Editor,
Pat Lohmann did a good job on the professor/student apartment-fire story (“Professor and student ask for help after blaze,” Aug. 24). At the bottom of the first column, I was prepared to give something to someone to help somehow. However, when I got to Professor Charles Truxillo’s quote, all bets were off. “I appreciate it (the help from the University) tremendously, but it’s not really like the University administration is doing it.”
When someone makes a statement and then says, “but,” you can disregard everything before the “but.” Truxillo doesn’t really appreciate it. He’s resentful. He then goes on to state he’s been teaching at UNM for three decades and tries to make a case that the University owes him something for an apartment fire on the other side of town.
I don’t know when we moved into this world of entitlements. I don’t know why Truxillo thinks the University should do anything for him. It provided him a job (probably a pretty well-paying job, by local standards) with which he could purchase renter’s insurance. People do it all the time.
When someone gets sick or hurt or is out on the street because of a fire, it’s nice if people at work help, but it’s not their problem. The problem lies with the individual who chose to roll the dice and not insure himself properly.
I do sympathize with the plight of both men, but the University is not a charitable donor. Truxillo should be truly grateful for anything the University did for him and move on to putting his own life back together by his own devices, including buying renter’s insurance in the future.
No, I’m not an insurance salesman. I hate insurance as much as the next guy. It’s just a necessary evil today.
Robert B. Trapp
Daily Lobo reader
