Placing the Daily Lobo’s staff at arms length from the opinion piece from Mr Murthy, does not excuse the Daily Lobo from giving Mr Murthy status as a Guest Columnist. Were Mr. Murthy to list on his Resume that he was once a guest columnist, would the Daily Lobo affirm this if an employer were to check on its accuracy. I suggest the Daily Lobo staff reconsider its use of the “guest columnist” label, and maybe do a story on Obesity. You might look at the health risks as well as what the carbon footprint of every extra pound has on the Earth

Your comments come too late and are of little value. Why don’t the writers and editor of the Daily Lobo try reading newspapers from other universities around the country?

The Daily Lobo should cover the news of the University and the community. Letters to the editor have their place, but not at the expense of a large number of other readers.

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It’s fascinating how tolerance goes right out the window when someone actually displays a shred of common sense.

It was still a ridiculously stupid piece.

Wait, so the Daily Lobo’s defense for placing the article was , and i quote:
“Murthy’s letter was not printed at the expense of another, perhaps more relevant letter. Serving a relatively small community, the Daily Lobo receives a limited number of letters to the editor each day. Many other daily newspapers serve populations of over 50,000 people and therefore draw from a larger pool of opinionated individuals.”

Or in other words: It was a slow day, we needed to fill space in the newspaper and slapping on the title of “guest columnist” just because.

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I don’t think this excuses the Daily Lobo at all. The article in question was incredibly hate filled. Substitute the word “black” for the word “fat” and the article would have never been considered for publication. The Daily Lobo should print a full apology and the editor who made the decision to run that article should be formally reprimanded.

This rather weak explanation of why Victor Murthy’s hateful opinion was published is laughable at best. I am an avid reader of the Daily Lobo, obviously not for the pertinent news or factual stories, but because it is generally interesting enough to get me from one class to another. When I read this article the other day, however, I was absolutely appalled!

To think, we all pay to go to school here at UNM, and a large portion of the population was blatantly insulted or offended by this horrifying piece. While I have read the few editor’s notes and other ‘explanations’ for how this abusive article was published, it seems as though the same rhetoric is being passed on over and over. Claiming that this is an “Opinion” piece, and you consider EVERY article you receive for publication as you stated in response to an earlier article responding to the ‘fat’ piece is hilarious. While the section is entitled the “Opinion” section, as a publication with campus-wide distribution you should take the implications of what you publish into consideration. Freedom of speech has restrictions, and pumping out hate speech is one of them, especially in a school setting.

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Every publication has it’s slip-ups, this is an important topic, perhaps not portrayed in the best context. And no offense but if a one-time column can put one off of an entire publication, then it must not have been important to the individual in the first place.

Right on Lobo, stand by your free speech! Free speech would mean nothing without the right to offend.

The “right to offend”? Where is that right enshrined? Show me proof somewhere, anywhere.

People in general need to learn the difference between what is a right, what is a choice, and what is a privilege. We have the right to have clean air and water, safety, security, universal primary education, free speech for example. Smoking is a choice.

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“Both ways can show how much you dislike the situation, but one is more respectful, and is therefore acceptable, while the other is disrespectful and rude, giving disrespect to others is definitely not a right.”

Thought Police much? You should move to Britain, I heard if you insult someone you get a fine (and if it’s a racial slur then you get sent to jail for the night).

Everyone advocating Victor Murthy is simply hilarious. You can’t go around citing freedom of speech or ignorantly stating that because this is America we all have the right to do whatever the Hell we please.

A campus publication has no place publishing an article pervaded by cruelty and hatred fueled by small-minded superiority. I am as much an advocate of free speech as the next guy, probably more so in fact, but there needs to be (and IS) a point where speech is curbed on the grounds of its context. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, as Victor is entitles to his, but it is the Lobo’s responsibility to restrict what they publish. Controversy sells, so I get the underlying reasons why this trash was published, but it crossed a serious boundary.

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I get now, it’s only at the expense of another if you served a larger audience. Maybe printing stuff like this why you self fulfill your statent, “Serving a relatively small community, the Daily Lobo receives a limited number of letters to the editor each day. Many other daily newspapers serve populations of over 50,000 people and therefore draw from a larger pool of opinionated individuals.” Good luck with your little rag which choses to publish hate. Michael Conway at www.formerquartertonman.com

Let me edit my last statement, Your paper reeks. Michael @ www.formerquartertonman.com

LAME…

Since when does a letter to the editor full of bigotry get elevated to the status of a “guest columnist” because the boys and girls playing editor are having a slow day ?

