Opinion - The Daily Cardinal

OPINION

U.S. health care system broken, unethical

By By: Max Cisneros and Caitlin Linehan | Oct. 22, 2012

In the painting by Sir Luke Fildes of 1887, appropriately named “The Doctor,” we are shown a man brooding over a sick child while parents stand by in anguish looking towards the greying man for reassurance. Apart from being an expensive oil painting it is the standard by which contemporary medical professionals are compared to. As medicine has improved and capitalism reigned supreme, the image of the doctor has been slowly, but surely, moving away from the gentleman that cares about your wellbeing towards the stranger that tells you to pull your pants down and bend over. Why is this? There are several reasons, but one of the biggest would have to be the use of private health insurance companies.

CAMPUS NEWS

Alumna recounts sexual assault at UW

By By: Guest columnist | Oct. 21, 2012

Editor’s note: the following is an account of sexual assault, and may trigger an emotional response from some readers. The letter is written by a former UW-Madison student and Daily Cardinal staff member. The name was changed at the author’s request.

OPINION

McCaskill’s opinions should not be stifled by her job title

By by Kate Krebs | Oct. 21, 2012

Just days ago, controversy ensued after Angela McCaskill, diversity officer at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., signed a petition that would put a Maryland same-sex marriage law that allows gay marriage to popular vote.

OPINION

Romney and Obama provide weak debate

By By: Steven Nemcek | Oct. 18, 2012

Watching the second presidential debate on Tuesday was a sobering and frustrating experience. Once again, both candidates were unable to draw any serious policy distinctions between themselves. Once again, both candidates avoided giving direct answers regarding what exactly they are going to accomplish and how they are going to accomplish it.

OPINION

Affirmative action policies outdated

By The Daily Cardinal Editorial Board and Clay Thomas | Oct. 18, 2012

Affirmative action is an issue that seems to continually pop up around the country. Just a few days ago, oral arguments were presented to the Supreme Court in the Fisher vs. University of Texas case. Essentially, this case is about a young white woman, Abigail Fisher, who was denied admission to the University of Texas and asserts she was given unequal treatment in the admissions process. This article does not intend to determine whether or not Fisher is right in her complaint against the university. Instead, this board would like to further examine a holistic view of how affirmative action is used in university admissions processes.

OPINION

Economic democracy is good for the Madison community

By by Noah Phillips | Oct. 17, 2012

What do a monk, a fugitive and a Green party presidential candidate all have in common? The answer is a commitment to economic democracy. Some of you may wonder what an economic democracy is. An economic democracy is an ethos, a challenge and the subject of a conference that took place this past weekend at Madison Area Technical College.

OPINION

Rules for Halloween are way too strict

By By: Max Cisneros | Oct. 17, 2012

Alright, well with the elections so near you can smell the eggs it ate this morning on its breath, it’s a good time to take a step back and scrutinize something much simpler and down to earth: Halloween restrictions. There is nothing better than being able to blow some steam off after the first half of the semester by putting on a skin-tight jumpsuit, cape and bat mask, calling up some friends from off-campus and going out to prowl the streets of the capital on the lookout for crime and pirate booty. Sadly, the administration on campus has, to our distress, continually cut our fun short year after year with restrictions in the dorms and apartment buildings.

OPINION

Cutting NASA funding is insulting to Americans

By By: Evan Favill | Oct. 17, 2012

A few days ago, a man with a balloon set the world record for the highest altitude skydive ever attempted. Fast forward a few days and this man, Felix Baumgartner, is now a household name. Watching it myself, I couldn’t help but feel like I was watching something akin to the moon landing of 1969; it’s a frontier that no one’s explored before.

OPINION

Republicans’ economic policies don’t reflect the values of their faith

By By: Jacob Riederer | Oct. 17, 2012

In the Vice Presidential debate last Thursday, Congressman Paul Ryan discussed the role of Catholicism in his life, saying, “My faith informs me about how to take care of the vulnerable, of how to make sure that people have a chance in life.” Indeed, many Republicans attribute Christianity as a defining part of their political beliefs and policies as evidenced by their party platform which referenced God more than 10 times.

OPINION

Doping being taken too lightly in U.S.

By By: Jon Shapiro | Oct. 16, 2012

Lance Armstrong, seven-time Tour de France winner, cancer survivor and hero to many, is now inching closer and closer to being perceived as a performance-enhancing drug user in the court of public opinion. The worst part is that this transgression did not take me by surprise.

CAMPUS NEWS

UW should adopt 10-percent rule

By by Mike Brost | Oct. 15, 2012

In 2003, the United States Supreme Court ruled in its Grutter vs. Bollinger decision that universities can consider an applicant’s race as a part of a holistic review for admission. Racial quotas established by universities were previously ruled unconstitutional in a 1978 Supreme Court decision. Although affirmative action is undergoing a supreme court challenge, universities around the U.S. are still falling short of achieving representative diversity.

