Local Editor, Iowa City
PatchEmail: stephen.schmidt@patch.com
Facebook.com/IowaCityPatch
Twitter.com/IowaCityPatch
Phone:
Iowa City (319) 210-7862.
Bio: Stephen was born in Cedar Falls in 1982, but has lived the majority of his life in nearby Solon, IA. A graduate of the University of Iowa, Stephen has covered the Iowa City area for the past four years on a freelance basis for Little Village, the North Liberty Leader and Iowapolitics.com and as a staff writer for the Daily Iowan and the Gazette.
At Patch, we believe in transparency. To that end, I am answering the following questions about my politics and religious beliefs.
Politics
The best summation of my political beliefs is that I am more interested in ideas than ideology. The concept that any one person or political party has all of the good ideas or solutions to our problems has never made much sense to me.
With this in mind, I try the best that I can to stay open minded in any political conversation or when engaging in a political topic.
If I was forced to place myself on the political spectrum between Liberal Left and Conservative Right, I would have to say I am situated in the middle of both, with one foot slightly in the Left column. There are ideas at the extremes of both ideologies that I agree with, and other ideas I disagree with, but overall I am interested in the most practical solutions to the problems we face.
Are you registered with a certain party?
I'm a registered Democrat.
Religion
I'm not religious, especially not in a traditional organized sense. I do however feel that there is a sense of the spiritual in how we treat each other, and in how we appreciate and choose to live our daily lives.
Although I am not a part of an organized religion, I feel that religion can play an important role for some people in their lives, and understanding their religion is often the key to better understanding them as people.
Local Hot-Button Issues
Iowa City is a growing college town and the University of Iowa is a growing university, and in many cases both are growing directly into each other. Both city and university are going through the process of dealing with this growth, trying to make the changes required to meet the challenges ahead, without leaving the identity of Iowa City behind.
Whether you are talking about the 21-year-old ordinance, the change in culture downtown or the crowded school district, the conflict occurs because there is a disagreement over what exactly that Iowa City identity was in the past and what it should be in the future.
The following information was provided by the Iowa City Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction.
A quick rundown of news links.
The company is voluntarily recalling dog food that contains higher than normal levels of Aflatoxin.
The company is voluntarily recalling dog food that contains higher than normal levels of Aflatoxin.
The University of Iowa has received $2 million in funding for the study to by the National Institutes of Health.
Congratulations to University of Iowa students on their academic achievements.
An Iowa City man almost was able to eat up his marijuana supply during a traffic stop, but a trail from his mouth gave him away.
An article intended to give new space for the Iowa Patch poll has so many comments it has become unwieldy. If the debate continues on to a point where this is necessary, I can start another thread for it as well.
The following is the complete daily activity log for the Iowa City Police for Feb. 25, 2013.
The following information was provided by the Iowa City Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction.
The following is the complete daily activity log for the Iowa City Police for Feb. 23, 2013.
Every week, Iowa City will features an animal from the Iowa City Animal Care and Adoption Shelter that is in need of a good home. In this week's installment, meet Jill, a young black cat who is a bit shy, but a lover of cuddling.
The following information is from the Iowa City Police Blotter. It does not indicate a conviction.
In anticipation of their Oscar party Sunday at the Englert, representatives from the Englert and Iowa City FilmScene have submitted their Oscars picks. Can you beat them for accuracy in picks out of twelve Oscars categories?
What do you think of this new video promotional video for Marion, Iowa coordinated by the Marion Chamber of Commerce and MEDCO.
The complete daily activity log for the Iowa City Police Department for February 22, 2013.
The Marion boys basketball team fell 54-50, meaning there will be an unfamiliar absence from the state tournament this year.
The boys basketball team started its march back to State with a commanding win over Prairie.
The following information was released by the Iowa City Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction.
Iowa City Police have arrested a suspect in a Petland puppy heist.
