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56,555 thoughts on “Whiner’s Den

  1. This preplanned farce is just another in a Growing long list of hoaxes created, planned by the democrats and willing to guess that Princess Pelosi was behind it all. Why else have the FBI not allowed over 14,000 hours of surveillance videos to be seen, what are they hiding, what are they possibly trying to cover up ? We need divine intervention to stop all this corruption and evil.

    1. Its disgraceful what they are and have been doing to the people they put in jail. Why can’t somebody do something? The Pelosi gang is breaking the laws and nothing is done or “said” to them. It’s another Russia, Russia, fiasco.

  2. AOC is just a petulant child trying to appease the other petulant children. Canceling student loans is completely moronic. Cancel the medical bills of cancer patients if you really want to do something honorable. If you’re going to cancel student loans, then cancel mortgage loans, car loans, business loans or any loan that someone agreed to pay back.

    1. Pay for your own loans. You signed for them, they are your responsibility. AOC needs to be primaried out.

      1. Why don’t we just cancel out all debt and let everyone in America have a fresh and equal start? The only thing that would prove after a year is there is no way to make everyone equal!

  3. The White House confirmed Wednesday that illegal immigrants are being provided with electronic devices, notably cell phones, in an effort for the Biden administration to “track” and “check in” with them as they await immigration court proceedings.

        1. Don’t forget all the other demowit houses that favor open borders
          Drop off a bus load of ILLEGALS on their front door steps too
          Then from here on out everytime a bus is filled drop them off in a sanctuary city.

  4. Iowa finishes in last place among US states in economic growth. Way to go Kim! You have us leading the pack.

          1. Just by existing I help improve it. But I will probably also move as are most of the intelligent people.

        1. I am going to wait until I see your obit in the paper before I move. Pissing on your grave is worth the wait.

  5. Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Andrea Kalan of the State Department’s Russian-Language Telegram Channel

    04/06/2022 02:33 PM EDT

    Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

    Brussels, Belgium

    The Hotel

    QUESTION: Thank you, Secretary Blinken, for joining us today to take questions for our USApoRusski Telegram channel followers. Let’s go straight to the questions.

    Our first question comes from Ekaterina Kotrikadze, an independent Russian journalist with TV Dozhd. She asks: “President Zelenskyy gave a speech at the UN Security Council and he was tough. He accused the organization of meaninglessness and weakness. He’s got a point. What is the mission of a Security Council which cannot actually provide security? He thinks it’s time to exclude Russia. Would you agree with Zelenskyy, and is it possible to reform the UN Security Council in the near future?”

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, President Zelenskyy is right that there is a problem with the Security Council. There is a fundamental problem when one of its permanent members, whose number-one responsibility is to maintain international peace and security, is the very country that is grossly violating international peace and security with its aggression on Ukraine, and that’s Russia. So there’s a pretty fundamental problem there.

    At the same time, I think what we’re seeing is the United Nations as a whole coming together powerfully in support of Ukraine and against the Russian aggression, 141 countries having their vote counted and their voice heard in that. So I think the UN itself is stepping up, also at the Human Rights Council where a Commission of Inquiry has been created to investigate the abuses being committed by Russia and Ukraine. But the Security Council itself does have a problem that is a real challenge, and unless and until Russia acts as a responsible member of that council, the problem will remain.

    QUESTION: Thank you. And our next question comes from Vitaliy Sizov from UATV. Vitaliy asks: “Is the U.S. ready to be a guarantor of security in Ukraine in the event a peace agreement is reached with Russia?”

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: So we’re in constant contact with our Ukrainian partners at all levels talking about, among other things, whether – if there is a negotiated solution, outcome, what can be done to help ensure that this doesn’t happen again, that Ukraine is able to defend itself going forward, that it can deter future Russian aggression. And I’m not going to get into the details of what that might involve, but a number of countries are talking to Ukraine about exactly that.

    And we want to make sure that to the best of our ability, once this Russian aggression is over and Ukraine fully asserts its sovereignty and independence, that this can’t be repeated.

    QUESTION: Our next question is from Iurii Sheiko from Deutsche Welle: “Yesterday you announced additional security assistance for Ukraine of $100 million. You said it would contain anti-armor systems. Ukraine has already received a lot of anti-tank weapons while the main danger to its cities like Kharkiv, Mykolaiv, and many others is posed not by tanks or other armored vehicles, but by aircraft, artillery, and missiles. Does the U.S. intend to provide or support providing systems to defend from those types of weapons, namely bigger air defense capabilities, artillery installations, or jets?”

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, we and many other countries around the world, especially in Europe, have been providing over many months not only anti-armor systems to deal with the tanks, but anti-air systems to deal with helicopters and airplanes. And the Ukrainians, because of their extraordinary courage, have been incredibly effective in using these systems to push back Russian aggression. Russia didn’t leave Kyiv or the outskirts of Kyiv by its own free will; it was pushed out and pushed back by Ukrainians and they were using many of the systems we provided them.

    What we’re focused on is making sure that we get to Ukraine the systems that they can use now and use effectively. At the same time, we’re looking at other systems – some of them larger, more sophisticated – that may be useful and important going forward, but where, for example, Ukrainians need to be trained, because some of these systems you can’t just turn them over and have them be used immediately. Training is required; maintenance is required.

    So what we focused on is what can Ukrainians use immediately and use effectively, but we’re also looking at over the longer term what could they use with the right training, with the right support, with the right maintenance. All of that we’re working on right now.

    QUESTION: Okay. And our final question comes from Current Time TV: “Most Russians are kept in the dark about the war in Ukraine. No independent media outlets remain inside Russia. Many Kremlin critics have been forced to leave the country and opinion polls show broad support for the so-called special military operation, prompting accusations of Russian society’s collective responsibility for the war. Current Time’s own vox pops show that many Russians are unaware or supportive of their army’s actions in Ukraine. What message do you have for the Russian public in this context?”

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, I wish I could effectively deliver a message to the Russian public. The fact of the matter is I can’t speak on Russian television. Most social media is blocked, or I would be blocked from speaking to it. And so Russians are being fed morning, noon, and night a steady diet of propaganda that doesn’t reflect the facts, that doesn’t reflect the truth, that doesn’t allow them to make their own judgements. Because we can all come to our own judgments and our own conclusions, and they may be different as long as we have the facts upon which to make those judgments. Unfortunately, tragically, the Russian people aren’t getting them.

    But if I was able to speak to the Russian people and thought they could hear me, I guess the question I would ask is: How is this war, how is this aggression being committed by Russia on Ukraine – how is it doing anything to make a difference in your lives? How is it answering any of the needs that you have, the same needs that Americans and Europeans and Ukrainians and people all over the world have, which is to send your kids to school, to put food on the table, to save some money, to build a better future? How does it help? How does it do anything to address those needs that are shared around the world?

    And I guess I’d say as well that President Biden, when – before this aggression against Ukraine said to President Putin repeatedly that the strong preference of the United States is to have a more stable, predictable relationship with Russia. How does attacking a country unprovoked and in a pre-planned way do anything to build that kind of stability and predictability? We have so many big things that we can and should be working on as countries: dealing with COVID-19, recovering economically, answering the existential challenge posed by climate change. These are things that affect Americans and Russians and people all over the world. That’s what we should be spending our time on.

    But tragically, because, without reason, Vladimir Putin decided to attack Ukraine, the world is now focused on this. And it’s the entire world; it’s not just the United States. Countries have come together from across the planet, 141 at the United Nations, standing up and rejecting this Russian aggression, supporting the Ukrainian people. So I wish the Russian people could get that message because this is not about them. This is tragically about a choice that Vladimir Putin has made, a choice that does nothing to advance the lives of Russians, and unfortunately, tragically, is doing everything to destroy the lives of Ukrainians.

  6. President Biden:

    Today, my Administration is extending the pause on federal student loan repayments through August 31st, 2022.

    1. Giving them more time to figure out how they’re going to tax the hard working Americans to pay for the elimination of the student loan debt.

  7. Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Andrea Mitchell of NBC
    04/06/2022 11:47 AM EDT

    Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

    Brussels, Belgium

    QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, thank you so much for being with us. I wanted to ask you about what is going on right now. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs had told Congress that this will likely last years, this war. A protracted war is going to last years, according to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs. Will today’s new commitment of Javelins, anti-tank weapons to Ukraine shorten that timeline?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Andrea, we want to see this come to an end as quickly as possible, and that’s exactly why we’re making sure that we’re doing everything we can to support Ukraine and to give them the assistance that they need to put pressure and to increase pressure on Russia, even as we’re strengthening our – the defenses of our NATO Alliance.

    QUESTION: So what about the Javelins?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: So the Javelins, we just did – the President authorized another $100 million in a drawdown that will provide more Javelins to our Ukrainian partners. Put this in perspective: Between the United States and other allies and partners, for every Russian tank in Ukraine, we have provided or will soon provide 10 anti-tank systems – 10 for every single Russian tank. So in terms of what they need to act quickly and act effectively, to deal with the planes that are firing at them from the skies, the tanks that are trying to destroy their cities from the ground, they have the tools that they need, they’re going to keep getting them, and we’re going to keep sustaining that.

    But to the chairman’s point, and the President said this as well, as much as we want to see this come to an end as soon as possible to stop the death and destruction that’s being wrought by Russia in Ukraine, there is also a very likely scenario by which this goes on for some time. The Russians, even as they’re moving their forces, they’ve retreated from Kyiv, they’ve retreated from the north and the west, they’re consolidating forces in the east, in the Donbas. They have a lot of force still left. The Ukrainians have something else that’s ultimately stronger, and that is a fierce determination and will to defend their country with the support of many countries around the world.

