2012.10.04

Queen of Diamonds After throwing a perfect game this past weekend, UW softball’s Cassandra Darrah is the Badger Herald’s Athlete of the Week SPORTS | 8

THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1969 Volume XLIV, Issue 22

Thursday, October 4, 2012

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UW prepares for presidential visit Political science professor questions ethics of possibly disruptive stop Polo Rocha Legislative Affairs Editor Despite the excitement it has caused on campus, President Obama’s sudden visit to campus on Thursday has raised some concerns from faculty and staff.

Among the problems raised is one stipulation requiring attendees to Thursday’s event on Bascom Mall to provide their email and phone number to the Obama campaign.

The event requires online registration on Obama’s campaign website, where participants fill out the information, click “I’m in!” and later receive an email confirming their registration. This contact information may be used by the campaign in the future for calls or emails requesting volunteers or donations.

Kenneth Mayer, a University of Wisconsin

political science professor, outlined this as a major concern about the event in an email to university administration officials.

“In a very real sense, we are forcing [students] to become participants in the campaign and express support for the campaign,” Mayer said in the email.

“This is [standard operating procedure] for a campaign event, but it should not be for the university. … Should we be in the business of helping a campaign farm thousands of email addresses?”

Although the speech is taking place on campus, it is also a community event, Vice Chancellor for University Relations Vince Sweeney said.

He added despite the availability of other options, event planners felt this would be the most logical way of running the event.

UW’s news website links to the campaign event registration site, something Sweeney said reflected UW’s intent to pass along information regarding the visit.

Recent UW graduate Steven Olikara, last year’s

Lukas Keapproth The Badger Herald file photo

The University of Wisconsin campus has been buzzing with activity as students, staff and faculty prepare for President Barack Obama’s visit to Bascom Mall Thursday. This is Obama’s second visit as president. senior class president, spoke at Obama’s 2010 visit and was involved in planning to attract major speakers to Madison for end-of-year talks. He said each candidate is allowed

to hold political rallies on campus under UW System policy. He also encouraged Gov. Mitt Romney, Obama’s Republican opponent in the race, to take advantage of the policy.

“It’s Romney’s choice to campaign on this campus, and I absolutely think he should,” Olikara said. “It is the largest constituency of students in our state, and Wisconsin is a crucial swing

Student daily life to be interrupted during president’s speech today

the event.

Admission on Bascom Hill will begin at noon, though people can start to line up on the west side of Observatory Drive as early as 7 a.m.

Attendees should expect airport-like security. This means authorities will prohibit water bottles, food, umbrellas or bags larger

Sarah Lindstrom Herald Contributor

Andy Fate The Badger Herald

UW staff helped to prepare Bascom Mall in the days leading up to Obama’s campaign stop. Surrounding buildings will be closed during the event.

Obama, Romney fire at each other in first presidential debate held in Colo.

Polo Rocha Legislative Affairs Editor The first debate between President Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney took place Wednesday night, contrasting both candidates’

visions on economic and domestic policy.

Obama focused largely on strengthening the middle class and ensuring everybody has access to an opportunity to be successful. He said Romney’s policies would do the opposite and have been proven unsuccessful by past politicians.

“It ultimately is going to be up to the voters, to you, which path we should take,” Obama said. “Are we going to double-down on the top-

down economic policies that helped us get into this mess?

Or do we embrace a new economic patriotism that says America does best when the middle class does best?”

Romney described various people in the nation who are struggling under Obama’s presidency, asserting that they have asked him how the economy can be turned around.

He outlined a five-

DEBATE, page 2

For the second time in his presidency, President Obama will pay a visit to the campus of the University of Wisconsin, bringing with him closures, delays and relocations that will affect the day’s logistics.

According to Vice Chancellor of University Relations Vince Sweeney, those living, working, and studying around Bascom Hall can expect disruption throughout the day as UW greets Obama. The university is currently engaging in continuous communication with those affected in an effort to minimize the effects of the visit.

According to a UW statement, to physically gain entrance to the event, those interested must register online and bring their ticket printout or have it open on their mobile phone.

Registration does not guarantee entrance into

Authorities will prohibit water bottles, food, umbrellas or bags larger than a sheet of paper in the event area.

UW statement

than a sheet of paper in the event area, the statement said. Free water will be provided.

Other items not allowed into the event include laptops, umbrellas and sharp objects.

However, small cameras, iPads and tablets will be permitted.

According to the statement, Science Hall, Education, North Hall, South Hall, Law School and Music Hall will be

state. His selection of Paul Ryan as a vice-presidential running mate signifies how important Wisconsin is to Governor Romney.”

CONCERNS, page 3

closed between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m..

Once the event reaches capacity, overflow seating will be provided with audio on the hill north of Observatory Drive. Union South and Memorial Union may air the event live at their respective locations, the statement said.

UWPD Sgt. Aaron Chapin stressed the importance that those planning to attend the event be familiar with the rules.

He added security and the safety of everyone at the event is a priority for the university.

Chapin said UWPD is “working with Secret Service and law enforcement to make sure the event is adequately staffed to keep everyone in attendance safe.”

Prior to Thursday’s event, President Obama came to UW in 2010 and spoke on Library Mall.

The visit marked the first time in 60 years a sitting president visited the UW campus.

Sweeney said Obama’s last visit proved to be an extensively planned event for the university. He said this year UW was able to use some of their plans from 2010.

Committee begins search for chancellor INSIDE System president asserts importance of diversity for list of contenders to be presented to Board of Regents Julia Skulstad Campus Life Editor The search for University of Wisconsin’s next chancellor has officially begun.

UW’s Search and Screen Committee met in a public forum yesterday to begin procedures to select the new chancellor in a nearly year-long collaborative process.

UW System President Kevin Reilly addressed the 25-member committee that will be responsible for submitting five finalists next spring. He said the primary responsibility

for the committee is to conduct a nationwide search to form a pool of well-qualified candidates and select five people in unranked order to forward to the Board of Regents.

Reilly stressed the importance of diversity as the committee searches for campus’s next leader.

“We are interested in a diverse pool,” Reilly said.

“Obviously diversity is very important to this institution, to the system, to the board, to the state and, certainly, as our student body changes and becomes more

diverse in every way.”

He added it is equally important to choose candidates that are wellqualified to ultimately run the university.

Reilly said while each member of the committee represents the perspectives of their own academic department or program, he urged members to try to lift themselves and enterprise above their own departments throughout the search.

“I urge you not to think of your task here as finding somebody who walks, swings, quacks,

flies and thinks like you,” Reilly said. “It is a natural human tendency to want to do that, but if you do that you probably won’t do a very good job because this person has to have such a wide range of understanding.”

Reilly also specified contenders for the chancellor position must have spent significant time with a variety of external audiences, a requirement he said is extraordinarily important for the leader of a campus working with such institutions as the UW Foundation, WARF, UW Alumni Association,

© 2012 BADGER HERALD

federal government investment, state government connection and others.

He said anyone who comes into the university must have the capacity to appreciate and understand the academic culture and shared governance as it is practiced here at UW. These values, he added, are vital to establish and maintain trust with students, staff and faculty.

Regent David Walsh said the candidates must have an understanding of

Obama speech must address American Decline

SEARCH, page 3

ARTS | 5

UW politcal science professor and other community members explainsthe hard-hitting issues for the president’s visit

OPINION | 4

A local band’s fight against lung cancer Check out how Madison’s Wook is taking a stand against cancer and the band’s personal ties

2

The Badger Herald | News | Thursday, October 4, 2012

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Groupon Info Session Landmark - Third Floor Union South

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Pro-life protests fill Library Mall Graphic photographs, loud speakers claim to advocate justice for fetuses assaulted, he suggested MPD supervise the event.

Hardwick said CBR’s have only Members of a pro-life protests organization protested on experienced violence a the University of Wisconsin handful of times. He said campus Wednesday, their graphic displays are brandishing graphic meant to bother people, but photographs and taking not spark violence.

McCaw reported no questions from passersby.

Center for Bio-Ethical violent incidents occurred Reform members advocated during Wednesday’s protests, for ending abortion in UW’s though several individuals Library Mall throughout expressed their concern the day. CBR Site Manager with the organization and Darius Hardwick said the inquired about permitting protest occurred from 7 issues in Library Mall.

Protest groups are a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday and will take place again generally required to secure on Thursday. He said the a permit from the city to project has been around for protest on Library Mall.

14 years and visits hundreds McCaw confirmed the group of universities around the has obtained a permit prior to its protest. country.

