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Reaction to national news, rural broadband, and what it's like in today's classroom

...and on a lighter note, a few smiles

Jul 2, 2023
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Reaction to national news, rural broadband, and what it's like in today's classroom

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The Iowa Writers’ Collaborative members are professionals from around this state. Each brings a personal perspective to their commentary and reporting. We came together in answer to an overall decline of opinion pieces in legacy newspapers. Stories can move people and can lead to action. This roundup of columns is created to serve readers by gathering a buffet of essays from around the state and delivering them in one weekly email. We hope you pick some of our writers to support by becoming a paid subscriber.

To support the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

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OUR COLUMNISTS REACT TO THE NEWS OF THE WEEK

This week we have commentary about the U.S. Supreme Court, a warning from Laura Belin about the possibility of federal funding for Iowa’s Universities being in jeopardy, big news from Dave Price, formerly of WHO-TV, and a personal reaction from a Black Iowan as to what it is like to live in Iowa in these times. This week, the stark contrast in air quality from atop a Colorado mountaintop and Davenport turned into column fodder for Ed Tibbetts.

On a lighter note, John Naughton has pictures of some of his more colorful outfits, and Julie Gammack tells a tale of what could have been a disastrous dinner party. Wini Moranville introduces readers to a metro restaurant that sounds good, and Steph Copley writes a poignant piece about motherhood.

Rob Gray, our newest member, is a popular sports writer who intends to branch out in this format. Undoubtedly, he’ll continue to cover sports and remain a Cyclone fanatic. Read his introductory column, and welcome him aboard.

Teresa Zilk is producing an event to ‘create a safe space to lift the lived experiences of Black women’ in the Des Moines community. She founded Stories to Tell My Daughters in 2018, and it has become a popular offering.

Cheryl Tevis’s column about rural broadband availability in Iowa is a well-reported piece about a necessity those who live in metro areas take for granted.

We have a new Letters From Iowan’s submission by Josiah Wearin of Hastings. If you are a subscriber, please consider submitting a piece to this new column.

We send links to the columns the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative members posted the prior week each Sunday. And each week, some of you share this with others—which is how we grow.

By the way, Substack staffers say the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative is unique. So far, we are the only group of writers in a state banding together in this format. Pretty cool, eh?

All of our members put a good deal of effort into this. Will you take a second to tell a friend?

Also, take our poll at the end of this column, please.

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Photos from columns by Iowa Writers' Collaborative Members

DANA JAMES

Newspaper publisher Dana James does not feel safe in Iowa. Read why:

New Black Iowa
As Iowa and this nation 'roll back' civil rights, our safety as Black people is threatened
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3 months ago · 6 likes · 6 comments · New Black Iowa

DAVE PRICE

Dave Price's Perspective
A big change. Here's why I made it.
Change is not always easy. I just made a big one. 8,122 days ago I began my Iowa television career in Des Moines at WHO TV (the station calls itself “WHO 13” now). That’s more than 22 years if you don’t want to do the math. That also means that I have lived in Iowa longer than the state in which I grew up (Illinois) and nearly four times longer than the…
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3 months ago · 15 likes · 3 comments · Dave Price

ROB GRAY

Rob Gray's Area
On sticking to sports in a changing media landscape
ANKENY, Iowa — Do I need a dateline here? Why, or why not? I’m keeping it. Old habit, new game. So here’s the deal: Recently I was honored to be invited to join the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative on Substack. I eagerly accepted, so here I am. But why?Rob Gray's Area is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider beco…
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3 months ago · 3 likes · 4 comments · Rob Gray

BARRY PIATT

Barry Piatt on Politics: - Behind the Curtains
Iowa's "Watch Dogs" In Congress Don't Bark
What public officials don’t do is often even more important than what they do. That’s certainly the case with Iowa’s entire Republican congressional delegation as corruption continues to grow and fester at the nation’s 6-3 Republican controlled Supreme Court, and as Iowa’s all Republican delegation continues to nap through it…
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3 months ago · Barry Piatt

SUZANNA DE BACA

Dispatches from the Heartland
Nothing is Affirmative
“You do not take a person who, for years, has been hobbled by chains and liberate him, bring him up to the starting line of a race and then say, ‘You are free to compete with all the others,’ and still justly believe that you have been completely fair.” – President Lyndon Johnson, June 4, 1965…
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3 months ago · 6 likes · 10 comments · Suzanna de Baca

LAURA BELIN

Iowa politics with Laura Belin
Iowa's late reporting jeopardized universities' federal funds
This exclusive reporting first appeared at Bleeding Heartland is shared here as part of the Iowa Writers Collaborative. For regular emails linking to all recent Bleeding Heartland articles and commentary, subscribe to the free Evening Heartland newsletter…
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3 months ago · Laura Belin
Iowa politics with Laura Belin
Presidential campaigns, abortion news, open records, and more
Apologies for the late message this week. I was tied up on Tuesday with some unrelated meetings and wanted to finish some exclusive reporting I’ve been working on for a long time. One thing I love about having my own platform is being my own assignment editor. There’s no one to tell me I can’t write…
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3 months ago · 1 comment · Laura Belin

ART CULLEN

Our guy in Storm Lake writes about being ‘pro-life’ then and now.