    QUESTION: Can they win?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: So ultimately, yes, because what is success, what is victory? It’s holding on to the sovereignty and independence of their country. And there is no scenario by which over time that will not happen. The problem is it may take time, and in the meantime, tremendous death and destruction. But what is so powerful here is that the Ukrainians have made it very clear that they will not subjugate themselves to Vladimir Putin’s will.

    QUESTION: But no matter how much we give them, how can Ukraine ever last against Russia for the long term unless the U.S. and other countries guarantee its borders, its safety, as President Zelenskyy wants?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, first things first. The first thing is to see that this aggression by Russia comes to an end, that there is a ceasefire, that Russia withdraws its forces, that Ukraine asserts its sovereignty and its independence. But then, yes, we have to do things to make sure that, to the best of our ability and Ukraine’s ability, this can’t happen again, that Russia is deterred, that Ukraine is defended. We’re having constant conversations with —

    QUESTION: Will we guarantee that?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: So we’re having —

    QUESTION: Will the U.S. get more involved?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: We’re having constant conversations with our Ukrainian partners pretty much on a daily basis, including about what it is we and others could do in the event of a successful negotiation to defend them and help them defend themselves going forward. All of this is the subject of conversations right now. I’m not going to get ahead of that, but we’re going to do everything we can, others will do what they can to make sure that Ukraine can defend itself and deter aggression being repeated by Russia.

    QUESTION: President Putin has said he wants to recreate the Soviet Union, the glory of the Soviet Union. With those ambitions, how can Ukraine ever be safe as long as Putin’s in power?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, two things: First, in terms of what Russia set out to do, what Putin set out to do in Ukraine, this has already been a strategic setback, if not a failure. Because keep in mind, Andrea, the goal that Putin set in his own words was to eliminate Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence. He sees it as a state that doesn’t deserve to be independent, that needs to be subsumed back into some kind of greater Russia. That is not happening, not just the retreat from Kyiv but the fact that no matter how you play this out the Ukrainians are not going to subject themselves to a Russian dictatorship.

    QUESTION: He’s more popular than ever at home.

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: So he may be for now more popular. Of course, if you were getting fed a steady diet, morning, noon, and night of propaganda, which unfortunately the Russian people are, that speaks to what popularity he has. At the same time, when people are responding to polls, they may be very much afraid of giving the truthful answer. There’s now a 15-year criminal penalty for anyone who in any way opposes the so-called special military operation. So you have to take that with a grain of salt.

    Having said that, I think there is a real fundamental problem, which is the Russians don’t get the factual information that they need to make judgments for themselves, and that’s because of a system that Vladimir Putin has perfected in which that information is denied them.

    QUESTION: President Biden has called Putin a butcher, a war criminal. You have said that the people responsible for the crimes in Bucha and those who ordered them will be held accountable.

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: That’s right.

    QUESTION: How can that happen without Vladimir Putin standing trial?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: First, Andrea, the wheels of accountability can move slowly, but they move, and someday, someway, somewhere, those who committed these crimes and those who ordered the crimes will be held accountable. But it takes time, and part of this is building the case, part of this is – which we’re doing and others are doing. Part – there’s a Ukrainian special prosecutor who is working on this. We’re supporting her efforts. We set up at the United Nations at the Human Rights Council a Commission of Inquiry that’s looking into this as well. We’re supporting those efforts, building the case, getting the evidence, documenting it. The International Criminal Court is looking at this too.

    But all of this will play out over time, and we have to build the case, we have to get the evidence, we have to document it – we’re doing all of that. So is that next month, next year, in five years? It could take time, but I think – I can guarantee you there will be a relentless effort to make sure that those responsible for what we’re seeing are held accountable. And what we’re seeing, Andrea, is I think beyond what any of us even could fully anticipate. We said before Russia committed this aggression that there would be atrocities, that it was a deliberate part of their campaign. And even knowing that, when this Russian tide receded from Bucha and we saw the death and destruction left in its wake, and we saw what that looked like, including people who had been assassinated – and in fact, their hands tied – executed, their hands tied behind their backs – the abuse committed against women, against children, it’s horrific. And there has to be accountability for it.

    QUESTION: Did you see the video that President Zelenskyy provided to the United Nations, or other images from Bucha? As you describe it, the atrocities, you have small children. What do you tell your children? What would you tell them?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, thankfully, they’re too small to actually see that, be able to digest it and to understand it.

    QUESTION: But some day, they’ll – they will —

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: But some day they will. And I have to tell you, Andrea, I think – and I suspect most of us have the same reaction, especially those of who have children or even small children – you put yourself in the shoes of the father, the mother, the grandfather, the grandmother who’s in the middle of this, who is suffering this, whose kids’ lives are at stake or in jeopardy, or who have been lost. And it hits you – I said the other day, seeing these images from Bucha was like a punch to the gut. It takes the wind out of you. You can know something intellectually, but then when you see these images and you translate that into your own life, when you ask yourself, “What if this was happening in my town, to my kids? To my family?” I think it only reinforces our determination to do everything we can to support the Ukrainians, to put pressure on Russia, to bring this to an end as quickly as possible.

    QUESTION: Your UN ambassador, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, described these atrocities and compared it by extension to the Holocaust. Talked about what the council in Mariupol had described, people forcibly – tens of thousands – taken from their homes, taken to Russia and put in camps. Isn’t that the very definition of genocide?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, we have to get all of the information, all of the evidence. We have to, as I said, document everything that’s happened, fully understand what’s happened. It’s an interesting irony in a sense. This is in some ways the most documented war in real time that we’ve experienced because of technology, because of smart phones, because of the incredible courage of reporters who remained in Ukraine. But even so, the things that we’re not seeing in real time, including Bucha – and it’s only when that tide recedes that you see what’s actually happened.

    So I think we’re going to learn a lot more in the days and weeks ahead. I’m afraid that what we’re going to learn is even more horrifying.

    QUESTION: Do we know anything about what’s happening in these Russian camps with Ukrainians, and do we have any hope of getting them back?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: We don’t have good information on that, but certainly we’re doing everything we can. Other countries are doing everything they can to make sure that anyone who is being detained is released.

    QUESTION: The U.S. has promised to take in 100,000 of these millions of refugees. Europe has opened their doors, put them in their homes.

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: They have.

    QUESTION: NBC has reported on at least two women, two Ukrainian women on the southern border, who were taken and for two weeks put behind barbed wire and at times shackled in an ICE camp. How can we do that compared to the way Europe is welcoming them?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, I’m not aware of those reports. It’s something I’ll certainly look into. But here’s what’s going on. First, Europeans have been extraordinary in their generosity, in opening their hearts, opening their arms, opening their homes to so many people. Our friends in Poland, in the first instance, have had more than 2 million people come through Poland. Many of the refugees – most of them, in fact – want to stay close to home because what you’re seeing, Andrea – and I know you’ve seen this firsthand – is virtually everyone is a woman and children. Most of the men between 18 and 60 have stayed in Ukraine to fight. They like to stay close at hand. They want to go back, they want to be reunited with their husbands, with their brothers, with their sons. And once they’re in Europe, they also have a lot of freedom of movement and the ability to reunite with other family members there.

    Having said that, President Biden made clear that we will welcome 100,000 Ukrainians. We’re ‑‑

    QUESTION: Is there a time frame?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: So it’s over a period of time. What we’re doing right now is looking at what are the legal pathways that we can do that because there’s the normal refugee program, but that, by definition, takes a long time. It takes a couple years –

    QUESTION: Quick question before we lose time: sanctions.

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Yeah.

    QUESTION: New sanctions, now Europe is putting on new sanctions. China and India keep buying fuel from Russia and fueling this war, helping to fund Putin’s war. Why aren’t we sanctioning China and India?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: So in the first instance, Andrea, these sanctions are having a dramatic impact.

    QUESTION: But there are big loopholes, and Europe still is buying natural gas and still will for another year.

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: There are loopholes that, piece by piece, one by one, we’re trying to close. Sometimes that takes time. But let’s look at what’s already happened. The sanctions cumulatively have put the Russian economy into a deep recession. And what we’re seeing is a likely contraction of the Russian economy by about 15 percent. That is dramatic. We’ve seen something else. We’ve seen an exodus from Russia of virtually every major company in the world. And Putin, in the space of a matter of weeks, has basically shut down Russia to the world. All of the opening, all of the opportunity that took place over the last 30 years is gone. And the Russians will feel that, I’m afraid, in their daily lives. They won’t be able to buy the things they’re used to buying, and they won’t be able to afford to buy what they’d like to buy.

    And beyond that, the export controls that we put in place, denying Russia the technology that it needs to modernize critical industries like defense, like energy extraction – over time, those are going to have an even greater impact.

    So we’re already seeing a dramatic impact to this. And yes, there are places where different countries are doing different things. We’re working every single day to close that down.

    QUESTION: Quick question on Iran before I let you go. You’re talking about Iran here in Brussels. Is Iran’s Revolutionary Guard – which has attacked Americans and our allies – a terrorist organization?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: So, they are. And —

    QUESTION: Will they continue to be?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: I’m not going to get into the details of where we are on the negotiations. I would say simply that I’m not overly optimistic at the prospects of actually getting an agreement to conclusion, despite all the efforts we put into it and despite the fact that I believe we would be – our security would be better off. We’re not there. We’ll have to see if we can close —

    QUESTION: Is time running out?

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: And time is getting extremely short. But this is something that we’ll be talking to our European partners about this afternoon and then over the course of the next day. We’ve been working in very close coordination with the Europeans, with the European Union, with France, with Germany, with the UK.

    So we’ll see where we get. I continue to believe it would be in the best interests of our country if we can get back into compliance with the deal, if Iran will do the same. We’re not there.

