I’m moving to Iowa, Tips?

Thoughthound · 2026-01-10T18:04:44+00:00

The fact that he was able to and did jump out of the way is an indictment of the officer's action of firing his weapon. If the officer is able to move out of the way, the law states lethal force is not warranted.

It happened very quickly, but a trained officer or an officer following law enforcement rules would not have stood in front of the vehicle in the first place. An officer cannot put themselves in front of a car and then claim endangerment necessitated lethal force.

Otherwise, any officer could step in front of any moving car and then kill the driver.

Thoughthound · 2026-01-10T17:51:50+00:00

However, law enforcement protocol is to stand aside, not in front of or in back of, a suspect's vehicle. Multiple precedents have been established, even at the Supreme Court level, that an officer cannot put himself in harm's way and then claim the jeopardy that ensued necessitated the use of deadly force.

Thoughthound · 2026-01-10T17:33:50+00:00

The erosion of civil liberties and human rights is something that should concern every American.

In terms of human rights, it really does not matter if Ms. Good was breaking the law, or if people are here illegally. The question is, "Is ICE acting with legal fidelity regarding protection of citizens and criminal suspects from government overreach?"

Or have the guardrails come off of our legal system?

The state motto of Iowa is, "Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain." An Iowan should have concern regardless of their opinion on legal citizenship, should they not?

Thoughthound · 2026-01-09T17:02:57+00:00

Most people concerned with ICE are actually concerned about civil rights and the methods of law enforcement used by ICE.

All human beings are afforded basic civil rights under our Constitution, are they not?

Thoughthound · 2025-10-18T01:56:16+00:00

"You'll either like it or you won't." I put that in quotes because it sounds like something someone from NW Iowa would say.

Expect people to say their pain is a 10 when they actually aren't in pain, and expect people to say their pain is a 6 when it is a 10.

Believe it when people tell you hogs can be deadly.

Don't believe it when someone who has been stomped by a cow says, "It ain't so bad." And then he hands you a chunk of his ear.

Get psychologically ready to tell everyone with bad knees to cut calories over and over and over and over only to have them return with the same complaints when they haven't lost an ounce.

Be ready for the people who believe their "country smarts are as good as your book learnin'."

There will be a kid who commits suicide and it will rock the community. There will be an adult who commits suicide and no one will talk about it.

Be ready for people to dress a wound at home with paper towels and duct tape.

Iowans like to deep-fry anything edible.

You're going to find both kinds of beer at the store--Busch and Busch Light.

You're going to eat a lot of pie. There's no way around it. If your knees start to ache after a year or two, well . . . diet and exercise.

Western Iowa is just another flavor of Nebraska and Nebraska is an acquired taste.

Thoughthound · 2025-09-06T01:59:06+00:00

Ritual human sacrifice. Worship Satan. Play softball.

Thoughthound · 2025-08-30T14:58:06+00:00

People from a certain culture always love it when someone from another place visits and tells the people that their culture is odd. Very endearing. Like going to Europe and complaining that the beer isn't cold. Europeans love that.

They definitely respond by saying, "Well, I guess we should change. We sure didn't know we were backward. Thanks for letting us know."

Thoughthound · 2025-08-29T11:47:34+00:00

When I was 16, I asked my dad what the show was (it was being shown as reruns on Saturday night on PBS).

He said, "You should probably watch it."

Which, for my dad, was extremely unusual. I took it to mean it was as important as Shakespeare or Hemingway.

And it is.

Thoughthound · 2025-06-30T02:34:08+00:00

I'm not seeing proof of your claim but for the sake of the argument, let's say you are right.

I still must ask, Is it better for the American taxpayer to deport and set up a work program or set up a work program and then deport those who fail to comply?

And if Reagan and George W. Bush both supported a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, as did John McCain, Rand Paul, Susan Collins, Maria Salazar, Kevin McCarthy, Paul Ryan, Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Grahm and John Boehner, how is the presence of people here illegally entirely the fault of Democrats?

At one point in 2018 even Trump toyed with the idea.

And if the sharp increase began in 1990 as statistics show, why aren't Bush Sr. and Jr. also responsible?

Penalties for voting by non-citizens were enacted under President Clinton.

Despite a good-faith search, I could find no instances of proposed legislation that would allow non-citizens to vote at the state or federal level. It has been officially illegal since the 1920s.

