds its way down the bluffs to the big-sky alluvial plain of the Mississippi Delta, towering clumps of clouds drift on the western horizon, distant rainstorms visible in the morning light. We’ll probably get wet later.

In Tunica County, signs for casinos appear. Some are thriving, others are ghostly shells, losers on the gaming wheel of fortune that began spinning 30 years ago. The outlet mall south of town, once a thriving retail mecca, now features several empty storefronts, the formerly heady thrill of wandering through J.Crew, Victoria’s Secret, and Nautica having been replaced by porch-box fairies in FedEx trucks.

We turn onto Highway 49, a slim two-lane running string-straight to the Helena Bridge, a narrow and rusty looking structure with kudzu and trumpet vines adorning the side rails. It does not inspire confidence. Once across, we take the Great River Road 20 miles south to Elaine, where in 1919, the greatest race massacre in U.S. history occurred. But you knew that. Didn’t you?

Photo: Bruce VanWyngarden

Late winter through early autumn of 1919 has become known as “Red Summer,” a time when white supremacist terrorism and racial riots took place in more than three dozen cities across the U.S. — and in one small town, Elaine, Arkansas — where we are now parked in front of a vacant building with a sign that says “Birdhouse Capital of the World.” There are no people in sight. In 1919, thanks to Jim Crow election laws, Black Americans couldn’t vote, hold office, or serve on juries. At the same time, thousands of African-American soldiers were returning from World War I and were beginning to feel resentment at the racism they came home to. The nascent NAACP had begun to speak out for racial justice.

The reaction to Black activism was swift and brutal. The KKK and other groups began ginning up violence and hate against the “negroes” for “spreading socialism.” Jingoistic newspapers around the country fed the fire with articles about “armed negroes in revolt.” Racial violence soon broke out in Chicago, Omaha, Tulsa, Washington, D.C., and more than 30 other cities. Black communities were destroyed. Hundreds were killed. Lynchings were common.

In Phillips County, Arkansas, 100 residents of Elaine held a meeting of the Progressive Farmers and Household Union of America in a church north of town on September 30, 1919. Three white men monitored the gathering. Shots were fired and returned. A white security officer was killed; a deputy sheriff wounded. The word went out in Helena that there was an “armed negro revolt” underway.

Over the next couple of days, as many as 1,000 vigilantes, soldiers, and police swarmed into Elaine and committed horrific acts of violence. From an eyewitness account:

“Soldiers in Elaine committed one murder after another with all the calm deliberation in the world, either too heartless to realize the enormity of their crimes, or too drunk on moonshine to give a continental darn. … several hundred of them began to hunt negroes and shotting [sic] them as they came to them.”

Accounts of how many Black men, women, and children were killed range from 150 to 800. No one knows for sure, but there is little doubt that it was the worst race massacre in U.S. history. The ensuing kangaroo court trial and imprisonment of 12 Black “rioters” changed U.S. civil rights history and is worth your time to learn about, because like most Americans, you’ve probably never heard about any of it.

Thanks to the folks at the Elaine Legacy Center, that’s changing. They are organized and pushing forward with presentations, lectures, and other programs to restore life to the area and tell its story. On September 30th, there will be a service to honor the victims of the massacre. I’m going to write more about Elaine and the Legacy Center later this summer. I hope you’ll join me for a return trip.

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Cover Feature News

Day Trippin’: Cabin Fever? Get Away Without Going too Far

CREDIT: Jesse Davis

After a year of quarantines, shutdowns, and cabin fever, a little road trip can really cure a vacation itch — without the time off from work, hotel fees, plane tickets, etc. that often accompany an actual vacation. With several options within a few short hours of the city limits, it’s easy to hop in the car, see the sights, unplug, and have some fun — and even be back home by sundown.

Calico Rock, Arkansas

My status as an angler is amateur at best, but when I was younger, my family used to make pilgrimages to Calico Rock in Izard County, Arkansas, to fish for trout in the White River. I’ve done well enough with lures and live bait, from the boat and from the shore, but I’ve never made the leap into the die-hard world of flyfishing. Whether I caught much or not, though, it was some of the most fun I can remember having.

As I recall it, as the water swirls around your rubber waders or the bow of your boat, it’s cold — piercingly so. The White River, fed from the depths of Beaver Lake, is famously frigid. It’s the kind of shocking chill that will jolt you awake, driving thoughts of the city and the job from your mind. All the better to tune into the quiet rhythms of the Natural State.

