Feature photograph insensitive to deceased
I would just like to say that I was very disturbed by the selection of the picture on the cover of Wednesday's Daily Cardinal. I can and often do stomach articles with which I disagree, but I believe the cover was in poor judgment. On the news, everyone saw people jumping out of their World Trade Center offices to the inevitable, but pictures of the deceased victims were spared from television. It is not that we are all in denial that people are dying in Afghanistan and all that was shattered with the single picture, but it is, at the very least, out of respect for the dignity of the deceased, that pictures of that nature not be published. I urge the Cardinal to be more cautious about pictorial content. I would have believed those six men were dead if the Cardinal had merely said so.
Title IX series' emphasis insults women's sports
The articles on Title IX last week (""Title IX: Equity in Sports?"" Nov. 5-9) provided a lot of useful information about the state of women's sports at UW-Madison and around the nation, and hopefully cleared up some misperceptions about equal opportunity and proportionality rules.
However, I think that women's sports are still often hurt by the perception that women aren't as fierce or dedicated as male athletes. This is certainly not true, but it doesn't help when this paper reports that one of the biggest benefits for female athletes is increased self-confidence. Division I sports are not a self-help clinic! What about the thrill of competition, testing one's physical limits, the camaraderie of a good team, the roar of the fans, or the pursuit of lofty dreams such as joining a professional sports league or competing in the Olympics? I would be very surprised if it was ever reported that male athletes benefit from improved self-esteem. Serious athletes of either gender have spent years developing the skills that they use. Of course they must be confident in their bodies and skills, but it is hardly relevant if they view themselves more positively than the average person does. Don't trivialize women's sports.
Badger fans need to show pride at games
I am, as are many of my fellow students, an avid Badger fan. Not just football, not just basketball'everything that has to do with the red and white gets my attention. Even when the team doesn't win a conference championship. Right now, however, I want to concentrate on Badger football. Saturday, Nov. 3, I attended the Wisconsin-Iowa football game and was deeply saddened by what I saw. When I looked up to the top rows of the student section, I noticed that a good chunk of rows on top were not filled at all. I must admit, however, that the fans that were there were louder than they have been all season. Empty seats in Camp Randall (especially the student section) are unacceptable.
I realize that the football team has not played as well as it has in the past, but that is no reason to not attend a game if you have tickets. Right now, the football team needs the fans more than anything. It's up to them if they go to a bowl game, but the fans have a part in it to. Fans can help set the tone of the game before it starts. In my opinion, when you are in college and have tickets to a sporting event, you should be there, no matter what the weather or how much you drank the night before.
We go to UW-Madison and we are all Badgers, no matter where we come from. We should be proud of it and proud to display it. When Michigan comes to town Saturday, it's gonna be damn hard to beat them, but I think the football team can do it. But I bet they'd enjoy it a lot more if the fans came ""ready to play"" as well. Oh yeah, one more thing. This is Madison, Wis. Don't fool yourself'there will be plenty of beer to drink all night long. Do yourself a favor and stay for the Fifth Quarter. The band does a hell of a job playing our songs. So what if you get to the party 45 minutes later? There will still be something to drink'somewhere. On, Wisconsin!
