It's nearly college football season, which means Iowa fans can look forward to another Top 25 squad, and Illinois fans can pray for respectability and then look forward to basketball season.

But maybe avid boosters ought to consider their own critical role in the ills of college athletics. Namely, they ought to recognize that they're supporting of the exploitation of college-sports stars. (Full disclosure: As a University of Illinois graduate and fan, I'm part of the problem.)

The idea has immediate appeal. Anybody would be able to use a laptop computer anywhere in the city, making it attractive for tech-savvy (or tech-dependent) people and businesses who might want to visit or relocate there.

That was an idea that Dick Klein brought earlier this year to the Bettendorf City Council, which then formed a task force to look into the concept. That six-member task force has met twice already, and is expected to report back to the council in the next few months.

Klein said his vision was for the city to use a wireless network to make city services more efficient, with the savings underwriting free wireless Internet access for citizens.

But don't expect Bettendorf to become the Quad Cities "most wireless" city. Although it has reached no conclusions, several members of the task force said that private-sector initiatives in the area of wireless networks would make any municipal effort redundant.

Xstream Cleanup, presented by Riverboat Development Authority, is seeking hundreds of volunteers to clean up 32 waterways in the Quad Cities on Saturday, August 19 from 8:30 a.m. until noon. This annual event is presented in collaboration with nationally-known, Quad City native Chad Pregracke and his Living Lands & Waters team. Cleanups will take place in Bettendorf, Davenport, and LeClaire, Iowa, and East Moline, Milan, Moline, Rock Island, and Taylor Ridge, Illinois. The main focus of Xstream Cleanup 2006 is an illegal dumping site in Bettendorf where Crow Creek drains into the Mississippi River; that site, discovered during last year's Xstream Cleanup, has an estimated 3,000 tires scattered along the creek and will be the primary work site for Pregracke and his crew. Those interested in volunteering should register online at (http://www.xstreamcleanup.org) or call (563) 468-4218. Volunteers receive a free T-shirt and a light breakfast; no previous experience is necessary and supplies will be provided.

This spring, the Iowa legislature passed new subsidies for each gas station that features 85-percent ethanol fuel - 25 cents for each gallon sold in 2006, 2007, and 2008, and then smaller amounts through 2020. Governor Tom Vilsack signed the bill, House File 2754, on May 30.

The reasons offered are straightforward. Corn is a resource we have. Why import oil from far away? Plus, this helps farmers market their corn at a better price.

I would like to put these ideas in a broader context, hoping to better understand what is happening around us here in the heartland.