Jon's Blog

There are three main Democratic leaders who have stepped up and expressed their strong interest in running for governor here in Iowa in 2014: State Senator Jack Hatch, former State Representative Bob Krause, and State Representative Tyler Olson. I could easily get behind each three of these guys, but Olson is my favorite. He has been gathering a lot of steam and recently received the endorsement of my labor union AFSCME.

And then came the sad news earlier today that Tyler Olson and his wife are in the process of separating and that his campaign is being paused for a month or so:

I am saddened to announce today that my wife Sarah and I are separating. This decision was made only after significant discussion and professional support to deal with the issues facing our marriage. We are working through divorce proceedings but remain friends whose number one priority is the happiness and well being of our children.

The decision about whether to continue the race is complicated, starting with the needs of my kids and my core belief Iowans will have greater opportunity with a new perspective in Terrace Hill. This has been a fact of life since the start of my family: Sarah and I married while I was running for the Iowa House and both my kids were born during my service there.

While this is a family matter, because of my candidacy for Governor I felt it necessary to publicly acknowledge the situation. I am scaling back campaign events for the remainder of the year to focus on my family and helping them through this transition. I am deeply committed to this race for governor, as I believe Iowans will have greater opportunity with a governor with a strong, positive vision for the future. I plan to resume my campaign after the holidays.

I am saddened that Olson and his family are going through this break-up and I truly hope that it doesn't mean the end of his campaign.

This is new. Large portions of Iowa are current experiencing an "Air Quality Advisory":

...AIR QUALITY ADVISORY FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST IOWA UNTIL 10 AM WEDNESDAY...

THE IOWA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES HAS ISSUED AN AIR QUALITY ALERT UNTIL 10 AM WEDNESDAY FOR SEVERAL COUNTIES IN EAST CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST IOWA. THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES ARE INCLUDED... BENTON... BLACK HAWK.... BREMER... BUCHANAN... BUTLER... CEDAR... CLAYTON... CLINTON...DELAWARE... DUBUQUE... FAYETTE... JACKSON... JOHNSON... JONES... GRUNDY... HARDIN... IOWA... LINN... MARSHALL... MUSCATINE... POWESHIEK... SCOTT AND TAMA.

FINE PARTICULATE LEVELS ARE AT OR ABOVE THE EPA THRESHOLDS AND ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN ELEVATED THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING. THE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES RECOMMENDS THAT INDIVIDUALS WITH RESPIRATORY OR HEART DISEASE...THE ELDERLY...AND CHILDREN LIMIT PROLONGED EXERTION UNTIL AIR QUALITY CONDITIONS IMPROVE. IMPROVEMENT IS EXPECTED BY LATER WEDNESDAY MORNING AS A COLD FRONT SWEEPS THROUGH THE AFFECTED AREA.

I can't remember the last time this happened. I assume this is the result of people burning leaves.

This case really makes me mad. A 72-year-old man named Ronald Westbrook in Georgia -- who happens to have Alzheimer's disease and has been diagnosed with dementia for the past two years -- got confused last week and began walking his two dogs in the middle of the night. He was wandering for about four hours in 20 degree weather wearing a light jacket. About three miles from his home, he saw one house that still had its lights one. He went to that house and woke up the residents when he tried opening the locked door and ringing the doorbell. The woman called 911 and was speaking with a 911 dispatcher for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, her fiancé decided to get out his handgun and went outside to confront the confused man. 34-year-old Joe Hendrix claimed that he couldn't really see the elderly man due to the poor lighting. He gave verbal commands to Westbrook to stop. The confused man continued wandering. So Hendrix fired his gun four times. One of those bullets hit Westbrook in the chest and killed him. One of his dogs covered the dying man protectively with his body and had to be physically removed by animal control.

No charges have been filed against Hendrix -- largely because Georgia has a fairly strict "Stand Your Ground" law. The local sheriff has publicly stated that Hendrix should have stayed inside his house, but that it appears he was within his legal rights. The local DA is still mulling over legal options.

