Althouse: "A UW-Madison student seeking to start what he calls a 'pro-white student club' was convicted in 2005 of setting fires at predominantly black churches in a racially motivated arson attack...."

January 27, 2017

"A UW-Madison student seeking to start what he calls a 'pro-white student club' was convicted in 2005 of setting fires at predominantly black churches in a racially motivated arson attack...."

"Chancellor Rebecca Blank said the university was not aware of student Daniel L. Dropik’s conviction when he was admitted to UW-Madison because the university is barred from asking about or considering an applicant’s criminal history."

ADDED: The link above goes to our local paper. Now, I see The Washington Post has picked up the story.

56 comments:

Curious George said...: "Chancellor Rebecca Blank said the university was not aware of student Daniel L. Dropik’s conviction when he was admitted to UW-Madison because the university is barred from asking about or considering an applicant’s criminal history."

Apparently that ends at admissions.

“The safety of our campus community is my top priority. I recognize the mere presence of this activity is concerning,” Blank said. “But handing out political information and expressing objectionable, even hateful, viewpoints is not illegal nor a violation of any campus policy.”

This could be said for a lot of groups. Key word is "could." Reality is "isn't." Because racist!; 1/27/17, 7:11 AM
Quayle said...: "...the university is barred from asking about or considering an applicant’s criminal history."

Because they thought that criminal laws and indeed all laws were only tools of an oppressive majority of white landed gentry. And they had been working for decades to weaken, denigrate, and tare them down.

But then they suddenly wanted to respect criminal law and use that new respect to their own purposes.

They didn't consider or understand that when you tare down the pillars of society, you cut off your own legs.; 1/27/17, 7:23 AM
Freder Frederson said...: Can't be. If I have learned one thing on this site, it is that conservatives and the right are never violent.; 1/27/17, 7:24 AM
Freder Frederson said...: They didn't consider or understand that when you tare down the pillars of society, you cut off your own legs.

This metaphor, even if you accept that you meant "tear" not "tare", makes no sense at all.; 1/27/17, 7:25 AM
Tank said...: Freder Frederson said...

Can't be. If I have learned one thing on this site, it is that conservatives and the right are never violent.

Strawman. Even YOU can do better.; 1/27/17, 7:31 AM
Anonymous said...: I have mixed opinions about the story.

1. Would it be a story if the guy was an ex-black panther?

2. The left promotes, "don't check the box" until sometimes

3. What about his privacy and safety now?

Having said that, I have no use for him or his group...; 1/27/17, 7:35 AM
Curious George said...: "Freder Frederson said...
Can't be. If I have learned one thing on this site, it is that conservatives and the right are never violent."

Take this weak shit over to Kos or HuffPo where it belongs.; 1/27/17, 7:36 AM
Freder Frederson said...: Strawman. Even YOU can do better.

Sarcasm, not strawman. Even you should be able to figure that out.; 1/27/17, 7:36 AM
Curious George said...: "The Drill SGT said...
I have mixed opinions about the story.

1. Would it be a story if the guy was an ex-black panther?

2. The left promotes, "don't check the box" until sometimes

3. What about his privacy and safety now?

Having said that, I have no use for him or his group..."

Yep, this is about the hypocrisy of the left. I have no use for this group either, but that would be true of many groups.; 1/27/17, 7:38 AM
Freder Frederson said...: 1. Would it be a story if the guy was an ex-black panther?

I would think anyone who was sentenced to five years in federal prison would be a story.

2. The left promotes, "don't check the box" until sometimes

Did you bother to read the article? There was a expression of concern but no disciplinary action is being taken.

3. What about his privacy and safety now?

He has the same right to privacy and safety as anyone. But he put himself out as a public figure. He should assume someone is going to dig into his past. And this conviction is directly pertinent to the character of the organization he has formed.; 1/27/17, 7:41 AM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Tank said...
Freder Frederson said...

Can't be. If I have learned one thing on this site, it is that conservatives and the right are never violent.

Strawman. Even YOU can do better.

Give a generally accepted example of violence by some right leaning figure.; 1/27/17, 7:45 AM
PackerBronco said...: "Freder Frederson said...
Can't be. If I have learned one thing on this site, it is that conservatives and the right are never violent."

If I have learned one thing on this site, it is the for liberals and progressives, violence is an acceptable means of expression if you're the right color or sexual orientation.; 1/27/17, 7:49 AM
rhhardin said...: He switched to a positive message.; 1/27/17, 7:52 AM
Bill, Republic of Texas said...: Who says this guy is a conservative? Do we know his views on the size and scope of government?

