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Posted May 31, 2023in The Culture Buzz

Greetings, Cultural Catalysts:

From Iowa’s cultural epicenter, MainFrame Studios at 900 Keosauqua Way in Des Moines, comes your Listener-supported Community Voice, the Award-Winning independent radio station, KFMG-LP 98.9 FM (streaming simultaneously at www.kfmg.org), bringing you music, literature & cultural content. – John Busbee for The Culture Buzz The Culture Buzz Podcast Library – https://archive.org/details/@the_culture_buzz 2014 Iowa Governor’s Award for Partnership & Collaboration

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Posted May 31, 2023in Feature 1

Immigration in central Iowa

With a country built on a diverse population, the United States and immigration go hand in hand — and that includes Iowa. Even while located in the middle of the country, almost as far away from the coasts as possible, diverse communities are present in the Hawkeye state, including Des

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Posted May 31, 2023in Feature 2

Summer jobs — they work!

Times are changing in the workplace. Overall, young people are less eager to join the labor market than previous generations, particularly since COVID shutdowns. Many companies are turning to retired, part-time workers because they say they have a more serious work ethic. Traditional first jobs for young people, like shoveling snow

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Posted May 31, 2023in Civic Skinny

Chambers merging, Partnership leadership history, early campaign contributions and unpaid fines

The Windsor Heights Chamber of Commerce, which formed in 2004 and currently has 58 members listed on its website, merged operations with the Urbandale Chamber of Commerce, which formed in 1962 and has approximately 750 members. This merger, which took effect June 1, “will now represent more than 800 businesses

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Posted May 31, 2023in Art News

The melancholy master and his ilk

The Des Moines Art Center’s Print Gallery is an underappreciated gem. Almost every show provides great lessons in history, culture and “there is nothing new under the sun” humility. “Rembrandt and His World” doubles down on all that.  Born too late to be a true Renaissance man, the melancholy Dutchman

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Posted May 31, 2023in Political Mercury

Council Bluffs’ Turek in conversation as ‘next Tom Harkin’

There is, of course, only one Tom Harkin, a retired U.S. senator who constructed a legislative and political legacy few Democrats in Iowa — and indeed the nation — have. For two generations in Congress — 40 years in the U.S. Senate and House — Harkin, always mindful of his

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Posted May 31, 2023in Film Review

‘Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me’ doesn’t provide much insight

“Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me” is another variation on a familiar cautionary tale: a warning about fame chewing people up and spitting them out — with Netflix guilty of the very thing it attempts to highlight. Toward the end of the documentary, we get to watch an interview

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Posted May 31, 2023in Food Dude

Road trip destinations

Road trips are for all seasons but winter. But without a truly special destination, why would we bother? Two places, one less than 40 miles from downtown, the other less than 113, are drawing diners from near and far because they offer exceptionally good versions of two of Iowa’s favorite

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Posted May 31, 2023in Des Moines Forgotten

The 1961 plane crash on Country Club Boulevard

This story developed because I received a speeding ticket in Nebraska this past March. It was one of those deals when I was going 10 mph over the speed limit, the cop slowed down in front me, so I rode right up on him. Anyway, I had the option of

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Posted May 31, 2023in Joe's Neighborhood

The Irish Potato

So… what about the potato in Ireland? “You call them fries, we call them chips. What you call potato chips, we call crisps.” Emmett Maher, the restaurant manager at Beshoffs Seagrill in Howth, Ireland, is gregarious, engaging and charming. He’s the guy you want to be seated next to at

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