Author: Paul Deaton

Categories
Living in Society

Politics Going Forward

Big Grove Precinct Polling Place Nov. 5, 2019

Last night I attended my last meeting as a member of the county party’s Democratic central committee. Once I chair my precinct caucus, I’ll be finished with my obligations. Considering it was 2004 when I reactivated in partisan politics, 20 years is enough devotion to this civic duty. It’s time to move forward.

Given my belief in the importance of collective action, what shall I do? I don’t know. Decreased mobility as I age will have me avoiding knocking on voter doors in future cycles. Likewise, the technology that drives human interaction has changed since the days when I could grab a list and make effective telephone calls to voters. Stuff envelopes for mailings? Maybe, yet that has its problems as well. One reason I am leaving active Democratic politics is the old methods don’t work any longer. There are demographic changes at work in my precinct and they have driven the electorate to vote Republican. The local Democratic party hasn’t kept up with the times, God love them.

I may be best at writing about the Iowa political scene. While newspapers are dying (small town Iowa newspaper continue to consolidate or close), when I post something on the Insights page of the Cedar Rapids Gazette, it gets noticed. Same thing with my bloggery here and on Blog for Iowa. I’ve written my share of candidate support/opponent criticism op-eds, yet the times call for something different to dig us out of a hole of ineffectiveness that enables Republicans to thrive.

What seems most important, that few are paying attention to as such, is the further deterioration of the post-World War II consensus that brought unparalleled economic vitality to the United States. Rich folks and libertarians never cared much for the changes wrought by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and have fought those changes vigorously during the Post-World War II prosperity. It looks like they are finally beginning to win this struggle to the detriment of citizens like me, to the detriment of a Democratic form of government.

People say our politics divide us, but what about it does? The Milton Friedman doctrine that “the social responsibility of business is to increase its profits” is a significant part of why Americans are so divided in our politics. This prevailing culture ran contrary to what skilled workers believe and eroded a key aspect of society for people who sought identity through the workplace. It forced a choice between our values and pragmatism. It has not been good for society. It left a vacuum that remains unfilled. Republicans, including the 45th president stepped in to fill the void with their malfeasance.

We must ask better questions of businesses: What great products do you make? How do your workers buy into the company? Why do corporate CEOs get paid so much? How are you giving back to the community? What percent of revenue is invested in long-term research and development? What do you do to make life better for consumers who use your products? If you outsource parts of your business, what is your moral responsibility to subcontractors? How does your company deal with external costs like its impact on clear air and water? There are other questions inadequately addressed that could occupy a writer’s time in perpetuity.

As I write my autobiography, I’ll dive into my political history, beginning with my favorite story about working for Lyndon Johnson’s 1964 presidential campaign. However, my public presence in politics must change to secure the benefits of living in a democracy. No political party can help much with that. Their role must continue to be to find excellent candidates to run against the Republican machine. I ruled out running for office again. It is time to pass the baton to the next generation of political activists and focus on what I do best.

Categories
Writing

Letters from Mother

Lorraine Deaton at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

While sorting my papers I made a pile of letters from Mother beginning when I left for university in 1970 and ending when I returned from military service in 1979. There are about 50 of them, containing a lot I didn’t realize when I received and read them the first time. What does a person do with such artifacts?

She wrote a lot of them while working at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on the Rock Island Arsenal. She mentioned writing them on her breaks, yet from the tenor of the letters, I believe she also wrote them on her work desk. It was her chance to get me caught up on family news while she was working an important job.

The early letters are newsy, yet part of them is also about her adjusting to being widowed at a young age. She didn’t date anyone new for a long time after Father died. She felt socially uncertain about attending parties solo. One summer she had a romance with someone who worked for the AAA ball club in Davenport. When he moved back to California at the end of the season, the relationship was over. The level of confidence she shared with me did not broach my consciousness at the time.

She didn’t know how to handle the fact I enlisted in the U.S. Army after graduation from university. Having lived through the aftermath of World War II, the Korean Conflict, and Vietnam, I’m certain she was concerned for my safety as only a mother could be. She attended my commissioning ceremony at Fort Benning, Georgia and talked about visiting me in Germany while I was stationed in Mainz. We never got her trip to Europe arranged.

