Badgers blitz Boilermakers before blizzard Ryan Evans contributes go-ahead jumper, emphatic dunk in final minute SPORTS
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dailycardinal.com
OPINION
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Thursday, February 3, 2011
Students rejoice in canceled classes Thousands take to Bascom for snowball fight as storm shuts down campus By Kayla Johnson the daily cardinal
photos by ben pierson and lorenzo zemella/the daily cardinal
With classes canceled students flocked to Bascom Hill for a snowball fight Wednesday, while much of Madison dug itself out from under Tuesday’s blizzard.
At 6 p.m. Tuesday, the UW-Madison campus erupted with cries of “Snow day!” as students rushed to sledding hills and liquor stores to celebrate their day off. The university resumed classes Thursday, after drifted snow was cleared from campus roads, parking lots and walkways. An estimated 3,500 students, as well as Chancellor Biddy Martin, converged on Bascom Hill Wednesday for a snowball fight between Southeast and Lakeshore Residence Halls. “The entire hill was packed from both
sides, I had a blast. There were quite a few battle wounds. I saw bloody noses and black eyes,” said freshman Haley Hensen, who suffered a bloody nose of her own during the fight. “I’d highly recommend it. Anytime there is a campuswide snowball fight, everyone should go. It’s a great time.” After Martin announced classes were canceled for Wednesday, long lines of students were reported at local businesses like Regent Street Liquor, where they stocked up on alcohol to celebrate the day off. “There were just so many people, the store couldn’t handle it. The line was out the door at points,” senior Sam Jonas said. “That was right when they announced [the snow day]. I can’t imagine how busy it would be an hour later.” INSIDE: The blizzard caused problems for a number of Madison services and impacted much of Wisconsin. Read more on page 3.
Walker pledges reduced deficit in State of the State address By Patrick Tricker the daily cardinal
Despite blizzard conditions that caused state emergencies in 29 counties, Gov. Scott Walker delivered his State of the State address Tuesday, calling for bipartisan unity to solve Wisconsin’s sluggish economy and budget problems. “We can no longer afford to turn a blind eye to the tough decisions ahead,” Walker said. “Without swift corrective action, entitlement programs and legacy costs will eat up more and more of the operating budget. Failure to act only makes the problems worse in the future.” The governor applauded special session legislation that cut taxes and reduced frivolous lawsuits, but said more work needs to be done. Walker promised to fix the budget deficit by reforming public employee benefits, entitlement programs, regulation laws and the state’s relationship with local government, although
he gave few specifics about what would be cut. “It is in these budgets where rhetoric meets reality, where we will show that we will make the tough decisions now to lay the foundation for future economic growth,” Walker said. “During the present downturn, Wisconsin’s proud tradition of responsible budgeting gave way to repeated raids on segregated funds, excessive borrowing for operations and an addiction to onetime federal dollars. These are no longer options.” Wisconsin faces a $200 million shortfall in the current budget and a projected $3 billion shortfall in the next biennial budget starting on July 1. Those deficits will have to be fixed because the state constitution mandates a balanced budget, according to UW-Madison professor of public affairs Andrew Reschovsky. “Around the country, these are big probsots page 3
ben pierson/the daily cardinal
Gov. Scott Walker said Wisconsin needs “swift corrective action” to reduce the state’s deficit in his State of the State address Tuesday.
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”