Lumberton Informer

There's an old saying, “Ignorance of the law is not an excuse." Tonight, Mayor Winston was determined to go into executive session to discuss potential cuts in personnel; despite the fact that it was not within the guidelines of the Open Meetings Act. But the entire meeting was out of order. Winston refused to adjourn the meeting due to a lack of a quorum. Instead, he waited over eight minutes for the other alderpersons to arrive in order to call the meeting in session.One thing that was evident tonight was the lack of knowledge possessed by our elected officials. They seemingly didn't know the guidelines for going into executive session. According to the Mississippi Sunshine Laws,   (4) A public body may hold an executive session pursuant to this section for one or more of the following reasons:   (a) Transaction of business and discussion of personnel matters relating to the job performance, character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of a pers...

I called Charles Bock of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and he received the letters of concern I submitted. Thank you to all that signed the letters I printed and thank you to those that mailed their own. The good news is the letters got their attention and the MDEQ will be sending two representatives to address any questions or concerns the citizens of Lumberton may have regarding Rolling Recycling, LLC. The board meeting will be held Tuesday, July 1,2014 and prior to the meeting, there will be a public hearing at 5:30 to discuss the increase in water and sewer rates. Tonight, there will be a budget hearing to make cuts in personnel. So far, the only department that's being cut is the police department. I guess Winston is going to get rid of the police department one way or another but in order to do so, he's going to need the board members approval. Tonight's meeting will be at 6:00. Margaret Meade once said. "Never underestimate the power of a...

There was a special called meeting held tonight. There was one agenda item...."Order to discuss and vote to have an Executive Session to discuss personnel matters for the Cit of Lumberton." The mayor and board members went into the back room and held a 45 minute discussion about something. We don't know what was discussed because Mayor Winston never exited the executive session to inform the citizens about what they decided to discuss; which is an ethics violation. I guess it's time to submit formal complaints because these violations are not getting addressed or directed. When the board members exited the session, the city clerk was instructed to read what was discussed. After 45 minutes of discussion, the board decided they're going to make budget cuts in every department and they will be meeting again on Monday, June 30, 2014 @ 6 to make a decision on the proposed cuts prior to the regular meeting that will be held the following day. Last I heard, the City of...

So much has been said about Lumberton and rarely is there any solutions offered. It's easy to marginalize a city when only the bad elements are presented. I have been told that I focus on too many of Lumberton's problems and that I don't spend enough time highlighting the good events taking place in Lumberton. I must admit, I'm not always the bearer of good news; I usually leave that for the Sunday edition of the Hattiesburg American . We all want a better world; a better Lumberton but how do we go about achieving that feat? I think some of our most valuable resources are either overlooked or left unnoticed. I recently saw a post where some from the younger generation were sharing their views of Lumberton and it was astonishing to see their view of our once beloved city. I have always been one that will say all sorts of things about Lumberton. I try to balance the ups and the downs but it seems that there are more down moments that uplifting moments. I suppose I c...

Who are you trying to convince? Me or yourself. I get a site traffic report every week. Keep lying to yourself.

Sometimes I wonder, what's the point in blogging. There are factions that want to say I am what's wrong with Lumberton. Really??? The fact that I'm attempting to shine the light of accountability on those who said they are there to serve the citizens has turned me into a problem. Every time I feel discouraged, I recall an excerpt from The Soul of Black Folks by W.E.B. DuBois. BETWEEN me and the other world there is ever an unasked question: unasked by some through feelings of delicacy; by others through the difficulty of rightly framing it. All, nevertheless, flutter round it. They approach me in a half-hesitant sort of way, eye me curiously or compassionately, and then, instead of saying directly, How does it feel to be a problem? they say, I know an excellent colored man in my town; or, I fought at Mechanicsville; or, Do not these Southern outrages make your blood boil? At these I smile, or am interested, or reduce the boiling to a simmer, as the occasion may require...

as Pastor of Sweet Beulah Missionary Baptist Church.I don't know if this move was spiritually or politically motivated. According to my sources, Winston used his resignation announcement speech to discuss the "dump" (his words not mine). He said, allegedly speaking of course, that the people that were funding the dump had plans to also purchase the Custom Precast property to bring some jobs to the area but since there are citizens opposing the dump; they've changed their minds. I guess there's always room to throw in a little extortion; even from the pulpit. Before now,there wasn't anything mentioned about any other developments. It's interesting that once the plan was exposed;other tactics are now being employed to garner support. For quite some time, there has been rumors that Winston wanted to have the Baptist members convert to a Seventh Day Adventist church but those rumors have yet to be verified. There are some that may be wondering why this ...