Hardwick said CBR the protests have began 14 been especially years ago peaceful, and aims “There’s a lot considering UW to educate of ignorance is a very liberal individuals about prenatal campus with a about how development and student body aborted that generates fetuses are an equal amount considerable managed, of denial.” about according Darius Hardwick debate to CBR Site Manager the contentious issue.

Hardwick.

“This is a He added great campus CBR works to humanize pre-born and we’re grateful to be children and prove that here,” CBR Director Gregg abortion is an act of violence. Cunningham said.

CBR is forcing a debate Hardwick asserted most people do not care or want that otherwise does not to know the true facts about normally come up among and teaches abortion, because the truth students is often inconvenient to students facts about abortion their lifestyle, political views they are not learning in the classroom, Cunningham and world views.

“There’s a lot of ignorance said.

Members of CBR notified about pre-natal development and an equal amount of the gender and women’s studies department at denial,” Hardwick said.

Several Madison Police UW of the protests and officers supervised the encouraged them to debate event throughout the day. with the group Thursday, According to MPD Lt. Cunningham said.

“On other campuses this David McCaw, CBR is not a Madison-based organization might be shocking, but this and after further research is Madison and I don’t know that revealed group if anything is shocking here,” volunteers have been McCaw said.

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Madison’s traditional Halloween event is set to feature a musical entertainment lineup including Mac Miller. Last year’s event, held on the same day as a home UW football game, still attracted nearly 50,000 participants. Officials expect an even higher turnout for the 2012 Freakfest.

Freakfest promotes downtown business Strong music lineup expected to attract increased crowds, benefit State Street Cogan Schneier Herald Contributor Madison’s Central Business Improvement District highlighted aspects of this year’s Freakfest that appeal to local businesses in a meeting Wednesday night.

BID Executive Director Mary Carbine said the organization uses Freakfest to market and promote downtown Madison, noting the event generated a negative image when Freakfest was not a gated event.

“Before, it was a problem with property damage and injuries,” Carbine said. “The system in place now has turned it around.”

The entertainment lineup for this year’s Freakfest include performances by Mac Miller and Big Gigantic, choices that Fred Frank of Frank Productions, the event’s promoted, said will hopefully benefit local businesses by upping attendance.

“We wanted to make an emphasis on bringing in music that is more focused to the university crowd,” Frank said. “It’s a coup for

DEBATE, from 1 point plan which includes energy independence that would create jobs, increasing trade, improving education, working to balance the budget and, most importantly, help small businesses. Working as a successful businessman before he became governor, Romney said he “know[s] what it takes” for small businesses to create jobs.

UW life sciences communications professor Dietram Scheufele said Romney’s approach of

us to get talent like that.”

Frank said the event’s partnership with the local Pepsi distributor has proved to be beneficial for Freakfest. Pepsi will be promoting their new product, Doc 360, at the event. Freakfest will now have a VIP section available for a higher ticket cost, in which Pepsi will provide free cans of Doc 360.

The VIP sections will have a limited capacity, their own port-a-potties, a special entrance and view of the stage, Frank added.

Madison.com will join Frank Productions in co-sponsoring 2012’s traditional Halloween event. Frank said Madison. com is hosting another website, freakfestlive. com, to provide as much information as possible about the event. This website will include maps with parking locations and gates, as well as ticketing information. Frank also noted the event is making strides with social media, particularly on Facebook.

Frank said that he expects the event to sell out. Last year’s Freakfest nearly reached capacity at 50,000 attendees, despite the fact that it was scheduled on the same day as a home football game.

Madison Police Central District Lt. Kristen Roman said police expect to see issues outside the event’s

discussing regular people he has met with was an effective one and a strategy he called “an old Clinton debate trick.”

“This is something that really helps voters take fairly complex issues and connect them to their personal lives,” Scheufele said. “The people we are trying to sway in the debates are the undecided voters. The people who haven’t decided are people that are swayed by image and have a moderate understanding of the issues.”

If this debate is viewed as a tie after the initial few days of postdebate spin, Scheufele said, Obama should be pleased. He said Obama was “off-message” from approaches that his campaign have recently found effective, such as portraying Romney as out of touch by playing up his “47 percent” comments or offshore tax accounts.

He added the upcoming debates might see a more aggressive Obama, one, he said, UW students will most likely see Thursday in the president’s speech on Bascom Hill.

Agreeing with Scheufele, UW College

locations.

“It still requires a significant number of personnel to address issues in spillover,” Roman said.

“With homecoming and the football game ending at about the time this starts, we have a different traffic plan to deal with people getting out of the isthmus area in the most effective way.”

Roman added the access to businesses is not dramatically affected as State Street transitions to Freakfest gating. The police will do as much as possible to limit the impact on businesses, Roman said.

Police will process arrests at the City County Building this year. Last year, that procedure took place at locations within the event gates.

“We have seen such a decrease in the number of arrests,” Roman said. “It doesn’t warrant the staff we would dedicate. It will be the same protocol, just different locations.”

Residents in the areas that will be blocked off for Freakfest will receive two complimentary tickets and a letter explaining how to obtain more, according to Kelli Lamberty, community events supervisor for the City of Madison.

Businesses will receive the same number of tickets as in previous years. The tickets are expected to be delivered next week.

Republicans Chair Jeff Snow said this debate was a “good showing” for Romney.

“He eloquently laid out a vision for our country to rebound our economy in a way where we don’t have 23 million people unemployed and an unemployment rate over 8 percent for over 40 months,” Snow said.

Higher education was not a large issue in this debate with comments only coming from Obama, highlighting his record on helping make college more affordable for students by providing grants and keeping interest rates low on student loans.

Snow said Obama “can’t say anything” about his record on college affordability as tuition costs have risen nationwide. He said government providing more grants and loans is not a solution for stopping tuition rises.

UW College Democrats Chair Chris Hoffman said Obama understands the federal government has to play a role in ensuring college is affordable. He was pleased with Obama’s performance and tone in the debate.

The Badger Herald | News | Thursday, October 4, 2012

Dems demand open records from Walker Legislator: Failure to take action on health care laws could harm state Polo Rocha Higher Education Editor Two Democratic legislators filed an open records request with Gov. Scott Walker’s administration to uncover whether he is working to implement the president’s health care law in Wisconsin.

Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Middleton, and Rep. Jon Richards, D-Milwaukee, sent a letter to the Department of Health Services and the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance requesting any records they may have on their efforts in implementing the law.

The open records request was prompted by comments made by “two high-ranking state officials” that the legislators said suggested state agencies might be working on exchanges in private.

“In our view, the Governor is either truly doing nothing, as he contends, in which case, he’s willingly leaving key decisions about the future of Wisconsin’s health insurance market to the

whims of Washington, or he has directed his administration to draft plans behind closed doors to implement [the law], leaving the Legislature and the public shut out of the process,” the letter said.

Comments made by OCI spokesperson J.P. Wieske helped spark the open record request. Wiekse said they were “off the cuff ” comments to a reporter, and the OCI has stopped any work on the issue.

DHS spokesperson Claire Smith said the department is looking through its records to determine whether any may fall under the legislators’ request.

Walker had established an office in 2011 that would look into how President Barack Obama’s health care initiative would be implemented in the state. He disbanded the office this January as a way of “stopping the encroachment of Obamacare in our state,” according to a previous statement.

The exchanges are an online marketplace for businesses and uninsured individuals to purchase private health insurance.

Although Walker said he would wait for the U.S. Supreme Court to determine whether the law was constitutional, he has delayed his decision for implementation until after

the Nov. 6 elections.

As the election is only ten days before a federal deadline to submit state plans on exchanges, Democrats have worried that may not be enough time for the state to set up their own state-run exchanges, giving the federal government more say in how Wisconsin’s health care insurance policies would look.

According to Wieske, there is more time after the deadline for the state to fully decide what the health care exchanges will look like. If the exchanges are not implemented, he said OCI would continue to be the “primary regulator” of insurance in the state.

“Even if we don’t fill out the blueprint at all, which I don’t know if we will or we won’t, the reality is we are not ceding our authority to the federal government in that case either,” Wieske said.

ABC For Health Executive Director Bob Peterson said Walker turned down a $38 million grant as an early innovator in the program that will not come back if the state decides to set up state-run exchanges.

Having the federal government run health care exchanges, he said, is not beneficial for Wisconsin, as the state might not have as much say in how it will be run.

