Honoring veterans, part 2

Not all families were so fortunate to have their loved ones return from war safely. Every family has its own stories. Every combat veteran’s story is difficult. Every veteran is affected and every family is affected. The veterans themselves are least likely to use the term hero. In one sense the following is one family’s story, in another every family’s.

The Purple Wren’s family is just one example.

• her Uncle Kay Anderson, a science teacher turned navigator in the Army Air Corps in WW2, was killed on take-off when his bomb-laden B-17 clipped the tree tops; he is buried in England
• her father Bob Renshaw as an infantryman in the South Pacific fought in some of the toughest battles of WW2 including beach landings; he returned safely and deeply affected
• her Uncle Stan Swanson served in the Army in WW2; near 90 he lives in Arizona
• her only other uncle, Minnesota native, Medal of Honor winner, Lt. Colonel Leo Thorsness was an F-105 pilot flying Wild Weasel missions over Vietnam when he was shot down, captured, and held in Hanoi for six years. His backseater was Iowan Harold E. “Harry” Johnson. His story is powerful, and he is a frequent speaker in the Midwest. You can hear his story in a 90 minute video at Pritzker Military Library. You may also want to read Leo Thorsness’s book Surviving Hell: A POW’s Journey.

Every family has its own stories.

photo by flickr by OZinOH

Thomas Friedman at Grinnell College

Good message!

Become the generation that will be called the Re-Generation.

Thomas Friedman, New York Times world affairs columnist and prolific author, gave the commencement address at Grinnell College on Monday May 19, 2009. You can hear the entire address (in 3 installments totaling just under 25 minutes) courtesy of YouTube.

In his initial remarks Friedman related several issues cited by fellow journalist Kurt Andersen in his recent Time magazine article, The End of Excess.

Continuing, Friedman then focused on a generational theme, first on the The Greatest Generation (that of his parents and grandparents – the generation that survived The Great Depression then fought in World War II). He cited the qualities that characterized the greatest generation:

• hard work
• delayed gratification
• achievement oriented
• focused attention

Those were my parents too and I would add to that list

• frugal
• humble
• accountable

Friedman contrasted the Greatest Generation with his own generation, the baby boomers (post-WWII babies) and named that generation the Grasshopper Generation – eating through the fabric of the nation like hungry locusts. He credited the grasshopper generation with such dubious qualities as

• excess (over-consuming, over-building, over-borrowing, over-lending, over-eating) and
• dumb as we wanna be (delaying the solutions to Social Security, health care, energy, environment, and immigration).

He cited the subprime meltdown in particular as illuminating a decline in basic values, risk management, accountability, and ethics.

Friedman then challenged the Grinnell graduates to become the Re-Generation

that could restore the basic values of

• hard work
• accountability

and added that the graduates should carry with them

• ethics
• uncompromising idealism
• unbending convictions
• principled behaviors

and that they should create value through

• invention
• innovation
• imagination

all in order to do real engineering of materials, of services, of societal movement that fulfill needs, both seen and unseen.

It was great advice to the Grinnell College Class of 2009.

Friedman also told an interesting story with several Iowa connections. While studying in London in 1975 and dating wife-to-be Ann Bucksbaum, daughter of Carolyn “Kay” (a Grinnell alum) and Matthew Bucksbaum (an Iowa alum), Friedman (not a journalist at the time) was so stirred by the politics of the day that he wrote an op-ed piece. Ann carried it back to Des Moines. The piece made its way to The Des Moines Register editorial page editor who published it. Friedman received $50, and he was hooked as a journalist. Thus, Friedman’s exceptional career has a strong Des Moines connection.

If you’d like to read two recent Friedman books try

• The World Is Flat
• Hot, Flat and Crowded.

photos by James G. Lindberg

Victoria Rowell, actress, performer, author, foster care advocate

Tuesday night’s Smart Talk appearance by Victoria Rowell impressed the Des Moines Civic Center crowd with an inspirational personal story, a stirring journey complete with a ‘call to arms’ for all. Want to make a difference in other people’s lives, or in your own life? Victoria Rowell, movie and TV star, dancer, writer and philanthropist, had some Smart Talk for you. Raised in foster care through her childhood, by her description she still is in the foster care program, playing forward the nurturing she received. She started the non-profit Rowell Foster Children’s Positive Plan in 1990, fighting for foster children all over the world – “a world without borders”- as she described it. She talked of a “pandemic in the foster care system”, encouraging that we all can do something and make a difference, no matter how small.