Art Cullen’s Notebook
Things are not so black-and-white
I’m “pro-life,” you could say. I was reared in a strictly Catholic household at 216 Geneseo Street, and sent to St. Mary’s School where that regimen was reinforced. I matriculated to an all-men’s college run by priests in the Twin Cities, where I was fully schooled in moral theology…
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3 months ago · 21 likes · 2 comments · Art Cullen

FERN AND JOE

When a classroom teacher today is in the family…

Fern and Joe
NOT IF BUT WHEN
Fern: Today’s column is a family affair. Our daughter Megan is a teacher at East High School and we thought we’d bring her into the conversation. Joe: Fern and I are retired English teachers. We both taught at Iowa State. But teaching at a university is a comparatively cushy gig. In both our careers combined, we had nowhere near the stories…
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3 months ago · 6 likes · 1 comment · Fern Kupfer and Joe Geha

MARY SWANDER

Mary Swander’s Buggy Land
Under a Large Tent
If you’re going to go to the bother and expense of putting up a tent, you might as well leave it up. That’s what my Mennonite neighbors thought, anyway, when their daughter got married. And the Kauffman’s tent was a fancy, spanking new, white canopy tent. Not the old faded and frayed canvas tent that Menno Beachy usually brings up the road on the back …
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3 months ago · 9 likes · 4 comments · Mary Swander

STEPH COPLEY

It Was Never a Dress
A Mother’s Battle with Time
At my daughter’s dance recital on Saturday, the young lady on stage took my breath away. But she also broke my heart.It Was Never a Dress is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber…
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3 months ago · 5 likes · Steph C

BETH HOFFMAN

In the Dirt
Farm Meditation #2: Conquering the New
This is part of a new series of “farm meditations,” moments that have inspired me or made me think about life in a new way while working on our farm—Whippoorwill Creek Farm. Each Saturday morning I will publish a new meditation. Perhaps they will be a nice way to start your weekend or will become a spark to think about all week. Feel free to post your co…
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3 months ago · 10 likes · 5 comments · Beth Hoffman

DOUGLAS BURNS

Read why Doug Burns thinks the Mayor of Allentown, PA is a politician to watch as he accompanies Congressman Ro Khana, D-CA, on a ‘listening tour’ nationwide.

The Iowa Mercury
A Democrat to watch — Allentown, Pennsylvania's first Latino mayor, Matt Tuerk
LEHIGH VALLEY, Pennsylvania Few politicians I've encountered in three decades of journalism inhabit the intersection o…
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3 months ago · 6 likes · Douglas Burns

PAT KINNEY

View from the Cedar Valley
France's post-WWII gift to Iowa still on display
“Probably a junk dealer wouldn’t give more than 20 bucks for it, but this old car and the keepsakes inside it represent a million dollars’ worth of sentiment.” — Drew Pearson, “Washington Merry-Go Round’ column, Nov. 11, 1949…
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3 months ago · 2 likes · Pat Kinney

ROBERT LEONARD

Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture
Nicole Loew for Iowa Senate
This image popped up on Facebook last week, proving that Facebook is still good for some things, despite so much evidence to the contrary. Loew, a Democrat who lives in Chariton, is challenging Republican Senate President Amy Sinclair of Allerton. Sinclair has served in the Senate since 2013 and was elected as President of the Senate in November of 2022…
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3 months ago · 8 likes · Robert Leonard

LETTERS FROM IOWANS

This week, Josiah Wearin submits a proposal for Governor Kim Reynolds that he believes could alter her legacy. Wearin describes himself as a cowherd and gardener who practiced law in SW Iowa for 33+ years. He is a proud grandfather and lives on a farm founded in 1854 by his great-great-grandparents. Please give it up for our reader from Hastings. We want to hear from you, too. Submit your essays through the form in the column:

Letters From Iowans
DEAR GOVERNOR REYNOLDS
Letters From Iowans is a part of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. We encourage you, our subscribers, to share your perspective in this column. To make your voice heard, use this form to send us your essay: Letters From Iowans FORM HASTINGS, IA - Dear Governor Reynolds: Here is how you can transform your political future and create a new v…
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3 months ago

MARY SWANDER’S EMERGING VOICES

Mary Swander's Emerging Voices
Worker-Owned Co-ops:
Early in our first year of farming together, Emily and I were driving to the greenhouse where we rented space. I was strategizing aloud about something I don’t remember, maybe suggesting an idea for a way we could go about our shared business. Or maybe I was voicing frustration with our economic context. What I do remember is Emily’s response. She said…
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3 months ago · 6 likes · 1 comment · Mary Swander

TERESA ZILK

Talking Good
Stories to Tell My Daughter
"The power of our stories is so deeply embedded in who we are and what we do and how we live." - Ava DuVernay…
Read more
3 months ago · Teresa Zilk and Christina Fernández-Morrow

ED TIBBETTS

Along the Mississippi
Clean air is fundamental to public safety
Greetings from Colorado. As I write this, it is the morning after a beautiful day in the mountains. At 10,000 feet in Winter Park, it looked like you could see forever. The majesty of the mountains in the clear, crisp air was breathtaking. I was lucky — in my ability to visit such a place, but also for the clear s…
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3 months ago · 2 likes · 2 comments · Ed Tibbetts

CHERYL TEVIS

So, what about Iowa? Iowa has the second slowest internet speeds in the U.S. (average download of 74.3 Mbps per second, according to BroadbandNow.com). Iowa ranks 45th in the U.S. for internet connectivity, and monthly internet prices are higher here, too.

