Wednesday, April 15, 2009 - The Daily Cardinal by The Daily Cardinal

Nothing to Swoon over: Silversun Pickups fail to live up to Pumpkins comparison hoopla ARTS

NO LUCK AGAINST FIGHTING IRISH Softball musters only two runs in two-loss sweep versus Notre Dame SPORTS

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Wednesday, April 15, 2009

State economy still faces uphill battle in crisis By Charles Brace THE DAILY CARDINAL

Ofﬁcials including President Obama have recently stated the economic crisis that has gripped the country might be bottoming out. However, financial indicators across Wisconsin point toward some uncertainty and tough decisions for several months ahead, with no recovery guaranteed, according to numerous economic observers. Dean of the Wisconsin School of Business Michael Knetter said in an e-mail the most affected areas of the state include the eastern corridor between Kenosha and Green Bay, with industries like durable goods, heavy machinery and car manufacturing hit hard. Unemployment data is already showing those areas facing difﬁcult times. Beloit, less than an hour

from Madison, has the highest unemployment rate in the state at over 16 percent, according to recent statistics from the state Department of Workforce Development. In nearby Janesville, where the General Motors manufacturing plant is set to close in the coming months, unemployment has ratcheted up to 14 percent from six percent a year ago. Knetter said he hopes for signs of recovery by midsummer, but that it might take another six months after that for labor markets to improve. He said state officials are obligated to pass a balanced budget and support should be given to help businesses. “The best response is to make sure we are doing what we can to create a transparent and open climate for business creation and making

THE ECONOMY AND YOU

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Stats point to lingering hardships February harsh for job-seekers The state lost nearly 20,000 jobs in February, with unemployment almost double what it was a year ago. Madison weathers storm Unlike the rest of the state, Madison unemployment stayed low, even lower than the national unemployment rate. Deﬁcit looms in budget debates The state’s projected shorfall next year has reached over $5.7 billion. Source: Department of Workforce Development

Obama’s ‘Organizing for America’ kicks off series of meetings in Wisconsin By Megan Orear THE DAILY CARDINAL

Following President Obama’s success in the Nov. 4 election, volunteers and workers for his election campaign are remaining active in promoting the policies of the Obama administration. Organizing for America is a national grassroots movement stemming from Obama’s campaign and afﬁliated with the Democratic National Committee. OFA kicked off a series of Wisconsin meetings Tuesday night with a town-hall-style discussion in Sun Prairie. According to OFA State Director Dan Grandone, the two purposes of OFA are to build on the grassroots organization and activism that developed during

LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL

In a student panel hosted by the Campus Women’s Center, several campus ofﬁcials who specialize in sexual abuse and women’s issues gave suggestions on how to maintain a healthy relationship.

Campus experts outline sources of abuse in unhealthy relationships By Rory Linnane THE DAILY CARDINAL

Campus experts on sexual assault urged students to look for the roots of abuse in unhealthy relationships at a forum hosted by the Campus Women’s Center Tuesday. “There’s this huge myth that we have to look out for the ‘guy in the bushes,’” University Health Services Violence Prevention Specialist Carmen Hotvedt said. “It’s really the people we already know.” UW-Madison senior Patrick Gavinski, one of seven who attended the panel, said many students stay in unhealthy rela-

tionships out of fear they can’t find anything better. “They get manipulated into thinking that what they have is good,” he said. “Relationships shouldn’t be like sales where you work so hard through those 99 no’s to get that one yes.” Gavinski said he attended the panel to learn how to better aid his friends in unhealthy relationships. He said he sometimes found his advice wasn’t enough for the gravity of the situation. “I can only tell them so much,” Gavinski said. “They need to hear it from people

knowledgeable about it, because that’s much more comforting and empowering.” Jenny Wagner, legal services coordinator for Domestic Abuse Intervention Services, said students tend to think they can change abusive partners by themselves when they cannot. “You can’t change the other party when they have the power, no matter how much you love them,” she said. Gavinski said many students try to help each other but are unaware abuse page 3

Some let down by ‘College Life’ premiere By Beth Pickhard THE DAILY CARDINAL

the campaign and to promote Obama’s agenda on health care, education and energy. Tuesday’s listening session was the first of 20 stops Grandone will make throughout the state. “We’re very excited of course about winning the election and President Obama becoming president … but people I think by and large realize the job is not done and now it’s time and an opportunity for us to try to pass the policies that were at the root of his platform during the campaign.” Grandone said. He said since the campaign, the enthusiasm for Obama has not died out and OFA has received “thousands”

UW-Madison students had mixed feelings about the MTV show “College Life” �following its premiere Monday night. The idea for the show came from a UW-Madison alum who sold the idea to the network. The university originally supported the show and then helped to organize a casting call. However, according to UW-Madison officials, the university �decided to end its cooperation with MTV this past fall because it believed the show would be detrimental to its image. UW-Madison student Amanda Jagodzinski said Tuesday’s premiere had a narrow focus on partying,

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PHOTOS COURTESY MTV

Several UW-Madison students chosen as cast members for the MTV series ‘College Life’ showcase the day-to-day activities of a college freshman.

