Month: July 2025

Does America need a divorce, or just marriage counseling?

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Des Moines Area Community College poli-sci prof, Jeffrey Weiss, thinks so. He’s written a piece called We the people, to dissolve an imperfect union, grant a divorce to the United States of America. You oughta read it.

Weiss also makes his case on this week’s Fallon Forum. We discuss dividing the country along the Mississippi River — Republicans on one side, Democrats on the other. I ask tough questions like, “Who gets the nuclear weapons?” and “Won’t it just devolve into another violent civil war?”

Really, someone oughta organize a debate for us.

I’m not for divorce. I’m for marriage counseling. Let’s talk through our differences and brainstorm solutions. I believe that most Americans want to persevere and continue this grand experiment to build a more perfect melting pot of freedom, justice, and democracy. (I know, we still have a long, long way to go.)

As Kathy said to me after we recorded the program, “When a relationship is so bad that one party recommends ending it, both parties might suddenly wake up to the reality that splitting up would be harder than taking steps to make up.” Continue Reading →

My lunch with two Zionist friends

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Which brings me to last week’s conversation with two friends I’ve known for 25 years. Mostly, we dwelt on shared experiences. Biking. Art. Music. Climate change. Urban sprawl.

The conversation unexpectedly veered to Gaza. I was blown away when my friends asserted that they are Zionists. And that launched a very uncomfortable discussion.

Every time I brought up the horrors of what Israel is doing in Gaza, they deflected to the hostages.

Every time Kathy or I shared facts presented by most media, facts verified by video and first-hand accounts, they refused to accept the legitimacy of those sources.

One even accused the UN of culpability in Hamas’ horrific attack on October 7, 2023.

They regarded any criticism of Israel as anti-semitism, which I resented. I didn’t earn a degree in religious studies, learn to read the Bible in Hebrew, and spend two weeks in Israel years ago to be labeled “anti-semitic.” Continue Reading →

Tom Harkin is right about Iowa’s water quality problem

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Iowa’s water is so bad it should be the top issue in the next election. We’ve known about the crisis for years, but state and federal officials have done nothing. As a result, Iowa’s water quality is now worse than ever.

That fact is evidenced by a comprehensive report just released by Polk County government, Currents of Change.

What’s contaminating our water? Fertilizer and manure runoff are the primary culprits. High levels of nitrates and other toxins are making people sick, and literally killing some of us.

Iowa has the second highest rate of cancer in the nation.

Des Moines operates one of the most expensive nitrate removal systems in the world, at a cost to residents of $10,000 per day. Beyond the cost, people are rightfully concerned about the system’s capacity to bring nitrate concentrations down to the federal level — a level some experts feel is too high. Continue Reading →

My take-aways from Trump’s July 3 rally in Des Moines

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I went to last week’s Trump rally at the Iowa State Fairgrounds to (1) hear first-hand what the President had to say, (2) interview rally attendees, and (3) check out the counter protest.

Last things first, between 50 and 100 protesters showed up. Many conveyed important messages. A few were counterproductive, like the woman who yelled “racist” at everyone (including me) entering the venue.
 
Once inside, I spoke with five Trump supporters, two who agreed to be interviewed. My summary of those conversations is at 5:15 of this week’s program.

Here are my takeaways from the rally:

TRUMP IS FUNNY. Humor is part of what endears Trump to his base. Objectively, while it’s not brilliant comedy, Trump is indeed sometimes humorous. Continue Reading →