Jesse Davis

Jenkins Fishing Service on the White River

I made the three-hour trip to Calico Rock myself just a few weeks ago. Fishing season had not yet started back up, but I enjoyed myself hiking along the banks of the meandering Calico Creek. I snapped a few photos, thought about fishing trips of old and those still to come, and enjoyed the clean, crisp, cool air.

Of course, the adventurous Mid-Southerner venturing into the Arkansas wilds need not stop at Calico Rock. The Little Red River and the Black River are known to be excellent fishing spots as well; and Lake Ouachita, a jewel of a lake, is hard to beat for camping, hiking, and canoeing. Or, for those less sporty types, and I’m speaking from experience now, just kick back by the campfire with a good book and a bottle of bourbon and enjoy the scenery. — Jesse Davis

Taylor, Mississippi

The rustic village of Taylor is, as Faulkner called it, “a postage stamp of native soil.” But it’s an interesting stamp, and reputedly the only real Mississippi town name that Faulkner allowed into his novels. It’s also a nice day-trip destination — about 90 minutes from Memphis — offering a melange of vintage small-town structures, local art galleries, and memorable food, both plain and fancy.

The story goes that in the 1970s, when real estate prices started rising in Oxford, a number of painters, potters, musicians, and other refugees moved to Taylor, giving it a cachet of bohemia that still remains. The weathered and largely unrestored main thoroughfare also remains, with a few plank buildings and a rustic gas pump and board sidewalk. You can visit local galleries and shops, drop into Carter’s Store for “dry goods,” and, if you’re willing to hang around on the front porch until a table opens (a pleasant experience, usually), you can eat some of the famous catfish at Taylor Grocery & Restaurant. You can also take it with you if indoor dining is still not an option you’re interested in.

Google Earth

The Plein Air development in Taylor, Mississippi

Google Earth

Carter’s Store

grittaylor.com

Grit

If catfish isn’t your thing, you’re in luck. You can sample some fine Southern fusion cuisine — and maybe an artisanal cocktail or two — at Grit, which is located in the new Plein Air development, not far from Taylor’s main drag. (Which is a very small main drag, for the record.) The homes in Plein Air are classic Southern design, with front porches and lawns, sort of like Seaside in Florida or Memphis’ Harbor Town. It’s a nice neighborhood, and “The Mill” is a popular site for weddings. There are a couple of shopping opportunities in Plein Air, as well. And the drive back can be fun, if you explore the backroads. Which is what Faulkner would recommend. — Bruce VanWyngarden

Reelfoot Lake — Tiptonville, Tennessee

I’m on my vintage Indian Scout with the sun on my back and the wind in my hair. Helmet be damned. The daydream comes to a sudden halt with four words, “Are we there yet?”

I came back to reality driving a 2014 minivan with two “I’m bored” preteens and a “Where are we going again?” septuagenarian.

Earlier at home, my 7- and 9-year-old nieces uttered the words “I’m bored” one too many times. Aunt Juju sprang into action loading everyone in the car for another infamous “crazy aunt” mystery trip. On these trips, I don’t say where we are going; It’s a surprise. Thirty minutes in, someone always asks, “How long until we get there?” I look at my phone and say, “In about when-we-arrive hours.”

Julie Ray

Nature Center, like the recently opened Youth Ninja Course, are open to the public.

The 7-year-old was wearing a tie-dye sweatshirt with Christmas tree pajama pants. Reelfoot Lake in Tiptonville, Tennessee, is about 100 miles through some quaint small towns and, luckily, has a relaxed dress code. Bald eagles, a gorgeous lake, and fried chicken at Boyette’s would be the best bet to fill the void on a cold, overcast day.

Google Maps suggested Highway 14. Not only is this route an extra hour, it’s boring. Best take Highway 51; it’s more entertaining, and the route is only two hours. We missed the bald eagle tour, the park was closing soon, and the kids got hungry hours ago, necessitating a stop at Sonic. No one was hungry for Boyette’s, but we did see eagles and find a Youth Ninja Course — a very scaled-down version of American Ninja Warrior‘s obstacle course. That was a hit.