It would make more sense for him to be a leftist. The left is choke full of identity politics and racists. The left has anti-Semites galore, La Raza, BLM, Black Panthers, etc.; 1/27/17, 7:57 AM
Ann Althouse said...: His legs are pillars of marble set on bases of pure gold...; 1/27/17, 7:58 AM
James K said...: "...the university is barred from asking about or considering an applicant’s criminal history."

That #!$& passive voice. Who barred them? And what kind of asinine policy is that?; 1/27/17, 8:03 AM
sean said...: Good for the chancellor, defending free speech. That wouldn't happen at a lot of universities.; 1/27/17, 8:03 AM
Xmas said...: This was a crime from 12 years ago. Was the person a minor when the crime was committed?; 1/27/17, 8:04 AM
Laslo Spatula said...: I've read stories like this, but I never thought it would happen to me…

I was at a country bar on the outskirts of town when I caught her eye. She was dressed in tight Levi’s, with cowboy boots and a red-checked shirt baring her mid-riff. Needless to say, she was HOT!

I moved beside her and bought her a longneck beer, and we talked about how Garth Brooks was the shit back in the day.

Then she asked me if I would like to come with her for a little ‘excitement’. Hell yeah!

So we got in her pick-up truck and ended up driving to a black church on the wrong side of town. Now I was confused: I just thought she was going to give me a blow-job in the truck, but she got out and took a gasoline can out of the back. Like I said, I was confused, but what an ASS!

She proceeded to splash gasoline on the black church, then took a book of matches from her back pocket and set the church on fire. Woah! I knew this was wrong!

As the church was slowly being consumed by flames she came back to the truck, but instead of driving away she said “Burning black churches makes me horny,: and she proceeded to suck my cock!

After she finished an amazing blow-job we drove back to the bar, and had more beers. I still don’t know what to think about that night, but the blow-job was incredible! I feel sorry for the black church folk, though. That part was sad.

I am Laslo.; 1/27/17, 8:15 AM
David said...: Fie on Mr. Dropkick. And good for Chancellor Blank in her response.; 1/27/17, 8:15 AM
Phil 314 said...: "UW officials said they are not aware of any other students who have joined Dropik’s chapter, which they noted is not a registered student organization."

Sounds like no one is interested in joining his "party". Sounds like one guy has folks in a Tizzy.

33, works for the University (maybe in the cafeteria), prior criminal conviction and a history of mental illness. Now there's a guy I want to follow.

What's his major?

(Pepe can do better.); 1/27/17, 8:19 AM
CJinPA said...: We can't let anyone who inspired racially motivated arson into a respectable university.

We must treat them like Al Sharpton, and relegate them to regular White House visits.; 1/27/17, 8:20 AM
Wince said...: And how is this guy's story that much different than Bill Ayers?; 1/27/17, 8:20 AM
Drago said...: If I were the left I would spend more time trying to understand how a kidnapping/sodomizing/murderer was allowed a leadership role in the "Leftist Chicks March On Da Kapital!"

http://dailycaller.com/2017/01/26/womens-march-featured-speaker-who-kidnapped-raped-and-tortured-a-man/

The victim was brutally tortured and sodomized before being murdered.

But he was a 62 year old white guy! So, you know, from a leftist perspective he had it coming and Ms Hylton is a perfect choice to help lead the lefty "I'm angry" movement.; 1/27/17, 8:21 AM
Big Mike said...: If he was convicted, sentenced, and served his time then he should be given a fair chance to start over.

I suspect that being forbidden to look at arrest records was put in place to help inner city Black kids. That it benefitted a honkie this time is merest irony.; 1/27/17, 8:21 AM
Bad Lieutenant said...: Strawman. Even YOU can do better.

Give a generally accepted example of violence by some right leaning figure.
1/27/17, 7:45 AM

Operation Overlord; 1/27/17, 8:22 AM
Big Mike said...: @Freder, the right has folks like Dropnik, the left has folks like you. Same thing in my book.; 1/27/17, 8:23 AM
Michael K said...: "Give a generally accepted example of violence by some right leaning figure."

Hilarious example of leftist cluelessness.

I love "Operation overlord."; 1/27/17, 8:26 AM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Michael K said...
Hilarious example of leftist cluelessness.

OR, a pathetic example of the inability to acknowledge any faults on the right, also known as partisan mania.; 1/27/17, 8:29 AM
GWash said...: Operation Overlord was funny, but not so funny is that Churchill, Eisenhower and Roosevelt would all be considered centrists or even leftist in this brave new world...

