It is the beginning of a new school year and many students have chosen to leave University Housing for the liberating spirit of apartment life. Unfortunately, that feeling of freedom may be short-lived as inexperienced tenants move into their new homes.
As students, fresh or weary from their summer breaks, walked onto Bascom Hill for their first day of classes Tuesday they were treated to a commercial and educational display on Bascom’s lawn. The display, which promoted a new grocery store in Dejope Hall, featured dozens of plastic flamingo lawn ornaments embedded all across the grassy expanse below Bascom Hall. The display itself might come off as esoteric, but is actually a call-back to the infamous Pail and Shovel student government party which ascended to power in 1978.
A little over a year ago, the University of Wisconsin-Madison opened up a new office in Shanghai to help further its reputation and to establish more research and business associations. To help open up the office in Shanghai, which is officially called the “UW-Madison Shanghai Innovation Office,” Chancellor David Ward joined with a delegation that included local Chinese officials and Wisconsin business representatives; some of these included the representatives of major multinational corporations such as Promega and Abbott Labs. A few months ago, Abbott Labs pleaded guilty to knowingly selling inappropriate and subsequently harmful medication to elderly people in the U.S.; they are also paying a mammoth $1.6 billion fine.
When I attended my Student Orientation and Registration (SOAR) session three years ago I was told the requirements to form a student organization on this campus were minimal. The University only demanded that the organization be composed of at least three students, and I don’t even remember hearing that an adviser was needed. Because I have held “leadership” positions in two organizations, I can tell you first hand that the requirements to form and register an organization have expanded dramatically. This is my complaint letter.
Just in time for day one of last week’s Republican National Convention, the Obama administration announced its finalized plans for fuel efficiency regulations on American car manufacturers.
It is no secret that Iran is currently developing nuclear capabilities. Their program was actually given a head start by none other than the United States in the 1950’s in the Atoms for Peace program. Obviously, a nuclear-powered Iran has not always been a threat to the world, or else the United States wouldn’t have supported their program in the first place. In fact, under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Islamic Republic opted to disband its nuclear developments as they served as a hindrance to peaceful Islamic values. Unfortunately, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s sentiments are not shared by the regime currently in power in Iran, and with the nation’s present advancement within the realm of nuclear power, the entire world is threatened by an Iran armed with nuclear weapons.
Get involved and have fun. This is common advice for both new and returning students, and the tried and true method works: people who are involved in extracurricular activities and have healthy social lives are proven to have higher test scores and healthier minds.
As the 2012 presidential election draws nearer and nearer, political commercials and propaganda are pounded into the minds of voters across the United States. So what does this mean for students here at the University of Wisconsin - Madison? As a new batch of freshman roll in, be prepared for student organizations, local lobbyists and the occasional nut job to spread their own opinions on who the new president should be.
Madisonians have grown accustomed to political excitement over the past couple of years. Fall 2012 promises to be just as exciting in terms of political conflict. The items listed below are hot topics to follow as the school year starts.
The rhetoric spewed from the bowels of propaganda machines during presidential election seasons can sometimes seem daunting. How can one separate fact from fiction? This cycle, it seems that democrats have gone to new lows by trying to incite racial tensions in their attempt to divide America. Vice President Joe Biden described the GOP’s goals in a speech he gave in Virginia when he stated, “they gonna put y’all back in chains.” Democratic Virginia state Sen. Louise Lucas proclaimed that “Mitt Romney, he’s speaking to a… segment of the population who does not like to see people other than a white man in the White House or any other elected position… I absolutely believe it is all about race and for the first time in my life I’ve been able to convince my children finally that racism is alive and well… All across this nation, and especially in Virginia.” Because the Republican Vice Presidential nominee, Paul Ryan, is a born and raised native of Wisconsin, it’s important that we go beyond the petty racism of the left and actually examine policy. The large bulk of attacks levied at Paul Ryan are aimed at his controversial budget proposal that Mitt Romney has now incorporated into his platform. While serving on the House Budget Committee in 2011, Ryan proposed budget reforms that included reforming Medicare, Medicaid and the Food Stamp Program. Democrats charge that his proposal is a radical exercise in fiscal austerity that would let poor orphans starve and deny grandma and grandpa the medical services that they need. I find this completely laughable because I don’t think that Ryan’s budget goes nearly far enough.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is a place of opportunity, first and foremost. There are sports, clubs, classes, people and tons of night life to explore as the semester begins and students and teachers alike flock to the buzzing city of Madison. Whether a freshman, transfer or returning student, everyone can be overwhelmed by the choices they must make when a new school year starts. The best advice for this situation: just dive in.
I’m sure many of you know by now that Scott Walker survived the recall election. However, even though Tom Barrett lost the election, I don’t think Walker won anything to be proud of.
Fairly recently The Washington Post, in response to a previous story that noted the general decline in collegiate student study efforts, published another story that featured the universities in which college students study the most. Perhaps to the surprise of outsiders, but certainly to no surprise to its attendees, UW-Madison made it to the top of the list.
It’s been over half a year since I wrote my first letter condemning the international community’s abandonment of the freedom-seeking Syrian opposition. This article comes over a week after I first saw the pictures of nearly 50 executed children, all at the age of 10 or younger. It’s been over 15 months now and over 13,000 people are dead; all the UN can do is send an embarrassing amount of peacekeepers, to pretend as if they are doing something, as if the Arab League had not already done nothing.
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Solutions by The State News
