Iowa City isolates self in academic world

Thank you for gathering information from Stephen G. Bloom's emails for the Feb. 10 follow-up on his article, “Observations from 20 years of Iowa Life.” I didn't care what Bloom thought in December and I still don't. Mostly I feel sorry for him that he still understands so little about our state.

As a 40-something in 1984, I earned my master's degree at the University of Iowa. I had two teenagers testing the limits, my father was dying of cancer and my farmer husband was struggling to survive the farm crisis. I commuted three to five days a week to Iowa City, collecting credits and writing a 315-page thesis on participation of area farm women in education, volunteerism and off-farm work. I got my degree, hosted a dedication of a building in Marengo for which I had led the fundraising and had surgery all in one week in July 1984.

Each time I drove through Coralville, I felt like I was going through the Twilight Zone. The people in Iowa City live in an insular environment, shutting out the reality of the outside world in favor of higher academic pursuits. Apparently, Bloom has not developed genuine friendships with folks outside those borders - real farmers, main street businessmen and small town/county politicians.

Nancy Beyer

Marengo