BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF TODAY’S STORMY WEATHER, IOWA FIELDS WERE ALREADY DOING WELL. AFTER WARM DAYS LED TO RAPID CROP PROGRESS, IOWA SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE MIKE NAIG SAID YESTERDAY THAT HE HOPED WIDESPREAD RAIN TODAY WOULD HELP SOME AREAS LOOKING A LITTLE DRY. ACCORDING TO MONDAY’S USDA REPORT, 97 PERCENT OF CORN HAS EMERGED AND 97 PERCENT OF SOYBEANS HAVE BEEN PLANTED. THOSE NUMBERS ARE TWO TO THREE WEEKS AHEAD OF LAST YEAR.
TWO PEOPLE WERE KILLED MONDAY IN AN ACCIDENT ON THE TURKEY RIVER IN FAYETTE COUNTY. THE UNNAMED WOMEN WERE FROM WEST UNION. THEY WERE IN THE RIVER RECREATIONALLY NEAR CLERMONT.
THE IOWA STATE PATROL REPORTS A MOTORCYCLIST DIED IN A WEEKEND CRASH WITH A FARM VEHICLE IN CLAYTON COUNTY. 50-YEAR-OLD DAVID BUSHAW, OF OELWEIN, REPORTEDLY CROSSED THE CENTER LINE AT A CURVE ON CLAYTON ROAD. THE PATROL SAYS HE COLLIDED WITH THE ONCOMING TRACTOR AND DIED AT THE SCENE. INVESTIGATORS SAY THE 18-YEAR-OLD DRIVER OF THE TRACTOR WAS NOT HURT.
WHEN IT COMES TO THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE DRUG REMDESIVIR IN COMBATTING COVID-19, THERE MAY NOT BE ENOUGH INFORMATION TO MAKE A DEFINITIVE JUDGMENT. SUPPLIES OF REMDESIVIR ARE CURRENTLY LIMITED DUE TO PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION CHALLENGES ACCORDING TO MANUFACTURER GILEAD. CURRENT SUPPLIES COULD BE DEPLETED IN WEEKS, SAY THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES.
MONDAY PROTESTS IN IOWA CITY INCLUDED ONLY MINIMAL GRAFFITI AFTER SEVERAL INSTANCES PROPERTY DAMAGE DURING PRIOR GATHERINGS. THERE WERE ALSO FEWER POLICE ON HAND AFTER ORGANIZERS HAD ASKED PARTICIPANTS NOT TO SPRAYPAINT BUILDINGS OR OTHER OBJECTS. DEMONSTRATIONS IN RESPONSE TO THE DEATH OF GEORGE FLOYD HAVE BEEN A NIGHTLY OCCURRENCE SINCE MAY 29TH. FLOYD WAS KILLED WHEN A POLICE OFFICER KNEELED ON HIS NECK FOR OVER EIGHT MINUTES; HIS DEATH HAS LED TO WIDESPREAD CALLS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE AND POLICE REFORM. IN AN ONLINE POSTING, PROTEST LEADERS MADE SEVERAL DEMANDS RANGING FROM NOT CRIMINALLY CHARGING DEMONSTRATORS TO CREATING A FAIR HOUSING PLAN
WATERLOO CITY COUNCILMAN PAT MORRISEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE A VARIETY OF CHANGES IN THE WAKE OF GEORGE FLOYD’S DEATH, INCLUDING REPLACING NINE WATERLOO POLICE OFFICERS WITH OTHER PERSONNEL. AMONG SEVERAL OTHER CHANGES MORRISEY PROPOSED ON MONDAY, HE WOULD LIKE TO SEE CHANGES TO THE CITY’S POLICE EMBLEM. MORE INFORMATION ABOUT HOW THE WATERLOO POLICE DEPARTMENT IS RESPONDING AND ADAPTING IS EXPECTED DURING UPCOMING CITY COUNCIL SESSIONS. MAYOR QUENTIN HART TOLD THE COUNCIL THAT NEW POLICE CHIEF JOEL FITZGERALD WILL BE MAKING A PRESENTATION ABOUT PLANNED CHANGES, AND OTHERS THAT ARE ALREADY IN MOTION.
SUMMER IS INTERNSHIP SEASON FOR MANY COLLEGE STUDENTS. ALTHOUGH SOME PROGRAMS HAVE BEEN ALTERED BY CORONAVIRUS, KATHY WIELAND SAYS THEY PROVIDE IMPORTANT EXPERIENCE. WIELAND IS DIRECTOR OF CAREER SERVICES FOR THE IVY COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AT IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY.
WATERLOO POLICE SAY RACIALLY-CHARGED GRAFFITI WAS FOUND ON A VEHICLE LAST WEEK. THE OWNER OF THE VEHICLE – WHO IS BLACK – FOUND THE INITIALS FOR THE WHITE SUPREMACIST KU KLUX KLAN ON THE PASSENGER SIDE. THE WRITING WAS IN IN A WAXY SUBSTANCE. THE MARKINGS WERE BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN MADE WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED NEAR A HOTEL IN THE CROSSROADS AREA BETWEEN THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY MORNING.
MORE BUSINESSES WILL QUALIFY FOR A FEDERAL RESERVE MAIN STREET LENDING PROGRAM. IT’S THE FIRST TIME THE FED WILL SEND MONEY DIRECTLY TO COMPANIES SINCE THE GREAT DEPRESSION. CHANGES ANNOUNCED MONDAY INCLUDE LOWERING THE MINIMUM LOAN AMOUNT TO $250,000. THE FED WILL ALSO EXTEND THE PROGRAM’S LOAN REPAYMENT PERIOD FROM FOUR YEARS TO FIVE, AND BORROWERS WON’T HAVE TO MAKE PRINCIPAL PAYMENTS FOR THE FIRST TWO YEARS.
JESSI MCQUERREY SAYS MANY TYPES OF DIVERSITY MAKE THE LEADERSHIP IOWA PROGRAM SUCCESSFUL. DURING A RECENT APPEARANCE ON KXEL LIVE AND LOCAL, MCQUERREY TALKED ABOUT THE EFFORT, ORGANIZED BY THE IOWA ASSOCIATION OF BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY FOUNDATION. MCQUERREY IS DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS FOR THE IOWA ABI FOUNDATION. THE APPLICATION DEADLINE FOR LEADERSHIP IOWA IS MONDAY. HEAR MORE ABOUT THE PROGRAM AT KXEL.COM.
IN SPORTS, UNI MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD ATHLETE C.J. MAY HAS WON THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE’S DR. CHARLOTTE WEST AWARD. THE HONOR IS GIVEN TO ONE MALE AND ONE FEMALE ATHLETE COMBINING EXEMPLARY SCHOLARSHIP AND ATHLETIC ACCOMPLISHMENTS.
