CCOMICS IN COLOR!!!! COMICS
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University of Wisconsin-Madison
FREE COMIC BOOK DAY SOARS INTO MADTOWN Festivities arrive this Saturday at Cap City Comics and Chazen Art Museum Complete campus coverage since 1892
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Stalking could lead to acts of sexual violence By Kayla Torgerson THE DAILY CARDINAL
“You don’t know me, but I know you.” Allie, a freshman at UWMadison, listened to her stalker speak to her for the first time. She was a victim of both phone and cyber stalking by an unknown perpetrator. He began by obsessively calling her and sending 28 friend requests on Facebook under different aliases. “Dec. 8 was the first time he called me. He called me five times in a row, and I didn’t answer because it was from a blocked number, and then I finally answered it. [He was] talking to me as if he knew me,” Allie said. According to the UW Police Department, stalking is a course of conduct unwanted by the person to whom it is directed and can include, but is not limited to, sending unwanted cards, gifts or e-mails, calling or texting the vic-
tim, taking photos of the victim and gathering information about the victim’s personal history. Detective Cheryl Radzinski of UWPD said stalking is a felony under Wisconsin statute and can lead to forms of violence like sexual assault and dating violence. According to the National Center for Victims of Crime, one in 12 women is stalked during her lifetime. Of those, 13 percent are women in college. The NCVC said 64 percent of male and 77 percent of female victims know their stalkers. According to Carmen Hotvedt, violence prevention specialist at University Health Services, people are going to greater lengths than ever to stalk people. In extreme cases, perpetrators are able to place GPS trackers in their victims’ phones. “There is a massive upswing in the stalking page 3
More swine flu cases reported, Doyle declares health emergency By Megan Orear THE DAILY CARDINAL
In light of the state’s first probable cases of the H1N1 swine flu, Gov. Jim Doyle signed an executive order Thursday declaring a public health emergency in Wisconsin. Doyle announced at a press conference that two more people in Wisconsin have been identified as likely having the swine flu, both young adults. One lives in Sheboygan, and the other is from Ozaukee County. This brings the state’s total number of probable cases to five, which still await confirmation from the Centers
for Disease Control. The severity of these cases is not near the severity of many of the cases in Mexico, Doyle added. According to the CDC, the number of confirmed cases in the United States grew to 109 Thursday and the disease will likely become widespread across the country. Doyle said the public health emergency declaration will allow public health officials to make antiviral medication available to people regardless of their insurance or health-care coverage. swine flu page 3
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Weekend, May 1-3, 2009 Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, held a final meeting Thursday night for Mifflin Street residents to allay any last-minute concerns about Saturday’s event. Saturday also marks the 40th annual Mifflin party.
DANNY MARCHEWKA THE DAILY CARDINAL
Students show concern over Mifflin sponsorship By Anna Bukowski THE DAILY CARDINAL
Although Madison officials believe a sponsorship will contribute to the success of the Mifflin Street Block Party Saturday, some Mifflin Street residents expressed their fears about new regulations at a meeting Thursday night held by Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4. “Once [the city has] control, eventually they’ll start gating off the street and charging. I really just don’t want to see that happen,” UW-Madison student Brian Geick said. Verveer emphasized that Mifflin is not Freakfest and there will be no gates and no admission fees. The sponsorship between WSUM and DCNY PRO will provide the event with disc jockeys from 12 to 7 p.m., food vendors and more restrooms. Food vendors will include Insomnia Cookies,
Papa John’s Pizza and D.P. Dough. However, many Mifflin residents were concerned about parties potentially getting out of hand. “I have no idea how to enforce random people [coming to my house],” UW-Madison student Neil Kleman said. To combat this common issue, the Madison Police Department will have officers on duty throughout the day. “If houses become uncontrollable, the MPD will shut your party down for you. It’s a free pass,” MPD Sgt. Tony Fiore said. Residents can also call a nonemergency number to have unwanted guests removed. Fiore said the police would rather “educate than enforce.” Madison Fire Department Division Chief Ronald Schwenn encouraged partygoers to have fun,
but urged students to go home safe at the end of the day. Schwenn’s biggest concern, however, was overcrowding. He said overcrowded porches could easily collapse, especially those that are not structurally sound. The fire department will have inspectors on duty to monitor potential hazards such as grills, balconies, open flames and overcrowding. City officials also stressed the importance of the three main block party rules: no public urination, no glass bottles and no open containers from sidewalk to sidewalk. According to Verveer, arrests will follow different procedures than in years past. There will be on-site processing units for arrested persons, and police urge residents to be as cooperative as possible. “If you cooperate, it will pay dividends,” Verveer said.
Passenger rail proposals face roadblock in budget committee By Ryan Hebel THE DAILY CARDINAL
LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL
Gov. Jim Doyle holds a press conference at the Capitol Thursday to give updates on the H1N1 flu, which now has five probable cases in the state.
After Democrats could not reach a consensus Thursday on the regional transit proposals in Gov. Jim Doyle’s budget, the future of high-speed passenger rail may be uncertain in Wisconsin. However, the Joint Finance Committee did manage to reach an agreement on the state’s film tax incentives program and voted unanimously to restore the film tax incentives that Doyle eliminated in his budget proposal. The committee was scheduled to vote on the creation of regional transit authorities with the power to create new rail systems, but disagreement among Democratic members over the
RTAs stalled the session until late in the night. “There’s a variety of [obstacles], and I think that’s why they’ve been working so hard all day long … and maybe all night,” Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk said. The proposal would set up high-speed rail systems throughout the state, connecting Wisconsin cities such as Madison and Milwaukee, the two most prominent systems on the state’s agenda. Falk said the RTA systems would help boost the economy by “getting people back to work and moving goods and people around the state.” At the same time, Falk recognized the issue
of cost is keeping lawmakers up at night. Currently, the proposal calls for a 0.5 percentage point increase in the Dane County sales tax and would cost the average household $172, according to Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimates. In Milwaukee, residents have already approved a full one percentage point sales tax increase that would fund RTA and other city programs, according to state Sen. Dave Hansen, D-Green Bay, a member of the JFC. However, Hansen said he isn’t sure the plan would work statewide. “I have qualms because … I think it’s always difficult to vote rail page 3
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”