“…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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Wednesday, April 15, 2009

An independent student newspaper, serving the University of Wisconsin-Madison community since 1892

TODAY: sunny hi 63º / lo 33º

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We the red-headed people of the U.S. ...

Volume 118, Issue 130

2142 Vilas Communication Hall 821 University Avenue Madison, Wis., 53706-1497 (608) 262-8000 l fax (608) 262-8100

News and Editorial edit@dailycardinal.com Editor in Chief Alex Morrell Managing Editor Gabe Ubatuba Campus Editor Erin Banco Rachel Holzman City Editor State Editor Megan Orear Charles Brace Enterprise Editor Associate News Editor Caitlin Gath Opinion Editors Nick Dmytrenko Jon Spike Arts Editors Kevin Slane Justin Stephani Sports Editors Ben Breiner Crystal Crowns Features Editor Diana Savage Food Editor Sara Barreau Science Editor Bill Andrews Photo Editors Kyle Bursaw Lorenzo Zemella Graphics Editors Amy Gifﬁn Jenny Peek Copy Chiefs Kate Manegold Emma Roller Jake Victor Copy Editors Jennifer Bobeck Sarah Mittermaier, Caitlin Sachs Alicia Williams

Business and Advertising business@dailycardinal.com Business Manager Alex Kusters Advertising Manager Sheila Phillips Mindy Cummings Billing Manager Accounts Receivable Manager Cole Wenzel Account Executives Katie Brown Ana Devcic, Natalie Kemp Tom Shield Eric Harris, Dan Hawk Web Directors Marketing Director Heath Bornheimer Archivist Erin Schmidtke The Daily Cardinal is published weekdays and distributed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and its surrounding community with a circulation of 10,000. The Daily Cardinal is a nonproﬁt organization run by its staff members and elected editors. It receives no funds from the university. Operating revenue is generated from advertising and subscription sales. Capital Newspapers, Inc. is the Cardinal’s printer. The Daily Cardinal is printed on recycled paper. The Cardinal is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press and the Wisconsin Newspaper Association. All copy, photographs and graphics appearing in The Daily Cardinal are the sole property of the Cardinal and may not be reproduced without written permission of the editor in chief. The Daily Cardinal accepts advertising representing a wide range of views. This acceptance does not imply agreement with the views expressed. The Cardinal reserves the right to reject advertisements judged offensive based on imagery, wording or both. Complaints: News and editorial complaints should be presented to the editor in chief. Business and advertising complaints should be presented to the business manager. Letters Policy: Letters must be typewritten, double-spaced and no longer than 200 words, including contact information. Letters may be sent to letters@dailycardinal.com.

Editorial Board Nick Dmytrenko Dave Heller Alex Morrell Frances Provine Todd Stevens Jon Spike Gabe Ubatuba l

Board of Directors Vince Filak Alex Kusters Mikhail Hanson Nik Hawkins Dave Heller Janet Larson Chris Long Alex Morrell Sheila Phillips Benjamin Sayre Jenny Sereno Terry Shelton Jeff Smoller Jason Stein l

For the record Corrections or clariﬁcations? Call The Daily Cardinal ofﬁce at 608-262-8000 or send an e-mail to edit@dailycardinal.com.

THURSDAY: sunny hi 65º / lo 38º

ASHLEY SPENCER back that ash up

“

o, how did your date go? Will you see him again?” I asked my friend, who was telling me about a date with some guy she was set up with by a friend of a friend of a creep. “Well,” she scrunched up her nose and twisted her big mouth, “he has red hair.” WHAT. A. BITCH. I looked at her wondering which was scarier—the fact that she dry-humped her blind date in his car after their dinner at Olive Garden, or the fact that she just insulted my people. “What’s that supposed to mean?” I said, seething. “Well, I wasn’t trying to be mean but ...” I threw a piece of the popcorn I was eating on top of her head, into her poopy brown hair. Being a redhead has warranted different responses from people: To old ladies in grocery stores, there’s noth-

