Lanon Baccam, quilty stuff, road trips, food, Caitlin Clark, and humor
...plus an Iowa angle to Biden's D-Day trip and a Letter from a Reader
This week from Iowa’s premier independent columnists:
Politics
profiles 3rd Congressional District Democratic candidate Lanon Baccam in The Iowa Mercury with an emphasis on Baccam’s time in the military, where he served with Army National Guard combat engineers who would scout out and remove unexploded mortars, rocket rounds, and similar weapons for force protection in and around Kandahar, Afghanistan.
writes from Washington, DC, in his “Barry Piatt on Politics: Behind the Curtains” column that a letter signed by Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) last week promises to abandon some of the most important work of a U.S. Senator, all in the cause of advancing bitter partisanship and attacks on America’s rule of law.
Look past the headlines. Americans are more interested in electric vehicles than you’re being led to believe. at Along the Mississippi has the story.
Donald Trump's abuse of Republican politicians who dare challenge him is not only well-documented, it's ongoing and relentless. In a provocative column, suggests that Trump's behavior exhibits the same characteristics as cycles of domestic abuse and reminds him of how pimps treat sex workers during his time moonlighting as a night cab driver in Albuquerque, NM, of how he saw in the early 2000's. Leonard's column is about Trump as a "Pimp": and the "domestic" cycle of abuse in the Republican Party.
writes about the politics of rural decline and ag pollution, as well as the new NGO, Driftless Water Defenders. And he gets letters.
celebrates Pride Month with a profile of Aime Wichtendahl, who has already broken one "lavender ceiling" in Iowa and could become the state's first trans legislator.
On the eve of Iowa's primary election, Laura and Spencer Dirks previewed many races to watch.
Who cares what the sentence is? Donald Trump’s conviction by a New York jury is good enough for Art Cullen. The system worked, and the center held. Truth and justice prevailed.
writes about the view expressed by too many people who should know better that our court system is a sham. In the latest Stray Thoughts, he shares some examples from the ringside seat on the judiciary he has occupied for 50-plus years.
’s husband, writes about an Iowan who was one of the ‘Boys of Pointe du Hoc,’ a location that serves as the backdrop of President Biden’s trip to honor those who lost their lives saving democracy.
Polk County Attorney Kimberly Graham was the guest on ’s Iowa Potluck Podcast. Check out their open, candid discussion about the changes she is making in the office. The transcript is also available. On Monday, her guest is Dr. Richard Deming.
Letters from Iowans
We have a contrary point of view about the Trump felony convictions in our Letters From Iowans column. In Letters from Iowans, John Kirsch sees what happened in former President Trump’s New York trial as “blatant election interference.”
Check it out, and submit your essays for publication. is the editor.
On Media
on Media reports on a new survey showing consumers aren’t getting what they want from local news.
In media matters, 's Paragraph Stacker admires the dignified exit of "Wheel of Fortune" host Pat Sajak.
Around Iowa
Just back from France, describes how Provence came to Quiltropolis in the form of Frenchman André Girod and his wife Françoise. Their meeting led to a decades-long friendship and Marianne's ongoing love affair with the South of France.
Alison McGaughey, The Inquisitive Quad Citizen, tells the story of an embarrassing incident in line at the coffee shop. She also shares her background with new followers, giving them a sense of her street - make that farm - cred.
Jamie Polk has gone from riding the bus to driving it, so to speak. The career educator from Waterloo is now superintendent of schools in Oklahoma City. Meet her in ’s new “View From the Cedar Valley” column.
, Dana James, features a Black nonprofit leader who helps Des Moines students find their voice.
Already? reflects on his realization that summer is upon us.
What is "Iowa history," and how is it relevant today? John Naughton learned a lot at a history conference this week. Find out more in ’s My Life, in Color.
Iowa Boy writes that Jefferson’s Bell Tower Festival this weekend marks 20 years for him as a resident of Greene County and one week for Sara Huddleston as a new resident and director of the county’s diversity and growth initiative. Helping recruit Sara from Storm Lake is probably “my most significant contribution toward building a better future for Greene County,” Chuck says.
In her column "Repurposing the Past to Reclaim the Future,” shares how the Boone County town of Boxholm is finding one key to opening closed doors.
Arts, Entertainment and Dining
Wini Moranville reviewed Clyde's Fine Diner, a restaurant nominated for a James Beard award earlier this year. She offers five tricks to dining here, plus some thoughts about hype in general.
When the Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus sings, it’s about much more than music. It’s about raising your voice and being seen—and heard—so the next generation knows they have a place to go.
spoke with their Artistic Director, Eric Shephard, about the organization's evolution.Macey had another interesting piece last week that didn’t make the Roundup. Check out Bienvenido Des Moines Celebrates Latino Art and Culture
Humor
Do the Amish gamble? More than you might think. explores the topic with humor and insight this week in her Buggy Land column.
says: Sometimes I sit and think, and sometimes I just sit.
Sports
In Brecht’s Beat this week, Tory talks about Caitlin Clark’s bumpy WNBA debut and asks whether the impulse Iowa fans have to rush to her defense is really necessary. Check out
Self Help
Living and writing authentically means listening to your own voice, not the voices of everyone around you. shares a powerful technique to quiet the noise to find meaning for yourself.
Travel
was in New York and Chicago last week. He encountered sidewalk art, cicadas… and friends galore. In Showing Up, he tells us about it all.
Poetry
Suzanna de Baca shares a poem equally relevant to gardeners and non-gardeners called “Do Coral Bells Prefer Sun or Shade?”
has a dedication and a memory served today in her Sweet Potato Pie poem.
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