After 20 years of living in Iowa, local academic Stephen Bloom has written a magnum opus on the troubled state. I hope Iowans everywhere can submit photos from our state, to help bring attention to our plight. If you do not have access to a digital camera, perhaps you can borrow one from the libraries in Minneapolis or Chicago, which are only 10 hours away by tractor. These are also a good place to get access to the internet, though I believe Des Moines also has internet now. Here's the article in question:

Observations from 20 years of Iowa Life

In Rusbridger’s office, Assange’s position was rife with ironies. An unwavering advocate of full, unfettered disclosure of primary-source material, Assange was now seeking to keep highly sensitive information from reaching a broader audience. He had become the victim of his own methods: someone at WikiLeaks, where there was no shortage of disgruntled volunteers, had leaked the last big segment of the documents, and they ended up at The Guardian in such a way that the paper was released from its previous agreement with Assange—that The Guardian would publish its stories only when Assange gave his permission. Enraged that he had lost control, Assange unleashed his threat, arguing that he owned the information and had a financial interest in how and when it was released.

As readers will discover, the man who is now America's top-ranking professional diplomat, William Burns, contributed from Russia a highly entertaining account – almost worthy of Evelyn Waugh – of a wild Dagestani wedding attended by the gangsterish president of Chechnya, who danced clumsily "with his gold-plated automatic stuck down the back of his jeans".