I’ve been to Reelfoot Lake and Boyette’s before via Highway 51. You’ll just have to take my word that it’s a worthy day trip. Best enjoyed on a vintage Indian Scout. — Julie Ray

Holly Springs, Mississippi

A day trip for me means eating. A trip to Holly Springs, Mississippi, only about an hour from Memphis, ensures lots of good eating. And more.

A must is Phillips Grocery, known for its hamburgers made with secret ingredients. I like to eat on the porch and drink a Nehi grape or orange with my burgers at the restaurant, housed in a circa 1882 saloon. They also have a great chicken sandwich.

Alice McLallen Kerley

Phillips Grocery

Marshall Steakhouse, a massive restaurant owned by Randall Swaney, is a shrine to beef. In summer, catch a show on the outdoor stage. You also can eat outside at one of the many tree-shaded picnic tables.

For fabulous catfish, barbecue, and other cuisine, visit Clancy’s Cafe in Red Banks, 10 minutes from Holly Springs going toward Memphis. Desserts include cakes made by owner Tyler Clancy’s grandmother.

Places to go between eating include the Marshall County Historical Museum, which area Baby Boomers might compare to the old Pink Palace Museum, which was full of everything. This museum encompasses several floors and includes vintage clothing, toys, dolls, quilts, and old farm tools.

The nearby Kate Freeman Clark Art Gallery exclusively features art by the late Holly Springs artist.

Check out the Ida B. Wells-Barnett Museum and Cultural Center of African and African-American History, which highlights worldwide contributions in history, art, and culture.

If you’re an Elvis fan, drive by (it’s not open to the public) Graceland Too, which the late Paul MacLeod once devoted as a shrine to the King.

Venture less than an hour away to Tupelo to see more Elvis. This is where his childhood home is located. And grab something to eat at one of Elvis’ former hangouts, Johnnie’s Drive-In.

Finally, on your way to and/or from Tupelo to Holly Springs, get an extraordinary homemade apple or peach pie at Flick’s Truck Stop in Potts Camp.— Michael Donahue

The Clinton Presidential Museum and Library — Little Rock, Arkansas

Though it has, like other national installations featuring historical government archives, undergone temporary closure, the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum in Little Rock should be on anybody’s future list, and should be generally available soon, given the advent of multiple vaccines and, as of early 2021, intensified anti-COVID policies at all levels of government.

Located just off the first interstate exit at Little Rock, as one heads west on I-40, the library stands in cantilevered splendor on a 30-acre park. Inside, it contains archival collections and research facilities, as well as mementoes galore of the 42nd president’s time in office: photographs and videos of key historical moments and artifacts of Clinton’s travels as chief executive, along with replicas of documents ranging from important treaties to personal correspondence with the likes of Elton John. And yes, a saxophone.

Jackson Baker

at Resolute desk

Visitors have the opportunity to go interactive, sitting at exact replicas of the cabinet table in Clinton’s White House conference room and at the famed Resolute desk in an Oval Office space that models Clinton’s taste and, we learn, has been largely replicated in Joe Biden’s choice of decor. And not just sit; both of these historical spaces are outfitted with easily operated audio-visual reminders of the events, both momentous and personal, that occurred there and can be re-experienced by the visitor.

A lot of history here at one’s beck and call, and close by! — Jackson Baker

Delta Bound

Memphis is lucky to have, right on its doorstep, nothing less than the crucible of some of America’s greatest music. That would be the Mississippi Delta, of course, and for anyone hankering to get out of town, it can be the perfect escape. Thankfully, barreling down Highway 61 (in a convertible, anyone?) is COVID-safe.

Along the way, watch for the signs of the Mississippi Blues Trail (msbluestrail.org), which alert travelers to significant locations in the music’s history. One of the first you’ll see stands in the cemetery where Memphis Minnie is buried, just west of Walls, where she grew up. Others are found near Tunica, Clarksdale has over a half dozen, and that’s just the beginning.

Stopping off to soak in the Delta landscape, while learning blues history, is a glorious escape on a sunny day. But the blues museums along the way are also an option. In one recent trip to see several Delta museums, I had them all to myself. The Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale, the Grammy Museum in Cleveland, and the B.B. King Museum in Indianola, among others, can provide hours of education and entertainment.

