38 minute read
OSCARS SO WHITE AGAIN
Oscar nominations so white, so male returns, 2020 edition
Despite making some strides in last few years, Oscars start new decade with a return to form, severe lack of diversity in major categories
by Zach Lutz ArtsEtc Editor
With the Oscar nominations being released on Jan. 13th and the ceremony now less than two weeks away on Feb. 9th, we have had plenty of time to see the movies and let our thoughts sink in, now it’s time to analyze and discuss the makeup of the nominees.
Most importantly, we can’t forget that this years Oscars shows an unwanted return to white male dominance.
The biggest precursors to the Oscars are always the Golden Globes and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards (BAFTA’s). While they did not suggest a ton of diversity, it was widely believed they would not follow in their steps.
Rather, this year’s Oscars seemed to show even less diversity than the Golden Globes and BAFTA’s.
The biggest issues are in the directing and acting categories.
Greta Gerwig, following her phenomenal writing and directing debut with “Lady Bird,” put out another gem this year with her refreshing take on the classic “Little Women.”
While she did get the screenplay nod, Gerwig was snubbed from the directing category which features five men.
Gerwig could have easily been nominated over “Joker” Director Todd Phillips, and many experts believed this would be the case, but the Academy opted to leave her out and give “Joker” just another one of its 11 nominations.
While “Joker” is one of the biggest fanfavorites of the year, the movie missed the mark with many critics, with Phillips’ direction being a part of their grievances with the film.
Fortunately, one of the nominees for Best Director is Bong Joon-Ho. The South Korean Director has a rich filmography, but “Parasite” is one of the most beloved movies of the year from critics and fans alike.
His nomination is well warranted but it wouldn’t have been a total surprise if the Academy left him out considering their track record for not nominating foreign films in the major categories.
In the actress categories, many believed Jennifer Lopez would be a shoe-in and perhaps even the winner of the Best Actress in a Supporting Role category. She was completely snubbed, however, in favor of 10• badgerherald.com • January 28, 2020
Photo · The Badger Herald Archive
Kathy Bates for “Richard Jewell.” Bates is a veteran and a terrific actress but when it came down to giving Lopez’ “Hustlers” or “Richard Jewell” a nomination, the Academy opted to give it to Bates and “Richard Jewell,” keeping Lopez from earning her first nomination, while giving Bates her fourth nomination.
Additionally, Lupita Nyong’o and Awkwafina missed nominations for Best Actress in a Leading Role, despite turning in top-notch performances. Nyong’o doubled as two horrifying characters in Jordan Peele’s “Us” while Awkwafina starred in the foreign hit, “The Farewell.”
Both performances received a lot of praise as did both movies, yet both movies were snubbed entirely.
There is some saving grace again here though. Cynthia Erivo earned a nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role for “Harriet.” The biopic about Harriet Tubman received a couple of nominations and it was nice to see the Academy recognizing her performance, though its highly doubtful she
will win.
In the actor categories, Antonio Banderas got a nod for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his foreign film, “Pain and Glory.” Other than that, however, the rest of the actor nominees are white.
Nobody is really complaining here because most of the actor nominees were expected as they all gave tremendous performances. Even though the supporting category is stacked, some experts did believe Sterling K. Brown could have found his way into the nomination for his role in “Waves.”
“Waves” is yet another premium product from A24, and while critically acclaimed, the Academy continues to fail A24, missing “Waves” in every area.
It’s tough to get over our biases, and when you consider the names in the supporting category - Brad Pitt, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Tom Hanks, Anthony Hopkins— we always expect career best performances. It’s possible that because they are always Oscar-worthy and have been nominated so many times, we expect and hope they continue to be nominated. While Brown has found plenty of success in TV, he has never been nominated for an Oscar and he had such a wonderful opportunity in “Waves.” Nevertheless, the Academy went for all the big, established stars.
Even Jamie Foxx and Michal B. Jordan’s “Just Mercy” was completely shut out from the Oscars despite lots of love.
Jordan is one of the most charismatic and versatile actors working today, yet still has not found his way into the Oscars and this role was clear Oscar bait.
Now, however, the movie looks like it flopped because of its star power, message and story, yet no major nominations to show for it. The movies success should not be debated just because it wasn’t nominated for an Oscar.
The Oscars aren’t perfect and they leave out amazing movies every year. There is a lot to appreciate with the Oscars, but notably in 2020, there is a clear lack of diversified representation.
