F-bombs, an Iowa Poll, the ghost of elections past, climate change, and an Iowa college sports tour

...along with humor, poetry, dining out, and more

Presidential Race….Iowa Politics….Local Politics….Around Iowa….Sports…Dining and Entertainment….Climate and the Environment….Humor….Poetry

Gratitude

Thanks to the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative members, Iowa Capital Dispatch, Iowa Public Radio, and Iowa Starting Line, there are many stories and opinion pieces being written that otherwise might not be told. As market forces and bad business decisions have caused legacy media companies to shrink and disappear, these new media platforms are stepping into a huge void.

As you read the extraordinary array of posts included in this week’s Roundup, join us in a feeling of gratitude for the work that goes into these pieces.

You, our readers, make this possible.

Please support as many of these valuable resources as possible, including your local newspapers, whose remaining staff work valiantly.

Paid subscribers are invited to join us in real time for a holiday party to be held December 13, 5-8 p.m., at the Harkin Institute. You only need to be a paid subscriber to one of our members, or this Roundup column, to be invited.

Presidential and National Politics

The Iowa Poll results are in, and are shocking both sides of the political aisle.

Julie Gammack

links to The Des Moines Register Iowa Poll results. She hopes to have pollster J. Ann Selzer on her Monday Potluck call.

A presidential campaign that wasn't: An important piece of U.S. history that too many people have forgotten, writes

Arnold Garson

.

Ty Rushing

’s take on Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally - it shouldn’t be a surprise. This is who he is.

Art Cullen

has two offerings this week. The first, an endorsement of Kamala Harris and a defense of the institutional editorial. Second, Cullen’s regular column: The wind is at Harris’s back heading into Tuesday. https://artcullen.substack.com/p/vote-for-harris-melton https://artcullen.substack.com/p/wind-at-harriss-back-heading-toward.

In her column,

Cheryl Tevis

will turn back the clock on Daylight Savings this weekend. But she won't turn back the clock on women's rights. She argues that women today should be alarmed when politicians pass legislation claiming to protect them. This powerful column looks back on days when women’s work was not valued, but deemed her ‘marital duty.’

Dennis Goldford

asks: Can our representative democracy survive our polarizing politics? Has "the American people" now become "the American peoples"?

The main entertainment arena in Des Moines will be renamed after a popular convenience store chain. This inspires

Kyle Munson

to reflect on the rural-urban divide and our polarized politics--while making a plea for everybody to make their voice heard in this week's election.

Phoebe Wall Howard

asks, do we really need to fly the f-bomb in public? A child psychiatrist issues a warning for children in America. Note: This column has been banned by Facebook for (ironically) violating its community standards protocol.

We’re not going back, are we,

Steph C

Newspaper endorsements for president: An irretrievable loss, writes

Arnold Garson

.

Dave Busiek

on Media says we’re about to find out who America is - and has a question for all Iowa parents and grandparents.

The final episode of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative podcast, Iowa Down Ballot, was moderated by

Dave Busiek

. The panel discusses newspaper endorsements in this presidential election, and the Iowa Secretary of State’s move to have auditors challenge some voters on Election Day. They also discuss Iowa legislative races.

Robert Leonard

has a guest column by Aaron Lehman, President of the Iowa Farmers Union, titled "Farmers as Trade Pawns? Again?”

AARON LEHMAN is a fifth-generation farmer from northern Polk County where he grows corn, soybeans, oats, and hay in conventional and organic rotations with his family. He is president of the Iowa Farmers Union.

Iowa Politics

We are all diminished by Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate’s shameful hunt for phantom voters,

Ed Tibbetts

writes at Along the Mississippi.

Robert Leonard

highlights a new protest video and song by Progress Iowa about Representative Zach Nunn, titled "Oh Say Can't You See, Nunn?” The music was composed by Iowa legend and fellow Iowa Writers Collaborative member Dartanyan Brown.

The campaign TV commercials will end soon, and that's something many of us will celebrate.

Randy Evans

writes how these commercials have showcased how politicians thrive on claiming to have simple solutions to what, in reality, are incredibly complex issues. Consider inflation, or illegal immigration.

Dave Price

asks if candidates are embarrassed by the ads that their campaign puts on TV and also shares what it has been like to be included in an ad that is on ALL THE TIME! He’s also hosting a live Zoom chat this evening for subscribers.

