Posted June 27, 2018in Stray Thoughts
If you go out East this week and swing by places like Mount Vernon, Monticello and Montpelier, don’t be surprised if the soil has been disturbed over the graves of our Founding Fathers. Those founders of this beacon of freedom known as the United States of America surely have turned
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Posted June 06, 2018in Stray Thoughts
When Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the large tax-cut bill into law last week, she talked about how the legislation will allow hard-working Iowans to keep more of their paychecks. What the governor did not mention was how there are other real-life consequences for the people of Iowa that go beyond paying
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Posted June 06, 2018in Stray Thoughts
It’s immaterial whether a government agency communicates with its board members through government-provided email addresses or personal addresses. I sometimes think government officials overlook the important role the public plays in our system of government. That was my takeaway last week from the monthly meeting of the Iowa Public Information Board.
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Posted May 29, 2018in Stray Thoughts
I am surely not the only person who has wondered what it was like to live through various big events from history, events that occurred long before I entered this world in 1950. This curiosity has led me to contemplate events like the Civil War, the growing tensions in Europe
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Posted May 09, 2018in Stray Thoughts
I’m sure you have heard the old tale about Iowa’s bountiful cornfields — about closing your eyes in the summer, listening carefully at night and being able to hear the corn grow. Here’s a different image to ponder: If you open your eyes and look around carefully, I think you can
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Posted May 07, 2018in Stray Thoughts
My role as executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council has taken me from border to border in our state. The message I’ve preached at each stop is a simple one: Transparency is a fundamental part of good government, and government officials risk undermining their respect and credibility
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Posted May 02, 2018in Stray Thoughts
Wait, there’s more. I have spent 50 years as a journalist asking questions, listening to the responses, and closely observing the people and events around me. Somewhere along the way, my observational skills must have failed me. Apparently, I have missed a lot. Otherwise, I would have noticed those lines
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Posted April 25, 2018in Stray Thoughts
The executives at Wells Fargo & Co., nation’s third-largest bank, should send a nice sympathy card and a big bouquet of flowers to former president George H.W. Bush. Were it not for the death last week of Bush’s beloved wife Barbara, the latest installment in the ongoing scandals that have
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Posted April 04, 2018in Stray Thoughts
No other person has served in the Legislature as long as Wally Horn has. There was noteworthy news coming out of the Iowa Legislature recently. This may surprise you, but I am not referring to the headlines about Bill Dix, the Iowa Senate’s majority leader, although that news certainly created
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Posted March 28, 2018in Stray Thoughts
Here we go again. The ink is barely dry on the $1.75 million check the taxpayers of Iowa had to write last fall to settle a sexual-harassment lawsuit won by an employee of the Iowa Senate Republican staff. The leader of the Senate Republicans, Bill Dix of Shell Rock, resigned
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