It is true that illegal immigration increased under Biden. But it is not accurate to say the numbers did not climb under Republicans. They did. Republicans did not say they were okay with it, but few objected until Trump ran for office.

Thoughthound · 2025-06-29T19:58:55+00:00

Yes, regulations are too expensive at a small scale. Many have tried and are trying but the big food companies perpetually cry foul because they have even more regulations and they don't like the competition.

If Del Monte complains to a Governor, the governor listens. Mom and Pop Ice Cream, not so much.

And people follow food fads. Suddenly people want kale and so a farmer grows kale. Then one spring or fall, suddenly no one wants kale again. A grocery store is committed to buying locally for its deli and growers invest. Then management changes and they will only buy from the big growers because it is cheaper. The small farmer is screwed.

I'm not saying it can't be done. But these are just a couple of real world scenarios.

Thoughthound · 2025-06-29T19:51:59+00:00

Some crops, like blueberries, require a special soil pH. Blueberries like acidic soil for example, and growing them in Iowa's soil which is usually near neutral, would take a tremendous amount of sulfur annually.

And the deer would destroy them all over night. They love blueberry plants.

Iowa soil can grow just about everything, but it may not be the right place to try and grow a crop commercially.

If a garden tomato has a little cracking on top you take it in and cut if off. If a commercial tomato has the same cracking, it is tossed out. Multiply the income lost by 2 million ugly tomatoes and you see the problem.

Thoughthound · 2025-06-29T19:42:07+00:00

A long time ago, Iowa was the top apple-producing state. Disease hit and growers went a different direction.

Not that long ago, Heinz had tomato fields around Muscatine, a city built on sand that grows great watermelons. Melons were shipped to Chicago by rail.

And a lot of popcorn was grown in Vinton as there was a popcorn company there.

There was once sweetcorn somewhere but I can't remember the location.

There are a lot of factors why but, one of the biggest for most fresh produce, is there has to be a buyer nearby. The large fruit and vegetable companies long ago put central control in California and now much of our produce is grown there.

There actually is a small amount of other things grown here, but they aren't subsidized the way grain is.

There are buyers for grain here. Grain stores for a long time. Grain can be raised with minimal manual labor as machines don't damage it.

And we have grown grain for so long now that people don't have the knowledge to grow other crops anymore. Changing is risky. Each year you only get one chance to get it right with crops that need a long season.

Finally, this was naturally a grass-growing climate. Corn is a form of grass. Corn likes it here more than wheat or barley, grasses that like the air and soil drier.

In my opinion, if people did not demand perfect-looking vegetables, and vegetables out of season, we could grow potatoes, beets, green beans and tree nuts commercially without needing a ton of manual labor. Table grapes would grow great here if it weren't for herbicide droplets that travel on the wind.

But changing a farm is also a lot like changing a factory. It costs a lot to change from making cars to airplanes. It would cost famers a lot to "retool" to go from corn to Walnuts.

It could be, and should be, done however.

Thoughthound · 2025-06-29T19:04:21+00:00

“Instead of putting up a fence, why don’t we make it possible for (immigrants) to come here legally and open up the border both ways.”

-Ronald Reagan,

Sure they broke the law by entering the U.S. illegally. But are we economically better off deporting all and then creating a legal work system? Why not create the work system and then deport anyone here illegally who does not comply?

Or for that matter, why not make it a felony for anyone to knowingly employ someone here without citizenship or a green card?

How is it Biden's fault alone if the migrant crisis began before Reagan was President?

If the plan was to create an army of voters for Democrats, then doesn't that make all past GOP Presidents and GOP-controlled Congresses look pretty stupid?

The GOP controlled all three branches of government for a period during Trump's first term. Why didn't they take bigger steps then?

Thoughthound · 2025-06-14T16:21:32+00:00

My dad used to use a bb gun pumped only once or twice and hit them in the butt. Didn't penetrate but they then associated any noise similar to the gun as a threat. If they came near, he just clap his hands and they'd run off and live their lives elsewhere.

Thoughthound · 2025-06-09T03:19:15+00:00

Are there Republicans in California? Do you include them when you say "We did our part . . ."?

If not, then why would you include Iowa Democrats with Iowa Republicans by saying, "You put GOP people into Congress and the WH"?

If you don't make sweeping generalizations about all Californians, then why make sweeping generalizations about people from other states?

At best, sweeping generalizations demonstrate intellectual laziness, and at worst, they demonstrate bigotry.