ASM approves legislation for student voter advocacy Amendment will allow organization to register people in residence halls Julia Skulstad Campus Life Editor Members of the student government approved an exception to a major rule prohibiting door-to-door soliciting in residence halls to allow a voter registration group to go inside student housing properties.

The moratorium would allow members of the Madison Student Vote Coalition, a non-partisan organization, to go doorto-door in University of Wisconsin residence halls and register students to vote. The moratorium passed on a vote of 12-2.

UW freshman Alia Murphy, representative of Cole Hall on the university’s Residence Hall Advisory Board, said although the majority of the board was in favor of implementing the proposal, Director of Housing Paul Evans rejected it.

Murphy said other college campuses that have implemented programs such as this have seen very positive feedback. She added thousands of new voters registered at other

CONCERNS, from 1 Since the visit will cause several buildings in the area to be shut down, Mayer said he was also worried about the event “seriously disrupting our mission,” shown by the various exams and classes that have already been cancelled.

Some staff will also need to work elsewhere or take a personal or

SEARCH, from 1 shared governance.

“At the end of the day, it comes down to getting along with the dean, understanding the faculty and the staff and the labor issues,” Walsh said.

“To me, that is the most fundamental thing about the candidates that you bring to us, they’ve got to

campuses after sending representatives into housing dorms to register students to vote.

She said housing directors on the advisory board raised concerns regarding privacy, including the prevalence of strangers wandering in the hallways and around the residence hall buildings.

Associated Students of Madison Rep. David Vines said Evans immediately shut down the proposal by a unilateral veto without a student vote.

“This is honestly almost more about shared governance and the ability for students to have a say,” Vines said. “This is honestly much bigger than just voter registration.”

Vines said if the residents on the advisory board had the chance to actually vote on this and they gave MSVC the proper implementation time, they had plans to work closely with administration to implement safe and student-friendly policies.

ASM Shared Governance Chair Sam Seering said the issue of safety and the idea that this is a non-partisan effort are both very important.

“They [MSVS] are highly trained and have been working on these efforts for months,” Seering said.

He said Hannah Somers, as the head of MSVS, only

works with individuals who would respect people’s privacy and would not endanger the safety of those in housing.

Vines said now they will try to meet with people in the administration to try and move forward with the moratorium.

Director of Classified Human Resources Mark Walters and Director in the Office of Human Resources Steve Lund came to the meeting yesterday to present information about the university’s Human Resources Design proposal to Student Council.

Walters said they are going to various stakeholder groups, like ASM, to present their current strategic plan to talk about it and get feedback from them.

Walters said their presentation was not meant to put forward policies and procedures, but was meant to be a general framework of the new structure and the various aspects of it.

Following the presentation, members of external groups came to speak in open forum to express their concerns with the current HR redesign proposal.

UW graduate student and teaching assistant Eleni Schirmer said the current proposal is not specific enough to address problems on campus.

vacation day, which Mayer described as either “penalizing staff (or, at a minimum, dramatically inconveniencing them).”

Mayer also noted the difference between a presidential visit and a campaign visit and said UW is “finessing” the purpose of the event.

Sweeney said although some may not agree with Obama, the university took into consideration the “priceless educational

value” of the event when making their decision to allow the president to speak on campus.

“Regardless of political affiliation, the president of the U.S. is coming, and that’s part of the overall student experience here,” Sweeney said. “There is great benefit; there is great disruption. We are trying to do what we can to minimize the disruptions as best we can.”

understand the University of Wisconsin-Madison.”

Search and Screen Committee Chair David McDonald said he was excited to see the composition of the committee in terms of the representation of various backgrounds and experience of members.

McDonald also said he does not agree with the

idea of his position of the chair as comprising the role of an agenda setter or conversation director.

“I think my role is more to moderate — to keep discussion on focus and to try and foster first an atmosphere in which people feel encouraged and absolutely unhesitant about contributing,” McDonald said.

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Thursday, October 4, 2012

Page Four

Opinion

OBAMA ON BASCOM HILL: what to expect from today’s speech Students will gather by the thousands today at the heart of campus. Regardless of political views, members of the University of Wisconsin community all have expectations for Obama’s speech. The Badger Herald asked columnists, UW professors and a vareity of politically active student organizations what they see as the most important issues for the president to address.

Reversing American decline should be singular concern

Slew of slogans will not persuade students Annie Murphy College Republicans

Prof. Donald Downs Political Science As we welcome President Barack Obama to our beautiful campus, so alive with political interest, I have been asked by The Badger Herald what I would like the president to address.

There is so much to talk about in the incredibly challenging world we live in today. Given space constraints, let me stress three hardhitting major issues or questions. These issues embrace a singular concern: can the apparent American

“How can a renewal of the president’s leadership help us get a handle on this looming crisis?” decline be reversed?

First, I would like the president to address what he would do in a second term to promote real economic growth.

His first term has not been exactly stellar in this regard. Three years after the recovery officially began in 2009, nearly 25 percent of Americans between the ages of 25 and 55 remain unemployed for one reason or another—the highest percentage in thirty years—and growth has been anemic compared to every recovery since the Great Depression.

This includes even the deep recession of the early 1980s, which gave way to 7.8 percent growth the year after it ended. Improvement might not be on the horizon, either. Growth for the last quarter was recently revised, down to 1.3 percent from 1.7 percent, a rate well below what is needed to

improve employment given population growth. Meanwhile, household net worth has declined 30 to 40 percent since 2007, and household income is also down. Many economists predict yet another recession just around the corner. What would the president do the next time around to improve the economic growth upon which so much of our nation’s prospects depend?

Second, the president should address our national debt situation.

Debt hangs over our student body and future generations like Damocles’ Sword, yet public debt has mushroomed by $5 trillion since 2008.

What will happen if and when interest rates rise, making it all the more difficult to pay for our growing debt?

Meanwhile, no serious administrative budget has been presented to Congress in years. How can a renewal of the president’s leadership help us to get a handle on this looming crisis?

Finally, national security should be addressed. We had been led to believe that al-Qaeda and its ilk had been dealt with, but recent events in the Middle East suggest that we are now confronting rejuvenated Islamic terrorist movements on a variety of fronts. Foreign affairs writer Walter Russell Mead maintains that we are entering a new phase in the battle with terrorism that will echo the Cold War in terms of commitment and scope.

And, of course, the clock is ticking in Iran.

Donald Downs is a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin and an adviser to The Badger Herald’s Board of Directors.

Four years ago, President Barack Obama overwhelmingly won the youth vote based on his promises of hope and of change. However, four years later, young people have good reason to be disappointed by President Obama’s term in office.

It is clear from Obama’s two last minute trips to speak in Milwaukee and on Bascom Hill that he is desperately trying to win over Wisconsin. He depends on Wisconsin for a victory. However, are we going to allow ourselves to fall for his countless slogans once again?

We are still waiting to see the positive change we were told to believe in four years ago. We are all hard working students, and it is not fair for us to be misled by campaign advertisements and slogans which can defer us from opportunities for success in the future. This time around, we will not be

as easily persuaded.

During Obama’s term in office, our national debt has encountered a 51 percent increase, our unemployment rate has risen by 4 percent and gas prices have increased by 110 percent. As young adults, we need to look at our future and decide who will move our economy and country forward, not backward. Obama wants us to trust him for a better future, however, under his term the cost of a college education and student debt have both risen, and the average debt burden for a college graduate has reached $25,000. There are still too many students who do not have access to the high-quality education they deserve.

Under Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s leadership, we will be able to look forward to a brighter future for students. His Plan for a Stronger Middle Class will create 12 million new jobs and increase take-home pay. He plans to provide

access to affordable and effective higher education by welcoming the private sector instead of rejecting it. He will implement new innovative and competitive regulations, and strengthen and simplify our financial aid systems. Mitt Romney would require states to evaluate each public school on its contribution to student learning. He would repay them with increased flexibility and would block existing federal funds for states that attract and reward good teachers.

We know that Mitt Romney’s plan will create jobs for us to hold when we graduate, ease the burden of debt that Obama’s administration has placed on us and stimulate economic growth. Obama’s visit tomorrow has not — and will not — change the current economic situation we face as students under his administration.

Annie Murphy is a member of University of Wisconsin-Madison College Republicans.

Seeking re-election, president avoids facts Zachary Walters College Republicans Military helicopters are roaming frequently throughout the sky, classes are being cancelled and police are swarming to Bascom Hill like bees to their hive. With all this commotion, one would think that we are welcoming the Pope to heaven or at least some hero home from the battlefield. However, we are not celebrating the great deeds of one man — we are only listening to him plead for a second chance to fulfill his duty.