Wisconsin Sikh Temple massacre, Aug. 5, 2012
The murder of Dr. George Tiller, May 31, 2009
Knoxville Unitarian Universalist Church shooting, July 27, 2008
The Centennial Olympic Park bombing, July 27, 1996
Have we forgotten these? these were all perpetrated by right leaning figures... i'm sure there are many more examples.. how about the murders in Charleston SC church this past year?..

Are we tire of winning yet?... at this rate we'll be at war and in recession by the end of the year...
Watch your wallets!... there here !; 1/27/17, 8:40 AM
Jupiter said...: The important question is, can he play football?; 1/27/17, 8:40 AM
Bruce Gee said...: "His legs are pillars of marble set on bases of pure gold…”

But feet of clay.; 1/27/17, 8:42 AM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: Actual hate crimes are so rare that I'm not surprised they didn't make this guy. He's neither black, Muslim, nor a feminist.; 1/27/17, 8:48 AM
damikesc said...: As long as they do not permit criminal convictions in formation of a school club, I'm OK with it. Seems like a worthwhile restriction.

...as long as it is consistent.

Wisconsin Sikh Temple massacre, Aug. 5, 2012
The murder of Dr. George Tiller, May 31, 2009
Knoxville Unitarian Universalist Church shooting, July 27, 2008
The Centennial Olympic Park bombing, July 27, 1996
Have we forgotten these? these were all perpetrated by right leaning figures... i'm sure there are many more examples.. how about the murders in Charleston SC church this past year?..

Those were all valid. Nobody has said right-leaning people cannot be violent. That'd be insane.; 1/27/17, 8:50 AM
Bruce Hayden said...: Not being able to ask about criminal convictions, esp for violent felonies and sex crimes, is just plain silly. We are talking the safety of the community here. When the school has essentially taken over responsibility for keeping young adults safe, they need to do it.

This is one of the societal costs that we place on convicted felons for their breaking of our laws and norms, along with loss of the rights to vote and possess firearms. My guess is that part of this whole thing was that such a large percentage of young black males screw up their lives with drugs, violence, gangs, and thuggery, and the well meaning leftist running the school felt sorry for them, figuring that if all these convicted felon, high school drop outs, could just matriculate at Madison, they could be saved. Or some such leftist twaddle.

I do feel for convicted felons who have done their time. Talked to one last night who was being dragged back into court to testify against someone they might have known before their arrest. She has been straight for two years now, and wants nothing to do with this part of her past. She has no choice. Police could have called her up and asked to meet with her, but, instead, marched into her place of work, making a big scene, in front of her co-workers, because they could. She is on parole, which means that they still own her. This was just a forcible reminder that the cost of being convicted as a felon doesn't end when you walk out the prison gates.; 1/27/17, 8:51 AM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: "Operation Overlord was funny, but not so funny is that Churchill, Eisenhower and Roosevelt would all be considered centrists or even leftist in this brave new world..."

Cracker, please. They would be considered racist, fascist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, Islamophobic, imperialist, reactionary swine in this brave new world. Up against the wall, motherfuckers!; 1/27/17, 8:54 AM
MadisonMan said...: Helpful hint: Don't do objectionable things with an easily googleable name. I am only surprised that some journalist actually did work to track down this guy's interesting past.

I support the Chancellor's non-Manichean view of this guy.; 1/27/17, 8:56 AM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: damikesc said...
Nobody has said right-leaning people cannot be violent. That'd be insane.

Hallelujah.; 1/27/17, 8:59 AM
George Grady said...: The Ban the Box movement started with trying to get employers to stop asking their applicants about felony convictions, but despite indications that it had "unforeseen" and undesired consequences, the Obama administration began urging colleges and universities to do the same with their applicants in 2016.; 1/27/17, 9:02 AM
Jupiter said...: GWash said...

"Operation Overlord was funny, but not so funny is that Churchill, Eisenhower and Roosevelt would all be considered centrists or even leftist in this brave new world..."