Madison co-ops overlooked in mass search for fall apartment Co-op living offers unique housing experience, here are details on different co-op houses in downtown Madison-area courtesy of Madison Community Cooperative
by Veronica Kuffel ArtsEtc Editor
Housing deadlines are slowly creeping upon the Madison community, and many are still scrambling to find homes for next year. Luckily, the Madison Community Cooperative has some underrated options that are cheap, inclusive and fun.
A few of these co-op houses might even cater to your identities and interests, so let’s shine some light on an overlooked scene.
Cooperatives or “co-ops” are a type of affordable housing that has been around since the early 19th century. Each is run by a group of residents with common interests or social values, creating an environment that stimulates friendliness and networking.
While examples of this can be found throughout history, it became a modern business in Britain during the Industrial Revolution. They were popularized in the United States through The National Affordable Housing Act of 1990, an initiative to curb the country’s debt.
But as we’ve seen with our array of cofee shops and hipster shenanigans, Madison was ahead of the curve. The Madison Community Cooperative began in 1968 when eight co-op representatives decided to join together and form an association. The MCC has been active for almost fve decades, and now incorporates eleven houses scattered across Madison.
The association strives to be inclusive, especially toward low to moderate-income people and those of marginalized groups. Most are eco-friendly and offer services to maintain a cooperative atmosphere.
The way each co-op house works is through collective care and cooperation among its members. Depending on the house, residents will cook, clean, maintain the grounds, facilitate meetings, bookkeep or grocery shop. Some have pets who are also cared for within the group, while individual pets are tended to by owners.
There are roughly one to two meetings a week for each MCC house, and all residents must attend at least three general membership meetings within the association. These discuss issues and ideas for the community as a whole.
To live in a co-op house, there are a few rules each member must follow. Primarily, residents must pay a security deposit and house deposit — one for MCC services and the other specifc to the house. They must also pay for an MCC Membership Fee and NASCO (North American Students of Co-operation) Membership Fee if a student. An additional charge is assigned for monthly food, as each co-op has a kitchen and buys food the group can share.
According to the MCC, the total cost per month is $535 for room, board and utilities. Besides the low cost, MCC co-ops can have themes or their own missions, which can be a fun way to branch out and discover like-minded people.
Ofek Shalom is a historically Jewish house whose roots go back to Kibbutz Langdon in the 70s, according to the MCC. The co-op celebrates holidays like Passover Seder and Shabbat every Friday, but members don’t necessarily have to be Jewish.
The house gives its residents the opportunity to live and learn from one another, regardless of religious afliation. But for those who are Jewish, it’s a way to meet others in their community.
There are also houses that operate under common-held interests. The International Coop hosts a diverse group of people who include members from the U.S. and abroad. It allows anyone to join, but most residents are interested in foreign affairs and learning about different customs.
The Lothlorien is another house that has many residents with a common interest, that being political activism. Their site claims many residents are “politically active in queer rights, labor rights, environmental and feminist movements.”
The Audre Lorde Co-op additionally accepts those who are into racial justice, pro-feminism and LGBT rights.
Other homes are known for their special furniture and items. The Phoenix Cooperative, for example, has a 110-inch projector screen and stereo sound system along with a video game console and a freplace.
The Sofia Co-op has a backyard with raisedbed gardens and a chicken coop, and many co-ops ofer vegetarian and vegan options for meals.
Regardless of the co-op, each has a friendly and fun atmosphere many can learn to enjoy. If you’re interested in these or any other house, each co-op has a diferent set of rules for admission. Most require people to attend three dinners and an interview, while others require the group’s consent to let a member in.
While on the home search, the MCC is a great option for those who want to live in a community.
January 28, 2020 • badgerherald.com • 11 The current state and worth of free/illegal movie streaming Countless websites offering free movie streams show value, alternatives to dangerous sites, what to trust, what to clearly avoid These days, it’s incredibly easy to torrent, stream or download movies for free.
Yes, streaming any movie for free is illegal. But with how accessible free movies are and seemingly with no consequences, college students — or anyone for that matter — can take advantage of using these websites without any major risk.
For us college students it is a viable option. If we aren’t going to spend our money at the theaters, why pay to buy or rent a movie when these movies are accessible in HD on countless websites?
Some websites even have movies that are currently in theaters in high quality.
For flm lovers like myself there is now a moral dilemma. I want to support the filmmakers I love by paying for their movies but in my current state I don’t have the money to keep up with the amount of movies I watch.
I see any and every highly anticipated movie in theaters and that’s how I show my support, but afterwards I’m not going to buy it on Apple TV, Blu-Ray or on demand.