OPINION

Don't vote for a third party

By By: Mitch Taylor | Oct. 15, 2012

If Anderson Cooper’s eyes were a city, they would be Madison. This city is about as full of liberals as it is drunk people. I think it’s important however that we maintain perspective by exposing ourselves to conservative viewpoints. To do this, I make sure to always read the work of my fellow Daily Cardinal opinion writer Steven Nemcek. Last week he wrote on why he believes Gary Johnson is the best choice for president. After reading this piece and doing some more research, I was rather impressed with Gov. Johnson. As a liberal, I do not agree with him on everything, but he does seem admirably devoted to social progress and quite capable of dealing with our economic situation. The man appears to be a very reasonable choice to lead our country. That is why I am asking everyone to not vote for Gary Johnson.

OPINION

Respectful ASM needs to branch out

By by The Daily Cardinal Editorial Board | Oct. 15, 2012

If we can learn anything from the Associated Students of Madison, it is that history repeats itself. With each session comes new representatives, ideas and debates, but through it all ASM has seemingly been forever plagued with the unofficial “parties” that impede its progress.

OPINION

Losing faith in the American system might be one of the best things you can do

By by Andrew Salewski | Oct. 14, 2012

In these trying times the thought of an “American Dream” seems so far-fetched it is only possible in blissful sleep. Why? What has happened to the United States? Is it the dirty politics of Washington? Is it our disgraceful foreign policy? Is it the state of the economy? No matter what it is, it only has one fix: Getting out and voting is the only way to restart our nation.

OPINION

PETA's protests aren't acknowledging the ugly alternatives

By by Kate Krebs | Oct. 14, 2012

The People for Ethical Treatment of Animals has vowed to continue to badger the National Institutes of Health until it discontinues funding for research PETA deems cruel to animals.

OPINION

Sanctions on Iran working

By by Zac Pestine | Oct. 14, 2012

The back and forth dialogue regarding the Iranian nuclear threat between Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and President Barack Obama has been dragging on for quite some time. On one side, Israel faces an existential threat if Iran successfully develops nuclear arms. This fear has led Prime Minister Netanyahu to call for red lines that Iran cannot cross without facing military rebuttal by the United States, Europe and Israel. But President Obama and the international community have been loath to set these lines before nonviolent sanctions on the Iranian economy have been completely exhausted. Though Iran is determined to press on with its nuclear program, it is evident that these sanctions are proving effective in crippling the Iranian economy.

OPINION

Letter: Free enterprise should dictate the economy

By By: Zachary Walters | Oct. 11, 2012

How can we compare apples to oranges? Yes, they may both be fruit, but other than that they do not share anything in common. One is red, and the other is orange. Also, they taste completely different. In the same manner, we can compare President Obama and Governor Romney. They are both presidential candidates, but other than that they are polar opposites. Their stark differences are especially illustrated through their policies on the economy.

OPINION

Union battles get Walker’s attention

By By: Jacob Lestock | Oct. 11, 2012

Following an extremely controversial year of politics revolving around unions’ collective bargaining rights, a much more public battle of union rights has erupted in America’s beloved professional sports leagues. As many already know, a few weeks ago the NFL finally came to an agreement on union negotiations for the referees. What was originally a lockout based on the refs’ pension plans quickly snowballed into a widespread pro-union call to action as fans across the country, ironically including our union-busting governor, showed their support for the locked-out officials. To everyone’s relief, the “real” refs were brought back following one of the most controversial calls of the season that led many Wisconsinites to officially disown former Badger Russell Wilson.

OPINION

Johnson’s policies offer real change

By Jake Witz and By: Steven Nemcek | Oct. 11, 2012

Last week I wrote an article bashing President Barack Obama and former Gov. Mitt Romney, and I characterized them as center-right fascists with so much policy overlap as to be almost farcical. Almost. I promised I would write about an alternative candidate, one who is also on the ballot in 47 states, with the exception of Oklahoma, Michigan and Pennsylvania. In those last three states, challenges are currently in place to put him on the ballot. This man’s name is Gary Johnson. In my mind, he is the only qualified candidate running for the office of the presidency, and he is certainly the most rational.

CAMPUS NEWS

Letter: Student input at forum could help university’s diversity struggles

By By: Justin Bloesch | Oct. 10, 2012

This Friday, Oct. 12, the University of Wisconsin-Madison will be hosting its biannual Diversity Forum. The Diversity Forum is a place for students, staff, faculty and administration to discuss the challenges that UW-Madison faces regarding race, religion, sexuality, gender identity and social class. All students are welcome to attend, and student input is crucial for helping determine UW policy for diversity in the coming years.