Gov. Doyle today announced several vetoes and re-workings of the recently passed state budget repair bill. In it, he changed how the bill would be financed (instead of issuing a veto) in order to scale back the amount of money that could be found by securitizing bonds from tobacco company payments. Specifically, Doyle and his aids said they would "seek to borrow $150 million instead of the $209 million outlined in the bill."

In case you hadn't heard much about it lately, Wisconsin, like every other state, received a large sum of money ($5.9 billion) from the major tobacco companies as a result of the Master Settlement Agreement, the "largest civil settlement in US history." The agreement freed the companies from tort liability with the state governments (several of which had pending lawsuits against them) in exchange for these payments and additional restrictions on advertising.

Get out, Madison! There is too much to do for you to justify staying inside this weekend.

High Noon has the Von Bondies and Die! Die! Die. Josh wrote:

The Von Bondies for some time had a small but loyal following but it was the inclusion of their song “C’mon C’mon” on the Dennis Leary show “Rescue Me” that introduced the world to the bands arena ready rock. Their gritty garage rock has withstood the rise and subsequent backlash that came with being a garage rock band earlier in the decade. I believe it is the pop sensibilities in The Von Bondies’ and the gigantic sound in their music that has helped them sustain as a band. Either way they will undoubtedly tear the roof off the High Noon come Friday.

Starting this Monday, May 19, East Gorham St will be closed from Baldwin to Ingersoll. Starting the following Tuesday, May 27, the closure will extend all the way west to Livingston. Construction is intended to be completed by September 1. For more details, see Dane101's story and the City of Madison's press release.

May 16 is the 137th day of the year. On this date in 1960 the first working laser was demonstrated.

* WISC: A leveling off in federal funding to major research universities like the University of Wisconsin-Madison has experts in the research field worried that a crisis is looming.

* Something Verbose: I am not exactly sure why, but Greta van Sustren is in Madison right now.

* WorldNetDaily: Steve McConkey, president of 4 Winds Christian Athletics in Madison, Wis., has been in track and field ministries since 1981. He said China does not have the right to censor faith at the Olympic Games.

* TCT Editorial: Aramark's anti-union call abuses 911 Center

* IHT: Madison-native Bradley Whitford to star on Broadway

* TCT: Stolen Chihuahua returned to owners

* WMTV: Homeless in Madison

When I first heard that 9/11 theorist and UW-Madison Lecturer Kevin Barrett was running as a Libertarian for Rep. Ron Kind’s 3rd District congressional seat, I was elated. Not because of any desire one way or the other to see Barrett unseat the congressman, but because it means the race is suddenly much more interesting then it was two weeks ago. Kind already has a competitor in Republican Paul Stark, but it is highly unlikely that Stark can unseat the New Democrat and Free Trader from La Crosse. Kind, who has held the seat since 1997, defeated his most recent Republican challenger in 2006 with 65 percent of the vote. Stark is trying to defeat Kind by tying the incumbent to Democratic Presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama. Obama defeated Senator Hillary Clinton in La Crosse County with 58 percent of the vote. On the Republican side La Crosse County went to Senator John McCain by 48 percent, but Mike Huckabee came in a close second with 41 percent of the vote.

{photo by Landon Arkens} I was recently invited to sit in on a rehearsal with Jeremiah Nelson's newly formed version of Patchwork which includes Luke Bassuener (drums) of Elden Caulder and This Bright Apocalypse and Josh Tyack (bass) who hosts Rock Chocolate on WSUM from 9:00 to 11:00 on Wednesdays and is a former member of Elden Caulder. Also joining in was Shawn Drake a violin player and sometimes stage companion with Patchwork. The new version of the band performs tonight at Cafe Montmarte along with the Chris Koza band.

Listening in on their rehearsal gave great insight to how a fledgling band works. Though Nelson has been playing around as Patchwork solo for quite some time the assembled group has shared the stage only three times and has practiced five. It is interesting to watch them collectively work out the kinks that comes with this and even more intriguing witnessing their cohesiveness.

Welcome to the first edition of Folk ON Folk! That is, the coverage of folk music by a local folk musician, myself. I hope to bring awareness to more people of Wisconsin's importance in the broader story of folk music, and specifically Madison's place as a hotbed for local folk music, as well as being a great tour stop for more established folk artists.