Alex Greene

B.B. King Museum in Indianola

Alex Greene

Robert Johnson’s grave in Greenwood

Alex Greene

Delta Blues Museum

Alex Greene

Hubert Sumlin marker in Greenwood

But there’s more to the Delta than just music. See the current Delta Magazine for a comprehensive guide to public art in the region, from murals to sculpture to architecture. The area is bursting with creativity, as spaces like the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience in Meridian, the Mathews-Sanders Sculpture Garden in Cleveland, or the H.C. Porter Gallery in Vicksburg make abundantly clear.

Meanwhile, those who love non-musical history have plenty to discover, starting with the multi-state Civil Rights Trail (civilrightstrail.com), which has many markers and sites through the Delta. Greenwood sports the Museum of the Mississippi Delta, covering prehistory, Native American life, art, agriculture, and the Civil War.

But beyond such curated experiences, the simple art of walking and exploring can thrive in the Delta, whether it’s taking in the historical downtowns of Clarksdale, Greenwood, or other towns, or — my favorite — exploring cemeteries. To sit beside Robert Johnson’s final resting place outside of Greenwood, as dusk sets in, makes for a day trip that reverberates deep in the soul. — Alex Greene

Wilson, Arkansas

With the redevelopment and building boom going on in Downtown Memphis and other parts of town, you might be forgiven for not looking too far outside the Bluff City Bubble. But if you avert your gaze slightly, you’ll catch a glimpse of a small-city renaissance happening just 45 minutes up I-55.

The town of Wilson, Arkansas, (population hovering just under 1,000) has been reborn over the last decade since the Wilson family sold its land to The Lawrence Group in 2010. The group, which has experience running wineries and vineyards, is revitalizing the former logging and sawmill town into a Delta tourist hotspot.

Courtesy City of Wilson, AR

The Grange at Wilson Gardens

The city’s 21st-century approach is built around the Wilson Wine Experience, which includes frequent six-course thematic dinner events curated by Norbert Mede and Chef Roberto Barth. Set at different historic locations around Wilson, Mede’s keen taste for good vintages meshes superbly with Barth’s unique approach to Delta cooking.

Those with a bit more thirst can focus on one of Wilson’s weekly wine tastings, and easily spend the better part of a day catching some music at The Grange at Wilson Gardens, or diving into the free Hampson Archeological Museum, which contains artifacts of the pre-Colombian people who inhabited the Delta from 1400 to 1650.

Even if wine (and it’s some good wine) isn’t your thing, there’s something for everyone in Wilson, and there’s even more on the horizon. Month by month, the city adds more activities to its roster, including a crawfish festival slated for the end of April. So keep an eye on the calendar; if you need a quick escape, it’s always a good time to visit Wilson. — Samuel X. Cicci

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Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Wilson, Arkansas to Host Chef Competition for Up and Coming Professionals

CREDIT: City of Wilson, Arkansas

City of Wilson, Arkansas


Sharpen the cutlery and dust off an old chef’s hat — a Delta cooking contest is about to unfold just 45 minutes up the road from the Bluff City.

The City of Wilson, Arkansas (a small town big enough to experience a 21st century wine-driven renaissance) is hosting its Wilson Culinary Chef Competition for young professionals. Set to take place from April 20-22, the contest — which organizers hope will become an annual event — will pit six promising cooks against each other for the chance to win a cash prize, and a possible chance to join Wilson’s hospitality and culinary program.

The competition will task chefs with preparing a signature dish, as well as create a two-course signature dish tasting menu (an appetizer or salad, plus an entrée). Judges will look at “creativity, innovative cooking techniques, solid fundamental cooking techniques, and professionalism.”

City of Wilson, Arkansas

Chef Roberto Barth

“The primary focus of this competition is to seek out talented, regional chefs that are interested in joining the emerging culinary and hospitality program in Wilson, Arkansas,” says Roberto Barth, head chef at the Wilson Café. “The contest winner will experience a year-long development apprenticeship at the Restaurant Wilson Café and Tavern and work within our baking and pastry program at the Grange at Wilson Gardens. They will also learn from local farmer Jill Forrester about our seed-to-soil to plate farming operations, chef table experiences, Wilson Wine Dinner series, and cooking classes.”

Contestants must apply by March 27th. For more information on the contest or application process, click here.


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News News Blog

INFOGRAPHIC: Arkansas Marijuana Sales Top $163M

Arkansas mariuana sales
Infogram

INFOGRAPHIC: Arkansas Marijuana Sales Top $163M

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News News Blog

CannaBeat: Arkansas Sales Top $86M in First Year

If you’ve ever been standing near the river and could just swear a cloud of ganja was rolling over from Arkansas, you may have been right.