Victoria Rowell carries more that a “celebrity endorsement” for her charities. She has lived the life, and today her organization supports the gamut of direct services for foster children – in fine arts, higher education, healthcare, financial literacy, reunification programs, cultural enrichment, and resources family support. It’s no wonder Ms. Rowell has received the United Nations Association Award for her work in human rights and world peace. She’s what you call a player.

This last year Rowell she shared her story with the world with her award winning book, The Women Who Raised Me, [4] a journal dedicated to the many role models in her foster care. “Growing up in foster care, I was never meant to be raised by one mother, but by many,” Rowell has said. Rowell received an NAACP Image Award in 2008 for Outstanding Literary Work by a Debut Author, for The Women Who Raised Me, and has been honored with multiple NAACP Image Awards in her career.

But it wasn’t all serious talk Tuesday night, and there were and plenty of questions about her role as Drucilla Winters on The Young and the Restless, [6] and whether she would be returning to that role soon. The Daytime Drama Diva was also a Prime-time star on Diagnosis Murder [7] with Dick Van Dyke for 7 years, and has guest-starred on The Cosby Show, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air and has a recurring role in the series Noah’s Arc. And Ms. Rowell is currently co-producing an HBO movie based on that award winning homage to The Women Who Raised Me. And Ms. Rowell also has an impressive list of film credits, [8] including Eve’s Bayou, Leonard Part VI, The Distinguished Gentleman, and Dumb and Dumber.

But what impressed Tuesday most was the personal message to the audience about not selling yourself short. “Don’t self-edit” as she put it – we all have something to offer to people in need, be it assisting someone for “a day or a week, or with a couple of bags of groceries”. She charged the audience to chase personal passions and dreams – do not hold them in – manifest them. Great encouragement from an award winning dancer who received a prestigious dance scholarship at age 8 – by learning dance from a book, one of many her foster mother showed her and by watching the June Taylor Dancers [9] and the Ted Mack Amateur Hour [10] shows on TV!

Photo by flickr by Dasruets

Article written by David Borzo

Billie Jean King, a Champion still championing great cause

Where do you start with a champion like Billie Jean King? Her incredible tennis career? Her decades of fighting for social change and equality?

Billie Jean King’s legendary career in sports does seem to be eclipsed only by her endless efforts on behalf of the rights and dignity of people across the globe. The American icon spoke Tuesday night as part of the Smart Talk series at the Civic Center of Des Moines. She continued to champion a commitment to worthy causes.

King retired from competitive tennis 19 years ago, but it’s hard not to highlight some accomplishments on the court: 39 Grand Slam titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles, including a record 20 titles at Wimbledon. Starting as a 15-year-old in 1959 in her debut at the U.S. Championships, King gained international recognition just two years by winning the women’s doubles title at Wimbledon. Things just got better: for one 10-year period from 1966 through 1975, King won

• 12 Grand Slam singles titles
• 9 Grand Slam women’s doubles titles, and
• 10 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles.

On March 24, 2009 at the Civic Center of Des Moines, Billie Jean King paid little homage to these statistics, instead focused on lessons learned in her extraordinary life.

Three themes framed her message -

• Accept and cherish the relationships in your life.
• DON’T make assumptions. About yourself, or others.
• Accept pressure as a privilege.

King, (named “one of the 100 Most Important Americans of the 20th Century” by Life Magazine in 1990), emphasized the work that still needs to be done to achieve equality in all facets of our culture. The crusader for women’s sports, told of her passion for empowering others with “micro financing”, where small loans to entrepreneurs in poor countries can “change generations” of poverty. Of course, King has been helping people stand on their own two feet for decades – whether fighting for Title 9, or for equal rights for the Gay and Lesbian (GLBT) community.

Crowd favorite’s on Tuesday night included her illustrious victory over Bobby Riggs in 1973, dubbed the “Battle of the Sexes”, and how at the last minute she decided not to just crush opponent Riggs, but to run him all over the court. And of course her 37 year relationship with Sir Elton John, and how the #1 hit and homage to King, Philadelphia Freedom, came to be. The song was played at her entrance and exit from the Civic Center stage.

Following up in the “Meet and Greet” after the show, Billie Jean was generous and attentive to her fans, talking freely about family, human rights, her favorite tennis moment, and expressing a love for Bigelow Tea. Once she signed everything, from her latest book Pressure is a Privilege to several tennis racquets, it was clear that her championship ways included the message from her presentation, that the most important relationship is being comfortable with yourself.

Photo by flickr by The Heart Truth

Article written by David Borzo

The Film World Is Flat

Friday night the Purple Wren and I wanted to go to a movie so I checked the listings on-line and read a few reviews. Slumdog Millionaire, The Reader, and Milk made the short list. After reading Entertainment Weekly’s review of Slumdog Millionaire, I had a strong sense that we had better see that one and soon. It was playing at the Varsity, Fleur Cinema, Merle Hay Mall Cinema, and Carmike Wynnsong 16. We were a little early and didn’t want to stand out in the cold so we went to the Fleur Cinema.