Two years ago President Barack Obama came to Madison in a similar manner and tried to convince the people of Madison, mostly students, that his ideas of hope and change were working.

Today President Obama will speak in Madison for a

second time, and I believe that he will focus on his ideas of hope and change once again. I would like to hear him echo a different tune.

I would rather have him focus on the real issues instead of his hope and change nonsense. He should at least be honest with the American people and inform them of our $16 trillion of national debt, our 8.1 percent unemployment, our $1.3 trillion budget deficit or even the fact that his administration could not pass a budget for the past several years. Perhaps he could even customize his speech for students by telling us that we are not better off than we were four years ago. He could give us the facts and explain to us how education costs have risen roughly 40 percent over the past decade, how the average debt per UW

student after graduation has increased to over $20,000 or how we will not be able to find employment after college because of the dismal job market.

However, President Obama cannot stick to these facts. If he spoke on these talking points he would never be reelected.

Instead, I imagine that he will continue to portray his ideas of “hope and change.”

By speaking eloquently about his unobtainable ideals and ignoring the facts, President Obama hopes to be reelected. Hopefully the students of Madison will come to their senses and tear down the fading Obama posters in their rooms before it is too late.

Zachary Walters is majoring in management and human resources. He is a member or University of WisconsinMadison College Republicans.

Climate change deserves focus Sarah Witman Editorial Board Member There are plenty of issues that immediately impact college students — financial aid and health care, to name a couple — but what about climate change, caused crop failures and flooding across the nation this summer? Students living in the Midwest without air conditioning know what global warming feels like, and want to hear what a re-elected President Barack Obama will do about it.

In Madison, the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences Arts and Letters found that Lake Mendota and Lake Monona saw a significant increase in harmful blue-green algae because thinner ice throughout our mild winter allowed bacteria to flourish beneath the surface.

Water temperatures and surface levels in our neighboring Great Lakes are also expected to rise, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists.

The Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts reports that many farmers are gearing up for the problems longer frost periods, moister soil and warmer, earlier spring temperatures may pose for growing crops — especially on smaller farms. These impacts have been noticed across the country and have affected food resources, energy and public health. Yet climate policies have not been at the forefront of either Obama or his opponent Mitt Romney’s campaigns.

I think it would be wise for Obama to explain his position on the environment and highlight what he has done so far. Students want to hear the solutions he is proposing for regional and global climate change. He should do this not just because the Madison’s residents and government happen to think of themselves as environmentally-conscious; this hardly matters from a state or national standpoint. More importantly, the environment is a matter of compelling interest to us all.

Sarah Witman (switman@ badgerherald.com) is a senior majoring in journalism and environmental studies.

More than beautiful speech, students need to know how Obama will end recession Christin Wiegand Staff Writer As we all know, President Barack Obama is coming to the great state of Wisconsin this Thursday, and many of us couldn’t be more excited.

The president is coming to Madison for the second time in two years and regardless of our agreement or disagreement with his views, the opportunity to experience such a powerful and skilled public speaker is hard to resist.

Will we really listen to what he says?

Since I arrived at the University of Wisconsin three years ago, I’ve taken a greater interest in politics.

Previously politics loomed over my head like a dark cloud, filled with confusion, competing points of view and smear campaigns pinning one candidate against another. I was never able to cut through the crap, so to speak, to pick a party. And to be honest, I still can’t.

I’ve found that many of us

tend to grow up with politics engrained in our minds by our families. We then take this side because it is what our parents have taught us and it is what we know.

Some of us will continue to research this political party in order to strengthen established opinions. Few of us change our minds from what we’ve been brought up to understand as “right.”

For my family, what is “right” is Republican.

However, I find it hard to come to terms with some of

Obama must prove focus on Wisconsin Jared Mehre Columnist From the repeal of collective bargaining to the recall elections to voter ID, in the past year Wisconsin has been a battleground state. Considering that our campus and our Capitol are at the epicenter of these debates, one would think that the President of the United States would have mentioned our city more frequently.

In February 2011, when Act 10 was first proposed, it set off a chain reaction that lead to the largest protests seen in Madison since the Vietnam War — the flight of Democratic senators from the state and several recall elections flipped our Senate from red to blue.

During that time, for purely political reasons, very little was heard from President Barack Obama about these events.

After a short two-year absence, Obama is returning to Madison. In that time, much has changed. When he speaks on Bascom Hill, I want to hear the president address the events in Wisconsin that he so cautiously avoided. I want to hear him talk about collective bargaining, the recalls and voter ID. The president’s visit has been titled A Grassroots Event with Barack Obama.

This is an excellent title, tailored to the city of Madison. However, I hope this implies that he will be speaking about the grassroots movement that

took place in Madison after he left.

There is no better place than Madison for President Obama to visit the day after a debate with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. It is a beautiful city steeped in the principles of Democratic ideals.

Many in attendance will be there just to catch a glimpse of the president — others will attend because they want to support him in his reelection. But I am certain there are a few people who would like to hear that he is aware of what is going on in our city.

Jared Mehre (mehre@ wisc.edu) is a sophomore majoring in political science and sociology with a certificate in criminal justice.

these opinions. Mitt Romney is pro-life. I’m not proabortion, but I do strongly believe that as a woman, what happens with and inside of my body is entirely my right to choose. Yet this argument is strongly combated by a family member who says that those are “liberal talking points about a woman’s body” and are “all false,” but as I am “in the land of the liberals” he is “sympathetic.” With such a family opposition, how am I supposed to develop a personal and well-educated

opinion? What media outlets have absolutely no spins to the left or right? Republicans will send me to one source, while Democrats send me to another.

As we draw closer and closer to Obama’s arrival on campus, I hope that more than giving an amazing public speech, he is able to address the issues at hand that hit closest to home for today’s youth. I hope he discusses plans to reignite the dwindling job market, gives a to-the-point description of

his healthcare reforms and ultimately proposes what he plans to do in order to turn our country around. I need clear-cut answers, not a beautifully constructed speech.

We are sinking deeper and deeper into recession.

So here’s the question that rises to the surface: Is Barack Obama the man to pull us out?

Christin Wiegand (cdwiegand@wisc.edu) is a junior with an undecided major.

Facing tough crowd, president needs audacity Maxwell Love Campus Activist I sincerely hope that President Barack Obama has the audacity to address how he will change U.S. policy in his second term. Audacity is the willingness to take bold risks. Obama’s risks must speak to the true content of his character — his morals and his vision for our country — instead of the demanding ear of the campaign trail and rich Wall Street billionaires.

President Obama may be in for a tougher crowd than he imagined. He will be making his case to unapologetic and pissedoff progressives, moderate Democrats who feel he has not done enough for

the environment or to regulate financial markets and those who wonder why they continue voting for the “best” of two evils.

Although he is just one decision maker in the midst of a complex political system, President Obama must address several issues. He must address why Guantanamo is still open and why the Washington Post reports that his administration has deported 1.4 million people — more than the Bush administration deported in eight years.

He will have to explain why drones continue to strike innocent families with children in Pakistan and why his administration continues to crack down on

whistleblowers.

These are the things I want to hear the president talk about. I want my fear that President Obama does not really stand for hope and change to be assuaged. Specifically, I want President Obama to address why there hasn’t been a solution to the more than $1 trillion of student loan debt, the 1.4 million deportations or the relationship between our country and Israel — despite millions of Palestinian refugees who live without a state.

President Obama sure has a lot to talk about.

Maxwell Love is a senior majoring in African American studies and political science.

Your Opinion · Send your letters to the editor and guest columns to oped@badgerherald.com. Publication is based on space and takes into account relevance and quality. Letters should be sent exclusively to the Herald. Unsigned letters will not be published. All submissions may be edited by the Herald for length and style. Reader feedback on all articles and columns can be posted at badgerherald.com, where all print content is archived.

ArtsEtc. Editor Allegra Dimperio arts@badgerherald.com

5

The Badger Herald | ArtsEtc. | Thursday, October 4, 2012

Wook to jam in cancer benefit

ArtsEtc.

Members of local indie, prog-rock band identify with disease’s toll and seek to help Seung Park ArtsEtc. Staff Writer The indie rock/ progressive band Wook, based in Madison, is planning to host a benefit concert at the Majestic Theatre to spread awareness about lung cancer in the Madison community.

Conceived among school friends in Madison, Wook began as a hobby between like-minded students.

“The founding three members went to high school together,” said bassist Mike Kuerschner.

“We played in various bands on and off, went to college, and started getting a little more serious about it.”