Chris Stuckmann and other respected movie critics will stress the importance of helping filmmakers and the industry make money — and they should. Its really cool that Chris Stuckmann reviews movies in the room that holds his Blu-Ray collection on his YouTube channel.
Maybe once I have a legitimate job in the real world I will be able to curate a Blu-Ray collection of my own or find another way to consistently support the flm industry, but I’m not at that point yet.
One of the biggest problems with using these free websites is that high quality indie films that nobody sees in the theaters will really struggle to make money unless they make it to Netflix, Hulu or HBO.
Luckily, Netfix continues to expand their movie selection and welcome more and more quality indie films. If Netflix, Hulu and HBO continue to dominate and grow, they could eventually hold all the movies you need to see.
What the streaming services like Netflix and Hulu have over the shady free movie websites is the ability to discover. With personalized recommendation features, you will come across movies you might otherwise not have watched and because you gave Netflix recommendations a try, you might fnd your new favorite flm.
Over winter break, I watched “A Ghost Story” on Netfix because of the recommendation feature and now its my favorite movie of all time. Nobody I knew had seen the flm, so if it were not for Netfix I may never have watched it because I would not have known to search for it on a free movie site.
What streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and HBO can’t compete with is the fact that these free movie sites get Oscar-nominated films either while they are in theaters or before they come out digitally to rent or buy.
So for anyone interested in keeping up with awards season and seeing the movies the critics loved, these sites ofer tremendous value.
A lot of times, big time movies make it to these sites quickly because voting members get copies of the movies before their actual release and many of these copies find their way in the hands of others before they are eventually uploaded to the website. Any shady free movie website runs the risk of leaving your phone or laptop with a virus, so users have to be quick to click out of harmful ads or have their device equipped with the best ad block and virus protection software.
The best solution to avoid this harm is to buy or use a Virtual Private Network (VPN).VPN’s create a private tunnel connection with whatever site you are using so that no third-party can afect your experience with that site.
If you do use free movie sites, there are a couple to avoid.
Moviesin.co, Hulu123.net and Putlocker are just a few to watch out for. Not only will these sites run a good risk of infecting your device, you are also not going to get quality copies of the movies you want to watch. Moviesin.co often has versions where someone is sitting in the theater recording the movie on a camera.
Nobody wants to watch that. Hulu123.net has a wonky interface and clicking on anything at any point on that site could lead to malware.
Putlocker used to be a lot more popular than it is now and it has been around for a few years. It has run its course after being taken down and put back up multiple times and there are many cleaner alternatives now who do not run the risk of getting shut down.
Popcorn Time — though shady in the past — and 123 Movies have both proved to be quality alternatives to some of the sites above, with clean interfaces posing a lesser risk for viruses or any sort of malware.
Free movie streaming is a fascinating phenomenon because its an illegality that is so easy to commit and so inconsequential, but with Netflix continuing to expand to be more personalized, there may not be a need for free movie streams with how much Netflix can package for a small monthly price. by Zach Lutz ArtsEtc Editor
& POLICY PAYMENTS
As the heathcare debate rages on, college students struggle to navigate law while budgeting for a broken system.
“Together, we’re going to deliver real change that once again puts Americans first,” Trump said to the roaring crowd at a campaign rally in October 2016. “You’re going to have such great health care, at a tiny fraction of the cost — and it’s going to be so easy.”
And yet the national debate on healthcare has erupted as costs skyrocket and more and more people grow weary of the bills from the doctor’s office. As Democratic primary campaigns rage on, progressive candidates have endorsed the idea of a single-payer national insurance plan, with moderates supporting a public option plan. President Trump has suggested cuts to Medicare to lower the federal deficit, should he win a second term, according to the New York Times.
As the topic becomes partisan and takes the main stage, potential are solutions flung about, and there seems to be only one thing people agree on — medical care is expensive.
After he took his place as the 45th president of the United States, Trump perhaps began to think otherwise to his proclamation of “easy.”
“Now, I have to tell you, it’s an unbelievably complex subject,” he said at a meeting in early 2017 with governors from across the country. “Nobody knew health care could be so complicated.”
ON A PERSONAL LEVEL Thomas Gillis, a sophomore at the University of Wisconsin, has been plagued with medical troubles since later years in high school.
Gillis described his first serious injury, in 2017, which required surgery and additional care.
“I was on a spring baseball trip in high school. I ended up getting in a collision during a play, and broke my leg straight through in a compound fracture,” Gillis said. “I had to get picked up by an ambulance, got a ton of x-rays, and I had trauma surgery to get it fixed and have a rod put in my leg. I stayed in the hospital for multiple days, and was flown specially back to Milwaukee.”
