Opinion

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Republican Jon Huntsman best Secretary of State candidate

A few weeks ago, I wrote a very passionate article just shortly after President Barack Obama won reelection.  It detailed the fact that the Tea Party represents a backwards, lying and conniving movement that in no way engages with reality as sane people know it.  My point was that I really want bipartisanship in this country, as I think it is how we progress as a society. However, as long as the Tea Party is not only alive, but prevalent within the American Political System, bipartisanship will be an uber-difficult thing to accomplish.  

States are leaving public universities behind

This year—for the ninth consecutive year—the University of Wisconsin-Madison increased its tuition by 5.5 percent, the maximum percentage increase allowed under state law. For the first time in the school’s history, tuition is more than $10,000 a year for in-state students. Including room and board, the cost of attendance is about $24,000 for in-state students.

Attending school away from home enhances learning

The point of college, as far as society is concerned, is to learn. The idea is that we get an education somewhere between watching football and getting smashed. This education is more than just what we learn in our classes, however. The most important things we learn in college are the life lessons we receive along the way.

Student veterans need more resources

The number of student veterans in the University of Wisconsin System has doubled since 2005, and is expected to continue to increase. While UW-Milwaukee is home to the most student veterans receiving GI benefits in the state, educating more than double the number enrolled at UW-Madison, all UW schools are involved. This has caused the UW System Board of Regents to give the situation more attention than before.

UW-Madison needs to cut ties with the fossil fuel industry

There are noble reasons to be proud of being a Badger. The UW-Madison has a rich legacy of student activism. We protested during the Vietnam Era in the ’60s. We fought against attacks on collective bargaining two winters ago. In the ’70s, we led the charge against apartheid.

Unpaid internships should be illegal

This past summer, myriad University of Wisconsin students worked as unpaid interns at business firms, financial institutions, media corporations, bureaucracies and elected officials’ offices. Hopefully, dedicated interns will gain valuable work experience and a reliable reference that they can utilize when searching for another job. What they certainly will not gain from their internship, however, is compensation for their work.

Family planning an economic investment

The United Nations Population Fund declared family planning a universal right for the very first time in its annual report last week. To avoid the usual mad free-for-all that generally follows any discussion of reproductive rights, it is important to note the UN does not include abortion among methods of birth control.

Letter: New Chancellor needs to be a strong academic leader

Our history has seen 28 Chancellors and Presidents come and go at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Among them include some of the most forward thinkers of our time and many of this state’s best public servants. Among them also include the forgettable and the forgotten—those whose impact left little to be remembered.

Hamas' terrorist attacks are inciting Isreali military responses

Since 2007, the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian controlled territory southwest of Israel, has been ruled by the terrorist organization Hamas.  During this span, Hamas has launched a relentless campaign of rockets into the south of Israel.  Temporary ceasefires between Israel and Hamas have intermittently been in play over these years; however, they are always followed by a new barrage of rockets fired from Gaza.  These perpetual shellings have obstructed many Israelis from going about their normal lives and have been so terrorizing that President Barack Obama has greatly assisted in the institution of Israel’s Iron Dome, a defense system that intercepts and destroys incoming missiles.  

Police can kill less with one easy step

It’s been a long week and Thursday night finally rolls around. Going out to the bars and slugging down some Glenlivet on the rocks (if you’re like me and awesome) is just about a necessity. What you don’t expect is walking back home and finding a stranger there. This crazy situation turned into a nightmare after the cops saw Paul Heenan fighting with the homeowner of the house he mistook for his own. Paul Heenan—an intoxicated new neighbor—was fatally shot by Officer Stephen Heimsness after he reported to the scene.

Technology-obsessed media failing the American public

We live in an age where we are constantly being bombarded with political media. In this past presidential election, for example, many news organizations used social media like Facebook and Twitter to connect with readers. In addition, many networks created election teams to cover political news across the country, while many cable news networks increasingly promoted their shows featuring pundits and talk show hosts giving their own take on a candidate or an issue. Thus, with a seemingly endless supply of constantly available political information, one would think we would be more informed on the issues and understand the important problems facing our politicians every day. But are we really? Sure, media is important, but more political media outlets in no way guarantees better quality.

