State park trail entry point.

Journey Home

Tales from the pilgrimage.

Living in Society

Politics mostly social commentary.

  • Peoples’ Coalition Rides Again

    As I walked along the state park trail, I didn’t know if I would participate in the annual 4th of July parade in Coralville. Wild bergamot was beginning to bloom under the heat dome that parked over the Ohio River Valley and included us. I was mindful of the effect of high temperatures and humidity… Read more

  • Independence Day 250

    Happy Independence Day to those who celebrate! I hope readers find space for patriotic reflections on this unique day in American history. Thanks for reading my blog. Read more

  • A Case for Christina Bohannan

    I’m all in for the third time with Christina Bohannan for U.S. Congress in Iowa’s First District. Over the three cycles she has run, I had more than my share of one-on-one conversations with her. I have confidence she will do what she believes is right for the district and the country. That doesn’t mean… Read more

  • America 250

    As the 250th anniversary of signing the Declaration of Independence approaches, I re-read the document. I plan to read it again before the 4th of July. Living as I do in current times, I can’t believe men wrote these words. I also wonder how women influenced the document. Because our knowledge of the event is… Read more

  • Iowa City Pride Festival

    I received a phone call from my friend Ed, with whom we founded the Eastern Iowa Chapter of Veterans for Peace. He wondered if I was going to walk in the Iowa City Pride Parade. I bought a new t-shirt for the occasion although had planned to walk with the Democrats. I could switch, so… Read more

  • The Faces of Voters

    When I accepted employment as a poll worker, I decided to buy a new shirt—one with a collar. I’m not one to spend much time on presentation, yet the white shirt with blue vertical stripes made me look more professional. I wore it on primary election day when I began a fifteen-hour shift greeting and… Read more

  • Book Review: Into the Wood Chipper

    I knew what to expect from Nicholas Enrich’s Into the Wood Chipper: A Whistleblower’s Account of How the Trump Administration Shredded USAID because I followed news of the agency shut down in real time. Enrich details his experience immediately following President Trump’s second inauguration when contracts were canceled, staff were placed on administrative leave and… Read more

  • After the Democratic Primary

    After my 15-hour shift as a poll worker I was too agitated to sleep. I stayed up until I knew the results of the main races I was following, about another 60 minutes after arriving home. These are the main results in which I was interested: The numbers are such that Republicans don’t stand a… Read more

  • Take Down Of Ashley Hinson’s First Ad

    Republican Representative Ashley Hinson’s first U.S. Senate television ad, “Believe,” makes claims voters should question. She says “veterans deserve a hell of a lot better.” They do. Yet in 2022 she voted against the EVEST Act, which automatically enrolls eligible discharged veterans in VA health care (HR 4673, Roll Call 14). She also opposed the… Read more

  • Newspapers Now

    Not long after the Kennedy assassination, Mother found me a job as a newspaper boy. Before dawn, I rode my bicycle to pick up a bundle of Des Moines Register dailies and deliver them. The homes were spread out because the Register was not our local paper. It was the route that was available. My… Read more