    QUESTION: Thank you very much, Mr. Secretary. Thanks for your patience.

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thanks, Andrea.

    QUESTION: Good to see you.

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: You as well. Thanks.

  8. Establishment of the Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy

    04/04/2022 07:33 AM EDT

    State Department Office of the Spokesperson

    The Department is pleased to announce that the Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy (CDP) began operations today. A key piece of Secretary Blinken’s modernization agenda, the CDP bureau will address the national security challenges, economic opportunities, and implications for U.S. values associated with cyberspace, digital technologies, and digital policy.

    The CDP bureau includes three policy units: International Cyberspace Security, International Information and Communications Policy, and Digital Freedom. Ultimately, the bureau will be led by a Senate-confirmed Ambassador-at-Large. Starting today, Jennifer Bachus, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, is serving as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the CDP bureau. PDAS Bachus will serve as Senior Bureau Official until an Ambassador-at-Large is confirmed. Michele Markoff is serving as Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Cyberspace Security, Stephen Anderson is serving as Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Information and Communications Policy, and Blake Peterson is serving as Acting Digital Freedom Coordinator.

    The Department appreciates the service and collaboration of all who will work with and within the CDP bureau in the coming months and years to empower it to achieve its vital mission.

  9. Biden is in China’s pocket. Putin has no respect for Biden. Our armed forces are no linger able to protect us.We are in trouble as a country.

  10. The “New World Order” Joe Biden has been touting for decades, and again celebrated this month, is a dangerous vision of “global governance” in which individual liberty and national sovereignty are eroded.

    1. Already a World economy, everything is interconnected now. Has been for a long time. Turning inward = Democracy in retreat. USA tried that before, it didn’t work.

    2. Biden has never once uttered the words “New World Order.” That phrase was created in the 90s by Trump’s pro-wrestling buddy McMahon.

  11. Biden is FAR Smarter, or Maybe Dr Jill IS in selecting Kamala as VP. THINK Anyone REALLY wants to Impose the 25th Amendment to have a Harris Presidency?

  12. Men are men and women are women. That’s like saying a neutered male dog is now a female and a spayed female is now a male. Just because surgery has been done doesn’t change the original sex of the organism.

    1. Only biological females should be participating in women’s sports!

      How sad is it that we even have terms like “biological female” and “biological male”? I want my sane world back!

    2. Plenty of “biological men” aren’t men at all. Like the ones who keep whining about “biological women.”

  13. Critical Race Theory, is the systematic indoctrination of America’s children, and citizens – preaching and exclusively teaching them, to judge people based on the color of their skin, or their inherited ethnic genetics.

    1. What all of us need to realize is that we know about CRT, but they’ll just rename it and try to shame anyone courageous enough to stand up to their bullying remarks.

    2. CRT is something the right goes ballistic over because they want their base to believe it is being taught in our schools. It isn’t.

  14. These people who have supported open borders, the influx of killing drugs, rebellion and murder in our cities, and have called us all racists. Now, they are deciding who can express an opinion and call anyone who disagrees with them IMMORAL and a Putin puppet?

  15. Is Joe leaving? Replaced by,,,,,,,Hillary, Wait for it, “Kammie” is ill equipped for the job; here we go, Hillary & Kammie. walking hand & hand in the Oval Office in their pants suits, shake me, I’m having an awake nightmare!!!

  16. Twelve staffers have jumped ship from the Harris office. Is the kitchen too hot, or is the ship sinking.

    1. It appears that more swamp rats are abandoning the ship of state to escape that fishy smell emanating from the White House.

    1. The American people need to be reimbursed for the sham Mueller investigation! What a disgrace, It’s the Demonrats who pushed the fake impeachment that need to be removed from office.

  17. The yard in Mason city has become a joke. Pitching machines don’t work and haven’t been fixed. Baseballs are junk and if you have a membership you can’t use it because they set up leagues, clinics and the have teams book the facility so it is almost impossible to use. Save your money it is not a very good deal.

  18. CNN
    Biden has canceled $17 billion in student loan debt, without scoring a political win, at the expense of the American taxpayer, who’s already struggling with the high cost of everything.

  19. Mason City Community School District Board of Education |
    4/6/2022, 4:00 PM
    Special Session Agenda
    Administrative Center Board Room

    AGENDA
    I. CALL TO ORDER
    II. ROLL CALL
    III. APPROVAL OF AGENDA

    IV. PUBLIC HEARING – 2022-2023 CERTIFIED BUDGET — 4:00 P.M.
    A. Approval of 2022-2023 Certified Annual BudgetSupporting Docs/Links attached to this item

    V. ACTION ITEMS
    A. Reduction in Force Provisions of the Employee HandbookSupporting Docs/Links attached to this item
    B. 2021-22 Licensed Employee Reduction-in-Force PlanSupporting Docs/Links attached to this item
    C. Approval of 2022-2023 Salary Increases for Non-bargained EmployeesSupporting Docs/Links attached to this item
    D. Approval of 2022-2023 Salary for Building Administrators and SupervisorsSupporting Docs/Links attached to this item
    E. Approval of 2022-2023 Salary for District AdministratorsSupporting Docs/Links attached to this item
    VI. ADJOURNMENT

  20. Say it isn’t so, Daily Mail: Kamala Harris goes MASKLESS surrounded by kids continuing to wear them. Do as I say, not as I do….

  21. Due to the impending weather later this afternoon, the following events have been cancelled or postponed for Mason City Schools:
    *MCHS GTrack Meet here has been cancelled.
    *7th/8th MS GTrack Meet @ North Polk has been cancelled.
    *GTennis here vs. Des Moines Hoover has been postponed to May 2nd.
    *BTennis @ Des Moines Hoover has been postponed to May 2nd.
    *GGolf vs. Ankeny @ Mason City Country Club has been postponed to April 14th.

  22. North Iowa Concert Band to Present Spring Concert:

    The North Iowa Area Community College Instrumental Music Department is celebrating 40 years! The North Iowa Concert Band, under the direction of Justin Smiley-Oyen, will present a Spring Concert on Tuesday, April 12 at 7:30 p.m. in the North Iowa Community Auditorium on the North Iowa Area Community College campus.

    Tickets for the performance are $5 and are available at the NIACC Business Office (641) 422-4188. Tickets can also be purchased at the door the night of the concert.

  23. MASON CITY:

    Highland Park Golf Course will be open for season pass holders and daily play guests. Clubhouse will remain open from 8am to last golfer/sunset.

  24. Woke” corrupt politicians, Teacher union, Teachers, CEO’s and corporations like Disney are hell-bent on indoctrinating your children with their radical race and gender ideologies.

  25. The MC School Board did away with a so-called RACIAL defined Indian name logo (Mohawk) to replace it with a different RACIAL defined Indian name (Riverhawk)!!
    Stupidly is alive and well in the school board…

      1. Drove down river road the other day, heard some hawks squeaking and squealing, has to be because they’re offended somehow.

  26. SOONER Or Later Biden’s going to Open HIS Big Gaffing YAP & WERE Going to be in an Actual Shooting WAR!

    1. You don’t have to fire a precious gun to be in a war… we’ve been under attack from China and Putin for years, not to mention other countries. PS, USA killed at least 400 Russian soldiers in Syria, you think that was by sending them Valentines?

  27. GALLUP:
    Afghans’ Lives in Tailspin After Taliban’s Return
    Life was already extremely difficult in Afghanistan before the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, but Gallup surveys detail unprecedented suffering among Afghans as the U.S. withdrew and the Taliban took over.

  28. Black Lives Matter Secretly Bought a $6 Million House. Please keep donating so you can get them out of poverty.

  29. A year-and-a-half later, the laptop’s contents are part of reporting on what the Washington Post called “the ways in which his family profited from relationships built over Joe Biden’s decades in public service” and how what the New York Times says “his professional life has intersected with his father’s public service.”
    Russia Russia Russia

  30. MASON CITY:

    Residents may set out one 33 gallon container or 33 gallon garbage bag that weighs no more than 50 pounds. Any additional bag(s) no larger than 33 gallons with a weight of no more than 50 pounds can be set out with a disposal sticker placed on the stem of each bag.

    Remember the numbers: 33/50 (33 gallon limit garbage bag size and 50 pound maximum weight of each bag).

    City staff reserves the right to refuse pick-up of sanitation bags due to violation of size of bag and/or weight of bag. If you receive this yellow tag, your garbage and refuse bags or cans are too big and will not be collected.

    Remember to have sanitation, yard waste, and recyclable items out by 7:00 a.m. to ensure your items will be picked up.

    For more information contact the Sanitation Division at (641) 421-3691.

  31. NOPE:
    U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R) said Monday he would not support Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court and is a NO vote.

        1. so, the rest of the story indicates he’s racist, or you just threw that out there to start trouble and make $$$$

          1. He did not like her light sentences on criminals or some of her responses. Doesn’t think she can be impartial on the bench

          2. Is there anything wrong with that? Should we release all criminals, since most of them are African Americans?

          3. “He doesn’t think she can be impartial on the bench” is laughable. He voted for Coney-Barrett, Kavanaugh and Thomas.

            1. “He doesn’t think” … yes he does, only when his socialist paychecks are on the line.

      1. There are much more qualified judges….. men, women, white, Black, Brown….. it has to be about qualifications and not preconceived ideologies, or race or sex……….

        1. This was Marj Three Names’ talking point on Twitter yesterday – her epic hate rant made the news, as is her goal each time. Do you have a rational thought of your own? By the way, Biden can only pick one person to fill a SCOTUS vacancy at a time. Jackson’s qualification hold up as compared to the other current Justices, esp. the last two, who were definitely way less qualified.

