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Newton, Iowa – Screwed

I defintely raised the ire of countless Iowans the other day; nobody likes it when their home turf is poo-pooed, especially when one speaks from experience. It's impossible to fight stereotypes, isn't it? :) But it seems that I was partly right. An old fraternity brother sent word:

“On the Iowa post I agree with you seeing as how our state congress is still in session trying to figure out if they want to actually pay to have our kids educated or not.”

I'm not sure what's going on there, but I had a subsequent email exchange with a good friend, Jan Michelson – and you can tune in to AM 1040 WHO on Tuesday the 24th of May at 11AM (CST) if you'd like to hear us discuss it (amongst other things). I opened the can of worms, and there's a reason I did. Take a read:

Maytag Corp. To Be Acquired By Investor Group – “This is obviously a time of uncertainty for the many families who have worked so hard over the years at Maytag to produce the quality products so many of us use every day. I am hopeful Newton's long history of supplying Maytag with hardworking Iowans will be fully understood by the new ownership should this transaction take place,” Boswell said in a statement.

Translation: “Hold onto your hats, kiddies… you're about to get Flint'ed.” As much as you may hate what I had to say, there's a large amount of truth in it (if you can look past emotion). What happens when Principal Financial Group decides that Des Moines ain't its cup of tea?

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11 Comments

Fortunately they haven't figured out how to make insurance cheaper in Asia.

At least they'll have that race track they're building for $70 mill. :)

Probably had more to do with your attitude – or, does that concept escape you?

Totally agree with the above poster. Iowa certainly has its problems, that goes without saying. Strangely enough, every other city/area of the country has it's own equally serious issues. I think it was more your air of superiority and generalization that *all* Iowans are a bunch of bumbling, inbred hicks and the whole state is a technological and cultural wasteland that upset so many people. Haughtiness is never an attractive quality.

For the record I live in Iowa. The joke is that they're building a racetrack they hope to bring NASCAR to but they're building it in Newton which is quite a distance from any really populated areas so who will go? It was a good idea when Maytag was strong and the city could use the tourist dollars, now they need steady income. WHo knows, I feel sorry for any tech people who work there because they will have little to do.

I thought you didn't give a rip about what was going on in Iowa. Only if you think it expands your ever growing ego and self proclaimed superiority over the rest of the country. Why don't you grow up, get over yourself and let the Iowa thing go (you were wrong anyway). If not, at least move on to bashing some other group of people who thought you were one who cared and could help.

Your comments about how big corporations can make or break the community in which they reside are certainly true. However, as things are currently done in these United States of ours, the CEO's first loyalty is to the company for which they lead. They have to keep the company alive and well to survive. If staying in the community costs the company to the point where it can't survive in today's business climate, you can bet the CEO will do everything he believes will help the company stay healthy. If that includes moving it, so be it.
That said, some of the things done by CEOs and the way they go about it, seem callous and not thoughtful about how their decisions affect other people, especially those who have given many years of their life to that company. People often wonder whether these CEOs have given careful consideration to all other avenues down which they could have taken the company.
I'm a retiree from the Maytag Co., having spent 38 years as a supervisor in quality control there. My personal opinion (and that''s all it is) is that Maytag's problems started when the CEO at the time thought we had to purchase a number of failing appliance manufacturers such as Hoover & Jenn Air by going into debt so as not to appear attractive to a forceful buy out by Whirlpool or GE. Maytag then poured good money after bad, trying to make viable companies out of those that were purchased, making one bad decision after another.
Now, here we stand in a $900 million hole, hoping someone will bail us out. I think if someone does take over Maytag, the best thing he could do would be to fire all the management down to the department level & bring in someone from Harley Davidson Motorcycle Co. Someone who helped them out of a similar position without taking them overseas.

Hey I lived in Iowa for 5 years and if I could go back I would. I've live in 4 other state and by far the folks in Iowa were the best I've met. Some people are looking for more the WI-FI hot spots as criteria for finding a home. I have a autistic son and he was never cared for better in a school system than he was in Iowa!

Here is a quote from his previous Iowa comments “So, if youÂ’re going to send me junk about whatÂ’s happening with Iowa technology or Iowan government, you might care to send it to someone who gives a rip about Iowa.”
This does not sound like someone who cares. Why did he quote a friend in this posting about what is going on in Iowa government when he doesn't give a rip about it?

So, if someone moves they become “too good” for wherever they lived before?

That was pretty nasty, what you posted before, and all the comments that you deleted after doing so. You aren't better than everyone else, despite what you think.

What Do You Think?