Sales of medical cannabis began in in May 2019. In the first two weeks of sales, Arkansas patients bought about 50 pounds of Banana Kush, Pineapple Trainwreck, and dozens of other strains. In the first week, medical cannabis sales in Arkansas were $353,802.

A little more than a year later, the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission said the state’s 22 dispensaries have sold about 14,000 pounds of cannabis with sales that just surpassed $86 million. Over the year, daily statewide sales have averaged $517,000 over the last three weeks.

Here’s the commission’s total breakdown of the sales as of June 1st:

• Since Suite 443 (Hot Springs) first opened on Friday, May 10th, the company sold 689.10 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Green Springs Medical (Hot Springs) first opened on Sunday, May 12th, the company sold 2,545.45 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Arkansas Natural Products (Clinton) first opened on Thursday, June 20th, the company sold 357.38 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Greenlight Dispensary (Helena) first opened on Thursday, June 27th, the company sold 389.40 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Native Green Wellness (Hensley) first opened on Tuesday, July 2nd, the company sold 989.50 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Fiddler’s Green (Mountain View) first opened on Thursday, July 11th, the company sold 939.43 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since the Releaf Center (Bentonville) first opened on Wednesday, August 7th, the company sold 1,527.07 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since The Source (Bentonville) first opened on Thursday, August 15th, the company sold 1,079.18 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Acanza (Fayetteville) first opened on Saturday, September 14th, the company sold 1,116.31 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Harvest (Conway) first opened on Friday, October 11th, the company sold 958.82 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Purspirit Cannabis (Fayetteville) opened on Wednesday, November 20th, the company sold 600.38 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since NEA Full Spectrum (Brookland) opened on Monday, December 9th, the company sold 607.72 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since 420 Dispensary (Russellville) opened on Tuesday, December 17th, the company sold 240.93 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Fort Cannabis (Fort Smith) opened on Wednesday, December 18th, the company sold 511.50 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Red River Remedy (Texarkana) opened on Friday, January 10th (2020), the company sold 162.59 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Bloom Medicinals (Texarkana) opened on Wednesday, January 15th (2020), the company sold 46.69 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Plant Family Therapeutics (Mountain Home) opened on Monday, February 3rd (2020), the company sold 395.87 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Little Rock House of Cannabis (Little Rock) opened on Friday, February 14th (2020), the company sold 131.39 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Herbology (Little Rock) opened on Wednesday, February 26th (2020), the company sold 54.04 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Custom Cannabis (Alexander) opened on Thursday, March 5th (2020), the company sold 96.84 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Natural Relief Dispensary (Sherwood) opened on March 17th (2020), the company sold 354.97 pounds of medical marijuana.

• Since Body and Mind Dispensary (formerly Comprehensive Care Group in West Memphis) opened on April 27th (2020), the company sold 21.98 pounds of medical marijuana.

Combined, this is more than 13,816 pounds of medical marijuana and $86.38 million in total sales.

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News News Blog

CannaBeat: Group Files Proposals for Recreational Cannabis in Arkansas

This week, a group submitted plans for two ballot initiatives in Arkansas to allow recreational use of cannabis and to expunge the records of those with cannabis-related convictions.

The Drug Policy Education Group’s (DPEG) Arkansas Adult Use Cannabis Amendment would allow possession of the drug by those 21 and older for personal use (with the understanding that cannabis is still illegal under federal law).

If approved, the state’s Alcohol Beverage Control Division would issue licenses to companies to cultivate, process, and sell cannabis and would make the rules governing the system and would have 120 days to do it all. If approved, recreational cannabis could be available in Arkansas by December 4th, 2020.

CannaBeat: Group Files Proposals for Recreational Cannabis in Arkansas

Licenses would be given to at least one dispensary in each Arkansas county and at  least 30 in every Congressional district. Cannabis farming licenses would be given to one company per 250,000 state residents. Dispensaries and farms would have to be at least 1,000 feet from a pre-existing school or church.

State sales taxes could be as high as 10 percent on retail sales of cannabis flower, cannabis concentrate, and edible products containing cannabis.