But it appears that it is legal to fatally shoot a 72-year-old Alzheimer's patient in Georgia if he has the misfortune of wandering onto your property.

There's another legal option in these cases: The legal option to stay inside, call for help, and discharge your weapon if/when the other man actually breaks into your home.

There's yet another legal option: The gun-toting responsibility to make sure that you can see what you are firing at. What if that had been a police officer that he had blindly fired into the dark at?

I've already seen people online defending Hendrix's decision to fatally shoot this elderly man. What happened to assessing risk before rushing into a potentially dangerous situation? What happened to assessing risk before firing blindly at another human being? What happened to empathy?

Of course, the reverse is also true. I keep searching for a public reaction from Joe Hendrix. In the cold light of day, does he regret this decision? What goes through the mind of a man who killed any other man -- much less a senile elderly man?

(Jon & Sven)

Arrived today at work and was immediately informed of a new fun activity to kick off the holiday spirit. One of my co-workers found a little snowman and named it Sven. Sven was hidden somewhere in the office area. Folks in my office have been tasked with finding Sven's elusive hiding place. Guess who found Sven first (during my lunch hour!!)??

This of course makes me the coolest co-worker in my department. That just had to be said.

I was immediately tasked with finding a new hiding place for Sven. So far, nobody has tracked him down. Part of the fun is coming up with oblique clues about his new hiding place. I'm still brainstorming multiple clues -- because I'm fairly certain that nobody will locate Sven in the littlie nest that I created for him.

One co-worker in particular keeps hanging on every word I utter. For some reason, she believes that I'm already giving out clues. Fortunately, none of my fake clues have led to his real hidey-hole!

Nebraska Republican candidate for governor Beau McCoy was not happy when he learned that the Douglas County Board decided to offer equal benefits to any legally married employee -- regardless if the couple in question is an opposite-sex married couple or a same-sex married couple:

"Make no mistake," the Omaha state senator said, "every time same-sex couples get the same recognition as a married couple, the Nebraska Constitution and the will of Nebraskans gets undermined... As governor, I will not allow the institution of marriage or our constitution to be attacked by expanding state benefits to state employees in same-sex relationships who get married in other states."

I was born and (mostly) raised in Nebraska. I had my first same-sex crushes as a young teen in small-town Nebraska. But there are many reasons why I will likely never move back to the neighboring state of Nebraska with my family, unlike Minnesota where I spent my teen years.

Nebraska passed a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage back in 2000. The same constitutional amendment also bans recognition of other types of same-sex relationships, such as civil unions or domestic partnerships. Frankly, it's unclear to me (someone who explicitly supports marriage equality) how equal marriage benefits in Douglas County are constitutionally allowable.

It's been one of those weeks. I came into my bedroom Tuesday night and found that one of the animals had urinated all over my bed. I came into my bedroom Wednesday night and found that one of the animals had urinated all over my bed. I came into my bathroom Thursday afternoon and found that one of the animals had voided all over the floor. I took Calliope Jane to the veterinary clinic this afternoon and discovered that she has a nasty bladder infection -- and it looks like it's been festering for quite a while.

I feel like such a heel...

So she's been started on antibiotics and will remain on them for the next week or so.

I also learned that she's 16. Somehow the years got away from me.

(source)

I read this morning about an openly gay teacher from Bansalem, PA, who taught French and Spanish for the past 12 years at Holy Ghost Preparatory School. He and his longtime partner applied for a marriage license, which led to him getting fired:

Michael Griffin says he emailed the principal of Holy Ghost Prep earlier in the week saying he may be late Friday, that he was applying for a marriage license. After an in-service day he says he was called into the office of School President Father James McCloskey, along with Principal Jeffrey Danilak.

Griffin explains, "He said, 'It's not really a secret here that you're gay.' I said, 'Correct.' He said, 'I assume this is a same sex marriage.''Yes.' He said if I go through with it, he had no choice but to terminate my position."

