The Val Air, The Legislature, Grassley spins, and a lot of history lessons and personal reflections
...sports, and slices of life you will not find elsewhere
The Iowa Legislature
Ed Tibbetts at Along the Mississippi writes that Republicans in the state Legislature are trying to force-feed Iowa students their conservative political agenda through the passage of a new history and civics curriculum. In the process, they're bulldozing a process set up by Terry Branstad 10 years ago that included professional educators, local school districts and regular Iowans. So, who wrote these new rules? Hint: It wasn't Iowans.
Extreme politics provokes extreme reactions. The Iowa Teamsters are fighting back against legislative attempts to strip labor rights. Leader Jesse Case hints at rolling strikes across the state and other actions if the right-wing attacks persist. “We’ve had enough. We’re not taking it anymore,” he told Art Cullen.
Bob Leonard interviewed Tim Glaza and Hugh Espey for “Iowa CCI Files Ethics Complaint Against State Representative Dean Fisher (R); Fisher campaigned on vouchers, voted for vouchers, and seeks to profit from them--but it’s much bigger than that…” At the end of the column, Bob shares a link to where readers can sign the Iowa CCI petition that will be delivered on Wednesday.
Daniel Finney is a columnist who teaches middle school kids and wonders what the legislature thinks about legalizing school employees to be armed. Who will be packing, and what?
Larry Stone describes two very different events as opportunity vs. futility. Guess in which bucket the ‘futility’ effort landed?
Another Iowa Writers’ Collaborative member visited legislators under the Golden Dome. Kali White VanBaale shares experiences and insights on lobbying at the state capital.
Laura Belin and Dennis Hart covered more than a dozen bills that advanced in the Iowa House or Senate and other political news on their KHOI Radio show.
Dave Price explains why two people he met this week make him wonder whether our hope for solving some of the biggest challenges may not come from politicians.
National Politics
Barry Piatt says Senator Chuck Grassley is trying to “spin” his way out of scandal. It’s not working.
Julie Gammack announced the topic for her Monday Potluck Zoom call will be In Virto Fertilization (IVF) at risk. Her guest will be Mary Riche, a retired therapist who worked with couples dealing with infertility.
History Repeating?
Arnold Garson: Is this 2024 or 1924? Arnold Garson takes us back to the time when the Ku Klux Klan was at its apex, with a look at the parallels to today's rising white supremacy movements.
Sports
Caitlin Clark’s record run has brought attention to overlooked women’s basketball players of the past – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. There’s a long history that has gone untold, and at The Crossover, Jane Burns writes about a documentary series that will rectify that.
John Naughton has an Iowa prep sports perspective on Black History Month.
Around Iowa
Kyle Munson stopped by one of Iowa’s most historic entertainment venues, the Val Air Ballroom, celebrating its new lease on life as a beloved community hub after a $15 million renovation.
Mary Swander weaves magical prose about her Amish neighbor’s treadle loom, her rag rugs, and how the device was passed down through the family.
Beth Hoffman: Last week, the Iowa legislature passed a bill to block foreign ownership of land. We need to stop the Chinese from buying up the nation, our Iowa legislators complain. But as we race to protect Iowa farms, what are we really “protecting” and, by extension, who should be protecting it?
Kurt Meyer takes an afternoon walk on a field adjacent to his home. I think you’ll want to come along.
Alison McGaughey writes about the Quad Cities but also Gen X memories, especially of the musical kind. In a post this week, a “Memorex Minute,” she shares some surprising trivia she recently learned about an 80s tune that may have graced one of your mixtapes.
Waterloo Black professionals are chipping away at the racial disparity in home ownership. Read it in Pat Kinney’s new “View from the Cedar Valley” column.
Macey Shofroth : Our creative endeavors allow us to capture the important moments in our lives and connect who we were to who we will become. Macey Shofroth explored how that has sustained her close relationship with one of her oldest friends as their creative paths diverge.
Media
Dave Busiek on Media questions the Des Moines Register’s approach to a digital news future.
