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.
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.
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.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
In the wake of the five-year anniversary marking the war in Iraq, a number of veterans-related events are scheduled this week in eastern Iowa, primarily Iowa City and Cedar Rapids.“Doonesbury’s” Garry Trudeau: As part of the 2008 Coe College Contemporary Issues Forum, Garry Trudeau will be speaking at the Contemporary Issues Forum in Cedar Rapids at 7:30 tonight. The event was originally scheduled in February, but was rescheduled because of inclement weather.
For the past 37 years, Trudeau has communicated primarily through his Pulitzer Prize-winning comic strip, “Doonesbury.” However, the war in Iraq has indirectly prompted him to speak out on related issues, bringing the war home to readers through the experiences and perspective of B.D., a veteran of Gulf War I and the wars in Vietnam and Iraq.
For many “Doonesbury” readers, the war in Iraq hit home in April 2003, when Trudeau decided to blow up B.D’s leg while B.D. was serving in Iraq. B.D.’s leg had to be amputated, and his injury, coupled with the psychological effects of his experiences, helped inspire more than 220 strips. It also resulted in two books: “The Long Road Home” chronicles B.D.’s journey home and transition into the civilian world, while “The War Within” captures B.D.’s internal struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder.
In addition to bringing the war home through “Doonesbury,” Trudeau has helped capture the day-to-day experiences of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan through his milblog (military-blog), “The Sandbox.” Lightly edited by longtime editor David Stanford, “The Sandbox” features dispatches from milbloggers deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, who share their observations, comments and anecdotes with readers at home.
Read an exclusive Iowa Independent interview with Trudeau here.
Tickets for the event, at $10 for the general public and $5 for students and seniors, can be reserved by calling the Coe Box Office at 319-399-8600.
“Iowa Stories: The Vietnam Experience”: In 1989 University of Northern Iowa professor Marilyn Shaw, 57, of Cedar Falls wanted to preserve Vietnam war memories through the oral tradition, which she adapted into an oral-interpretive play, “Iowa Stories: The Vietnam Experience.” The play will be performed for the fifth time at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Englert in Iowa City. Tickets are $12.50.
Drawing from 28 interviews with Vietnam veterans from Iowa, Shaw interweaves their stories into nine character archetypes for her play. As one of the vets told Shaw, “You can hate the war, but don’t hate the warrior, because the warrior is doing what he [or she] was trained to do.”
University of Iowa Anti-War Committee’s Peace Week: As part of its Peace Week, the University of Iowa Anti-War Committee is sponsoring a number of veterans’ events designed to bring discussions about war and peace into the community and the classrooms.
Andy Duffy and Jason Munford will be part of a panel discussion at the South Room in the UI’s Iowa memorial Union at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Duffy, an Iowa National Guard medic who served at Abu Ghraib prison in 2005-06, founded the Iowa City chapter of the Iraq Veterans Against the War and recently testified at the Winter Soldier hearings in Washington, D.C.
Munford, an Air Force veteran, will share his experiences as a conscientious objector after he was ordered to deploy to Iraq.
Thursday night will feature Eli Painted Crow, a retired Army veteran of 22 years, who will share her recent experiences during a recent deployment to Iraq and explain why she’s speaking out against the war. A Native American from the Yaqui Nation, she is a grandmother of eight and mother of two sons who both served in the military. She will be speaking in the Iowa Room at the IMU at 7 p.m.
During the 2006 Veterans for Peace Conference, she spoke out about a barrage of injustices she said were committed by members of her unit during her deployment to Iraq. She said she witnessed and faced several incidents of discrimination, racism, sexual harassment and sexual abuse/assault committed by her fellow soldiers, prompting her to leave the service upon her return.
Eli Painted Crow Speaks at 2006 Veterans for Peace Conference
Moreover, in conjunction with the Peace Week’s events, the UI Veterans’ Association will host a forum on veterans’ benefits, health care and homelessness. Guest speakers will include Mike Hull, post commander of American Legion Post #17, Iowa City; Stephanie Linn, President of UI Veterans Association; and Tom Kelly, co-founder of Vets Helping Vets. The forum will take place at 7 p.m. Friday in the Illinois Room at the IMU.
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