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The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

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Editorial Board’s stories to watch in fall 2014

Editorial Boards stories to watch in fall 2014
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https://badgerherald.com/oped/2014/09/03/meet-editorial-board-2/

Progress on permanent homeless housing remains frozen

Madison mayor Paul Soglin is advocating a new approach to dealing with the persistent issue of housing the homeless. He went on record in July stating that he supported a “Housing First” approach, in which the homeless are offered permanent shelter before addressing other issues in their lives. He also proposed a five year, $20 million initiative in the 2015 capital budget for affordable housing aimed at the homeless and lower-income households.

Wishful thinking and proposals to house the homeless in Madison have become as common as the never-ending construction on Library Mall. However, with last winter being the 11th coldest on record for the city of Madison, and this winter not expected to be warm, housing the homeless is now a highlighted issue (it also wouldn’t be too bad for Mayor Soglin, who is up for re-election in April). The hope is that the city has learned its lesson after the Polar Vortex and the ever-elusive housing for the homeless will become a reality before Polar Vortex: the Sequel strikes. But it remains to be seen whether this initiative will stave off this winter’s frostbite.

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Walker, Burke face off for governorship

With election season comes the tired Get Out the Vote campaigns and the overwhelming burden of civic duty (however marred it is by complete apathy). But, per the Herald Editorial Board’s historical position on all things democratic, we encourage you to consider taking part.

This fall’s general election will take place Tuesday, Nov. 4, with positions up for vote ranging from governor and lieutenant governor to local and county offices. However, the most notable race is that for governor, between Republican incumbent Gov. Scott Walker and Democrat challenger Mary Burke.

https://badgerherald.com/news/2014/07/20/wisconsin-voters-face-contentious-race-candidates-governor-aa/

Much like Walker’s ham and rolls prior to Sunday dinner, the race for governor has only heated up since the partisan primary, with both candidates fighting one another via ads attacking each others’ job creation records.

The race will be a close one, with Walker and Burke alternately taking the lead in the polls, making it an important story to watch over the coming months.

https://badgerherald.com/news/2014/09/02/walker-burke-higher-education/

Playing for keeps: College athletes deserve to be paid

Despite what the NCAA claims, many college sports are far from amateur, especially when it comes to the top conferences in revenue-generating sports. There’s certainly nothing amateur about the Football Bowl Subdivision — the 10 football programs with the most revenue (Wisconsin comes in at number two) raked in a combined $1.3 billion last year.

This is nothing new — last year, this Board wrote, “Student athletes, especially those in dangerous, revenue-generating sports, deserve to be compensated with more than a scholarship.”

https://badgerherald.com/oped/2013/09/12/no-pay-to-play-for-ncaa-athletes/

Not surprisingly, we were happy with the result of the O’Bannon lawsuit last month where a federal judge ruled the NCAA’s current provisions violate U.S. antitrust laws. However, it’s unclear exactly how deep the ramification of this decision will run. The ruling certainly won’t require the NCAA to start paying athletes anywhere close to what they’re worth to their programs, but it will allow athletes to be compensated a small amount (after graduating) for the use of their likenesses in video games and on television.

We will be watching with interest over the coming months to see how this ruling plays out. It’s possible this will be the end of the line for paying college athletes. However, we hope the decision will be the start of a larger movement, ultimately ending with college athletes being paid something close to their actual market value.

Berquam attacks ‘rush’-ing roulette

It’s no secret that Dean of Students Lori Berquam has her qualms with Greek life on campus. Last semester, a committee formed as part of the Division of Student Life proposed slight changes to Greek recruitment, including a proposal to push the entirety of the pledging process to the spring semester.

This came as a bit of a shock for a community rooted in tradition. The integrity of Berquam’s investigative committee was questioned under the rules of shared governance. Students arrived in droves to voice their concerns at what was supposed to be a quiet town hall meeting on the subject. Later it was announced the recruiting process would happen as normal this fall.

But there has yet to be word on the university’s intentions for the future. It’s unlikely that Berquam has had a change of heart on the matter, so it’s safe to assume we will hear more about potential changes to the Greek recruiting process in the coming year.

UW combats sexual assault

As students enter their first year at the University of Wisconsin, they are made well aware of the realities of sexual assaults on campus. With one in four women victim to some type of sexual assault during their college career, UW seems to be clear about having a voice in the national discourse on rape culture.

Although sexual assault at UW may look like every other Big Ten school, the challenge of addressing the issue is that universities oftentimes only pay attention to what they can track.

Within the two weeks leading up to this academic year, two sexual assaults were reported in areas close to campus with high student population densities. During the same time frame, a former UW football team recruit was sentenced for sexually assaulting a student in her dorm room. These examples amount to only a fraction of the cases from the past year.

https://badgerherald.com/news/2014/08/22/second-sexual-assault-occurs-park-street-incidents-unrelated/

https://badgerherald.com/news/2014/06/19/uw-recruit-accused-sexual-assault-found-guilty-aa/

Sexual assault crimes are inherently notorious for going unreported — a phenomenon that has deeply societal roots. But as reports continue to come in, it is likely the university will be making a campus-wide effort to not only address immediate safety, but more broadly, the culture surrounding sexual assault.

Rape culture does exist.

Uncrossable common ground: UW System and legislators at financial odds

University of Wisconsin regents approved a $95.2 million request for new state funding in the 2015 – 17 budget for UW System President Ray Cross’ “Talent Development Initiative.” The initiative looks to grow the Wisconsin economy by making the UW system more responsive to the economy’s needs in order to create job growth.

In the past when the UW System requested further state funding, it was rejected by the state due to protest from politicians over the vast amount the UW was keeping hidden in accounts for future needs. Instead of offering direct financial assistance, Gov. Scott Walker issued a directive to state agencies to assume no new state funding for the new biennium. The UW system is currently under a two-year tuition freeze, and Walker proposed an extended freeze in April for 2015 – 17.

With Walker and Cross seemingly at odds with their perspectives, it will be interesting to see how the distrust between legislators and UW System due to the uncovering of more than $600 million in reserve money last year will affect the current request for state funds.

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