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SPLC walls tumbling down

Grifters piling bounty by exploiting others’ decent passions merit merciless condemnation. As do fake news mongers who enable dirty crimes. An Alabama grand jury considered evidence presented by the government against the Southern Poverty Law Center. The SPLC is alleged to have funneled millions of donor dollars to the very hate groups it claims to fight. Per a DOJ press release, the SPLC “secretly funneled more than $3 million to individuals who’d been associated with violent extremist groups like the KKK, National Socialist Party of America [Nazis], and Aryan ...

Bible truth or tradition: The integrity of God’s word

Many years ago, I heard a statement that has stayed with me ever since: “Man’s basic spiritual problem is the integrity of the Word of God.” From the opening chapters of Scripture, humanity’s trouble did not begin with violence, injustice, or immorality—it began with a question: “…Did God actually say…?” (Genesis 3:1). Eve inaccurately handled God’s word, which led to her believing the serpent’s lie in verse 4. The consequences were catastrophic. That pattern has never changed. When God’s words are doubted, altered, or subordinated to human opinion...unbelief, ...

Feeding the world also feeds Iowa farmers. Congress needs to help.

In November 1979, I escorted Gov. Robert D. Ray and first lady Billy Ray to the Thai-Cambodian border, where we witnessed thousands of Cambodians who had escaped the Khmer Rouge genocide starving to death. Victims were dying at the rate of 50 to 100 a day, bulldozed into mass graves. After this trip, Gov. Ray started the Iowa SHARES (Iowa Sends Help to Aid Refugees and End Starvation) campaign, which rushed lifesaving food and assistance from the people of Iowa to over 30,000 refugees. Earlier that year, in October 1979, I was one of the 350,000 Iowans to hear Pope John Paul II ...

Morel Madness

Aimee Gauley was a Creative Writing student of mine. From Ft. Madison, she is a realtor, beautician, author, mother, wife and mushroom hunter! It doesn’t take much scrolling online to see that mushroom season is upon us! The elusive morel is a delicacy and the only thing better than eating them is finding them! There are many online pages and groups devoted to “shrooms.” The members share tips and tricks for hunting and cooking. Once spring hits we all wait with bated breath for the first confirmed finds of the year. We plan. We monitor the weather and ground temperatures, ...

The retention lab: Why great educators stay in Marshalltown

Following my inaugural year as Director of Human Resources for the Marshalltown Community School District (MCSD), I deepened my commitment to the field by joining the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). This began an intensive period of professional development that culminated in earning my SHRM-CP (Certified Professional) credential at the start of my second year. Beyond the certification, this journey sparked a specific interest in proactive retention strategies—leading me to pioneer “Stay Interviews” as a tool for fostering employee longevity and engagement. We are ...

Lawmakers wag their fingers with new Ian Roberts Resume Fraud law

Come July, Iowa employers may want to add an ominous warning on their job application forms: tell a lie and you could go to jail. That’s right — no more puffing the resume with false degrees from the University of Okoboji or Faber College. And do not claim to have chauffeur’s license when you lack the permit needed to drive a truck. That’s because Gov. Kim Reynolds signed House File 2337 into law last week, making it a crime to knowingly provide false academic degrees or credentials for the purpose of obtaining employment or other personal gain. The legislation does not ...