Barry Piatt

writes from Washington, DC that Iowa’s “Silent Six” congressional delegation is apparently “all in” on Trump’s brand of fascism as they remain silent in the wake of yet another violent threat against a political opponent.

Laura Belin

wrote about eleven Iowa Senate races to watch this Tuesday. She is working on a similar overview of the most interesting Iowa House races, which subscribers should receive on Monday.

Laura Belin

and Spencer Dirks discussed last-minute voter challenges, the first Congressional district debate, and more on "KHOI's Capitol Week."

Rekha Basu

: In this guest column, Lea DeLong makes the moral case for voting out Iowa Supreme Court Justice David May, who helped vote out abortion rights in Iowa after six weeks of pregnancy.

@Nicole Baart urgers her readers to be intentional about voting, and has figured out a way to navigate the conversation with others.

Stressed about the election?

Debra Engle

is on Day 9 of a daily Election Peace Challenge leading up to the election. Read A World of Your Own for this helpful outlook.

Local Politics

This November 5th,

Beth Hoffman

will be doing her third stint as a poll worker. Working the polls is an often overlooked part of our democracy,

Pollworkers in Lovilia, Iowa, including @Beth Hoffman, far right.

Around Iowa

Chuck Offenburger

has been tuned in to Iowa stories since he was a kid in Shenandoah. And he brings readers with him. Our Iowa Boy continues his "Iowa small-college football season," hanging out at Simpson College games with Loras and Buena Vista -- and, oh, the stories!

A 20-foot tall smiling solar-powered mechanical giant south of Dunkerton has attracted visitors from 25 states and the affection of a lot of kids. Meet "Tankman," the creation of Chuck Rottinghaus, in

Pat Kinney

's new "View from the Cedar Valley" column.

Tankman, a large mechanical robot with operating arms, made largely of recycled propane tanks, sits on Iowa Highway 281 about five miles south of Dunkerton (Pat Kinney photo)..

Kali White VanBaale

profiles a Des Moines mother's struggles to get adequate help for her complex needs sons in Iowa's still-delinquent children's mental healthcare system. This is a powerful, must-read column about an issue that gets little attention.

Kurtis Meyer

focuses on a feisty, radical union advocate who organized meatpackers -- and entire communities -- in the Upper Midwest during the 1930s. Short-term intensity... long-term impact.

A new documentary about Spoken Word poet Caleb Rainey by film maker Nik Heftman of

Become Inspired...

premiered at Drake University this week. Check out

Julie Gammack

’s Iowa Potluck.

Jane Nguyen

took her readers along on a trip to the beautiful Loess Hills of Iowa.

From

Tory Brecht

: How a cross-continental partnership brought an Iowa MBA alum and an African beekeeper together in one of the remotest nations on earth.

Taylor Deckert

writes about a fundraising event for the Iowa National Guard unit based in LeMars.

Although the

Marianne Fons

column this week reported on an event that happened November 2, her column also features the special language quilters share. Learn about ‘fat quarters’ and other terms uttered in this culture.

Our newest member, Sarah Scull has been busy! Read her three charming columns, and get a sense of why this California transplant to Creston, will soon become a must-read.

Sports

Caitlin who?

Jane Burns

previews the looming women's basketball season - and it's going to be a good one. Big things are expected of the state's Division I teams and some of the small schools, too. Iowans are spoiled; it kind of makes you feel sorry for the other states.

Dining, Travel and Entertainment

Restaurant reviewer

Wini Moranville

found fresh and fabulous street tacos in a place with a fun, "Austin-like" vibe.

If you visit the tiny Canteen Lunch in the Alley in Ottumwa, you'll notice that the nearly century old building is nestled under a parking ramp. Join

John Naughton

as he steps inside for a loose meat sandwich.

Chris Jones

writes about makes the case that feeding ourselves is a more noble endeavor than feeding the world in his piece “Food for Thought.”

What's that bright light that

Mary Swander

's Amish neighbors saw on Halloween? First trying to get into the Methodist Church, then the casino? In Mary Swander's Buggy Land, find out about the Irish origins of the holiday with its myth of Stingy Jack.

Dartanyan L. Brown

has lead a most integrated life, and this week he takes his to his Marin County world.

Books and Art

Midwest Creative

Macey Shofroth

wrote about her evolving relationship to reading and what books have her excited this year.