In tears, he left. His over a decade-long tenure at Holy Ghost was over.

"I really didn't think that it would happen. At our school we talk about it's a community our motto is 'One heart, one mind.'"

I feel bad for the guy, but I can't help but wonder why he didn't think it would happen. We read in the news all the time about gay and lesbian teachers who are regularly fired from private religious schools for getting married. Heck, we read too often about kids who are expelled from private religious schools for having gay parents. Why is it that each of these gay and lesbian teachers act surprised when their bosses toe the line with them?

I see this on the Gay Christian Network a lot, too. Folks who remain deeply closeted for years because they know they will get cut off from everyone who means anything to them if they come out as LGBT. They will lose their pastoral position or they will lose their teaching position or they will be kicked out of their college or they won't be able to sing with their choir anymore or they will lose their family. They spill their everything into those closeted professional and personal relationships -- hoping that others will be kind of them if they reach out for support, but knowing that most likely they will lose everything.

I feel bad for Griffin and his fiancé Vincent Giannetto. I hope they have a wonderful wedding and I hope Griffin finds a new job quickly. But I also hope he stays away from religious education in order to avoid future scenarios like this.

(source)

Over the past 42 years, the churches of Bellevue, KY (population of @6,000), have participated in an annual nativity processional. The people of Bellevue would gather at the nativity scene and share worship together. The gospel would be read and candlelight would be displayed. This year, the nativity was no longer allowed to remain on the city-owned park. So the group in charge of the nativity reached out to St. John United Church of Christ, largely because the church has enough space to house the nativity props. But there remained one huge snag: none of the other churches wanted to participate in the annual nativity event -- in part, because St. John UCC is an open & affirming church with a gay pastor!

Let's be clear, this lack of enthusiasm wasn't entirely over differences about homosexuality. One church (who had reportedly been very active in the nativity service in prior years) was upset about the service being moved from the park. Another church didn't respond to this year's invitation about the revised nativity service. A third church opted out because its membership was too small and too old to muck around in the dark.

That left First Baptist Church, who outright refused to participate in the nativity service because of differences over homosexuality:

The last of the five pastors in Bellevue responded to my invitation by requesting to meet with me in my office with a lay leader from his congregation. In this meeting they proceeded to make it perfectly clear that they would not participate because we (St. John United Church of Christ) do not “follow the teachings of Christ”, i.e., we accept gay and lesbian people. After listening to this pastor talk about all of our differences I suggested we try talking about what we have in common; we both celebrate Christmas, we both read the Bible, we both pray. These are the elements of the dedication program at the nativity each year. We may disagree on some things but these things we agree on. I suggested that in the spirit of Christmas and following the example of Jesus that we bring our community together around these things. They continued with their message that they will not pray with us, read scripture with us, or participate in any religious service with us due to our understanding of the Bible regarding homosexuality. Then they proceeded to tell me they were not judging me.

First Baptist Church's pastor released the following response to this controversy:

We support St. John's religious liberty. We appreciate that they want to have a positive impact in our community. They are clear however on what they believe and we are clear on what we believe and there are contrasts. We have some different beliefs that prevent us from linking arms from this activity.

Keep in mind that these two churches presumably would have linked arms in this worship activity if the nativity service hadn't been moved from the city park to the UCC church yard.

The nativity service was held two nights ago. According to Facebook, it was unclear if it would actually happen because of the heavy snow, but the nativity was celebrated -- by members one of community church, at least.

I finally finished my copy of ARCHIE #650, a giant-sized anniversary special that launches a four-part storyline featuring the Archies' world tour. Not only are the Archies traveling to Mumbai, India, in this first issue, but so are the lesser-known bands, the Bingos and the Madhouse Glads! Veronica's cousin Marcy is also tagging along. She's the band's manager. (Incidentally, it's a good thing I've been playing "Archie: Riverdale Rescue." Otherwise, I'd have no clue who she is as I've missed all of her earlier comic book appearances!) My favorite newbie character Raj Patel manages to shoe-horn himself onto the tour during the first couple pages. He's going to produce a concert film of the world tour for Pinnacle Pictures. And Pinnacle Pictures insisted on page three that Josie and the Pussycats also need to join the world tour. Fortunately, the bands agree to this musical addition -- despite the fact that Archie and Valerie don't appear to be the lovebirds that they once were!

