Legislators should let ideas compete, not micromanage state university curriculum

January 30, 2025

There may be a solution to the complaint some Republican legislators have about the University of Iowa’s plan to close a tranche of departments and programs and create a School of Social and Cultural Analysis. The lawmakers object to merging African American Studies; American Studies; Gender, Women’s, and Sexuality Studies; Jewish Studies; Latina/o/x Studies; and Native American and Indigenous Studies. Majors in American Studies and Social Justice would be cut as part of the plan, which has been discussed for two years, UI leaders said. Rep. Taylor Collins, R-Mediapolis, ...

It’s impossible to hum while holding your nose

January 26, 2025

Once my reading skills advanced beyond the Alice and Jerry primers I became a newspaper reader. My parents’ nerdy first born devoured newspapers, often not understanding everything I read. More than 50 years ago I discovered a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist, L.M. Boyd, who wrote a daily column of trivia and amusing facts. Since my mind processes trivia better than more complex matters, I became a quick fan of Boyd’s work. Louis Malcolm Boyd retired in 2004 and passed away in January 2007. I still miss reading his collections of minutiae. In memory of L.M. Boyd, I ...

Memories of the blizzard of ’75

January 21, 2025

When I was a kid I observed that old men enjoyed telling stories of harrowing storms they had survived when they were younger. I didn’t understand it all back then, but I do now. So let me tell you about one of the nastiest blizzards in my memory. It happened 50 years ago this month. In January 1975 my wife, son and I had lived in the Sioux City community just one year and I was working for a radio station with offices at the north end of downtown. It seemed to be an average winter day when I went to work that Friday, but by mid-morning it was snowing heavily. After making sales ...

It was brave, courageous and bold

January 12, 2025

Many people today cannot remember (or imagine) a time when a television set was not a familiar item in most homes. I can. I was nearly 9 years old when our family acquired its first television receiver. My father made the purchase on New Year’s Day 1957. To put this in perspective, younger folks, this was even more exciting than the first time you surfed the internet. Until that memorable New Year’s Day, Dad seemed reluctant to have a television in our home. He feared, I suspect, that his sons would be exposed to inappropriate things on TV. He didn’t know I was already ...

All the world’s a stage

January 5, 2025

It’s a new year and a new season for high school showtime! It won’t be long before high schools will be announcing their spring musicals and plays. I enjoyed high school plays but during my abbreviated college experience I was working 30 to 40 hours a week and had no time for plays. Over the years that followed I often thought that someday I would get involved in community theater. Alas, my career took priority. Nowadays I’m not sure I’m up to the challenge. Of all my high school memories, drama experiences are among the most treasured. The closest I ever came to ...

Gratitude

January 2, 2025

It’s 2025. But before we forget there was a 2024, let’s give a shout out to some of the people who led this community forward so that we could get to this year in good shape. Sheriff Doug Timmons. Timmons retired at the end of 2024, handing the wheel over to his successor Alex Pruismann. Timmons, a local guy whose father was a Webster City police officer, never strayed from his home county in his heart. In fact, if you talked to him about the job, when he was still on the job, he was laser-focused on doing the best he could for the people of Hamilton County. I don’t know about ...