I try to see things from the other perspective. Even though I don’t agree with — nor do statistics bear out — the need for handguns in homes, I believe I have some understanding of what motivates gun owners. They want protection. They want to feel power in a world that sometimes makes us feel […]
Opinion
Posted inOpinion
Opinion: Public contribution to The Lens makes sense
While single, I framed a picture of Johnny Cash — an insert from an old record — and hung it in my living room. Later, I got married. My wife and I bought a house. We had different opinions on where (or if, in my wife’s view) we should hang this piece in our new […]
Posted inOpinion
Opinion: ICCSD schedule changes will require adjustments
On Tuesday night, the Iowa City School Board made a final decision about the new bell schedule for the next school year. Elementary schools will now run from 7:55 a.m.-2:55 p.m., and the junior high and high schools will run from 8:50 a.m.-4 p.m. From what I’ve read on social media, pretty much no one […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Opinion: UI student-athletes abused privilege standing with Trump
I wanted to be proud of the University of Iowa. When I heard that Donald Trump would be coming to Iowa City, I hoped to see a united front. I hoped to see students, faculty and community members come together to stand up against this candidate’s hateful rhetoric. I hoped to see peaceful protestors accorded […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Your Town Now: Repeal the Drug Tax Stamp law
Iowa has a law that intends to make drug users plead guilty to a lesser charge or suffer the consequences of prison and a large fine: the Drug Tax Stamp law (DTS), Chapter 453B Code of Iowa. Enacted in 1990, the DTS specifically addresses illegal drugs; all substances legally obtained and sold are exempted, so […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Letter to the Editor: UI Power Plant Representative responds to Old King Coal
I read with interest your article in the April 16 issue about the role King Coal plays at the University of Iowa Power Plant. Technical controls and programming are…
Posted inCommunity/News
The UI’s decision to deny HBO’s film request is a big mistake
I’m continually amazed at how Iowa City, as a community, is both full of pride for its many fine qualities, and at the same time insecure enough to jump on any moment of attention from the outside world as a sort of validating life-line.
Posted inCommunity/News
Guest opinion: Why I interrupted Sally Mason
By Chelsea Bacon In my backpack were several posters and two rings of duct tape: one black, one yellow. School Pride, you know? Outrage boiled over in the past few days, coming to a head over University of Iowa President Sally Mason’s ineffectual, inaccurate statements about rape. When asked by the Daily Iowan about the […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Workshop woes: A supposedly bad thing the Iowa Writers’ Workshop did to literature
On Feb. 10, The Chronicle of Higher Education published Eric Bennett’s essay, How Iowa Flattened Literature. Although it is better researched and more erudite…
Posted inCommunity/News
Letter to the editor: “Terrorism”
Monday was a busy day. Since I don’t have a smart phone, I was forced to get my news about the bombings in Boston second-hand. I asked a classmate if there had been any leads as to who had been behind the bombings. My informant replied that it was suspected that the bombing was an act of terrorism. I thought that answer was curious because it said nothing at all about the bombing or the bomber. However, it may have said a lot about us.
Posted inCommunity/News
Opinion: The Visual Rhetoric of Public Space
For Laura Rigal, 15-year UI faculty member and professor of English and American Studies, the visual rhetoric of the ads for Park @ 201, the new Moen Group building on the Pedestrian Mall, composes a compelling archive of how Iowa City has been impacted by Anglo-European settlement, federal funding, finance capital, contestations over public space […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Opinion: Should Genetically Engineered Food Be Labeled?
Taking on agribusiness giants like Monsanto, Cargill and Syngenta is no easy task, but some Iowans are determined to raise the issue of consumers’ right to know what is in the food they eat. In October, Occupy the World Food Prize activists in Des Moines held panel discussions and protests confronting what they say are […]