      2. Biden HAD to have a Black Woman VP, & We’ve SEEN how THAT’S Worked OUT! NOW nominates a Black Woman SCOTUS Judge Who Apparently since SHE’S Not a Biologist can’t explain or doesn’t KNOW what a Woman IS even after having 2 Kids of Her Own.

        1. VP’s don’t do much anyway, it seems like. Sure, they have their functions untied Senate votes and chain of command should the President drop off. Otherwise, it seems like their impact is limited.

        2. Your use of capitals here and there show that you aren’t one we should listen to because you obviously don’t have much education.

      3. Grassley was (is?) a runner, he will live to 105 and stay perched in DC till then. Grooming his Grandbaby Boy to fill his seat. That kid’s eyes are too close together.

  32. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report on Mitigation
    04/04/2022 11:07 AM EDT

    Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

    This morning’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report on mitigation makes clear what we can do to stop or slow planetary warming. The report also reveals how current global efforts to mitigate the climate crisis fall far short of what is needed. Without full implementation of current national pledges and robust, aggressive, and ambitious further action we cannot keep the 1.5 degrees Celsius goal within reach.

    That is why we have called this the decisive decade. The IPCC found there are options available now, in all sectors, that can halve global emissions by 2030 – from improving energy efficiency, to halting and reversing global deforestation, to deploying more sustainable transportation and clean energy. There are ways to improve our chances of success, including more effective decision-making across all levels of government, increased alignment of financial flows with climate outcomes, and enhanced international cooperation.

    The report also tells us there is reason for hope. The IPCC found we are making some progress towards the needed reductions in carbon emissions. With actions already taken, and the pledges made under the Paris Agreement through COP26, we can get closer to limiting warming to 2 degrees Celsius, and with additional effort we can keep 1.5 degrees Celsius within reach.

    That is why the Administration has made tackling the climate crisis a central part of its agenda from Day One. The President’s FY 2023 budget request to Congress includes more than $11 billion in international climate finance to avert the worst impacts of climate change and to support developing countries in taking more ambitious climate action.

    This report makes it clear: the tools to stave off the worst impacts of the climate crisis are firmly within our grasp. Nations of the world must be brave enough to use them.

      1. I wonder what Kerry did or is hiding from the American People ? Must be pretty bad if Kerry is gonna hide the documents for another two and a half years ?

  33. Secretary Antony J. Blinken At the Unveiling of a Bronze Bust in Honor of Former Secretary of State James Baker
    04/04/2022 02:08 PM EDT

    Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

    Washington, D.C.

    National Museum of American Diplomacy

    MODERATOR: Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Secretary of State accompanied by the 61st Secretary of State, James Baker, and Ms. Susan Cleary. (Applause.)

    MS CLEARY: Mr. Secretary, former Secretary of State Baker, Special Envoy Kerry, ambassadors, distinguished guests, colleagues, and friends, we’re so delighted to have you here today and we thank you for your support for the National Museum of American Diplomacy. I’m Susan Cleary, the acting director.

    We are the first and we are the only museum dedicated to the story of American diplomacy, its history, its practice, its challenges, its lessons, and the fascinating people who make it happen. And we – it is a story we believe is not well-known and not well enough appreciated.

    So today we’re here to unveil a specially commissioned bust of former Secretary of State James A. Baker, III, that will be part of our permanent collection. Secretary Baker, you’ve been a steadfast supporter of the museum, a major donor. We thank you for being here today; we thank your family and friends for being with us as well. It’s very meaningful. Thank you.

    Now, our ambition is to complete the long-planned 40,000-square-foot public museum exhibition space here in our nation’s capital, and it’s right here around this wall that our main entry to our exhibitions will be our exhibit halls. And so, every visitor to the future museum and visitor to the State Department who comes through this door entrance will pass this beautiful work of art that commemorates the historic contributions of Secretary Baker.

    Now, we’re delighted to have with us today the talented Swedish artist Johan Falkman, who created this work. Johan is a renowned portrait painter and sculptor. Secretary Baker has not yet seen the bust, but I have and I have to say, Johan, it’s beautiful. Congratulations. It’s such an accomplishment.

    I’d especially like to acknowledge Secretary Baker’s friends, the philanthropists Dan and Christine Olafsson, and it’s through your generosity that this work was commissioned and is donated to our permanent collection. Thank you so much, Dan and Christine.

    And I want to thank, of course, the Diplomacy Center Foundation. We have the chairman and the president here, and we have so many of the distinguished members who have been with us along the way building this museum. Thank you all for what you do for our joint project.

    And Mr. Secretary, we especially appreciate having you here today with us. At this moment of heightened awareness of the central importance of U.S. diplomacy to international stability and security, it’s so meaningful that you are able to take time to participate.

    Secretary Blinken and former Secretary Baker come from different backgrounds, different generations, and, yes, different political parties. And yet, in their tenures, they’ve been asked to confront momentous challenges that demanded the most of Americans statecraft and diplomatic leadership.

    And so, with that, I would like to invite you both up, to come and to unveil the bust of Secretary Baker. Thank you. (Applause.)

    SECRETARY BLINKEN: All right. (Applause.)

    Susan, thank you so much. And to everyone here today, this is a special moment. Jim, welcome home. To the leaders of the Diplomacy Center Foundation, including my longtime colleague and friend Tom Pickering, Ambassador Popadiuk, thank you. It’s wonderful to have you back in this building as well. And it is simply an honor to have an opportunity, Mr. Secretary, to hail you in this moment. To all the Baker family who are here with us today, thank you so much for joining us. I know your most trusted diplomatic advisor is your wife, Susan. Grateful for her. Three of your eight children are with us today: Colter, Doug, and Jamie, and their partners as well. We so welcome having you back.

    I know that the Secretary’s years of public service, not just here but in other institutions in Washington, demanded a lot from all of you. The sacrifices that you made were major contributions to the success that he had and that our country has had as a result. So, on behalf of the American people, thank you, each and every one of you, to the Baker family.

    S, growing up, as I’ve read it, Jim’s grandfather, Captain Baker, gave him this advice: Work hard, study hard, and stay out of politics. (Laughter.) For four decades he managed to do that, but Jim, by your telling, it was the tragic loss of your first wife, Mary Stuart, and the advice of a dear friend, George H.W. Bush, that led you to break the family maxim and putting you on the path, as my dear friend Tom Donilon once said so aptly, to becoming, simply put, the most important unelected official in America since World War II.

    The Secretary is the only person to have served as chief of staff to two presidents. He directed five presidential campaigns. He was Secretary of the Treasury in that other building down the street. (Laughter.) But, as I’ve seen written, and as I think I know from hearing you speak, there was no job that he loved more than being Secretary of State. And he showed exceptional leadership in guiding the foreign policy of our country with a lasting impact on this country and on the world.

    James Baker served as Secretary of State for 43 months. I think it’s safe to say that there are few times in history when the world has changed so profoundly – what you called, Jim, a whirlwind of history – or, as you said late one night in April 1991 to a young staffer by the name of Bill Burns, sitting in a rundown hotel in the Caucasus, “Have you ever seen so many things changing so damn fast?” During that period, the Soviet Union disintegrated without conflict. The Berlin Wall fell. The U.S. and the USSR undertook the most significant reduction ever in nuclear arms. Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait was swiftly routed. The Madrid Conference made visible for the first time a horizon of Middle East peace.

    We were talking about this just a short while ago: It’s easy looking back at hinge moments in history to view these seismic shifts as somehow inevitable, particularly when the world moves from conflict and toward peace, away from autocracy and toward democracy. But to study those 43 months is to learn that these outcomes were anything but certain. The arc of history bent the way it did because people bent it, and no one more so than Secretary Baker.

    Like on November 9th, 1989, when Secretary Baker was hosting a luncheon upstairs in the Ben Franklin Room for President Aquino of the Philippines, he was handed a folded note informing him that the Berlin Wall was coming down. As he rushed over to the White House, he scribbled notes that read: “Something we wanted for 40 years – Europe that’s whole and free, reunification on the basis of Western values.”

    Now, that last part was very uncertain. Secretary Baker not only immediately saw where he wanted to end up – a democratic, reunited Germany – he cleared the path to get there. He staked out the principles that Germans, not outside powers, should get to determine their own future, and that Germany should be reunited within NATO, and then methodically brought our allies and the Soviets around to these positions.

    President George H.W. Bush, your doubles partner on the Houston tennis courts and professional partner in so much of life, summed up your leadership best. The President said: “He acted while others were still struggling to comprehend, and he got things done.”

    As I’ve tried to look at those who have held this job before me, the thing that struck me so much about you, Jim, is this ability to have a vision for where you wanted to go, and then figuring out a way to get there. It’s an extraordinary and rare combination, and one that inspires me every single day.

    How you got things done is something I try to learn from every day and diplomats will continue to study for generations. And if I can, I just want to take a moment to suggest at least three lessons that I take from reading and learning about you.

    First of all, diplomacy ultimately comes down to relationships. And building the trust at the core of those relationships takes time. It takes effort. It takes empathy. As you later wrote, “To persuade , it is often helpful to put in their shoes.”

    Now, I had some opportunity also to see that in practice when I served as John Kerry’s deputy. I saw the kinds of relationships that he built, the effort that, John, you put into this day in and day out. And it’s a very, very powerful lesson, and I’ve been inspired by both of you in trying to follow in those footsteps.

    Jim, you understood that to advance our interests and values, you had to get to know your counterparts beyond the negotiating table, to understand what drove them and what they were up against.

    And I think there’s no better example – we had a chance to talk about this a little – than the friendship that you built with the then-Soviet foreign minister, Eduard Shevernadze.

    In the summer of 1989, you took the unprecedented step then of inviting him to your ranch in Wyoming. You met in Washington that fall. You broke protocol by flying together to Jackson Hole rather than taking separate planes. And on board, you shared a meal and talked for the hours of that flight.