Taxes would go first to fund the state’s recreational cannabis regulatory system. The rest would be divvied up like so: 60 percent to fund and operate public pre-kindergarten and after school programs and 40 percent to fund the operations of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

Arkansas Cannabis Industry Association

CBD flower from The Bold Team, Arkansas’ supplier.

Cities and counties could prohibit commercial cannabis sales by a majority vote of their governing bodies.

Under the proposal, adult Arkansans could possess up to four ounces of cannabis flower, two ounces of cannabis concentrate, and edible products containing cannabis with a tetrahydrocannabiol (THC) content of 200 mg or less. They could also grow up to six cannabis seedlings and six cannabis flowering plants for personal use on residential property owned by the adult or with the written permission of the property owner.

The group’s second proposal is called the Arkansas Marijuana Expungement Amendment. It would petition courts to release or reduce sentences and expunge the records of those convicted of cannabis offenses in the state.

Those convictions include cannabis possession, cultivation, manufacture, distribution, or sale of less than 16 ounces of cannabis or six or fewer mature cannabis plants or cannabis paraphernalia.

Read the proposals in full here.

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News News Blog

Southland Launches Live Table Games, Unveils New Name

CREDIT: Southland Casino Racing

Southland Casino Racing

This rendering shows the $250 million expansion proposed for Southland’s casino and dog track in West Memphis.

Southland Gaming and Racing launched live tables games Tuesday afternoon and the casino and dog track has a brand new name.

The newly dubbed Southland Casino Racing received its formal casino license from the Arkansas Racing Commission and opened 40 live tables games at 1 p.m. Tuesday. Visitors there can now play blackjack, craps, and roulette.

The license also allows Southland to expand the number of slot machines, now with 2,050 machines on the casino floor. The expansion created more than 100 new jobs, according to David Wolf, president and general manager of Southland for Delaware North, the casino’s parent company.

In January, Delaware North announced plans for a $250 million expansion of Southland to include a new casino complex and high-rise hotel. Construction on the project is expected to begin this summer. The casino complex and parking garage are expected to be complete in about 12 months. The hotel tower should be complete in about 18 months.

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Opinion Viewpoint

A neighboring state provides an object lesson in the wrongheadedness of a misguided myth.

The most egregious fallacy of our time is the idea — one repeated endlessly in this and any other election year — that the key to economic development — the creation of business and the movement of people — is lower taxes. Despite numerous experiments with the idea, in Washington and a number of states, including Arkansas, it almost never works out that way and often makes things worse, as we have seen recently in Louisiana, Kansas, West Virginia, and Oklahoma. 

The other day, I pulled my dusty copy of Accelerating Economic Growth in Arkansas off the shelf. It had been 50 years since I studied the 186-page tome, written in 1964 by the Arkansas Economic Expansion Study Commission, a blue-ribbon group of 11 conservative businessmen and a country lawyer who were commissioned by the legislature and the governor to find out why Arkansas lagged far behind other states in economic growth and what to do about it. The commission was staffed by the University of Arkansas College of Business (this was before Walmart bought it) and economists at the Industrial Research and Extension Center.

Here is what they concluded about taxes: The level of state and local taxes are never a significant factor in neither where a company locates nor where people choose to live. They cited economic research plus common sense. Arkansas had always been at the bottom or near it in state and local taxes but had suffered net outmigration for most of the century and benefited little from the movement of industry to the Sun Belt. Industry often located in states with higher taxes, they said, because low taxes “may indicate a low level of the community’s services [including well-educated people] that are necessary for industry to be profitable and successful.”

They suggested much greater use of personal and corporate income taxes at the state level and wider authority for cities, counties, and schools to raise property taxes and levy new forms of taxes. The state lagged far behind in education, public health, and transportation, and the state had to invest heavily in those services if it were to ever to prosper.

Most of the book was devoted to raising the educational achievement of people. A few of its recommendations were adopted in the next two decades, including a system of community colleges and technical schools.

“We cannot advance economically without the leadership of education,” the study concluded. “We, therefore, call for the highest priority in the commitment of public and private support to our education system.” It recommended that 90 percent of general revenues above $127 million each year be earmarked for public schools, colleges, and technical schools. The state was dedicating a little more than 50 percent of general revenues for education. Now, it is far less.

