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Open letter to readers: Today and tomorrow

By Lynda Waddington | 11.17.11

Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.

ACS lockout continues; plan emerges to repeal sugar protections

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By Virginia Chamlee | 11.15.11

A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.

Cain campaign: Farmers know more about regulations than EPA

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By Andrew Duffelmeyer | 11.15.11

The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.

Mathis wins, Democrats maintain Senate control

Liz Mathis
By Lynda Waddington | 11.08.11

The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.

Press Release

PR: Nation should work to address veterans’ challenges

By Press Release Reprints | 11.11.11

BRUCE BRALEY RELEASE — As US involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan ends, it’s more important than ever that our nation works to address the challenges faced by the men and women who fought there.

PR: Honoring veterans, help in hiring

By Press Release Reprints | 11.11.11

CHUCK GRASSLEY RELEASE — A difficult job market is challenging the soldiers, sailors and airmen who have protected America’s interests by serving in the Armed Forces.

PR: In honor of America’s veterans

By Press Release Reprints | 11.11.11

TOM LATHAM RELEASE — No one has done more to secure the freedom enjoyed by every single American than our veterans and those currently serving in the armed services.

PR: Honoring and supporting our nation’s veterans

By Press Release Reprints | 11.11.11

DAVE LOEBSACK RELEASE — Veterans Day is an opportunity to reflect on the service of generations of veterans and to honor the sacrifices they and their families have made so that we may live in peace and freedom here at home.

New Orleans editorial: ‘Steve King is heartless and proud of it’

By Lynda Waddington | 09.28.09 | 11:58 am

In an opinion piece dubbed “Iowa Congressman Steve King is heartless and proud of it,” the staff at The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune takes particular offense to U.S. Rep. Steve King’s (R-Kiron) latest comment for a series published by The Hill that typically serves as a light-hearted glimpse of the nation’s elected officials.

In short, King is quoted as saying that his “best vote” was the one he cast against relief for victims Hurricane Katrina:

…Q: What vote would you like to redo?

A: I don’t really go back and re-live that sort of thing. Some of the big votes that I’ve thought about, some of the jury’s still out. And at this point, maybe I’d answer that question another way, probably with the singular vote that stands out that went against the grain, and it turns out to be the best vote that I cast, was my “no” vote to the $51.5 billion to [Hurricane] Katrina. That probably was my best vote…

It should come as no surprise that The Times-Picayune staff — many of whom felt the direct and personal wrath of Hurricane Katrina even as they attempted to cover the storm and its aftermath — wouldn’t take kindly to King’s point.

… Rep. King was one of 11 House members to vote against this urgently needed help for an area that, at the time, was still under water. But opposing relief for a devastated region of this country is hardly an act of political courage. The fact that he considers it a point of pride is appalling…

Even now, officials in Des Moines are complaining about a slow and inadequate response to their flood recovery — including the lament that FEMA is underestimating the amount of money needed to replace public buildings. That’s something that South Louisianians can understand, and in fact, we feel for Iowans.

Unfortunately, when it counted, Rep. King didn’t feel for us.

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Comments

  • majii

    Yes, this is certainly nothing to brag about, but the more important question is, what is wrong with the people in his district that continue to send a man like this to Congress? I'd be so embarrassed to have my congressional representative brag about being callous to the suffering of my fellow countrymen.

  • NaderPaulKucinichGravel

    MSM ordered to censor G20.
    8 more years just like the last 8?
    Gates speaks as if he is a Cheney Clone.
    Judeofascists loved promoting their “Islamofascism” propaganda.
    Carrots(bribery) Sticks(murder) Coercive Diplomacy(extortion & blackmail).

    Did you see all the same bloodthirsty AIPAC-paid recycled neocon shills on TV selling more war for profit?

    Watch as they pretend to know nothing of the mounting 9/11 evidence, whistleblowers, & leaks that point to them

  • ComradeRutherford

    Typical Conservative Republican: making the Ebenezer Scrooge look like Jesus Christ.

  • 1NONewsladder2

    You bet the reporters of the Times-Picayune were ticked, as was anyone else who suffered the Wrath of the Corps of Engineers –NOT KATRINA.
    Saying Katrina devastated New Orleans is like saying Traffic brought down the Minnesota bridge collapse.