    Over the coming days, the Secretary took Shevardnadze fishing on the Snake River. I got an account of who caught what, or who didn’t catch what. (Laughter.) And as I understand it, gave him a pair of custom black cowboy boots made in Houston. Shevy, as you took to calling him, later invited you to come fishing with him in Siberia.

    That relationship was at the foundation for so many of the historic steps that were taken by our two nations. And I suggest that if not for the trust that you were able to build, the Soviet foreign minister may not have been willing to stand side by side with you at Moscow airport to jointly denounce Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait – the first time the great powers spoke together on a seminal foreign policy issue, an act that was seen as a bookend to the Cold War.

    Second, Secretary Baker understood that while American leadership was indispensable to tackling global challenges, we need allies, we need partners, to get the job done. And those relationships have to be built. They have to be nurtured.

    That was how Secretary Baker assembled the coalition to stand up to Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. Ahead of the November 1990 vote at the UN Security Council authorizing the use of force against Iraq, the Secretary recognized the importance of rallying the broadest possible coalition. So, he wanted to meet with every head of state or foreign minister from every country on the Security Council, 15 of them including us. He had three weeks to do it.

    In that time, he traveled to 12 countries on three continents. And he didn’t just show up; he practiced the five P’s that his father had taught him: “Prior preparation prevents poor performance.” So that’s another I’m inscribing on my own desk. That preparation allowed him to meet each country where it was, bringing to bear the right combination of persuasion, charm, and maybe just a little bit of pressure too.

    Ultimately, 12 Security Council members voted for the resolution.

    Third, while the Secretary was a master at getting things done, he never lost sight of the principles guiding his actions. He wrote, and I quote, “an American political diplomat should always remember that power divorced from the purposes valued by our democracy will ultimately prove empty.” Jim, I suspect that’s one of the reasons you loved being Secretary.

    You could use that gift for getting things done to advance the values that you believed in most and that represented everything that’s good about this country. Yes, we all know the secretary could whip votes and run a campaign better than anyone. I can attest to that. I worked for Michael Dukakis in 1988. (Laughter.) But the greatest campaign he ever waged was for a more secure, a more peaceful world.

    So once again we find ourselves in a whirlwind of history. A more assertive China is challenging the rules-based international order that has long been the foundation of security and prosperity for Americans and people around the world. The post-Cold War era has ended. Russia has invaded a neighbor. It’s reverted to almost totalitarian repression at home. It’s threatening even to use nuclear weapons.

    As we navigate this time, few models are more fitting to follow than the model set by Jim Baker. In the office that I now have the privilege of occupying, Secretary Baker kept a small plaque on his desk given to him by President Reagan, and it said, “It CAN be done,” with the word “can” in capital letters. Secretary Baker is, has always been a realist, but he’s never lost faith in America, in our values, and in our capacity when we’re at our best to make the world a little bit better as long as we remember the purpose behind our power.

    Mr. Secretary, today, on behalf of this department, on behalf of our country, thank you. Thank you for showing us how it can be done. Thank you for inspiring us across the years and across generations. Thank you for being such a great leader for this country and for this department. Mr. Secretary. (Applause.)

    SECRETARY BAKER: Thank you, Mr. Secretary, for an extraordinarily generous – those extraordinarily generous remarks. They are – they may very well be over the top. You were kind to say that I could get some things done. I didn’t get much done. I had a really good crew that got things done for me and with me, and some of them are here today and I’m delighted to see them. I appreciate the fact that all of you are here. This is a signal honor for me to have my bust in the lobby of the department, and particularly here in the Museum of Diplomacy.

    I’m really honored, if I may say so, Tony, that you would take time out of your busy schedule to be here, and I want to thank you for those extraordinarily generous words. Ladies and gentlemen, I don’t think there’s been a moment in recent history when effective diplomacy has not – has been needed any more than it’s needed right now. And we were talking about this in the Secretary’s office. We all know the winds of war are blowing hard in Ukraine, where citizens there are making some quite heroic efforts to maintain their independence. Protecting their freedoms while also making sure that the violence doesn’t spread – that we don’t trigger something else, is a really daunting task for the West – the West led, as usual, by the United States.

    I think this crisis once again proves the critical importance of American leadership, and I told the Secretary that I really support and agree with the steps that have been taken in facing up to this problem. I think they’ve done a masterful job. I think it’s too soon to declare victory. Some people are inclined to declare victory right now, some commentators. I think it’s too soon for that. But the fact remains that the United States is and still will remain for some time a force for international peace and stability.

    And so, Mr. Secretary, I want you to know that you and our country have my full support as you and the dedicated officers of this wonderful department continue to lead our country’s diplomatic efforts during this challenging time. And it is a challenging time, and you’re doing a splendid job.

    I also want to express my deep appreciation to Dan Olofsson for finally bringing this event to fruition after the COVID pandemic put planning for it on hold for over two years. I first met Dan when he invited me to Malmö, Sweden in 2017 for a public conversation with Carl Bildt, the former prime minister of that country. Now, I may be a bit biased, because Dan has commissioned this bust of me, but I want you all to know how much I admire him. He is a very successful entrepreneur who is interested in building a better world, not just making money. His philanthropic commitment is best evidenced, I think, by the organization Star for Life, which he and his wife Christin launched in 2005 to prevent AIDS among young people in Africa. We are also honored, Christin, to have you here today.

    Their foundation works to strengthen young people’s self-esteem and belief in the future. So, congratulations, Dan and Christin, and congratulations as well, Johan Falkman, to you – a sculptor, a talented sculptor. You have a wonderful gift, Johan: the ability to bring joy and understanding through your art. So, thank you also for honoring me as one of your subjects.

    Now, this event would not be possible without the National Museum of American Diplomacy. The history, the practice, and the challenges of American diplomacy tell a real success story, I think, of the American experiment. This museum is going to keep that story alive.

    Our nation has long been overdue, I think, for a museum that highlights the important role that diplomacy plays in our foreign and security policy. I’ve been told that there are 18 large museums dedicated to our armed forces and wars that we have fought, and perhaps as many as 400 smaller ones. And now I am very, very proud to be associated with this one that recognizes the importance and the success of diplomacy.

    And since we’re talking about the importance of diplomacy, I want to recognize my late friend whom the Secretary mentioned and former boss, and yes, former tennis doubles partner, George H.W. Bush. I told people I had an easy job. The secretary of state can’t find himself separated from his president, and there was never any chance of that with me, because I had a president who was a friend, close friend, for 40 years. He was my daughter’s godfather, and I carried him on the tennis courts. (Laughter.) So, there was never going to be – not only that, I ran all of his campaigns. So, he and I were never going to see any space between us.

    But I want to say nobody – in my view, nobody understood foreign policy, nor practiced it, as well as President Bush. He was a star at that. He knew it, he understood it, and he knew what to do and when to do it. And were it not for George Bush, this bust of me would not be here today.

    I’d like to end my remarks today, sadly, by saying a few words about another friend and great American, one of my successors as secretary of state: the incomparable Madeleine Albright.

    Madeleine was intelligent, she was savvy, she was charming, and I can tell you – because she did some politics, too – she could be brutally frank when the moment demanded it. But above all, she understood the important place that American diplomacy has in global affairs. We are going to greatly miss Madeleine and her wit and candor. Most of all, I think we will miss her contribution to our nation and to the practice of diplomacy.

    Thank you all for being here. Thank you for supporting this museum of diplomacy. Mr. Secretary, thank you again for those extraordinarily generous remarks. Dan, Christin, and Johan, thank you for being here and making today such a memorable one for me.

    Thank you all. (Applause.)

  34. Joint Meeting of the Boards of Directors of
    Central Rivers Area Education Agency, Hawkeye Community College,
    Iowa Valley Community College District, and North Iowa Area Community College Wednesday, April 6, 2022 at 4:30 p.m.
    Hosted by North Iowa Area Community College via Zoom (Meeting ID: 980 5817 8400) By
    phone: •
    • • •
    312.626.6799, and at the following locations:
    Central Rivers Area Education Agency – 1521 Technology Parkway, Cedar Falls, IA Hawkeye Community College, Hawkeye Center, Conference Room, 1501 E. Orange Road, Waterloo IA 50701
    Iowa Valley Community College District, District Administration Building Board Room, 3702 South Center Street, Marshalltown, IA 50158
    North Iowa Area Community College, Pierce Administration Building, Room 100, 500 College Drive, Mason City, Iowa
    TENTATIVE AGENDA
    Welcome:
    Dr. Steve Schulz, President, North Iowa Area Community College
    Introductions:
    Dr. Steve Schulz, President, North Iowa Area Community College
    Dr. Kristie Fisher, Chancellor, Iowa Valley Community College District
    Dr. Todd Holcomb, President, Hawkeye Community College
    Dr. Sam Miller, Chief Administrator, Central Rivers Area Education Agency
    Updates:
    Dr. Sam Miller
    Dr. Kristie Fisher Dr. Todd Holcomb Dr. Steve Schulz
    Wrap Up:
    Dr. Steve Schulz
    Adjournment

  35. Here’s the list of 2021 new vehicle sales in the U.S., as gathered by Cox Automotive:

    Ford F-150—726,004 sold
    Ram 1500—569,388 sold
    Chevy Silverado—519,774 sold
    Toyota RAV4—407,739 sold
    Honda CR-V—361,271 sold

    Average mileage for the first 3 – about 15 mpg.
    Don’t complain about gas prices if you aren’t concerned about your vehicle’s mpg.

        1. Will that matter when you yourself are incapable of loading them into the truck?

          PS: you don’t own any of these things, we already know this.