I have to go back a long way to find a movie I liked as much as Slumdog Millionaire.

• read the review first
• keep your expectations in check
• go see it, but
• relax and just let the film be what it is

It has some elements that are atypical. The violence doesn’t involve cars; the music is unique; the actors/actresses don’t have blue eyes and blond hair; both the poverty and aspirations look different; there was some Hindi spoken; it was filmed in Mumbai.

You don’t want to miss this one. Thomas Friedman wrote The World Is Flat a few years ago in which (among other things) he noted the rise of India as a force capable of competing for attention in the US business and labor markets. Slumdog Millionaire won eight Oscars on Sunday night including Best Picture, Director, Best Song, and Best Musical Score; it looks like the film world is flat too. Are you ready for Bollywood?

photo by flickr by gosub

If character counts, who should be President?

Have you ever thought about how the Presidential candidates would get along in Iowa schools today? I sure have. Character Counts! in Iowa is part of a national program and it’s very important in schools statewide. The six pillars of character are

• trustworthiness (honest, reliable, loyal)
• respect (treat others well, tolerant, good manners, considerate, deal peacefully with anger and disagreements)
• responsibility (good self-control, self-disciplined, accountable)
• fairness (play by the rules, share, be open-minded, not blame carelessly)
• caring (kind, compassionate, grateful)
• citizenship (cooperative, involved, informed)

Each has its own set of descriptors. Read them on-line.

Do you have a sense of which of our Presidential candidates was more likely a bully as a schoolboy? Read the characteristics of a serial bully and see if any apply to either of our candidates. Think about that when you vote.

Do you think that bullying is only for boys? Current literature defines the phenomena of female bullying and relationship aggression (Odd Girl Out [sneak peak video], Girl Wars, Reviving Ophelia). What are the tools of the female bully? Gossip, character asassination, group control, exclusion of others, cliques, incitement, intimidation.

Will John McCain and Sarah Palin please report to the Principal’s Office?

photo by flickr by Eddie~S

The Age of Conversation 2

There is a new book out, and it better be good. Why? Because 237 authors from around the globe have each written one page limited to 400 words. They darned well better be the best 400 words each of the authors had. (Since I had only 200 good words available at the time, I collaborated with the Purple Wren. and we wrote a page with 385 words and one picture and we titled it, If you can’t stand the heat… .)

The book, a second edition is called

• Age of Conversation 2
• the authors have given their best insights into the nature of conversation and communication in a digital world as it affects business, community, and individual
• Several of the authors are local men and women
• You can buy (hardcover or paperback) or download a copy
• All profits (after expenses) go to Variety, the international children’s charity, and the 1st edition raised $15,000

Pricing for The Age of Conversation 2 is:

• e-book: US$12.50 ($10.00 going to charity)
• paperback book: US$19.95 ($8.02 to charity)
• hardback book: US$29.95 ($4.60 to charity)

The venture was overseen by local marketer Drew McLellan and Australian Gavin Heaton. Check the list of authors if you like.

Tinu Abayomi-Paul, Reginald Adkins, Vandana Ahuja, Ozgur Alaz, Armando Alves, Francis Anderson, Todd Andrlik, G. Kofi Annan, Mike Arauz, David Armano, William Azaroff, Steve Bannister, Ryan Barrett, Cam Beck, Jordan Behan, Connie Bensen, Rohit Bhargava, Susan Bird, Toby Bloomberg, Jon Burg, David Berkowitz, Mark Blair, Ed Brenegar, Chris Brown, Deborah Brown, Duane Brown, Tim Brunelle, Wayne Buckhanan,

Pet Campbell, Becky Carroll, Paul Chaney, C.C. Chapman, Katie Chatfield, Thomas Clifford, Gary Cohen, Stephen Collins, Tim Connor, Peter Corbett, Hillel Cooperman, Ed Cotton, Chris Cree, Dave Davison, Luc Debaisieux, Jeff De Cagna, Dino Demopoulos, Geert Desager, Rishi Desai, Pete Deutschman, Matt Dickman, Vanessa DiMauro, Jeanne Dininni, Brent Dixon, Mark Earls, Sue Edworthy, Jay Ehret, Gianandrea Facchini, Anna Farmery, Julie Fleischer, Justin Foster, Jeremy Fuksa, Seth Gaffney, Bill Gammell, Deanna Gernert, Cedric Giorgi, Gretel Going & Kathryn Fleming, Phil Gerbyshak, Scott Goodson, Mark Goren, James Gordon-Macintosh, Kristin Gorski, Lewis Green, Susan Gunelius, Jeff Gwynne & Todd Cabral,