    That is where your Senator's gall and hubris rub us all, across the country, like a cold rasp. It wasn't Katrina, it was the Corps of Engineers flood control structures which failed in 56 locations below design spec at half load. Your Corps of Engineers, Your Clueless Arrogant Senator, both considered New Orleans expendable.

    Citizens of New Orleans and the rest of the country survived Katrina missing the city, however it remains to be seen if we will survive the Corps of Engineers and heathens like Your Senator King.
    Of course, while you all could fix the latter, we are still working on the former.
    Thank you

  • crescentcityray

    Like a lot f people, I believe Congressman Kings dislike and mistruct of New Orleanians is based on myths.

    Do people know that 90% of the metro area evacuated before the storm? It was the most successful evacuation of a metropolitan area in this country's history. Could their city do as well?

    Do they know that the Lower Ninth Ward is but only 2 of the 140 square miles (in just Orleans Parish) that flooded when flood control structures fell down.

    Do they know that 70% of New Orleans home owners had flood insurance? – a rate higher than almost anywhere else in the country.

    Do they know that the flood, proportionally, killed just as many rich, middle class and poor as well as black, white, Hispanic and Asian New Orleanians? The only demographic that suffered more than the rest were our elderly who suffered the worst, by far. Did you know many thousands of New Orleanians died in the months after the storm from stress and depression, and are still dying?

    Do they know that 50% of New Orleans is above sea level?

    Did you know ships must travel 96 miles upriver from the Gulf to reach New Orleans? – we are not a 'coastal' city.

    Do they know the Corps is mostly responsible for the losses of our wetlands that use to serve as a storm surge buffer for New Orleans?

    Do they know that New Orleans has a higher percentage of residents that remain lifelong residents of their home town than any other major metropolitan area in the US?

    Do they know the vast majority of New Orleanians are honest, hard working, tax paying, law abiding US citizens and deserve their respect?

    Why do outsiders believe these myths?

    The myths stem from journalists parachuting in with preconceived notions and lazy but flowery language and they typically report it all wrong. Countrymen and politicians like King used our problems as partisan political fodder. New Orleans and its residents have been ruthlessly slandered like no American city has ever experienced. Lazy media reported a 'natural' disaster and too many of our countrymen feel we deserved our disaster and should even be denied the right to exist. It is plenty enough to hurt your feelings. Our fellow US citizens, even folk from all over the world, don't care that all the misinformation has seriously disillusioned and disturbed so many.

    Our outfall canal floodwalls fell down without even being overtopped by storm surge water (at less than half their design loads) because of negligent engineering in the design of those floodwalls' foundations by engineers employed with the US Army Corps of Engineers as reported in the official levee failure investigation reports and reported to Congress by Corps leadership in June of 2006 and as decided by US 5th District Judge S. Duval in January 2008.

    The Corps drove the floodwall supporting sheet piles only 17.5 feet below sea level rather than the 60 foot needed to hold back water to the top of the wall. i.e. New Orleans was short sheeted by US Army Corps' engineers.

  • Milneburg

    Actually, virtually all of the “federal aid” to New Orleans is going into the pockets of the politician criminals that destroyed the city, not their victims.And while the Corps of Engineers is certainly guilty, this would never have happened without the actions of our “beloved” former mayor. Sidney Barthelemy. You see,when the plans for those worthless floodwalls were submitted, the engineers of the Sewage & Water Board objected.Barthelemy got rid of them. He replaced them with ones who would do whatever he told them. These later deliberately dredged the canals in such a way as to further weaken those already feeble floodwalls,insuring failure. The Corps of Engineers wanted to build gates at the mouths of the canals to prevent flooding incase of floodwall failure.The City refused to allow this to be done. The City Hall politicians wanted the city flooded in the next hurricane, because they knew that all of the “relief” would go to them, not their victims.

