either way, the point is moot since UW Madison will not be direct members of USSA

I did not say that they would coordinate with SLAP, only that they would be eligible for grants and other help, Whether or not they would use that would obviously be up to them.

Winner will receive a Babcock Hall Dairy Store cheese box!

I've met a few black people who won't identify as an African-American. We have to realize that there are many different family histories in the US and one label doesn't work for everyone. For example, Obama was criticized early in his political career for not being "black" enough since he wasn't a descendent of slaves and couldn't relate to that shared history of many Americans.

Found this on yahoo news today and thought it was relevant: http://news.yahoo.com/blacks-insist-im-not-africa...

I was incredibly disappointed to see Planned Parenthood affiliates and supporters of both organizations call for a boycott of donations to Komen, and it will be incredibly disheartening if large donors put their own politics ahead of women and decide not to give to Komen simply for this reason.

More and more, I'm feeling this was an attempt at Komen to gain money from pro-life people who had been withholding funds from Komen because they gave to PP (also wrong to do in my opinion). Komen choosing to give to other women's health orgs other than PP still meant the same amount of money going to women's health. People choosing to give less to women's health is not the same.

Thanks Kristin for commenting. I used "slaktivists" because yes, many of the people who complained via twitter, facebook, etc are those that write online about it but dont donate to the causes they "support" or actually take part in any political activity behind them. This is true of every major news story, not just this one.

Im not discounting yours or anyon'es right to be upset at a non-profit org for an action they take. Complaining about certain non-profit orgs has been a staple on this blog. However, in this case because of the outcomes of Komen's actions- more money for Komen, more money for Planned Parenthood, more people talking about and caring about women's health, I simply don't understand WHY you're upset.

No, I think it's you who has missed the big picture, especially if you believe this was a win for anyone "anti-women." The total grant amount affexted was $680,000, or 0.7% of the total of Komen's grants, and 0.06% of Planned Parenthood's income. I focus on the money, because the money is what was cut. Komen never said they disagreed with the goals or practices of PP.

This move doesn't stigmatize women's health at all. Like I said, this spurred a large number of pro-life acticvists to donate money to a well-respected women's health charity. If you think this is a bad thing, then you're the person putting politics ahead of all the women that will be served with this money.

Additionally, do you truly believe that because of this move by a private organization that women in need will stop going to Planned Parenthood when they want services?

Leave it to you Kurt to turn high school students into master debaters! :p Congrats to you and your teams!

In the past two years, Sam has devoted his life to ASM and to working for student's rights. Even though he did not get elected as a Freshman, Sam started working with the University Affairs, Leg Affairs, and Shared Gov Committees. In the first semester last year, Sam got the UW Libraries to do a study on the effects of extending Steenbock's hours to better serve Lakeshore students. Seeing a problem with ASM, Sam authored and aggressively fought for the Open Government Act, which made Student Council members more accountable for their actions and helped open ASM to ideas from outside the organization.

On Legislative Affairs, Sam worked as the Vice Chair for state affairs. With Sarah, Sam led the educational efforts for the New Badger Partnership, setting up student forums, and gathering student and RSO feedback. Sam was the first to suggest a university wide committee on the NBP/Public Authority, and wrote the blueprint for how ASM should select students to sit on higher governance bodies.

With Shared Gov, Sam spent DAYS scouring the UW archives in order to put together a history of shared governance on this campus and in the UW System. He wrote and championed Shared Gov bylaws that place student authority where it belongs according to 36.09(5). He started the Shared Gov Defense Fund, and as a member of Union Council, has been ensuring accountability in their building process.

Along with his work with ASM, Sam has worked with state and national organizations. He served on the Board of Directors of United Council, where, as Chair of the Shared Gov Task Force, he spearheaded the creation of an Ad Hoc Committee on Institutional shared governance. He is currently working with other System Schools to ensure the adherence to Shared Gov implementation plans adopted decades ago. He also worked with the Financial Aid Task Force in creating policy papers on work study aid. Sam drafted a paper in support of Pell Grants that was used by the Association of Big Ten Students to lobby the United States Congress. Sam joined ABTS on this trip, and gained valuable experience and connections with staffers on the Hill.

These are the major things that I could think of that Sam has done. Sam has from the start taken the initiative to search out issues affecting students and has found creative means for fixing problems. I have not exaggerated his work, in fact, in many cases I have probably downplayed it.

Niko has done nothing but ineffectively run the Nominations Board, leaving it in confusion after he was removed for cheating during the elections. What issues has he worked on? What legislation has he helped write other than the one to put himself back in office? Sam is more qualified, has worked harder for students, and deserves the position more than Niko. Niko has spent a few months on Council, where he made it clear that he doesnt understand ASM's processes, disregards election rules, bylaws, and basic respect, and has not done any significant work to help out the student body at large. Oh wait, he did volunteer a bit for the bookswap. Give him a gold star, but not a seat on Council.

And that was the 1% of my day that I wish I had back. Congrats on the 60,000 hits! (this sadly being one of them)