SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
August 5, 2021
Sullivan’s Salvos 8/10/21
In this edition:
*RIP Connie Champion
*Cultural Divide
*Children’s Rodeo
*Did You Know?
*RIP Connie Champion
I was sad to hear of the passing of former Iowa City Councilor and School Board Member Connie Champion. I knew Connie pretty well through various committees, and I always liked her.
Yes, I found her frustrating – it was almost impossible to predict how she would vote on any given issue – but she was always friendly, honest, and genuine. In addition, Connie did amazing work on behalf of Shelter House, the Englert, and other charities. When she set her mind to fundraising, she was incredible! And though she didn’t talk about it much, Connie succeeded as a woman in what was very much a man’s world at the time.
My daughter Jordan was close with Connie’s granddaughters. All her grandkids seemed to be wonderful people that loved their Grandma. A pretty good legacy, I’d say! RIP, Connie.
*Cultural Divide
There are some deep cultural divides that have grown up between the rural and urban parts of this country. Unfortunately, these divides seem to be growing deeper. Also unfortunately, Johnson County is not immune to this phenomenon. My colleague Lisa Green Douglass had a frustrating encounter at the Johnson County Fair that is illustrative of this.
A woman confronted Lisa and said, “The problem with you Supervisors is that you are all from Iowa City!” Even if we WERE all from Iowa City, I would argue that such an outcome isn’t necessarily a problem, and must reflect the will of the voters. But this woman’s statement is absolutely incorrect.
Lisa lives north of North Liberty in an old farmhouse, and has for over 35 years. Jon Green lives in Lone Tree. Pat Heiden lives in rural Newport Township. Royceann Porter and I are the only two Supervisors that live in Iowa City. And as I have mentioned ten thousand time, I grew up on a farm. So did Pat. Jon spent part of his childhood on a farm. The woman’s facts are simply incorrect.
After Lisa corrected the woman’s misstatement, the woman stammered. Lost for what to say next, she proceeded to complain somewhat incoherently that: A) Her taxes are too high, and B) Not enough money is spent on roads. Let me begin by stating the obvious – roads cost a lot of money. Taxes pay for roads. It is difficult to imagine big tax cuts that do not result in worse roads. What’s more, over the past several years, Johnson County has taxed the maximum allowed by law on our roads. We literally cannot tax more in that area. For the most part, the public seems satisfied by this approach. So, in short – B is dead wrong, and A&B do not go together.
As her stammering implied, taxes and roads are not her real concerns. We all know what this woman is really trying to say: “I see lots of people who look and act differently from me, and it worries me. I feel a loss of control, and I am scared. Meanwhile, I feel as though you are telling me I am stupid.” No one wants to admit that, let alone say it out loud at the Fair.
So how do we address this situation? I think getting the facts out there are important. Perhaps the facts will lead this woman to focus on what really has her upset. My experience is that this might put an end to her straw man arguments, but will just lead to more of the whole, “They treat us like we are stupid” argument. As you can see, it is pretty much no-win for us. We can let your false statement stand, or you believe “we treat you like you are stupid.” How are we to navigate that?
As my fellow Supervisor Jon Green wisely noted, “If fixing this was easy, someone would have done it by now.” Jon is correct. We will keep trying, but this is not easy.
*Children’s Rodeo
One example of a local cultural divide is a fight that has been brewing over a children’s rodeo that is held at the Fairgrounds.
My niece showed and rode horses her whole childhood – including at the Johnson County Fair. I watched her in action on several occasions. She is now studying horse husbandry in college. But the kid’s rodeo we are talking about is different than that.
If you have never seen a children’s rodeo, just Google it. You will likely get plenty of what is called “mutton busting” – this consists of children jumping on the backs of sheep and holding on for dear life.
I know this is going to get me in trouble, but here it goes… I don’t care for rodeos. There are events that should be celebrated – barrel racing, for example – where the horse and rider work as a team and show off some impressive training and athleticism. There are too many other events – bull riding, for example – that are really just cruel to the animals.
I feel the same about children’s rodeos. I think it is cruel to the sheep, and I don’t really see the kids getting much out of it, either. That said, the issue is not how I feel about things.
The Johnson County Agricultural Association is the private nonprofit entity that owns the Fairgrounds property and puts on the Fair every year. (In the interest of full disclosure, I am a member of the organization, but not an active one.) People often mistakenly believe that the County owns the Fairgrounds and puts on the Fair. We do not.
The County does contribute substantial funding to the Ag Association, however. In addition to giving somewhere in the neighborhood of $90,000 each year, the County has assisted on numerous facilities upgrades over the years. We have contributed a lot of money.
The Ag Association puts on a children’s rodeo every year. As I mentioned earlier, it is not my cup of tea, and I have never attended. But by all accounts, it draws a big crowd. So we definitely have constituents who do like it. It is also a fundraiser for the Ag Association.
Recently a group of Johnson County residents has begun protesting the children’s rodeo, and challenging the County to cut off Ag Association funding if the event is not dropped.
The Board of Supervisors (Solomon-like?) split the difference. We continued to fund the Ag Association, but stipulated that tax dollars not be used for the children’s rodeo. The Ag Association agreed. The protesters (who do not have any official group name of which I am aware) accepted this as a step in the right direction. But they still want the event banned.
So the protesters showed up at the event. There was a confrontation and an arrest. Both groups feel their rights were violated. Protesters note that the event is open to the public; therefore, they should be allowed to protest. The Ag Association feels they should be able to ban the protesters from their property. There are several Supreme Court cases that address similar situations, but I know just enough to be dangerous. We are going to need the County Attorney’s Office to clarify the rights of all involved.
This matters to the County because the Sheriff’s Office is being called by both sides, and Deputies do not know how to respond. We cannot allow that situation to persist; Deputies need clear direction.
Back to the funding issue. Adding caveats to our block grants troubles me. Over my time as a Supervisor, I have been a loud and consistent voice for taking a hands-off approach with our block grant agencies. I am actually very proud of my work in this area. I came from a nonprofit background, and I know how much paperwork and administrative time can go into securing even a small amount of money. I want our relationship with the nonprofits we fund to be the easiest, most flexible, most stress-free relationship they have with a funder.
Of course that does not mean there is NO accountability. We still require a contract, regular updates, and an annual review. It is not free money. But the idea is very much, “Go do good things, and we will not micromanage.” I know nonprofits appreciate that.
That is why I am concerned about putting additional strings on the Ag Association money. Will we get another group demanding we put restrictions on DVIP? Will a third group demand restrictions on Shelter House? Will a fourth group demand restrictions on Neighborhood Centers? I definitely see the potential for a slippery slope. I would really prefer to go no farther than we already have – no tax dollars may support the kid’s rodeo.
So – I am not a fan of the kid’s rodeo. The question is, should I force those beliefs on everyone else? In some cases – such as civil rights matters – I would say yes. In this case, I am not similarly moved. Perhaps that is a moral failing on my part; I certainly admit to being imperfect. As Board members, we are in a position where we can use the power of the purse. But because we can does not necessarily mean we should.
See what I did there? From a purely political standpoint, I got it all wrong. Both sides feel as though I do not support them. Politically, it is a classic lose-lose situation. But I firmly believe we need to make the best decisions we can, not the best decisions for us politically.
*DID YOU KNOW? The University of Iowa was the first public university in the US to admit women on an equal basis.
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
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---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 12:24 PM
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