  • Milneburg

    By the way, our alleged “news media” helped to CAUSE this disaster by constantly protecting Barthelemy, and covering up his and the rest of the City Hall Gang's criminality.For instance, on July 31, 1991 a streetcar load of people were nearly killed when the car caught fire due to the criminal negligence of the Regional Transit Authority, controlled by Barthlemy's stooges. Our “news media”, particularily the “Times Picayune”, was warned about the dangerous condition over TWO MONTHS before it happened.Even after this near disaster, the “newspaper” swept the whole thing under the rug.Undoubtedly they knew about the real state of those worthless floodwalls
    The “newspaper” covered BARTHELEMY'S FLOOD. In comfort and safety.Most of the building was above water, they had plenty of armed guards to protect the “reporters” and others, helicopters, everything that they needed, unlike us victims floundering around in the filthy floodwaters.The ONLY thing that the New Orleans “news media” cares about is making sure that their UPTOWN buddies can wallow in a sea of GRAFT.

  • Milneburg

    Actually, virtually all of the “federal aid” to New Orleans is going into the pockets of the politician criminals that destroyed the city, not their victims.And while the Corps of Engineers is certainly guilty, this would never have happened without the actions of our “beloved” former mayor. Sidney Barthelemy. You see,when the plans for those worthless floodwalls were submitted, the engineers of the Sewage & Water Board objected.Barthelemy got rid of them. He replaced them with ones who would do whatever he told them. These later deliberately dredged the canals in such a way as to further weaken those already feeble floodwalls,insuring failure. The Corps of Engineers wanted to build gates at the mouths of the canals to prevent flooding incase of floodwall failure.The City refused to allow this to be done. The City Hall politicians wanted the city flooded in the next hurricane, because they knew that all of the “relief” would go to them, not their victims.

  • Milneburg

    By the way, our alleged “news media” helped to CAUSE this disaster by constantly protecting Barthelemy, and covering up his and the rest of the City Hall Gang's criminality.For instance, on July 31, 1991 a streetcar load of people were nearly killed when the car caught fire due to the criminal negligence of the Regional Transit Authority, controlled by Barthlemy's stooges. Our “news media”, particularily the “Times Picayune”, was warned about the dangerous condition over TWO MONTHS before it happened.Even after this near disaster, the “newspaper” swept the whole thing under the rug.Undoubtedly they knew about the real state of those worthless floodwalls
    The “newspaper” covered BARTHELEMY'S FLOOD. In comfort and safety.Most of the building was above water, they had plenty of armed guards to protect the “reporters” and others, helicopters, everything that they needed, unlike us victims floundering around in the filthy floodwaters.The ONLY thing that the New Orleans “news media” cares about is making sure that their UPTOWN buddies can wallow in a sea of GRAFT.

  • Milneburg

    Actually, virtually all of the “federal aid” to New Orleans is going into the pockets of the politician criminals that destroyed the city, not their victims.And while the Corps of Engineers is certainly guilty, this would never have happened without the actions of our “beloved” former mayor. Sidney Barthelemy. You see,when the plans for those worthless floodwalls were submitted, the engineers of the Sewage & Water Board objected.Barthelemy got rid of them. He replaced them with ones who would do whatever he told them. These later deliberately dredged the canals in such a way as to further weaken those already feeble floodwalls,insuring failure. The Corps of Engineers wanted to build gates at the mouths of the canals to prevent flooding incase of floodwall failure.The City refused to allow this to be done. The City Hall politicians wanted the city flooded in the next hurricane, because they knew that all of the “relief” would go to them, not their victims.

  • Milneburg

    By the way, our alleged “news media” helped to CAUSE this disaster by constantly protecting Barthelemy, and covering up his and the rest of the City Hall Gang's criminality.For instance, on July 31, 1991 a streetcar load of people were nearly killed when the car caught fire due to the criminal negligence of the Regional Transit Authority, controlled by Barthlemy's stooges. Our “news media”, particularily the “Times Picayune”, was warned about the dangerous condition over TWO MONTHS before it happened.Even after this near disaster, the “newspaper” swept the whole thing under the rug.Undoubtedly they knew about the real state of those worthless floodwalls
    The “newspaper” covered BARTHELEMY'S FLOOD. In comfort and safety.Most of the building was above water, they had plenty of armed guards to protect the “reporters” and others, helicopters, everything that they needed, unlike us victims floundering around in the filthy floodwaters.The ONLY thing that the New Orleans “news media” cares about is making sure that their UPTOWN buddies can wallow in a sea of GRAFT.

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