Twins “Tomboys on Parade” Maximum Ames I am nakedly, unabashedly, undoubtedly a fan of Twins. The music has a happy-go-lucky, early ’60s throwback feel to it that is undeniable fun. But Twins is not simply a kitschy nostalgia act. These guys — Sires brothers Luke, Harper and Joel, along with
Read More →
April 02, 2014 by justin
in Sound Check
April 02, 2014 by justin
in Center Stage
‘Porgy and Bess,’ the legacy and the controversy
Did some heavenly theater professor set up Des Moines as a seminar on opera and musical theater lately? Over at the Playhouse we’ve got “Les Misèrables,” as close to opera as Broadway gets, and now comes a weeklong run of “The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess,” a folk opera, as George
Read More →
April 01, 2014 by justin
in Iowa Watchdog
Iowa goes retro to keep millions from tax that doesn’t exist
DES MOINES, Iowa— For six years, the state has collected more than $20 million for a tax that didn’t exist. When questioned about it, the Legislature adopted the solution preferred by small children who’ve done something wrong — they pretended it never happened. In 2008, the Legislature passed a bill
Read More →
April 01, 2014 by justin
in Iowa Watchdog
In Iowa, your taxes help corporations not pay theirs
DES MOINES, Iowa — As the deadline to pay income taxes approaches, it’s important to remember that government does more than just take your money — it also uses your money to let others skip paying taxes. The Iowa Economic Development Authority announced Friday it had approved almost $1.7 million in
Read More →
April 01, 2014 by justin
in Iowa Watchdog
Federal law can’t make school kids eat their vegetables
DES MOINES, Iowa— A federal law designed to help Iowa kids slim down is making lunchroom garbage cans heavier with government-mandated fruits and vegetables. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 set new nutrition standards for school meals, including requiring each student be served half a cup of fruit or
Read More →
April 01, 2014 by justin
in Iowa Watchdog
What oversight? Iowa won’t track welfare card use
DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa has a new strategy for preventing welfare recipients from using their electronic benefit transfer cards in liquor stores, casinos and strip clubs — sending a letter to the welfare recipients telling them not to do it. The strategy actually is an improvement over what the state had
Read More →
April 01, 2014 by justin
in Iowa Watchdog
Solar industry could face disaster as lawmakers seek end to tax credits
A pair of U.S. House bills ask for an end to tax credits responsible for creating and propping up the American solar energy industry. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, a Michigan Republican, proposes an end to the federal giveaways. Fellow GOP Congressman Mike Pompeo of Kansas has
Read More →
March 26, 2014 by justin
in Center Stage
Playhouse turned ‘Animal Farm’
“Four legs — woof! Two legs — ba-a-a!” Recognize the refrain? It’s from “Animal Farm,” by George Orwell, one of those books kids are supposed to read in middle school. On the page, this slogan reads differently: It’s “good” and “bad,” not “woof” and “baa.” But that’s the kind of
Read More →
March 26, 2014 by justin
in On The Tube
The dark and damp side of polygamy
For the life of me, I will never understand polygamy. Never mind that I watch TV for a living and thus am both intellectually and physically undesirable to a woman not vying for American citizenship and destined to be a bachelor for life. I won’t pretend that is by choice,
Read More →