August 2015 » Lynda Waddington

31Aug 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Family, loss and near drownings

When I was about 8 or 9 years old, I nearly drowned in the Illinois River. Our family — Mom, Dad, me and various assortments of my siblings and their children — often visited the river. Those days were filled with laughter as we gathered around dad’s rarely exposed, pale legs. Untold hours were spent dunking ourselves in the cool river water to hide from biting flies and mosquitoes. And mom pacing a worried trench in the bank. That day I wanted to follow my older brothers and father across the water to the other bank. Most of the river was shallow where we played, more like a babbling brook as it tumbled over and between the rounded rocks of its bed. Only about a two-foot stretch existed where the…

30Aug 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Immigration forum will target ugly rhetoric

Gazette Column

Young people with handmade signs and women wearing ankle tracking devices surrounded several members of Congress to relay their real-life horror stories. Congress did nothing. The women and young people were what was left following a massive 2008 immigration raid at a Postville meatpacking plant. They were destitute, relying on a local churches for food and other necessities. Husbands, fathers and brothers were either awaiting deportation, or had already been deported. Nearly all were also handed a criminal conviction, ensuring they would no longer have the option of entering the country legally. [caption id="attachment_1035" align="alignleft" width="300"] A marcher wears an ankle monitoring device during an immigration reform march through the streets of Postville on Sunday, July 27, 2008. The women fitted with the ankle devices wore them for roughly 19…

17Aug 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Branstad, GOP hopefuls differ on local control

Gazette Column

Education shortfalls are a manufactured crisis Spend a little time with the 2016 GOP presidential candidates and you’ll hear their plans to loosen government’s reins and provide local leaders more flexibility. If such goals are successful, however, its doubtful Iowans existing under the Branstad administration will experience relief. Debates about local control are as regular as general elections, and equally effective. But that hasn’t stopped all levels of politicians from sounding an alarm. For instance, in March 1953, then-U.S. House Majority Leader Charlie Halleck, an Indiana Republican who died in 1986, spoke before a joint session of the Iowa Legislature on the risk of expansion beyond “the smallest unit of government capable of handling the job.” “With every transfer of responsibility from Des Moines or Indianapolis to Washington, there is…

16Aug 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Binders full of … hypocrisy

Gazette Column

Pardon the dust, but it’s time we brush off one of the Republican Party’s binders full of women. And, no, I’m not talking about Mitt Romney’s fictional debate binders, but the very real autopsy report commissioned by the Republican National Committee in the wake of the 2012 election. Romney garnered support from male voters, but experienced an 11-point deficit among female voters. And, when single women were singled out, the gap became a cavern of 36 percentage points. The report concluded women are not a “coalition,” and appealing to them should be integrated into all activities. GOP talkers “need to use language that addresses concerns that are on women’s minds in order to let them know we are fighting for them.” Among the findings was that women voters are interested…

10Aug 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Few travelers on path to equity

Gazette Column

What’s most disappointing is how few came to participate. There were three things I wanted to do Thursday night. I could have watched Jon Stewart bid his final farewell to Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.” I was tempted to gather with political friends and family to watch members of the GOP presidential field face off in their first televised debate. But I chose to attend a local meeting at the Coralville Public Library. Specifically, I sat with about 15 people as Kingsley Botchway, Iowa City Community School District’s relatively new equity and staffing director, provided an update and outline of the district’s equity plan. Then I listened as about half of those gathered offered concerns and feedback. It was both an uplifting and sobering experience. While most news reports (and…

09Aug 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Have, eat your cake at home

Gazette Column

My winter advice that parents, not Santa, were the best bearers of expensive gifts chaffed a few sensitive thighs. Those folks might want to cross their legs. A parent in the Iowa City Community School District passed along a note from the district that outlines changes to the district’s policy on classroom snacks and other celebrations. In short, parents should keep their homemade goodies or anything that has ever been near a peanut at home, per the Wellness policy. Accompanying this notice was lively commentary about the “nanny state,” and how parents should be prepared to take on their “personal responsibilities.” Presumably the latter was an admonishment toward parents unfortunate enough to bring such fragile offspring into the world. It ended with a single phrase, in all capitals: LET THEM…

03Aug 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Got milk? Stay home with baby

Gazette Column

Did you hear the breaking news report this week that a female breast was displayed at a Dubuque swimming pool? OK, there were actually lots of female breasts on display, but the one that made the news had a baby attached to it. Some poor woman obviously ignored Victoria’s Secret memo that only decorative models are suitable for public display. So, let’s review: Breasts selling hamburgers? Acceptable use. Breasts displayed at car shows or professional wrestling matches? Time-honored acceptable use. Breasts adorned with owl eyeballs? Restaurant genius! Breasts nourishing a child? Clear indicator of society’s moral decay. Women must stop spreading the lie that breasts have a function other than marketing and sexual arousal. To think that such a myth was promulgated at a public swimming pool after so much…