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Tuesday, March 24, 2009
GETTING WASTED In-depth report looks at how much food is thrown out by campus food services and proposed solutions By Hannah McClung THE DAILY CARDINAL
LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL
Attendees at a design committee meeting for the new south campus union discussed plans for Badger Hall and the theater at their meeting Monday. The committee will hold its final meeting April 20.
Design committee moves to finalize union interior By Brandice Altfillisch THE DAILY CARDINAL
The Wisconsin Union Design Committee met Monday in Memorial Union to review floor plans and discuss final ideas for the new south campus union. The primary goals of the meeting were to discuss last-minute amendments to plans for the theater and Badger Hall. Members of the committee also finalized interior designs for the upper level of the five-story building. Dan Cornelius, the committee’s vice president for project management, described the status of the new union’s interior designs. “We’re doing it in phases, so we’ve already done the lower level of the club, which is our games room, climbing wall, bowling alley,” Cornelius said. “This Thursday and Friday we’re going to be going to Milwaukee and working on the entire first floor.”
The floor plan for the first level contains several meeting rooms. The interior designers plan to represent Wisconsin’s outdoors by implementing colors from three central themes, including forest, water and rolling hills. According to committee members, demolition began after the UW System Board of Regents approved the project’s budget in February. Groundbreaking for the union will take place in June. The remainder of the meeting included detailed assessment of improved floor plans. Wally Johnson, the project manager from the lead architectural firm on the project, led the discussion. “Today we’ve got a lot of exciting things to look at—there’s a lot of development that’s been taking place. [The committee has] continued to refine spaces,” he said. These refinements range from
stairwell rotations to storage room additions to the enlargement of Badger Hall. The building will contain three restaurants, a market, more than 60 hotel rooms and an art gallery when it is completed in the spring of 2011. Maria Cieslik, the project’s lead interior designer, said businesses have not been chosen to fill the service lines for the three restaurants and club and are still “in flux.” The regents decided in February to reallocate money from Memorial Union construction to the new south campus union project, which was previously $7 million over budget. The Wisconsin Union Design Committee will hold its concluding meeting in the beginning of April. The final approval of the project’s plans will take place on April 20.
Police may have ‘parka bandit’ in custody By Rachel Holzman THE DAILY CARDINAL
Madison police arrested a man Sunday matching the description of the suspect in multiple robberies in the downtown area who has been dubbed the “parka bandit.” According to a Madison Police Department press release, Justin M. Simpson, 20, has confessed to involvement in three recent armed robberies. Simpson was arrested after an officer saw him walking near the intersection of Park Street and Wingra Street around 1:30 p.m. Simpson was wearing a black, puffy
parka similar to the jacket described by multiple witnesses to robberies. The officer who found Simpson was part of a dragnet set up by MPD in hopes of locating the parka bandit. Simpson was searched, and officers found a facsimile handgun and heroin. Simpson was arrested for drug possession and admitted to three of the robberies during questioning. The robberies Simpson admitted to include two at the East Washington Avenue Shell gas station and one this past weekend at the Pinkus McBride Market on Hamilton Street.
According to The Capital Times, a search warrant issued Monday by Dane County Circuit Court Judge John Markson has allowed police to search through calls on a mobile phone found on Simpson when he was taken into custody. By examining these calls, police hope to determine whether there are others involved in the robberies. Police said in a statement the investigation is ongoing and detectives are still continuing to question Simpson on possible involvement in the nearly 20 armed robberies downtown in the past month.
Fresh hamburgers are practically made to order at campus dining halls. But that order needs to be filled in 10 minutes or that burger is thrown out, like the pounds of lettuce, peanut butter and other foods thrown out each day. In an investigation into just how much food is thrown out, multiple sources highlight a largely successful system that is working toward improvement in lacking areas. On an average day, housing cafeterias serve 7,300 students, ranging from 2,600 at Pop’s Club in Gordon Commons to 950 at the Elizabeth Waters cafeteria, according to Brian Burke, UW Housing Food Services manager. On an annual basis, University Housing Food Services purchases more than $9 million in food and supplies, according to Food Services administrator Angie Erickson. A main concern for the staff is determining when and how to deal with the thousands of pounds of leftover or uneaten food each day. Workers must make sure the leftover food complies with Wisconsin statutes related to keeping food free of disease.
“[Housing Food Services] tries to be stricter than the state food codes,” Burke said. “[It depends on] whether it has been out on a salad bar where everybody can get at it or whether it’s been on the serving line and we have control over how long and how hot it’s been,” he said. He said many factors determine what can be thrown away, donated or saved. According to Burke, food cooked in cafeterias can only be retained for a certain period of time and then has to be disposed of or sent to local food banks. Julie Luke, associate director of dining and culinary service for University Housing, said items like hamburgers are only allowed to be on the serving line for 10 minutes before being thrown away. According to UWMadison senior Aaron Vieth, who has worked in Housing Food Services for several years, a lot of the waste comes from salad bar items and condiments thrown out each night. Vieth said the main reason food like lettuce is thrown away each night is so only food safe to eat is used. food page 3
Kosher kitchen unable to find funds, special staff Chadbourne Hall’s kosher kitchen opened last year, but it has already closed its doors. “We have had trouble recruiting and retaining mashgiahs, who are the staff that we need to have on site supervising the operation of the kosher kitchen,” University Housing director Paul Evans said. The kosher kitchen was certified with the Chicago Rabbinical Council, which helped recruit and certify applicants, Evans said. “We haven’t had a mashgiah since last November, and we ... made multiple offers but were unable to get someone to come,” Evans said. A mashgiah is needed in the kosher kitchen to make sure the food conforms to Jewish traditions
such as how the meat is prepared and how the animal was killed. A mashgiah would make sure kosher food is not prepared with the same utensils used for non-kosher food, among other procedures. Evans said funding through the UW Foundation was supposed to cover the cost of two mashgiahs, but that money “never materialized.” “With the combination of the cost and not wanting to pass that on to the students and the difficulty in recruiting the necessary staff, we couldn’t sustain it,” he said. According to Evans, prepackaged convenience-store kosher items may be expanded throughout campus cafeterias, particularly at Rheta’s in Chadbourne.