Does it seem like there's a lot of people in this book? You bet! Most of the characterization takes place with Archie and his harem of girlfriends. He and Valerie are carrying on a secret romance. They apparently got tired of the media following them around and ruining their relationship. So publicly they're on the skids and privately they're making smoochie-smoochie time. Meanwhile, both Betty and Veronica are still vying for Archie's affection and he's just eating it all up!

Once the bands arrive in Mumbai, the Archies meet up with their record label rep, who introduces the band to India super-star Amisha Mehta and insists that Archie -- and Archie alone -- star in a music video with the beautiful Amisha. Archie and Amisha hit it off together and now a fourth romantic rival has been introduced to Archie's love life!

It's unclear how much Archie really likes Amisha. He assures Valerie that she's his main gal, but he seems a little too into Amisha, if you get what I'm saying. The Bollywood trade magazines are all over this blossoming romance, which probably what initiates the final plot development...

That's right! Cheryl Blossom's family bought out Pinnacle Pictures and she (along with Pussycat gadfly Alexandra Cabot) is now around to micromanage Rag Patel's documentary! I'm anticipating that Archie's romantic rivalry has just increased by one more girl on the final page! What a player!

My biggest complaint about this story so far is that we don't get to see too much of the Pussycats or of the other bands. They're there, but you don't learn much about them. I personally know next to nothing about the Madhouse Glads and I've only read a few old stories featuring the Bingos. Their lack of substantive presence in "Bollywood Love" is made up for by a series of story reprints at the end of the book featuring each of the bands' first appearances! Additionally, ARCHIE #650 features fact-sheets for each of the bands.

"Bollywood Love!" is written and penciled by Dan Parent. The second issue of this "Rocking World Tour" storyline will take the bands to China -- where they will meet up with a certain Teenage Witch! Hopefully, she'll keep the necromancy to a minimum. After all, that's where the zombie outbreak in "World War Z" began!

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services finally approved most of Iowa's proposed Medicaid expansion plan (AKA: our Affordable Care Act plan of action) -- with only three weeks to spare! The only part that seems to have been disallowed has been Governor Terry Branstad's desire to charge a 3% insurance premium for Iowans who earn more than 50% of the federal level of poverty. In other words, anyone making more than $5,745 per year or $478.75 per month (for a household of one)! Those fees would have been waived if individuals completed certain "healthy behaviors" such as getting their physical once annually or reducing their BMI by a certain percentage during a given year or by participating in a smoking cessation program (not necessarily being successful at that last one!).

The HHS' approval extended Medicaid to eligible Iowans who make up to 138% of the federal level of poverty (or about $11,500/year or $958/month). Iowans who earn up to 138-150% of the federal level of poverty (or up to $17,235/year or $1,436.25/month) will qualify for insurance purchased through the Affordable Care Act's marketplace and their premiums will be paid for through the government.

Governor Branstad is still processing this development, according to Radio Iowa. He wants people to "take ownership of their own health." He doesn't believe that most people will get a physical or attend to other healthcare goals unless they suffer "the threat of a premium." (On the other hand, I don't see him seeking to waive premium expenses for state employees on their own health care plans if they meet those very same healthcare goals. But I digress...) Governor Branstad has 30 days to appeal the HHS's decision. It's unclear at this point what he will do.

It's a cold day here in Iowa today. Cold enough that Nero hasn't had too much time to play outside. Fortunately, his doggy daycare has lots of room for him to shake his body and share his thoughts! Check this out:

Nadya Suleman (AKA Octomom) just can't catch a break. She lost her home due to foreclosure last year and now her current landlord is trying to toss her and her 14 children to the curb!