Climate and the Environment

Half of Iowa is now in severe drought, impacting rivers, reservoirs, and agriculture. With 83% of the state facing moderate to severe drought, recent dry spells have increased wildfire risks. Although rain is forecasted, it may not be enough to ease conditions. Read

Chris Gloninger

and support his important work.

Humor

The sound of silence in a digital world, courtesy of

Relatively Minor

’s Vicki Minor.

Poetry

IWC poet

Suzanna de Baca

shares that an article she wrote called “How being a poet made me a better CEO,” was recently published in CEO Magazine. In it, she talks about how the ability to think creatively has been an asset for her in her career and how innovation and expansive communication will increasingly be critical skills for leaders in the future.

Have you voted yet?

Iowa Writers’ Collaborative

Please explore the columns by members of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. Below is our current roster: Your support is vital. Pick five, if you can, and become a paid subscriber.

Nicole Baart: This Stays Here, Sioux Center

Rekha Basu: Shouts and Whispers, Des Moines

Ray Young Bear: From Red Earth Drive, Meskwaki Settlement

Laura Belin: Iowa Politics with Laura Belin, Windsor Heights

Tory Brecht: Brecht’s Beat, Quad Cities

Dartanyan L. Brown: My Integrated Life, Des Moines

Douglas Burns: The Iowa Mercury, Carroll

Jane Burns: The Crossover, Des Moines

Dave Busiek: Dave Busiek on Media, Des Moines

Rachelle Chase: Reading with Rachelle, Ottumwa

Iowa Writers Collaborative: Roundup

Steph C: It Was Never a Dress, Johnston

Art Cullen: Art Cullen’s Notebook, Storm Lake

Suzanna de Baca: Dispatches from the Heartland, Huxley

Taylor Decker: Taylor’s Millennial Mindset, Sioux City

Debra Engle: A Whole New World, Madison County

Randy Evans: Stray Thoughts, Des Moines via Bloomfield

Daniel P. Finney: Paragraph Stacker, Des Moines

Marianne Fons: Reporting From Quiltropolis, Winterset

Julie Gammack: Julie Gammack’s Iowa Potluck, Des Moines and Okoboji

Arnold Garson: Second Thoughts, Okoboji and Sioux Falls

Chris Gloninger: Weathering Climate Change, US

Dennis Goldford: Let’s Talk Politics, Clive

Avery Gregurich: The Five and Dime, Marengo

Fern Kupfer and Joe Geha: Fern and Joe, Ames

Rob Gray's Area: Rob Gray’s Area, Ankeny

Nik Heftman: The Seven Times, Iowa

Beth Hoffman: In the Dirt, Lovilia

Phoebe Wall Howard: Shifting Gears, Detroit

Iowa Capital Dispatch, an alliance with IWC

Iowa Podcasters' Collaborative

Iowa Writers Collaborative Roundup Sunday Roundup

Black Iowa News: Dana James, Iowa

Chris Jones: The Swine Republic, Iowa City

Pat Kinney: View from Cedar Valley, Waterloo

Robert Leonard: Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture, Bussey

Letters From Iowans

Darcy Maulsby: Keepin’ It Rural, Calhoun County

Hola Iowa: Iowa

Kurtis Meyer: Showing Up, St. Ansgar

Vicki Minor: Relatively Minor, Winterset

Wini Moranville: Wini’s Food Stories, Des Moines

Jeff Morrison: Between Two Rivers, Cedar Rapids

Kyle Munson: Kyle Munson’s Main Street, Des Moines

Jane Nguyen: The Asian Iowan, West Des Moines

John Naughton: My Life in Color, Des Moines

Chuck Offenburger: Iowa Boy Chuck Offenburger, Jefferson and Des Moines

Barry Piatt: Piatt on Politics Behind the Curtain, Washington, D.C.

Dave Price: Dave Price’s Perspective, Des Moines

Ty Rushing: Ty’s Take, Iowa City

Steve Semken: Ice Cube Press, LLC, North Liberty

Sarah Scull: The Piecemaker, Creston

Macey Shofroth: The Midwest Creative, Norwalk

Larry Stone: Listening to the Land, Elkader

Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Buggy Land, Kalona

Mary Swander's Emerging Voices: Emerging Voices, Kalona

Cheryl Tevis: Unfinished Business, Boone County

Ed Tibbetts: Along the Mississippi, Davenport

Jason Walsmith: The Racontourist, Earlham

Kali White VanBaale: 988: Mental Healthcare in Iowa, Bondurant