She worked several jobs to make ends meet. In addition to her work at the Corps, she worked at a credit union and did keypunch for the American Automobile Association. She liked the keypunch work, as that’s how she got started working for the government. She could go in for her shift, do her work, and leave any thoughts about it behind when she left. Unfortunately the keypunch work was lowly paid and she soon quit because the work did not pay enough.

She often complained in the letters of how tired she was from working. She accomplished a lot after Father died yet I believe she would have been fine had the two of them had a full life together. She made clear in the letters returning to the workforce was something she was forced to do to survive as a widow.

She wrote a long letter after discovering there was an inheritance of land in Virginia. My Great Uncle Roy had been settling the estate of Patrick Henry Addington and Tryphena Ethyl Miller, my great grandparents. They died intestate and there was a matter of land to be divided among many relatives. With the death of my paternal grandmother and my father, those many relatives included me.

In the letter Mother wrote about possible plans for the land. While Great Uncle Roy had been buying everyone out to get clear title, Mother and my Uncle Gene had discussed joint ownership of our share. She described two level surfaces on what would have been our plot, where a house could be built. We would share use of the property, she proposed. Nothing came of this and during a 1983 trip to Virginia, I quit claimed my share to Uncle Roy.

Letter writing is a lost art in 2024. It is a much different thing to sit alone and write to someone we’ve known our whole lives. If I were stationed in Germany today, and Mother were still living, we’d no doubt video chat via Discord or Face Time or Zoom. She did such a good job writing letters I continue to learn from her. For the time being, I’ll keep them.

Categories
Writing

Writing into 2024

Desk Work

The recently finished holiday season was good for at least one thing: I spend more time writing. A funk spread over me for a few months as the garden wound down. Now, the desire to write is hard to contain. I feel some of what I recently wrote has been pretty good, both on this blog and in my autobiography. A couple things made the difference.

Perhaps the biggest is by reading more, I’m beginning to gain better understanding of contemporary affairs and connect dots. When I began using Goodreads to track my reading, the goal was to start reading books again. Somehow I had fallen away from book reading. When I made a commitment to read 25 pages per day and began tracking books read, the number of annual books read grew from 24 in 2018 to 69 in 2023. Quantity improved measurably.

Better than quantity, I’ve been able to correlate perspectives of history that didn’t previously come together. Because of my book selection process, I tend to read books with similar themes, with direct consequences. For example, the Reagan Revolution is clearer to me now that I read multiple books from different perspectives about it. As understanding deepens, it lays a foundation and context for my recent personal history. There is no reason to describe the wake of Reagan and neoliberalism, but rather assume it as background and build something positive from there. My recent letter to the editor of the Cedar Rapids Gazette is an example of what is possible.

It may seem like a small thing, but beginning to write Part II of my autobiography using chapters with names helped a lot. Instead of a Jack Kerouac-style automatic streaming of content from memory, the chapter titles break up the narrative and enable the reader (and the writer) to focus on one thing at a time in a long and complex narrative. This was a recommendation of a friend who read Part I early last year. It was a positive addition.

I’m filling in for Dave Bradley at Blog for Iowa until his family gets settled in Indiana. That means I have a commitment to provide at least two posts each weekend. The weekly obligation keeps me thinking about possible topics. At the same time, it helps organize the flow of ideas into buckets for that blog, this blog, letters to the editor, and my autobiography. Having a firm deadline to produce something for an audience helps maintain focus. Dave expects to be away for several months, and it will help my writing.

I deactivated my X account on Nov. 22, 2023 after 15 years on the platform. After giving Threads a thorough beta testing, I found a core group of accounts that provide diversity and interest so when I need social media, I have a responsive place to go. I would like to rebuild what I had on X: a strong group of Iowans interested in politics. It’s happening slowly, but I’m hopeful with a presidential election this year, it will come together by Labor Day. I’m still new there. The biggest change is the weight of X toxicity was lifted almost immediately. That has been good for my writing.

I don’t make New Year Resolutions yet feel like in 2024 I can accomplish a lot on my autobiography. By reading and writing more, the process gets better defined… and easier. That should make the writing better. If the holidays provided a needed boost to my writing, I’ll take it.