ing more beautiful; to old Irishmen, there’s nothing more sacred; but to tan people, there is nothing more repulsive or horrifying than our transparent shell and ﬁery locks. A sort of hairy racism blankets America, as comics regularly make fun of redheads, kids organize “Kick a Ginger Day” Facebook groups and the myth that some of us have no soul spreads like wildﬁre. I’ve even added fuel to this rumor, as children run from me, babies cry at the very sight of me and grown men curl into the fetal position once they get to know me, further proving that my body is vacant of anything resembling a soul. As if our bad rap is not punishment enough, we redheads have to wear SPF 70 sunscreen year-round (just by sitting near a car window too long on road trips gives us sunburn), but people still have the nerve to speculate as to what color hair we might have on the rest of our bodies. Dumb blondes do not have to endure such hardship, and frumpy brunettes aren’t subjected to these interrogations. Due to the injustices we have to endure, I’m trying to raise awareness for

this spread of racism and am organizing a protest to begin at Library Mall. There, we will burn pictures of redheads who have enforced the negative stereotypes against us (Lindsay Lohan, Pippy Longstocking, the Wendy’s girl) and sign a Redhead Constitution, a copy of which I am leaving here for you to tear out, put into your pocket and consult whenever you see injustice befalling a redhead. We the redheaded people of the United States, in order to form a more equal America, believe we too are entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of the American dream—money, ass and coke, the very ideals our forefathers built this country upon. Right now, redheads of America have no role models to emulate and are ridiculed with images of Chucky, Ronald McDonald and Carrot Top. I have a dream where those of milky-white skin will be able to be themselves completely and not feel the need to heap on pounds of Jergens self-tanner every time they step out of the shower. I have a dream that redheads will be able to go out to bars and when the song “Sex is on Fire” by Kings of Leon comes on, some douche

won’t come up to you holding his Bud Light, and yell, “YEahhhhhhhh....your hair is on ﬁrrrreee” into your translucent ear. Reds, we do matter—we are a genetic anomaly, and if we don’t mate with each other, we will become extinct. And while redheaded men are sufﬁciently less attractive than their female counterparts, it is our duty to sleep with them once in a while just to make them feel alive (although redheaded women are encouraged to marry redheads to carry on the tradition for generations to come, no one will blame you if you choose a male with better, thicker, muted hair). We’ve grown tired, and we can’t take it anymore. No longer will we cake on bronzer, avoid wearing oranges, reds and pinks and rub lemon juice on our freckles in the vain hope they’ll disappear. United we stand: We too can get cornrows if we want to, we can be just as brainless as blondes and we can be just as boring as brunettes. In closing, one nation under God with liberty and justice for some. Are you a victim of the red plague? Share your stories at aaspencer@wisc.edu.

the daily cardinal makes fun of you Jason Huberty

ﬁckle ion

oh cesium, you their schools to listen to you rock out.

About Me: Squirrelly Political Views: Very Liberal Birthdecade: The 70s Year in school: Graduate Student 2010 Religious Views: Grateful Dead Most Embarrassing Item: Jason Huberty is really into rocks. For someone who’s only self description is “squirrelly,” he must make one hell of a tour guide where he works at the UW Madison Geology Museum. It isn’t too difficult to picture Jason leading terrified gradeschoolers through the museum while spurting out the dozens of rock facts he has posted on his Facebook. It must be tough to find people to You should use this look, and some rock inspired talk about oxygen isotope ratios and mineralogy pick up lines, to take care of that missed opportu- of banded iron formation with. At least you have a captive audience of kids who are required by nity, if you know what we mean.

Stupid Fact About your Hometown (Madison, Wis.): Maybe our faculty should stop complaining out their salaries and benefits so much. Louisa Brayton, Madison’s first teacher, was paid $2 a week. That may seem like a lot, but she had to pay 50 percent of her weekly salary for room and board. If we could retain faculty at those rates, I’m not sure what everyone today is grousing about. Missed Opportunity: We know you’ve spent a lot of time in the Geology Museum. You know that little cave they have in there? Well, that would be the perfect place for, you know, a private tour *wink wink*. Have you, Jason? HAVE YOU!? Saving Grace: Jason enjoy’s growing garlic in his organic garden, watching tons of science fiction movies and TV shows and collecting minerals. At least your consistent in keeping every area of your life nerdy. Consistency is laudable, Jason.

Want your Facebook profile to be made fun of? Join the group “The Daily Cardinal Makes Fun of You.”

news

Sexual Assault Awareness Month Fact of the Day: Only 12 percent of undergraduate women whose experiences fit the definition of rape identified themselves as victims. Wednesday, April 15, 2009

South Madison Branch Library to expand, relocate By Rebecca Holland THE DAILY CARDINAL