Yes, they invoked a founding father, the Virginian Thomas Jefferson:

“Preach, my dear Sir, a crusade against ignorance; establish and improve the law for educating the common people. Let our countrymen know that . . . the tax that will be paid for this purpose is not more than the thousandth part of what will be paid … if we leave the people in ignorance.”

The report scoffed at the popular excuse that spending a lot of money on education was futile, partly because it would take many years to bear fruit.

One man who took the report to heart was Winthrop Rockefeller, who as head of the new state Industrial Development Commission, had been responsible for such development as the state had experienced the past decade — a bunch of cut-and-sew and other factories that paid minimum wage. He ran for governor four times to implement the study’s solutions: a raft of tax increases to upgrade education and health care, the latter by taking advantage of the new federal Medicaid law. He had given his own money to build a new school in the nearby town of Morrilton and a medical clinic in the hamlet of Perryville. The heavily Democratic (132 to 3) legislature defeated all his taxes, in a regular session and again at a special session. His income tax bill would have raised the top rate from 5 to 12 percent for rich men like him. 

He left office in 1971 in bitter defeat, remorseful that he had failed to deliver his goal of transforming his adopted state into an educated and prosperous populace.

Now, nearly every politician’s dream is to cast votes to cut taxes, the more the better. It is an end unto itself.  

Ernest Dumas is a longtime political writer and columnist, whose work is featured in the Arkansas Times. This essay is adapted from his most recent column there.

Categories
Editorial Opinion

All Have Won …

… And all must have prizes. We’re talking about the bounteous blessings that the holiday season has bestowed upon various local university athletic departments.

Closest to home is the University of Memphis, which (besides having one of the top-ranked basketball teams in the nation) finished its football season in a blaze of unexpected glory, winning five of its last six games to finish 7-5, becoming thereby bowl-worthy. In its finale against Southern Methodist University, Tommy West’s Tigers thrilled all who beheld the game with a triple-overtime victory. The team’s prize? A visit to the New Orleans Bowl and, one hopes, a bumper recruiting crop for next year.

Then there’s the University of Tennessee Volunteers. They won their heart-stopper against the University of Kentucky, triumphing finally in four overtimes, no less, 52-50, when the Vols stopped a two-point effort by the Wildcats, victors against mighty L.S.U. in a previous multiple-overtime game this year. All the Volunteers gained from Saturday’s game was the Eastern Conference championship of the Southeastern Conference. And a place in the SEC title contest. That’s all.

Speaking of L.S.U., those other Tigers from Louisiana State had long since recovered from their licking by Kentucky to regain the number-one ranking in the nation, until they encountered on Saturday yet another football team with a strong local following. This was the University of Arkansas Razorbacks, who played either well over their heads or up to their potential in downing the Bayou Bengals, 50-48, in, yep, another triple-overtime affair.

In the process, Razorback quarterback Darren McFadden surely enhanced his credentials for the Heisman Trophy. Meanwhile, the Razorbacks en masse enhanced their credentials for the Cotton Bowl with the victory. There was one cloud over Arkansas’ holiday sunshine, however: the resignation of longtime head coach Houston Nutt, victim of some passing strange northwest Arkansas soap opera which we don’t pretend to understand.

Mississippi State’s Bulldogs had suffered three straight losing seasons under head coach Sylvester Croom. But— eureka! — they emerged from Saturday’s Egg Bowl contest against arch-rival Ole Miss with one of the strangest come-from-behind victories we’ve seen in quite a while. That was owing to Rebel coach Ed Orgeron’s bizarre decision, with a 14-0 lead and 10 minutes left, ball at midfield and fourth and one, to go against logic and the odds in an effort to make a first down. Bad idea. The Bulldogs got the ball, the momentum, and the game, as they made two quick touchdowns and kicked a last-second field goal — 17-14 and over and out for Orgeron, who was let go as Ole Miss coach the next day.

So, is the University of Mississippi, winless in its SEC games for the first time since 1982, the only sad sack in the holiday saga of Mid-South college football? Actually, Arkansas’ loss became Mississippi’s gain with the hiring on Tuesday of the aforesaid Nutt as Rebel coach. Not since the late Johnny Vaught has Ole Miss possessed a football mentor with the record and reputation that Nutt, voted Coach of the Year in 2006, will bring. Nutt is what you might call glad tidings for the once-mighty Rebel program — the ghost of Christmas future, as it were.

Congratulations, all, and pass the cranberry sauce.