Posted April 26, 2023in Stray Thoughts
I thought the often-repeated desire to weed out waste, fraud and abuse from government spending was something Republicans, Democrats and independents could all agree on in Iowa. Boy, am I [...]
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Posted April 17, 2023in Stray Thoughts
Last week was one to savor. But it also was a week to reflect on how far we still need to travel to have true citizen engagement in our state [...]
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Posted April 11, 2023in Stray Thoughts
My friend Denny and I were as different as night and day. He was conservative; I wasn’t. I accused him of being to the right of Atilla the Hun. He [...]
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Posted April 05, 2023in Stray Thoughts
The Iowa Legislature and Governor Kim Reynolds cannot seem to make up their minds whether they support parental rights or are against Mom and Dad being the decision-makers when it [...]
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Posted March 20, 2023in Stray Thoughts
On a late summer afternoon in Bloomfield 40 years ago, the people of Iowa learned about an unofficial government principle we have seen repeated in recent weeks. Although this has [...]
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Posted March 14, 2023in Stray Thoughts
Every few months, someone is killed or injured by police somewhere in the United States under circumstances that lead to inevitable questions about what exactly occurred. Typically, answers come when [...]
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Posted March 01, 2023in Stray Thoughts
There is an interesting study in contrasts playing out right now in Iowa. One example comes from the Davis County School District in Bloomfield. It is the 96th-largest of Iowa’s [...]
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Posted February 27, 2023in Stray Thoughts
This has not been an easy time to be a librarian. Sixty-plus years ago, back when the library card was a coveted sign of my status as a young reader, [...]
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Posted February 06, 2023in Stray Thoughts
A recent public opinion poll found that three-quarters of Americans want members of Congress to end their bickering and begin compromising more with their colleagues from the other party. The [...]
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Posted January 31, 2023in Stray Thoughts
Not that she asked, but I have some advice for Rita Hart, the new chair of the Iowa Democratic Party. Yes, Hart is an experienced practitioner of politics. She was [...]
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