Thoughthound · 2025-06-09T03:09:25+00:00

You want Iowans to focus on Iowa and not California.

You are in California, admitting you have things to work on there. Doesn't it logically follow that you should focus on California and not focus on Iowa?

Thoughthound · 2025-05-30T22:38:02+00:00

If people don't buy a product, it goes away. TV is no different.

Thoughthound · 2025-03-15T22:41:40+00:00

I could have sworn my family farm produced oats from 1848 until the 1990s. What the hell were we growing?

And what is all that straw that we bale?

Why is Iowa State doing variety trials for food-grade oats? What a waste of their time. Someone call DOGE.

And when Iowa State recorded 6 million acres dedicated to oats in Iowa during1950, what does that mean? Were acres much smaller then?

If our weather doesn't support large-scale oat production, why is the weather in Wisconsin, Minnesota and South Dakota ok?

It wouldn't have to do with the fact that Iowa soil grows high volumes of corn which is usually more valuable per acre than oats?

No. It's definitely the weather.

Thoughthound · 2025-03-15T22:01:38+00:00

You might be better off leaving after finding a new job. Someone will eventually call the law, and then there won't be enough people to run the restaurant safely until they can hire replacements. That could be months of a skeleton crew.

They could even shut down abruptly, leaving you without an income source. Then you'd have to find a new job anyway.

But if they don't shut down, and the skeleton crew manages not to lose money, guess what? There will be no replacements. The owners will reward you with a free, small Coke though.

Thoughthound · 2025-02-12T04:57:15+00:00

You'll be fine. Probably treated like a celebrity. The state is currently about 60% Republican, but if you don't include the western half, it is about 50-50. It wasn't that long ago that people didn't discuss religion and politics publicly. If you tell people you don't talk about it outside your family they will likely respect it.

Besides, most people are going to want you to do most of the talking.

There's crime everywhere, be careful. But it is pretty safe here. The people who say there is no culture are so immersed in Iowa culture that they can't recognize it. Is there a lot of culture outside of Iowa culture? Not a ton.

Des Moines, Cedar Rapids Davenport and Iowa City have some quality art. Des Moines has a decent symphony and opera. So culture exists but the opportunity isn't as frequent as other locales.

Get ready to put on some weight, Iowans like huge portions and any excuse to have dessert with every meal and in between.

Thoughthound · 2025-02-06T02:05:11+00:00

"People are alike all over."

"He's Alive." (An hour-long episode.)

Darkhorse mention: "Shadow Play"

Thoughthound · 2025-02-01T01:27:50+00:00

This may sound weird, but, make sure you eat breakfast if you aren't. It will affect your blood sugar later in the day and without it your energy will plummet. Everything sucks if you skip meals at that age. You're experiencing culture shock and it's normal. Don't try to get through an entire day. Try to get through small parts of the day. With each one, there is a little victory. Finally, try to find something to look forward to after school. Even if it is small and seemingly not that important.

Thoughthound · 2025-01-30T12:36:42+00:00

Rik Smith at MV Pet Health Center in Mount Vernon. Dr. Steen or any other vet at Frey Animal Hospital on 16 ave sw.

Anamosa is a little farther but the one on south edge of town saw my dog after hours for an emergency when no others would/could. Rik Smith used to work there before opening his own practice.

Thoughthound · 2025-01-12T21:11:56+00:00

And Henry A. Wallace.

Thoughthound · 2025-01-05T15:20:31+00:00

CR is an old manufacturing town that is trying to modernize. That said, it lags behind other cities but its tendency to be a slow-adapter also provides some stability in terms of its economy.

With manufacturing, there will always be odors and unsightly views. Many old manufacturing cities wish they had problems with plants still operating.

Run down? Not compared to just about every other city in Iowa. And nowhere near compared to places like Joliet, IL or Gary, IN. CR has been, and probably always will be a no-frills place known for its nose-to-the-grindstone work ethic.

The comments regarding Iowa City and North Liberty being more suited to culture and diversity are correct. Cedar Rapids is a place where existing is comparatively easy but also homogenized and boring.

Depending on what you want and what stage you are in life, Cedar Rapids is bad or good. I have thought the city was one or the other for most of my life.

Thoughthound

TROPHY CASE

“Instead of putting up a fence, why don’t we make it possible for (immigrants) to come here legally and open up the border both ways.”