City ofﬁcials are expanding and relocating the South Madison Branch Library in an effort to revitalize the neighborhood. The library, now part of Villager Mall on South Park Street, is moving to a new Urban League of Greater Madison building and will be upgraded to three times the size of its current space. The library will be the cornerstone of the updated mall, which will be renamed “The Villager.” The Villager is home to health, education and financial service businesses, as well as many locally owned retailers. Upgrading and relocating the mall is intended to stimulate the neighborhood and encourage growth. The mall, considered by many officials to be critical in the redevelopment of Park Street, is hoped to serve as a safe public place for children. One challenge facing the new library is the $335,000 in private funding needed to make it a reality. The cost for the library is $3.58 million, with city officials devoted to borrowing $2.95 million. Once foundation costs are added, that leaves around $700,000 to raise, according to

Tripp Widder, president of the library board and the library foundation’s board. Widder told The Capital Times that more than half of that has been committed through pledges from the Madison Community Foundation, the Rennebohm Foundation and individuals. Jane Roughen, library community services manager and branch coordinator, told The Capital Times the private fundraising campaign is “ambitious.” The already busy library is expected to see even more action in its new location, and initial designs show separate areas for adults, children and teenagers. A large public meeting room, a large number of public computers and wireless Internet access to accommodate increased activity are also part of the new design. However, Roughen said the design depends on the fundraising. “There’s a possibility we’ll have to scale back on our wish list,” Roughen said. Construction is expected to be complete by early 2010. Widder said if the fundraising has not reached its goal by then, the city will fund the project as fundraising continues.

Wisconsin breweries among top 50 in U.S. Two Wisconsin breweries are among the top 50 brewing companies in the United States, according to a ranking released Monday by the Colorado-based Brewers Association. The ranking, which was based on sales by volume in 2008, places Minhas Craft Brewery in Monroe, Wis., at 14th place. New Glarus Brewing Company in New Glarus, Wis., which brews the Spotted Cow brand, sits at 32nd among the top overall brewing companies. Both companies improved in rank since 2007.

abuse from page 1 of the resources available. “There’s an overwhelming amount of support available in all directions,” he said. “I was surprised to see all the ways you can get help without going to police right away.” UW Police Department

college life from page 1 and academics were rarely mentioned. She said the way MTV choose to portray the university is going to have a negative impact on the school. “Maybe the university will get a bad reputation of only [being] a party �school, and so that’s going to make parents hesitant to let their children come here,” she said. Sarah Plunkett, also a UWMadison student, said many people already have certain perceptions of college culture and that these things do not just happen at UW-Madison. “It could’ve been at any college. I think most of the audience that watches knows that,” she said. “I don’t think it has a lot of

The St. Louis-based AnheuserBusch earned ﬁrst place, and the recently consolidated MillerCoors Brewing Company, based in Chicago, was ranked as the nation’s number-two brewery. According to a statement from the Brewers Association, the number of small, independent craft brewers on the list of top brewing companies increased from 35 in 2007 to 37 in 2008, despite such brewers facing the difficulties of access to markets and price increases for raw materials. Detective Cheryl Radzinski said that even within the police department there are many different options for help, including offering advice and referring students to other services. “It doesn’t have to be a scary thing to talk to a police ofﬁcer,” she said. “There are a lot of different solutions between talking to the police and ending up in court.” credibility anyway. It’s more for entertainment.” UW-Madison student Sara Schramm said the show grabbed her attention because she is familiar with the city of Madison, but she does not think �people who are not UW-Madison students would be interested in the show. “It was cool to see the scene with the football. We’ve been there. We �know what it’s like,” she said. Although some students plan to continue watching the show because they enjoyed it or know a cast member, others likely will not watch it because it did not live up�to their expectations. “I didn’t think it was as good as all the hype was all about,”�Jagodzinski said.

obama from page 1

economy from page 1

of calls from people wanting to get involved in the organization. After attendees shared stories about why they became involved in the Obama campaign, Grandone asked them to share their visions for OFA in Wisconsin, which is still in the process of defining itself. “We are building this plane as we ﬂy it,” Grandone said, adding he hopes to take attendees’ comments and incorporate them into OFA’s structure. Some suggestions from supporters included keeping the statewide organization in contact through e-mail and encouraging involvement from youth and minority citizens. Many agreed volunteer training will be essential for the organization, citing the need for volunteers to adapt to the idea of governing as opposed to campaigning and the hope that the organization can attract Democrats, Republicans and independents. “Electing President Obama was not enough,” Grandone said. “Now we have got to take this to the next step … so we can move these issues that we care about forward.”

sure that we take advantage of whatever federal support is being offered,” he said. UW-Madison professor of public affairs and applied economics Andrew Reschovsky also said unemployment problems are compounded by the strain they put on state governments. He said state lawmakers might face the difficult decision of raising taxes or “cutting services when people need them the most.” Yet states gain most of their funds from tax revenues, according to Reschovsky, which decrease as more people become unemployed or buy fewer products. He said this problem is the reason why the recently passed federal stimulus package contained millions of dollars to aid state governments. State lawmakers would be forced to make significant cuts to areas like K-12 education without the federal help, Reschovsky said. Robert Krainer, UWMadison professor of finance,

