Often media outlets accentuate negative events in their re­porting. The old axion "if it bleeds it leads" is still alive and well in the media world--local, state, and national.

I don't wear rose-tinted glasses and I don't consider myself to be a "Pollyanna". As I like to say facts are good, bad, or neutral.

Many of the items below can also be viewed from a nega­tive perspective. It’s the old "is the glass half full or half empty" paradigm.

Here is a list of what i consider to be "good" things. It is not complete and not listed in any order of priority:

1. 1-20 re-construction/repair is ahead of schedule.

2. The Bossier carriageway is slated to open this month.

3. The Shreveport Police Department opened a downtown satellite office.

4. Shreveport commissioned the artistic painting of the city’s three water towers.

5. Caddo and Bossier public schools start back next week.

6. Shreveport hosts the Governor's Juvenile Justice Confer­ence this month.

7. A sixth Caddo Criminal Court will soon be opened.

8. Crime rates for serious offenses are down in Shreveport as compared to last year.

9. Work on the construction of the Jimmy Davis Bridge re­placement is ongoing.

10. Geek'd Con 2024 kicks off on August 18 with expected attendance of 15,000.

11. Hiring has commenced for the Amazon Fulfillment Center.

12. Bossier is hosting the Diamond Youth Baseball World Se­ries.

13. Numerous back to school backpack giveaways have been, and are being held.

14. The Caddo Parish Sheriff's Office hosted its first Federal Law Enforcement Training Center Firearms Instructor School.

15. Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson purchased $2 million of down­town properties.

16. The Shreveport Regional Airport received a $2 million new terminal gate space grant.

17. The Bossier Charter Commission is being disbanded.

18. Many Caddo and Bossier schools showed LEAP score improvements.

19. Shreveport is hosting the Louisiana Municipal Associa­tion Convention.

20. Mayor Arceneaux’s Small Business Task Force has 4 scheduled town hall meetings this month.

The upcoming Humor & Harmony Festival is a "biggie". Much of the local news buzz for the last few months has focused on the one-of-a kind event scheduled for Northwest Louisiana. It kicks off Thursday August 8 and runs through Sunday, August 11. The scope of the festival is, in one word, "massive". Use of the Municipal Auditorium, the Convention Center, the Red River District and Festival Plaza in a four day span is unprecedented. And to top that off is the installation of a temporary dome that will seat approximately 3000 people for numerous events.

This is in itself a historic event. Much has been said about the scope of the festival, the timing, and the necessity of unheralded cooperation of many entities. The festival is like rolling the Revel, the Independence Bowl, and the two major Mardi Gras parades all together--and then adding several other events like the film fest and the Rockets over the Red.

The festival is being facilitated by the City of Shreveport, but not subsidized by the City. Jackson's G-Unit has rented the City's public facilities and will reimburse the City for its la­bors by various departments in preparation for the events and for the services to be pro­vided during the festival. G-Unit is paying all the costs for installation and operation of the dome which includes site preparation, utilities, and sanitation stations. G-Unit is also provid­ing private security services including the uti­lization of numerous mobile surveillance trail­ers.

I believe Humor & Harmony is a very big positive for our area--and I have said so from the beginning. I realize there are many apprehensions, and only time will tell if the cheerleaders or the cynics are correct. In the meantime, Shreveporters are urged to follow directives/requests by the City dealing with the festival and to promote the festival on so­cial media.