Randy Evans

Des Moines

Retired Des Moines Register journalist. Now works and advocates for gov't openness, accountability. I write a newspaper column weekly (and, sometimes, weakly).

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Articles

There’s more at stake in Iowa than brown lawns

1 week ago | dmcityview.com | Randy Evans

People living in central Iowa received a wake-up call last week that should drag water-quality back in front of the state’s 3.2 million residents. Iowa’s largest water supplier, one serving a fifth of the state’s homes and businesses, ordered its 600,000 customers to immediately reduce water demand by ending lawn-watering and cutting use in other ways. Such orders typically come during persistent drought when water supplies are short. This time, water is plentiful.
A modern day version of ‘Pride and Prejudice’

2 weeks ago | dmcityview.com | Randy Evans

Stray Thoughts 6/9/2025Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” focused on manners and goodness, two virtues sometimes forgotten today. Shortly before the novel was published, our Founding Fathers settled on the free exchange of ideas as one of the fundamental concepts they wanted to guarantee in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Dutch devotion belies message given to West Point grads

3 weeks ago | dmcityview.com | Randy Evans

If an opinionated old guy from southern Iowa delivered the recent commencement address at the United States Military Academy, my message would have contrasted with the one given by another opinionated old guy, one from Queens, N.Y., by way of the White House. When I was a newspaper editor, I sometimes told the staff they needed to run a belt sander across an article to remove rough spots before publication.
Evans: Supreme Court spikes an excuse for hiding public comment

1 month ago | timescitizen.com | Randy Evans

The Iowa Supreme Court gave citizen engagement and accessibility to public meetings a much-needed boost Friday in an appeal of a lawsuit against the Iowa City Community School District. The district’s practice of posting full videos of school board meetings on the internet for on-demand public viewing was at the heart of the case.
Supreme Court spikes an excuse for hiding public comment

1 month ago | dmcityview.com | Randy Evans

The Iowa Supreme Court gave citizen engagement and accessibility to public meetings a much-needed boost Friday in an appeal of a lawsuit against the Iowa City Community School District. The district’s practice of posting full videos of school board meetings on the internet for on-demand public viewing was at the heart of the case.
Evans: Why Iowa lawmakers merit an 'F' on consistency

1 month ago | timescitizen.com | Randy Evans

You may be experiencing whiplash this spring just trying to track the Iowa Legislature’s zig-zag movements. It comes from what some might charitably call a lack of consistency on a key theme. A set of bills from the Republican majority at the Capitol illustrates this inconsistency. First, there’s the Legislature’s initiative banning the state universities and community colleges from promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in their admissions programs, hiring practices and academic programs.
Why Iowa lawmakers merit an ‘F’ on consistency

1 month ago | dmcityview.com | Randy Evans

You may be experiencing whiplash this spring just trying to track the Iowa Legislature’s zig-zag movements. It comes from what some might charitably call a lack of consistency on a key theme. A set of bills from the Republican majority at the Capitol illustrates this inconsistency. First, there’s the Legislature’s initiative banning the state universities and community colleges from promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in their admissions programs, hiring practices and academic programs.
A lawmaker’s blatant overreach as he ignores Iowa law

1 month ago | carrollspaper.com | Randy Evans

At least one member of the Iowa House appears to live by the mantra “Do as I say, not as I do” as he demands access to sensitive personal information and commands silence as he trolls for documents. The audacity of Representative Charley Thomson’s recent demands to a nonprofit organization should offend all, regardless of where you land on the political spectrum.
A lawmaker’s blatant overreach as he ignores Iowa law

1 month ago | oskaloosa.com | Randy Evans

At least one member of the Iowa House appears to live by the mantra “Do as I say, not as I do” as he demands access to sensitive personal information and commands silence as he trolls for documents. The audacity of Representative Charley Thomson’s recent demands to a nonprofit organization should offend all, regardless of where you land on the political spectrum.
A lawmaker’s blatant overreach as he ignores Iowa law

1 month ago | dmcityview.com | Randy Evans

Stray Thoughts 5/5/2025At least one member of the Iowa House appears to live by the mantra “Do as I say, not as I do” as he demands access to sensitive personal information and commands silence as he trolls for documents.