Well, they were all pretty chummy with Stalin. For Churchill and Ike I think it was a matter of strategic necessity, but FDR probably saw a kindred soul in Uncle Joe. Stalin was the totalitarian dictator Roosevelt would have liked to have been.; 1/27/17, 9:12 AM
Jupiter said...: He said he was sorry. He's going back to college in the Fall. He's turning his life around.; 1/27/17, 9:14 AM
HoodlumDoodlum said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/27/17, 9:22 AM
mccullough said...: Blank Lives Matter; 1/27/17, 9:26 AM
Amadeus 48 said...: The delightfully named Rebecca Blank lives up to her appellation--Blank by name, Blank by nature. If she is ever professionally terminated, there are alternatives: Josh Earnest may be available; Physicist Christopher Slowe may be persuaded to leave Hipmunk for UW; Mark Brilliant from UCal Berkeley could be a step up; but Jack Schitt appears to be a purely fictional character. My own favorite is anthropologist Lionel Tiger, author of The Decline of Males. He can lead the discussion at UW-Madison.; 1/27/17, 9:36 AM
William said...: Given the left's preoccupation about white racists, this man serves a useful function. He's a genuine, authentic white racist. The real deal. Every campus should have one authentic white racist if only for the anthropology students.; 1/27/17, 9:50 AM
Birkel said...: Do I have it correct that a member of the traditional media managed to google this guy and find his criminal conviction? Good for them doing their actual job. That's fantastic work.

Now, could they be bothered to do that with every member of the Left? Hell, Rachel Dolezal managed to be black despite two white parents and the MSM never bothered to use the World Wide Web to find that tidbit.

In conclusion, Donald Trump is amazing. He's only been president one week and traditional media is back doing investigations just that quick.; 1/27/17, 9:59 AM
Thorley Winston said...: "...the university is barred from asking about or considering an applicant’s criminal history."

That #!$& passive voice. Who barred them? And what kind of asinine policy is that?

Doubtlessly the policy prohibiting asking about or considering an applicant’s criminal history was put in place because someone figured that because blacks and Latinos were more likely to have criminal histories than the general population that this policy would lead to more black and Latinos applying for and being admitted.; 1/27/17, 10:04 AM
Drago said...: GWash: "Wisconsin Sikh Temple massacre, Aug. 5, 2012
The murder of Dr. George Tiller, May 31, 2009
Knoxville Unitarian Universalist Church shooting, July 27, 2008
The Centennial Olympic Park bombing, July 27, 1996
Have we forgotten these? these were all perpetrated by right leaning figures... i'm sure there are many more examples.. how about the murders in Charleston SC church this past year?.."

Nonsense.

All I see is lots of "workplace violence", "man caused disasters", "people acting out due to lack of economic opportunity", and basically events for which "No Larger Lessons Can Be Learned".

The biggest item of note is how the "right leaning" groups don't make these types of people leaders and put them out front in rallies.

Note: Angela Davis, Bill Ayers and Donna Hylton were not asked for comment.; 1/27/17, 10:22 AM
Freeman Hunt said...: They can't ask about criminal history?! Why not?! Every job application asks about this, and people applying for jobs usually aren't going to live with their coworkers.; 1/27/17, 10:40 AM
damikesc said...: damikesc said...
Nobody has said right-leaning people cannot be violent. That'd be insane.

Hallelujah.

Conservatives also don't tend to champion their violent members or give them positions of eminence.; 1/27/17, 10:48 AM
Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...: ...barred from asking about or considering an applicant's criminal history."

But well informed about applicant's "race," ethnicity, cultural history, language preference, sex at birth, present sex, diet preference (full vegan or just vegetarian)....; 1/27/17, 11:43 AM
n.n said...: [class] diversity. mainstream left.; 1/27/17, 12:21 PM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: "They can't ask about criminal history?! Why not?! Every job application asks about this, and people applying for jobs usually aren't going to live with their coworkers"

Excellent point, especially if they want to use university housing. Want a serial rapist in the dorm room next to your daughter? A real rapist, that is. Not just anyone with a Y chromosone.; 1/27/17, 2:50 PM
JaimeRoberto said...: If he bombed a white church there's no way he'd be a student at that school. He'd be a professor instead.; 1/27/17, 3:00 PM
The Godfather said...: This business about a U not being able to ask an applicant about his/her criminal record:

Is that just Wisconsin, or is that a general rule for Universities? Remember the preppy who was convicted last year of a sex offense against a young(er) girl? He had received an acceptance from Harvard, and all the commentators said that his conviction would mean he'd never be able to go to Harvard. But if Harvard can't take a criminal record into account, he should be home free, right?; 1/27/17, 4:28 PM
Static Ping said...: I am impressed that the school is sticking up for free speech.

If the Left is insistent on making the country a bunch of racially divided groups at competition with each other and all against the whites, we will be seeing more of this sort of organizing. It is regrettable but inevitable.; 1/27/17, 4:52 PM