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL
Even with a stellar cast, “Duplicity” fails to deliver as a carefree spy romp
Mixed results: UW wrestling finishes all over the board at NCAA Championships, placing ninth overall SPORTS PAGE 8
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KIERA WIATRAK taking kiera business
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ike most siblings with a fiveyear age gap, my brother and I got off to a rough start. When he was two and I freaked out because he stole my genius idea of Beanie Baby bungee jumping off the balcony, which had more of the effect of Beanie Baby suicide, I locked myself in my room crying for hours. When he was 11 and had a laughing fit when a monkey shat on my head in an indoor zoo, I slapped him. But over the last couple of years, my brother Bryce has come to be my best friend. He’s the only person to whom, when he tells me I’m “so pretty,” I can reply, “I know.” He’s also the only man in my life who will say, “Yeah, you do kind of look pregnant in that dress,” when prompted. Bryce and I conducted our high school selves very differently. I pretended to be shy so I wouldn’t have to talk to most people. Bryce, on the other hand, thrives in the spotlight. He’s a bona fide theater kid—the kind
of guy who’s asked to sing solos at all school assemblies and who’s never experienced rejection in his life. Ironically, his attraction to the spotlight brought us to the bumblefuck town of DeKalb, about an hour out of Chicago. There he participated in the regional a cappella competition with his high school group over spring break at the local high school. DeKalb, I learned, is famous for barbed wire, a fact the high school was sure to showcase every chance it got. Their central display case flaunted plaques with samples of all the different kinds of barbed wire that originated in the town. Their mascot was, wait for it, the barbs. I tried to imagine football and basketball games at DeKalb High. They probably found their most anorexic students, dressed them in rust-colored jumpsuits and glued a bunch of prickly objects to their bodies. This made me sad, mostly because I knew I’d never be skinny enough to look like barbed wire. Before they sang, I went out to lunch with my brother and a couple of his fellow singers. Unlike Bryce, who likes to make fun of me for still getting carded at R-rated movies and my supernatural inability to cook noodles, I got the sneaking suspicion that his classmates were
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their psycho teacher complained, glaring disappointedly at her students. The first-place group didn’t suck. They were actually really good, like many of the other groups that didn’t place. Suddenly I wanted to protect them. Not just my brother, but all of them. I wanted to shield them from the unfounded criticism of the crazies of the world, of deranged choir teachers, selfrighteous professors and lunatics whose Beanie Babies once committed suicide. I wanted to pull her aside and say, “Listen, bitch. You’re an ungrateful wacko. You belong in the zoo, and that’s not just because of how mean you are to these kids. It’s because somewhere along the way you’ve become so unhinged that you refuse to recognize that your face bares an uncanny resemblance to Homer Simpson’s ass.” But, of course, I didn’t. I’m not a hero. I was never supposed to be a hero. I’m the older sister who looks like she’s 12 and cracks jokes about dog shit. All I can do now is hope that that’s what those kids needed that night, and not a post-mortem choir teacher who was mysteriously impaled on good-old DeKalb barbed wire. If you can name more than one type of barbed wire, e-mail Kiera at wiatrak@wisc.edu.
Life is hard. The Deer Cardinal is here to help.
Deer Cardinal, I’m an exchange student. So much basketball is boring! How do I act like I care about March Madness in front of my American friends? —Pakou V. Monamuloola, Pakou! You better fucking act like you care, Pakou. They told you in orientation that Americans are more religious than Europeans. Well, here’s your proof. Each year, just when the spring buds appear on the trees, we honor the gods during the sacred month of the Holy Nca’a Tourney, a time spent in silent prayer for bountiful brackets and hours spent watching the same 12 commercials for four days straight each week. If you don’t cheer hard enough or skip enough
lectures on Thursday to watch the games, someone is going to blame you for their Final Four team getting knocked out two rounds too soon, or worse. To be on the safe side, mix into your conversations with American males some fail-safe lines, like “I am so dumb, I had Maryland in Elite Eight!” or “This year, I am a large believer in the Big East,” or “I have always said to watch out for Syracuse this year.” Just kind of sprinkle them in regardless of the topic at hand. Whatever you do, don’t talk about the Masters, or even the WBC; people might get suspicious. Deer Cardinal, What do you think of Obama’s
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looking at me in awe. There is a real, live college student, they thought. “Did anyone see that puppy shit in front of the restaurant? Holy crap! What was that thing eating?” I asked as I sat down at the table. “I’m Kiera by the way.” I extended my hand. No one accepted. I looked around at these kids. They were ’90s babies. They were mere infants during the Nickelodeon glory days of “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” and “The Adventures of Pete and Pete.” I must look like an old lady to them. If only, when I was their age, I knew what I know now. I probably would’ve just skipped college and honed my pole-dancing skills instead. I also would’ve stopped eating, so that I could be barbed wire. The competition lasted for almost three hours. My brother, who had a solo, did incredibly. After one group la la’d and bee-bopped their way through a song titled “Words,” which, ironically, had no words, and after an awkward prepubescent boy gave a rather inappropriate interpretation of Maroon 5’s “This Love” (this included hip circles during the line “keep her coming every night”), my brother’s group was awarded second place. “The first-place group sucked,”
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bank plan?
-—Janice P.
