Iowa SCOTUS Reax

So what are Iowa politicos saying about President Obama’s nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court of the United States?

Iowa Democratic Party Chair Mike Kiernan. He likes her:

“Today President Obama delivered on his promise with the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor. Sotomayor’s stirring life story and outstanding career – at nearly every level of our judicial system – makes her qualified to serve as America’s next Supreme Court Justice. Throughout her career on the bench, she has been lauded as a fearless jurist, with an independent mind and a deep commitment to the rule of law and our constitution.”

U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Kiron. He likes her, not:

“President Obama’s nomination of Sonia Sotomayor is another victory for the radical judicial activism movement. Judge Sotomayor will put her liberal policy preferences above neutral application of the law. This nomination is a setback for defenders of the Constitution and a victory for liberal special interest groups.”

But please, judge, don’t take it personally. Rep. King just doesn’t like the Supreme Court, period:

“Supreme Court decisions have effectively amended our Constitution regularly and with impunity for decades. Nearly all of the social conflict in this country stems from the Court’s extra-constitutional interference with the voice of the people. The very last people in America who should be amending the Constitution are the Supreme Court justices. The Supreme Court is charged with interpreting the Constitution, but instead its recent activism has amended it.”

Yes, of course. If only the courts had left all our nice, traditional walls and barriers and divisions in place, everything would be swell and conflict-free. Interesting read on American history.

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, a  Democrat. He likes her:

Judge Sotomayor has proved herself as an excellent jurist. She believes in the rule of law, and she has the background and experience to understand how the law affects ordinary people, business, and government. She is a woman and Hispanic with a diversity of life experience that will contribute much to the Court.

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, a Judiciary Committee member. He likes the process:

“The Judiciary Committee should take time to ensure that the nominee will be true to the Constitution and apply the law, not personal politics, feelings or preferences. We need to ask tough questions to learn how this individual views the role of a Supreme Court justice. The last 25 years of Senate review of nominees has been entirely different than the first 200 years, and today the Senate can’t just be a rubber stamp for President Obama’s nominees.”

U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa. He likes her, and ordinary Americans:

“Judge Sotomayor is extremely qualified. She has the intellect and experiences necessary to serve on our nation’s highest Court. In addition to her nearly 17 years on the federal bench – having been appointed by both Presidents Bush and Clinton – she has unique life experiences that I believe are critical to ensure that the Court truly embodies the diversity of our country and understands how the law impacts ordinary Americans.”

Participation Garden Update

Finally got most of the Dorman family “Participation Garden” planted over the holiday weekend. The Obamas have a “Victory Garden”  outside the White House, but we’re only hoping for a few nice parting gifts. A few tomatoes, some peas and maybe some chili peppers.  Thanks for playing.

There have been some snags.

Earlier this month, while turning the sod in hardy pioneer fashion, I stuck my garden fork into a nest of baby bunnies. Miraculously, I did not impale a single one. This was lucky, as several young children, alerted by my wife’s exclamations, ran over immediately to take a look. Bunny kabobs might have put a damper on the day.

Rabbits also have chewed enough holes in the “rabbit-proof” fence that it’s become a bunny superhighway. Thinking about painting lane lines.

Otherwise, things have been pretty straightforward. Our peas are on schedule. Our spinach is lagging. We’ve already harvested a row of lettuce, so I’m now mulling a replacement crop.

Thanks to the generosity of my neighbor, I have nine different heirloom tomato varieties. He started them from seed and had more plants than space. Good deal for us.

Tess and Ella were a big help with watering and planting marigolds. There was the ugly incident when Tess insisted on wearing new white shorts while planting. Her mother had other wardrobe ideas. A loud and spirited debate ensued. I think part of being a good neighbor means keeping your neighbors entertained. And I’ve read that tears are an excellent fertilizer.

There’s more planting, mulching etc. to be done. But the ground rules for our annual tussle with nature’s little practical jokes are largely in place. Sit back, crack a beer and wait for the bugs, wilt, blight etc.

Now, if only the stinkin’ weather would warm up.

Thoughts on CR’s New (Temporary) Slogan

Since the flood, temporary has become the new permanent in Cedar Rapids. So we might as well have a temporary city slogan, too.