Wook kicked into high gear in 2008, when things started getting a bit more professional.

“That’s when we really started to play more shows and doing things in Madison,” Kuerschner recalled.

The upcoming concert, to be held in partnership with the American Lung Association, was the brainchild of Kuerschner, who had lost a close family member earlier this year after suffering from cancer.

“Little over two months ago, my mother passed away from lung cancer,”

Kuerschner said. “I was toying with the idea [of hosting a benefit concert] since everything came about.”

His family played a major role in getting the concert to happen.

“My sister is involved with the American Lung Association,” Kuerschner said.

“They’re very supportive of my family. I wanted to do something to give back to them.”

Once they started planning, everything fell into place easier than expected.

“It moved quickly because the venue was instantly ready to do it, and we didn’t have to wait on a lot of back-andforth deals,” Adam Lowe, guitarist and vocalist for Wook said. It also helped that Kuerschner was on close terms with the owner of the Majestic. “I worked for the Majestic for a while in college,” he said. “I brought the idea to them, and they were nice enough to fit us into the schedule.”

From conception to reality, the cancer benefit concert took less than two months to organize.

“It really worked out,” Kuerschner said. “Everyone was supportive, everything fit, and that’s not typically the case.”

“We’re really excited

Photo courtesy of Wook

Madison-based jam band Wook is Adam Lowe (guitar/vocals), Andrew Stark (drums), Jake Stottler (vocals/guitar/synth), Mike Kuerschner (bass/laptop) to give back to an organization that’s trying to do great things and raise awareness,” he said. “But at the same time, we’re looking to have a good time like always.”

Although this is the first concert of its kind for Wook, the band prides itself on flexibility and ability to improvise, according to Kuerschner.

“In the most broad sense, we’re a jam band,” he explained. “We do a lot of live improvisations on stage, and our songs are longer.”

Wook’s music is often inspired from modern genres, Kuerschner

revealed. “We really take a lot of influence from progressive rock and electronic music, including our use of laptops and synthesizers on stage.”

These unique traits are best demonstrated in “Galaxy”, one of their most popular songs, Lowe said. He counts the track as one of their favorites to play on stage. “It has a lot of progressive sections, traditional rock, and even some spots for improv,” Lowe said. “It’s definitely a fan favorite, and captures almost every flavor we have.”

The four-member troupe — other than Kuerschner

and Lowe, Wook includes Jake Stottler on the guitar and synth, and Andrew Stark on the drums — is planning to release their first full studio album in the next few months. “We got the album planned out, and we know the songs we want to do,” Lowe said.

“We just have to go in and record it.”

Although the band is still quite small — only a little more than 2,000 likes on their Facebook page — the members are confident that they can grow bigger.

“We’re not really worried,” Lowe said. “We don’t pay too much attention to things like a Facebook

page.”

“We focus more on if it is going up and growing at a good rate, rather than the actual numbers,” Kuerschner added. “We think this is a good time in our career.”

“We need to keep playing,” Lowe said. “Stay at it. That’s what drives us.”

The lung cancer benefit concert will be held at the Majestic Theatre on Thursday, Oct. 4 at 9:30 p.m.. Although the venue is free to enter, there is a suggested donation of $8. More information can be found at the Majestic Theatre’s official page at majesticmadison.com.

THE BADGER HERALD PRESENTS “PAPER RADIO”

Metal album of the year surfaces from ‘Periphery’ Regen McCracken Paper Radio Columnist

It’s a little early to discuss candidates for album of the year as it is only October, but I am going to go ahead and throw progressive metal band Periphery’s sophomore effort, the hilariously named Periphery II: This Time It’s Personal, in for consideration. Seeing as the album came out in July, a review may be a bit late, but with an album as dense, long, and brilliant as this is, proper listening and analysis takes time. In a word, Periphery II is fulfilling; in two, it is nearly flawless. In 800, it is… well, you are already 97 in, so you might as well keep reading.

Periphery is a sevenpiece band from Bethesda, Maryland that has been mentioned several times in the infallible “Paper Radio” by yours truly, and for good reason: they are a fantastic band that always strives for progression without sacrificing their roots. Periphery is one of the founding bands of the “djent”

subgenre, and unlike the bandwagon bands that have jumped onto their (and other early djent band’s) coattails, they keep writing quality music that never seems to get stale.

The band was originally the progeny of one Misha Mansoor, the lead guitarist and main songwriter. As noted in the previous DIY recording article, Mansoor recorded the entirety of their first album (and much of this sequel) in his bedroom studio, and had been recording song clips with programmed drums for years before the debut’s release in 2010. Said release was met with almost universal critical acclaim thanks to Misha’s blending of songwriting influenced by Meshuggah and Nobuo Uematsu (of “Final Fantasy” fame), and a mix of accessible melodies and abrasive, challenging aggression.

Fast forward to 2012, and the band’s second aural endeavor was hyped up to an insane degree by the metal community, an anticipation that was only exacerbated by the addition of two of the budding djent community’s finest musicians to Periphery’s already ample stable: Nolly Getgood of Red Seas Fire and Mark Holcomb, formerly of Haunted Shores

(a collaboration with Misha).

Furthermore, Periphery enlisted the talents of axeslingers Guthrie Govan (of The Aristocrats) on “Have a Blast,” John Petrucci (of Dream Theater) on “Erised,” and Wes Hauch (of The Faceless) on “Mile Zero.” Thankfully, all of this great talent is not wasted on mediocre music; it completely lives up to the fans’ ridiculous expectations.

And while it initially seems to come up just shy of the excellence of its predecessor, this album begs for listen after listen as a textbook “grower.”

The record begins with “Muramasa,” the first track of a trilogy of songs (the other two being middle track “Ragnarok” and album closer “Masamune”) that together make up the cornerstone of the album. These three tracks are definite highlights, and being a trilogy, contain a single lyrical theme, similar chord progressions and note selections, and a cohesive overall feel. They also are a great introduction to the new twist to Periphery’s sound, one that may not please true metal fans.

The aspect of Periphery II that makes it so great is its accessibility. “Accessibility” is sometimes considered a dirty word in metal, but it need not always be a

synonym for “mainstream.”

This album is a great example of accessibility in challenging music. Singer Spencer Sotelo’s vocal melodies are incredibly infectious throughout (see the aforementioned trilogy, progressive pop song “Scarlet,” painfully personal “Mile Zero,” and the melodically contagious track that is, “The Gods Must Be Crazy!”).

Unfortunately, Sotelo’s vocal melodies are not wholly original. He wears his influences on his sleeve, although when one channels the incomparable Rody Walker of Canadian prog metal gods Protest the Hero, channeling isn’t such a bad thing. The catchiness pervades into the guitars as well, making for an almost saccharine-sweet package.

Still, catchy or not, the music is incredibly technical throughout. At no point does Periphery sacrifice technicality for the sake of melody, an important distinction to make from more pop-oriented artists.

“Ji” is a guitar clinic from beginning to end (on a floor-rattling eight-string, no less), complete with what is my first exposure to a self-described “rhythm guitar solo,” in which all three guitarists (Misha, Mark Holcomb, and Jake Bowen)

and bassist Nolly Getgood get a chance to shine. Guitar acrobatics are also a focus of possibly the heaviest song on the album, the humorously named “Froggin’ Bullfish.”

Even this vicious song is sure to get stuck in many a listener’s head through its masterful use of Periphery’s (and the djent genre’s) trademark polyrhythmic groove. This rhythm is present throughout the album thanks to perhaps Periphery’s most impressive member, drummer Matt Halpern.

Halpern’s drumming is best described as controllably chaotic. Many YouTube videos make him appear as though he is having a seizure all over the drumkit, but those in the know realize this man just feels rhythm so deeply he cannot help but show it all over his being.

There is no single moment where the drumming shines most because it is, simply put, perfect. Halpern’s beats are catchy, danceable, and ludicrously technical for the entire 69 minute runtime. Really, the last piece of the puzzle then is lyrical content, which Sotelo handles quite successfully for his first penning.

Periphery’s tracks touch on a variety of atypical metal topics; there are no gory mass murders, rapes, or

demon conjuring here. The only demons are personal ones dealing with the loss of a friend (“Mile Zero”), the struggle with faith (or lack thereof in “The Gods Must Be Crazy!”), and a lack of faith in humans’ will to think for themselves (“Facepalm Mute”). All these topics are discussed in creative and memorable language and imagery.

