Gomers -- What's going wrong

CEREMONY WITHOUT MEDALS: If you were invited to be part of a Congressional Gold Medal presentation, you'd expect that the medals would be presented at the event, right? Didn't happen on Nov. 20 at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. That's where eight Meskwaki men were recognized and thanked for using their native language to provide secure combat communication for U.S. forces during World War II. Instead, family members who made the trip to Washington last month must wait until New Year's Eve to collect the medals, as part of a powwow at the Meskwaki casino west of Tama. That change was made at the request of the tribal council. We think the medals should have been available Nov. 20; the local event could still add another layer of recognition and local celebration.

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AFTERTHOUGHT: As expected, the Dec. 3 runoff election for the two at-large seats on the Cedar Rapids City Council drew a paltry voter turnout of 8.7 percent. Fewer than 8,000 people in a city of more than 125,000 bothered to cast a ballot. That followed another unimpressive voter turnout of 22.3 percent in the Nov. 5 city election that set up the runoff.

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