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said an increase of 1,000 points or more in the Dow Jones stock index would be needed to show the crisis is leveling off, and even then only if investors stayed conﬁdent the gains would not evaporate quickly. Krainer said even with a return of confidence to the financial markets, unemployment might not decrease for months afterward. “Some people are talking about 10 or 10 and a half percent unemployment in the months ahead.” Robert Krainer professor of ﬁnance UW-Madison

“Some people are talking about 10 or 10 and a half percent unemployment in the months ahead. If that materializes before the market comes back, that could result in more retailers going bankrupt,” he said.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

dailycardinal.com/

arts Don’t ‘pick up’ latest from LA quartet dailycardinal.com/arts

By Kyle Sparks THE DAILY CARDINAL

Silversun Pickups received a lot of critical acclaim after releasing their debut, Carnavas, in 2006 for the mere fact that they were trying to revitalize the old Smashing Pumpkins sound. However, Carnavas was a success in theory more than in practice, and the hype surrounding the group was more focused on their potential than their achievements. On their follow-up, this year’s Swoon, Silversun Pickups falls short of delivering on their promise by failing to capture the spirit of Smashing Pumpkins again, instead producing a sound unique only for its mundanity.

CD REVIEW

Swoon Silversun Pickups In comparison to Carnavas, Swoon is a slight departure from their Pumpkins mimicry. They’ve rerouted so as not to be directly in the Pumpkins’ trail, but make no mistake, they’re still covered in Pumpkins’ exhaust. Contrary to that point, Silversun Pickups could be what the Smashing Pumpkins were in

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

high school. Before Billy Corgan heard any Big Black or read any Fyodor Dostoyevsky and Friedrich Nietzsche and before any of the Pumpkins ever learned to have their own emotions, they were probably just as rehearsed and innocently pretty-sounding. Heck, the two even share initials, they play similar music and they both have female bassists. Of course, the Pumpkins’ Chicago upbringing might account for the disparity in sonic presentation. An outcast in an industrial area, Corgan might not have needed to read Dostoyevsky, but that would be a good place for Pickups’ singer Brian Aubert to start. Swoon is so void of intense emotion that each song ﬂows seamlessly into the next for no reason other than their strong similarities. At the microphone, Aubert sounds more like a drama student trying to embody a character than a man yearning to connect or purvey some message. To their credit, Swoon depicts a more mature sound than Carnavas. Songs like “The Royal We” and “It’s Nice to Know You Work Alone” are likely meant to pander to fans of Tool, and Aubert does sound like Maynard James Keenan (Tool, A Perfect Circle) when he lets out throaty yells. He fails to evoke the same introspective cynicism, however, creating the same problems he had in trying to copy Billy Corgan. Although Tool and Smashing Pumpkins undoubtedly

share fans, it’s hard to see followers of either jumping ship for this band too eagerly. Silversun Pickups lack the depth that ascribes importance to heavy tracks. They add orchestral backdrops and heavy bass lines, but maintain the shimmering guitars. They yell, but rather unconvincingly. Physically, they make all the right moves to create a deep, intense sound, but they miss the existential basis on which these sounds thrive. Their idea of

dynamics is turning the volume knobs on their amps or stomping on their distortion pedals. It’s a fabricated approach to a very natural art, and the final product won’t fool many. The few places where Swoon succeeds are the dreamy pop interludes scattered about each track. They would probably do well to drop their Nine Inch Nails records and start listening to more Asobi Seksu. At this point, they’re straddling the line between pretty

and harsh, but that line is muddy and rife with unrealized potential and boring guitar loops. Until they make up their minds and become something new, they probably won’t do much better. A post-grunge movement is probably inevitable, and if Swoon is a catalyst for a swarm of talented, angst-filled musicians turning grunge into a long-form composition, then so be it. I just hope the final product is more exciting than this.

PHOTO COURTESY TIMOTHY NORRIS

Silversun Pickups returned to the studio to take the success of their debut, Carnavas, to the next level, but instead, they created an inauthentic album by reaching out to plateaus of emotion they couldn’t reach.

comics 6

Yeah Simon and Garfunkel! “The Graduate” was the ﬁrst ﬁlm to feature ‘pop’ music in its soundtrack. dailycardinal.com/comics

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

The Boxer

Today’s Sudoku

Anthro-apology

By Eric Wigdahl wigdahl@wisc.edu

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

Hey Mrs. Robinson

a b c d e f g h i

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

“Ltiifrs, ymfy’x lwjfy. Xt tqi Jqfnsj Wtgnsxts lty xyfwyji ns f Ktwi.” Quote from The Graduate Yesterday’s Code:

“I don’t like to think of laws as rules you have to follow, but more as suggestions.”

