Please give to The Capital Times Kids Fund.

State Debate: Another black eye for state Supreme Court

A 10/13 roundup of editorials in state papers

Compiled by Judie Kleinmaier  —  10/13/2008 9:09 am

Another black eye for the state Supreme Court, says the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram.

For the second time in the past year, a Wisconsin Supreme Court justice stands accused of judicial misconduct. And once again, we're forced to question the basic ethics -- or lack thereof -- of a member of the state's highest court.

Last week, the Wisconsin Judicial Commission filed a complaint alleging Justice Michael Gableman engaged in judicial misconduct during last spring's election campaign. Gableman, then a Burnett County judge, defeated incumbent Justice Louis Butler in April. The commission charged that Gableman knowingly ran a campaign TV ad that made "false statements" about Butler and that the "misrepresentation was made knowingly or with reckless disregard for the truth by Judge Gableman."

The situation leads to a few questions: Is it any surprise that as Supreme Court races become more expensive, they become dirtier and more ethically dubious? And if the judges who sit on the court are prone to ethical lapses, can we trust their judgments about the laws that affect our lives?

Offshore windmills in the future? Not impossible, says the Kenosha News.

A Public Service Commission report on offshore wind energy potential was released last week, and judging from summaries, it looks like windmills on Lake Michigan are a long way off. Improvements in technology are necessary before offshore wind is competitive with onshore wind projects.

But wind speeds over Lake Michigan and Lake Superior are stronger and more consistent than on land in Wisconsin. If we're serious about wind energy, offshore wind is probably going to be part of the mix. Lots of offshore wind energy installations already exist in northern Europe. We should be able to benefit from that experience.

Windmills on Lake Michigan may be a long way off, but they aren't impossible.

Toward a new vision for the industrial Midwest, says the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Our Midwest ancestors developed the assembly line system. They built the middle class. They built a land-grant university system, too, which remains the envy of the world. The 12 Midwestern states together would be the world's fifth-largest economy if they were a separate nation.

The Global Midwest Institute will have a series of annual conferences around the region and support research of its most pressing problems. The institute's main goal: binding us closer together.

Cooperation isn't yet part of Midwestern DNA. But let's imagine these items at the top of a Midwestern agenda:

-- A high-speed rail system.

-- Water research. The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee has approval from the UW Board of Regents to create a graduate school of freshwater sciences, the first of its kind. But why not link up efforts at UWM with other Great Lakes schools?

-- Energy research. The region's natural advantages -- plenty of wind, adequate sun, a long expertise in growing plants and plant research -- should make it the hub for alternative energy research and the launch of new related industries.

-- Great Lakes restoration.

The Midwestern states together can build on their considerable strengths and create a new economy. In fact, they must. 

Compiled by Judie Kleinmaier  —  10/13/2008 9:09 am