David Yepsen Despises You

In the August 31 Des Moines Register, political columnist David Yepsen applies his "wisdom" to the upcoming debates between Chet Culver and Nussle. Particularly, he uses a lot of ink to psychoanalyze Western Iowa and why we are simply not needed by the rest of the state of Iowa:

And why does western Iowa feel so slighted by the rest of the state? A sociology student could probably do a pretty good thesis on the answer. Part of it is cultural. Western Iowa is, well, more a part of the nation‚’s West than it is the country‚’s East. Western Iowa is Red Iowa. Eastern Iowa is Blue.

Eastern Iowa has Iowa City. Western Iowa has Sioux City.

Part of the isolation might occur because western Iowans spend too much time watching TV from stations in South Dakota and Nebraska. (Think the Iowa Legislature is full of yahoos? Wait till you see South Dakota‚’s.)

It isn‚’t just western Iowa. Many Iowans in the far reaches of the state feel alienated from the rest of it. That‚’s because 34 percent of us - one third - live in the tier of counties along our borders. Many of us have closer ties to other states than we do to Des Moines.

But frankly, western Iowa makes too much out of these supposed slights. They see snubs that just aren‚’t there.
For example, if western Iowans have a beef about the treatment they get from the politicians in Des Moines, they have only themselves to blame. The most powerful guy in the Iowa House is Speaker Christopher Rants. HeÂ’s from Sioux City. The most powerful guy in the Iowa Senate is Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal. He‚’s from Council Bluffs.

Matter of fact, if western Iowa keeps up with this boo-hooing, someone‚’s going to suggest we just lop off the western two tiers of counties. Give ‚‘em to Nebraska and South Dakota.

For sure it would give Steve King a better chance of getting elected to the U.S. Senate someday.

Oh, Dave! You have crushed our spirit and driven us to dispair -- or to Nebraska. May a kind deity have pity on your wretched soul.