Five Things Cedar Rapidians Love to Hate
We know. Hate is such a strong word. But that's why we use it, to point out our level of frustration with people who have their own strong opinions on how things work in Iowa. Because, as far as we're concerned, this is how it ought to be. So let's introduce you to the five things that Cedar Rapids hates the most:
5. Cedar Rapids Hates People who object to our state Bottle Deposit law. We've been paying the deposit for years, and we know how to use the bottle returns at the centers. Also, our roads don't have pop bottles or beer cans littered everywhere. So back off the blustery talk about repealing Iowa's bottle deposit law. We ain't listening.
4. Cedar Rapids Hates People who can't pronounce "Des Moines". I actually heard a mobile app mispronounce the state's capitol city "dez-MOY-enz" No kidding! I think Alexa and all her AI friends ought to be equipped with skills on how to properly say "Des Moines" - and then maybe we should teach the other 49 states too.
3. Cedar Rapids Hates People who don't use their turn signal. OK, so we don't mind if its the person in front of us at a residential 4-way stop that doesn't signal for a simple right turn. It's the idiots on the major streets that won't signal left or right, and then wonder why you won't let them take cuts in front of you. Then they get offended if you are proactive and they have to step on their brakes.
2. Cedar Rapids Hates People who still object to medical marijuana. It's an often-quoted and well-known fact that most Americans would prefer a quicker pace on passing sensible marijuana legislation. So it makes sense that Cedar Rapids would hope we could move along at a quicker pace. It needs to happen, and even the conservatives know it.
1. Cedar Rapids Hates People who mistake Iowa for Idaho: Folks, you don't need a geography lesson...just look it up on your map app. There really isn't that much of a comparison. But let's size 'em up die-by-side: Idaho has Boise. We have Des Moines. Idaho grows potatoes. We grow corn. They have mountains, we have a few nice bluffs in Dubuque.
Oh yeah, and Idaho is over 1,000 miles away from Iowa. That ain't even close.
Idaho Photo: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service