Truly, Periphery’s seamless melding of catchiness, Meshuggahesque groove, Final Fantasy inspired melodies and transitions, and punishingly heavy sections has created perhaps the best progressive metal album of 2012. In fact, they make a convincing case for “album of the year” in any genre. All music fans could find something to enjoy here, including a techno track (“Epoch”) to accompany the band’s sometimes industrial leanings. Sure, it isn’t perfect, but perfection is few and far between. At this rate, maybe the third time will the fivestar charm for Periphery.

Regen McCracken is a junior intending to major in English.

He has a love for video games, metal, jazz, and all things that make one think. He also writes and performs his own music while not writing these everinteresting columns or studying himself to sleep.

Moms fall victim to practical jokes in latest reality prank show Immature motives provoke outrageous mother-child dupes on Lifetime channel Joe Nistler ArtsEtc. Content Editor Next week, Lifetime will premiere “Prank My Mom,” the newest reality prank show to exploit innocent victims at the hands of a network and bitter yet good-humored offspring.

As the title makes explicitly clear, the victims are the mothers of said pranksters.

In a sketch format, three mother-and-child pairs

hash out a single prank in succession, from faked DUI traffic stops to marriages — including a shotgun wedding to a supposedly pregnant stripper and a proposal by a shady drug dealer — excuse me, “pharmaceutical salesman.” Good, wholesome family fun.

Appearing in front of a CGI background, Vivica A. Fox takes the place of Ashton Kusher in “Punk’d” as the show’s host, but stays clear from any of the action.

She brings little to the show aside from generic sassy banter and corny jokes in between pranks in the style of “AFV,” without the audience. She was wise to distance herself from the

show, but not wise enough to bail out completely. The pranksters, however, take any attention from Ms. Fox, with shoddy motives that would be perfectly acceptable to a 9th-grader… but the people all appear well into their twenties, at least.

Age doesn’t connote maturity, however, and rarely is this as clear as in the contestants’ motives behind pranking their moms. In the first episode, Stanley explains how much he hates making his bed: “My mom is like Mary Poppins. Everything’s gotta be perfect, the pillows have to be in order, the bed sheets have to be fluffed…” and that,

he says, is why he wants to prank his mom.

For Deandre, it’s the lack of privacy: “She’s always taking my phone, reading my texts, and that has to stop.”

And for Briana in the second episode, it’s a lack of intelligence: “My mom thinks I’m, like, dumb, kind of,” she says with an empty grin.

No conversation between an adult and his or her mother could ever solve such a disagreement, right?

Deandre and Stanley simply must invite their mothers to an undisclosed location for a friend’s “birthday party,” which turns out to be a shotgun wedding with a

pregnant stripper. The bride, priest and father of the bride are all actors who pretend to have forced the son into the deed.

At the end of it all, after an ex-lover barges in and breaks a fake bottle over the father-in-law’s head, and after several near heart attacks, comes the money moment. The priest makes a hearty announcement that it’s all a hidden camera TV show, prompting another “are-you-kidding-me” from the moms, and everything is fine.

The quick contrasts in mothers’ reactions, however, actually do beg a laugh or two. Seeing someone flip from horrified, angry and all

kinds of negative emotions to a good-humored, laughing sucker is somewhat hilarious. But then again, it’s completely expected — this is a hidden camera show, after all. Victims have to flip their attitude fast for the cameras. At least that part goes right. Because as Fox says at the opening of the first show, “It’s okay, Mom, what’s the worst that could happen? Everything, that’s what!”

Was she talking about the fake DUI-stop prank or the show itself? Well, the moms seemed happy enough after learning their children weren’t drunk driving, so I guess the latter is the only option.

To place an ad in Classifieds: Elise Watson ewatson@badgerherald.com 257.4712 ext. 311

6

The Badger Herald | Classifieds | Thursday, October 4, 2012

Classifieds EMPLOYMENT

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PARKING

Outdoor parking and garages available all around campus.

Prices vary based upon location. tallardapartments.com for maps and availability. Call 250-0202!

STUDENTPAYOUTS.COM. Paid Survey Takers Needed in Madison. 100% Free to Join.

Click on Surveys.

SC to all of my hair ties...seriously... where do you go?

SC to Lizzy C. You looked absolutely gorgeous Tuesday afternoon and you always brighten my day when I see you.

SC to the guy wearing an old school ducks jersey today. Emelio Estevez would be proud.

Quack.

SC to the really cute blonde with the nose piercing sitting at Union South’s Peet’s Tuesday morning. Same place next week? I promise I’ll make you smile...

SC to the girl who lived in the room behind the kitchen two years ago. Same time next Saturday?

SC to the beautiful lady who tried out my slackline over on Wingra today. wow, you were gorgeous.

SC to the absolutely drop-dead gorgeous girl at the Student Print.

If I knew you were single, I’d ask you out on the spot.

SC to business boy. Our awkward eye contact always makes my day. One of these days I will talk to you!

SC to the gorgeous girl who rode in on the 9 this morning. ASO to her not even glancing my way...

SC to the most beautiful and perfect, yet nerdy girl I have ever met. Please give it a chance :)

SC to Liz. I miss you.

2nd Chance: super cute guy on noisy blue scooter on Charter who smiled at me as he passed Subway. I was in all black and a bright pink backpack. Stop to meet next week same time same place?

SC to the girl that made my sub at Potbelly’s Sunday night around 8. You’re cute!

ASO to me for not carrying on the conversation with you, it was a long day. But you made it much better!

H(opeful)SO to seeing you there again!

SC to the boy I was dancing with at the Dirty Projectors concert. The concert was fucking amazing but I was tired; sorry I left early! I kind of wish I hadn’t. Here’s hoping I see you at some future indie event.

(HMF)SC to the cute boy walking his bike across University on Tuesday around 630 with your friend. I was walking my trombone across University with my friend.

I like you. My friend likes your friend. Same people, same time, next week?

Sports HUGHES, from 8

MEYER, from 8

forever.

Many of the players and coaches that made Wisconsin’s offense a juggernaut over the past two years are gone, and Canada isn’t going to make anyone forget about the goners if he keeps clinging to guys like Ball and Abbrederis. There is talent on this offense that has not yet been properly utilized, and until Canada figures out a way to incorporate it, the whole system’s going to fail.

ears. It’s making sure you’re staying focused, trusting what you’ve practiced — everything you’ve done over time — and just getting back to the basics.”

The patience and the mental stability needed in punting are similar to that of golf, according to Partridge.

One bad punt or one mental slip can lead to even more

Elliot is a fifth-year senior majoring in journalism and philosophy. Tell him what you think of Canada’s playcalling via email (ehughes@badgerherald. com) or Twitter (@ elliothughes12).

SOFTBALL, from 8 McIntosh knows this season is the last of her collegiate career, or maybe it’s the shadow of Darrah’s success, but the senior lefty seemed to have a different air of seriousness about her when asked about the competition between her and Darrah during the offseason.

bad punts and mental issues.

Keeping the 6-foot-2, 179-pound punter calm and collected is a balancing act, according to Partridge.

“You find the right time to pop a joke in the midst of the sideline mayhem,” Partridge said. “At the same time, you try to find a way to make sure he’s focused enough.

You just try to keep a balance of making him laugh, but bringing him back into

staying serious.”

But the mental game Meyer plays on a weekly basis is nothing new — he’s been playing it since he was in the fifth grade.

Growing up in Hartland, Meyer started playing football in the Arrowhead High School system, one of Wisconsin’s traditional football powerhouses, and had a soccer background, so kicking was a simple position

for him to fill.

“Football was always my first love, so as soon as football started — it was football from there on out,” Meyer said.

“I was just one of those kids who could do it because I always played soccer in the past, it was just an easy transition.”

Growing up so close to the University of Wisconsin, Meyer dreamed of playing

in Camp Randall, always relishing his trips to Madison on game day. Now he can call himself a team MVP and one of the best punters in the Big Ten. “It means a lot, especially being in this position for the first time,” Meyer said of starting in general. “It feels good to be able to help contribute the way that I’ve been blessed to so far, but the season’s not over.”

“In the bullpen everyday we compete, endurance wise and all that,” McIntosh said. “She works hard, she’s a good pitcher.”

Healy hopes the competition will push the two pitchers to new levels of success this season. The third-year coach emphasized in crystal clear language that with her team bringing back

almost the entire offensive roster that batted .300 as a team a season ago, it’s up to the pitching to be consistent and match the dominance of the Badger offense.

But there’s hope with the dominance of Darrah so far in her Badger career and the vast improvement of McIntosh.

