Opinion - The Daily Cardinal

OPINION

The First Amendment pushes America forward

By By Nikki Stout | Oct. 4, 2012

The First Amendment is one of those rare things that the general population feels quite strongly about, the sound of such a feeling being a unified, “YES!” Maybe because it validates our personal freedoms, maybe because it allows us the courage to voice an unpopular position, or maybe because it’s the key ideal as to why we are allowed to be who we are. Whatever personal reason one may have for their love of free speech, religion, press, protest and petition, generally speaking, it’s a nationally accepted good. Beyond obvious reasons as to why we’re crazy about our most important constitutional rights, such as, well, not being thrown in jail for disliking the president, the First Amendment allows us the elasticity to individualize, yet maintains the strength to unite us through its power.

CAMPUS NEWS

SLAC needs to provide solutions instead of whining

By By: Nick Fritz | Oct. 4, 2012

Most student organizations here at UW-Madison provide a great service for the students and community. Yes, there are some student orgs like the Slappy Skateboard Club or the Wisconsin Lawn Sports Club that were created for fun, but they don’t bother anyone. Unless, of course, as a child, the neighbor boy beat you with a croquet mallet and now you are emotionally scarred because of it. In that case WLSC may upset you to some degree.

CAMPUS NEWS

Gender studies should be required

By By: Jacob Riederer | Oct. 4, 2012

We live in a world where people of different genders, sexual orientations and gender identities interact on a daily basis. Thus, gender and its components are a large and important part of our daily lives. Currently at UW-Madison, however, courses in gender studies are not required for all majors and many students graduate without taking a single gender studies class. This is surprising for an institution that prides itself on offering a well-rounded and diverse educational experience for all. As a result, I believe if UW wants to provide a truly balanced and adequate educational experience, then it must institute a gender studies requirement for all students.

CAMPUS NEWS

Annoying people on State Street aren’t as bad as you think

By By: Morgan Haefner | Oct. 3, 2012

Okay, I know, we all dislike them. Yes, I’m registered to vote. No, I will not sign up to be saved by the grace of God. Better yet, here’s my silent pass-by. You can’t grab my attention if I’m hiding behind this bulky scarf.

OPINION

Social media could help end bullying

By By: Jon Shapiro | Oct. 3, 2012

School seminars are devoted to preventing bullying, as is extensive news coverage and several educational films. Still, it persists in spite of all of the condemnation it receives. UW-Madison recently conducted a study in which researchers taught a computer to scan the social networking site Twitter to identify bullying-related tweets. About 15,000 of them were tied to bullying. As seen in many cases today, though bullying used to be a face-to-face encounter, it is now digitized and depersonalized. The thing that keeps most people from bullying, the reason why they don’t terrorize and taunt others at will, is an inability to face their victims. Social networking takes this barrier completely away from the situation and allows for bullying to take place from behind a curtain.

OPINION

U.S. should follow Canada’s lead and get rid of the pointless penny

By By: Evan Favill | Oct. 2, 2012

Who among us remembers heading down to the grocery store and picking up a postcard for a penny? No? A stick of gum? There’s just not too much out there that can be bought with those little scraps of copper-plated zinc lying around taking up space in your spare change jar. Personally, I keep them handy for when I want to buy a cup of coffee and my total’s just a wee bit north of a nice round number. But let’s face it, there’s very little that screams “Convenience!” in your ear when you load up your coin purse and/or pockets with a bunch of pennies. That goes for any kind of coin really, but I find carrying around five nickels is much more preferable then 25 pennies. So really, there’s nothing particularly useful that can be done with pennies on their own without hurting your back lugging them around in a duffel bag, besides spitefully paying a parking ticket. The way I see it, the time has come to do away with this outmoded chunk of metal and upgrade to a better business model.

OPINION

Obama and Romney are too close for comfort

By By: Steven Nemcek | Oct. 2, 2012

The website politicalcompass.org has mapped out the 2012 presidential candidates on its grid based on all elements of their policy, and the results should horrify anyone who bothers to look. On the organization’s graph of political positions, they have a scale of the political “left” and the political “right” on the x-axis and authoritarian and libertarian on the y-axis. On the graph, the points representing Obama and Romney nearly overlap, which should send a strong message to voters; whatever happens this election cycle, nothing is going to change. The policies advocated for by the executive of the United States, for all practical purposes, will be nearly identical. Also, because both candidates represent right-of-center authoritarian viewpoints, with Romney being a smidgen more right and more authoritarian than Obama, civil rights activists, libertarians and other espousers of freedom should be worried.

OPINION

Letter: Domestic violence affects all students

By Mario Puig and By Maggie DeGroot | Oct. 2, 2012

When it comes to sexual violence, particularly domestic/dating violence, it is easy for students to dismiss the issues believing it an issue that does not affect them. Unfortunately, students are more at risk than many believe. According to domestic violence expert Dr. Sandra Stith, about 30 percent of college students have been in relationships involving physical aggression and even more have been in emotionally abusive relationships.

