Biden, Cars & Iowa Politics reporters join IWC, Abortion...
....e-bikes, butterflies, flood drama and more
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Politics / Media / Around Iowa / Personal Growth / Food, Entertainment & Travel / History / Sports / Humor / Poetry / Our Writers
, Ford beat reporter and automotive writer at The Detroit Free Press since 2017, is launching her weekly substack column, which spotlights car culture, consumer trends, news scoops, and life. It debuts Wednesday, July 17, and will be part of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative Roundup. You can subscribe today.
Her Iowa ties include a reporting stint at The Des Moines Register and her regular appearance as a workshop leader on Storytelling during the Okoboji Writers’ Retreat.
Although Phoebe will be based in Detroit, the so-called Motor City, her column will interest all readers who care about cars and great storytelling.
Ty Rushing
In other big news, Ty Rushing is a soon-to-be Assistant Professor of Practice at the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Ty is a native of Kansas City, Kansas, who made a name for himself as an Iowa journalist. He broke barriers as the first Black reporter and editor at eight Iowa print publications.
Throughout this journey, Ty has written about everything from agriculture to race relations to disastrous taco festivals. Recently, Ty wrote, produced, and directed an Emmy-nominated documentary film for Iowa PBS. He also received a 2024 Greenlee/Kappa Tau Alpha Diversity & Inclusion Award from the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication at Iowa State University.
Ty will soon reside in Iowa City and take a new role as a journalism professor at the University of Iowa. He is the co-founder and president of the Iowa Association of Black Journalists and previously served as chief political correspondent of Iowa Starting Line.
Ty is an Iowa Writers’ Collaborative Politics Panel member who will join the roster in August with his new, yet-to-be-named Substack column.
Our Politics Panel will gather for the first time next week, and a podcast recording of the discussion will be uploaded shortly after that. Would you like to help make this an ongoing feature? Please consider becoming a Benefactor so this kind of programming can continue.
As a thank-you to paid subscribers of the Politics Panel, a ‘Let’s Talk’ thread will be established so readers can weigh in with their opinions. Paid subscribers will also be invited to participate in other ways, to be announced.
Politics
offers five ways to help Iowans who are about to become less free after the abortion ban. Also, Belin and Dennis Hart covered the biggest Iowa Supreme Court ruling of the year, a state board's approval of a controversial pipeline, and other news on "KHOI's Capitol Week":
I dissent, and so would the Founders, writes at Along the Mississippi. He dissects the faulty premise the US Supreme Court used to justify its historical presidential immunity decision.
asks: How did it come to this? A week after Joe Biden’s halting debate performance, Brecht’s Beat says this is NOT all fine.
writes from Washington, DC. “Biden’s debate performance was a wake-up call for America - just not the one many think.”
Late Wednesday afternoon, asked subscribers to Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture: What if Biden Steps Aside? Over 100 thoughtful comments later, Bob used them to help write his column It's Time for President Kamala Harris, which he posted early Friday morning. He plans to start similar threads regularly to help us continue to build a thoughtful and interactive community addressing issues important to Iowans.
has a piece about C.J. Peterson's big role at the Democratic National Convention.
guides readers through the Iowa Supreme Court's recent abortion decision, especially the stark dissenting opinions by two of the most senior justices --- with one saying the decision forces Iowa women to "live their 21st-century lives by 19th-century standards and mores." The other saying, "We can’t ignore the morality code of mid-19th century Iowa as some sort of unconstitutional anachronism while treating the abortion law of mid-19th century Iowa as some sort of constitutional guidepost for today.”
Media
Bottomless mimosas are no longer illegal? on Media laments a slow news day.
Iowa’s Indie publisher Steve Semken of explores Whirling Dervishes and cold coffee.
Around Iowa
has a behind-the-scenes peek at Okoboji residents fighting to save their cottages from the Flood of '24.
shares a personal story about dealing with prostate cancer.
Dana James, owner of , has a story about retaliation in Fort Dodge that sprang from a text sent to a softball parent’s group intended for a spouse.
hops on an e-bike and compares her cycling and sewing skills.
In the spirit of the summer holiday, is Iowa patriotic enough? dives into the rankings of the states to see how Iowa lines up. She reflects on a conversation with an Iowa veteran while visiting our nation’s capital.
reminisces on her fun-filled memories with her two sons on the Fourth of July.
has been counting insects this last week, specifically monarch butterflies and fireflies, and there aren’t as many as he’d like. Nevertheless, he tosses in a bit of optimism in his latest “Showing Up” column, Seems We’re Bugging the Insects.
Paragraph Stacker learns to celebrate July 4 without his beloved Mom 2.0.
In ’s Buggy Land, a carload of tourists drive into the ditch. How do Amish neighbors and a litter of puppies help the family recover? And help heal the rural/urban divide?
posted her Monday Zoom lunch guests for July. She also started a commentary thread for paid subscribers asking readers what they think President Joe Biden should do.
Do Hispanics celebrate the Fourth of July? Read about it in
Personal Growth
Ever feel a nagging urge to write but don’t know what to say? Blogs are great places to experiment and find your voice. has an idea to help.
Our Midwest Creative, , often reports about the value of creative spaces across Iowa and the Midwest. This week, she shares her thoughts and experiences from her favorite creative space: Camp Hertko Hollow, a camp for kids with diabetes.
Food, Travel, and Entertainment
Wini Moranville reviewed the Northwestern Steakhouse in Mason City— and discovered quite a few reasons the beloved spot has endured for over a century.
shares three quick lessons from a recent trip to Northern Michigan. Plus, a homemade “meditation” video.
explores Why music matters…when words fail. He is such a gift to us.
History
, in his ‘‘Let’s Talk Politics’’ column: Decoding the Declaration of Independence: understanding its argument and noting the unresolved issues it left us in our politics and law.
It’s Christmas in July, as shares lessons from the Spirits of July 4, Past, Present, and Future.
A young historian from the Czech Republic spent a week in Iowa before America's own Independence Day, interviewing World War II veterans -- including an emotional meeting with one veteran who helped liberate his country from the Nazis. Read about Jiri Kluc's meeting with 98-year-old Hovey Brom of Waterloo in Pat Kinney's new "View from the Cedar Valley" column.
Sports
Iowans will have a big part in the Paris Olympics, from track to wrestling to basketball. sorts it out.
Iowa Boy is shocked that Iowa basketball icon Jess Settles turns 50 years old today! Chuck and a bunch of other Settles friends did brief videos of their “favorite Jess stories” for the Settles family’s birthday celebration Saturday night.
Chuck now shares his tales in his new column.
Humor
share what makes them happy.
And the mime chimes in. Take it away, Vicki:
Poetry
shares a poem called "I Pledge Allegiance" that provides a history lesson appropriate for Independence Day."
Iowa Writers’ Collaborative
Your support of our members is critical to our sustainability. Thank you so much to those who can afford to pay to subscribe. If you want to help in other ways, please help spread the word.
As a thank-you to our paid subscribers, we hold a virtual meeting on the last Friday of the month so our collaborative members can chat with readers. It’s fun and lively! Robert Leonard is our host.
Much to read and ponder with today's posts. Delighted to read Ty will be at U of Iowa. The question is: will he move all if his full shoe boxes?