FROM KCCI: Des Moines airport likely to feel effects of national flight reduction. Lawmakers in Washington are working to reach an agreement, and the potential impact on air travel is already causing concern. Starting Friday, the Federal Aviation Administration plans to reduce flights by up to 10% at 40 airports across the country. While Des Moines International Airport is not on the list, its direct flights to affected airports could still feel the ripple effects. ... READ MORE

FROM WHO-TV: Polk County approves $1 million for local food programs amid SNAP reductions. The Polk County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Wednesday to allocate $1 million to local food programs, as food pantries across the county face record demand. The county says the emergency funding comes from non-budgeted, interest-earning county dollars and is expected to provide around 473,000 pounds of food. The Food Bank of Iowa will receive $750,000, DMARC will get $230,000 and Caring Hands will receive $20,000. ... READ MORE

FROM WOI: Judge dismisses class-action lawsuit against Des Moines Register, pollster J. Ann Selzer. A federal judge dismissed a class-action lawsuit claiming the Des Moines Register and pollster J. Ann Selzer committed fraud by releasing the Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll predicting Kamala Harris would win Iowa. ... READ MORE

FROM AROUND THE WORLD: China seeks to project power far beyond its coast with the new Fujian aircraft carrier. China has commissioned its latest aircraft carrier after extensive sea trials, state media reported Friday, adding a ship that experts say will help what is already the world’s largest navy expand its power farther beyond its own waters. ... READ MORE

FROM AROUND THE NATION: The FAA’s order to cut flights nationwide due to the government shutdown is in effect. The Federal Aviation Administration ‘s unprecedented order to scale back flights nationwide because of the record-long government shutdown took effect Friday morning, with some passengers trying to figure out backup travel plans. ... READ MORE

FROM AROUND THE STATE: State audit ties three former Baxter city employees to $90,000 in improper financial transactions. Three former Baxter city officials have been named in a state audit that shows over $90,000 of improper, unreported, or uncollected disbursements and utility bills. The audit, released Thursday morning by the Iowa State Auditor’s Office, says more money may have been improperly dispersed, but city records were not maintained well enough to determine that. ... READ MORE

Clear Mortgage meteorology

Colder weather moves in Saturday and Sunday with lows well below freezing and rain expected Saturday. Temps will warm up into the 50s starting Tuesday.

For help with pre-approvals or refinancing, get in touch with Originating Branch Manager Carrie Hansen at carrie.mortgage.

Chicken — no bones about it
Upon flying into town early this century, I followed three children down the escalator at the Des Moines airport. Their mom was waiting for them, and, when they spotted her, they ran to her yelling "Guess what Mommy, Grandma made us chicken that had bone in it." Since that evening I have worried that "chicken with bone" has become a thing only for seniors and chefs. After decades as the absolute king of fried chicken, KFC fell all the way to No. 4 in American chicken sales this year. The three chains ahead of it now are Chick-fil-A, Raising Cane’s and Famous Dave's. None bother with bone-in chicken. And KFC is opening a new chain that won't sell bone-in chicken at all: "Saucy" focuses instead on tenders with 14 sauces.
 
My grandmother taught me that sauces, spices and herbs were what one used to disguise the fact that their food is flavorless. Julia Child pretty much said the same thing when she described modern American chickens as tasting like "teddy bear stuffing." Is the future of bone-in fried chicken now left to Southern places like Bubba and Good Eatin's, dinner clubs like Chicago Speakeasy, Maxie's and Christopher's, elevated convenience store chains like Kwik-Star and Buckee's, and supermarket delis?
 
What happened to chicken with bones? American lifestyles changed. These days, consumers eat 26% of their fast-food orders in their cars, according to market-research firm Circana. Even old folk like me don't want the mess of bone-in chicken in their car.
 
Chicken on the bone quiz. We have Big Green Umbrella T-shirts for the first two correct answers to this pop quiz: "From 1957 through the 1970s, KFC (then Kentucky Fried Chicken) sold millions of cardboard buckets of bone-in chicken. How many pieces of chicken were in the buckets then? Send to jd91446@aol.com.

Weekend deals
• Hy-Vee stores have a special $3 sesame or orange chicken rice bowls with an appetizer today only, plus kids eat free 4-7 p.m.

• Manhattan Deli (3705 Ingersoll Ave.) welcomes back their best selling “Turkey Todd" for a one-month run. The $14 sandwich includes everything one expects from Thanksgiving leftovers, including homemade turkey gravy.

• Prime & Providence has a new Sunday dinner for two special that includes three courses. Entrée choices are ribeye or filet mignon with choice of two sides, $99.

• Irina’s (650 Prairie View Drive, West Des Moines) offers an all-you-can-eat surf and turf special Friday and Saturday that includes slow-roasted tri tip, snow crab legs, loaded whipped potato, mussels cioppino, creamed corn and honey fried chicken. $59.

• ShortE's BBQ (8805 Chambery Blvd., Johnston) offers 20% discounts to first responders and military on Friday and Saturday. They have a Friday special pulled pork sandwich, fries and fountain drink for $12.