Today’s Crossword Puzzle

The Graph Giraffe

Evil Bird Answer key available at www.dailycardinal.com PROBLEMATIC ACROSS

1 Cry a river 5 Highchair hazard 10 No-loss, no-gain situation 14 A psychic may see it 15 Gift bags from pledge drives 16 Bird played it 17 Difﬁcult spot 20 “Pease Porridge ___” 21 “Boola Boola” belters 22 Source of annoyance 23 Shake hands for the ﬁrst time 24 Famous Irish stone 26 Make an appearance at 29 Pirate treasure 30 “Can-nery Row” character 31 Spiral-shelled gastropod 32 Word ending many company names 35 Words after “Well, ain’t that” 39 Something to do for the camera 40 Hack’s passengers 41 Comes to the rescue 42 Worked diligently

43 45 48 49 50 51 54 58 59 60 61 62 63

Respectful gesture Rabbit ears, e.g. Towel word Incline Gilbert of “Roseanne” Hardwood variety Equally unattractive choices Piece of fencing? Take-home pay It might wind up on a lake? Geeky guy Clear the board Klein of fashion DOWN

1 Party with pizzazz 2 Biographical beginning? 3 An order of the court 4 Fond du ___, Wisc. 5 Didn’t merely cut 6 Put forth 7 “___ a far, far better thing ...” (Dickens) 8 “___ it Be” (Beatles) 9 Shaq’s alma mater 10 Diluted 11 Not terrestrial 12 Franklin invented one 13 Winnie-the-Pooh’s favorite nosh

18 19 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 31 32 33 34 36 37 38 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 50 51 52 53 55 56 57

Finely-sharpened Absence of passion Malicious Stocks’ partner Off one’s trolley Rodin sculpture Bean curd food Math course, for short Thanked the audience, in a way Nuclear reactor parts Quarter deck? Race track ﬁgures Meddlesome Some score notes Signal, as a cab Galley gear Held to the mat Cherry red Asian range Drained of color What running mates do? Not as well-done Charon’s locale Multigenerational tale, e.g. Writing on the wall Last word in Bibles Leafy green IOU component Kind of cry Period of time

By Yosef Lerner ilerner@wisc.edu

By Caitlin Kirihara kirihara@wisc.edu

opinion dailycardinal.com/opinion

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

view Cardinal View editorials represent The Daily Cardinal’s organizational opinion. Each editorial is crafted independent of news coverage.

fight predatory landlord practices

he Daily Cardinal recently investigated the policies of several Madison property management companies and found several disturbing trends for student tenants. Most alarming were the practices of one company, Madison Property Management, which was violating several city ordinances and lacking student services more than any other landlord under review. The investigation revealed several instances in which MPM violated a recent city ordinance mandating that landlords provide photo evidence of any deductions from a tenant’s security deposit because of damages or cleaning costs. The ordinance also states landlords must inform tenants of their right to request the photo evidence. Documents from tenants showed MPM only listed the photo ordinance in a font so small it was unreadable, and several tenants stated they were not informed of the regulation by MPM. MPM has since stated they will list the ordinance with a large sticker on security deposit forms, but even more troubling were photos from MPM showing dust and buckets used to catch leaking water as examples of what consti-

tuted property damage. Tenant receipts also showed MPM used accounting practices that stuck student renters with unfair late fees because of supposed computer software issues. Although MPM has stated it will be remedying the practice, when combined with the proof of photo ordinance violations and poor maintenance services, it shows students must take a proactive approach to protecting their rights as tenants. Incoming Madison alders Bryon Eagon, District 8, and Bridget Maniaci, District 2, should show they will protect the students who voted them into office by remedying these issues. The new alders should amend the photo ordinance as a top priority, and they should propose further initiatives to safeguard students against predatory landlords—and MPM is not the only perpetrator. However, government can only do so much to protect us. Students must also vigilantly oppose and call out these practices. Read the fine print, and know your rights. It will only take a few successful, publicized lawsuits for triple the damages to send a message to Madison landlords that we won’t accept the bullshit any longer.