Janice, Well, Janice, the interesting thing about our government’s recently unveiled bank rescue plan is that although in the short term we should see some loosening of the credit markets facilitated by a de-leveraging of the mortgage-related—wait, wait, what??? You’re asking me what I think about that? Janice, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m a bird with antlers growing out of his head. I’m kept in a cage in the backroom of the Daily Cardinal office and fed Asian Kitchen leftovers. Now granted, I happen to be a very smart bird with antlers growing out of his head who is never allowed to see the light of
day by his slave-driving editor (hint, hint), capable of guiding college students through all sorts of troubling and trying dilemmas, but I’m hardly the *person* you should go to for insightful analysis of the intricacies of our government’s manipulation of the financial industry. And that stuff’s boring anyway. My advice: Play some lawn darts! Got a question for the Deer Cardinal? E-mail page2@dailycardinal.com.
dailycardinal.com/news
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Joint Finance Committee supports film incentives Committee holds informal vote to preserve tax breaks By Claire Wiese THE DAILY CARDINAL
State Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, co-chair of the state Assembly’s Joint Finance Committee, revealed to WisPolitics Monday the JFC held an informal vote showing preliminary support for preserving the state’s current film tax incentives. Gov. Doyle’s existing budget proposal would eliminate tax credits to projects filmed in Wisconsin and instead create a $500,000 grant incentive program. Ben Nuckels, chief of staff for Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton, said the film tax incentives attracted millions of dollars to the state last year. “The lieutenant governor is very supportive of the incentives for the film and video-
game industry,” he said. According to the Associated Press, Hollywood has become involved in this issue. Wisconsin natives Jane Kaczmarek (“Malcom in the Middle”), Bradley Whitford (“West Wing”) and Tony Shalhoub (“Monk”) have written to Gov. Doyle expressing their support for the incentives. The Department of Commerce, which declined to comment on the JFC’s informal vote, has previously reported that the “Public Enemies” movie recently filmed in Wisconsin received $4.6 million in tax credits, but spent only $5 million in the state. Scott Robbe, executive director of Film Wisconsin, said the DOC did not correctly calculate the positive revenue flow from the eight films and 16 television shows filmed in Wisconsin in 2008 and praised the committee’s support of the tax credits. “It’s nice to see that the members of Joint Finance realize that it’s just good business sense to let an already successful program mature and grow in 2009 and bring even more jobs and revenue to Wisconsin,” he said.
Professor honored for resource protection work UW-Madison civil and environmental engineering and environmental studies professor Kenneth Potter will hold the title of Gaylord Nelson professor for the next four years. The Nelson Institute selects recipients for their research, innovative thinking and other contributions. The award includes an annual stipend for research support. Potter is a supporter of watershed and resource protection and dedicates his teaching to storm water management and aquatic systems restoration in Dane County. He worked with 17 of the institute’s annual water
resources management workshops. According to university officials, the workshops unite teams of graduate students with government and nonprofit organizations to improve water quality. Potter is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Geophysical Union. He has also served on 10 committees for the National Academy of Sciences, according to a UW-Madison statement. According to the statement, Gregg Mitman, interim director of the institute, announced the honor.
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Lawmaker wants voting for 17-year-olds An amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution to be introduced by state Rep. Cory Mason, D-Racine, could give 17-year-olds the right to vote in state and local elections. This change, which at least 10 other states have passed or are considering, would not allow 17year-olds to vote in federal elections because the U.S. Constitution prohibits it. “Allowing people to vote for the first time in high school will start them on what I hope
will be a lifetime practice,” Mason said in a statement. UW-Madison political science professor Charles Franklin said allowing 17year-olds to vote would be an interesting experiment, but he is not convinced it would significantly impact turnout among young voters. Franklin said he expects 17-year-olds to vote even less regularly than 18-yearolds, who currently have the lowest turnout. “I don’t see why you think
modern 17-year-olds would be in any serious way stimulated to vote,” Franklin said, adding that voter turnout was the lowest out of every age group among 18- to 20year-olds when they were enfranchised in 1972. To become an amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution, the change would have to be passed in two consecutive Legislative sessions and then receive a majority vote in a statewide public referendum. —Megan Orear
Badger player Hughes pleads not guilty in traffic cases UW-Madison basketball player Trevon Hughes pleaded not guilty in court Monday morning to two traffic violations. Hughes, 21, was charged with failure to stop at a stop sign and with his second offense of operating a motor vehicle without a driver’s license. The stop sign infraction usually costs $160 or
less, but the other charge could leave Hughes with a fine of up to $300 and up to 30 days in jail. Both tickets were issued Feb. 24 at the intersection of Observatory Drive and Babcock Drive when a UW Police Department officer says he saw Hughes run the stop sign at the intersection. The Badgers’ starting
point guard received a previous ticket for driving without a license in 2006. Hughes was released on a signature bond after the court appearance. The court case was held only a day after the Badger basketball team lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Xavier.
Man allegedly drives car into friend on Park Street A Milwaukee man was arrested for a hit-and-run incident after he reportedly drove his car into his friend early Sunday morning after a fight between the two men. According to a police report, Madison police were called to the intersection of Park Street and Regent Street around 4 a.m. The victim of the hit and run told police the suspect, David Solfest, 24, was
a friend of his and the two men had come from Milwaukee to Madison for the night. The victim reportedly told police the two men ended up in a physical brawl and Solfest then got into his van and drove it at him. The van jumped the curb near 20 S. Park St., hit the victim and left the scene. Police were able to locate Solfest in his van driving from Nakoma Road onto
food from page 1
PHOTOS BY LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL
University Housing food workers serve over 7,300 students each day, with thousands of pounds of food like salad bar items and meat thrown out each day.
