56 Comments
User's avatar
Kurt Johnson's avatar

Dave, I agree with much of what you’ve written. I think it one of the biggest objections is when the term equity is used to mean equality of outcome. I think most people believe in equality of opportunity, but not outcome. It is probably impossible for everyone to have equality of opportunity, but we should at least strive for equality under the law.

Expand full comment
Scott Libin's avatar

I largely agree with you, as usual, Dave, and appreciate your willingness to take on this tough topic. There is one small, relatively simple issue I hope we can all agree on: DEI is not an acronym. It's an initialism. An acronym is a word formed from the initial letters of a compound term, such as ICE, scuba or radar, that can be pronounced as a word -- not FBI, CIA or DEI.

Expand full comment
Dave Busiek's avatar

Thanks for pointing that out, Scott. I will remember it going forward. I was not aware of the difference. Years ago, I used the phrase “unchartered waters” in a conversation with our RTNDA friend Warren Cereghino, and he patiently said, “Dave, Dave, Dave. It’s UNCHARTED waters. You can chart waters but how would you charter them?” Duh. Bad job out of me. I’ve always remembered it and I’ll do the same with acronym.

Expand full comment
John Schmidt's avatar

Great column.

Expand full comment
Nancy Woods's avatar

Thank you for crystallizing the exact thoughts I have had about this subject. I am so tired of people(men) talking about how great the country was when everyone(women, blacks, others) knew their place and stayed in it.

Expand full comment
Cliff Brockman's avatar

My mother was a pioneer (excuse the cliche, but I think it fits here) in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Unlike most women in the 50’s and 60’s, she worked outside the home. She worked her way up to a managerial position where she hired women, including minorities.

Expand full comment
Dave Busiek's avatar

Cliff, I think about my mom all the time raising three kids in a small post-war house out in the suburbs. She was a bright, creative woman who never had a chance to use her intelligence on college or a good job. We had one car and dad usually took it to work in the city. She was stuck there with the three of us, and I think it took its toll. I admire women who could overcome expectations of that time but society made it difficult for many women.

Expand full comment
Marshall Grabau's avatar

You nailed it! Calling a spade a spade. Just look at the Missouri AG's lawsuit against Starbucks.

Expand full comment
Nigel Southway's avatar

Wow… who woke up this guy from the deep sleep he must have been in for the last decade.

He appears to have no idea the damage to our society caused by DEI.

It has caused racial conflict and much lower performance in many aspects of our business and learning institutions.

About the only thing I agree with is the fact that the cybertruck IS ugly.

Somebody please re-educate this oversimplistic thinking plonker.

Expand full comment
Thea's avatar

Please enlighten us, white male

Expand full comment
Nigel Southway's avatar

I rest my case...... what has my person got to do with the issue.

Expand full comment
Thea's avatar

Hilarious

Expand full comment
Nigel Southway's avatar

anything else?

Expand full comment
Chris Siebrasse's avatar

Always entertaining to hear from the Brit troll wannabes.*

*yeah, "plonker" was your obvious tell. Is that term popular in Moskva nowadays?

Sometime you should look up raygunsite.com to see how they deal with trolls. It's hilarious! But since Dave Busiek is a learned journalist who focuses on writing articles instead of selling clever T-shirts, I suspect he'll just let you get hoist by your own petard.

Expand full comment
Nigel Southway's avatar

Listen sunshine…. If you have something constructive to say I will respond…. but all I get is low life innuendos… shame.

Expand full comment
Chris Siebrasse's avatar

You responded, so by your own statement, I must have had “something constructive to say.”

You complain about “low life innuendos” and previously address me as “sunshine.”

You give trolling a bad name, Nige. Better up your game. Pip pip, cheerio, and toodle-oo.

Expand full comment
Nigel Southway's avatar

Not one comment about the subject .. just silly stuff..

Expand full comment
Dean Lerner's avatar

Bravo, Dave!