Gillis said he was grateful to have not been initially concerned about cost.
“I knew the whole time, we had insurance,” he said. As Gillis healed, though, it slowly dawned on him just
Thomas Gillis Doctoral Student, Sophomore at UW
how expensive the entire process was. While he had been in surgery, money hadn’t been at the forefront of his mind — his health was. But as time passed, and bills started coming in, he was shocked to see just how much this one incident cost.
“I remember one of the nights my mom was getting the bills, she got one where medical costs before insurance kicked in was 140 thousand dollars. Just for the specific surgery, and just for this bill,” Gillis said. “Being only 17, I’d never been exposed to much ... but that was one of the first times I actually thought, ‘well, if we weren’t well off, and really, if we didn’t have insurance, what would we have done?’ ... to someone who might not have insurance, what are you supposed to do? You’re stranded.”
Unfortunately, Gillis’ health woes were not yet over. As time passed, more issues developed, this time with his brain. During the summer of 2017, he started getting headaches that he initially thought were migraines. They kept him up at night.
While he knew this wasn’t normal, and likely not healthy, he refrained from going to see medical professionals for financial reasons.
“The whole time, I was thinking I should get it checked out,” he said. “But there was always something holding me back — MRIs are expensive, medicine is expensive. You never want to be the boy who cried wolf, and crying wolf cost you thousands of dollars. I had already just cost thousands of dollars for something else.” Gillis said he put up with it until the pain became so unbearable he broke down to his family, and went to see a doctor. After getting back from the appointment, he said his mother immediately called him downstairs — someone had looked at the scan. That specialist became so concerned that Gillis needed to go to the emergency room immediately.
So that night, he headed back to the hospital. As it turned out, it was fortunate that he did.
“I don’t know how close I came to just dealing with it and dying, because I was worried about the medical care,” Gillis said. “I actually had to have emergency brain surgery to relieve pressure in my brain right away.”
And, of course, the bills followed once more. “My mom wouldn’t even show me the medical bills for that one. And I didn’t even want to think about it,” Gillis said.
Following this latest incident, Gillis was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition. He said it requires him to take daily medication to keep his health in check, which came at a price.
“Since then, I buy pills that I literally need every single day or else I’ll wind up back in the hospital. It’s not cheap, and we reached our deductible on the insurance in the first few months,” Gillis said.
Gillis noted there’s other upkeep — his specialist, who he had been seeing for his case from the start, had relocated to Madison from Milwaukee. While it worked out for Gillis because he happened to relocate at the same time, to be a student at UW, he said it would’ve cost even more to commute back and forth.
Let alone the price of each appointment, he added, or the extra time it would’ve taken.
Gillis said it was important to note both serious surgeries occurred within months of each other — in the same year — and the unpredictable way medical problems can happen makes preparing for them hard.
“What are you supposed to say, that someone should have planned for this? Two expensive surgeries in six months is not something anyone expects,” he said. “There’s no fairness or process for how these things happen, and nobody should be forced to be scared of going to the doctor because they’re worried they can’t pay.”
BEHIND THE FACTS Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Health Sciences at UW-Madison Rebecca Myerson, discussed the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.
“It was designed to increase access to coverage and increase affordability of care for those covered, through a large number of mechanisms,” Myerson said. “Some of
these mechanisms were particularly targeted to specific populations including people aged 25 and younger, the Medicare population, people with diagnosed chronic conditions, people without employer-sponsored insurance and low-income adults.”
She noted some facets of the ACA were designed for those 25 years of age and under, citing a provision that allowed those who fell in that age group to stay longer on their parents’ health insurance plans. This policy, she said, was an earlier impact of the ACA, as it kicked in before later coverage expansions.
Myerson added college-aged students could be notably affected by certain sects of the ACA and expansions to healthcare access.
“There are also some policies that were not age-specific but may disproportionately affect or just be relevant for college-aged people,” Myerson said. “These include Medicaid eligibility expansions [as] students may have low income and be eligible for coverage in states that implemented this policy, and coverage for birth control without cost sharing for all qualified health plans as an essential health benefit. Mental health services were also required to be covered.”
Myerson’s work on the subject has involved a paper published with professors from the University of Southern California. Published in the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, the abstract states the study “provides the first evidence to our knowledge that near-universal access to Medicare at age 65 is associated with improvements in population-level cancer mortality.” The study notes cancer as the second leading cause of death nationwide in the US.