He also said Food Services is trying to watch more closely how much food is needed each day so less wasted food would be created. Despite these procedures, dining halls do “not have written rules and regulations about what needs to be thrown away instead of saved or donated,” according to Luke. “Obviously in food service you do everything you can to cut back waste, but there is always going to be some,” Vieth said. A recent study of food waste from Pop’s Club trays found that 0.25 ounces of waste is generated per customer, including napkins, but not including dairy or meat, Luke said. She said waste amount numbers are only available for items that will eventually be composted, not other food items. The 0.25 ounces adds up to over 40 pounds of wasted food every day at Pop’s, not including the non-compost-ready food the 2,600 students use each day there. “To help with conservation efforts students should be as thoughtful as they can about waste with paper goods and disposables, particularly in carry-out operations,” Luke said. Luke said numbers are not available for how much is wasted at the salad bars or in
preparing the food. She said that data is often submitted inconsistently by dining halls and University Housing is still working on a system to track the information. Student employees are instructed not to throw away food, she said. Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin spokesperson Anna Nelson said the bank received over 8,422 pounds of food from University Housing between Nov. 26 and Dec. 22, 2008, including perishable and nonperishable food. “You do everything you can to cut back waste, but there is always going to be some.” Aaron Vieth Food Services employee UW Housing
“Food donations from University Housing Services typically coincide with times that the dorms are closing for breaks,” Nelson said. Luke said it would be difficult to assign a monetary amount to how much the donated food is worth due to the varying prices for individual food items. She said the amount donated is “little more than a pound per resident” and given because the food would go bad over winter break. Of the food donated, one-
Highway 12. Solfest was then arrested and is tentatively charged with causing injury while operating a motor vehicle while impaired, hit and run involving injury, first-degree recklessly endangering safety, battery and disorderly conduct. The victim suffered a swollen ankle, multiple leg cuts, and a swollen eye but was not seriously injured. third was milk that costs 70 cents per pound. That equals roughly $2,000 donated each December, not counting the two-thirds of the donated food that is not milk. A major reduction in food waste came from 2008’09 procedural changes to the condiment bars, according to Luke. She said to stop waste, items like opened ketchup bottles will be saved at the end of each night instead of being thrown out. Luke said staff members have also been instructed to put reduced amounts of products on the salad bar nearer to closing times. In combining efforts with conservation plans already on campus, UHFS plans to update two food units with composting equipment to help deal with local organic food served, as it is often less clean than typical food used, according to Luke. The composted food can then be used for fertilizer. According to Luke, similar initiatives are already being implemented in conjunction with the We Conserve program to make Food Services more environmentally friendly. “[The initiatives will] strengthen our sustainability efforts by greener, more local purchasing and greener operating procedures that are also fiscally responsible,” Luke said. —Charles Brace contributed to this report
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Tuesday, March 24, 2009
view Cardinal View editorials represent The Daily Cardinal’s organizational opinion. Each editorial is crafted independent of news coverage.
rallying for the light rail
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overnor Doyle recently requested over $500 million in federal stimulus money to link Madison with Milwaukee via high-speed rail, much like the one you would find in the Northeast Corridor connecting Washington, DC with Boston and every major coastal city in between. The idea for a rail link isn’t new, as the state legislature has juggled, fumbled and dropped the idea in the past. There are copious benefits of a rail line between Madison and Milwaukee, for both individual convenience and regional commerce. The proposed rail, which would shave 20 minutes off the normal driving commute between Wisconsin’s two largest cities, provides an alternative way for Madisonians to get to both Milwaukee and Chicago, and vice versa. The potential benefits are widespread, including reducing the number of cars on the road—helping the environment by reducing emissions in the process—creating much needed jobs and providing transportation for those that cannot afford a car or are unable to drive one. Also, making access to Madison easier can only help the local economy, and could stimulate
statewide growth overall. Let us not forget the former prominence of the streetcar, which conveniently took passengers to and from intended destinations in major cities. The highway lobby went to Congress pitching this new cool thing called “the bus,” and the rest is history. The same holds true for train links between cities, which were handled by the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act of 1956. Madison and Milwaukee were once connected by passenger rail—decades ago. Furthermore, Doyle asserts that unlike some other cities, Madison rail projects are “shovel-ready,” meaning all the design and logistical work is complete. The stimulus money afforded solves another piece of the puzzle, and the only remaining issue is public support and legislative action. Although this kind of highspeed connection is painfully overdue, federal and state legislators have to come to the same reasonable conclusion that rail is necessary. The benefits are overwhelming, and among the dubious spending and pork lodged in stimulus package, a high-speed light rail is a refreshing no-brainer.
New stimulus package supports general welfare By Kevin J. Mack THE DAILY CARDINAL
There is an ongoing debate as to what the government’s role should be in resolving the current economic crisis. This is part of a larger debate that asks what the role of government is in our society. The conservative viewpoint is that government should secure the borders, protect private property rights and get out of the way. The liberal view is that government should take a larger role.
We all work and live for the betterment of society, not for the betterment of the privileged class.
The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States attempts to address this issue. To “secure the blessings of liberty” is one of the purposes. Another is to “promote the general welfare.” At a time when national unemployment is rushing toward 10 percent and the economy is almost visibly shrinking, perhaps a bit of promoting the general welfare is needed. But wait, is that socialism? And isn’t socialism bad? I guess that depends on what we’re talk-
ing about. President Obama recently signed a large economic stimulus package into law, which is essentially a large volume of cash flowing from the federal government out to the states and municipalities. Is this socialism? If it was continued forever it would be, but as an emergency measure taken to stimulate a stagnant economy, we can put it under the rubric of promoting the general welfare. Obama also has made some other proposals, including making health care available to the 40 million or so Americans who don’t have it. Socialism, or promoting the general welfare? There is a German word, bildung, that has no English equivalent. It means each citizen has some obligation to the society he belongs to, in addition to his right to life, liberty, etc. He has a duty to work or otherwise contribute, to participate in government; to be a good citizen. There is also a flip side to bildung; society has some responsibilities to its citizens. It is recognition of the fact that good citizens don’t just happen. When access to education or to health care is denied to someone, he is much less likely to turn into the kind of citizen society is looking for. So is Obama steering us toward socialism? Maybe. There are two polar extremes on the political/ economic continuum. At one end
is socialism, at the other, feudalism. Would we rather head toward feudalism? You remember feudalism, right? That system predominated western civilization up until the American and French revolutions. A system based on the idea that people are not born free, but rather are born as subjects of the ruling class. We all work and live, not for the betterment of society, but for the betterment of the privileged class.
Good citizens don’t just happen.
Nobody is openly calling for a return to feudalism, are they? So just what is the Obama opposition calling for? They don’t seem to be proposing anything positive, they just tell us what they don’t want (which is basically anything Obama does). Well then, what don’t they want? Unions, national health care, easier access to higher education, equal pay for equal work; you know, “socialism.” So, in which direction should we proceed? Kevin J. Mack is a junior majoring in history. Please send responses to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
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Concerts should emphasize musicality, not atmosphere DALE MUNDT croco-dale rock
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PHOTO COURTESY UNIVERSAL PICTURES
Julia Roberts and Clive Owen have great on-screen chemistry, but “Duplicity” lacks a backbone, instead hoping that this romantic pairing will substitute for a lack of story and disappointingly boring dialogue.
