The good
The City of Des Moines has been named a finalist for the National Civic League’s 2010 All-American City awards. To become a finalist, each community completed an application documenting three community projects that address its most pressing challenges. Since 1949, more than 500 communities have been awarded including Ames, Des Moines, Fort Dodge, Ottumwa, Sioux City and most recently, Dubuque in 2007. The 10 winners will be announced on June 18. Oh, the anticipation!
It’s hard to find money-back guarantees, but students at Lansing Community College in Lansing, Mich., will have that opportunity beginning in May. The college will guarantee students who take six-week courses in certain subjects a job within a year, or they will be refunded their tuition money. The deal is only open to a total of 61 students in the college’s pilot program and applies to the four most in-demand technical jobs in the area — call-center specialists, pharmacy technicians, quality inspectors and computer machinists. The average cost of one of the six-week training courses is $2,400. We hope this guarantee helps the city’s 11.7 percent unemployment rate.
The bad
Two much booze can lead to stupid decisions. Case in point — Jason Daughenbaugh, 27, of West Des Moines, and Joshua Ratliff, 30 of Des Moines, were arrested last week after they attempted to steal a dog. The two were asked to leave a party, but attempted to take the dog with them until Bobbi Montoya, a resident of the house, confronted the two alleged drunk men. Montoya locked herself and Nolberto Valdez in a bedroom, but the two kicked down the door and assaulted Valdez. The two suspects were arrested shortly after and charged with second-degree burglary. Doggonit.
Last week, 29 miners died in an explosion at the Upper Big Branch mine, about 30 miles south of Charleston, W. Va. The event was the worst mine U.S. disaster in 40 years. Massey Energy, which owns the mine, has repeatedly been cited and fined for problems with the system that vents methane and other gases from building up where the miners work. The cause of the explosion is unknown, but state and federal officials have pledged a full investigation.
The ugly
Last week was a tough one for those involved with the airline industry. Spirit Airlines announced its will charge as much as $45 each way for a carry-on bags beginning Aug. 1. The new charges will be $45 if paid at the gate, and $30 if paid in advance. Personal items like purses and laptop computers that fit under the seat will still be free. Spirit plans to add measuring devices at the gates to determine which carry-ons are free and which ones will incur a fee. On a similar note, taxpayers paid approximately $7,500 per hour in fuel and maintenance expenses during last week’s fiasco involving a Qatari diplomat making a sarcastic remark about setting fire to his shoes while smoking in the plane’s bathroom. The two F-16 fighters escorted the Boeing 757 to the Denver airport.
Creepy perverts should know that Johnny Law and “Dateline” are watching you at all times of day. Last week, Ted H. Grauer of Van Meter was arrested by Clinton County Sheriff’s officials after being accused of attempting to entice away a minor. Between Jan. 21 and April 9, Grauer, 58, used the screename “horserancher2001” and had numerous chat conversations with a person he believed to be a 14-year-old girl. But the teenage girl was actually a law enforcement official. Several of these chats included talk about traveling to Clinton to meet the girl and engage in sex acts with her. Grauer allegedly traveled from the Van Meter area to Clinton to meet her but was arrested. Grauer was charged with an aggravated misdemeanor, which carries a sentence of up to two years in prison and a fine up to $6,250. CV