Her current rental home was just recently sold to a new owner. According to Radar, Suleman's new landlord can't get the house refinanced because of Suleman's bad reputation as a tenant:

Broken windows visible from the street indicate the five-bedroom, three-bathroom house (which was once used as a half-way home) might be in poor condition, a reason why her new landlord Lana El-Jor said she wants the former media sensation to move off the premises.

“I have had problems refinancing the building myself because of her,” El-Jor told the UK’s Mirror. “That’s one of the things why we have to ask her to leave. The bank refused to support the loan.

“She is said to have left her houses abused, and everything, and it worried the bank. It was very messy … 14 kids need a bigger backyard, for sure. I saw they had four bunk beds. I think those were for the little ones. And they had beds in all the other rooms.”

Radar also shared reports from neighbors that Suleman's children are not often seen in the neighborhood and reportedly spend most of their time "holed up" at home.

(Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem)

North Dakota's Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem (R) was recently asked a series of questions by the Burleigh County Recorder's office about how to proceed with a marriage license request involving a citizen of North Dakota who'd entered into a same-sex marriage in another state, then separated from his/her same-sex spouse -- but didn't get divorced. This individual now wants to marry someone of the opposite sex:

Since North Dakota does NOT recognize same-sex marriages, but North Dakota’s marriage license laws require that someone previously married had to have a formal divorce before being allowed to buy a license, can the recorder issue that license? Also, if the couple is allowed to marry in North Dakota, but then moves to a state that recognizes same-sex marriage, is that bigamy?

Attorney General Stenehjem says that it's not bigamy because those in same-sex marriages aren't really married. -- at least not while living in North Dakota. And he doesn't believe himself qualified enough to decide if those twice-married-but-never-divorced couples would be considered bigamists once they crossed state borders, for example, to neighboring Minnesota or Iowa.

Apparently, bigamy does not violate federal law. So it's unclear how the three or four people in this type of hypothetical broken-same-sex-marriage-newbie-opposite-sex-marriage(s) would file federal tax returns on their marriages.

But this Attorney General opinion statement does seem to back-up one of the slippery slope arguments posed recently by an anti-gay legislator in Hawaii. She wondered if Hawaii was indirectly leading the way to legal polygamy by setting up a situation where a person married and/or civilly unionized elsewhere were to move to Hawaii and marry a new gay person. Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem just laid out the possibility for one such scenario in North Dakota -- except this scenario would be acted out by opposite-sex couples instead of same-sex couples!

I really feel bad for my dogs. I arranged for them both to get short haircuts right before the first sub-zero cold freeze of the 2013/14 winter season! Ms. Lion loves sweaters and jackets, but Nero's too much of a free spirit. He's rather run around in the buff -- but his buff ain't enough in this cold! As a result, his daily walks have suddenly become one-minute sprints!

Which is why it's good that he has doggy daycare to visit every few days! He likes the company, but he also needs to opportunity to romp and play without destroying our home or getting frostbite between his toes!

Today was no exception! Nero was pretty excited when he first arrived. One of his favorite caretakers was around. He got all excited and even gave her a hug. He then ran around in the back area for a while before playing in the heated area with a bunch of his friends. Check it out:

Dave Agema is a former Michigan state representative and a current member of the National Republican Committee. He recently attended a Republican Party Holiday Reception in Bridgman, MI, and asserted to the crowd that he stands proudly against homosexual marriages. He also asserted that gay people want to get married because of AIDS. Not because promoting a culture of monogamy and commitment might shift cases of new HIV/AIDS infections. No, he told them that gay people want to get married because they have AIDS and need health insurance!:

He has taken flak nationally for his stance against gay marriage, but he said he doesn't mind because while working at American Airlines, he saw firsthand what happens when benefits are extended to gay people.

He said American Airlines workers would say a person with AIDS was their lover so that person could get medical benefits.

"Folks, they (gay people) want free medical because they're dying (when they're) between 30 and 44 years old," he said. "To me, it's a moral issue. It's a Biblical issue. Traditional marriage is where it should be and it's in our platform. Those in our party who oppose traditional marriage are wrong."