Madison Initiative right idea but needs work SEAN MCMASTER opinion columnist

ocusing on the disparity in tuition costs between UW-Madison and other Big Ten universities, Chancellor Martin’s Madison Initiative for Undergraduates proposes a yearly progressive hike in tuition. This proposed increase would support greater financial aid, expanded student service and improved faculty retention. Although the intention of this proposal is on track in many ways, there are a few inherent flaws. For one, the choice of $80,000 as the cutoff that determines whether students will pay the cumulative increase seems to be one of convenience rather than logic. Second, although it seeks to provide aid for students who demonstrate financial need, raising tuition is generally not an ideal process to make the cost of a college education more affordable. Third, as a soon-to-be alumnus of the university, I would much rather see any monetary donation used to retain faculty and be a lure for newer faculty instead of providing financial aid. To address the first two issues, we should use the Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) of the FAFSA instead of the $80,000 threshold. A counter argument would be that there is generally a low percentage of students who actually fill out the FAFSA. However, in order to be exempt from paying the tuition hike, students whose parents make

less than $80,000 will still have to submit documentation proving these circumstances. This only makes the financial aid process more complicated; students whose parents make less than $80,000 will undoubtedly fill out the FAFSA as well. Therefore, the proposed initiative merely increases the paperwork of the financial aid process instead of streamlining it. This works in opposition to the overarching goal of the initiative to make financial aid and a college education “more accessible.” In addition, the EFC is far more indicative of the true need of students. It accounts for the number of students attending college from a common household in addition to the household finances. The circumstance of a family earning $70,000 and supporting one student in college is not comparable to a family with a net income of $102,000 and three children in college. In the first case, a single individual’s college expenses are supported by an income of $70,000, but the second case is equivalent to each child’s expenses being supported by an income of $34,000 apiece. Chancellor Martin’s response to this circumstance was to have each individual seek out consultation with the university’s financial aid office. If this were done for every case, there should be an allocation of tuition funds from this initiative to hire new staff to aid with the influx of petitions. Funds raised through the tuition hike would also go to slow the exodus of faculty from the university and to entice potential faculty to join the ranks of educators.

Faculty are the heart and soul of a university; they are the constant ones in the continuous cycle of students passing through every four to five years. Therefore, it is of great interest to the students, alumni and administration that high caliber faculty are sought and retained. I would like to see a greater percentage of the funds from this initiative applied to the pursuit of faculty rather than financial aid. In addition, if the UW Foundation were to match all initiative funds used in the maintenance of faculty, then I am sure alumni and students would be far more supportive of this cause. The Chancellor earnestly wants student feedback. I encourage all students to visit the initiative’s website: http://madisoninitiative.wisc.edu to gather more information. Although some students say the initiative will not impact them (particularly since half of the current undergraduate populace may be graduating within the next year), it is still the duty of all UW-Madison students to ensure that UW-Madison is enacting a policy that is beneficial to current and future students. We all will become alumni one day and will be ambassadors for the school. We have witnessed apathy on financial issues from campus topics like the funding for Union South to national events such as bonuses to AIG. Do not let this initiative go unexamined or unquestioned. Only through questioning can we truly strengthen that which we hold true. Sean McMaster is a junior majoring in biochemistry and mathematics. Please send responses to

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Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Softball

Wisconsin comes up short against Irish

ISABEL ALVAREZ/CARDINAL FILE PHOTO

Senior catcher Theresa Boruta collected two hits and drove in one run in the nightcap of Tuesday’s doubleheader against Notre Dame. By Nick Schmitt THE DAILY CARDINAL

The UW softball team (1-7 Big Ten, 12-30 overall) continued its downhill slide yesterday, losing both games to Notre Dame (28-13) at Goodman

Diamond, 5-0 and 4-2. The Badgers’ losing streak is now at eight games, with their last win dating back to April 1 against UW-Green Bay. Wisconsin did show some signs of life against the Fighting Irish, a

team the Badgers beat 2-0 earlier this year in Alabama. Junior pitcher Letty Olivarez started the first game and kept the Badgers in striking distance until the seventh inning. Olivarez held Notre Dame to one run before the Fighting Irish offense burst for four runs in the final inning to seal the victory. Wisconsin’s offense was basically nonexistent in the first game. It was unable to get anything going against senior pitcher Brittney Bargar of the Irish. Bargar threw a two-hit shutout and struck out eight Badgers. Sophomore Jennifer Krueger, who leads the Badgers with a .322 average, had one of the two hits for Wisconsin. Head coach Chandelle Schulte showed signs of disappointment after the doubleheader. “It’s very frustrating; if you go back, usually one inning we seem to implode,” Schulte said. “I thought they played hard against Penn State, they played hard today. We just don’t seem to turn the corner.” The second game started much like the first, as the contest was dominated by both pitchers. Wisconsin senior Leah Vanevenhoven and Notre Dame sophomore Jody Valdivia kept

both offenses off the scoreboard until the ﬁfth inning, when the Fighting Irish broke through. With the wind blowing in toward home plate, Notre Dame sophomore Erin Marrone smashed a home run to left ﬁeld, putting the Fighting Irish up by one. Then, in the sixth inning, a costly