In a review paper she published with professors from USC and the University of Chicago, the abstract stated expansions in insurance coverage for low-income adults accelerated diabetes diagnosis and then, in turn, boosted doctor visits for diabetes management.
“The findings from my research on cancer and Medicare insurance suggests that nearly-universal health insurance coverage can improve health equity – reducing death from treatable causes among under-served patient populations,” Myerson said.
GOVERNMENT APPROACH In Wisconsin, Governor Tony Evers received praise from those supporting the ACA when in June 2019, he pulled Wisconsin from a multistate lawsuit that sought the nullification of the federal health care law, according to the AP. Entrance into the lawsuit was spearheaded by former Gov. Scott Walker, who approved Wisconsin joining the suit.
In his State of the State address in January 2019, Evers cemented his support of federal level healthcare plans.
“The people of Wisconsin voted for a change [in the 2018 gubernatorial election] and asked us to stop playing politics with their health care,” Evers said. “I’ve said all along that I believe the best way to maintain protections for healthcare here in Wisconsin is to stop trying to dismantle those protections at the federal level.”
Jennifer Miller, a spokesperson for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, discussed ACA enrollment in Wisconsin.
“Governor Evers and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) believe every person should have access to quality, affordable healthcare, and that starts by making sure folks know there are options,” Miller
Alex Student at UW
said in a statement to the Badger Herald. “However, the open enrollment period for 2020 ran from November 1 to December 15, 2019. Those who want to obtain health coverage through [the ACA] will have to wait until the next enrollment period later this year to have coverage in 2021.”
Miller added that people could also try to find out if they are eligible for BadgerCare Plus, “a health care coverage program for low-income Wisconsin residents.”
According to data provided by Marlena Holden, Director of Marketing and Strategic Communications at UW University Health Services, 24.18% of respondents in a survey said that, while students at UW, they decided not to use healthcare services because of cost. 36.7% of respondents said they waited to obtain healthcare until they were able to travel somewhere their insurance covered.
Of respondents who said they did not have health insurance, 50% said it was due to cost.
In a statement to the Badger Herald, Holden said some services at UHS were no-cost for students.
“Most healthcare services — including medical services, mental health counseling, radiology, laboratory tests, victim advocacy and free flu shots — are available to UWMadison students at no-cost beyond what a student already paid as part of the student segregated health fee,” Holden said.
CAMPUS-WIDE EFFECTS Alex, a UW student who requested to go by first name only, talked about how, like Gillis, he and his friends weren’t really thinking seriously about healthcare costs.
“When I was a freshman, some of my friends had made a jar where you put in money whenever you did something ‘wrong,’ like if you lost your keys on a night out, puked because you drank too much [alcohol], stuff like that. It was a joke that we’d put the money in the jar towards
anyone who wound up in detox, because everyone talks about how expensive it is,” Alex said. “I probably put a couple bucks in [the jar], and at the end of the [academic] year we went out and spent it all on booze.”
He said as he had friends actually go to “detox” or the emergency room in later years, he realized the joke wasn’t nearly as funny. “Detox” is slang for hospital admission, typically through the emergency room, for alcohol detoxification when consumption has reached dangerously high levels.
“My friend actually wound up in the ER once because she had been puking and passed out after drinking, and everyone there was really scared that it was becoming dangerous and not just a hard night out,” he said. “We were seriously worried about her. I’d never seen someone in that bad shape before.”
Alex said that while she wound up being okay, and was released after being cleared to go home by medical professionals, she wound up bringing up financial concerns after she sobered up.
“She got really, really upset the next day, after she sobered up and realized what [had] happened. At the time, we were thinking about her, maybe what her parents would think, and cost wasn’t even brought up,” he said. “But some of the first words out [of] her mouth were ‘This is gonna be so f*cking expensive.’ And she told us months afterwards that she owed almost a thousand dollars on the bills that her insurance didn’t end up covering.”
Her parents were furious, Alex said, perhaps unsurprisingly so. But despite their knowledge of the incident, financial concerns at home meant she was required to pay for the bill herself. He added that while he had been told she’d managed it, he had no idea how.
“Figuring out how you’re gonna pay that kind of money is not a casual thing for broke college kids,” he said. “I don’t think — to be honest, I know I couldn’t have paid that.”
He said while some responsibility falls to students to keep themselves safe, the implications of the incident were dangerous. While he said he understood it might be hard for adults to sympathize, given that they admittedly drank to excess and she wound up fine, there was still more to the story.
