Opinion - The Daily Lobo

Opinion

Saying Israeli intelligence created Hamas is incorrect

October 9

Editor, It is to his credit that columnist Richard Berthold has become a defender of freedom of expression, particularly his own. Unfortunately, he does not believe that there is a need for expressed facts to be true. He was correct to state that Hamas was not created by Iran, but to write it was by Israeli intelligence can only resemble the concept of the big lie - saying something so preposterous one must assume it is true.

Opinion

UNM community to blame for minimizing hate crime

October 8

Editor, A hate crime is not "punishing someone for what he thinks," as Richard Berthold claims in his column published in the Daily Lobo on Thursday, but for what he does. It is because of seemingly intellectual propaganda such as this that today, the "Namaste Kicker" is likely to be let off with no more than a slap on the wrist.

Opinion

Society should value love over violence between men

October 8

Editor, I would not give up my strong romantic attraction for certain men for all the money and fame in the world. The main purpose of sex is not to make more babies, especially with the soaring world population of 6.6 billion people. The main purpose of sex is a mutually affectionate, pleasurable connection between persons - female and female, female and male, male and male.

Opinion

Cuba's health care covetable

Howard Waitzkin | October 8

Mark Erasmus' letter published in the Daily Lobo on Wednesday contains errors and distortions that misrepresent health care in Cuba. I have visited Cuba four times in the last 30 years for in-depth study of the Cuban public health system and primary care services. Although some problems arise in any system, the Cuban approach to health care has achieved remarkable accomplishments.

Opinion

GPSA wants to change UNM's hostile environment

October 5

Editor, GPSA will make some very important decisions this Saturday as a response to the recent events inspired by racial and ethnic hatred. Three separate resolutions - FR07-008: Anti-Discrimination and Hate Crimes, FR07-007: Diversity and Equity, and FR07-006: International Student Rights - will be introduced and discussed among the council representatives.

Opinion

Ahmadinejad should not be blamed for Iranian laws

October 5

Editor, I am writing in response to the letter by Richard Garcia published in the Daily Lobo on Tuesday. I am disappointed Garcia is joining the crowds that continue to criticize the president of Iran based on a few quotes that are floating in the media.

Opinion

If flag-tearing is a crime, flag-neglect should be too

October 5

Editor, I am so tired of reading about the flag incident from last month. We all know that Peter Lynch should not have torn the Mexican flag. An article in Thursday's Daily Lobo quotes him as saying that. So, let's move on. As far as charging him with a hate crime, I find the idea ridiculous.

Opinion

Food industry concerned with profit, not nutrition

October 5

Editor, There have been several contradictory statements regarding the efficacy of vitamin and calcium supplements in recent weeks. This critical issue merits further discussion. Evidence that calcium supplements prevent osteoporosis in older women does not square with the fact that U.

Opinion

New division will provide more support for students

October 5

Editor, This is an open letter to all UNM students. One of President David Schmidly's first priorities was to establish a division of enrollment management that would bring all the critical enrollment processes students must navigate under the responsibility of one person instead of three or four.

Opinion

City Council coverage full of misleading, lazy writing

October 4

Editor, News editor Jeremy Hunt's abysmal coverage of the Albuquerque municipal elections in "Voting begins today for City Council race" is hands down the worst reporting I've seen in the Daily Lobo. To begin with, a more accurate headline would have been "Voting ends today .

Opinion

Free speech a fragile privilege

Richard M. Berthold | October 4

by Richard M. Berthold Daily Lobo columnist While politicians of all stripes condemned them, President Lee Bollinger and Columbia University struck a blow to free speech by inviting Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the bizarre president of Iran, to speak on their campus.

Opinion

News editor consistently misinforms student body

October 4

Editor, The Daily Lobo has completely failed students in its coverage of the City Council election. The headline of Tuesday's article read "Voting begins today ...." However, voting ended Tuesday and began nearly three weeks ago. The article directs readers to the city's Web site to locate their polling places.

Opinion

Socialized medicine isn't working for Cuba's citizens

October 3

Editor, I read in the Daily Lobo on Friday about the sad, unequivocal support to the continued slavery and exploitation of the Cuban people. The belief that universal health care works for the Cuban people is founded on the lies of the Cuban government. Where do life expectancy and infant mortality statistics come from? The Cuban government itself.

Opinion

Richardson has clear plans for future nuclear budget

October 3

Editor, I personally don't see anything contradictory or wrong in Gov. Bill Richardson's statement as a presidential candidate about wanting to chop $57 billion off the nuclear weapons budget or as governor asking for some of Los Alamos budget cuts to be reinstated.

Opinion

Students need worldly education

Ken Carpenter | October 3

Although it is not well known, UNM faculty and students are involved in a remarkable array of international activities in virtually every part of the globe.

Opinion

Iran's president presents typical intolerant attitude

October 2

Editor, On his recent visit to the U.S., Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claimed, "In Iran, we don't have homosexuals like in your country." The Columbia University crowd burst into laughter. I laughed, too. I figured the educated Columbia audience was laughing because they realize that homosexuality has been a part of human nature for thousands of years.

Opinion

Money should go toward fixing campus buildings

October 2

Editor, Throughout the summer, several buildings on campus received renovations. However, Friday afternoon, I walked through Mitchell Hall and thought it was one of the most neglected buildings on campus. There was some graffiti on one of the clocks and on one of the handrails; the paint looked old; the water fountains were rusty, old and had those mossy formations on them; and the floor tiles desperately needed to be replaced.

Opinion

Column: Gandhi's ideals still relevant

Santhosh Chandrashekar | October 2

Today is Mahatma Gandhi's birthday. It is also the International Day of Nonviolence - a day to contemplate not just Gandhi's effect on world politics, but to actively think about how his concepts of peace, nonviolence and civil disobedience can be applied to redress the injustice that characterizes our world today.

Opinion

Clearing up facts about the flu

Peggy Spencer | October 1

by Peggy Spencer Daily Lobo columnist Dear Dr. Peg, I saw that the Student Health Center has flu shots, but I already had the flu last week. I puked my guts up for two days. But my roommate didn't get sick. Is that because he got the flu shot last year? Dear Puker, You didn't have the flu. You ...

Opinion

Help make no-smoking rule cover entire university

October 1

Editor, UNM is ready to go tobacco-free. Students have voted in favor of a smoke-free campus. The Staff Council passed a resolution for our campus to be a healthier place. The dean's council endorsed the same resolution. Nationwide, more than 65 colleges and universities have gone tobacco-free or smoke-free.