Expand full comment
Jeremiah Scavo's avatar

A professor at a prominent Des Moines school told my friend he wouldn't let white males come in to speak to his class. That's insane.

Expand full comment
Jeremiah Scavo's avatar

Just to be clear. You, Dave, one of the most prominent leaders in Iowa communications history, wouldn't be allowed to speak at his class. That's people's issue with what's going on.

Expand full comment
Dave Busiek's avatar

Did he explain his rationale? It doesn’t sound rational, and would agree, that’s over the top.

Expand full comment
Jeremiah Scavo's avatar

Because he's a white man teaching them. He can't subject his students to any more whiteness. This is a really good guy. But these ideas are getting out of hand.

Expand full comment
Jeremiah Scavo's avatar

Just to be specific, it was "sis white maleness." DEI is slightly broader than affirmative action.

Expand full comment
Chris Siebrasse's avatar

If you want to be taken seriously, tell us specifically WHO and WHERE.

Otherwise, your claim doesn't pass the smell test. It's on the order of "people are saying", "I have a friend that", and other dubious claims. This is how misinformation and disinformation proliferate.

Expand full comment
Jeremiah Scavo's avatar

I know him personally and intend to talk to him about it. Not really a fan of putting people on blast. Don't even want to mention my friend's name for the same reason. I have more examples. All are personal. It does feel appropriate to share that concepts have the ability to get out of control, and it's worth evaluating their impact. Dave seems to have a definitive view here. It is valuable to be generous to both sides of an issue. This is what the other side is experiencing.

Expand full comment
Steven Herwig's avatar

Control of the language is something the Republicans excel at. Straight out of "1984" we are witnessing the scrubbing of "gender," "climate," "trans," and "DEI." What follows is the scrubbing of groups including LGBTQ people. Witness the Iowa legislature promoting a bill that would outlaw the discussion of LGBTQ at all levels of K-12 education. This creates the "othering" that was promoted to the Germans in the 1930s. As Pastor Martin Niemoller iterated, what groups will be next: socialists, trade unionists, Jews? Groups being affected currently include people of color.

Expand full comment
Dave Busiek's avatar

The similarities are frightening.

Expand full comment
Scott Libin's avatar

You are gracious as always, Dave, and my picky point amounts to very little compared with your important main message. But accuracy always matters in journalism, right?

The correction I will always remember goes all the way back to my days as editor of my college newspaper, when I included in a column the phrase "wreckless disregard" (sic). I was corrected in a nationally syndicated column by James J. Kilpatrick, who was kind enough to identify me by my job only, not by my name.

Expand full comment
Thea's avatar

That's exactly what they want. Whitemaleness. Clear the playing field of others. I refuse to compete against 'them'. I might lose & then what?

Expand full comment
Stu Nicholson's avatar

This is actually the kind of critical thinking we need to hear and see more of: flipping the DEI page back on those who use it as a political slur. As you say, Dave, "Say the words" and understand the meaning.

Expand full comment
Jerrold Johnson's avatar

Well written. As a former newspaper reporter and editor I wholeheartedly agree that the shortcut of diminishing an issue to an acronym reduces the importance and significance of its meaning. Most of those opposed to DEI do not have a clue what it stands for.

Expand full comment
Tim Grover's avatar

And if you're not "WOKE" are you "COMA"? Completely Obliviating Minority Achievements...?

Expand full comment
Mark Baranowski's avatar

Just found this on a Gannett paper website (not the Register):

United States consumers are being encouraged to show support for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives with a one-day spending blackout.

Numerous social media accounts are sharing the message of a 24-hour consumer spending blackout planned for Feb. 28. The activists are encouraging consumers not to spend money in stores or online for the day in response to the rollback of these policies and initiatives by the Trump administration and major retailers, like Target and Amazon.

A second economic blackout aimed at blocking purchases from Amazon from March 7 through March 14 has also been announced

Expand full comment
Dave Busiek's avatar

Thanks, Mark. I wasn’t aware of this. Appreciate you passing it on.

Expand full comment