Just to put in perspective

Darrah’s place in Wisconsin history, the junior needs just 28 more wins to move into second place in program history in career wins, and she already currently has the second best career ERA (2.38) and the best winning percentage (.623) in Badger history.

But personal accomplishments mean

little to Darrah if she can’t deliver Wisconsin its first NCAA tournament birth since 2005. Darrah, who is customarily quiet and reserved during interviews, had a strong, three-word response when asked if this was the year the Badgers would finally make it back to the tournament.

“Yes. For sure.”

Comics

Real Hot Shit Noah J. Yuenkel comics@badgerherald.com

7

The Badger Herald | Comics | Thursday, Rocktober 4, 2012

WHAT IS THIS

SUDOKU

HERALD COMICS

PRESENTS

S

U

D

O

K

U WHITE BREAD & TOAST

toast@badgerherald.com

MIKE BERG

NONSENSE? Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, A, B, C, D, E and F. What? You still don’t get it? It’s not calculus or anything. Honestly, if you don’t know how to do a sudoku by now, you’ve probably got more issues than this newspaper.

TWENTY POUND BABY

DIFFICULTY RATING: Don’t front okay we’ve got this shit on lockdown

HERALD COMICS

MADCAPS PRESENTS

K

A

K

U

R

O

baby@badgerherald.com

STEPHEN TYLER CONRAD

madcaps@badgerherald.com

MOLLY MALONEY

HOW DO I

KAKURO?

I know, I know. Kakuro.

Looks crazy, right?

This ain’t no time to panic, friend, so keep it cool and I’ll walk you through. Here’s the low down: each clue tells you what the sum of the numbers to the right or down must add up to.

Repeating numbers?

Not in this part of town.

And that’s that, slick.

C’EST LA MORT

paragon@badgerherald.com

PARAGON

The Kakuro Unique Sum Chart Cells Clue 2 3 2 4 2 16 2 17

DIFFICULTY RATING: Motherfucker, we invented swag. Step off.

MOUSELY & FLOYD

NOAH J. YUENKEL

Possibilities { 1, 2 } { 1, 3 } { 7, 9 } { 8, 9 }

3 3 3 3

6 7 23 24

{ 1, 2, 3 } { 1, 2, 4 } { 6, 8, 9 } { 7, 8, 9 }

4 4 4 4

10 11 29 30

{ 1, 2, 3, 4 } { 1, 2, 3, 5 } { 5, 7, 8, 9 } { 6, 7, 8, 9 }

5 5 5 5

15 16 34 35

{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 } { 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 }

6 6 6 6

21 22 38 39

{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 } { 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 }

7 7 7 7

28 29 41 42

{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 } { 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 }

8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8

36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44

{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 } { 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 } { 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 }

nyuenkel@badgerherald.com

BUNI

pascle@badgerherald.com

RYAN PAGELOW

HERALD COMICS

PRESENTS

CROSSWORD 1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

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11

12

some whistles 13

14

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17 19

20

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ERICA LOPPNOW

random@badgerherald.com

27

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31

38

29 “___-hoo!”

35

36

32 Pah lead-in 34 Precisely

32

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Las Vegas

39

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entertainer 36 Number

46

52

skypirate@badgerherald.com

35 Longtime

37

47

COLLIN LA FLEUR

30 Less than fair

30

45

THE SKY PIRATES

marsupials?

25

26

34

28 Short

21

23

24

RANDOM DOODLES

27 Desperate

18

of 31- and

51

37-Across in

53

a 55-Across

54

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56

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63

39 Wholehearted 41 One of the Muses

Puzzle by Stu Ockman

BEADY EYES

YOUR COMIC

BRONTË MANSFIELD

YOUR NAME

comics@badgerherald.com

comics@badgerherald.com

Across 1 Vigorously pursuing something 5 Huggers 9 Parisian pig 13 Vein glory?

14 Bilgewater 15 Profess 16 Popular kind of 31- and 37-Across 18 Das ___ Testament 19 Christmas in Italia 20 Excavation locale of an ancient Egyptian capital 22 French composer Saint-Saëns 23 “Look at the facts!”

24 First of its kind?

25 “Marvy!”

26 Droughty 30 Real stunner?

31 With 37-Across,

33 34 37 38 40

45 46

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54 55

58

dairy aisle purchase Tee sign abbr.

Traffic caution See 31-Across Gold diggers He goes to town in a 1936 movie Draw ___ on 1997 title role for Peter Fonda ___ Diggory, young wizard in the Harry Potter books It’s more than the sum of its parts Currency pegged to euros It may be hard to prove in court Muddlement Holder of 31- and 37-Across Pair in a dead man’s hand

59 Feeling of gloom 60 “Je vous en ___” 61 Predilection 62 Dick Cheney and George W. Bush, for two 63 Actor George of “CSI”

42 South Korean

11 12 17

21 Down 1 Big-nosed character of 1980s TV 2 Home wrecker 3 Visionary 4 Start of a round 5 Even a tiny bit 6 Actress Blakley of “Nashville” 7 Rangers’ home in N.Y.C. 8 Stack of papers 9 Cure-all 10 One way

Get today’s puzzle solutions at badgerherald.com

22

to prepare 31- and 37-Across Together again They make things up “Too-RaLoo-RaLoo-___” (Irish lullaby) What a young buck might want to prove Object of

model 43 Arm raiser 44 ___ for life 48 Brunch item 49 Tenor Beniamino ___ 50 S.A.S.E.’s, e.g.

51 Stop: Abbr.

56 Partner to do-si-do with 57 Wii forerunner

Rocky the Herald Comics Raccoon™

I don’t know why anyone would want to go see Obama live.

His first album was pretty bad.

Sports Editor Ian McCue sports@badgerherald.com

8 | Sports | Thursday, October 4, 2012

SPORTS

UW seeks better play at home Online: Badgers struggle in Big Ten play after strong start to season

BADGER HERALD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

UW’s Darrah pitcher perfect Badgers’ ace throws perfect game versus Heartland Collge in 12-0 weekend win Nick Korger UW Athlete of the Week This week’s selection for Badger Herald Athlete of the Week came down to the wire.

Scratch that — it came down to the final pitch.

While senior pitcher Meghan McIntosh set the tone for Wisconsin by throwing a no-hitter and facing the minimum 21 batters in the team’s 4-0 win in the fall season opener against Kirkwood Community College, teammate and junior Cassandra Darrah one-upped the senior’s performance with a memorable game of her own.

Which means there can be only one thing the Badgers’ ace accomplished: perfection.

Facing the minimum 15 batters in Wisconsin’s five-inning 12-0 win over Heartland Community College, Darrah dominated from the get-go. Striking out six of her first nine batters, the right-hander struck out seven en route to her

first perfect game in her collegiate career.

For Darrah, it was a feat that has been accomplished before.

“Senior year of high school, state tournament, first game,” Darrah said, smiling. “I’d say this last one was a bigger accomplishment.”

While Darrah admitted to have “struggled” so far in the fall, her response to the shaky start shows just why the junior is the central piece to a Wisconsin puzzle trying to solve its way to its first tournament berth since 2005.

Darrah has been impressive for the Badgers in her first two seasons on the mound. Already ranking fourth all-time for wins in the program with 38, Darrah compiled a 22-13 record in 2012 along with an earned run average of just 2.27, which was fifth best in the Big Ten. A native of Corydon, Iowa, Darrah wasn’t even recruited by the Hawkeyes out of high school, which is surprising considering the pitcher racked up 94 wins, 1,663 strikeouts, 48 shutouts, 15 no-hitters and one perfect game in her prep career.

But Darrah doesn’t hold any special place of hate in her heart for Iowa, who she

called “just another team” in the conference, although she admitted it’s fun when she gets to pitch against them.

What Iowa does mean to Darrah, however, is family.

“The biggest thing is having my hometown come up and watch and having that support,” Darrah said.

Even though the drive from Corydon to Madison is over six hours, the pitcher’s parents have only missed an astoundingly small amount of their daughter’s games.

“They’ve missed one Wednesday doubleheader, that’s it,” Darrah said. “I don’t know, they’re nuts, but I appreciate all of their support.”

That’s right — just two games out of the 37 home games Darrah has played in her career. Talk about dedication.

But it’s no surprise her family and many other Badger fans make the trip to Goodman Diamond to watch Darrah pitch on a regular basis. The junior was named second team all-Big Ten as a sophomore for not only her impressive stat line, but also her ability to go the distance in any given game.