OPINION

Obama's concrete economic plan better than Romney's vague one

By By: Max Cisneros | Oct. 1, 2012

The bomb that hit the economy in 2008 left everyone with lighter pockets. The government took action and it appeared as though the worst of it was over; the situation soon took a turn for the worst.

OPINION

Chinese economic liberalization has not gone far enough

By by Michael Brost | Oct. 1, 2012

Since the economic liberalization policies of Paramount Leader Deng Xiaoping beginning in 1978, China has experienced a tenfold increase in its economic output. In 2010, amid a global recession, China experienced a real growth rate of 10 percent and became the world’s largest exporter. What’s more, investment accounts for 45 percent of China’s Gross Domestic Product—roughly four times America’s investment as a percentage of GDP.

OPINION

Voter I.D. laws objectively negative in the U.S.

By By: Mitch Taylor | Oct. 1, 2012

One Person One Vote is a critical tenet of democracy, and one we didn’t really get around to until about fifty years ago. There are two important factors in ensuring this ideal is upheld. The first is making sure that voting is available to as many people as possible, so the vote actually represents the maximum amount of the population. The second is preventing voter fraud, so every person only gets one vote. Mostly within the past year, 33 states—including Wisconsin—have passed laws that aim to reduce voter fraud by requiring photo IDs at voting locations on election day. So, no more voter fraud. Democracy is saved. Moving on.

OPINION

Leftist motivation and its concerns

By by Noah Phillips | Oct. 1, 2012

I recently finished a brilliant book called The Unbearable Lightness of Being, by Milan Kundera. It was brilliant in several respects, but one of the most brilliant elements of it, for me, was its portrayal of “the Left,” and “Leftists.” The thread of the Left, according to this book, is not the thread of this ideology or that doctrine. A Leftist is not necessarily a communist or an anarchist or a democrat or a republican (though these ideals have been and are espoused by those who identify as Leftists). The thread instead is that of the idealists who sat around my dining room table this morning, conversing with bright eyes and loud voices.

OPINION

More summer classes should be offered

By Steven Wishau - The Daily Cardinal and by Kate Krebs | Sep. 30, 2012

Summertime is sacred to the student. It’s a chance to relax, work extra hours to save up some money and maybe even go on vacation.

OPINION

Romney should listen to Latino voters

By By: Jacob Riederer | Sep. 27, 2012

Latinos are the fastest-growing ethnic group in the United States, accounting for half of the nation's total growth in the past decade. Thus, this ever-growing voting block will undoubtedly have a significant impact in the upcoming presidential election, especially in key swing states like Florida, Colorado and Nevada. Historically, Latinos have voted Democratically ,with 67 percent of all Hispanics voting for Barack Obama in 2008. However, this could change if Republicans adopt smart, modern, pro-immigration policies.

OPINION

YouTube video embarrassing and disgraceful to America

By By Michael Penn | Sep. 27, 2012

Americans are messed up with privilege. There is no other way to begin this. This is the initial thought I conjured as I rattle through my pop culture-bred membrane as we discover detail after detail of the production of “Innocence of Muslims,” a film that has incited riots and a U.S. embassy attack which left an ambassador dead and three others wounded.

OPINION

Politicians need to be honest to spark genuine debate

By Andrew Haffner and By Jonny Shapiro | Sep. 26, 2012

The first lesson you learned about honesty probably involved telling your kindergarten classmate that it was you who ate his pudding. What you won’t learn in kindergarten is the slightly more serious and considerably more cynical idea that honesty is not always the best policy. Mitt Romney and his now-infamous 47 percent speech exemplify this in the field of today’s competitive politics. Not to say that his statements were correct in any way, and not to say that they didn’t mark his entire political party with a label of disdainful arrogance, but it does say something about whether or not candidates should really be honest with the public. Is it in a candidate’s self-interest to divulge their real opinions?

OPINION

Ordinances invoke opposite reactions

By The Daily Cardinal Editorial Board | Sep. 26, 2012

In recent weeks, the city passed two ordinances aiming to improve Madison’s safety and comfort. One, supported by Mayor Paul Soglin, tries to make State Street a more comfortable area by outlawing panhandling, or begging, on its grounds. The other, which lacks the mayor’s support, allows cabs to pick up flagging patrons on the 500 block of State Street between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m.

OPINION

Politics losing sight on foreign policy

By By: Evan Favill | Sep. 25, 2012

American politics seems to have undergone a sort of implosion in recent years. No, I’m not referring to the increased partisanship and extremism that has dominated the news for the past few election cycles. What I’m worried about is a reduction in the scope of our concerns.

OPINION

More self-questioning needs to accompany political discourse

By By: Mitch Taylor and Alex Pacheco | Sep. 24, 2012

This past weekend I returned to my hometown, Milwaukee, Wis., to cross an item off my bucket list that’s been there since 2008: Watching President Barack Obama, the first African-American president and one of the best campaigners in recent history, speak in person.

OPINION

President Obama impresses in Milwaukee

By by Michael Brost | Sep. 24, 2012

This past weekend I returned to my hometown, Milwaukee, Wis., to cross an item off my bucket list that’s been there since 2008: Watching President Barack Obama, the first African-American president and one of the best campaigners in recent history, speak in person.