Categories
Environment

Reducing Consumption of Animal Products

Black-eyed peas, rice, and cornbread for first meal of 2024.

An uncomfortable truth about environmentalism — that no one wants to discuss, especially in Iowa — is the amount of land used to feed and husband animals. To say it another way, the best thing we could do to mitigate the effects of ongoing climate disruption is to drastically reduce the amount of animal products consumed by humans. Not by a little, but by a lot… and immediately.

In his recent book, We Are the Weather: Saving the Planet Begins at Breakfast, author Jonathan Safran Foer wrote about this. In the appendix he discusses how he came to the environmental impact animal husbandry makes. It ranges from 14.5 and 51 percent among different experts. How does one even begin to address this? Here in Iowa, someone who suggests humans stop eating animals and their dairy products wouldn’t get one minute of attention. They would be run out of the state.

The State of Iowa developed into an agricultural state and with reason. The prairie that existed after the 1832 Black Hawk War is almost gone. In its place is a grid of once fertile fields and crop land to take advantage of our temperate climate, rich soil, and adequate rainfall. It seems quite organized in 2024. It is. It is organized to extract as many crops from this ground as it can, growing corn and beans fence row to fence row. If the nutritional content of the soil isn’t what it used to be, there are fertilizers to help. While not all of the corn and soybeans is fed to animals, the contribution Iowa-style farming makes to environmental degradation is astounding.

Safran Foer would have the population take collective action to reduce or eliminate consumption of animal products. As the title of his book suggests, he asks us as to eat no animal products before the evening meal. The problem, he points out, is that people will convert to a “plant-based diet” or “go vegan” in order to check a box, assuage guilt, and feel hope, rather than taking more substantial, collective action to mitigate the causes of climate disruption related to agriculture. This is a problem wanting a solution. Because it is controversial, few appear to be working on it.

As we face the climate crisis, it is important for our own sanity to feel like we contribute to solutions as individuals. Actions like reducing gasoline use, reducing natural gas use, reducing electricity use, eating less meat and dairy, and growing some of our own food are all important. These actions matter, yet what matters more is what we, as a society, do collectively.

While I type this post people are working to expand U.S. export of liquefied natural gas. Government support for this is among the crazy things the Trump and Biden administrations have in common. The level of methane pollution of this export operation is mind-boggling and Biden could do something about it. It is just one example of how collective advocacy could make a difference in reducing methane pollution. Few people even realize what is going on and that’s a problem.

The meal shown in the photograph above has no animal products in it. It was satisfying from the standpoint of living a New Year’s Day tradition, and from a save the planet perspective. I checked off the box and feel good. However, there is much more to do to organize our neighbors and encourage our government to take more affirmative climate action. That is just as important as what we eat.

Categories
Environment

Electric Cars and Iowa

Photo by Rathaphon Nanthapreecha on Pexels.com

When we couldn’t get new parts for our 2002 Subaru in 2022, we decided to get a replacement car. First of all, it rots that basic suspension parts are unavailable from the manufacturer of a relatively new and otherwise fine car. Second, we wanted an electric vehicle, yet manufacturers couldn’t even tell us when we could get one. It was more than a year’s wait for some basic models with actual delivery date unknowable, they said. Demand was so high, they apparently didn’t mind missing a few sales. We resolved the immediate crisis by getting a used subcompact that gets 38 miles per gallon of gasoline.

The 45th President had something to say about electric cars during his Christmas message to the nation. He said he hopes supporters of “Electric Car Lunacy… ROT IN HELL.” Our Congresswoman, Mariannette Miller-Meeks is on board with the former president and wrote a column on the topic in our local newspaper, the Solon Economist. Not only does she have her lips busy kissing Trump’s behind, she is unabashedly in favor of the Iowa ethanol and biodiesel crazes. Heaven help us that the Environmental Protection Agency attempt to regulate a livable climate and infringe on our “freedom,” I wrote sarcastically.

Miller-Meeks takes the tone of a serious person, yet she is not one. While her predecessor, Democrat Dave Loebsack supported corn ethanol and biofuels, Miller-Meeks let her membership on the Energy and Commerce Committee, and Conservative Climate Caucus go to her head. She became a parrot for what the oil and gas, and corn ethanol and biofuels lobbies want from Washington. This compared to a legislator that looks out for all of the people she represents.

