30 May 2006

The Disturbing Antics of Antonin Scalia

By John W. Whitehead

Justice Antonin ScaliaOn March 28, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia took his seat at the nation’s highest court to hear Hamdan v. Rumsfeld. His task, along with the other justices, was to determine whether Salim Hamdan, a captured enemy combatant, should be afforded a fair and basic trial. The court would hear, for the first time, arguments from both sides over whether Hamdan should be afforded basic due process rights as a war-time detainee – an outcome that would establish a dramatic precedent in American law governing times of war.

The lawyers for Hamdan knew they were facing an uphill battle. But the problem wasn’t in their argument. It was in persuading a justice who had already made up his mind about the issue.

 

23 May 2006

Immigration Problem Requires Multifaceted Solution

By John Cox
The president’s recent prime-time address focused on illegal immigration, and has provided America with a unique opportunity to discuss this polarizing, hot-button issue in a rational way. While I support the idea of temporary National Guard assistance to secure the chaos at the border, we know that such action only briefly treats one symptom of a much larger problem.

16 May 2006

The Law Can't Stop Creativity and Invention

By Administrator
I recently found myself in Atlanta. Most conventioneers take the taxi from the airport to downtown, but since I was traveling on the largess of the Company, a buck-75 MARTA train ride felt more responsible than a $20 cab fare.

And so it was that I emerged from the caverns beneath Peachtree Plaza, squinting into the afternoon sun, searching among the canyons of steel and cement for my hotel.

“Where ya headed?”

He was five-foot-nothin’ and dressed in the somewhat ragged attire we used to discourage the kids from wearing in public. 
10 May 2006

A New Community-Marketing Initiative Might Be on the Horizon

By David C. Aeschliman
My article that ran in this publication three weeks ago about how the city of Davenport was marketing itself has led to a significant response, and it’s running about six-to-one in support of what was said (23 positive and four negative). (See “Davenport Marketing Can’t Overcome City’s Deficiencies, River Cities’ Reader Issue 577, April 19-25, 2006.)

Interestingly enough, during one telephone call from a rather prominent Quad Citian providing me with feedback, I learned of an effort to develop a comprehensive “commerce” effort for the Quad Cities. This effort would involve private enterprise funds, and would combine the efforts of all of the cities’ major chambers, including DavenportOne. This was confirmed by a second person.


10 May 2006

Theatrics Overshadow Serious Issues with the Swing

By Administrator
Kevin Krause showed last week that he knows how to orchestrate good drama, and that he has a decent sense of humor. Not since Boston Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein made his escape in a gorilla suit last Halloween has a simian played such a major role in baseball shenanigans.

When Krause, president and general manager of the Swing of the Quad Cities, sent in the team’s mascot to deliver a check for $367,000 to Mayor Ed Winborn, he knew that the absurdity of the situation would make people forget some of the serious issues that had been raised recently.

02 May 2006

Radio Pirates Say War Changes the Rules. Are They Correct?

By Scott Westerman
sharpe2 Free Radio Berkeley and KBLT-Los Angeles are two of the more storied pirate-radio operations of the late 20th Century. Stephen Dunifer and Sue Carpenter fought federal regulations and, for a time, ran their own radio stations without a license.  Pirates still flourish in some corners of the country, but the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is often quick to pull the plug.
11 Apr 2006

You Can Leave Your Hat on (and Your Shoes, Too!)

By Karl Rhomberg
A close friend of mine is a police officer in one of those Minneapolis suburbs that remind one so much of Bettendorf or Pleasant Valley. Not much crime, mostly helping neighbors with accident reports of fender benders, directing traffic at high-school football games, chasing kids home on Saturday nights.
28 Feb 2006

Early Childhood Education Is Economic Development

By Senator Maggie Tinsman
Economic development and education are intrinsically linked; one is not successful without the other. Public education relies on tax dollars produced by a good economy, while economic growth cannot occur without a strong, well-educated workforce.
14 Feb 2006

Cronyism Still Thrives in Scott County Government

By Karl Rhomberg
Who knew that the Scott County Board of Supervisors was also a select committee of art critics and connoisseurs? The brouhaha last week over an offer to donate a poster to the county was laughable, but did prove at least one thing: Cronyism still thrives in Scott County government.
24 Jan 2006

Economic Forum Outlines Sluggish Economy but Offers Few Solutions

By Jesse Virgil
Left-leaning organizations argued at a forum last week that the economy - on a national and local level - isn't recovering quickly enough but offered few solutions. On January 17, Working Families Win, Progressive Action for the Common Good, the Quad City Federation of Labor, and 21 other organizations held the town-hall meeting "Higher Expectations for Iowa's Working Families" at St.

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