Opinion

Palin represents same misogyny McCain's campaign espouses

Editor, It's nice to see the Republican Party finally discovered that 51 percent of this country is made up of women, 88 years after women were given the right to vote. I think we all know why it is only now that they have joined the 21st century. It's clear the primary reason the Republican Party chose a woman is because they believe they can pick up all of those disgruntled Hillary Clinton voters we keep hearing about.

Supporting abortion rights not same as being pro-abortion

Editor, I am writing in response to Benjamin Sanchez's letter on Friday about Barack Obama, in which he suggested the senator's position on abortion is "not clear or consistent." The heart of Sanchez's argument relies on the flawed assumption that "pro-choice" is the same as being "pro-abortion.

McCain's command experience reflected in Veterans Affairs stint

Editor, Danny Lee should have checked his source when he stated in Thursday's letter: "In fact, McCain never held a command in the military." That's not true. McCain reported to Veterans Affairs 174 in Cecil Field, Fla., as the executive officer and was the commanding officer from July 1, 1976, until July 28, 1977.

Issues, not image, should be what campaign is about

Editor, Both Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin are women political leaders. The commonality between the two ends there. It is important to keep this campaign focused on the critical issues facing this country and how each side plans to tackle these issues. Where does each woman stand on the issues? Palin was elected Alaska's governor a little more than a year and a half ago.

Cartoon

Media to blame for limiting U.S. politics to two parties

Editor, Shame on you, Daily Lobo, for titling Wednesday's article covering Ralph Nader's visit "Small-party talk." And shame on UNM for not adequately getting the word out that Nader was going to be visiting campus. I understand marketing, advertising, journalism and how the media work.

Democrats dupe young voters with catch-all promises

Editor, On the first day of school, we were greeted with a Daily Lobo front-page headline: "Udall proposes plans to help pay for college." To the average student, this means his or her worries will soon be over. Didn't Barack Obama also promise free tuition in exchange for five years of community service? Remember Sen.

Veterans will be taken care of under Obama administration

Editor, On Thursday you printed a letter from Andres Saenz in which he shared his opinions about not voting for Barack Obama. You had already printed another letter from him in the week preceding classes resuming. I realize you want to share more than one perspective, but if he is the only Obama hater writing you, then that speaks for itself.

University College study available on UNM Web site

Editor, I believe I can shed some light on Michael Westervelt's article on Thursday about "Advisement blues" in University College. The investigation Westervelt refers to is the one undertaken one year ago when President David Schmidly and the UNM Board of Regents asked for a review of University College as part of the president's first-year goals.

Lobo's article on Nader shows balanced coverage

Editor, I want to thank you for putting Ralph Nader on the front page of your paper. It's easy these days for newspapers to ignore Nader even though he represents a sizable portion of Americans. I saw him speak at the College of Santa Fe, and, as always, Nader touched on many topics the two major parties tend to ignore, such as single-payer health insurance, a $10 minimum wage and complete and immediate withdrawal from Iraq.

Cartoon

Unsupported claims make poor argument against Obama

Editor, Andres Saenz may be entitled to his own opinions, but he is not entitled to make up his own facts. In his Aug. 18 letter, Saenz ignorantly claimed that Iran, Cuba and Venezuela pose a greater threat to the U.S. than Russia. Russia has the largest nuclear weapons stockpile in the world, while Iran, Cuba and Venezuela do not possess any nuclear weapons.

Legislative records, speeches prove Obama is unqualified

Editor, Two letters in Wednesday's Daily Lobo talk about good-for-America presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama and why the middle class needs him, and a brief reference to the Constitution was tossed in without talking about what the Constitution does to protect all of us.

Smoking a hookah is not like taking puffs from a cigarette

Editor, I am responding to the Q&A with Dr. Peggy Spencer published Tuesday about the health dangers of smoking hookah. Without a doubt, smoking anything increases the created amount of cancer-causing agents called carcinogens. However, very little evidence has established hookah smoking as being just as or more dangerous to one's health as cigarettes.

Obama's stance on abortion not clear or consistent

Editor, Sen. Barack Obama is having a difficult time stating his position on abortion in a clear and consistent manner. He always votes in favor of abortion and often speaks in favor of abortion, but he also speaks against abortion. Obama is either a standard politician who says what he thinks his current audience wants to hear, or he is conflicted on the issue of abortion.

Police can save lives, but concealed weapons can too

Editor, I am writing this letter in support of Jean Aragon's letter promoting concealed carry on campus that was published Monday. On Wednesday, Greg Gomez had a letter in the Daily Lobo stating firearms on campus will do more harm than good. With all due respect to his opinion, he could not be more wrong.

Unfounded Obama smears should be left in gutter

Editor, Monday's letter from Daniel Martinez cannot go unchallenged. Much of the rhetoric included there is directly from the playbook of the John McCain camp and its Swift Boat allies, and it's patently untrue. Sen. Barack Obama, for example, published his birth certificate some time ago and has made it available online.

Ask Dr. Peg

Welcome back to school! New students, welcome to UNM! I'm sure the first week has been busy with moving in, getting your schedules figured out and finding your way around campus. As you did so, did you happen to notice Student Health and Counseling (SHAC)? We're located just across from the SUB and to the east.

Cartoon

Obama doesn't deserve to be leader of free world

Editor, I believe there was some validity in Daniel Martinez's statements about Barack Obama having "shady associations." In Monday's letter, Martinez claimed, "You don't hang out with people for 20 years that hate America and not share their views." He was referring to the fact that Obama was an active member of Jeremiah Wright's congregation for 20 years.