After
consuming drugs and alcohol at Jumping Rock, a notorious party spot along the
Iowa River, a man dives naked into the water. Diving from the cliffs is
illegal and jumpers are often ticketed.
During the 90's, nearly
half of Iowa's 99 counties lost population. More
than sixty percent of Iowa's college graduates leave the state. This essay
looks at those left in the wake of Iowa's emigration. With little economic
opportunity in rural communities, many young people end up trapped in
circumstance. The possibility of loosing the rural lifestyle so glamorized in
American popular culture seems more and more likely.