What planet is he living on?

1. Not all gay people are HIV-positive, nor do we all have AIDS.

2. It's the rare person who gets free family health coverage. I have family coverage for my son. It's not a free add-on feature. It costs extra -- and that's okay because I'm responsible and because he's my son and I want his health needs to be met. The same would be true if I ended up putting Husband Mark onto my health insurance plan.

3. Did I mention that it's not free medical? It's our health plans paid for with our money that we earned doing paid work tasks. So what's it matter to Dave Agema how we spend our health care dollars?

4. Let's assume that I was dying of AIDS right now, why shouldn't I seek the financial and medical protection of my husband's health insurance plan? What's the alternative? Should I be uninsured and die with a large, unpaid medical debt? Should the hospital and other medical providers go unpaid because I had AIDS? Or is the issue that I should remain uninsured and my husband be left with a dead spouse and a huge bill that will financially devastate him and our son?

5. Let's assume that I was dying of COPD or heart disease or Alzheimer's disease, would there be the same moral judgment against my death? Would it be less objectionable for me to share health coverage then with my husband?

The Salvation Army of Siouxland reports that one of its Red Kettles from stole early Tuesday morning from a Perkins Restaurant & Bakery in Sioux City, IA. The Salvation Army apparently doesn't arrange bell ringers for those late night hours, but I guess they leave the kettles out for late-night munchers who also feel charitable.

It was reported on ABC5 News that surveillance video captured footage of a woman entering the restaurant at 2:00 AM and leaving with the Red Kettle. It is unknown how much money was actually in the Red Kettle, but was estimated to contain between $25-$75.

The Salvation Army doubts that it will recover its stolen donations, but hopes that publicity of the theft will result in additional donations to make up for the loss.

A couple years ago, I wrote about a court case involving the stars of TLC's "Sister Wives" reality TV show. I was kind of shocked to learn that the polygamous family from that show were being charged with bigamy. Keep in mind that they Kody Brown did not attempt to file multiple marriage licenses for all four of his wives -- only one of them. Instead, he got in trouble for living with all of his wives under one roof. Apparently in Utah, you don't have to attempt to marry multiple partners in order to be guilty of bigamy. You just have to cohabit.

So, Kody Brown and his four wives sued the state of Utah in federal court. And they just won:

A federal court judge struck down a portion of Utah’s ban on polygamy. In a 90-page opinion, U.S. District Court Judge Clark Waddoups found key parts of Utah’s anti-bigamy law to be unconstitutional, specifically the language that criminalized cohabitation. “The court finds the cohabitation prong of the statute unconstitutional on numerous grounds and strikes it,” Waddoups wrote in the ruling issued late Friday.

The ruling came about after reality TV polygamist Kody Brown and his wives, Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn, sued the state of Utah in 2011, challenging the ban on polygamy. The family came under scrutiny from Utah County authorities after they appeared on the show “Sister Wives,” promoting their lifestyle. The Browns argued that Utah’s anti-polygamy laws violated their right to privacy and their right to freely practice their religion...

Judge Waddoups’ ruling did not completely overturn Utah’s ban on polygamy. It did, however, narrow it to only the simplest definition of bigamy: multiple marriage licenses.

In his ruling, Waddoups wrote that the statute remained in force “as prohibiting bigamy in the literal sense — the fraudulent or otherwise impermissible possession of two purportedly valid marriage licenses for the purpose of entering into more than one purportedly legal marriage...”

There are an estimated 30,000 people who subscribe to the belief system of fundamentalist Mormonism, which includes the practice of polygamy. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints no longer practices polygamy and excommunicates those who do.

Keep the bolded and underlined portions of the above quote in mind next time you hear that polygamy and bigamy are now legal.

