SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
October 11, 2023
Sullivan’s Salvos 10/17/23
In this edition:
*Elephant in the Room
*Elf Cashmere Sale
*Harvest Heads Up
*Haunting Poem
*Parent’s Rights Part Two
*Poverty By America
*GOP Doth Protest Too Much
*Did You Know?
*Elephant in the Room
I know that many of you have heard about the conflict that has occurred in the Board Room in recent days. (If not, you can view/listen to meetings on our website.) I don’t know that any commentary from me helps, but I do think you all deserve some reassurances.
First, I know some of you have said, “Why didn’t you do anything?” I’m going to do my best to respond to that. When the shouting started, my first instinct was to decide if people were physically safe. I thought they were. Had I felt otherwise, I would have called 911.
Then we turn to the meeting itself. I thought Chairperson Green Douglass did the right thing by gaveling out the meeting. We just needed at least one more Supervisor to exit the room to end the quorum.
Could I have gotten in the middle of the dispute? Sure. And as a white man physically stepping between two women of color, I would have been excoriated. Face it, folks – that is a lose-lose situation.
I honestly don’t know what else I could have done. Frankly, I think it was up to the two people screaming at each other to stop doing so.
So, throughout all this drama, I want to assure you that the work of Johnson County *IS* getting done! This is a distraction, yes, but the work is getting done. I also want you to know that I attempting to approach each of my colleagues with grace and compassion. There is too much harming going on and not enough grace.
There are never any disputes that are bigger than the office. We will get through this, just as Boards have gotten through various difficulties for approximately 185 years.
*Elf Cashmere Sale
Huge cashmere sweater sale! Sunday, October 22 from 2-4pm at 1411 Sheridan Avenue in Iowa City. $20 for all sizes and all colors. www.elfcashmere.com.
*Harvest Heads Up
Harvest is upon us, and farmers are in the fields. Please be aware as you are driving or biking – farm implements are very large and slow moving. Please take your time and be careful – there are avoidable accidents every year. Take a little extra time and enjoy the scenery – Iowa is beautiful this time of year!
*Haunting Poem
I subscribe to Lyz Lenz’ fantastic online newsletter “Men Yell at Me.” I urge you to subscribe as well! It is great info from a great perspective. A couple of weeks ago, Lyz quoted the following passage from Yeats’ poem “The Second Coming”:
"Things fall apart; the center cannot hold; / Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, / The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere / The ceremony of innocence is drowned; / The best lack all conviction, while the worst / Are full of passionate intensity."
Haunting, isn’t it? It is almost as though Yeats was here today.
*Parent’s Rights Part Two
Last week I wrote about the complete BS that is “Parent’s Rights.” I think it is important to use air quotes around that, as it is an incredibly misnamed effort.
As I wrote last week: “Parent’s Rights is the new State’s Rights. Same old shit, different name.”
Here is the dirty little secret with “parent’s rights.” You have ALWAYS had the right to keep your kid out of a certain activity or lesson. What you do NOT have a right to do is cancel that lesson for my kid.
Unfortunately, this movement has hit the Iowa City Community School District (ICCSD). There are seven candidates for the ICCSD Board, three of whom are “parent’s rights” candidates.
It is critical that these candidates lose and lose badly! This is our opportunity to demonstrate that we care about *ALL* the children in our District, regardless of gender, race, religion, sexual identity, disability, etc. Now is the time to stand up and be heard!
We simply must stop this movement in its tracks. Johnson County may be the firewall that students and teachers need!
There are 7 candidates in this election, to fill four seats. Incumbents Lisa Williams, Charlie Eastham, and Molly Abraham have done a great job, and they deserve your continued support. Mitch Lingo should get your fourth vote. He has a Ph.D. in Educational Policy and is philosophically aligned with the incumbents.
We are not even going to mention the others. Just remember to vote Williams, Eastham, Abraham, and Lingo! Please join me in preserving the type of education people in the ICCSD have come to expect!
Election Day is November 7, but voting begins October 18! Please get out and vote! Williams, Eastham, Abraham, and Lingo!
*Poverty By America
I recently finished “Poverty By America,” the new book from Matthew Desmond. Desmond is a Princeton professor who won the Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction for his book “Evicted.”
Desmond ought to be required reading in America. He brings to light so many interesting facts. For example, in the USA, we assume single parenthood is a major cause of poverty. And that is true – here. But did you know that children of single parents in Ireland, France, Germany, and Italy are NOT more likely to live in poverty? Why the difference? Our social safety net is nothing compared to the rest of the world!
Desmond also spends time talking about who benefits from the poverty that exists in the US. Answer? We all do! That is how we get so many cheap goods and services. It’s how we get cheap access to money. It’s how we get segregated communities.
But the main beneficiaries are, of course, billionaires. You could guess as much, but hearing Desmond lay out the many ways in which the deck is stacked is really quite remarkable.
Please read “Poverty By America.” You’ll be glad you did!
*GOP Doth Protest Too Much
I laugh at the comments coming from some GOP members of Congress. There is a lot of “tough talk” about dysfunction in DC and the removal of Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House.
The same Republican Congresspeople who complain about Matt Gaetz or Andy Biggs genuflect at the feet of Donald Trump. That includes both Iowa Senators and all 4 of our Members of Congress.
Miller Meeks, Hinson, Grassley, Ernst, and all the rest are full of it. You cannot criticize Gaetz and pretend everything is fine with Trump! Hell, Trump called for a shutdown! Trump hates McCarthy! Gaetz is doing exactly what Trump wants!
Do you think for one second ANY of these folks would stand up for McCarthy if Trump were railing on him? Where was their outrage all the times Trump previously emasculated McCarthy?
This is called hypocrisy, folks. And Iowa’s GOP members of Congress are swimming in it.
You think DC is in dysfunction now, Congresswoman Miller Meeks? How was it on January 6, 2020? That dysfunction apparently didn’t bother you, because your God Donald Trump was at the center of it.
You cannot worship Donald Trump and then complain about Matt Gaetz. It is like blaming the team’s performance on the ticket taker instead of the Head Coach.
Let’s go one step further – if Gaetz and Biggs are so bad, endorse their Democratic challengers. Can’t do that? I guess you are once again a hypocrite.
Methinks the Iowa GOP doth protest too much!
*DID YOU KNOW? Did you know Dingleberry Road in Johnson County is more than just a unique name for a road?!
Back during Prohibition (1920-1934), this road had quite a history. It was home to moonshiners Pete and George Dingleberry, famous for their "Dingleberry Dew" whiskey.
On June 17, 1927, Sheriff Frank Smith and deputies raided their farm, confiscating 21 gallons of "hooch." George faced trial, was fined $300, and given a six-month suspended sentence in the Johnson County Jail.
Now, every time you drive down Dingleberry Rd, you're following in the footsteps of a legendary moonshining duo!
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
"Sullivan’s Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
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As always, feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan29@gmail.com. I look forward to serving you!
---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 1:11 PM
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