Heartland

The Luckiest Country

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“There is a Providence that protects idiots, drunkards, children, and the United States of America.” ~ Otto Van Bismarck  read more »

What Really Divides America

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For almost a decade, the West has been engaged in a deepening conflict. Sometimes it flares up as a political debate; sometimes as a culture war.  read more »

Wisconsin Town Fights Big Solar

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When I arrived at the Christiana Town Hall yesterday afternoon, Mark A. Cook, the town chairman, and two local landowners, John Barnes, and Roxann Engelstad, were ready and waiting.  read more »

Childish Beliefs Drive Lethal Energy and Agricultural Agendas

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Many eco-activists (and too many legislators, regulators, judges and journalists) have trouble thinking beyond slogans. They apparently believe declaring ecological emergencies, repeating clever mantras, and issuing proclamations and mandates will create a fossil-fuel-free, organic farming utopia. In their dreams.  read more »

Coasts Create Banking Crisis, Flyover Country Pays the Price

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The figurative tremblors of the last few weeks have confirmed why we call ourselves Flyover Country. It’s because the major shapers of the American economy keep — well, flying over us as they shake the financial foundations of the entire nation.  read more »

The Future of Cities: Recalibrating Expectations: Lessons From Youngstown, Ohio

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In September 1977, the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company announced the first major shutdown in the American steel industry. It was closing its largest mill, the Campbell Works, displacing over 10,000 workers.  read more »

Why Would Automakers Threaten AM Radio in Flyover Country?

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We have a relationship with AM radio that folks in other parts of the country maybe can’t understand. So our antennae go up when the electric-vehicle revolution begins to eliminate the “amplitude modulation” band from new vehicles  read more »

It's Time for Region to Collect Opportunity We Left on the Table

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For all the talk about how the pandemic, remote work, social distancing and other huge new developments have dislodged traditional patterns in business and life in America and created vast new opportunities in the process, Flyover Country has left a lot on the table.  read more »

Politicians Finally Embrace Need to Promote Region

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A critical mass of forces finally may be understanding the benefits of what I’ve been advocating for years: that separate political actors in Flyover Country unite to promote our region as a whole, rather than our cities and states always competing with one another for the fruits of economic development and government favor.  read more »

CSY Repost – Houston: "Rust Belt, You Have a Problem"

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 (I know, I know. I haven't been around much lately. My last post was almost six weeks ago. The reasons for my disappearance? A lot of it is life- and work-related, the way things happen with most everyone. However a huge contributor to this is how recent changes in urbanism discourse have played out, and I wonder if there's room for me anymore.  read more »