Unfinished Business
Unfinished Business
I didn't know whether to laugh or cry earlier this week when I saw the headline, "Biden: Broadband for all by 2030." It's a great goal. More than $40 billion is headed to un-served or under-served areas lacking access to download speeds of at least 25 megabits (Mbps) per second and upload speeds of 3 Mbps. (Read rural ar…
Read more
3 months ago · 4 likes · 1 comment · Cheryl Tevis

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE…

JULIE GAMMACK

Julie Gammack's Iowa Potluck
Dinner was served...
Richard, my husband and the author of 'Sh*t Richard Says' (which he occasionally writes for this space), had his flight from Baltimore canceled this week, the day before a scheduled dinner party. Richard has helmed food prep in our household for the past 23 years of our partnership, so he assumed I would reschedule the gathering…
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3 months ago · 12 likes · 8 comments · Julie Gammack

WINI MORANVILLE

Wini’s Food Stories
Review of Bix & Co.
According to an article in Monday’s Wall Street Journal, “42% of consumers who dined out in May were frustrated by the lack of staff.” That’s down only slightly from a peak of 45% in February. I’m willing to bet that many of us who have dined out lately have landed among that 42%. Hopefully, we’ve all been patient as restau…
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3 months ago · 8 likes · Wini Moranville

KURT MEYER

Showing Up
"The Idyllic Was Lost"
She’s a bit smaller, maybe somewhat older than I envisioned. Because her first book, “Poetic License,” details childhood experiences, I may have unintentionally frozen her in time. It’s a pleasure to meet the author, who presents as warm and approachable, making it hard not to like her. Years seem to have brought a measure of wisdom, perspective, and ac…
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3 months ago · Kurtis Meyer

JOHN NAUGHTON

My Life, in Color
Best Dressed: John's colorful fling into spring
What’s your spring look? For me, it’s a time when I start out in March with light pastel colors and transition to bright colors and shorts weather. A lot of friends comment on my colorful wardrobe, so here’s a fun view of some of the fashions I wore from March to June — a period when Iowa went from snow to sunshine…
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3 months ago · 2 likes · John Naughton

MACEY SPENSLEY

The Midwest Creative
Creative Community: Caleb "The Negro Artist" Rainey
The Midwest Creative is a passion project borne out of my love for my home and my sincere belief that the Midwest deserves our love, care, and investment. I will sing the praises of the creative community in this region until my last breath. But I need your help to reach as many people as I can…
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3 months ago · 3 likes · 1 comment · Macey Spensley

LARRY STONE

Listening to the Land
Big Sand Mound
June 2023 Muscatine, IA – Strange bedfellows? Ornate box turtles, western hognose snakes, prickly pear cactus, hairy pucco…
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3 months ago · 4 likes · 1 comment · Larry Stone

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IOWA WRITERS’ COLLABORATIVE ROSTER

Laura Belin: Iowa Politics with Laura Belin, Windsor Heights
Doug Burns: The Iowa Mercury, Carroll
Dave Busiek: Dave Busiek on Media, Des Moines
Iowa Writers’ Collaborative, Roundup
Steph Copley: It Was Never a Dress, Johnston
Art Cullen: Art Cullen’s Notebook, Storm Lake
Suzanna de Baca: Dispatches from the Heartland, Huxley
Debra Engle: A Whole New World, Madison County
Julie Gammack: Julie Gammack’s Iowa Potluck, Des Moines and Okoboji
Joe Geha: Fern and Joe, Ames
Jody Gifford: Benign Inspiration, West Des Moines
Rob Gray: Rob Gray’s Area, Ankeny
Nik Heftman: The Seven Times, Los Angeles and Iowa
Beth Hoffman: In the Dirt, Lovilla
Dana James: New Black Iowa, Des Moines
Pat Kinney: View from Cedar Valley, Waterloo
Fern Kupfer: Fern and Joe, Ames
Robert Leonard: Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture, Bussey
Letters from Iowans, Iowa
Tar Macias: Hola Iowa, Iowa
Kurt Meyer: Showing Up, St. Ansgar
Wini Moranville, Wini’s Food Stories, Des Moines
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
Macey Spensley: The Midwest Creative, Iowa
Larry Stone: Listening to the Land, Elkader
Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Buggy Land, Kalona
Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Emerging Voices, Kalona
Cheryl Tevis: Unfinished Business, Boone County
Ed Tibbetts: Along the Mississippi, Davenport
Teresa Zilk: Talking Good, Des Moines
The Iowa Writers Collaborative is also proud to ally with Iowa Capital Dispatch.

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