‘Duplicity’ disappointing By Todd Stevens THE DAILY CARDINAL
The spy thriller is a pretty simple genre. Throw in some tension, a little backstabbing and a clever twist at the end and the flick should be pretty fun. That’s one of the reasons why “Duplicity,” the new espionage tale from “Michael Clayton” director and “Bourne Ultimatum” screenwriter Tony Gilroy, looked like such an enjoyable spy romp. But somewhere along the line, Gilroy forgot to inject the fun into what should have been a happygo-lucky movie. The setup seems promising enough. Julia Roberts and Clive Owen star as two ex-spies who team up after a romantic tryst in Rome. Leaving the international missions of the CIA and MI-6 behind them, they go into the field of corporate espionage working for two CEOs (Tom Wilkinson and Paul Giamatti) who will do anything to destroy each other. But in reality, Roberts and Owen are out for themselves, working to manipulate their respective bosses and fleece them out of millions. All the pieces are there for some good old-fashioned spy hijinks. There are two stars who have great chemistry and plenty of opportu-
nity for intrigue. Plus, with the economy as it is, who wouldn’t want to see a couple greedy corporate executives get their due? What “Duplicity” is missing are the strands to link these pieces together. Roberts and Owen’s chemistry doesn’t amount to much without some snappy dialogue to drive it. Aside from a couple early scenes of snarky banter, the entire script pretty much falls flat. Even worse, many of the film’s great early lines pop up again in later scenes, which then proceed to over-analyze the dialogue and suck any semblance of life out of it.
Roberts and Owen’s chemistry doesn’t amount to much without some snappy dialogue to drive it.
Instead, the great lines are replaced by double crosses, which are great when they are unexpected, but “Duplicity” contains so many of them the level of mistrust grows to exhausting levels. Granted, this is central to the main relationship between Roberts
and Owen, and to a certain extent it is understandable. But Gilroy takes the paranoia to such extreme levels that it is hard to believe how any two people could stay together, romantically or professionally, under such circumstances. The greedy corporate executives are one of “Duplicity’s” few strengths. Giamatti is perfectly cast as a neurotic, take-no-prisoners big-business demon, and Wilkinson does a great job of portraying a certain level of malice lying behind his eerily calm nature. The duo also accounts for by far the most enjoyable scene in the movie, a hilarious opening credits slow-mo brawl on an airport tarmac. Unfortunately, their parts are too small to redeem the film’s lacking aspects. Wilkinson’s character in particular feels underdeveloped, as he could have used a little more time to chew the scenery and set up the plot’s ultimate conflict. In a way, Giamatti and Wilkinson’s roles are symbolic of “Duplicity” itself. There really is some great stuff there, just not enough of it to fill a two-hour feature. Gilroy does a fine job of crafting the bare bones for a great spy thriller, but that skeleton is all that “Duplicity” has. Grade: C
New Albums of the Week Even though The Daily Cardinal reviews tons of albums each week, there are still many new releases which slip through the cracks. Here are some of the best new albums coming out this week, including our editor’s pick of the week. New Releases Slim Thug – The Boss of All Bosses Busta Rhymes – Back On My B.S. Martina McBride – Shine Mastodon – Crack the Skye Dan Deacon – Bromst Editor’s Pick: The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love The Decemberists are one of the most uniquely progressive indie-folk outfits you’ll ever hear. Their songs range from 10-minute long suites based on Shakespearean plays to songs built around playful lyrics like “Of Angels and Angles” or “The Hazards Of Love 1 (The Prettiest Whistles Won’t Wrestle the Thistles Undone).” So for them, an hourlong rock opera centering around true love that is forbidden by an evil queen is right up their alley. The storyline persists throughout The Hazards of Love with different characters taking on different voices and a narrator who empathizes with William and Margaret, the struggling lovers. Colin Meloy ties it all together with his bard-like writing style and progressively creative tendencies, making this album an obvious choice for anyone who has been intrigued by the Decemberists’ unique storytelling abilities.
ike everyone else who stayed in Wisconsin over spring break, I wished I could be somewhere else. But instead of dreaming of suntan lotion, piña coladas and beaches, I was fantasizing about jackass bartenders, malfunctioning amps and hearing damage. That’s right—the South by Southwest music festival. As I enviously scrolled through a prominent music blogger’s rundown of the festival, however, I saw the pictures of the “surprise” guest performance at Stubb’s on Friday night. Underneath a giant “Guitar Hero: Metallica” logo, James Hetfield announced, “We’re a young band from Norway, and we want to get signed.” I’m still not sure how to react. I mean, SXSW is no longer the untapped mine of unsigned and unknown talents that it started out as. But I would still hope that there is some separation from the established pillars of mainstream music. The show was packed, and there are some glowing reviews of it. Unsurprisingly, there are also people hailing this as the “end of SXSW.” From my experience, I don’t think a Metallica show fits the festival’s target audience, but Stubb’s obviously didn’t have any problems getting people through the door. Maybe the more important question is why Metallica would do this. For a band with Metallica’s clout, history and fanbase, why play a small show at an “indie” music festival? Hell, there was a giant video game logo displayed to remind everybody that they were not just another unsigned band from Norway. What about SXSW appeals to Metallica? I was at SXSW a few years ago with a friend who knew about music, the city of Austin and how to get the most out of a night.
