Shakedown Comes to Memphis

Well, here's a gob-smacker..

Rev. Jesse Jackson said he will launch a campaign aimed at boosting minority jobs inside major companies in Memphis and the Mid-South. Jackson, a prominent civil rights activist from Chicago, revealed the campaign to civic leaders on Thursday during a meeting in Memphis City Hall.

Get that? He got face time with the mayor on this new plan to 'boost minority jobs.  How will he do it'?

The campaign centers on a new plan to spur diversity and look at hiring, spending and boardroom patterns of 50 public companies in Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee.

Rainbow will spend about $1,000 in total for shares of stock of companies based in Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee. Shareholders are usually provided with basic financial information about the company and entitled to attend annual shareholder meetings. Thirteen public companies are based in metropolitan Memphis.

Bold to highlight the pittance they will be 'investing' for access. Starting to get the picture now?  Jackson thinks if he becomes a stockholder he'll be privy to all the deep dark racist secrets, which he can then use to shakedown the companies to do whatever he tells them to do.

But how much access can he get for one share?  Someone holding one share cannot reasonably demand to see the inner-workings of a company.  But someone with the right organization and visibility could threaten board members with a rent-a-mob or an Occupy camp (filmed by the local TV) if their demands aren't met, while attending the stockholders meeting.  Since most companies are spineless this tactic may actually work.

OK agreed, nothing shocking here, it's Jesse Jackson.  Actually THIS is the most egregious part of the story:

Memphis leaders generally lauded the diversity effort for its potential to create jobs. About 40 percent of the households in metropolitan Memphis are considered poor or in poverty.

No wonder 40 percent are in poverty with that kind of clownish leadership.  It's tempting to say that only in Memphis would leaders think that harassing companies 'creates jobs'--at least net new jobs (maybe they mean someone else's existing job).  But when added to the national mosaic being painted by Democrats it makes perfect sense.  Just in the past few days we've been told that some people aren't paying their fair share for the privilege of being Americans.  So the Crackers gotta pay.