I have already read concerns that this paves the way for hundreds of polygamists to relocate in Utah and overtax the welfare system. That might indeed happen. Here's one way to reduce the likelihood of that: actually legalize polygamy. Instead of allowing plural families to create informal family units and that religiously united but legally separate, you will create plural families that are actually legally and financially connected to each other. You won't have a bunch of technically single mothers applying for welfare benefits. Instead, you will have a legally recognized plural family who doesn't have to live in the shadows and who can actually become financially interconnected.

Either way, I can totally support this judicial decision.

(Secretary of State Matt Schultz)

Iowa's Secretary of State Matt Schultz has been trying to prove a problem with voter fraud in Iowa since getting into office in 2011. Beginning in July 2012, he arranged for a full-time agent with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigator to scour the state for incidents of voter fraud. 18 months later and at a cost of $149,200, Schultz has managed to have criminal charges pressed in 16 cases. Five of those cases have already been dismissed and five others have resulted in guilty pleas. The other six still fall in the area of "innocent before proven guilty." It's very possible that some or all of them will be dismissed or acquitted.

Here is Matt Schultz's reaction to this news:

“Before, the narrative was that there’s no such thing as voter fraud,” he said. “That’s obviously changed. Iowans expect us to do something when we know there’s a problem.”

Let's look at those five guilty pleas...

Three of the guilty pleas involved felons who had registered to vote before their voting rights had been restored. One of those three was also not a U.S. citizen. A fourth case involved a woman who had obtained and cast an absentee vote on behalf of her daughter. The fifth case involved an identity theft case involving a man who had fraudulently registered to vote using his deceased brother's name while applying for a driver's license (also in his deceased brother's name).

Let's look at some of those five guilty pleas even closer...

One of the felons listed above had registered and voted in a Marshall County 2012 election under the mistaken belief that his voting rights had been automatically reinstated at the end of his probation. He pleaded guilty at the advise of his attorney, who determined that it was safer to agree to the plea deal instead of going to trial and risking prison.

One of the other felons accidentally registered to vote in Warren County while completing paperwork to obtain a state ID card. He was working to resolve the situation on the own, according to his attorney, when Schultz's DCI agent inserted himself and forced a criminal prosecution. He also pleaded guilty on the advise of his attorney.

Then there is the case of the mother who voted via absentee ballot on behalf of her daughter. She claims that she requested and cast the absentee ballot at the request of her daughter in the 2012 election. She later learned that her daughter already voted in Minnesota and then reported herself to her county election officials.

Secretary of State Schultz dismisses complaints that these five convictions over 18 months do not prove systemic voter fraud in this state. It's certainly not enough of a problem (even if you count all 16 of these proven, dismissed, and pending cases) to actually sway any elections.

But Schultz wants you to know that he still has time to prove that Iowa has a huge problem with voter fraud:

Schultz though, is undeterred. “We need to have zero tolerance when it comes to cheating,” he said. “People have died to give us our right to vote, and we need to protect that right.” He also cautioned against drawing conclusions with six months left in the DCI investigation. “I don’t think you can judge the initiative until it’s over,” he said.

Schultz's voter fraud investigation will end in June 2014.

I was a fan of State Representative Tyler Olson's campaign for the 2014 Iowa governor race. Then early this month, he suddenly announced that he and his wife were getting divorced and that he was temporarily scaling back his campaign. Today, I found the following sad message on Facebook:

Thank you to everyone that reached out with words of encouragement and support the last two weeks. While focused on supporting my children through the transition in my personal life it is clear they need my full attention. It is time to end my campaign for Governor.

I will continue to focus on my family, finish my term as state representative, rejoin Paulson Electric and look for opportunities to serve my community as time allows.

Thank you to all the friends, supporters and volunteers that joined my campaign. I enjoyed every minute of it. I hope you still believe as I do that Iowa’s brightest days are ahead.

Best wishes for a peaceful and bright holiday season.

This is why I usually avoid claiming a candidate too early. I didn't even decide to officially support Hillary Clinton for U.S. President until the night of the Iowa Caucus! Too much can change before an election.

But I really like Representative Tyler Olson and I truly believe he would have made an excellent governor for Iowa. But props to him for putting his children first.

