FREE WHITEWATER

Misconduct

Three ‘Things That Make Organizations More Prone to Sexual Harassment’

Marianne Cooper writes of The 3 Things That Make Organizations More Prone to Sexual Harassment: “typical of the sort of organization that researchers have found to be particularly prone to sexual harassment and abuse: male dominated, super hierarchical, and forgiving when it comes to bad behavior.” Cooper’s full article is well worth reading, but her reduction here to…

He Knew

Raquel Rutledge reports that Eric Haertle knew the medical products he sold were infected: The former co-owner and chief operating officer of a Hartland pharmaceutical company — once among the nation’s largest manufacturers of alcohol wipes — has pleaded guilty to shipping a product he knew was contaminated with dangerous bacterium. Eric Haertle, who owned Triad…

The Sketchy – But Revealing – UW-Whitewater Dormitory Stories 

The big UW-Whitewater story last week wasn’t about a dormitory, but about a lawsuit against former Chancellor Telfer and current Athletic Director Amy Edmonds.  The dormitory stories are at best evidence of administrative incompetence, at worst evidence of a manipulated story (albeit ham-handedly).  They also, ironically, offer a dark motivation for the repeated actions of UW-Whitewater…

Long Miles Ahead

I posted yesterday on the federal lawsuit filed against former Chancellor Richard Telfer and current Athletic Director Amy Edmonds.  See, Former Coach Fader Files Federal Lawsuit Against UW-Whitewater Officials. One should not expect a quick resolution to the many issues the lawsuit raises, of mistreatment of honest employees & disregard for assault survivors. On the contrary,…

Former Coach Fader Files Federal Lawsuit Against UW-Whitewater Officials

At Channel 3000, investigative reporter Adam Schrager reports on a federal lawsuit that former Coach Timothy Fader has filed against UW-Whitewater officials, in their individual capacities. (I had promised readers that I would continue to follow this story, and will continue to do so as the case unfolds.) Both current Athletic Director Amy Edmonds and…

Ackman’s Right About Herbalife

Bill Ackman, CEO of Pershing Square Capital, has waged a long campaign against Herbalife (in which he has a publicly-disclosed short position, that is, a bet against Herbalife’s future). Ackman’s a capitalist, activist, and philanthropist. (His politics are not mine – he recently urged Michael Bloomberg to run for president; Bloomberg is no libertarian.) In…

About That Accreditation at UW-Whitewater…

Last week, UW-Whitewater’s administration announced, in oddly grand terms, the results of an accreditation review from the HLC.  (That would be the ‘Higher Learning Commission,’ one of dozens of self-designated accrediting organizations of the same ilk.)  One reads that the accreditation was ‘a weighty stamp of approval’ of our campus administration’s actions. The accreditation was nothing of…

About Extraordinary Accounts

It’s my fortune to receive a steady flow of email, from sharp and interesting people.  It’s better to read than to write, and those who write to me give me more than I have given, or could give, them.  (Some readers, in fact, prefer email, and that’s why there’s more than one way to contact…

An Open Note to Leaders of the Municipal Government, the School District, and UW-Whitewater

Along the lines of listing key topics (see the right sidebar at FREE WHITEWATER for a list of particular areas of concern), it’s worth being clear that important issues in one part of the city should not be ignored in other parts. An Open Note to Leaders of Government, the School District, and UW-Whitewater: misconduct of officials…

The Four-Dog Defense

View image | gettyimages.com Readers familiar with organizational or political excuse-making are likely familiar with the four-dog defense.  The provenance of the defense is uncertain, but Acronym Required describes its four points nicely, citing a story from the St. Petersburg Times: First of all, I don’t have a dog. And if I had a dog, it doesn’t bite. And…

Reed Hall’s Inauspicious Choices

Reed Hall, who ‘boldly,’ ‘innovatively’ uses the private title of CEO for an organization that runs on public money, has written two defenses to his agency’s latest audit fiasco.  The first of those appears as a few platitudinous paragraphs online (‘WEDC takes bold, innovative approach to economic development,’ subscription req’d,  and the second as a…