Veterans Day 2008

November 11th is Veterans Day. In 1919 it was first established as Armistice Day and people were instructed to observe two minutes of silence at 11 am in honor of those who died in World War I. It was a commemoration of the Armistice of 1918. Read a little of the Armistice history at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

In establishing the holiday originally, President Wilson said,

“To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations.” (accessed 11/10/2008)

Glidden native Merle Hay was the first Iowan to be killed in World War I, just 10 days before the Armistice.

In 1954 President Dwight Eisenhower expanded the scope of the holiday to include all veterans. In part of his proclamation he said,

“Now, Therefore, I, Dwight D. Eisenhower, President of the United States of America, do hereby call upon all of our citizens to observe Thursday, November 11, 1954, as Veterans Day. On that day let us solemnly remember the sacrifices of all those who fought so valiantly, on the seas, in the air, and on foreign shores, to preserve our heritage of freedom, and let us reconsecrate ourselves to the task of promoting an enduring peace so that their efforts shall not have been in vain.” (accessed 11/10/1008)

In Des Moines there will be many ways in which to honor America’s veterans.

• Exhibit (open at 9 am), State Historical Museum: Over Here, Over There: Iowa and the First World War
• Ceremony (10 am), Korean and Vietnam Memorials at East 9th and Grand
• Ceremony, (11 am), Veterans Memorial Auditorium
• Thank the veterans.

photo by flickr by Wigwam Jones

Cities and towns of Central Iowa

Find links below to 78 cities and towns within 50 miles of Des Moines. Most links are to city government sites, some are county sites, a few are Chambers of Commerce sites, seven are Wikipedia, and still fewer are data-only sites. They’re the best I could find.
A, B, C
Adel	Alleman	Altoona	Ames	Ankeny
Baxter	Bevington	Bondurant	Boone	Booneville
Cambridge	Clive	Colfax	Collins	Colo	Cumming
D, E, F, G, H
Dallas Center	Des Moines	De Soto	Dexter	Earlham
Gilbert	Granger	Grimes	Grinnell	Hartford	Huxley
I, J, K, L, M
Indianola	Jewell	Johnston	Kelley	Knoxville	Lake Panorama
Madrid	Marshalltown	Martensdale	Maxwell	McCallsburg	Milo
Minburn	Mingo	Mitchellville	Monroe	Montezuma
N, O, P, Q, R
Nevada	Newton	New Virginia	Norwalk	Ogden	Osceola
Palmyra	Panora	Patterson	Pella	Perry	Pleasant Hill
Pleasantville	Polk City	Prairie City	Prole
Randall	Roland	Runnells
S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z
Sheldahl	Slater	Spring Hill	St. Charles	St. Marys	Story City
Tama	Toledo	Truro
Urbandale	Waukee	West Des Moines	Windsor Heights	Winterset	Zearing

CIML Basketball Jamboree

If you love basketball like I do, your day is coming.

• Saturday
• November 22, 2008
• 8:20 am until 9:20 pm (yes, 13 hours)
• $5 - that’s a bargain!

It’s the 61st Annual Kiwanis CIML Basketball Jamboree

• 18 teams, 18 games (9 each for the boys and the girls)
• Ames, Ankeny, Dowling Catholic, East, Fort Dodge, Hoover, Indianola, Johnston, Lincoln, Marshalltown, Mason City, North, Ottumwa, Roosevelt, Southeast Polk, Urbandale, Valley, and Waukee
• check the schedule for your teams and times

It’s at the Knapp Center (38 on the interactive map) at Drake University. The Kiwanis CIML Jamboree is the big fundraiser for our local Kiwanis Club. The Des Moines Register and the Central Iowa MacDonald’s are cosponsors.

photo by flickr by JaimieL.WilliamsPhotography

Take your pick this weekend

There is always something happening in Des Moines! Take your pick.

First, consider the 2008 Metro Arts Two Rivers Expo. It’s always a good time.

