August 13, 2014 by justin
in Cover Story
My first memory of KISS is from second grade in Dubuque. My best friend at the time was a kid named Toby Benson, and Toby’s parents were much cooler than mine. While my dad was listening to Neil Diamond and Billy Joel, Toby’s parents were taking him to Ratt concerts
Read More →Several weeks ago, Civic Skinny shined the light on some of the goofiness in the Iowa Republican Party platform. I have been waiting for a similar review and enlightenment on the Iowa Democratic Party platform for 2014 It contains more than 430 items of support and opposition. Moses would have needed a forklift to deliver all
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August 13, 2014 by justin
in Political Mercury
It started as instinct. I was 10. I didn’t have the words to summon an explanation. But I knew it, felt it. These are my places — the places along the journey to celebrated destinations. My father was a music professor at Simpson College in Indianola, which afforded our family
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August 12, 2014 by justin
in Iowa Watchdog
DES MOINES, Iowa — Kayden’s Law seemed like a “no-brainer” when it was passed in 2012. Named for a 7-year-old girl who was killed in 2011 by a speeding motorist, the law imposed mandatory penalties for anyone not stopping at least 150 feet from a school bus when the bus’
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August 11, 2014 by justin
in Iowa Watchdog
DES MOINES, Iowa — They say college is nothing like the real world. The state university system’s Board of Regents is proving that lack of realism isn’t confined to undergraduates. The board is paying over $200,000 in undocumented expenses to a consulting firm it hired to help it save money.
Read More →DES MOINES, Iowa — U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley knew he was on safe ground when he made a campaign stop at La Querica in Norwalk, where he promoted his plan to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour. The company, which produces “unique dry cured meats of the finest
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August 06, 2014 by justin
in Iowa Watchdog
DES MOINES, Iowa — People can now buy a bowling shirt in Iowa without paying sales tax. But if you want to buy tax-free bowling shoes to go with that shirt, you’re out of luck. Taxes still apply. That’s just part of the confusion built into Iowa’s annual sales tax holiday “on
Read More →DES MOINES, Iowa — There’s good news and bad news in the new state budget. First, the new state budget spends $171 million more than it takes in during the coming year. Weirdly, that’s the good news. “This is a sustainable budget. This is a budget making good progress,” State
Read More →Spoon “They Want My Soul” Anti Spoon is the band that can do no wrong. For the bulk of its career, the Austin, Texas, four-piece has enjoyed the mantle of “critical darlings” — a term usually reserved for bands that manage to impress the people who wield pens for a
Read More →At first glance, “Jersey Belle” (Monday, 9 p.m., Bravo) comes on like one of those housewife reality series everyone loves to hate. Jaime is a brash Jersey girl with an Italian/Jewish heritage who follows her husband to a high-society suburb in Alabama. You brace yourself for the usual inanities, but
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