Opinion

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No way to win this race to the top

Last week, the state of Wisconsin received the ""Billy Madison"" treatment in the Department of Education's Race to the Top. At no point in Wisconsin's rambling, incoherent proposal were they even close to anything resembling a rational thought. Everyone in the federal government is now dumber for having read it. They awarded us no points, and may God have mercy on our souls. Or at least the souls of Wisconsin students.

Editorial Cartoon: March 11, 2010

No need to ban guns, regulate them instead

The Supreme Court has had slurry of important cases during Obama's presidency, most notably overturning portions of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law. However, the recent case of McDonald v. Chicago, which challenges the Chicago handgun ban, is going to be its most important yet.

Best response to natural disasters comes with a healthy dose of rebel spirit

Rebels have always been a favorite of mine. They cannot be ignored, whether it's the teenager deliberately staying out past curfew or the revolutionary hero. We've got Martin Luther King Jr., Amelia Earhart, Rosa Parks, James Dean, Gandhi, Emiliano Zapata, oldies like George Washington and Lewis and Clark, and contemporaries like Lady Gaga. The rebel mindset incorporates defiance, stubbornness and a dose of crazy, but most importantly, a vision. And to reference the popular Apple ad that raises a glass to the ""round pegs in square holes,"" the rebels are the ones who push the envelope and end up changing the world, just because they think they can.

Open classrooms to discussion

Our private lives and personal beliefs follow us everywhere we go. This includes the classroom. Students and teachers do not check their biases, preferences or opinions at the door; but too often such aspects of character are absent from our classrooms and our education.

Allow faculty freedom to speak out

On March 1, the Faculty Senate heard a proposed revision to Chapter 8 of the Faculty Policy and Procedures. The potential addition of three sentences to the faculty speech code is a direct response to the 2006 Supreme Court case Garcetti v. Ceballos, in which an assistant district attorney claimed he was passed up for a promotion after being critical of his office. In a narrow 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court decided that Americans do not have free speech rights to speak out publicly in their official capacity against their place of employment.

Remember the efforts of all of our ROTC students

 There are a group of individuals on campus who are a part of a long standing tradition at this university. They often wake the rooster up in the morning and burn the midnight oil at night. They are college students like us while at the same time wearing the uniform proudly. Some do it to pay for college, others because they are carrying on a family tradition, but they all have one thing in common: an unmatched sense of purpose, duty and direction that many of us only dream of one day achieving.

Fear the filth of factory farms

Making sausage is really disgusting. Regulating Wisconsin's livestock and dairy industry is markedly more disgusting.

Refusal of pay raises aid Feingold's repute

 Year after year, senators and congressmen alike receive a small memo from their secretaries with an innocent smiley face or shooting star surrounding the words ""pay raise""! A little victory dance around their cluttered desk and a few jersey shore fist pumps are thrown in celebration, but who do these representatives have to thank? You!

Dialogue needed to reconcile Proposition 8 vote speculation, love will prevail

In 2008, we fostered in a new era of hope with the election of our first black president, Barack Obama. But we also fostered in a new era of bigotry for all gay and lesbian Californians with the upholding of Proposition 8, which was a proposition placed on the Californian 2008 presidential election ballot stating that marriage between a man and a woman is the only marriage that will exist in the state. The California Supreme Court ruled in favor of gay marriage, and it had been in practice since June 16, 2008. The day after the election, it was overturned by a roughly 52 percent voting ‘Yes' for Proposition 8.

Improvements needed to ensure clean water

Last week, the Wisconsin State Journal published a set of articles on Wisconsin's industrial animal farms. The reason? It appears some of these farms, also known as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, have been getting a free pass at the public's expense.

Gov't should divorce itself from marriage

A conservative friend recently came out to me as a lover of human rights, claiming gay marriage was a ""human rights issue."" To me, this was a sign that our generation will make equality inevitable.

Delaying candidacy will hurt Thompson's chances

Will he or won't he? This question usually indicates one of two things around these parts: Either it is the NFL offseason or we are approaching an election of some sort. Brett Favre and former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson could easily be cousins. Both have been transplanted only to become Wisconsin golden boys. Both have retired, but both have had to consider whether they are happy with that status several times. Both can ""still play."" Perhaps most significantly at this point, both are holding their respective organizations in suspense while they ponder their futures.

November rush nuisance not needed

Every student knows about the November Rush. All of a sudden, your inbox is flooded with offers from companies like Steve Brown Apartments, CHT Apartments and Madison Property Management. Ads in local papers advertise apartments and houses that will be available in the fall. If you already have an apartment, people start touring your home looking to make it theirs for the next school year.

Passive terminology dulls the imminent threat of global climate change

In 1998, President Bill Clinton tried to sidestep responsibility for his affair by parrying with words. In defense of his character in front of the grand jury, Clinton smugly used the infamous line ""it depends on what your definition of ‘is,' is."" Clinton was always known for his slick demeanor, and during the Monica Lewinsky trials he did not disappoint.

Editorial Cartoon: March 2, 2010

Freedom of speech also comes with responsibility

Because of recent events, specifically The Badger Herald allowing an online ad to run that links to a website denying the Holocaust, I want to take the opportunity to make clear The Daily Cardinal's advertising policies. Both our editorial and business staff reserves the right to reject any advertisement that we deem either libelous or offensive. However, this policy allows for a wide range of discretion by our staff, and it is up to our judgment whether an ad crosses the line from being provocative to being completely misleading.

Abortion opponents must stop underhanded tactics

The release last week of undercover video footage taken by the group Live Action at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Wisconsin, which supposedly reveals a Planned Parenthood employee breaking a state law, has drawn attention again to the contemptible and derisory tactics of conservatives. This latest attack is one reminiscent of another on the antipoverty group ACORN last fall. These attacks on Planned Parenthood ignore the benefits of the organization's work and just contribute more vitriol to the debate.

Credit CARD Act necessary to remove ambiguity from terms and conditions

Build support inside campus community

Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment is dedicated to preventing sexual assault, dating violence and stalking on campus through education and activism. PAVE maintains that it is the university's responsibility to ensure that every student on campus has access to a quality education, including victims of sexual assault and dating violence. Thus, it is crucial that the university takes the issue of sexual violence seriously and does everything in its power to ensure victims' needs are met so that their education is not compromised. While PAVE believes that the university makes great efforts to be responsive to victims' needs, we also feel it is important for these efforts to be consistently and continually evaluated to ensure that students receive the utmost support on campus.