In case you missed it, the deciders who make these sort of calls have temporarily replaced our familiar “City of the Five Seasons” slogan with “The Fifth Season of Progress.”

In 30 days, the original “five seasons”  returns to its regularly scheduled confounding of newcomers.

“We are making significant progress toward our city’s vision of ‘building a greater community for the next generation,’” said Mayor Kay Halloran. “Now is the time to commemorate the anniversary of the flood and track our progress up to this point.”

The new slogan, which is emblazoned on a billboard along I-380 near downtown, is supposed to remind us that, with lots of local grit and volunteer help, progress has been made since the Cedar River invaded a year ago. True enough.

Still, it’s easy to get whiplash trying to pin down Cedar Rapids’ brand image these days.

There’s the travel writer who claims we smell so bad people should stay away. But then there’s the Wisconsin outfit that says we’re the fourth-best small city in America for young professionals.

There’s a new public relations offensive determined to remind national media that Cedar Rapids still “looks like a disaster area.” But hey, we’re also in our fifth season of progress.

All of this underscores the perpetual folly of trying to boil down the identity of a complex place such as a city to fit on a bumper sticker or a billboard. There’s nothing wrong with trying, and lord knows everybody’s doing it. But really, every community’s slogan is “The Home of Some Stuff You Like and Some Stuff You Don’t.”

Which Cedar Rapids brand is accurate? Try all of the above. Struggling and improving. Appealing, yet aromatic.

But in this case, I think “The Fifth Season of Progress” is appropriate.

This summer will, indeed, be the fifth season since the flood. And in many ways, it will be a critical period.

The federal bureaucracy may actually get around to coughing up stacks of dollars promised by Congress. That would allow some major recovery steps, including housing buyouts, to begin in earnest, finally.

Cleanup efforts are kicking back into gear so that next year, community events like the Ellis Harbor fireworks display can be held without safety worries. Redevelopment plans, both public and private, should gain momentum this summer.

But if the fifth season lapses into autumn without major progress, we won’t be able to print what people think of the sixth season on billboards.

A season of progress? Heaven help us if it’s not.

Tuesday Column – Diamond Days

Years ago living in Sioux City, I went to many minor league ball games. The hometown Explorers play in the Northern League, unaffiliated teams with mix of young hopefuls and aging veterans.

I remember seeing an ex-big leaguer, whose name escapes me, smack a ground ball to right. As he chugged up the line, the outfielder charged in and threw out the lumbering hitter at first.

Some guy in the crowd yelled “Ya got no wheels. Ya got no wheels.” The player, who was 10 feet from me in the very friendly confines, retorted, “I know I ain’t got no (beeping) wheels!” My 20-something self thought it was very amusing.

I thought about that story the other night as I lumbered into left field for The Gazette’s Headliners I softball team. Somehow, the humor has faded. Now, I, too, have a beeping deficiency in the wheels department. So please, be courteous.

But if you think I’m playing softball as a way to relive my glory days, I’m here to tell you there never were any.

In high school, I played right field for a baseball team that won infrequently. The high-water mark of our futility came the night a conference team scored more than 30 runs against us. I’m pretty sure that’s a record.

So many of our games ended via the 10-run “mercy rule” that we pretty much planned on it. When the carnival was in town, and we had a

7 p.m. game, we figured we’d be on the Tilt-a-Whirl shortly after 8.

But I loved the guys I played with, the road trips around rural Iowa, the laughs in the dugout and all the stuff we got away with in between. Camaraderie is still the main reason I seek out the diamond. And now I’m old enough to buy beer. Bonus.

My dad retired last year after coaching high school softball for more than four decades and more than 1,000 wins. He also oversaw little league softball programs. The guy lived at the diamond in the summertime.

So did I, during my school years, playing every level from T-ball on up. All those different polyester uniforms, team pictures, tournaments and candy bar sales are a pleasant blur.

And when we weren’t playing little league, we were playing on someone’s vacant lot. We were a bunch of little Dale Murphys, Leon Durhams and Ricky Hendersons, who argued whether a “ghost runner” really made it home.

So now, decades later, I still get a chance to dig my cleats in the dirt, and experience that 3.9 seconds of exquisite terror between the realization a ball is headed for me and the fateful result. And no play is routine when you got no wheels.