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I’m so tired of you whiny little pains in the tails complaining about someone who brings your world to you in your face and chuckles while you’re forced to look at yourself.
You’re fat, if you’re fat. You know you’re fat, nobody can ever tell you what you need to do about being fat.
The fat piece was analogous to the smoking on campus issue.
You whiny bitches demanded that smoking OUTSIDE should be banned…and over a few years, you got your demand under the “health hazard” banner – when such light exposure was more about how cigarettes stink as opposed to actual damage to your lungs and sinus cavities. If you didn’t like cigarette smoke, you should have walked FASTER!!!
But you whined, and you got what you wanted codified.
Obesity is a greater health hazard that puts a greater strain on life as a student. Obese people put a greater strain on student health clinics, increase student health insurance rates, require increase in capital costs to accommodate higher body weights on public and classroom seating, require additional capital expenditure on UNM shuttles, and if we just want to gripe about things smelling…
Obese people have a bit tougher time getting to all those sweat-filled crevices with a washcloth.
Ban obese people from University?
NEVER.
Both are a choice (and don’t even think about lying to myself or yourself as if it’s not).
You either choose to talk yourself into believing that you are healthy as you stuff that second double cheeseburger in your mouth, or you choose to talk yourself into believing that you are healthy, but you can’t climb a flight of stairs because your lungs have a bunch of tar in them or are constricted by the fat accumulation around your heart & liver.
Stop lying to yourself, and stop demanding that people never tell you the truth – even if it is a bit of comedy!
In other words, stop crying. You keep telling people that you’re an adult, but FAR TOO MANY OF YOU act like and are a bunch of spoiled, overpaid, over-privileged, stinky, dimwitted children.

Mister Oh

You parents had to put a pork chop around your neck so he would play with you didn’t they?

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wwjd?

what would jarred do?

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here is a simple diet for any fat people that works. Really. Its the 4 to 1 diet. Eat four good meals low in carbs and fat then eat a meal that you want.. anything… burgers, pizza, etc then the next four meal make then good. Soups are great, fish, sherbet. Stay away from boxed foods and only eat whole wheat. I eat a lot of Subway but bypass mayo go with honey mustard and try the roasted chicken breast. If you must then only drink diet sodas. Lots of water and some exercise. No cereal and if your busy then try a low cal/low fat microwaveable dinner. This is why I am not sympathetic. I practice this simple diet and it works. So quit bitching, I guarantee it works just take some responsibility.

I also eat a lot of salad. love them and you get addicted after a while and missed them. Green spinach, a chicken breast cooked without butter or fat but well seasoned — try Pam add what ever you like. I love avocados. Yes they are high on “good” fat. Also try low cal dressing. have fun finding what you love. Salads are an ever going experiment in textures and taste. Between salads and soups, chicken and vegetable I get my four fixes easily then if I want a burger I pig out.

Freedom of speech anyone!!! I have read and agree that the article is a piece of thrash. It is not the job of the Daily Lobo to sincere an opinion, merely their job to present it for debate. I do not agree with the article, but there are some that might. If the article did nothing more then bring the topic of obesity to the front of our minds, it was worth it. Like a land fill we can take this trash and build something good from it.

What all those who tout freedom of speech as the universal answer to those who criticize their opinion and tell them to shut up, fail to realize is simple. All actions have consequences. “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction”, according to Newtons laws of physics, but let me be the first to tell you, that specific law previously mentioned does NOT just apply to physics, but to life in general.
Case in point, Mr. Murthey published a piece of Hate filled Rhetoric (supposedly a satire, though I don’t buy that argument) and in return, hate filled responses flooded the net. All opinions have a backlash and in a similar situation, all actions have consequences. Please consider this before you continue to abusively cite freedom of speech as your universal response to criticism, whether you love or despise Mr. Murthey for his opinion.

Maybe fat people should not be fat?

This is completely ridiculous; for one, that this column was ever allowed in the newspaper, and second, that the Daily Lobo is now trying to cover themselves. Perhaps, I would be able to print an article about a hate of the Hispanic culture, the African American culture, women, children, hippies, or any other group I encounter on a daily basis throughout the campus (obviously, I do not actually discriminate against any of the above stated). My point is that, the claims that, “Serving a relatively small community, the Daily Lobo receives a limited number of letters to the editor each day,” is not a remedy for printing this article. Just because you do not have any news or opinions to print for the day does now warrant the printing of hate-speech for the sake of “filling the paper”. I’ll look for the opinion on “How I would get rid of the greedy Jews” the next time there is a slow news day.

We need to remember that the Daily Lobo is a student run publication. Especially during this time of the semester, mistakes happen. Yes, the column was absurd and should not have been printed. However, they’ve admitted their wrong in the most formal way possible, so we need to accept their apology.

p.s. Replacing the word “fat” with “black” completely changes the context of the letter because there obviously was never a period in US history when fat people were enslaved. In short, that was a dumb argument!