STUDENT MEDIA AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2014 · VOL 46, ISSUE 32 · BADGERHERALD.COM
AND ALL THAT JAZZ Inspired by UW music professor, ‘Jazz Master’ Richard Davis student Wilder Deitz forms a black music ensemble at a local high school by Alex Arriaga
PAGE 3 Designed by Emily Shullaw Photo by Jenna Freeman The Badger Herald
Walker’s proposal shifts source of UW’s funds
In addition to $300 million in cuts over two years, governor’s budget looks to fund UW System through ‘earmarked’ portion of sales tax by Nina Kravinsky State Editor
The UW System could see a shift in the source of its state funds, along with a $300 million budget cut over the next two years, if Gov. Scott
Walker ’s budget proposal is approved. Currently, the system’s state grants come from the government’s General Fund, which accumulates primarily from state income taxes, but a line in Walker ’s proposal last week suggested
“earmarking” a portion of the sales tax to fund the UW System. The details of the shift are still unclear, but the effect could be substantial, John Witte, a professor of political science at University of Wisconsin, said. “It would be a dramatic
change,” Witte said. Andrew Reschovsky, a professor of public affairs at UW, said while the mechanics of the change have not yet been released, he expects the government would earmark a portion of the sales tax to be used only
for higher education. Like the gas tax, which is earmarked for highway construction, Reschovsky said Walker would most likely set up a fund that funneled a percentage of the total sales tax to fund the UW System. “Finance economists
tend not to like earmark taxes, primarily because when they are instituted they may look like a particular set of priorities, but states’ priorities change over time,” Reschovsky said.
UW FUNDS, page 2
Wis. legislator to propose ‘death with dignity’ bill
Inspired by husband’s health, state rep. seeks to allow terminally ill adults to make ‘compassionate decisions’ about remainder of their lives by Brenda Mcintire Herald Contributor
A new bill introduced by Rep. Sondy Pope, D-Cross Plains, aims to allow adult residents who have been diagnosed with terminal illness to make “compassionate decisions” about the end of their lives. When Pope’s husband was first diagnosed with pancreatic
cancer in 2001, they both knew that the final months of his life would be full of copious amounts of pain medication and suffering would likely occur, she said. “Pancreatic cancer is one of the most difficult cancers in that it is very painful, and one of the few remedies of course is a lot of pain medication, like morphine, which often puts you into a more comatose state,” Pope
said. At the time, Pope and her husband disscussed the possibility of making a “compassionate decision” to end his life prior to when the disease ran its course, she said. However, at the time, Oregon was the only state where that option was legal, and eligible patients have to be residents of Oregon for six months. The national life expectancy for
individuals diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at the time was four years. The bill she is introducing aims to allow those above 18-years-old with sound mind and less than six months to live the option to make the decision based on their own experiences, hopes and expectations. “My husband and I did talk about it once the initial diagnosis was made and it
settled in that it was a terminal illness, he did indicate that he wished that there was some way to do this without the suffering and without guessing at when it would all end before he lost all control,” Pope said. “[However,] we didn’t talk about it a lot because it wasn’t a legal option in Wisconsin.” Although Pope doesn’t feel optimistic about the bill passing in this legislative session, she
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said she hopes that it will start a conversation moving forward. According to Pope, a recent Gallup poll showed seven out of 10 people support the idea of assisted suicide, and she said she foresees it is only a matter of time before it becomes law not only in Wisconsin, but nationwide. The national group Death
DIGNITY, page 4
GOP EFFICIENCY, page 8
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YIK YAK-ING SAFELY
First Wave scholar puts on play ‘Manikin’ to prompt discussion on race and gender.
Wednesday is National Signing Day for football recruits, and the Herald sat down with Badger Nation’s Benjamin Worgull to get the scoop on UW’s outlook.
UWPD keeps a close eye on anonymous social media app in order to guard against harmful cyberbullying.
ARTSETC | PAGE 7
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