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Supporting Melisa Fonseca for city council

I wholeheartedly support Melisa Fonseca in her bid for City Council. I was so encouraged when I heard Melisa was planning on running, as Melisa and her family are some of the most civic-minded people I know. This means not just focusing on or talking about the challenges we face, but being willing to put in the work toward making a difference in a positive way. And while it is not the only factor, representation matters. Melisa has excellent skills, communication style, a good knowledge base and great aptitude for learning — but she also has a diverse perspective: as a woman, a ...

Ethanol — A false solution

Misguided farm policy has cost the United States taxpayer over $400 billion over the past seven years and most of that went to a few farmers that employ highly extractive methods that are destroying both their land and our water resources to produce way more corn than we need. Ethanol is a by-product of farmers raising too much of a good thing. It is a false solution to our problems and continued support of corn-based ethanol will only serve to exacerbate our problems. Overproduction of corn is a misuse of Iowa’s most valuable natural resources-- its soil and its water. Tillage, ...

Positive thinking

Step one: Wake up to a good day. Step two: Put on a smile. Step three: Write a positive list. Step four: Count your blessings!

Thank you to MCBD

The Cartwright Downtown Farmer’s Market Board wanted to express our gratitude for the recent improvements to the Cartwright Pavilion provided by the Marshalltown Central Business District. The upgrades have truly enhanced the overall experience for visitors and those utilizing the space. The new beautification improvements of painting the shelter, lights, the arches to both entryways, and the planter boxes have made a significant difference, and we are incredibly appreciative of the effort and resources that went into making these improvements a reality. The team’s dedication to ...

Thoughts on Israel and Palestine

Some years ago, I traveled to Israel and Palestine. I visited a Palestinian school, and I talked to a class of seventh grade boys. I told the Palestinian boys that I had come there to bring peace and help them to become a nation. Since that time that I was there, I truly wonder how many of those seventh grade boys are still alive. Have they been killed by Israel’s military and has our country supplied military to Israel? Where has justice been given to the Palestinians so they could become a nation?

Democracy leads to dictatorship

Historian Alexander Tyler explained two centuries ago the lesson from Greece’s experiment with direct control of government by the people. “A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can exist until a majority of the voters discover they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship.” The average life of the world’s greatest ...