“They played hard today. We just don’t seem to turn the corner.” Chandelle Schulte head coach UW softball

mistake by Olivarez in right ﬁeld helped the Fighting Irish add to their lead. Notre Dame junior Christine Lux hit the ball deep into right ﬁeld, and Olivarez misplayed the ball. The miscue allowed a run to score. In the bottom of the sixth, the Badgers showed some signs of life by tying the game at two apiece. Sophomore catcher Dana Rasmussen walked, then Krueger knocked a triple

over the head of Notre Dame freshman center fielder Alexa Maldonado. It was the first RBI of the year for Krueger, who is generally known more for her speed than her power. “Coach Schulte just told me she noticed the outfielders were playing in really far, so if I got just got a hold of anything I was going to be running for a while,” Krueger said. “So that was my main focus.” Senior catcher Theresa Boruta then dropped a hit into shallow right field to score Krueger from third. It was the first time since April 4 the Badgers produced more than one run in a game. The momentum of the sixth inning was short lived, though, as the Fighting Irish scored two runs in the top of the seventh. Notre Dame junior catcher Alexia Clay hit a towering home run to right field after Marrone singled and advanced to second base on an error. The Badgers continue their home stand this weekend when they welcome Big Ten foe Ohio State. The Buckeyes are ranked No. 16 in USA Today’s softball poll. Both games will air on the Big Ten Network starting at 2 p.m.

Spotlight on Tiger remains too narrow, affects rest of ﬁeld GABE UBATUBA throwing the gabe

veryone loves Tiger Woods. OK, maybe not everyone, but there are few things that you can fault the guy on. He’s the ultimate player in the clutch, giving not just golf fans, but sports fans in general, some of our fondest sporting memories. Who can forget that miraculous shot on the 16th hole of the 2005 Masters? Even my 89-year-old grandma stood up and cheered, but only because it was her favorite, Tiger Woods, hitting one of his best shots ever.

As much as I like Tiger, this past weekend I didn’t want to hear anything about Tiger. Yet everyone kept talking about him.

Oh, and let’s not forget his squeaky-clean image. You could never imagine Tiger getting into a ﬁght, or even getting angry—aside from smashing his club on the grounds of Augusta. He doesn’t talk smack either; he just defends himself with his game. He’s going to be the king of golf before his time is up, passing Jack Nicklaus with the most majors ever won. He makes millions of dollars a year, is married to a Swedish model and has two adorable children. Although there is probably a lot of envy and jealousy of his life, he is humble enough for everyone to still really, really like him. However, as much as I like Tiger, this past weekend I didn’t want to hear anything about Tiger. Yet everyone kept talking about him.

For the first two days. it didn’t bother me, knowing well Tiger can always make a run. Even when he seems the most down, he’s not out. So I was OK with SportsCenter leading with Tiger. But it latched on to the story and would not let it go. But they kept going with it. They, and many other news outlets, kept leading with the same story, even when Tiger’s hopes of winning were slim to none. Sure, there’s the drama of Tiger and Phil Mickelson going head-tohead on Sunday, something every golf fan revels in. But when there are seven players and seven shots separating them from the top of the leaderboard, the drama is just not the same. They’re not in contention, they’re not playing on Sunday for the green jacket; they’re just playing for pride. However, the media were only focusing on the spectacle of Tiger, not the spectacle of the Masters. That may be OK for some golf tournaments, but when you have a ﬁnish like Sunday’s, you would hope that would be what sports sections and ESPN would try to get everyone talking about. Sadly, that was not the case. Receiving a similar amount of coverage as Tiger was Angel Cabrera, Kenny Perry and Chad Campbell’s incredible three-man playoff. Not just that, but paired equally with the Tiger coverage was the story line of Kenny Perry almost recapturing the major he lost in the 1996 PGA Championship, where he lost by bogeying his ﬁrst hole, only to once again blow his chances at another major 13 years later. He had his shot at redemption and failed, a scenario that almost all sports fans enjoy, even if it is a bit disheartening. I understand the nation’s fascination with Tiger. I understand why, with all the hype of how Tiger will perform at his first major coming off of surgery, every sports broadcaster wanted to talk

about Tiger. I understand why my grandma was glued to the screen during this year’s Masters and let out expletives when he wasn’t making his way to the front of the pack. But that cannot get in the way of telling the incredible story that was the Masters’ finish.

Sportswriters need to not just cover the story they planned on covering. They need to adapt and switch to what the most important story is once an event actually happens. And that’s difﬁcult because it’s very hard to stray from the big story, especially when it’s someone

like Tiger. But sometimes we have to let go of the things we love, especially when there’s better ﬁsh in the sea. Share the same resentment of the national media’s love affair with Tiger Woods? Talk to Gabe about it at ubatuba@wisc.edu.