      1. You should be saving for your electric vehicle, don’t you think?

        PS historically, gas prices have been higher than now.

        PSS get a bike.

    1. Who cares! I’m rich! I leave all my 5 vehicles running all night so I can put more gas in them!

      1. Not that far-fetched. Get 11 miles per gallon and complain about price of gas. Pay big auto reg. fees to boot on these behemoth trucks. But ya, gas prices are out of control, they can blame someone for that, it is like a sport for these bored, hateful rubes.

  36. GALLUP: In U.S., Life Ratings Drop to 13-Month Low
    An estimated 53.2% of U.S. adults rate their lives well enough to be categorized as “thriving,” the lowest level measured since January 2021.

  37. Mason City Community School District:

    The Board of Education will meet in a Committee of the Whole work/study session at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 4, 2022, in the Board Room of the Administrative Center, 1515 S. Pennsylvania Ave., Mason City, Iowa.
    AGENDA AGENDA
    I. Preview of 2022-2023 Certified Budget Supporting Docs/Links attached to this item
    II. Curriculum Adoption Update
    III. Employee Handbook – Reduction in Force Procedures

  38. Progress Iowa Executive Director Matt Sinovic issued the following statement in response to pandemic-related increased SNAP benefits ending in Iowa:

    “No matter what we look like or where we live, Iowans want to make a good living, take care of our families, and feel safe and connected to our communities.

    “But right now, many of us are struggling to make ends meet. The things that cost and matter the most — a roof over our heads, childcare for our kids, healthcare for our families — have long been put out of reach. From groceries to the gas pump, prices are on the rise. At the same time, wealthy corporations and billionaires are raking in record profits, while Corporate Kim Reynolds provides them massive tax cuts.

    “Gov. Reynolds’ decision to let our state emergency health proclamation expire and end increased SNAP benefits, is another gut-punch for hardworking Iowa families. These enhanced benefits allowed stock up on much-needed items rather than merely scraping by each month.

    “We need real leaders who stand with working people – not those who hand out kickbacks to corporations. We need to pass laws to stop corporate price gouging, raise our wages and make sure families are able to afford the things they need.”

  39. GALLUP:

    U.S. public approval of the job Congress is doing remains scarce, with 21% approving in March.

  40. MASON CITY:

    The yard waste collection season will begin Monday, April 4, 2022. Residents may set out yard waste and tree branches on the day of garbage pick-up. Several methods of disposal are available for yard waste:

    LEAVES
    1. Compost at home.
    2. Drop off at landfill compost site 15942 Killdeer Avenue, Clear Lake.
    3. Place at curbside prior to 7 a.m. on garbage collection day in 30 gallon biodegradable bags which are weather and animal resistant. Bags are available at grocery and retail stores.

    GRASS CLIPPINGS
    1. Leave them on your yard – does not cause thatch. Reduces amount of fertilizer needed.
    2. Use as mulch.
    3. Place at curbside prior to 7 a.m. on garbage collection day in 30 gallon biodegradable paper bags.
    There is a 50 pound limit per bag of leaves and grass clippings.

    BRANCHES
    (Do not place in biodegradable bags.)
    For branches smaller than 4 inches in diameter:
    1. Chip for mulch.
    2. Tie in bundles.
    a) Bundles cannot be bigger than 18 inches in diameter or 4 feet in length.
    b) Do not use wire.
    c) Place at street curb by 7 a.m. on garbage collection day.
    3. Take to landfill.

    For branches larger than 4 inches in diameter:
    1. Chip for mulch.
    2. Take to landfill.

    AS A REMINDER, PLEASE HAVE GARBAGE AND YARD WASTE ITEMS SET OUT FOR PICK UP BY 7:00 A.M.

  41. NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF MASON CITY IN THE STATE OF IOWA, ON THE MATTER OF THE PROPOSAL TO ENTER INTO A FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE AGREEMENT FOR PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT WITH SBMC, LLC, AND THE HEARING THEREON
    PUBLIC NOTICE is hereby given that the Council of the City of Mason City in the State of Iowa, will hold a public hearing on April 5, 2022, at 7:00 P.M., at which meeting the Council proposes to take action on the proposal to enter into a First Amendment to the Agreement for Private Development (the “First Amendment”) with SBMC, LLC (the “Developer”).
    On June 3, 2021, the City and Developer entered into an Agreement for Private Development (the “Original Agreement”) pursuant to which the Developer agreed to complete certain improvements to the Southbridge Mall property located within the Mason City Downtown Reinvestment Urban Renewal Area (the “Development Property”), provided Developer purchased the Development Property from its current owner. In connection with the Agreement, the Developer and City agreed to a minimum assessed value of $30,000,000 for the buildings on the Development Property pursuant to a related Minimum Assessment Agreement, and the City agreed to provide up to 10 annual payments of Economic Development Grants to Developer (consisting of 250% of the Tax Increments, pursuant to Section 403.19, Code of Iowa, generated by the construction of the Minimum Improvements, not to exceed $12,750,000).

    The City and Developer now desire to amend the Original Agreement, pursuant to the terms and conditions set forth in the First Amendment, to: (i) delay certain dates, including the start of the Minimum Assessment Agreement; (ii) provide for the division of the Development Property to create an “Arena Property” lot around the portion of the Development Property that the City currently leases for the Multi-Purpose Arena, which Arena Property would be conveyed by Developer to the City for $1.00; and (iii) provide for the conveyance to the City of a portion of the Development Property for right-of-way purposes.

    Pursuant to the First Amendment, the City would also agree to pay rent that is anticipated to become due under the lease between the City and the current owner of the Development Property for the Multi-Purpose Arena to an escrow agent, to be disbursed to Developer and the current owner of the Development Property upon the Development Property being redeemed from tax sale and current with all real estate taxes.

    The First Amendment further proposes that the City would advance the payment of the first two Economic Development Grants and that the amount of each of the first two Economic Development Grants would be $200,000.

    The First Amendment would further require the City to provide a guaranty of up to $3,900,000 related to Developer’s financing for Developer’s acquisition of the Development Property.

    A copy of the First Amendment is on file for public inspection during regular business hours in the office of the City Clerk, City Hall, City of Mason City, Iowa.
    At the above meeting the Council shall receive oral or written objections from any resident or property owner of said City, to the proposal to enter into the First Amendment with the Developer. After all objections have been received and considered, the Council will at this meeting or at any adjournment thereof, take additional action on the proposal or will abandon the proposal to authorize said First Amendment.
    This notice is given by order of the City Council of the City of Mason City in the State of Iowa, as provided by Section 364.6, Code of Iowa.
    Dated this 5th day of April, 2022.

    /s/Aaron Burnett
    City Clerk, City of Mason City in the State of Iowa

    (End of Notice)

  42. Turkey hunters reminded – new law allowing .410 becomes effective on July 1
    The Iowa Legislature recently passed a law allowing .410s as a legal method of take to hunt wild turkeys. This new law will be effective beginning July 1, 2022, and DNR will develop rules to implement the new law.

    “This is just a reminder to our hunters that our seasons and regulations are set up to a year ahead of time and, like other regulations changes, we incorporate the new laws into our upcoming seasons,” said Todd Bishop, chief of wildlife for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

    Laws passed by the Iowa Legislature become effective on July 1, unless specifically written to become effective upon the governor’s signature.

    Iowa’s spring turkey season begins April 8 with the youth only season, followed by the general turkey hunting seasons.

  43. Stacker:

    Nearly 580,000 people in the US don’t have a home.

    But open the gates, all are welcome!!!!!

    1. Shouldn’t they “get a job” and “not be a deadbeat” etc etc etc? Couldn’t they fry your burgers and serve your fries to pay their rent?

      1. Couldn’t they work for you as field reporters working along the border. Maybe then we’d get the truth, maybe…

        1. Which border? I’m not that interested in the Southern border, if that’s the one you’re referring to. We have border patrol, checkpoints, the TX Natl Guard, armed citizens, local police, county police, state police and a wonderful wall paid for by Mexico to keep the baddies out.

  44. Coming soon to America.
    “Millions of Brits plunged into fuel poverty on Friday as household energy bills surge”
    Thanks to this administration.

    1. Biden begged the greedy oil companies to drill, and he is releasing millions of barrels of stockpiled oil into supply. What’s your solution?

      PS: Energy bills have been surging in USA for years, don’t you get an Alliant statement?

        1. “President Joe Biden will order the release of 1 million barrels of oil per day from the nation’s strategic reserves and urge Congress to press the oil industry to increase drilling on federal lands in bid to tame high gasoline prices.”

          LINK

          URGE ~ BEG … pretty close, bud.

  45. Yesterday 193 Republicans voted against lowering the copays for insulin, the drug necessary to keep the 30 million Americans who live with diabetes alive.

        1. A stand alone bill.
          Here is what one said “Today it’s the government fixing the price of insulin. What’s next?” Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) said during debate on the bill. “Gas? Food? History tells us that price-fixing doesn’t work.”
          Matt Gaetz R-Fla said people in the US are too fat. Lose weight, less insulin.

        2. What bill in Congress isn’t loaded with pork?

          PS, you were already told why they voted against it.

    1. When will you and the rest of the trumpanzees wake up to the fact that all of this is B. S. dreamed up by the former liar in chief?

          1. If you could only read critically and possess some comprehension skills you would know that the Mueller report showed that Russian collusion.

            1. Common sense tells anyone who actually possess it that Trump and Russia have deep ties, Russia wanted him to win, Trump asked for their help and accepted it – he did this in plain sight on TV. GOP Senators vacationed in Russia. Trump let Russian terrorists into the White House. The list is long…

          2. yes, millions of taxpayer dollars spent on that fiasco. unfortunately, 81 million believed the lie.