“We were trying to do what so many college kids do, have a good time, and it got out of hand. We tried to be responsible after, do the right thing, and she was fine. But now she has to pay a lot of money because we decided to get professional help,” he said. “I know we were doing something stupid, to land ourselves in that type of situation. But it’s something else entirely to say that people should be going broke just to get to a doctor in an emergency.”
He added that the long-lasting effects were something to be concerned about.
“Something I’m taking from [the situation] is that next time, it’ll take a lot more for me to want to risk anyone’s paycheck, just in case they end up fine, too. And [my friend] was already looking the worst I’d ever seen somebody, at that point,” he said. “People will have to stop breathing or something to get people to take them to doctors, for people to think its worth that kind of money, and that’s way too late.”
Congress needs to push for a joint resolution to end the Iran confict U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher’s objections to the passing of a concurrent resolution refective of his own political agenda
by Kaitlin Kons Columnist
Every decision the government makes is political. Even a decision to intentionally be apolitical is political in nature because the consequences that judgment pose are considered diligently beforehand.
Therefore, no decision made can be apolitical.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a concurrent resolution by a 224 to 194 vote. The resolution was aimed at the president to halt military action in Iran. This debate caused an uproar in the media, most notably here in Wisconsin as two of our U.S. Representatives’ views were in striking contrast on the matter.
U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, argues that President Trump’s use of force in Iran is unconstitutional and violates the War Powers Resolution of 1973. U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Green Bay, argues the Democrats using the War Powers Resolution to draft a concurrent resolution against the action is just political messaging against Republicans, and ultimately against President Trump.
Concurrent resolutions differ from joint resolutions or bills because they never hit the president’s desk and become law. They instead serve as more or less a means of declaration — and in this case, it would be an announcement by Congress condemning the President’s actions in Iran.
This is the basis of Gallagher’s argument — a concurrent resolution is a mere political strategy with no weight to it. War Powers are much more important than a concurrent resolution, such as what the Senate is proposing: a joint resolution to legislate limitations on President Trump’s power. One that has gained traction in the Senate among Republicans and Democrats.
Most notably, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, have spoken out against the decisions of Trump’s advisors, vowing to support the resolution proposed by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia.
This is one of few issues that cross party lines to create coalitions of legislators who would not normally work together. In the end, the two Wisconsin representatives want the same thing. Pocan wants Congress to reassert its War Powers authority and Gallagher is worried the House’s concurrent resolution will cause Congress to miss an opportunity to meaningfully reclaim Congressional War Powers.
It is the same argument but with politics all tangled up in it.
Photo - The passing of the House resolution is emblematic of the pitfalls in protecting politicial interests. over the wellbeing of the public.
Abigail Steinberg The Badger Herald
Gallagher claims to vote against the House resolution because of the weakness of passing something with no legal ramifications. He claims passing something that does not touch the law is wasting a perfect opportunity to fx the broken law.
Talking down to Democrats for wanting to pass a House resolution for political points and then voting against it is hypocritical. Representatives do not publish statements explaining themselves unless they need to defend themselves or back up a vote with reasoning that is not abundantly clear.
Gallagher needed to do both things. He needed to communicate his reasoning for the need to reform War Powers while defending his vote. In essence, he voted against the Democratic House majority — so as to not break ranks — while reassuring his colleagues and constituents that War Powers is a concern of his.
It was a purely calculated political move. He could have proposed a joint resolution himself but, as it was previously stated, joint resolutions land on the president’s desk and Mike Gallagher did not want his name to be the frst one Trump saw.
Why? Because Gallagher is up for reelection in 2020 as well. Everything is political.
Instead of focusing on the threat of national security and how America almost fell off the cliff of peacetime into the abyss of an endless war with Iran, legislators are seeing this as a political opportunity and talking point to use for their 2020 campaign trail ― whether it be Gallagher and the ignorant Republicans scared of their own president, or U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Michigan, and the Democrats choosing the path of politics over practicality. Meanwhile, the Office of the Presidency grows closer and closer to an autocracy every day with every administration making up excuses to do whatever they want. The use of the War Powers Resolutions from 2001 and 2002 to authorize military action today when they were originally meant to prevent further terrorist attacks on the U.S. is out of line.
Yet, Congress cannot overcome their obsession with political ties for long enough to have enough votes to override Trump’s likely veto of Kaine’s Resolution.
It is doubtful that Mike Gallagher will even vote for the joint resolution once it hits the House.
Kaitlin Kons (kkons@wisc.edu) is a sophomore studying political science and public policy.