In her column, she wrote, “For one reason or another, the Biden administration has relentlessly pushed its fixation on electric vehicles (EVs), or vehicles that have an electric motor in place of an internal combustion engine, on everyday Americans.” We know the reason, and I suspect Miller-Meeks does as well. 2023 has been the hottest year in recorded history for our atmosphere and oceans. At this rate, global heating will soar past the recommendations of scientists who study it for a living. The scale of the problem demands bold solutions, which is what the EPA proposed. Is two-thirds of all new vehicles being electric by 2032 the right number? Given the ramp up time and obstruction from the corn ethanol, biofuels, and oil and gas industries, it may not be good enough.

Miller-Meeks took her corn ethanol/biofuels show on the road to COP 28 in Dubai. She had a story to tell which is reprinted below from her weekly newsletter.

At COP, I had the opportunity to speak at the U.S. Pavilion to discuss how our farmers across Iowa and the United States are the backbone of this country and our economy. I highlighted how Iowa is a leading producer of soybeans, corn, pork, and eggs in the United States, even while reducing fertilizer and pesticide use with adoption of sustainable regenerative Ag practices. Further, I mentioned how our farmers help fuel the world with lower carbon, cleaner emissions liquid fuels. 

I had the opportunity to discuss how we have taken advantage of the geographic composition of our state to support the entire gamut of renewables, from wind to solar to ethanol, biodiesel, biomass, manure, and compressed renewable natural gas. 

In Iowa, we can introduce innovative technologies like carbon capture and underground storage to our biofuel refineries. We’ve added hydropower at Lake Red Rock, and advanced nuclear energy is being revisited to provide capacity and dispatchable continual base load to the energy mix. We have the Ames Lab, one of the U.S. national labs, that adds to the exciting research conducted at the University of Iowa and Iowa State. 

We have a story to tell, and I was honored to represent our district and our agricultural priorities at COP28, and I am excited to continue to tell the story about how Iowa is setting the example and creating systems to support and harness clean energy to secure a cleaner, healthier planet for generations to come.

Miller-Meeks Weekly Script, Dec. 17, 2023.

By filling her time at the U.S. Pavilion with all of these things, she avoided addressing the real and increasingly dangerous challenges of a heating planet. While she is good at cramming buzz words into these paragraphs, notably, she avoided mentioning electric vehicles. It may sound like she is saying a lot, but in truth, she is saying nothing but that we should continue the status quo. That is simply not good enough to create a livable world.

Iowans should consider buying an electric vehicle when they need a replacement for an internal combustion vehicle, and vote Miller-Meeks out of office in 2024.

Categories
Writing

Last Peace Vigil of 2023

Newman Abuissa, chair of the Iowa Democratic Party Arab American Caucus, speaking at a peace vigil in Iowa City on Dec. 29, 2023.

I studied the Israeli Six-Day War (June 1967) and the Yom Kippur War (October 1973) while I was in the military. We figured with the Vietnam War over, the next major conflict would be over oil in the Middle East. We lifted Israeli tactics and put them into practice in our Mechanized Infantry Division in preparation for the inevitable conflict. General Norman Schwartzkopf, who led U.S. forces during the First Gulf War, served as Assistant Division Commander in the same unit I was in, although after I left Germany.

Besides that, I haven’t studied the Middle East to any extent. It has been a blind spot in my knowledge of history. A friend from high school was serving in the Peace Corps in Israel during 1973. By chance, I ran into him while leaving a youth hostel in Florence, Italy. We walked to Piazza San Marco and chatted about life since I had last seen him stateside. I don’t recall what he said about the war, but it was one contributing factor to his return to the states. When I boarded a bus to Fiesole was the last time I saw him.

A group of local peace activists held their regular Friday afternoon vigil at the University of Iowa Pentacrest on Dec. 29. KCRG-TV was there and wrote this story.

Iowa City, Iowa (KCRG) – The Iowa City chapter of Veterans For Peace held a peace vigil in front of the Pentacrest in downtown Iowa City on December 29th.

