Living in Society
Politics mostly social commentary.
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Locals were in their yards dealing with the fallen leaves of deciduous trees. In that peculiar American way they worked autonomously. Each had their own way of handling a natural occurrence. One family makes an annual event of piling leaves high then zip lining into them. Others piled and burned them. Some ground them up… Read more
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One day after Elon Musk acquired Twitter I protected my tweets. For the uninitiated, that means only people who follow me can see them. I cut back on posting as well. Two days afterward, I opened this can of coffee and chicory to make a pot. The coffee reminds me of a trip to New… Read more
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It was a perfect day for inspecting the roof and cleaning gutters. No wind and moderate temperatures, the whole job took less than 15 minutes. At age 70, I feel confident climbing the ladder to do this work. I’m not yet ready to pay someone a hundred bucks to do this 15-minute job. I don’t… Read more
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Not much to say today, or any day before the midterm election. Here’s a photo of my front yard with leaves piling up. It’s great mulch for the garlic and more work to do! Thanks for reading. Read more
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Requests to vote by mail in the Nov. 8 election declined by 39 percent over 2018, the last midterm election. Republicans have successfully suppressed early voting by mail in Johnson County. Democrats are advising people to vote early in person if they have to, instead of risking the uncertainties of the United States Postal Service.… Read more
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After the general election I expect my Twitter use will change. Instead of using the platform for editorializing, I expect to revert to news gathering as its primary function. That’s to be expected after a long campaign season. It is also a reaction to Elon Musk’s potential acquisition of the social media platform. We don’t… Read more
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When a person lives in Iowa it is hard to avoid noticing the harvest. 74 percent of Iowa soybeans and 38 percent of corn had been harvested as of Oct. 17. We are running a few days ahead of historical averages because it has been exceedingly dry. The entire state is experiencing drought conditions. I… Read more
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Some days it is best to just be. Read more
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The first batch of results from the new Iowa Poll are in. Retired Admiral Michael Franken has closed the distance between him and incumbent U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley to within the margin of error, 43-46 percent. “It says to me that Franken is running a competent campaign and has a shot to defeat the seemingly… Read more
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The Des Moines Register announced the first installment of their annual pre-election Iowa Poll will be released at 6 p.m. on Saturday. The poll is by Selzer & Co., and is usually an accurate predictor of the results of the general election. They will begin with online release of the polling results for the U.S.… Read more
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