[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Cover: War Of the Words


For illiterate adults, daily life is an uphill battle

By Carolyn Szczepanski

It was decades ago that Fred Dake was banished to the back of the class, but the shy 51-year-old with long, thinning hair and soft eyes, clearly remembers the impatient teacher who sentenced him to a life of hidden humiliation. >> more

 
Gaskell: Spread too thin


Legislature misses on merging schools again

Des Moines Schools Superintendent Eric Witherspoon bit the bullet last week and admitted that the only way to ensure kids in the state's largest city will be guaranteed a shot at a decent education is by merging schools, by tightening things up a bit. There isn't enough money to make them all work the way we had once hoped. And although it's tough for neighborhoods to lose their schools, it simply has to be done. >> more

Scene Scribe: Iowa band pokes fun at Jackson

By Michael Swanger michael@dmcityview.com

An Iowa band is taking aim at Michael Jackson with its music, but it isn't the first time they've been mentioned in the same breath as the King of Pop. >> more

Civic Skinny: Secret Deal?


What are Gronstal and Blouin up to?

Top state officials have told Cityview that Iowa Economic Development Director Michael Blouin and Senate Democratic leader Mike Gronstal have purportedly reached a deal of sorts that says only one of them will take on Secretary of State Chet Culver (as well as Rep. Ed Fallon) in a Democratic primary. >> more

Upfront: A hair-raising event


The Des Moines Art Center's Big Hair Ball 2005 will be held Friday, June 3, from 8 p.m. to midnight at the Des Moines Art Center, featuring wild hair, go-go dancers, extravagant fashion, music, dancing and food and drink. >> more

The Food Dude: Soured by 'Hometown Flavors'


By Jim Duncan CVFDude@aol.com

Three decades ago, a major East Coast newspaper declared that, "a gourmet tour across Iowa is non-stop." That was arrogant even then, reflecting the low regard many cosmopolitans have for the bounty of our rural-based culture. Donna Tabbert Long's new guide book, "Iowa's Hometown Flavors," is subtitled a "Food Lover's Tour," but it's still edited with an outsider's disdain for the state's culinary prowess. >> more

City Sounds: Boss Martians attack with verve, brevity


By Michael Swanger michael@dmcityview.com

Seattle band's tight rock anthems are out of this world

If you thought two-minute rock radio anthems were a thing of the past, you haven't heard the Boss Martians. The Seattle-based group's latest offering, "The Set-Up," is teeming with some of the most memorable melodies, to-the-point lyrics and catchy riffs this side of Green Day and the Supersuckers, and their single, "I Am Your Radio," was anointed last year by listeners of Little Steven's "The Underground Garage" syndicated radio show as best song of the year, beating out the likes of David Bowie and The Strokes. . >> more

[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]