After three days, I was completely in love with Austin. It was the perfect atmosphere for the music. The energy drink promoters were balanced by the hippies, with their anti-festival music fest. The artists were accessible. The venues had character and originality, and when all else failed, you could find a great concert just by walking around. But the one common theme while I was at SXSW was great music. Sure, there were corporate-sponsored shows and label showcases. There were long lines and annoying fanboys. You had to deal with the old guys in suits, and you had to move to see around Tommy Lee and his giant bodyguards. But the whole time, you were hearing amazing, unbelievable music. I think that Metallica, and perhaps mainstream music in general, is searching for a way to duplicate that combination of great music and great atmosphere. They are trying to find a way back to a place where live music belonged in the back rooms of dive bars. Where you attracted new listeners not by iPod commercials or weeklong gigs on Letterman, but by playing a damn good show. I’ve been to Austin during SXSW. I’ve been to Stubb’s. I’ve gotten flipped off by the bartenders at Emo’s. I’ve had my picture taken with Leslie on Sixth Street. Downtown Austin can be a phenomenal experience, especially for this one weekend in March. But the music industry needs to realize that the atmosphere is just a byproduct, not the main goal. The main goal has to be making great music. And if the mainstream realizes that there is something about the atmosphere that makes SXSW a great experience, good for them. I just hope they haven’t sucked the soul out of that “something” before I get a chance to go back. Maybe they already have. Tell Dale why Austin is the worst city in the United States at dpmundt@wisc.edu
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I love the ’80s. “Africa” by Toto won six Grammy awards in 1983 including Record of the Year. dailycardinal.com/comics
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Your Grandpa
Today’s Sudoku
Anthro-apology
By Eric Wigdahl wigdahl@wisc.edu
© Puzzles by Pappocom
Angel Hair Pasta
By Todd Stevens ststevens@wisc.edu
Sid and Phil
By Alex Lewein alex@sidandphil.com
Solution, tips and computer program available at www.sudoku.com.
Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9. The Daily Code
cocaine
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26
“Cqn sdmpn jwm R qjen j bynlrju anujcrxwbqry...R mxw’c fjwwj pnc cxx pajyqrl kdc R bdltnm qrb mrlt oxa madpb.” Quote from Role Models Yesterday’s Code:
Miyagi: Problem: attitude. Daniel: No the problem is, I’m getting my ass kicked every other day, that’s the problem.
Today’s Crossword Puzzle
The Graph Giraffe
Evil Bird Answer key available at www.dailycardinal.com MAINTENANCE REQUIRED
1 5 9 14 15 16
ACROSS
In the course of Camera-bag item Characteristic mark Very skinny Figure in geometry “Jaws” author Benchley 17 Went kaput 19 “Me, Myself & ___” (Jim Carrey vehicle) 20 Routes to the Supreme Court 21 Elbow counterpart 23 One of every two hurricanes 24 Atoll barrier 26 Have a finger in the pie 30 Cola mixers, often 32 “If ___ say so myself” 34 Green Gables girl 35 Fly in the ointment 37 Prepare for painting 39 Mommy deerest? 40 In need of repair 43 Canton in Switzerland 44 Trumped-up 45 Auditions, essentially 46 Invite letters 48 Short winter illness 49 Do some ballooning 50 Do a slow burn
52 54 57 59 61 64 66 67 68 69 70 71 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 18 22 25 27
Prerequisite for gain? Greek letter Woofer output Refrigerator drawer “Friday the 13th” villain Went to pieces Tale of the Trojan War Colony that’s now part of Yemen Haughty attitude Well-bred Londoners Velvety growth Lazy Susan, e.g. DOWN
Arafat’s successor Change, sci-fi style Needing fixing Dick Van ___ Dishes out Eaten away Unfamiliar Dropped like an anchor Le Carre characters Mother who won a 1979 Peace Prize “Thanks, I already ___” Queens, in chess Tense start? Drum cover? Wynonna’s mom Braces Needing fixing
28 Condescending type 29 They’re between 12 and 20 31 Sci-fi vehicle 33 Phone call cost, in Bogart films 35 Goes bad, as milk 36 Nightingale or Barton, e.g. 37 Survey 38 Baltic republic 41 Parisian sidewalk sights 42 Water source 47 Kennedy’s was 109 49 Warning devices 51 Clock parts 53 Highest points 55 ___ firma 56 ___-craftsy 58 Hoodwink 60 Minor quarrel 61 Rustic dance 62 Hearty pub order 63 Pride, lust or envy 65 Fuss
By Yosef Lerner ilerner@wisc.edu
By Caitlin Kirihara kirihara@wisc.edu
sports
dailycardinal.com/news
Men’s Tennis
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
ncaa
from page 8
Nor can they boast the kind of intense conference play that Arizona, Wisconsin and Michigan had to struggle through. In both the Pac-10 and the Big Ten, any team seemed to be able to take a win from anyone else at any time. Collectively, the mediocre record that the bulk of the teams in each conference accumulated bolstered each conference’s respectability. The same was true of the Big East and the ACC.
In both the Pac-10 and the Big Ten, any team seemed to be able to take a win from anyone else at any time.
PHOTO COURTESY UWBADGERS.COM
Badger junior Michael Muskievicz earned the final point to help the Badgers edge out Notre Dame for the second time in a month at a consolation match at the Blue Gray Tennis Classic Saturday.
UW improves at Blue and Gray By Emma Condon THE DAILY CARDINAL
In last weekend’s Blue Gray Tennis Classic, the Wisconsin men’s tennis team picked up two wins and a loss when it was ousted from the tournament by Alabama. Coming off a rough Big Ten opener last weekend where UW fell to No. 29 after losing to Illinois and Indiana, the Badgers opened the 16-team tournament with a 4-2 victory over No. 75 Hawaii. After Wisconsin took the early doubles point, No. 47 junior Moritz Baumann downed No. 75 sophomore Dennis Lajola quickly 6-2, 6-0 at No.1, and No. 37 sophomore Marek Michalicka made quick work of junior Andreas Weber 6-4, 6-3, before freshman Patrick Pohlmann secured the match with another singles victory at No. 3. On the second day of the tournament, the Badgers fell to No. 24 Alabama 4-1 after a rocky doubles start. Wisconsin surrendered the doubles point and in singles play Baumann recorded the Badgers’ only point for the meet with a 6-2, 7-6 (6-0) victory over No. 32 junior Saketh Myneni before Alabama clinched the match, improving to 14-2 overall. The Crimson Tide went on to the tournament finals, where they lost 4-2 to No. 4 Tennessee. The Badgers exited the tournament Sunday on a high note, however, taking down No. 26 Notre Dame in a consolation match 4-3 for the second time in
men’s track from page 8 Three different Badgers won three separate throwing events. Sophomore Robert Dehn took the javelin, sophomore Kurt Thompson won the shot put and junior Rory Linder prevailed in the hammer throw. The Badgers succeeded on the track as well. Wisconsin junior Barry Gill won the 400-meter run with a time of 48.68 and freshman Patrick Plank took the 400-meter hurdles, clocking in at 54.13. Wisconsin’s third outdoor event will be the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif., Friday and Saturday, March 27 and 28.