• Hy-Vee Hall
• Saturday, November 8 from 10-6
• Sunday, November 9 from 10 -4
• 130 local, regional, and out of state artists
• painting, drawing, mixed media, ceramics, glass, metal, sculpture, jewelry, fiber, photography, printmaking, and wood
• free to the youngsters 12 and under ; $5 for you
• activities for the kids plus music for everyone

Second, The Des Moines Home Show, organized by Ohio-based Expoproducers, runs through Sunday. Look for home improvement items and remodeling opportunities. It’s also in Hy-Vee Hall.

• Friday, November 7 from 10-7
• Saturday, November 8 from 10-7
• Sunday, November 9 from 10-5
• $6

Obama: Starting quietly in Iowa

It started pretty quietly.

There were hundreds of early, up-close-and-personal chances to meet Barack Obama including

• a house party in Ida Grove
• a meet-the-candidate session at the VFW Post 5240 in Dakota City
• a visit with diners at the Maid-Rite restaurant in Newton
• a box lunch for about 100 at the Des Moines Public Library

You can see a list of most of the events, but it doesn’t include the box lunch at the Library - Friday, May 11, 2007. Organizers had trouble getting enough people to fill the room. But there were many more events in Des Moines. In July Obama and his family were back in Des Moines for a 4th of July picnic at Beaverdale Park. More people were there, maybe 400, but Iowans were still able to shake hands and speak to Barack and Michelle Obama face to face. At the end of July he was in Union Park and numbers were greater, perhaps 500. In early October at the Convention Center there were over 1,000, and the chances of speaking personally were less. By November at the Jefferson Jackson banquet, his team of organizers stuffed plenty of vocal, passionate people into Vets Auditorium; by that time I felt that Obama would win the Democratic caucuses. By December when Oprah came, 18,000 came to Hy-Vee Hall even without a free lunch. The rallies were getting big and loud. Leading up to the caucuses there were many more Iowa events including some in Des Moines: Scottish Rite Temple; Roosevelt High School. Iowans did their homework; we knew him well. Then came the Iowa caucuses, he won, and it got quiet in Iowa again.

In the two years that Barack Obama visited and campaigned here, he took us seriously; we took him seriously. He left a lot of himself in Iowa; he took some of Iowa with him. He got a fair hearing and a favorable reception among Iowa Democrats, and the door to the nomination was a little more open.

And when it was clear that he was going to secure the nomination, on May 20, 2008 he came back to say thanks.

Couldn’t we claim that he is just a little bit Iowan? I know he was born in Hawaii, but I’d like to think of him as a Hawaii-owan. How about you?

A breath-taking moment in American history

I have witnessed a transforming moment in American history. I am proud to have been there.

Did you read the post Are we too divided? It was written 10 months ago, early in the campaign, before the Iowa primaries, before either Obama or McCain was the front runner. At the time I felt that the division and rancor prevalent in the politics of the 1990s (and beyond) was the greatest threat to the nation. For whatever reason, as a nation we had lost civility, a common purpose, and dedication to the common good. I thought that Barack Obama had the best chance to bring about some semblance of civil discourse and healing. At the same time I was happy that John McCain was the Republican nominee. He had looked like a good choice in 2000 too when he seemed direct and sincere. It was disappointing in 2008 when his campaign became more negative. Tonight I was glad to see the old John McCain return.

If you did not hear John McCain’s concession speech, you must listen to him and read the comments of Joe Candelman. This was one of John McCain’s finest political moments. He rose again to stature worthy of the American hero that he is. Around the world he is being recognized for the class and grace he showed tonight. (Recognize too that throughout the campaign John McCain never used race in any way to divide the nation. It was clear in his concession speech that racial sensitivity is a core value for McCain.)

Barack Obama too, spoke of the remarkable transformation that has taken place in America.

During the long campaigns 100 million American voters listened to two voices and judged the speakers primarily by their messages. While many of the network news stars seemed quite fascinated by race, America never took the bait. Instead we listened, we watched, we considered, and we judged - but not on the basis of race. Listening, watching, considering, and judging without making race a critical component of the process has never happened before to this extent. That is the transforming moment: setting aside race. (As Americans we are such a mixture anyway that it’s just too much bother.)

In my experience the vast majority of people under 25 have lost track of the concept of race (and lots of those young people voted); but when the election statistics are revealed, we will also discover that Barack Obama ran well with men over 65.

