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dailycardinal.com
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Man infuriated by Bristol Palin shoots TV By Ariel Shapiro The Daily Cardinal
VICTOR BITTORF/the daily cardinal
Student Services Finance Committee Secretary Jason Smathers defended the proposed Campus Services Fund at Associated Students of Madison’s meeting Wednesday night.
New campus fund postponed indefinitely By Anna Duffin The Daily Cardinal
Approximately 100 students expressed frustration with the proposed Campus Services Fund during open forum at the Associated Students of Madison’s meeting Wednesday night. Some students said ASM failed to reach out to General Student Services Fund groups when planning this fund, and think the CSF gives ASM too much power. Student Services Finance Committee Chair Matthew Manes, who proposed the CSF, said all groups funded by the GSSF were contacted when the proposal was initially drafted, but they failed to respond. ASM debated whether to postpone the CSF until after Jan. 25 in order to work on outreach, rather than immediately vote it down as many students who spoke at open forum recommended.
ASM representatives asked if two months would be enough time to do sufficient outreach, especially since winter break is in the middle of those two months. Other representatives argued the student council should vote down the CSF immediately in order to prove to the students their voices were heard. “It’s pathetic how terrible this organization has been, and we have made no effort to improve ourselves.” Brandon Williams chair ASM
Shared Governance Chair Kyle VandenLangenberg said if they postponed the CSF they would be ignoring the students who came to speak at open forum.
“We’re not listening to the people that have come in here and talked to us by even entertaining the idea that this motion has any blood or life left in it,” he said. ASM Chair Brandon Williams said the CSF gives ASM a specific purpose. “It’s pathetic how terrible this organization has been, and we have made no effort to improve ourselves. This is our opportunity to improve ourselves,” Williams said. The movement to postpone the amendment did not pass. Council ran out of time and no decision was made on whether or not to approve of the CSF. The CSF will be further addressed at ASM’s next meeting on Dec. 2. Additionally, Tyler Junger was approved as ASM Legal Counsel. Representatives said he was the most qualified for the job.
New hockey arena receives final approval from state By Maggie DeGroot The Daily Cardinal
The Wisconsin State Building Commission gave final approval to a new UW-Madison hockey and swimming facility Wednesday. The La Bahn Arena will be connected to the Kohl Center and feature a skyway connecting it to the Southeast Recreational Facility. The 2,400-seat arena will serve as a practice facility for the men’s and women’s hockey team. It will also host the women’s hockey team’s home games and feature
locker rooms for the men’s and women’s swimming teams. Athletic Director Barry Alvarez said in a statement he was “thrilled” to see the project received final approval. The arena will be named after UW-Madison alumnus Charles La Bahn and his wife Mary Ann La Bahn, the lead donors for the facility. Charles La Bahn was a twotime letterwinner for the UW swim team. He also served as the director of the UW Foundation from 1974 to 1996.
“It’s exciting, it’s going to become a reality,” women’s hockey head coach Mark Johnson said. “For several programs in the department it’s going to have a huge impact.” The total cost of the project is $27.9 million. Two-thirds of the cost will be paid by gifts to UW Athletics and the remainder will be paid by bonds, according to the university. Construction of the facility is scheduled to begin this spring and has an expected opening in the fall of 2012.
A 67-year-old man in the town of Vermont was so enraged by Bristol Palin’s success on “Dancing With the Stars” he shot his television and threatened his wife, which led to a 15-hour standoff with police. Steven N. Cowan surrendered to police Tuesday morning and is currently in custody facing tentative charges of domestic disorderly conduct and second degree reckless endangerment of safety, according to the Dane County Sheriff ’s Office. Cowan, who did not think the former vice-presidential nominee’s daughter was a very good dancer, grabbed his shotgun, and proceeded to fire at the television and threaten his wife, according to Dane County Public Information
Officer Elise Schaffer. His wife fled the scene and reported the incident to the police, saying Cowan was threatening to commit suicide, according to a statement from the Sheriff ’s office. She was unharmed in the incident. Although he communicated with the police on the scene, Cowan refused to come out of his home until about 11 a.m. the next morning, 15 hours after the standoff began. Cowan had a history of mental illness and had been drinking prior to the incident, according to Schaffer. Shaffer said as far as she knew, there was no political motive for the shooting. Cowan’s bail was set at $1,500, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. Schaffer said the investigation is ongoing.
ASM rules SSFC must rehear WISPIRG’s request for funds By Kathryn Weenig The Daily Cardinal
The Associated Students of Madison’s student judiciary announced its ruling Tuesday that the Student Services Finance Committee must rehear the Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group’s request for funding. The SSFC originally denied WISPIRG funding for not being in accordance with all of SSFC’s eligibility criteria, specifically the bylaw that states at least 75 percent of a student group’s beneficiaries must be students. Student Judiciary Chair Kathryn Fifield said the SSFC interpreted its bylaws unfairly when it denied WISPIRG funding eligibility for not providing services for enough students. “We decided to petition the decision because we felt they ruled unfairly and were not neutral in their decision.” Rashi Mangalick chair WISPIRG
“We felt like SSFC used an unreasonable reading of the term ‘beneficiaries’ in the bylaws,” Fifield said. we also felt that they did not use a plain reading of the term ‘beneficiaries’ in the bylaws.” SSFC Chair Matt Manes said he disagrees with the Student Judiciary’s decision. He said the trial should have discussed WISPIRG’s complaint that the committee was not viewpoint neutral when making the eligibil-
ity decision instead of scrutinizing the committee’s vague definition of “beneficiary.” “I very much so disagree with it,” Manes said. “While we did concede the beneficiary definition, we felt that the case should have be decided on whether or not we provided a viewpoint in trial violation and not necessarily on how clear we were on writing the evaluation forms.” WISPIRG Chair Rashi Mangalick said the SSFC’s ruling was biased, which led to their choice to appeal the decision. “We decided to petition the decision because we felt they ruled unfairly and were not neutral in their decision,” Mangalick said. Mangalick said the SSFC interpreted WISPIRG’s direct service to beneficiaries in a nonviewpoint neutral way. At the initial eligibility hearing, WISPIRG Secretary Allie Gardner cited that the SSFC approved funding for Wisconsin Student Lobby, which provides sources similar to WISPIRG. The Student Judiciary ruled that, although the SSFC was viewpoint neutral in their decision, it does not appear the committee evaluated WISPIRG differently than the Wisconsin Student Lobby. After the hearing, Manes said he still feels WISPIRG is not eligible for funding. Mangalick said WISPIRG is ready to push forward with their appeal for funding. “We’re going to prepare for [the next SSFC] hearing, try our best, and see what happens after that,” Mangalick said.
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”