less than a month. The No. 17 pair of Baumann and Michalicka avenged their loss three weeks ago and bested the No. 25 doubles pair of senior Brett Helgeson and sophomore Tyler Davis 8-6 before a win from the Dierberger and Muskievicz tandem secured the point. A relentless Baumann began singles play with a victory over No. 22 Helgeson 6-2, 6-0 to maintain his pristine record and improve to 16-0 for the season. Sophomore Peter Marrack contributed the squad’s third point at No. 5 before the Irish leveled the meet with wins at No. 2, 3 and 4. Finally it was Muskievicz that sent the Irish packing with a final victory over freshman Niall Fitzgerald 6-3, 6-1. With Saturday’s result, Notre Dame fell to 9-9, and Wisconsin improved to 11-5 overall (0-2 Big Ten) as they look to next weekend’s matches at Nielsen against Michigan and Michigan State for their first Big Ten wins this season. The matches begin at 12 p.m. both Saturday March 28 and Sunday 29 and uwbadgers.com will have a live blog with all the action. Women’s Tennis The Wisconsin women’s tennis team had a tough spring break, falling to Big Ten opponents Indiana, Illinois and their final non-conference opponent South Florida, to drop to 5-10 overall, 0-3 Big Ten. The No. 69 Badgers faced off against the No. 35 Hoosiers (9-6 overall, 1-2 Big Ten) last Friday
and fell behind early, giving up the doubles point with losses from junior Katya Mirnova and sophomore Jessica Seyferth at No. 2 and freshmen Aleksandra Markovic and Dana Larsen at No.3. In singles play, senior Liz Carpenter came out on top over Hoosier sophomore Katya Zapadalova 6-2, 6-2, while Seyferth contributed the Badgers’ only other point with a 6-2, 6-0 victory over freshman Megan Matter. Things looked better as the Badgers resumed play Sunday against another Big Ten foe No. 33 Illinois (11-3 overall, 2-1 Big Ten), eking out the doubles point with a tiebreak victory from freshman Emese Kardhordo and Markovic 9-8 (7-5). The Badgers, however, unraveled in singles and Illinois shut the women out to take the meet 6-1. On Wednesday the women moved on to face unranked South Florida in sunny Tampa Bay and found themselves once again down 1-0 after doubles play with only a win at No. 2 from Kardhordo and Markovic. The Badgers continued to buckle under the Florida heat as Carpenter and Kardhordo fell at No. 1 and 5 before USF clinched the match as Iciri Rai downed Markovic in straight sets 6-2, 6-3. USF finished the Badgers 5-2. Wisconsin will be back on the road next weekend in Michigan, where they will face two more Big Ten opponents at Michigan and Michigan State March 28 and 29. —uwbadgers.com contributed to this report.
Women’s Track Just as the men, the Wisconsin women began their week at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships. Unfortunately, the women did not have as much individual or team sucJORGENSEN cess as the men. UW senior Gwen Jorgensen finished No. 16 in the 3,000-meter run with a time of 9:40.61. Freshman Dorcas Akinniyi competed in the indoor pentathlon but failed to register much success in any of the events, finishing 16th in the
event out of 16 participants. Wisconsin fared better later in the week at the Hurricane Invitational, as freshman Jessica Flax won the outdoor heptathlon. Flax secured a first-place finish in the 800-meter run ahead of runner-up Laurenie Louissaint of Florida International. Badger sophomore Egle Staisiunate took third in the event. Wisconsin continued its success at the Rose-Hulman Early Bird Invitational, where freshman Jenna Severson won the 400 hurdles with a time of 1:02.28. Finishing second in the event was Badger freshman Megan Rennhack with a time of 1:03.50. —uwbadgers.com contributed to this report.
Based more on these factors and much less on their records, the selection committee seemed to be justified in their choices. But it was the play of Arizona, Wisconsin and Michigan that validated the use of these extraneous factors as respectable creden-
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tials for entry into the national tournament. Wisconsin’s win over Florida State after being down by 12 at the half is further proof that you can never count out a Bo Ryan team. Michigan’s win over Clemson was evidence middle-of-the-road teams from solid conferences are not necessarily average. Most importantly, Arizona demonstrates what kind of advantage years and years of post-season experience can give a program. The last team in is now the lowest seed in the Sweet 16 and stands the best chance of any team in the tournament so far to knock off Louisville. We can never know whether the handful of bubble teams that had their postseason dreams burst at the last minute would have gone farther than the Badgers, Wolverines or the surprising and surging Wildcats, but one thing is for sure: handing the last few spots in the tournament to those last few squads was certainly a sound decision. Does Arizona have what it takes to pull past Louisville and advance into the Elite Eight? Tell Andy what you think by e-mailing him at avansistine@wisc.edu.
