This week in review is like Mary Swander’s quilts from what she calls Buggyland, the beloved Amish area in which she lives and writes. Here’s a photo she took of a local quilt. Bits and pieces are threaded together to make the whole—like our Roundup, we piece together stories from around the state, linking writers to readers who care about Iowa.
Sports
Iowa women’s sports are capturing eyeballs and hearts.
Jane Burns has another angle to the Caitlin Clark phenomena in her Crossover column this week.
And Tory Brecht writes the Iowa women survived a ‘Basketbrawl.’
Daniel Finney says Lisa Bluder is what’s best about Iowa.
Mother Nature is Not Fooled
Arnold Garson has been an Okoboji summer resident for decades. He has a two-part series on environmental changes taking place in the Iowa Lakes area: Part One and Part Two.
Chris Jones says: About the best we can say about these Western Iowa sewers I mean rivers is that none have caught on fire—at least not yet. I challenge you to find any place in this country that has mistreated its water resources worse than Western Iowa. Any. Place
“If you want birds, you need clean water,” Chris Jones, of The Swine Republic fame, told the Buggy Land bird seminar. Mary Swander documents this lesson in both human and bird behavior in her column. Find out what one community is doing to address pollution and create a cleaner habitat.
Larry Stone attended a presentation by Robin Wall Kimmerer “What if instead of talking about natural resources, we talk about Earthly gifts? Wouldn’t that change everything? From those things to which we are entitled, to those things for which we are grateful?”
Continuing the environmental theme of the week, Steve Semken uses topsoil as the thread throughout his column.
MSNBC, NBC, and the miniscule time Rona McDaniels was hired
Barry Piatt, a former journalist and long time strategist and spokesperson for major elected officials in Iowa and nationally, brings his perspective to the former RNC Chair / NBC News debacle this past week.
Trump Trade Policy?
Ed Tibbetts wonders what the Iowa congressional delegation has to say.
Eminent Domain and other Iowa legislative news
Laura Belin wrote about the latest Iowa House debate on an eminent domain bill; the Democrats were strangely quiet.
She and Dennis Hart covered plenty of other legislative news on their KHOI Radio show:
Laura saw quite a few red flags in the final plan to overhaul Iowa's Area Education Agencies:
Liz Cheney visits Des Moines
Liz Cheney came to Iowa and three of our Iowa Writers’ Collaborative members were there. Read their different takes, including one from Richard Gilbert, Sh*t Richard Says. But first, read Pat Kinney’s take, then Kyle Munson.
Kinney on Cheney
“I know the nation can survive bad policy. What we can’t survive is a president who wants to torch the Constitution.”
Former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney said that at Drake University Wednesday night but also called for a return to the civility that existed between her father and late vice presidential opponent Sen. Joe Lieberman. Read more in Pat Kinney’s “View from the Cedar Valley” column.
Munson on Cheney
Kyle Munson reports on the bi-partisan atmosphere that swept the crowd who came to hear Cheney, with ‘laughter, groans and an ‘amen.’
Dave Price just learned about the "double haters" and how much of America falls into this category in a new poll. Plus, he takes a guess on which presidential candidate they may support.
Elsewhere Around Iowa
What happens to an Iowa town when the meatpacking plant quits squealing, as it will in Perry when Tyson shuts down this summer? Art Cullen remembers when Hygrade closed in Storm Lake, and how Cherokee, Spencer and Fort Dodge used to be packinghouse towns.
Iowa Boy Chuck Offenburger, who has helped lead a bold multicultural growth initiative in his Greene County, writes that the project is in a good stage. He decided it’s a good time for him to bow out, but he’ll continue writing about it occasionally.
Christianity was in conflict this week in Iowa, and Bob Leonard has the story with "The Annual Iowa Prayer Breakfast and the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa's counter-programming--All are Welcome in Iowa.
"Latina-owned businesses are one of the fastest growing segments of entrepreneurship, but they often face unique challenges like limited access to networks and professional development, according to Hola Iowa.
Doug Burns attended an event and picked up advice for rural Democrats.
The talented Jara Johnson was Julie Gammack’s Monday Zoom guest last week. Listen to the conversation with the singer, now living in Pella.
Paragraph Stacker Daniel Finney is a former Des Moines Register columnist, now teaching in the Des Moines Public School System.
Bridge Collapse
Jeff Morrison compares the circumstances around the Lansing bridge’s closure and the Baltimore bridge’s collapse and looks at the long timeline for restoring the latter.
Media
Dave Busiek on Media reports on a new poll that shows conservatives would learn a lot and help democracy if they walked away from Fox News.
Religion
Nicole Baart takes white Christian nationalism to task.
Food and More
Wini Moranville has a quick overview of food bites for the week. Plus a survey on "no-fault tipping."
Fashion with Naughton?
John Naughton spent the warm winter wearing purple suits, Christmas ties and eek -- white suits after Labor Day. For a winter fashion show, check out My Life, In Color.
Women, today, yesterday and tomorrow
Cheryl Tevis Celebrates Women’s History.
Jody Gifford: Divorce is a two-sided issue but one that adversely affects women. In a column that ran in last week’s Fearless newsletter, Jody Gifford digs into the many ways women suffer the brunt of the breakup.
Education
Iowa Capital Dispatch, our alliance partner, has a reporter dedicated to covering education in Iowa. Check out Brooklyn Draisey’s beat. This week she reports on Harry Smith leaving network television to teach at Central College in Pella.
Travel
In “Pleasure Pilgrimage Revisited,” Kurt Meyer tells of a 1895 Mediterranean cruise. It seems the Iowa travelers all experienced fame and fortune. Kurt invites us to journey along.
Hitting a Wall
Even when Macey Shofroth hits a wall, it’s an illuminating read.
Humor
Vicki Minor: Warning Signs
Poetry
Suzanna de Baca shares her poem “After the Locusts” which was recently featured in iō Literary Journal.
When motherhood becomes war, writes Teresa Zilk.