Category Archives: Jeff Stein

A Note of Personal Privilege   It was on this date, June 27th, in 1922 that a couple welcomed their third child into the world in a suburb of Boston. They themselves had each emigrated to this co...

But Still With Pride I was saddened to hear the news released this week that the Iowa Hall of Pride in Des Moines would be closing its doors at the end of the month. For 17 years, the facility has sho...

Civil Disagreement If ever there was a time for civil conversation and respectful disagreement in our society...it's right now. I have literally zero confidence about it happening, but thought I'd at ...

Watching the Calendar The U.S. Supreme Court, above all the three co-equal branches of government, operates on tradition and schedules. Rare is the situation when they deviate from that; one notable e...

Now You Owe Me You've no doubt heard that phrase. Usually, it follows asking someone for a favor. Often they say it as a joke. But even if it's unsaid, you still feel like you owe them. It's one thing...

Consequences of Elections Last Friday morning, the Iowa Supreme Court reversed a ruling from just four years ago. The earlier ruling declared that there was a right to abortion contained within the st...

Not About the Truth I don't know for sure what the January 6th Commission is supposed to be about, but it's certainly not about getting to the truth. Getting to "a" truth, perhaps--that is, a narrativ...

School Assemblies Were Never Like This When I was growing up in Iowa in the 1970s, we'd look forward to the yearly all-school assemblies when the legendary Al Bell would come and tell stories of his m...

Violating Rules-I Guess I don't do Facebook myself, but I can cause things to be published on the KXEL Facebook page. I was a little concerned, therefore, when I got an email the other day saying one ...

You're A Grand Old Flag Today, June 14th, is Flag Day in this country. Our KXEL Poll Question of the Day today is again tied to the day; weigh in at kxel.com/poll as you have time. June 14 has been Fl...