Tony Brecht: If your local paper is owned by a crappy corporate chain that has reneged on its duty to be a responsible watchdog, you absolutely, positively should not continue to support them financially. It's time to rip the BandAid off and accelerate the shift to a new local journalism paradigm.
Health
Cheryl Tevis shares a serious public health concern highlighted in the 2024 Iowa Cancer Report.
Food
Wini Moranville reports on Moxie, the creative culinary space that offers pop-up dinners, Detroit-style pizza night, cooking classes, grab-and-go options, and so much more!
Steve Semken: The Iowa Writers' Collaborative in action: Authors, good trouble, and ripple effects. Bob Leonard, Chris Jones, and Midwest Publishing: Here's the link: Steve Semken
Douglas Burns produced two entertainment-related columns this past week, one with a history twist, the other with a political angle. In his Iowa Mercury columns, Burns writes about how "The Beekeeper" is a trope built on a conspiracy theory package wrapped in improbability — and, in fact, something of a Trump propaganda film. Burns also travels to Denison and covers the development of a new Prohibition era-theme bar called The Old Fashioned.
Dartanyan Brown invites us to his third month with the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. This former Des Moines Register reporter and five-time inductee into Iowa’s Rock’n Roll, Blues and Jazz Halls of Fame, draws on a rich palette of experience with a growing collection of personal stories and interviews. His Audio Archives (1950-present) will feature highlights from Des Moines’ unique Jazz, Blues, and Roots Music scene over the past six decades.
If you haven’t read the original story, please start here
How My Integrated Life Came To Be
Below are some featured posts Since our January 1 launch.
Blues [From the Iowa Blues All-Stars]
A Walk Along the Creek
Nada es Impossible
Interview Luther Allison
Brown’s Black History
One For Lettie (music)
Humor
Vicki Minor says laughter does not have to come from a major source. It could indeed be … relatively minor.
On a Personal Note…
Nicole Baart shares a story about her childhood and wonders if we really are all just doing The Best We Can.
In Benign Inspiration, columnist Jody Gifford talks about legacy and how people remember us when we're gone.
Poetry
Teresa Zilk writes a poem about a granddaughter reflecting on her grandmother's legacy.
Poet Suzanna de Baca offers 8 Haiku's of Appreciation and asks you what or who you appreciate during these winter months. 8 Haikus of Appreciation
Tonight!
There is a concert tonight in Fort Dodge to raise funds to save Byron’s live music venue in Pomeroy. Some members of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative will be on hand.
Read about Byron’s plight: Art Cullen and hear from Byron himself in a podcast with Julie Gammack.
Iowa Writers’ Collaborative
Please consider becoming a paid subscriber to as many members as possible. They are independent columnists who do not accept advertising and are committed to providing news, information, and commentary for those interested in the state. Your support is appreciated. Another important way to help is to share this roundup of columns with others. Thanks!
Iowa Writers’ Collaborative Roster
Nicole Baart: This Stays Here, Sioux Center
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 Brown, My Integrated Life, Des Moines
Doug Burns: The Iowa Mercury, Carroll
Jane Burns: The Crossover, Des Moines
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
Daniel Finney, Paragraph Stacker, Des Moines
Arnold Garson: Second Thoughts, Okoboji and Sioux Falls
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, Lovilia
Dana James: Black Iowa News, Iowa
Chris Jones, Chris’s Substack, Iowa City
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
Darcy Maulsby: Keepin’ It Rural, Calhoun County
Tar Macias: Hola Iowa, Iowa
Alison McGaughey, The Inquisitive Quad Citizen, Quad Cities
Kurt 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
Steve Semken, The Pulse of a Heartland Publisher, North Liberty
Macey Shofroth: The Midwest Creative, Norwalk
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
Jason Walsmith, The Racontourist, Earlham
Kali White VanBaale, 988: Mental Healthcare in Iowa, Bondurant
Teresa Zilk: Talking Good, Des Moines
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