• Table 128's Saturday chef's menu will include wild salmon ceviche, pork loin and cranberry crumble, $58.



• Amruth (9974 Swanson Blvd., Clive) has 20 dishes on their Saturday and Sunday buffet, noon to 4 p.m. Of course, there will be dosas.

• Waterfront stores' Saturday special includes cocktail shrimp or raw oysters on the half shell for half price until 4 p.m.



• Gilroy's (1238 Eighth St., West Des Moines) does Saturday and Sunday brunch buffets for $24.99 for adults. Kids 6 and younger eat free.

• Rube's steakhouses offer a prime sirloin special on Sundays only, $29.

• Beaver Tap (4050 Urbandale Ave., Des Moines) offers $9 Philly cheesesteaks or hot honey chicken plus $8 biscuit and gravy breakfasts on Fridays.

• Smoking Goat Pub (3015 Merle Hay Road, Des Moines) offers walleye or steak dinner specials tonight and karaoke after 9 p.m. They have a ten for $10 wings deal on Sundays. 

•  Jethro's Sunday special is papa cheeseburgers and side for $9.95. Today they have BBQ melt and side deal for $9.95. 

• G Mig's has Friday prime rib dinners for $32 or bay scallops and risotto with asparagus and garlic bread or angel hair with shrimp in orange cream sauce with broccoli and garlic bread for $28.95. Saturday's special is fried chicken dinner for $18.50.

• Heavenly Asian (225 Fifth St., Valley Junction) has an all-day Friday sale on orange chicken served with soup, crab Rangoon, egg roll and rice, $14, available for dine-in and phone carry-out.

• Destination Grille (2491 E. First St., Grimes) has a $40 prime rib dinner special Friday and Saturday. 

• Court Avenue Brewing Company (309 Court Ave., Des Moines) hosts Saturday and Sunday breakfast buffets for $23.99.

• Aldi stores have sales on Jennie O frozen turkeys at 79 cents/pound, white mushrooms at $1.29/half-pound box, and all-purpose flour at $2.19/5 pounds, through Tuesday.

• Fareways have specials through Saturday on red or black grapes at $1.88/pound, boneless USDA Choice chuck roast at $6.99/pound, and tubes of 80/20 hamburger at $3.99/pound.

• Price Choppers have sales through Monday on butter at $2.99/pound, swai or pollock frozen filets at $3.49/pound and pumpernickel loaves at $2.99.  

• Fresh Thyme (2900 University Ave., West Des Moines) has a sale through Tuesday on honeycrisp apples at 99 cents/pound, raspberries or blackberries at two for $5, and navel oranges at $2.99/3-pound bag. 

• Hy-Vees have a sale through Monday on iceberg lettuce at $1.49, green onions or radishes at 99 cents/bunch and Haagen-Dazs at $3.99/14 ounces.

Music


El Toreado Mexican Bar & Grill on EP True has live music from The Juan and Only on Friday from 6 p.m... Willie James Shay plays Sonny’s Pizza Bistro Friday at 5:30 p.m... Taylor King play Kelly's Little Nipper at 7 p.m. Friday... Luke Farland will be at Caffrey’s Irish Pub, Waukee  at 5 p.m. Friday. … Fred Gazzo Quintet plays Anna Dolce Ristorante, WDM at 6 p.m. Saturday... Matt Woods Band plays Middlebrook Mercantile, Cumming at 2 p.m. Sunday... Willie Shay plays Simon’s at 7 p.m. Friday... Steve Grismore/Rod Leaverton Duo play Louie’s Wine Dive at 5 p.m. Sunday... 10 Fold Return plays Mickey’s Irish Pub, Waukee, at 8:30 p.m. Saturday.

— Jim Duncan, jd91446@aol.com

1989: Two African American firsts in politics. On Nov. 7, 1989, in New York, former Manhattan borough president David Dinkins, a Democrat, is elected New York City’s first African American mayor, while in Virginia, Lieutenant Governor Douglas Wilder, also a Democrat, becomes the first elected African American state governor in American history. ... READ MORE

1991: Magic Johnson announces he is HIV-positive. On Nov. 7, 1991, basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson stuns the world by announcing his sudden retirement from the Los Angeles Lakers, after testing positive for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. At the time, many Americans viewed AIDS as solely a gay white man’s disease. Johnson, who is Black and identifies as heterosexual, was one of the first sports stars to go public about his HIV-positive status. ... READ MORE

2000: Election results between Al Gore and George Bush too close to call. This date in 2000 was a pivotal moment in U.S. history, as the presidential election results in a statistical tie between Democrat Al Gore and Republican George Bush. The results in Florida were unclear by the end of election night and resulted in a recount and a Supreme Court case, Bush v. Gore, which ended the dispute in favor of Bush a month later. The election exposed several flaws and controversial elements of the American electoral process and was at the time the fourth U.S. presidential election in which the winner lost the popular vote. ... READ MORE

 www.history.com