What is folk music? I have a very broad definition of the term, and in fact, probably broader than most. To me, folk music can be electric, folk music can be played with a band, and folk music can have a disco backbeat if it wants to. Folk music is about the songs and the words, and in my opinion the test of a "good song" is if it can be reduced to the simplest form and still capture attention (example: acoustic guitar and voice, or perhaps a bazouki and voice if thats your thing).

May 15 is the 136th day of the year. On this day in 1940 McDonald's opens its first restaurant in San Bernardino, California. It is also International Conscientious Objectors' Day.

* WISC: UW-Madison Superdelegate Endorses Obama

* TCT: Wisconsin pols OK Great Lakes pact; now it goes to gov

* TDP: Madison police called it an overdose, mother thinks it was murder

* WISC: County Board Members To Hold Community Meeting On 911 System Next Week

* City of Madison: Pedestrian-Bicycle Projects Sought

* MoneyTimes: UW team of scientists says it has found the most effective seed mixture and planting times for producing faster-growing, more durable football fields.

* Locavore: Four University of Wisconsin- Madison students have created a terrific tool for their area's local eaters -- this interactive map

* TDP: Monty Python meets Broadway in Spamalot at Overture

* TCT: Farewell to the Junkers and the Kissers

* Dane101 Tech Living: Workin' at the Internet Cafe: Laptop Dilemma

No one was injured in a fire at 125 South Hancock this evening. Firefighters were called to the scene shortly before six p.m. and had the fire extinguished by 6:30 p.m. The fire had crept into the walls so firefighters had to pry open parts of the house in order to make sure it was fully extinguished. Below are images Dane101 captured.

When asked the advantage she would provide as chancellor of the University of Wisconsin, Carolyn “Biddy” Martin cited her inexperience with the UW system.

“A fresh pair of eyes, and a new look at things,” said Martin, the provost at Cornell University. “A less strong sense then people that have been here for longer that things have to be done in the way they have always been done.”

Martin, who received her doctorate in German literature from the University of Wisconsin, has been a faculty member at Cornell since 1985. However, she still has a soft spot for Madison.

Click here to read more.

1. The Treats at Great Dane MAMAs afterparty
2. The Shabelles at Great Dane MAMAs afterparty
3. Boys and Girls Club Revue at MAMAs
4. Pale Young Gentlemen with a string section of students at MAMAs
5. Stephanie Rearick at MAMAs
6. Profound with Lil Braugh at MAMAs

Click here to read more.

The senior season for the Mad Rollin Dolls is behind us with the Quad Squad notching a second championship on their raggedy garter belts. Now the top players from our four league teams will pivot toward a summer of ferocious battles as they jam and slam their way up from 17th rank overall in the Women's Flat Track Derby Association. The Dolls rank 10th in the Eastern region. From October 10 to 12 the Dolls will be hosting the 2008 WFTDA Eastern Regionals at the Alliant Energy Center. Below is the summer schedule for Mad Rollin' Dolls travel team, the Dairyland Dolls, with ranks and links of the teams they will be facing.

May 14 is the 135th day of the year. On this date in 1607 Jamestown , Virginia was officially settled.

* TCT: Teen arrested in West Wash shooting

* WISC: Media Outlets Announce Open-Record Suit Concerning 911 Case; Madison, Milwaukee Organizations Seek Compliance With Requests

* Mills: ...the public still hasn't gotten a straight, honest answer when it comes to the center's ability to track cell phone calls.

* Opsal: Wisconsin State Journal headline: "UW frat house fire: Arson?" And then no where in the story does it say they think it's arson.

* Rezny: Video of SigEp fire

* Lawrence: Could SigEp fire been prevented?

* GarysDish: Madison Pride is in deep financial trouble and will be cutting back on the event in July.

* FourthLineFilms: Photo of Cars on State

Aloha from sandy East Main Street where I your charming and witty writer is trying to drown out the noise of machinery to bring you this weeks ticket extravaganza. We have quite a few shows for you this week and as always there’s a bit of something for everyone...well almost everyone. We here at Dane101 would also like to give a big sloppy opened mouth kiss to True Endeavors, the High Noon Saloon, Just Sayin' Is All, and the affectionately nicknamed "the Maj'" for providing the tickets for all of you to fight over. Remember first one to comment gets to go to the dance, but starting this week once you have won you have to serve punch with the rest of us for three weeks. So enough of this chit-chat on with the shows.