          3. There was (still is) much Russia collusion on the right. Currently, they serve as Putin’s mouthpiece and star in his nightly “newscasts” for the poor Russian people who are as mis-lead as rural Iowans are. Previously, the right served up America to Putin on a silver platter and he gleefully sopped it up with a Trump biscuit.

      1. pull your head out of your ass and turn on the tv, even mainstream media is finally admitting it.

        1. Yes, they are admitting it and reporting on it. The right wing networks however don’t report on any of the trump cartel’s excursions into lawbreaking.

          1. finally!!! do you even know/realize/comprehend whats going on??? 81 million cant be wrong, or can you???

        2. CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS and NBC all reported this week how the years-long DOJ probe into Hunter Biden’s finances is “heating up” as witnesses continue to give their testimony. President Biden’s son is being investigated for potentially violating tax and foreign lobbying laws as well as alleged money laundering.

          1. Appears to be a tax probe. That can’t be fun. Is that anything like defrauding a cancer charity, or a college, or an inauguration?

    2. Looks like a tax case thus far. Evidently, HB may not be perfect or even a great guy. Most people don’t really care until it’s shown he did something real, like commit treason, or try and overthrow the government, or cheat hardworking Americans in fraud after fraud after fraud…

  46. Winsome Sears says, that “Americans aren’t stupid, they know Biden is to blame for gas prices”

          1. I don’t have an opinion on that. I use facts and they tell me a President doesn’t set gas prices.

          2. How is he setting the prices all over the world? In almost every country gas prices are way, way up. Are you blaming Joe for that too? If you look, our economic number are way up. Unemployment is at 3.6%, jobs are up, wages are up. People in Europe have been paying gas prices that high for years. We are spoiled and have been.

  47. Statement from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland on International Transgender Day of Visibility:
    “Protecting civil rights was one of the founding purposes of the Justice Department over 150 years ago. Today, that remains central to our mission. On this International Transgender Day of Visibility, the Justice Department is committed to protecting the civil and constitutional rights of transgender individuals.
    “We are committed to combatting the hate crimes that target and terrorize the transgender community – particularly transgender women of color. And we are committed to ensuring the equal protection of transgender people under the law.
    “Transgender individuals deserve to be able to live free from discrimination, harassment, violence, and threats of violence. Transgender youth deserve to be loved and protected. And members of the transgender community deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.
    “The Justice Department will continue to work tirelessly to make real the promise of equal justice under law for everyone in our country.”

  48. Hong Kong’s Diminishing Freedoms

    Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State, 03/31/2022:

    Over the past year, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has continued to dismantle Hong Kong’s democratic institutions, placed unprecedented pressure on the judiciary, and stifled academic, cultural, and press freedoms. As the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to Beijing approaches, Hong Kong’s freedoms are diminishing while the PRC tightens its rule.The differences between Hong Kong and cities in mainland China are shrinking due to ongoing repression from the PRC.

    This year’s Hong Kong Policy Act Report document’s actions taken by leaders in Hong Kong and the PRC that have further eroded both democratic institutions and human rights, and profoundly impaired independent media operations and freedom of expression. These policies have far-reaching implications for all aspects of life in the city, including for the international business and financial communities.

    Sweeping arrests of Hong Kong residents, as well as the forced closure of institutions including Apple Daily and the June 4 Museum, underscore the scope of these deeply damaging changes. In response to heightened risk and uncertainty, some international firms in Hong Kong have relocated entirely, while others have shifted key staff or operations elsewhere. Beijing will ultimately force many of the city’s best and brightest to flee, tarnishing Hong Kong’s reputation and weakening its competitiveness. Hong Kong’s position as a free, global financial center will continue to suffer as a result.

    A fully functioning civil society, rule of law, and individual liberties form the bedrock on which vibrant societies grow. We stand with people in Hong Kong.

      1. China is *likely* not going to bomb the place to the ground like ham-handed rat man Putin did to Ukraine. They may try other ways to bend Taiwan to its knees. Most likely infiltrate the gov’t and overthrow it politically. There’s not really a military solution for China in Taiwan… but then again, there wasn’t in Ukraine for Putin, either, and the dummy did it anyway.

  49. NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF MASON CITY IN THE STATE OF IOWA, ON THE MATTER OF THE PROPOSAL TO ENTER INTO A FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE AGREEMENT FOR PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT WITH SBMC, LLC, AND THE HEARING THEREON
    PUBLIC NOTICE is hereby given that the Council of the City of Mason City in the State of Iowa, will hold a public hearing on April 5, 2022, at 7:00 P.M., at which meeting the Council proposes to take action on the proposal to enter into a First Amendment to the Agreement for Private Development (the “First Amendment”) with SBMC, LLC (the “Developer”).
    On June 3, 2021, the City and Developer entered into an Agreement for Private Development (the “Original Agreement”) pursuant to which the Developer agreed to complete certain improvements to the Southbridge Mall property located within the Mason City Downtown Reinvestment Urban Renewal Area (the “Development Property”), provided Developer purchased the Development Property from its current owner. In connection with the Agreement, the Developer and City agreed to a minimum assessed value of $30,000,000 for the buildings on the Development Property pursuant to a related Minimum Assessment Agreement, and the City agreed to provide up to 10 annual payments of Economic Development Grants to Developer (consisting of 250% of the Tax Increments, pursuant to Section 403.19, Code of Iowa, generated by the construction of the Minimum Improvements, not to exceed $12,750,000).

    The City and Developer now desire to amend the Original Agreement, pursuant to the terms and conditions set forth in the First Amendment, to: (i) delay certain dates, including the start of the Minimum Assessment Agreement; (ii) provide for the division of the Development Property to create an “Arena Property” lot around the portion of the Development Property that the City currently leases for the Multi-Purpose Arena, which Arena Property would be conveyed by Developer to the City for $1.00; and (iii) provide for the conveyance to the City of a portion of the Development Property for right-of-way purposes.

    Pursuant to the First Amendment, the City would also agree to pay rent that is anticipated to become due under the lease between the City and the current owner of the Development Property for the Multi-Purpose Arena to an escrow agent, to be disbursed to Developer and the current owner of the Development Property upon the Development Property being redeemed from tax sale and current with all real estate taxes.

    The First Amendment further proposes that the City would advance the payment of the first two Economic Development Grants and that the amount of each of the first two Economic Development Grants would be $200,000.

    The First Amendment would further require the City to provide a guaranty of up to $3,750,000 related to Developer’s financing for Developer’s acquisition of the Development Property.

    A copy of the First Amendment is on file for public inspection during regular business hours in the office of the City Clerk, City Hall, City of Mason City, Iowa.
    At the above meeting the Council shall receive oral or written objections from any resident or property owner of said City, to the proposal to enter into the First Amendment with the Developer. After all objections have been received and considered, the Council will at this meeting or at any adjournment thereof, take additional action on the proposal or will abandon the proposal to authorize said First Amendment.
    This notice is given by order of the City Council of the City of Mason City in the State of Iowa, as provided by Section 364.6, Code of Iowa.
    Dated this 5th day of April, 2022.

    /s/Aaron Burnett
    City Clerk, City of Mason City in the State of Iowa

    (End of Notice)

    02025675-2\10866-236

      1. Didn’t read it, did you? You would probably say a picture of Melania Trump, naked on a rug, wasn’t really a picture of her if it was on the opinion page. It would just be an opinion that she was nude.

    1. Just wondering, When will mainstream media and those 81 million voters wake up to the hunter biden scandal???

  50. GALLUP:

    Americans’ satisfaction with the direction of the U.S., currently 24%, is essentially unchanged since February, though higher than January’s 17%.

  51. U.S. building $95 million embassy in Nigeria:

    At a historic groundbreaking ceremony highlighting the enduring bilateral friendship and partnership between the United States and Nigeria, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu joined U.S. Ambassador Mary Beth Leonard and U.S. Consul General Claire Pierangelo on Thursday to officially mark the beginning of construction of a new, modern U.S. Consulate General in Lagos.

    Located on a 12.2-acre site in the rapidly developing Eko Atlantic City on Victoria Island, the new U.S. Consulate General in Lagos will support diplomatic and commercial relations between the United States and Nigeria and will provide U.S. and Nigerian Consulate employees with a safe, secure, sustainable, and modern workplace. The construction project will take approximately five years, with completion expected in 2027.

    Ennead Architects LLP of New York is the design architect, Pernix Federal, LLC of Lombard, Illinois, is the design/build contractor, and EYP, Inc. of Albany, New York, is the architect of record. A variety of energy efficiency strategies will be incorporated into the site and building design to address varied seasonal conditions and to significantly reduce energy demand.

    The new Consulate construction project will directly benefit the Nigerian people. Over the course of construction, an estimated $95 million will be invested in the local economy through local subcontractors, and suppliers. Overall, the project will employ approximately 2,500 Nigerian citizens, including engineers, architects, artisans, construction workers, and administrative staff.

    Since the start of the Department’s Capital Security Construction Program in 1999, OBO has completed 171 new diplomatic facilities. OBO currently has more than 50 active projects either in the design phase or under construction worldwide.

  52. Reynolds sends outdated helmets and vests to Ukraine, along with thoughts and prayers:

    Kim Reynolds launched Iowa’s effort to aid the people of Ukraine, she boasted on Wednesday.

    The state is providing 146 protective helmets and 714 ballistic vests to Ukraine through donations from the Department of Public Safety and 18 other law enforcement agencies. The retired equipment is past the manufacturers’ recommended service life but still in usable condition.

    The state of Nebraska contributed additional helmets and vests to send with Iowa’s donation.