They were joined by people from the following groups: Iowa City Action for Palestine, Iowans for Palestine, Jewish Voice for Peace, Iowa Physicians for Social Responsibility, Mennonite Peace Group, Johnson County United Nations Association, and the Johnson County Interfaith Coalition who all spoke at the event.

The chapter’s co-founder Paul Deaton called for a ceasefire as well as allowing unrestricted humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.

“There is a need for peace in this world and if we don’t work for peace we won’t have peace,” said Deaton.

‘Veterans For Peace’ handed out leaflets outlining their positions, saying being critical of Israel’s actions is not the same as being anti-Semitic.

The leaflets also stated “Support for Palestinian justice and a cease-fire does NOT equate to endorsement of Hamas.”

The group holds peace vigils every Friday.

Groups come together in Iowa City at vigil for peace in Israel-Hamas War KCRG-TV, Dec. 29, 2023.

I don’t understand the Middle East any better than I did in 1974 when I ran into my friend in Florence. What I do understand is what I told KCRG-TV, “There is a need for peace in the world and if we don’t work for peace we won’t have peace.” Working for peace are words to live by.

Categories
Writing

One More Year

Apple tree in winter.

On my 72nd birthday I reviewed last year. There was not much on my calendar. As I withdraw into whatever it is occupies my days, what remained were political events, home owners association business, trips to visit our child and my sister in law, and medical appointments. I gardened, took photographs, and went grocery shopping, yet those things don’t go on the calendar as they are assumed.

Nothing stood out and I’m okay with that.

I keep my birthday hidden for the most part. It coincides with the birthday of the State of Iowa, where I live. Celebrate that instead of one more year of an aging septuagenarian. We’ll be better for it.

If I’m granted one more year, I hope to do some good in society. While I let go of things from my past, may there be new adventures ahead. No New Year’s Resolutions, just hope for a better future.

Right now, all I can think about is snow falling on apple trees.

Categories
Writing

Holiday Interregnum

Lake Macbride at sunrise, December 2023.

The sky spit a few flakes of snow at me during the trail walk this morning. As warm as it’s been, none of it is expected to stick. Water is slowly draining from the watershed back into Lake Macbride. Perhaps the worst of the drought is past. Fingers crossed.

We are in that time between Christmas and New Year’s Day, a time to take stock of the preceding year and look toward the future. For as much time alone as I’ve had, I’m way behind. I wrote a 2023 Highlights post back in November, yet I need something more to bring closure.

This was a tough year financially. We hope things will lighten up in 2024. In 2022 we had to replace the car and the freezer. It turned out one could not get new parts for a 20-year old automobile. In 2023, the big expenses got worse, including three major appliances, the HVAC system, and the septic tank pump. The result of these physical plant failures was we took two loans and are paying down our credit card balance. The good news is these repairs should last a while. The washer and dryer are likely to be the soonest needing another placement. The last ones we bought lasted about twelve years, according to the receipt. There should be time to catch a breath.

The main non-writing work this week is planning the garden. The seed orders usually have gone in by now, so I’m behind here as well. There will be a significant expense in hardware in 2024 as I develop the deer fencing better than it was this year. The portable greenhouse wore a hole next to the zipper, so it needs replacing. Getting this done will be the main part of a single day.

Seems like there is a lot to be planned for 2024. Maybe if I set some New Years Resolutions… no, that never works. I may have to wing it while hoping for the best. There have been worse times.

Categories
Home Life

Christmas 2023

Detail of Christmas tree from a past year.

We celebrated a minimalist Christmas this year. My spouse and I left the holiday decorations in their boxes, did not plan a special menu, and made some cards to send to a few friends. Ambient temperature was 53 degrees Fahrenheit at 3 a.m. on Christmas Day, and rain is in the forecast. It will be a time for reflection.

The first Christmas I think of is when I was in first grade. I had a discussion with Mother about whether Santa Claus was a real person, and that year imagined I saw him flying through the sky with his reindeer. Father spend a lot of time in the basement of our rented home near Wonder Bakery on River Drive. He was building me a desk to keep in my room for school studies. I rapidly outgrew it and still have it. Our child indicated they don’t want it when I’m gone. I’m okay with finding another home for it.

