Dear Mr. Dave Berry of the Miami Herald: I read in our local paper, The Des Moines Register on page 7B, about your comments to the Arizona Republic on how you questioned if Iowa has airline service or hotels and called it pathetic that our whole economy depends on getting New York reporters to eat breakfast with Mitt Romney. And by the way, last I heard the Iowa caucuses are January 18 with New Hampshire's set for January 24. Plus, I would not recommend leaving Iowa in the early in the morning the day after the caucuses unless you love waiting in line for 4 hours to go through security. And yes, the airlines bring in passengers 365 days a year, though no flights are scheduled after midnight or before 5 A.M.
Let me straighten you out on a few things. Our economy does not depend on the primaries and caucuses. I work at a car rental at the Des Moines International Airport and our busiest month is August when there is Knoxville Sprint Car Races, Indianola Hot Air Balloon Races, and Iowa State Fair in Des Moines occur close together. This year the Italian-American Community Center had an Italian Festival and Republicans had a Straw Poll closer to a carnival in nearby city Ames when these other events were going on. Everyone running for president shows up at the Iowa State Fair to pass out food to potential voters. Too bad those ABC and CNN guys coming in only reported the debate the candidates had in downtown Des Moines (they were all here anyway). We get tourists from Japan and Britain coming to just see the"Fair". Other times ABC and ESPN arrive are during sporting events such as college football, car races at now 2 racetracks in Knoxville and Newton, and professional wrestling from the WWF and WWE. They also came when Ames held the Special Olympics this year, though not so much during the Governor's Convention hosted by Des Moines this past year. I have also rented cars to people from the BBC who mainly do documentaries and presidential visits.
Since Des Moines is not much of a tourist trap, our economy depends most on insurance companies and banks home offices kept here. Our tallest building is owned by an insurance company. You may think Des Moines as a small town, but it contains 30 gangs fighting for drug dealing territory with a police run Gang Task Force to at least keep the violence down. If you wish to witness a shooting, robbery, or both try dining at a place close to DrakeUniversity. Several bars on Army Post Road have had shootings so many times the police call them public nuisances causing the owners to close their doors and reopen under other names. Granted every limo you see in Des Moinesis rented, the rich here in the suburb West Des Moines drive BMW's and Mercedes' and belong to any 7 private golf clubs. If you like non-American food, there is Italian, German, Mexican, Indian, Thai, Chinese, Cantonese,and Japanese restaurants as well as a few Irish pubs. And as for hotels and airlines, we have 54 hotels in Des Moines and suburb areas and 8 airlines to choose from, though actually getting a room and an airplane seat during the caucuses is questionable.
I'm sorry you have such a low view of my area of the country, but you if think only cows and cornfields exist it is probably because you only viewedIowa from one of two interstates.
Sincerely: Jordan Harvey
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