    “Ukrainian men and women have taken up arms alongside their military to protect their homeland from Putin’s unprovoked attack,” said Gov. Reynolds. “Iowa has a special connection to Ukraine through our sister state relationship with Cherkasy. Today’s donation fulfills an urgent need in Cherkasy and represents an incredible team effort from the entire state. I’m proud that Iowa is doing what we can to help.”

    “Ukrainians have bravely withstood Russia’s unprovoked invasion for more than a month,” said Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts. “As they’ve come under attack, the Ukrainian people have shown spirited resistance that has won the respect of the free world. As they defend their homeland, Ukrainians have an immense need for protective gear. Agencies large and small from across Nebraska have stepped up to help meet this need. I’m grateful for Nebraskans’ generosity in donating these critical supplies.”

    The Governor’s office worked with the Ukrainian Consulate in Chicago to identify an opportunity with all appropriate federal licensing for delivery to the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

    Gov. Reynolds also announced that the state, along with Iowa Sister States, will work with Meals from the Heartland in West Des Moines to help address the immediate and ongoing food supply needs of Cherkasy. Planning is underway to send an initial shipment of meals as soon as possible, and then assess how longer-term needs may be met. Meal packaging opportunities for the public are not available at this time but will likely be scheduled in the coming weeks. However, Iowans can help with this effort now by donating to help cover the cost of shipping the meals into Ukraine. Visit IowaSisterStates.org for more information and to make a donation.

    Iowa’s sister state relationship with Cherkasy, a province located in central Ukraine, began in 1996. Cherkasy, similar to Iowa, has an economy largely driven by agriculture, and its capital city is the center for industry, primarily manufacturing, furniture making, and agricultural processing.

  53. Gov. Reynolds released the following statement today in response to the Iowa Senate passing her education bill Wed night:

    “The Senate made clear tonight that parents matter. Iowans want and deserve school choice and educational freedom for their children and I urge the House to get this across the finish line and send a bill to my desk.

    “If education truly is the great equalizer, we should create opportunities for more families to provide their children with the education choice that’s best for them. That’s exactly what this legislation does.”

    The Senate voted 31-18 in support of the bill. The bill now heads to the Iowa House for debate.

    1. She lies. We have school choice right now. Your school-aged child can attend whatever school he or she chooses and many of them do just that. This bill is just Covid Kim’s latest attempt to shut down public schools in Iowa.

      1. GOP wants to dismantle state govt, clearly. Schools are, what, over 50% of the state budget? GOP likes (loves) dumb voters, and USA is infested with them; what better way to keep people dumb than to dismantle the education system?

        1. Yes, and they want to create schools that are privately run so they can teach whatever they want especially their brand of Christianity which would teach the kids to shut up and listen to the wise men, i.e., billionaires.

  54. I see Fox News is whining about President Biden not making a statement on the Chris Rock-Will Smith debacle.

    1. They’d whine if he did, too, but he shouldn’t. That kind of stupid BS should be beneath the office of the president, no matter who is occupying it.

  55. March 31, 2022, MCHS Athletic events have been postponed or cancelled:
    Boys Tennis – MC vs. Decorah will now be April 25 @ MCHS Courts – 4:00 pm
    Boys Soccer – MC @ North Fayette will now be May 12 @ NorthFayette MS
    Varsity @ 5:00 pm and JV @ 6:45 pm
    Girls Soccer – MC vs Des Moines Hoover has been postponed. The makeup date
    will be set at a later time
    Girls Track – MC @ Waverly-Shell Rock has been cancelled

  56. A Trump timeline:

    ▪️Trump asks Ukraine to dig up dirt on the Bidens.

    ▪️Trump withholds weapons from Ukraine when they don’t.

    ▪️Russia invades Ukraine.

    ▪️Trump asks Russia to dig up dirt on the Bidens.

    1. It’s starting to get old, ignoring the very obvious, strange and deranged sexual frustrations that underpin the Democratic fixation on Trump.

      1. It IS old, ignoring the very obvious, strange and deranged sexual frustrations that underpin the Republican fixation on Trump.

  57. Russian state TV today featured a Russian government official calling for “regime change” in the United States, asking the people of the U.S. to replace President Biden with Trump “to again help our partner Trump to become President.”

    Our partner Trump should tell you all you want to know.

  58. Affirmative Action?

    The NFL is now requiring all 32 of its teams to hire either a minority or a female to their offensive staffs.

  59. So..I want to know which Judge was on the bench for the JD Murphy case.
    He committed a violent crime..Broke into a house, stole $ 2000 work of coins and baseball card collection, other items.
    And. attacked the home’s occupant in the head with a Revolver…

    And..he only gets 2 years supervised probation.

    There is something wrong here.

    You can commit breaking and entering. While being armed.Attacked the occupant in the
    head with a Revolver…
    And you serve no jail time..

    This is ridiculous..

      1. A repeat violent offender … beginning in his youth. I have personally witnessed him beating someone. He is dangerous. I have seen him making out with women not his
        girlfriend/wife. I have seen the GF/wife
        with bruises… Makes me sick..
        I bet it was Judge Weiland..

    1. Because, as vile as old Mitch is, he’s smart enough not to want anything to do with that felonious sh*tshow.

  60. TODAY:

    The MCHS boys track meet at Nevada has been cancelled.

    The MCHS girls track will not be traveling to the Waukee meet today due to the high winds, windchill, and now good chances of rain in Des Moines this evening.

  61. Why is it that when Biden misspeaks it’s called a gaffe and when Trump misspoke it was called a lie? Double standards?

  62. GALLUP:

    Nearly three in 10 U.S. women working in higher education say they have been passed over for a promotion because of their gender.

  63. GALLUP:

    Americans increasingly see inflation as a major problem facing the country, and a solid majority worry a great deal about it.

  64. Can you imagine the fuss it would cause if Chris Rock was white and insulted Jada Pinkett Smith and was slapped by Will?

    1. Anything and everything he possibly can, because everything he does is either unethical, immoral, or downright illegal. This is right up there with Richard Nixon’s 18.5 minute gap in the Watergate tapes.

        1. What missing footage would that be? The Q fantasy that there’s footage of some wet dream about the traitor insurrectionist rioters being provoked in some way? There were literally thousands of cameras there, all shooting footage, most of which has been posted somewhere, and none of them show that. Not one.

  65. Ragan and Steckman to hold Mason City listening post

    State Sen. Amanda Ragan and State Rep. Sharon Steckman will hold a legislative listening post this Saturday, April 2. The meeting will take place from 10 AM to 11:30 AM in the Mason City Room at the Mason City Public Library, 225 2nd St. SE.

    The event is free and all are welcome to attend.

    The legislators will provide an update on the 2022 legislative session. Constituents will have the opportunity to ask questions, and share concerns and ideas on issues under consideration at the Statehouse.

  66. BREAKING NEWS:

    Audra Melton for The New York Times

    Federal Judge Finds Trump Likely Committed Crimes Over 2020 Election

    “The illegality of the plan was obvious,” the judge wrote in a civil case, referring to the former president’s efforts to persuade Vice President Mike Pence to upend the certification of the Electoral College results.

    By Luke Broadwater and Alan Feuer

    —-

    NIT PUBLISHER reaction: “Incredible. A President tried to illegally overthrow the government and install himself as President for unknown amount of time, possibly many years. Developing story @MerrickGarland @FBI @CIA where are you?”

    1. USA justice system: One set of rules for the proletariat, another set for the rich, well-connected, elected types?

        1. This word matters. A judge felt so sure that Trump did the crimes, that the judge is making comments ending up in the news that Trump is a wannabe dictator. Of course, the judge looked at the evidence but didn’t give Trump a chance to be deposed or submit evidence that he is somehow innocent of these crimes (treason). Do you think Trump would help or hurt his case by opening his gigantic piehole, though? The one he kisses strippers with, I mean, then his wife and daughter afterwards.

          1. ^^^ still has a crush on that strapping young man he calls “Hunter” … hey bud, don’t go to Florida and talk this way about other dudes, the Gov doesn’t like gay talk, it makes him look inward and question things

        1. Trump never passed judgement on anyone did he. Except maybe those nice young Central Park boys who were innocent the whole time when he bought a newspaper ad calling for their executions.

  67. Lets see joe and corn pop – civil court different than government court/sham. – the jury will give the man 24 million and maybe some of the cabal will disappear – but then would would work at the ccp/cnn and nit/ccp organizations ?

        1. Kind of like trump making up sources for all the ‘information’ he received? Or trump calling into radio shows pretending to be someone else? Or trump saying he knew more about everything than anybody else?

  68. MASON CITY:

    The yard waste collection season will begin Monday, April 4, 2022. Residents may set out yard waste and tree branches on the day of garbage pick-up. Several methods of disposal are available for yard waste:

    LEAVES

    1. Compost at home.

    2. Drop off at landfill compost site 15942 Killdeer Avenue, Clear Lake.

    3. Place at curbside prior to 7 a.m. on garbage collection day in 30 gallon biodegradable bags which are weather and animal resistant. Bags are available at grocery and retail stores.

    GRASS CLIPPINGS

    1. Leave them on your yard – does not cause thatch. Reduces amount of fertilizer needed.

    2. Use as mulch.

    3. Place at curbside prior to 7 a.m. on garbage collection day in 30 gallon biodegradable paper bags.

    There is a 50 pound limit per bag of leaves and grass clippings.

    BRANCHES

    (Do not place in biodegradable bags.)

    For branches smaller than 4 inches in diameter:

    1. Chip for mulch.

    2. Tie in bundles.

    a) Bundles cannot be bigger than 18 inches in diameter or 4 feet in length.

    b) Do not use wire.

    c) Place at street curb by 7 a.m. on garbage collection day.

    3. Take to landfill.

    For branches larger than 4 inches in diameter:

    1. Chip for mulch.

    2. Take to landfill.

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