Expectations for the next four years

Job Creation:

Homeless need long-term solutions not empty promises

This is the final installment of a three-part series I've written on a single meeting held Monday night. I've used this meeting as an opportunity to delve pretty deeply into the tensions and issues surrounding the tent city of Occupy Madison as it moves from neighborhood to neighborhood. Things have happened since Monday; developments in this story are ongoing, and for timely updates I urge you to check the news section of this paper, which has had the best coverage of any traditional media in Madison, or a blog called "Forward Lookout" written by Brenda Konkel, about whom we will learn more shortly. Despite the fact that this meeting occurred Monday, over the past three days I have used it as a snapshot to provide insights into the escalating breakdown in communication between the homeless and, apparently, the whole rest of the world.

Homeless have limited legal options

Yesterday I wrote about a municipal listening session held for the Northport community about homeless people who had set up tents in a county park in their neighborhood. A brief recap: The neighbors, while surely compassionate people in their private lives and upstanding citizens in their public ones, didn’t understand why the homeless people had come and why they couldn’t go elsewhere. The city and county officials, notably including Lynn Green, the director of the Dane County Department of Human Services, felt put-upon, frustrated and incredulous that the needs of homeless people living at the encampment could not be met through existing, legal channels. And the homeless in attendance and their allies felt weary, stigmatized and misunderstood.

Politicians shouldn’t have to resign because of sexual affairs

Just a few days ago, the subject of the most recent high-profile adultery scandal, this time involving David Petraeus, came up in discussion amongst some friends of mine. I had been largely apathetic to this news, since this sort of thing has been known to happen on about a yearly basis to various important people. Interestingly enough, the conversation skewed in the direction of not particularly caring about adultery in politics at all. This made me think a bit and has resulted in a bit of confusion. Why is it that America demands that its politicians resign or be impeached over an act that is perfectly legal?

Occupy movement still politically relevant in Madison

People have a hard time equating the Occupy movement with the tent city for the homeless that Occupy Madison has become. Denizens of Madison, particularly residents of the various neighborhoods where the Occupy encampment has moved, have adopted a not-in-my-backyard approach to the issue. On the other hand, the movement has picked up allies everywhere it has gone. Everyone wants to know why these people are still on the street.

The Electoral College, although unpopular, still serves a valuable purpose

The race is over; the ads are gone; the smoke has cleared. Obama has come out on top with 332 electoral votes and over half of the popular vote to boot. I thought the election was going to be much closer than it was but I guess that the general public is still capable of separating the nuts from the berries; my belief in the people is restored. While this election was a clean call there have been years when the statistics did not line up. In the presidential election between former President George W. Bush and Al Gore in 2000, the results were decidedly split. The race had been close, with Gore winning the popular vote but Bush winning the presidency through a victory in the Electoral College. How is that right? How is that democratic? HOW IS THAT AMERICAN?

Humanity's progress will topple marriage inequality

Improve school by encouraging teachers

A fundamental tenet of economics is that humans are generally rational, self-interested actors. It’s no surprise, then, that many of America’s best and brightest students are choosing to study disciplines and pursue careers in industries that will move them forward on a path of financial independence and success. In fact, many students are willing to major in subjects just for the very chance of making the big bucks.  

Referendums create federal tension

While civil rights issues in the 2012 presidential election were doomed from the start due to the two candidates being Bush 2.0 (President Barack Obama) and Bush 2.5 (former Gov. Mitt Romney), a few state initiatives were passed that lit up the gloomy aura hanging over our country (pun intended). In both Colorado and Washington, ballot initiatives called for the legalization of marijuana for recreational use. In Massachusetts marijuana was legalized for medical use. Colorado also has decriminalized the personal cultivation of marijuana.