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dailycardinal.com/sports
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Men’s Wrestling
UW takes No. 9 in championship By Adam Loferski
NCAA selection committee knows best
THE DAILY CARDINAL
There was no break this spring for the Wisconsin wrestling team, at least not in the sense that most college students think. It is true the team traveled, but there was no rest and relaxation on this vacation. It was all work, and it paid off. This past Thursday, the men of Badger wrestling traveled to St. Louis, Mo., to compete in the NCAA Championships. Wisconsin sent five wrestlers to the Championship, including seniors Dallas Herbst, Kyle Massey and Zach Tanelli. UW junior Kyle Ruschell and true freshman Andrew Howe also competed. Of the five, only Herbst failed to make it out of the opening session with a win. Herbst entered the championships with only three losses all season but added a fourth after going up against senior Jon Oplinger of Drexel University. Herbst fell to Oplinger in a 7-5 sudden victory decision. He was then placed in the wrestleback bracket where he pinned junior Brent Jones of Virginia first, tying Badger great Lee Kemp’s all-time career pin record. He then took down Purdue sophomore Logan Brown before falling to Maryland junior Hudson Taylor. Tanelli fell in the second session after he defeated Virginia Tech sophomore Chris Diaz in an 8-4 decision in the first round. Tanelli’s defeat came after a 9-4 decision at the hands of sophomore Nick Nelson of Virginia. He moved to the wrestleback consolation bracket, where he defeated Iowa senior Alex Tsirtsis and Illinois sophomore Ryan Prater to guarantee All-American status for himself. He then moved on to defeat sophomore Chris Drouin of Arizona State before falling to redshirt freshman Nick Gallick of Iowa State in a 53 decision. The loss left Tanelli with a fourth-place finish at the Championships. Ruschell started off the Championships by defeating Cornell sophomore Daniel Meagher. In the
ANDY VAN SISTINE sistine’s chapel
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ISABEL ALVAREZ ALVAREZ/CARDINAL FILE PHOTO
In his first appearance, true freshman Andrew Howe earned All-American status and took second at the NCAA Championships, falling in a close decision against Edinboro senior Jarrod King. second round, he downed Lehigh sophomore Trevor Chinn. Ruschell then fell to the wrestleback bracket in a 4-0 loss to junior Lance Palmer of Ohio State. In the wrestlebacks, Ruschell defeated Central Michigan junior Steven Brown to obtain All-American status. He also downed both junior Kyle Borshoff of American and sophomore Bryce Saddoris of Navy to advance to the third place matchup with Palmer, who knocked Ruschell out earlier. This time it was Ruschell who came out on top in a 5-4 decision, capturing third place at the Championships. Massey won in the first round against Nebraska redshirt freshman Tucker Lane, but he fell in the second round to senior John Wise of Illinois in a close 6-5 decision. In the consolation round, Massey MASSEY defeated Ohio State junior Cory Morrison. However, senior Joe Fendone of Edinboro pinned him in the next round.
ISABEL ALVAREZ ALVAREZ/CARDINAL FILE PHOTO
Junior Kyle Ruschnell took third place at the NCAA Championships after squaring off against Ohio State’s junior Lance Palmer. It was Badger true freshman Howe who advanced the furthest in the Championships. Howe entered the Championships riding a 15-match win streak. He extended that streak to 19 by defeating Oklahoma redshirt freshman Ryan Smith, Bloomsburg junior Rick Schmelyun, Bucknell junior Andrew Rendos and Iowa junior Ryan Morningstar. In
downing Rendos, Howe captured All-American status. By defeating Morningstar, he advanced to the final round to face off against Edinboro senior Jarrod King for the NCAA title. However, Howe fell in a close 3-2 decision, taking second at the NCAA Championships his freshman year. —uwbadgers.com contributed to this report.
Men’s Track
Wisconsin showcases talent over last week’s meets By Scott Kellogg THE DAILY CARDINAL
The Wisconsin men’s track and field team wrapped up a busy week Saturday after participating in three events since the beginning of spring recess. Wisconsin’s spring-break schedule began March 14 in College Station, Texas for the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships. Junior Craig Miller highlighted Wisconsin’s achievements at the two-day event by finishing as the national runner-up in the mile. Miller’s placement in the race earned him his fifth AllAmerica honor of his career and represented the best finish in the event by a Badger. Miller completed the mile in 4:01.34, finishing behind New Mexico senior Lee Emanuel, who ran a time of 4:00.36. Miller, who currently holds the Wisconsin record for the mile run, became the fourth Badger to earn All-America hon-
ors in the event. On Friday, Wisconsin began its outdoor track campaign, and this time it was freshman Derek Steinbach who stood out for the Badgers. Steinbach won the decathlon at the Hurricane Invitational at Miami, Fla. Steinbach was one of three Badgers to finish in the top five in the event, which helped secure a team win for UW in the eight-school event. UW freshman Ian Jansen finished third in the decathlon, and senior Brennan Boettcher finished fifth. Wisconsin’s 22 points edged out runner-up Texas by five points. Rice finished third in the event with a score of 13. On Saturday, the Badgers participated in the Rose-Hulman Early Bird Invitational in Terre Haute, Ind., where the throwers stole the show. men’s track page7
was skeptical when the bracket came out. But after the first couple of rounds, you have to admit that the NCAA men’s basketball selection committee knew what they were doing then they put together this year’s field of 65 contenders. It came as a shock to most when Arizona’s name appeared in the Midwest regional, only having a .500 conference record, a 19-13 overall record and a 1-5 record in the last six games leading up to the tournament. By most people’s standards, that does not warrant a ticket into the big dance. To be fair, Wisconsin and Michigan really did not have much of a case to plead either, losing eight and nine conference games respectively and doing minimal damage during the home stretch of their seasons. There were plenty of arguments for why Penn State, Creighton, San Diego State and a handful of other teams deserved to get a slot in the tournament instead. But the games that Arizona, Wisconsin and Michigan played in the first round had to silence the doubters. If we rewind back to pretournament time and enter the minds of the men and women on the selection committee, you have to take into consideration that though these three teams had less-than-stellar records, they had a number of other factors in their favor. Arizona, you might say, had 24 reasons on their side: their streak of 24 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances is the second longest run in history, which means the program is consistently good and deserves some leniency when it is on the bubble. A similar argument can be made for Wisconsin, which has never missed a NCAA tournament under head coach Bo Ryan. This year’s tournament marks the eighth time the Badgers have made it in under his tutelage.
This tournament marks the eighth time the Badgers have made it under his tutelage.
NICK KOGOS/CARDINAL FILE PHOTO
UW freshman Derek Steinbach came through for the Badgers last weekend, winning the decathalon at the Hurricane Invitational.
Michigan does not have such a history to lean on. The Wolverines’ NCAA tournament draught has surpassed the decade mark, and the results from their last appearance were vacated because of their recruiting scandal back in the ’90s. But they were able to lean on a highlyrespectable turnaround season— they were 10-22 overall with five conference wins last year—and snatched up two wins over No. 4 teams early on. Creighton and San Diego State cannot compare in those departments. ncaa page 7