Governments, whether state or federal, are poor venture capitalists.  Two great examples of this is the battle between cities nationwide for an Amazon headquarters and the massive solar farm being built in the Mississippi Delta.

Until performance improves, Mississippi will lag behind other states in economic growth as the workers of tomorrow aren't adequately prepared for the jobs of the future, especially in the STEM field.  An educated workforce is key to luring new industry and convincing entrepreneurs that Mississippi is the best place to start a thriving business. 

Entergy's Grand Gulf plant is 33 years old and is starting to show its age.  For the last three years, the reactor was the lowest rated in terms of average power generation among four similar reactors at other plants nationwide.  It's already been shut down 106 days so far this year.

Public education advocates have always wanted more K-12 education spending, but more spending hasn't paid off.  Mississippi ACT composite scores since 2013 have either declined or remained constant, down from a high of 19 in 2015. Mississippi policymakers need to see this as a call to action to improve the results of K-12 education. If the state's education system can't create an educated workforce able to thrive in the economy of tomorrow, we'll continue to fall behind other states.

For ten years, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood's lawsuit against Entergy and its wholesale pricing practices has been in the court system. On November 5, it will finally go to trial in federal court as the AG is seeking $1.1 billion from the New Orleans-based utility with subsidiaries in four states. While the company will likely have to pay after losing a similar class action lawsuit in Louisiana, it presents an opportunity to kick-start the discussion over the regulated monopoly model for electric generation in the state.

Plaintiffs in a decade-old lawsuit over Hurricane Katrina surge flooding in New Orleans are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to have another look after a federal appeals court ruled against them.  The St. Bernard Parish v. United States case has implications that go far beyond the surge flooding.