Jessica Hagy, Mark Hancock, Ann Handley, Douglas Hanna, Steve Hardy, Nettie Hartsock, Doug Haslam, Gavin Heaton, Paul Hebert, Jeremy Heilpern, Alex Henault, Darren Herman, John Herrington, Susan Heywood, Adrian Ho, G.L. Hoffman, Daniel Honigman, Uwe Hook, Sean Howard, Cathryn Hrudicka, Robert Hruzek, Sam Huleatt, Richard Huntington, Shama Hyder, Paul Isakson, Tim Jackson, Dustin Jacobsen, George Jenkins, Kevin Jessop, Mitch Joel, Stanley Johnson, Timothy Johnson, Spike Jones, Amy Jussel, Michael Karnjanaprakorn, Ryan Karpeles, Douglas Karr, Gareth Kay, Lois Kelly, Christina Kerley (CK), Chris Kieff, Thomas Knoll, Katie Konrath, David Koopmans, Derrick Kwa, Michelle Lamar, Stephen Landau, Kenny Lauer, Bob LeDrew, Tammy Lenski, Mark Lewis, Phil Lewis, James G. Lindberg,

Brett Macfarlane, Lori Magno, Angela Maiers, Valeria Maltoni, Louise Manning, Tim Mannveille, Mike McAllen, Becky McCray, Matt J. McDonald, Paul McEnany, Mark McGuinness, Drew McLellan, Robyn McMaster, Doug Meacham, Jenny Meade, Terrell Meek, Efrain Mendicuti, Sreeraj Menon, Gaurav Mishra, Doug Mitchell, Corentin Monot, Scott Monty, John Moore, Matt Moore, Ernie Mosteller, Brandon Murphy, Eric Nehrlich, Jeff Noble, Andy Nulman, Andrew Odom, Jason Oke, Simon Payn, Branislav Peric, Neil Perkin, Eric Peterson, David Petherick, Steve Portigal, J. Erik Potter, Dennis Price, Joe Pulizzi,

Veronique Rabuteau, Arun Rajagopal, Daria Radota Rasmussen, Ryan Rasmussen, Connie Reece, Brian Reich, Cathleen Rittereiser, David Reich, Sandy Renshaw, Nick Rice, Steve Roesler, Fernanda Romano, John Rosen, Roberta Rosenberg, Troy Rutter, Mike Sansone, Sheila Scarborough, Dan Schawbel, David Meerman Scott, Sean Scott, Andy Sernovitz, Bernie Scheffler, Asi Sharabi, Ron Shevlin, Jamey Shiels, Brad Shorr, Sonia Simone, Charles Sipe, Dan Sitter, Jon Swanson, Oleksandr Skorokhod, Stephen Smith, Phil Soden, Aki Spicer, Sheryl Steadman, Rachel Steiner,

Paul Tedesco, Seni Thomas, John Todor, Scott Townsend, PJasmin Tragas, Jonathan Trenn, Kate Trgovac, Karl Turley, Tim Tyler, Yves Van Landeghem, Mario Vellandi, Steven Verbruggen, Greg Verdino, Jeroen Verkroost, Dylan Viner, Roger von Oech, Jeff Wallace, Jennifer Warwick, Ellen Weber, Hugh Weber, David Weinfeld, Scott White, Gordon Whitehead, Andy Whitlock, Keri Willenborg, Casper Willer, Paul Williams, Chris Wilson, Craig Wilson, C.B. Whittemore, Steve Woodruff, Troy Worman, Piet Wulleman, Faris Yakob, Joanna Young, David Zinger,

photo from Age of Conversation 2

WiFi, coffee shops, bookstores

I am sitting in Caribou Coffee in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, using their free internet access, drinking coffee, and writing about Des Moines. I started at Barnes & Noble; internet access is not free at B&N in Sioux Falls! So what about Des Moines? Where will you be given free internet access?

• Barnes & Noble? Nope. Access is not free; you can buy access on site through AT&T.
• Border’s? Nope. Access is not free; access is available to T-Mobile customers.
• Caribou Coffee? Yep. Access is free.
• Panera Bread? Yep. Access is free.

I  buy a lot of books. I think I’ll go to Caribou Coffee and Panera Bread and order a few of them from Amazon.

photos by James Lindberg

What kind of conservative?

Are you conservative? If so, what kind? Take the test.