Midnight Mass was an annual Christmas activity after we moved to Marquette Street in 1959. I remember walking the block and a half to the church as snow fell upon us. It was one of the best-attended services of the year, so we had to go early to ensure getting a seat. My maternal grandmother was the main force of religion in our family and she herded us along. Holy Family Catholic Church was a center of our family life. Mother and Father were married there, Grandmother worked as a housekeeper in the rectory. Mother worked in the school cafeteria. I was baptized and confirmed there, as were my siblings, and we kids attended grade school at the parish school.

When I left home in 1970, Christmas became mostly a time of traveling home for the holiday. At university, I didn’t want to stay in the dorm over the long Christmas break, so I went home. I do not have living memory of those Christmases. It was never the same after Father died in 1969. When I enlisted in the military in 1976, I came home for Christmas maybe once. It was a long way from Germany where I was stationed.

After our wedding we split holiday time between Ames and Davenport where our parents lived. When our child was born, it felt important for grandparents and great grandparents to have time with them and the end of year holidays were a good time to do that. It was never our holiday because of the travel. It was an important duty of parenting we fulfilled as best we could.

Since our child left Iowa in 2007, Christmas has been hit or miss. There were good ones, and average ones. At some point we stopped doing anything special. We haven’t unboxed the decorations in a few years. We make an effort to call important people in our lives, yet that gets spread over the time between Dec. 18 (our wedding anniversary) and New Year’s Day. Christmas Day is no longer as special as it once was.

According to the Social Security life expectancy calculator, a reasonable expectation is I will have 14 more Christmases and my spouse will have 16. I expect to do everything possible to make them the best we can. Merry Christmas dear readers. Have a happy 2024!

Categories
Living in Society

Book Review: The Big Myth

The Big Myth: How American Business Taught Us to Loathe Government and Love the Free Market by Naomi Oreskes and Erik M. Conway is a keeper. It was written in the context of a number of contemporary books that outline the role of market fundamentalism in our society. The authors present a convincing case that U.S. Government is smaller than many other industrialized nations and could be better used than it is. The reason our government is not better used is that on the spectrum of free markets to government control, a small group of people have perpetuated the myth that the free market can solve all of our ills and government is too intrusive. They intentionally retard social progress. The book is not a quick read, yet it is vitally engaging throughout.

If you are familiar with the work of Jane Mayer, Nancy MacLean, Anne Nelson, Anne Case, Angus Deaton, Matthew Josephson, and Dahlia Lithwick I recommend reading The Big Myth.

Having married just after Ronald Reagan was sworn into office, I lived through much of the second half of the book. The history Oreskes and Conway wrote is illuminating. What I suspected, and the authors confirmed, was that market fundamentalists found a way to use popular culture to indoctrinate the population in basic tenants of their beliefs. Whether it was the collaboration between Laura Ingalls Wilder and her daughter Rose Wilder Lane in the Little House books, Ayn Rand’s work in Hollywood censorship, Ronald Reagan’s work for General Electric, or Milton Friedman’s numerous and widely read opinions, op-eds and columns, there was an intentional effort to add a layer of conservative ideology to mass culture. Call it what it is: propaganda.

The book made me reflect on how my basic views toward life in society were influenced without me knowing it.

My self-view is one of self-reliance. I stand on my own two feet and endure whatever challenges come my way, hopefully successfully navigating them. I wrote something similar to this many times over 50 years of writing. After reading The Big Myth, I realize this mental attitude may have been a form of indoctrination by active, libertarian agency that found its way into literature, movies, and television programs to which I was exposed from an early age. While self reliance is not bad, that it became part of my mental outlook through indoctrination is not good.

I am not freaking out! The disturbing part of libertarian propaganda about market fundamentalism is the absence of any alternative response. In fact, conservatives constantly accuse liberals of brainwashing children in public schools, to the extent the Iowa Legislature passed a significant private school voucher law to address their fears. Why aren’t liberals in the game? They, like me, likely didn’t understand how deep the propaganda went. There have been few comprehensive stories written about what libertarian radicals have been doing for a hundred years. Oreskes and Conway remedied that.

Pick up a copy at your independent bookstore or, if they have it, from your public library. The Big Myth is essential reading as Republican extremists work to undo American democracy with the backing of large-sized business interests. We can do better than that.