I came to UW-Madison in the fall of 1999. UW had been my ninth
choice out of nine schools. But after only being accepted to three
schools (UW, Michigan and Wash U. in St. Louis) and visiting each
school, I decided to go with my gut feeling and chose UW.

Four years and 50 columns later, it is time to say goodbye.
These years at Madison have been amazing.

Madison has taught me to not take life too seriously because we
only get one chance and life already goes by too quickly to waste
opportunities. The summer afternoons at the Terrace, Pat McCurdy
and Flip Night at Brats on Tuesdays, partying at Feathers and, of
course, the occasional two-fishbowl nights at Wando’s are all
activities that we do not get to do after graduation when working
full-time.

Madison has also shown me the wide spectrum of opinions people
have in this country. I learned early, though, that a mutual
respect for people and not taking ideological differences
personally help build both strong allies and good friends.

Unfortunately, despite the differences of opinion, Madison is no
perfect haven for diversity of thought. There is no question the
campus leans to the left, and students sometimes feel that their
options are twofold: Conform to the “Madison thought” or keep your
mouth shut because your opinions “negatively affect campus
climate.”

This problem was displayed when in 2001 David Horowitz placed an
ad against slave reparations that caused an uproar on campus,
including some people calling for The Badger Herald to be shut
down. When Middle East expert Daniel Pipes came to speak last year,
additional security precautions had to be taken because allegedly
there were threats made to him, and he was treated with the utmost
disrespect during the question-and-answer period.

The sit-ins at Bascom Hall over sweatshops, the protests outside
Taco Bell where four times as many people went in to eat than
protested and, of course, the “Books not bombs” rally were always
fun to observe.

Athletics at UW are second to none. Sports Illustrated declared
us No. 1, and anyone who has been to a home football game
understands why. The support students give to the athletic teams
(even while not always completely sober), the original cheers and
the band make football, hockey, basketball and women’s volleyball
games memorable experiences.

My father, whose ego is certainly inflating as he reads this,
taught me three important lessons before I came to school, and they
have all turned out to be true:

1) Stay in school

2) Choose carefully

3) Vote Republican

School is how we create our futures. Without knowledge, neither
individuals nor society can progress. It is okay to challenge the
status quo and not take no for an answer, but knowledge truly is
power.

Choosing carefully applies to everything. Whether picking a
major, finding the right friends, prioritizing long-term and
short-term goals or marrying the right spouse, many of the
decisions we make now will affect the rest of our lives. Choices
are abundant, but making hasty decisions frequently has long-term
consequences.

My dad is not that strong of a Republican, actually, but I
believe he recognized my strong beliefs earlier than I did. If you
believe in taking responsibility for your own actions, the freedom
to spend one’s own money and the importance of leading the world to
greater security by doing the right thing, then this is a good
lesson.

These three lessons can take anyone far in life when combined
with the help of hard work and a focus on the broader picture.

To those students, administrators and faculty members I have
clashed with, I still wish you all the best of luck. As I leave, I
hold no animosity. We all have important roles here at UW, and I
hope you were all simply trying to do what you felt was right.

All that is left to say is: Thank you, UW-Madison, for an
incredible four years and a lifetime of memories. Thank you to all
the professors and administrators who promoted freedom of ideas and
thought and who genuinely care about students. To my great friends
and allies, we did well these last few years. And of course … Go
Bucky!

Matt Modell is graduating this semester with a degree in
journalism and political science. He can be reached now and
post-graduation at [email protected].