Trump’s aggressive foreign policy are hurting Wisconsin farmers A sharp uptick in number of family farm closures in Wisconsin will have an inevitable ripple effect throughout the country
by Jonah McGarvey Columnist
Since 2017, Wisconsin has suffered the highest number of farm bankruptcies of any state. While this may seem insignificant, the ramifications will — and already have — rippled outside of the dairy market. Students at the University of Wisconsin should recognize this as not just an economic issue, but also a humanitarian one in the making. If empathy is not enough, 16.4% of Wisconsin state taxes come from the dairy industry, and these same taxes are used to fund the UW system, which includes scholarships to students who need them, art supplies, entertainment or anything else that happens at our school.
Though family farm foreclosures are a national problem, out of the 580 Chapter 12 fillings, 255 were in the Midwest — and of those 255, 48 were in Wisconsin. The USDA reported that American farm net income reached approximately $92.5 billion in 2019 — up 10.2% from 2018. But, the 2019 net income is still 32.3% lower than 2013’s peak and farm debt is approximately four times higher than the net income at $415.5 billion. There are many factors forcing Wisconsin farmers and farmers across the country into bankruptcy, but one stands out — the White House’s trade war with China. As a result of aggressive economic foreign policy, China retaliated with calculated tariffs of their own. China is the largest foreign consumer of American agricultural products, making agriculture an easy and effective target for Chinese lawmakers. Prior to the trade war in 2017, China purchased between $20 and $26 billion worth of agricultural goods, but following the start of the trade war, the number dropped to $9.2 billion.
According to the Wisconsin International Agribusiness Center, nearly one-third, $1.43 billion of Wisconsin agriculture and food exports, are affected by the countervailing tariffs in China. China was Wisconsin’s second-largest export market.
Wisconsin is known nationwide for its dairy production, earning the nickname “America’s Dairyland.” The dairy industry alone contributes $45.6 billion to the state’s economy. But, this will begin to change due to the Chinese agricultural tariffs. According to CNBC, there has been a 50% decrease in U.S. dairy exports to China, which largely come from Wisconsin. The effects of the trade war have more than just financial implications, and are beginning to change the culture and landscape of the state.
In a complex, modern economy, interdependence is unavoidable, meaning the success of dairy farms is not the only thing threatened by drops in milk sales and prices. Sheila Nyberg is the Economic Development Director in Clark County, WI, which is a largely agriculturebased economy. Her job has become increasingly difficult with the rising dairy farm closures. She illustrates how the town is all threaded together, whether it be the tire company, tractor sales or the cattle barns — and in these financially tight times, farmers don’t buy new things, and instead choose to fix broken items. She describes how this has a very significant impact on the economy of the town as a whole.
Roger Zvolena, a dairy farm contractor in Loyal, WI, stated that sales have dropped at least 40 percent since the trade war. Dave Williams, the mayor of Loyal, stated that the population of the town has dropped so drastically that the high school has switched to an eight-man football team.
The ripples do not end at the local farm town level. Similar to the problems with climate change, changes in economies and industries are natural and necessary for progress — the problem is the speed at which these very significant changes are occurring. If the dairy market were to experience a steady decline over the course of a couple of decades, farmers could adjust and more easily transition to a new style of farming or different career path entirely. Unfortunately, the sudden and drastic drop in global dairy sales has left hundreds of farmers in dire circumstances.
The voters who put President Trump into office are facing some of the harshest consequences of his reckless foreign policy. Unfortunately, rural, low-income farmers are an easy target because they have little political and economic influence.
I was on the fence, flipping between whether I wanted to register to vote in my home state of New York or here in Wisconsin. Though I knew nationally my vote would have a greater impact in Wisconsin, I plan to move back to New York after graduation and therefore wanted a say in the local politics. But, it has become clear that the irresponsible actions of the White House are a far greater threat to my hometown community I have joined here.
For this reason, on top of many others, I will register to vote in Wisconsin.
Photo - The White House’s trade war in China is contributing to the increase in Wisconsin farmers going bancrupt.
Quinn Beaupre The Badger Herald
Jonah McGarvey (jonahm621@gmail.com) is a freshman studying political science.
Foxconn’s intentions in Wisconsin increasingly suspect, queries arise Major Chinese company remains radio silent on what it plans to produce in Wisconsin, seems unlikely to hold up their end of the deal
by John Grindal Columnist
Foxconn Technology Group first fell into the American public’s eye after being heavily criticized by the media for their brutal, often dehumanizing working conditions. Recently, the Chinese manufacturing giant has reentered the American spotlight, taking its frst steps towards expanding operations into North American markets.
