Thursday, October 11, 2012 - The Daily Cardinal

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Fine foothill fiddling

Decker is dynamite +SPORTS, page 8

+ARTS, page 4 University of Wisconsin-Madison

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Thursday, October 11, 2012

Labor group rejects adidas’ summit plan By Taylor Harvey The Daily Cardinal

on campus

Getting crafty

Students gather at the Memorial Union to compete in the Badger Craft Clash Wednesday night. Judges evaluated three rounds of crafting and the winners’ work will be displayed in the Memorial Union. + Photo by Grey Satterfield

ASM hosts town hall forum to discuss campus safety initiatives By Sara Degrave The Daily Cardinal

The Associated Students of Madison hosted a town hall meeting Wednesday for city officials, police and any interested students to collaborate on ways to improve campus safety. The meeting gave attendees an opportunity to ask questions about the proposed increase in cameras downtown, as well as current campus resources, such as SAFEwalk and UW Police Facebook and Twitter feeds. Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said a new city initiative to spend $100,000 to double the amount of cameras downtown, specifically in areas near Langdon Street and behind the Capitol, will help identify suspects involved in criminal activities. “The tragic May 19 shooting was a perfect example of the effectiveness of the cameras because it allowed the suspect to be known and charged and arrested,” Verveer said, referring to a shooting over the summer outside Johnny O’s that injured three people. Although many students are familiar with SAFEwalk, a latenight campus escort service specifically aimed to increase safety, UWPD Police Officer Michael Eckhardt said police are concerned students aren’t taking full advantage of the opportunity because they’re afraid to ask for the service. “In terms of utilizing the service, some students do feel it is burdensome,” Eckhardt said.

According to Eckhardt, UWPD has partnered with College Library and the student unions to combat the problem by creating easily accessible SAFEwalk stations within the facilities. Eckhardt said at these locations, SAFEwalk escorts provide information about the Safe Bus schedule and pamphlets about the SAFEwalk program, in addition to offering a safe walk home. Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8, said UWPD offer a unique connection to students through social media, including their Facebook and Twitter feeds. “The messaging between the police department and the

student body is really the quintessential thing that makes our police department different from other cities,” Resnick said. According to Resnick, these sites allow students to learn about behaviors and events that trigger police involvement and gauge their choices accordingly. Although Madison is known for being a relatively safe city, Eckhardt said police still stress the need for students to be vigilant in their surroundings and look out for one another. “When people have a vested interest in their community, they care about it and want it to succeed,” Eckhardt said.

University of WisconsinMadiosn’s Labor Licensing Policy Committee expressed concern Wednesday after adidas announced its plan to host a summit abroad to address the issue of companies’ failure to pay severance in the global garment industry. Over the past year, LLPC has urged Chancellor Ward to cut licensing and sponsorship ties with adidas, the university’s primary licensing partner, after the company failed to pay more than 2,700 Indonesian workers due severance pay after a PT Kizone factory contracted by adidas abruptly shut down in January 2011. The university is currently in a lawsuit to determine if adidas

is obligated to pay the workers. According to Lingran Kong, a Student Labor Action Committee representative on the LLPC, adidas is flying various university administrators to Switzerland from across the U.S. who expressed concern over business relations with the company to discuss how to handle severance issues in the future as well as possibly setting up an insurance fund. But Kong said she feels adidas is holding the meeting to reassure concerned administrators they are a socially responsible company, and said the company is “all talk and no action.” “This is more of a PR spin to portray themselves as responsible,” Kong said. “But it’s very

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UW geography professor emeritus dies at age 70 After 43 years at the ous grants from the National University of Wisconsin- Science Foundation. Madison, Professor Emeritus His 1993 article in the sciof Geography Jim Knox ence journal Nature died at his home Oct. 6. has been widely acceptKnox began teaching ed and used in the at UW-Madison in 1968, Geomorphology field. before retiring in 2011 The article stated that to focus on his research even small changes in cliexploring how streams mate cause large changes and soils work. in the number of floods During his teaching along area streams. career, Knox received a A memorial service KNOX Lifetime Achievement will be held Oct. 12 at Award from the 12 p.m. at Cress Funeral Association of American Home in Madison. A visitation Geographers and numer- will begin at 10 a.m.

Former Walker aide to give plea deal

Grey Satterfield/the daily cardinal

City officials and University of Wisconsin-Madison Police discuss campus safety issues in a forum with students Wednesday.

Kelly Rindfleisch, the former aide under then Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker who was charged with four felony counts for illegal campaigning while at a taxpayer-funded job, will enter a plea deal in which she is admitting to one of the charges. According to a letter obtained Wednesday, Rindfleisch is asking for no fine, but the deal includes a recommendation for jail time by prosecutors. Rindfleisch is scheduled to appear in a Milwaukee County Circuit Court Thursday to present the plea deal.

Originally, Walker was on a list of potential witnesses for the prosecution, but earlier this week Rindfleisch decided she will plead guilty instead of stand trial, meaning Walker will not have to testify. The prosecution alleges Rindfleisch and Darlene Wink, another former Walker aide who has already pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing, were part of a secret email system set up in Walker’s office that helped employees engage in campaign work while on taxpayer time.

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“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”


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