If we’re to go on having universities that are worth the name, Wisconsin needs to start teaching the difference between words and bullets, says a professor in River Falls.

That distinction should go without saying, though a survey of 68,000 college students by the free-speech group FIRE just found one-third agreeing it’s at least sometimes acceptable to use violence to shut up an opinion they disagree with.

Those results came out the day before Charlie Kirk was assassinated by someone who disagreed with his opinions, the day before Trevor Tomesh found himself horrified by what he described as “a ghoulish response” from too many people in higher education, a wave of social-media celebration over the killing — “the celebration of, literally, the death of the principle of universities.”

Mike Nichols, president of the Badger Institute, testified Tuesday concerning Assembly Bill 453, a bill which would bring clarity and transparency to the housing development process by requiring municipalities to align zoning ordinances with publicly determined comprehensive plans.

Homeownership — the crux of the American Dream — is an aspiration increasingly out of reach for Wisconsinites and their children.

The solution is not rent caps or big government interventions that drive costs higher and burden taxpayers. It’s much simpler, economically sound, and in line with the fundamental American belief in letting markets work.

Plus, it can be done without stripping communities of local control. State legislators can help by making sure comprehensive plans are brought up to date and aligned with zoning codes.

There’s more evidence in recent days that the federal government spends money in two ways — too quickly and too slowly.

Proof of both stems from programs that were initially part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the Biden administration’s burst of late-pandemic spending.

The $14.2 billion Affordable Connectivity Program and the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment Program were just two of hundreds of programs launched by the IIJA, which passed in 2021. 

Together, they are reminders of how little precision, coordination and restraint went into spending trillions of tax dollars. They are also examples of how difficult it is for the government to discontinue what was initially promised as one-time spending.

Prices of used vehicles are ticking up once again in the Midwest after retreating from all-time highs set during the supply chain snarls of 2022, figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show. 

As part of tracking inflation, the Bureau of Labor Statistics collects data on the prices of new and used vehicles — cars and light trucks — over time, by region. For statistical purposes, the Midwest includes the states from Ohio to Kansas and as far north as North Dakota.

Despite Appleton's one-day total of nearly 200,000 festival goers each year, La Crosse’s four-day Oktoberfest celebration is widely considered the state’s largest. 

The Badger Institute has long been at the forefront of the fight for school choice, right to work, welfare reform, tax restructuring, limited government, civil society and so much more. If you appreciate the Institute’s legacy and want to support free markets, opportunity and prosperity, please consider donating today. Your support will help the Institute continue to advocate for conservative principles now and in generations to come.

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