Weekend, October 22-25, 2015 - The Daily Cardinal

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University of Wisconsin-Madison

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Weekend, October 22-25, 2015

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+OPINION, page 9

+pages 6 and 7

2015 Bar Guide

view UW sexual assault policy needs clarity

Assembly passes slate of electionaltering bills

Racial equity coordinator calls for social justice improvement By Anna Madsen THE DAILY CARDINAL

Just four weeks into her new job as racial equity coordinator, Toriana Pettaway already has big plans for the future of social equality in Madison. “I am an optimist,” Pettaway said. “I believe we are at a critical point where we can address issues in racial equity and bring about changes that we will see measurably over a period of time.” The City of Madison recently created the new position of racial equity coordinator Oct. 9, although the initiative for racial equity and social justice has been

in the works in the Madison area for the last two years. This preparation consisted of coordination with cities that already utilize this same type of social justice work, as well as designing a program specifically for the unique social environment of Madison. “I am so excited to be in this role of equity coordinator for this city,” Pettaway said. Pettaway works closely with a core team and in conjunction with action teams that incorporate training and tools, data, communications and community con-

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By Lucas Sczygelski THE DAILY CARDINAL

THE SETT

Solo at The Sett

The Wisconsin Union’s open mics, previously in the Rathskeller, have moved to The Sett. Performances are open to the public every Wednesday. + Photo by Will Chizek

New technology will turn cow manure into drinkable water By Negassi Tesfamichael THE DAILY CARDINAL

In an effort to clean area lakes, cows will now produce much more than just Wisconsin’s famed dairy products. Dane County announced plans Wednesday to develop a system to eliminate phosphorus from cow manure, making it clean enough to drink. Dane County Executive Joe Parisi selected Beloit-based Aqua Innovations to install the system outside of Middleton. “Aqua Innovations is excited and honored to partner with Dane County to help the county, its citizens and farmers use our technology which has been proven 100% effective at turning manure into clean water for the past 10 years,” said Joe Cecala, CEO of Aqua Innovations, in a Wednesday statement. According to Parisi, 1 pound of phosphorus, which is found in

manure, can lead to the growth of 500 pounds of toxic algae. Current manure digesters remove about 60 percent of the phosphorus in manure, but the new technology has a nearly perfect removal rate. Parisi said phosphorus reduction is important to Dane County’s farm-based economy. “The future is now in our fight to clean up our lakes and I look forward to working with homegrown,

Wisconsin innovators on taking our next bold step as leaders in cleaning our lakes,” Parisi said in a Wednesday statement. In 2014, the county took 4,000 pounds of phosphorus

out of watersheds in Lakes Mendota and Monona, though Parisi said much more needs to be done. “From the very basic like working with farmers on how fields are planted, to the very complex like this system that processes brown waste product into purified, clear water, we know it will take a wide range of solutions for us to have continued progress in cleaning the Yahara Chain of Lakes,” Parisi said in the statement. GRAPHIC COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS

More victims come forward in sexual assault cases at Target, West Towne Mall Madison police received reports of an incident of sexual assault at Target, which they said is likely related to a previous incident at West Towne Mall. A father of a 12-year-old Madison girl said his daughter and her 12-year-old friend shopped at the retail store on Sept. 20 while a man followed

them around the store. The victims said the man brushed against them several times, according to an incident report by Madison Police Department Public Information Officer Joel DeSpain. The girls left the store with a group of customers to avoid the man.

The father of one of the girls told police he meant to report the situation, but forgot to do so until he heard about the West Towne Mall cases from earlier this month. A 13-year-old girl said a man matching the same description groped her inside West Towne Mall Oct. 11. Victims in neither

of the cases knew the man, who police describe as a white male in his 30s. The man has a thin build and a shaved head. Police released surveillance images of the man sought in the two cases. They urge anyone with information to contact the Madison Area Crime Stoppers. —Negassi Tesfamichael

Two bills poised to drastically alter future Wisconsin elections advanced through the state assembly Tuesday amid frustration and pleas for reconsideration from the Democratic minority. The bills come on the heels of the same body’s decision Tuesday to exempt illegal political activity from John Doe investigations. The first bill dissolves the nonpartisan Government Accountability Board and replaces it with two separate commissions equally represented by political appointees from the two parties. The GAB, which passed with broad bipartisan support in 2007, was lauded as a potential model for other states and in 2010 was cited as “the best American model” for election oversight by Ohio State University law professor Daniel P. Tokaji. It is made up of six retired judges who enforce campaign finance, ethics and lobbying laws. The board authorized a John Doe probe into alleged illegal coordination between conservative groups and Gov. Scott Walker’s recall campaign in 2012. In July, Walker called for the GAB to be replaced by “something completely new.” Republicans argue that the board failed to perform required duties and participated in political “witch hunts.” “While the Government Accountability Board was created with the best intentions, it is time to recognize that our seven year experiment has not been successful,” Rep. Dean Knudson, R-Hudson, said in a statement. “The concentration of power was warned against by our founders.” Democrats protested the new bill’s mechanism for funding investigations into illegal political activity, which runs through the partisan Joint Finance Committee. “Under what circumstances do you have to go to people potentially being investigated to ask permission for the funds to investigate them?” Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca, D-Kenosha, asked. The bill’s supporters maintained that the provision acts as a check on excessive investigations. The second bill would double campaign contribution limits to $20,000 and allow unlimited anonymous dollars to be given to issue

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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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