The late William F. Buckley, considered the father of modern conservatism, was never satisfied with a simple definition of conservative,  but he knew when someone wasn’t one. Buckley, a brilliant debater, defined conservatism by his writings, debates (1969 from YouTube), and speeches. He was

• an unflinching basher of liberalism
• author of God and Man at Yale, Ronald Reagan: An American Hero, and Up from Liberalism,
• founder of the National Review,
• host of Firing Line, and
• a harsh critic of George W. Bush.

Are you a Buckley conservative?

If William F. Buckley was the father of modern conservatism, Barry M. Goldwater is considered the Godfather. As a politician, he defined conservatism in the mid to late 20th century. He was

• the force that launched the conservative revolution within the Republican Party
• author of Conscience of a Conservative
• firm believer in civil rights, choice, and equality for women and gays
• possessor of a quick, pithy wit and a sharp tongue
• an advocate of fiscal conservatism, personal responsibility, and civil liberties and considered by many to be a Republican libertarian.

Are you a Goldwater conservative?

John W. Dean, former White House Counsel, sometimes columnist, and author of several books including Conservatives without Conscience (New York Times review), writes about authoritarian conservatives, a concept advanced by social psychologist Bob Altmeyer in his book The Authoritarians. Authoritarian conservatives are in sharp contrast with Goldwater or libertarian conservatives.

Dean, Dunn and Woodward, Altmeyer and others characterize authoritarian conservatives (sometimes called right-wing authoritarians) as

• believing in traditional social and religious values
• distrustful of change
• concerned with order
• desirous of having government protect and enforce those beliefs

Are you more of an authoritarian conservative?

Those are three sharply contrasting conservative positions. Are you close to one of the three? There are other definitions and camps. Maybe you would like to think of yourself as something else.

I had some fun with an on-line test  called IDEAlog about a year ago, and I was surprised by where I fit into the political spectrum. It will force you to examine values and terminology. Try it. I’ll bet you learn something about yourself. (Click on Run the IDEAlog.)

photos by flickr by And all that Malarkey and edwardleger

Facing Des Moines: Meet Bomi Mistry

When you meet Bomi Mistry, you will enjoy the encounter. He is very smart, quick, engaging, and genuinely funny. If you meet his mother Mehroo, who goes by Mary, or his wife Louise, or either of his sons, Cyrus or Eric, you will understand that those wonderful qualities run in the family. What a great family!

Bomi’s newest adventure is FUEL – For Body and Mind, a juice bar; it’s located in Suite 210 of the West Glen Town Center across from the Fountain Plaza and close to the Aspen Athletic Club. (map) With the focus on health their yogurt, fruit smoothies, boosts, and supplements appeal to those in training and fitness programs as well as those just looking for healthy snacks (no added sugar, no artificial sweeteners, no HFCS, and no additives). I had a Mango Tango, and I am definitely going back for more.

Bomi was born in Bombay (now Mumbai), a beautiful and wealthy city, the financial heart of India, a coastal city on the Arabian Sea, a sister city to Los Angeles, and at more than 13 million citizens one of the most populous cities in the world. Being born in Bombay gave Bomi a running start at life: outstanding schools; highly competitive environment; expectation of success. In his sophomore year in high school he was chosen for a very competitive Rotary International Scholarship for study abroad. It put him in Williams Lake, British Columbia – from a tropical city of 8 million to a town of 8 thousand near the Rockies, and he said it was a welcome, perhaps even prophetic culture shock.

Later he earned a B.A. in economics from Grinnell College and an M.B.A. from Washington University after which he invested 20 very successful years in the mortgage divisions of Principal, Nationwide, and Citibank. The current mortgage turmoil prompted his new venture at FUEL, in which he is the sole proprietor.

Noting that sometimes parental mistakes have wonderful outcomes, Bomi recalled promising his older son (then in middle school and now in college) that if he made all A’s, a vacation and surfing lessons in California would be the reward. You can guess the outcome of that offer. Every year since, the family has visited beaches in Southern California and Hawaii. It was on those vacations that the Mistry family encountered the great juice bars that provided the inspiration for their current endeavor. Thanks to hard working teenagers, we have Midwesterners surfing on the West Coast and a West Coast juice bar in the Metro. It’s a good exchange!

Bomi continues to be an avid reader. Recent favorites include

• Small Giants by Bo Burlingham
• Sway by Zachary Lazar
• If Today Be Sweet by Thrity Umrigar
• Hindi Bindi Club by Monica Pradhan
• and a continuing reread of The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman.

Treat yourself. Get to know Bomi Mistry, and visit FUEL – For Body and Mind for something healthy. You’ll be glad twice.

photos by Luther Erickson and Jim Lindberg

Next Page »