THE UNIVERSITY TY O OF FW WISCONSIN’S ISCONSIN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER R SIN SINCE NCE 1 1969 969 Vo V o me olume me X LIIIII, Is LI IIssue sssu ue 550 Volume XLIII,
Monday, November 14, 2011
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SPORTS | RIVALRY GAMES
NEWS | CRIME
W MULTIMEDIA | SLIDESHOW
Wisconsin one-ups Minnesota
Madison heroin dealer sentenced to 4 years in prison; alleged purse snatcher turns out to be Good Samaritan | 4
Badgers take the Axe again
The Badger football team took home the Axe for the eighth straight year while hockey split its series against the nation’s top dog. og.
Go to badgerherald.com to check out some of our best photos from Wisconsin’s rout of Minnesota this weekend.
Whose Axe? Members of the University of Wisconsin football team celebrate a dramatic victory over Minnesota in the annual border battle over Paul Bunyan’s legendary axe. With the 42-13 triumph over the Gophers, the Badgers are setting their sights on the upcoming Big Ten Championship game. Megan McCormick The Badger Herald
Bars halt ID policy Rule on driver’s licenses removed after some city officials call it discriminatory Ally Boutelle City Editor
SEE SPORTS, page 12
Stem cells key issue in Senate race Former governor Tommy Thompson’s recent Vatican visit draws ethical debate into focus Tori Thompson State Reporter While it is still a year until the race for Wisconsin’s soon-tobe open Senate seat takes place, stem cell research is already being brought to the forefront as a potential hot-button issue in the election. Former Republican governor Tommy Thompson spoke at the Vatican last week to advocate for adult stem cell research, campaign spokesperson Ryan Burchfield said in an email to The Badger Herald. “Thompson fully supports adult stem cell research, which does not require the destruction of embryos,” Darrin Schmitz, spokesperson for Thompson, said in the statement. “[Thompson’s] position regarding stem cell
research is consistent with the 2001 policy developed during President Bush’s tenure.” Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin, said stem cell research will likely to be a topic of discussion in the upcoming race. Thompson has to appeal to pro-life groups who are against embryonic stem cell research and only support the practice of studying adult stem cells, Heck said. He said Thompson has changed his position on the issue. “When [Thompson] was Secretary of Health and Human Services for President Bush, he was not known as a strong opponent of embryonic stem cell research,” Heck said. A statement from the Democratic Party of Wisconsin said
Thompson is trying to “pander to the far right,” highlighting his opposition to stem cell research as another strategy in doing so. In an email to The Badger Herald, Phillip Walzak, spokesperson for Democratic candidate Tammy Baldwin, said the congresswoman from Wisconsin’s 2nd District differs from Thompson in her support for stem cell research. “[Baldwin] supports both adult stem cell research and embryonic stem cell research,” Walzak said. “Both have enormous potential to save and improve lives, and both provide tremendous opportunities for jobs and investment in Wisconsin’s economy.” Heck said Baldwin is currently the only Democrat running for the open Senate seat. As
of now, he said Baldwin would either be running against Thompson, former congressman Mark Neumann or Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald, R-Horicon. Though Thompson was governor 11 years ago, Heck said his 14 years in the position means many Wisconsinites still remember Thompson favorably. He said the race will be competitive no matter who runs from the Republican party. “[Rep. Baldwin] has the advantage of an uncontested primary and she’s a phenomenal fundraiser,” Heck said. If the race comes down to Thompson and Baldwin, Heck said Thompson would likely have a slight advantage over the congresswoman because he is the more
STEM CELLS, page 4
The downtown bars that implemented a controversial and allegedly discriminatory admission policy have stopped their enforcement after an overwhelmingly negative response from city officials and the community. Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said downtown bars Johnny O’s and Wandos have removed signs in the windows that said the bars require a driver’s license or passport for entry. He added that Logan’s Madtown discontinued the policy as of Nov. 4. Verveer said the bars made the decision to stop the policy without action by the city. “Any pressure that the city exerted was through the media,” he said. “The news that the establishments have abandoned the policies was largely in reaction to the concerns that were articulated by some in the community.” The policy was put in place after a notable increase in violence inside and in front of bars over the summer. Verveer said a catalyst for bar owners’ concerns was a brutal attack outside of Wando’s in July that landed several people in the hospital. Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8, said the city has recently focused on the issue of gang activity in downtown bars. He said the Madison Police central precinct has focused on deterring gang members from entering bars and ensuring that police monitoring the area are well aware of gangaffiliated individuals. Resnick emphasized, however, that deterring gang members is a completely different and
more focused approach from an open-ended ID policy. Verveer said the city is focusing on curbing violence by increasing police presence in the downtown entertainment district as of late summer. Efforts have been largely successful, he said. “Much of this [violence] has subsided, and it’s silly to say that it’s the ID policy that was the reason why the violence subsided,” Verveer said. The bars’ decision follows an onslaught of negative feedback from city officials and community members alike. Resnick said people’s main concern was that the policy unfairly targets African-Americans and other underrepresented individuals who may not have driver’s licenses. “By focusing on these groups, there’s an intent to keep those individuals out of the bars in downtown Madison,” he said. “Bar owners would argue that it’s more of a safety concern.” Members of the city’s Equal Opportunities Commission formed a subcommittee to specifically address the ethical concerns surrounding the policy and look for possible violations of city ethics code. Commission members also said action needed to be taken to eliminate the policy in a recent meeting. “I’m a little confused as to why we’re sitting back and letting this policy happen,” EOC member Kathy Cramer Walsh said. While the city did not take any formal action to target the policy, Resnick said officials did explain possible outcomes of racist policies, including
ID POLICY, page 4
City planners divided on State Street redevelopment Madison officials say project would ruin historic landmarks, oversteps bounds Ally Boutelle City Editor City planning staff have expressed concern the proposed redevelopment of the 100 block of State Street would permanently destroy Madison landmarks and take away from the street’s historic architectural concept. Steven Cover, director of the city’s Department of Planning and Community and Economic Development, sent a letter explaining his and his staff’s concerns to George Austin, the project’s manager, on Thursday. The proposed redevelopment, funded by philanthropists Jerome Frautschi and his
wife Pleasant Rowland, involves completely demolishing multiple buildings on the 100 block and rebuilding their State Street facades, the letter said. Two of the buildings are historic landmarks, he added. Cover said in the letter he feels developers are overstepping their bounds by demolishing buildings that are an integral part of Madison’s history. “Buildings are designated as landmarks because their architectural/cultural contributions to the community are unique and should be preserved,” he said. “Demolition … should only be considered for truly extraordinary projects.” Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, who represents the area, said he is “keeping an open mind” on the proposal, but he shares Cover’s concerns
about preserving State Street’s history. Verveer said the developer’s plan to demolish half the block and rebuild the buildings in the likeness of historic structures using materials from facades “goes too far.” “It’s too much to demolish every one of those historic buildings and create a replica of several of them,” he said. “We’ve seen other examples where developers keep facades and just build new buildings behind them.” Verveer, however, emphasized he supported several aspects of the project, including the creation of modern, energy-efficient interior spaces and converting apartments to office space. In addition to the landmarks on State Street, Cover said he opposes
REDEVELOPMENT, page 5
Megan McCormick The Badger Herald
City planners expressed disapproval for the redevelopment of the 100 block of State Street, which would include demolishing several historic buildings. In a letter sent to the project’s developer, one official said rebuilding storefront facades “goes too far.”
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