June 16, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in The Culture Buzz
From Iowa’s cultural epicenter, Mainframe Studios at 900 Keosauqua Way in Des Moines, Iowa comes your Listener-supported Community Voice, the Award-Winning indie radio station, KFMG-LP 98.9 FM (streaming simultaneously at www.kfmg.org), bringing you music, literature & cultural content. Quote of the Week – “A father had to work only half
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June 15, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in Stray Thoughts
It has been a while since you heard a United States leader say, “The fault is mine alone.” If you visit Abilene, Kansas, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Museum offers countless artifacts of leadership — far from the battlefields of Europe and the White House where the five-star general left
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June 11, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in Morain
At least four important public policy questions keep rolling around in my head. Two deal with foreign policy, the other two with federal taxes. I’d like to see them ascend the priority scale of the people who can act on them. They’re not all that complicated, and I’m pretty sure
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June 09, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in Stray Thoughts
Here we go again. If the University of Iowa and Iowa attorney general’s office get their way, a legacy gift from a grateful and accomplished graduate will no longer help students like him. The graduate, Ezra L. Totton, was an esteemed chemist during the latter half of the 20th century.
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June 09, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in The Culture Buzz
From Iowa’s cultural epicenter, Mainframe Studios at 900 Keosauqua Way in Des Moines, Iowa comes your Listener-supported Community Voice, the Award-Winning indie radio station, KFMG-LP 98.9 FM (streaming simultaneously at www.kfmg.org), bringing you music, literature & cultural content. Quote of the Week – “We are cups, constantly and quietly being
Read More →This is a trivial column. I turned 85 last Monday. Family saluted me with a birthday dinner, thoughtful gifts, and lots of well wishes. Many friends congratulated me as well. It all warmed my cockles. I’ve always considered 85 to be the starting line for the “really elderly.” And now
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June 03, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in Feature 1
Beauty can be found among the landscape, wildlife, people, events and communities of Iowa. If anyone has doubts about that, they simply need to peruse the winning photographs of the 16th Annual Keep Iowa Beautiful photography contest, which invites photographers to showcase Iowa’s natural and environmental beauty through their lenses
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June 03, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in Feature 2
Fireworks were an annual point of contention on our three-generation family farm. Grandma was agin’em. Grandpa was for’em, as were the four grandkids. Mom was Switzerland on this black powder issue. It was a standoff. Grandma’s vote weighed heavily against all others, but the deciding factor was beyond question: This
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June 03, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in Business Feature
As of early 2026, commercial real estate in Des Moines is experiencing a rebound after recent drops in the market. While there are certainly ups and downs, CBRE Broker Ben Probst said the overall market is relatively strong with interest rates beginning to decline after rising in recent years. Demand
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June 03, 2026 by Brent Antisdel
in Civic Skinny
The Des Moines Register’s latest subscription numbers are in, and they are not pretty. The bad news is not just for the printed editions, but let’s start there. According to a report from Alliance for Audited Media, for the six months ending March 31, 2026, the Sunday Register now has
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