When Foxconn confirmed that it would be looking to establish manufacturing facilities in the U.S., states began to salivate at the opportunity to lure in the Eastern industrial titan which had long dominated China’s massive electronics manufacturing industry. Michigan was quick to offer the company roughly 3.8 billion in tax incentives in a bid to attract the tech giant. States like Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas were also being considered.
But ultimately, it was Wisconsin that managed to reel in Foxconn’s signature.
With a tantalizing offer of over three billion in tax incentives, Wisconsin was promised a dazzling state of the art manufacturing facility as well as a host of “innovation centers” scattered about the state. President Trump considered the proposed manufacturing facility a massive victory, hailing the future factory as “the eighth wonder of the world.” At the time, it seemed Wisconsin had secured their position as ground zero for the revival of domestic American manufacturing.
Fast forward to the present day, and the 13,000 new jobs Foxconn promised have yet to materialize. The company has invested in properties throughout the state, including a seven-story office building in Milwaukee and an older manufacturing facility in downtown Milwaukee.
But despite the establishment of such locations, Foxconn only employs roughly 520 people in the United States — signifcantly less than originally proposed. It seems the oncepromising deal has manifested itself as little more than a host of buildings flled with nothing but empty promises. In response to questions regarding their lack of progress in Wisconsin, Foxconn officials have repeatedly declined to comment.
Originally, the proposed plant was to be an LCD screen manufacturing facility. But, plans for the facility are now up in the air after Foxconn stated the plant may be used to produce any number of products from server racks to robotic coffee kiosks. Foxconn’s uncertainty as to the future of the factory has lead to questions regarding the continuing validity of their contract, is a robotic cofee kiosk plant worth the
Photo - Foxconn’s actions moving forward will set a new precedent for Chinese manufactoring in the US.
Courtesy of Flickr user Prachatai
billions in tax credit originally agreed upon?
Observing the increasingly hazy future of Milwaukee’s next manufacturing powerhouse as well as the undefined purpose of Foxconn’s “innovation centers,” Wisconsin officials have pressed Foxconn to sit down for a renegotiation, threatening to pull tax incentives if terms are not re-discussed. In response, or rather in retaliation, Foxconn responded to requests with relative silence, accompanied by a clear sentiment that they still intend to fle for tax benefts.
Foxconn broke their silence through a short letter issued to the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, requesting that the company receive tax subsidies under the original contract regardless of the plant’s intended function. Since issuing said correspondence, Foxconn has taken the stance that their right to file for subsidies is not contingent upon what sort of facility they construct. The apparent instability of the contract at hand has led some to question whether or not a legal scufe between the state and Foxconn may be afoot.
Since 2019, the company has stated its intent to focus further eforts on its innovation centers in Green Bay and Racine, both of which have been vaguely advertised as centers to promote entrepreneurship. Foxconn’s innovation centers will supposedly aim to recruit from local universities, a mission that is poised to benefit University of Wisconsin system graduates. But much like the rest of Foxconn’s American endeavor, the innovation centers have been shrouded with skepticism.
“Best case, they build out the initial proposal of this innovation center with, you know, 200-plus employees,” Green Bay Director of Development Kevin Vonck said. “Worst case ... they don’t do anything at all and become an absentee landlord.”
So, as questions regarding the future of Foxconn’s American activities pile up, we have to wonder whether the Chinese giant has any plans to shift its efforts towards the American market or whether their arrival was more or less a political stunt. As of now, the agreement sits in a strange sort of limbo, with development creeping along not only at a questionable pace, but also in a questionable direction.
Over the course of Foxconn’s relationship with the state of Wisconsin, very little discernible benefit has surfaced. Yet, the state continues to pursue the Chinese megacorporation’s business. The entire scenario naturally elicits a number of pertinent questions. Should the state of Wisconsin choose to oust Foxconn entirely? Should Wisconsin officials continue negotiations despite Foxconn’s avoidantly aggressive style of economic discussion? Does Foxconn even see the U.S. as a viable outlet for their business? Whether or not Foxconn is to blame for being a poor tenant, or if the state of Wisconsin is at fault for being economically inhospitable — this interaction stands to act as a precedent for the future movement of Chinese manufacturing onto American soil.
The president has framed Foxconn as a bastion of the American industry and a much-needed savior in the battle to retain domestic jobs. But so far, Wisconsin has had to bear the burden of a massive corporation that may or may not hold up their end of the deal.
John Grindal (grindal@wisc.edu) is a freshman studying computer science and neurobiology.
