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AI for tech challenged seniors

The ad in the newspaper was tantalizing: “AI for seniors. 3 hours in two sessions offered by the County Extension Office through Iowa State University. Must be 60 or over. No fee. Research your health info.” Voila! I was wondering how to use AI. I didn’t want to be left in the dark as technology moved forward, like an old tractor parked behind the machine shed. I know I could use AI in my writing for research, not that I would use AI to write an Empty Nest column. The whole reason I write the column is for the pleasure of creating. Writing is an art, and the satisfaction I glean ...

Price gouging is whose problem?

Horrors. The profiteers running this year’s World Cup are forcing fans to shell out thousands for a single ticket. But they’re not. FIFA, which oversees the once-every-four-years soccer tournament, is slapping astounding prices on the tickets. No one has to buy them. This should be very obvious. That said, some products are priced in ways that understandably bring out villagers with pitchforks. Bread in 18th-century Europe, for example. Rapidly rising prices for the “staff of life” helped foment the French Revolution. The peasants demanded what they deemed a “just ...

Keep Politicians out of college sports

Nearly everyone who is a college sports fan, myself included, knows the state of affairs in the NCAA is one fine mess. Especially regarding football and men’s basketball, the two major money-making sports, things have changed massively in the last few years — and mostly not in a good way. ...

Voters must know every Democrat sent to Washington will hurt our Country

Polls are not like a weather forecast. We can’t do anything about the weather. If the prediction is rain, the only thing to do is get ready for it. Polls measure public sentiment. But that sentiment can be influenced. Current polling seems to justify handwringing on the part of Republicans regarding the outlook for November. RealClear Polling’s latest general congressional poll shows Democrats leading Republicans 47.9% to 40.3%. However, again, it’s not the weather. We’ve got months. and this can be influenced. The overall sentiment in the country is not ...

Don’t expect cheap gas anytime soon

There are flickering signs that the United States and Iran might negotiate a settlement to end the unprovoked war launched by President Trump earlier this year. A settlement would be welcome news. But even if a deal happens tomorrow, here’s the reality: Americans will be paying high fuel ...

Iowa makes history and civics great again

This session the House Higher Education Committee was proud to champion reforms to our universities’ core curriculum requirements, and Governor Reynolds has now signed the legislation into law. House File 2800 requires every undergraduate student at Iowa’s public universities to complete dedicated courses in American history and government to graduate. This improvement is both necessary and urgent. A 2024 national survey by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni exposed shocking gaps in civic knowledge among college students; only 31 percent knew James Madison is the Father of ...