Category: Watercooler

Matt Peterson, Austin Daily Herald, Minn. – A woman caught returning items to Walmart straight off the shelf for cash was convicted of a felony Friday in Mower County Court. Shannon Marie Huinker,

Nick Ferraro, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn. – An Apple Valley man is accused of using a 2-year-old girl as a “human shield” when police drew a gun on him during a recent

From Iowa Senator Charles Grassley – Q: What exactly is the fiscal cliff? A: The fiscal cliff is a term being used to describe a set of federal tax increases and spending

By Anthony York, Los Angeles Times – SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Arnold Schwarzenegger said he realized he was the father of his housekeeper’s child when the boy reached age 7 or 8 and

Editorial by NIT Publisher Matt Marquardt – I am proud to say that today is the two year birthday of NorthIowaToday.com. I’d just like to take a moment to thank those that

Every year I write a letter to the editor at the Globe Gazette encouraging people to support a particular candidate for President, Congress, or for city council.  This year I am changing

From City Hall – MASON CITY – 6th Street SW was re-opened to traffic at Monroe Avenue Friday afternoon as work on the rehabilitation project moves west to Fillmore Avenue. Sanitary sewer

MASON CITY – 233 Iowans have been killed in domestic violence related homicides since 1995. Please join the North Iowa Domestic & Sexual Abuse Community Coalition as they honor the memory of

By Amy Kaufman, Los Angeles Times – LOS ANGELES — After its last two films failed to resonate with American moviegoers, Sony Pictures Animation was back on top at the box office this

By Dawn C. Chmielewski, Los Angeles Times – LOS ANGELES — “CSI” creator Anthony E. Zuiker’s latest crime thriller opens with a bad guy threatening his victim — with a laptop. Computer screens

By Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times – Ramin Djawadi always dreamed of composing a film score, and the Berklee College of Music graduate has done plenty, including 2008’s “Iron Man.” But this week

From City Hall: Regarding the sanitary sewer improvement project at the intersection of 7th Street SE and South Delaware Avenue: This intersection will be open to traffic this morning. Due to the

Historic Survey will focus on development in Mason City’s parks during the New Deal Era. Mason City, IA – On Thursday, October 4, 2012, the City of Mason City’s Growth Development and

MASON CITY, IOWA – United Way of North Central Iowa and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention will be holding the sixth annual Out of the Darkness Community Walk on Saturday, October

CHARITON, IOWA – A Knoxville, Iowa man driving a pickup truck in central Iowa near Chariton, Iowa, on Friday night crossed a center line and struck another vehicle, killed all three occupants

By David S. Cloud, Tribune Washington Bureau – WASHINGTON — The top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan is being transferred and another Marine general will take over the war effort early next

Portable heaters were involved in 45 percent of all fatal heating fires in residential buildings, reports say. The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) announced the release of a

By Joe Flint, Los Angeles Times – Crystal nibbles on some yogurt and nuts as her eyes dart around the room. A wardrobe person comes by with an outfit to wear in

By Rene Rodriguez, The Miami Herald – BUTTER (R) When her husband retires, a woman (Jennifer Garner) decides to keep his 15-year streak as Iowa’s champion butter carver going by entering the

CALMAR, IOWA – One person was killed and another injured in a motorcycle accident near Calmar, Iowa on Friday afternoon. The Iowa State Patrol said Saturday that Trish Ann Taylor, 44, of

By Rene Rodriguez, The Miami Herald – Before he made his debut with “Brick,” his award-winning 2005 film noir set in a high school, director Rian Johnson already had the idea for

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) last week announced that the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has awarded $3,106,967 to Iowa for Unemployment Insurance (UI) program integrity and performance. The grant

COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA—On September 26, 2012, Richard Pearson, age 51, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, was sentenced in United States District Court in Council Bluffs for coercion and enticement of a minor to

From the Iowa DNR – Iowa’s turkey population likely benefited from an early nesting season and dry spring and summer, which is good news for turkey hunters who should expect to see

From the Senior Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP), part of the State of Iowa Insurance Division – We’re heading into a very important time of year for people on Medicare—the annual open

By Aisha Sultan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch – ST. LOUIS — Washington University law professor Neil M. Richards worries about a day when everyone knows what everyone else is reading. From social reader

LISBON, IA – An elderly Iowa woman was killed Friday when a train struck her car. Wilma Joan Morningstar, 76, was attempting to pass a rail crossing near Lisbon, Iowa at about

DES MOINES – More Iowa schools and districts missed Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) state targets for test participation and proficiency in reading and mathematics in the 2011-12 school year, according to the

CLEAR LAKE – A Clear Lake man is in the Cerro Gordo County Jail after charges of child endangerment were brought by the Clear Lake Police Department. Shadrick Dennery Vogt, age 29,

NORTH IOWA – The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has scheduled another National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day which will take place on Saturday, September 29, 2012, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. This

MASON CITY – A man listed with a Clear Lake address was arrested for a domestic assault in Mason City this week. Brandon Clark Manning, 31, was arrested by Mason City Police

WASHINGTON – Senator Chuck Grassley is pressing FBI Director Robert Mueller for information about taxpayer dollars possibly being spent on prostitutes for an FBI agent and several cooperating witnesses in the Philippines.