It took a really long time, but I finally got my hands on a copy of LIFE WITH ARCHIE #33. This is the magazine-style Archie Comics comic book containing two ongoing story lines. The first half of the book shows what life would be like if an adult Archie Andrews married Veronica Lodge and the second half of each book shows what would happen if an adult Archie married Betty Cooper. I really love this book, but here are a couple things I wish we could see more of:

1. Can Midge give birth already??: It seems like Midge (in the Archie/Betty world) has been pregnant forever -- and not just pregnant forever, but on the verge of giving birth forever! Even Jughead (the baby daddy) seems dazed by how long everything is taking! Enough!

2. Can we see more action from our action detective??: One of the things that I love about the Archie/Veronica world is that Mr. Lodge has hired Sam Hill to help Ronnie out of a huge legal jam. Sam Hill was a 1950s private detective published by Archie Comics and there have been plans for about five or six years to revive the character. One of the things that I love about the guy is that he's no pencil pusher. He's a punch-first-ask-later-and-then-have-a-glass-of-milk kind of guy. Unfortunately, he's spent too much time telling us what he's been up to instead of showing us in LIFE WITH ARCHIE. Hopefully we'll see more action from our private dick very soon!

Don't get me wrong! There is plenty to love in this issue. Such as, guess who proposes in the Archie/Veronica world?:

You're kind of left hoping that he wasn't going to ask her to fill in on a few shifts at the diner, but I think Ethel's instincts were on the money!

And then there is poor Dr. Clay Walker (AKA Kevin Keller's husband)! This poor guy is probably ready to leave Riverdale for Greendale! First he gets snubbed by too many of his patients. Then he gets shot. Now he's being stalked by some weirdo -- who kind of looks like Jughead's new part-time employee! I think we're going to see more intrigue involving Clay, Kevin, and the mysterious Ruben Cruz/Wendell Simmons pretty soon!

Incidentally, someone needs to warn Clay that he shouldn't be sporting that guy hoodie too proudly or else someone might stand their ground against him again in the near future!

Speaking of creepy employees, the Chowhouse II just hired a new security guy over in the Archie/Betty world. He seems too shadowy. Wanna bet he's trouble??

Lastly, check out this courtroom spread! See if you can guess every character sitting in the aisles and share your guesses in the comments section and I'll share the true results (confirmed by Fernando Ruiz himself!) later on Christmas Day!

Iowa Candidate for Governor Tyler Olson Announces his Marital Separation // Temporary Scaling Back of his Campaign

Large Chunks of East Central & Northeast Iowa Under an Air Quality Advisory

72-Year-Old Alzheimer's Patient Latest Victim of "Stand Your Ground"

Where is Sven?

GOP Gubernatorial Candidate: Nebraska's Constitution is Attacked Every Time A Gay Couple Walks Down the Aisle!

Calliope Jane at the Vet -- 12/06/13

Another Religious School Fires Gay Teacher for Marrying -- Gay Teacher is Surprisingly Shocked

Kentucky Churches Avoid Nativity Service -- Partly Over Homosexuality

ARCHIE #650: Bollywood Love!

Iowa's Medicaid Expansion Program Finally Approved!

Nero at Daycare -- 12/10/13

Landlord Wants to Evict Octomom & Family ASAP!

North Dakota Attorney General: I Believe in Bigamy -- As Long As One of the Couples is Gay!

Nero at Daycare -- 12/12/13

Michigan NRC Member: Gay People Want Health Insurance Because of AIDS

Salvation Army Red Kettle Stolen from Sioux City, IA, Restaurant

"Sister Wives" Plural Family Wins Bigamy Lawsuit // Polygamy Definition in Utah Narrowed

Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz Spends Nearly $150,000 to Find Five Incidents of Voter Fraud

Rep. Tyler Olson Officially Ends Campaign for Iowa Governor

"Life With Archie" Returns with Court Cases, Jughead the Romeo, and Two Mysterious New Employees!