Perhaps what makes Darrah so invaluable to the Badgers and separates her from other pitchers in the

Kelsey Fenton The Badger Herald

Wisconsin’s Cassandra Darrah is primed for a run at the record books in her final two years, threatening the career win and ERA totals. conference is the amount of wear and tear her arm can tolerate. In her two full seasons thus far for the Badgers, the right-hander has registered 384.2 innings of work — the second most of any current junior pitcher on a conference roster.

“She’s been a workhorse, that’s a good way to describe her,” head coach Yvette Healy said. “We like these Midwest players that are tough and blue collar, and she’s got that

ability.”

But it was McIntosh that Healy fully credited for helping Darrah reach perfection.

“I think Meghan came out and set the tone the first weekend throwing the nohitter,” Healy said. “And we talked to the seniors about leadership, and probably the biggest bit of leadership that I’ve seen in action was Meghan and [senior catcher Whitney Massey], two

seniors come in and (have a no-hitter).”

“They kind of threw down the gauntlet, and I think that was a wake-up call a little-bit because Cassandra is a good pitcher, but she needs to keep getting tremendously better to really get us to the NCAA tournament, and I think that was a nice little prodding to help push her along.”

Maybe it’s the fact

SOFTBALL, page 6

Carrying on Nortman’s legacy After waiting in the wings last fall, UW punter having standout season amid stagnant offense Kelly Erickson Senior Sports Writer Drew Meyer plays a position the Wisconsin football team would rather not have on the field.

The redshirt freshman is a punter — and based off his statistics through five games — a pretty darn good one, too.

“It’s kind of funny,” Meyer said. “Family and friends are always like, ‘it’s fun seeing you out there,’ but you know the less we’re out there the better the team’s doing. It’s one of those things where it’s definitely fun to get out there and contribute, but the less we’re out there, obviously the better we’re doing. That’s fun too, just sitting on the bench and watching the offense do their thing.”

Unfortunately for Meyer, the offense hasn’t been doing its “thing” as much as he, the team and fans have hoped.

And that’s where Meyer comes in.

Kelsey Fenton The Badger Herald So far, through five Through five games this season, redshirt freshman Drew Meyer has already been called upon to games in 2012, Meyer has punt 31 times this year. Last year’s punter, Brad Nortman, only recorded 46 punts in all of 2011. already punted 31 times. For

comparison, Brad Nortman punted only 46 times through 14 games last season. But Meyer is picking up right where the talented Nortman left off — averaging 42.8 yards per punt with a net average of 40.6 yards per punt. The net average makes Wisconsin’s punt unit the best in the Big Ten. “We just put in a lot of hard work, it’s the rest of the punt team too,” Meyer said. “James McGuire has been throwing me some great snaps. The guys have been protecting me well, getting down and coveraging well … the whole unit has been doing their job, and everyone’s been stepping up to help me out too, being a first year starter.”

While Wisconsin has never been heralded for its punt units, it has had a recent history of successful punters — a tradition Meyer is already starting to continue.

Before Meyer was given the nod this season, he backed up Nortman for a season. At the time, it was Nortman’s fourth season

as the starting punter for the Badgers, which was highlighted by successful fake punts and, most notably, an Academy Award-worthy performance in the final seconds of the inaugural Big Ten Championship game, sending UW to its second straight Rose Bowl.

According to co-defensive coordinator Charlie Partridge, who also coaches the kickers and punters, the time Meyer spent behind Nortman was the perfect way for Meyer to get used to the college level.

“I think he learned a lot from Brad just in his mental approach,” Partridge said.

“You can’t over think things; you can’t get too emotionally wrapped up or you’re going to have problems. He’s done a good job learning from Brad in that way. Then it was just a matter of cleaning up some fundamental things.”

And the similarities are hard to ignore.

Beyond their similar statistics — Nortman averaged 42.2 yards per

punt last season — Meyer drew a roughing the kicker call against Nebraska that was eerily similar to Nortman’s flop in the Big Ten Championship game.

“It was one of those where he pretty much ran into me, I didn’t have to do much acting with that, so I was kind of lucky,” Meyer said. “I threw the arms back a little bit at the end, the timing was a little off. I’ve got to work on that for next time.

“We joked around a bit.

[Nortman] sent me a text after the game saying ‘at least you learned something.’”

But the Hartland, Wis., native has already established a consistency indicative of a much more mature player.

That consistency is all part of the mental game that is punting.

“Oh, it’s almost all mental,” Meyer said. “Its one of those things where you train for however many years … I’ve kicked the ball 1,000 times before so it’s all between the

MEYER, page 6

Canada’s play-calling stubborn, insufficient in loss

Elliot Hughes Look Hughe’s Laughing Now In the days since the Wisconsin football team muffed its chance at reversing the gloomy narrative its season has going for itself, several specific plays have refused to leave my mind alone.

Up 14-3 with under five minutes left in the first quarter, Wisconsin lines up on 2nd and 9 with running backs James White and Montee Ball in the backfield.

White is sent in motion and takes position as a flanker to the left of the line, leaving Ball to himself. Ball takes the handoff, but there’s nothing to work with. Gain of two yards.

UW later ran the same play on a 2nd and 10 early in the fourth quarter and lost one yard.

Up 27-17 midway through the third quarter, the Badgers face a 3rd and 1 after Ball scampered for nine yards on the previous play. Both teams bring in the muscle.

UW offensive coordinator Matt Canada deploys two tight ends and a fullback with Ball in the backfield. NU defensive coordinator John Papuchis stacks the box with eight defenders.

UW’s Jacob Pedersen motions left to the side of the fullback and the other tight end. Ball takes the handoff with a load of blockers ahead of him, but Nebraska crashes the line of scrimmage immediately with a safety not far behind, and No. 28 gets stuffed for a one yard loss.

Two possessions later, the Badgers line up with an extra offensive lineman — Robert Burge — as a tight end along

the right side of the line with Pedersen next to him.

So there’s four guys right of center. But the Huskers make a mockery of the attempted fortification and stop Ball for a loss of one yard on first down.

So what is the point of all this?

The above is a representation of how stubbornly uncreative Wisconsin’s offense has been this season and how opposing defenses are zeroing in on Ball. Nebraska repeatedly crammed the box Saturday, amassing seven tackles for loss — not including sacks, and all Canada could do in response was hand off to Ball 32 times for a three yard average.

To compare, the Badgers attempted 28 passes, averaged 8.5 yards per pass attempt and conceded three sacks.

I’ve already spent an entire column this year pounding the table about

limiting Ball’s carries to the neighborhood of 20-25 a game. Canada failed at that Saturday. Every time he fails to do that, he jeopardizes the longevity of his prized weapon. He also failed at utilizing White and Melvin Gordon, who combined for three carries and one catch.

But his biggest, most harebrained failure is his refusal to recognize that play-fakes to Ball — despite his underwhelming performance so far — have consistently opened up opportunities for other players.

And what’s more strange is the Huskers essentially dared the Badgers to give the ball to someone else. It didn’t matter if UW tried to disguise its intentions by putting Ball in the backfield by himself and motioning White this way or that way.

It didn’t matter if Wisconsin put extra giants on the field to plow the road. Focusing on Ball was a primary objective

for the Black Shirts, and they succeeded unquestionably — Balls’ three touchdowns from less than three yards out doesn’t constitute as running wild.

Canada needs to stop kidding himself and realize the potential value Ball has as a decoy. Two of Jared Abbrederis’ touchdowns have come off play-fakes to Ball with a third coming off one to White. The upand-coming Gordon has frequently benefited from misdirection plays where a feign to Ball has led to nice and easy sweeps to the outside for Gordon where open space awaits.

This is not to say that Ball is a has-been, like Randy Moss. When given holes to run through, Ball still makes the most of them. But Canada had no interest in experimenting with others when it became clear the Huskers were hounding Ball.

Of course, the rest of the offense will have to shape up

some more if it really wants to take advantage of what’s out there. In the first quarter against Nebraska, a double play-action resulted in a wide-open Ball downfield with no safeties over the top.

But he dropped the easy, if slightly under-thrown, pass.

In Wisconsin’s last drive before halftime, Stave faked to Ball and then seemingly hit Pedersen for a 25-yard gain, but replay reviews showed Pedersen failed to secure possession.

Stave’s decision-making could also improve, obviously. But Canada needs to let his quarterback do more on third down situations. No more of these wishy-washy screen passes to tight ends — especially when the defense has already established a presence in the backfield. Stave has already demonstrated an ability to throw deep and over the middle. He can’t be cradled

HUGHES, page 6