That’s good. It’s time. Now let’s get down to business. We have some Republican-Democrat reconciliation to do too, and as a nation we have some problems to fix.

photos by Lindberg and photo flickr by VictoryNH: Protect Our Primary

Where to vote in Iowa

Want to find your polling place in Iowa? Ask the Iowa Secretary of State. The website will help you locate your polling place.

See also Voting early in Around Des Moines.

The metro’s blue recycling carts

Have you seen Des Moines’ new blue recycling carts? Most have been delivered. What can you put in or not put in? Like ‘em?

One big advantage? It’s much easier on the back than hauling the loaded green bins. But… is it a recycling cart or a recycling car? I’d have to collect recycling for 2 months to fill it, and I’m not the only one who thinks the carts are on the large side. Two silly facts: 1) Filled with water, it weighs 800 pounds. 2) Filled with the Purple Wren’s sweetie, it weighs less than 800.

You have to give a lot of credit to someone for the color choice. It matches … um … well …

• my poster of the Blue Man Group
• the Boise State football field
• a Drake t-shirt
• Picasso’s The Tragedy

To tell you the truth it’s big, ugly and doesn’t match anything within 10 blocks of my house. It can hide me, but I can’t hide it.

Oh well. Here are the final advantages:

• add a pillow and it doubles as a spare bedroom for unexpected guests
• still visible after a 42″ snowstorm, and best of all
• add one more wheel, a stool, and a little Saranwrap, and you’ve got an Iso Isetta Turismo!

photo by Purple Wren

Just vote!

The voting booths are ready, the poll workers in place.

The ballots are printed.

You have heard and studied the positions on each issue.

Now the nation and the world are waiting for your best judgment.

-

OK, then.

Just vote.

photo by flicker by momboleum

Under water mortgages

If you owe more on a property than it is worth, your mortgage is said to be under water. You have negative equity. According to an article in Reuters published on October 31, 2008, across the U. S. about 18% of mortgages are under water, but the problem is very regional. (Note that since some houses are fully owned, the percentages cited below are not of total homes but of total mortgaged homes.

According to a CNN report as far as under water mortgages are concerned in Iowa we are

• not in the10 worst (NV, MI, AZ, FL, CA, GA, OH, CO, NH, TX which range from 48% to 16%) and we are
• not in the 10 best (NJ, NM, WA, OR, AL, CT, MT, PA, HI, or NY which range from 9% to NY’s 4%).

We’re in the middle. But remember any homes that are paid up are not reflected in these numbers, and many older Iowans own their homes.

The negative equity problem is caused by a continuing drop in housing prices in some markets. The expectation is that the decline will continue before it improves. The fraction of mortgages under water is highest in the Southwest which reflect the sharp decline in house prices over the past year through August. Equity evaporates.

• Las Vegas -30.6%
• SanFrancisco -27.2%
• LosAngeles -26.7%
• SanDiego -25.8%

This is in contrast to housing price declines in the Midwest.

• Minneapolis -13.8%
• Chicago -9.8%
• Cleveland -6.6%

A few markets including Des Moines have shown minimal declines in housing prices.

• Charlotte -2.8%
• Dallas -2.7%

While the time frame is not exactly comparable, Des Moines housing prices are said to be similar to Charlotte and Dallas according to WHO-TV.

• Des Moines -3%

Some sources say Des Moines and West Des Moines housing prices are rising (Zillow.com).

• DesMoines +5.1% (November 2007 - November 2008)
• West Des Moines +2.7%

And they are rising even more according to R. Michael Knapp of Iowa Realty who reported in The Des Moines Register an increase of 6% in median Des Moines housing prices for the second quarter (4/1 - 7/1/2008) while the rest of the nation averaged a -7.6% (decline).

Whatever the exact numbers, we are doing relatively well. Lucky us!

The response of JPMorgan Chase & Company to owners faced with negative equity was to offer to modify an estimated $70 billion in mortgages to keep 400,000 customers out of foreclosure. Good idea.

photo by flickr by Jay Galvin

Next Page »