Opinion - The Daily Lobo

Opinion

Letter: Newspapers should be more careful about the opinions they publicize

Daily Lobo Readers | September 17

Editor, I am a graduate of the University of New Mexico School of Law '11 and an immigration attorney in Santa Fe. I appreciate your need to print a variety of opinions about current events. On it's face, in fact, Ryan Margraf's Sept. 14 letter "Trump Faces Sensitive Topic With Immigration" is a fine opinion. It misstates many facts and reeks of conservative bigotry but it is, after all, Mr. Margraf's opinion. Editor, I think you need to consider this headline: Daily Lobo faces sensitive topic with immigration. A letter you may consider innocuous civil discourse threatens the safety of students on your campus. UNM proudly welcomes students of all immigration statuses and seeing anti-immigrant sentiments in print, even when they are opinions, can be terrifying and isolating to immigrant students in an environment where they are simply trying to learn and thrive like everyone else.

Opinion

Letter: Colonial islands are systematically neglected by rich nations

Daily Lobo Readers | September 17

Editor, Is it surprising that so many Caribbean islands have been given short shrift by the occupying colonial powers, both in preparation for Hurricane Irma and in the aftermath, when entire islands have been leveled to the extent they are uninhabitable? Britain has been particularly culpable in this regard, to where there has been serious shortage of food and water. But then, when has a colonial power historically cared enough about the well being of its “native subjects” in its far-flung territories?

Opinion

Guest Column: BioBlog — Feathered Dinosaurs

Guest Columnsits | September 15

Did Tyrannosaurus rex, one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs, have feathers? Though feathers are inherently thought of as a trait that only birds posses, there is more than ample evidence to suggest that this apex predator could have had more than just scales. Jenna McCullogh discusses the evolution of birds, their feathers and what scientists think T. rex looked like in the UNM BioBlog.

Opinion

Column: Trump faces a sensitive topic with immigration

Ryan Margraf | September 14

President Trump must call upon Congress to build a big, beautiful, humane border wall with Mexico, a state whose government has gone so far as to publish pamphlets on how their ever-so-economically valuable citizens can infiltrate the U.S. without detection. In the same breath, he must also call upon Congress to grant Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients a path to citizenship. When President Trump announced the end of DACA, there were local protests abound. University administrators nationwide came right on cue, stating their unconditional support of undocumented students.

Opinion

Letter: Trump's shots at the EPA directly affect UNM finances

Daily Lobo Readers | September 13

Editor, UNM’s budget is at risk, and it’s not from Santa Fe this time. President Trump and his cronies in the energy sector have the EPA in their crosshairs. While the connection to our campus isn’t obvious at first, the EPA provides funding for numerous research programs around campus, such as the College of Pharmacy's Center for Native American Health Equity Research. The EPA has promised 1.5 Million to this program, which will allow UNM, with the help of Montana State and Washington Universities, continue to study the impacts of uranium mining on the Navajo Nation, Crow Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe.

Opinion

Letter: Change for the better is within your grasp

Daily Lobo Readers | September 13

Editor, With much help from many people, I have made many major changes in my life. I grew up in a mostly white Illinois farm community. I now enjoy living in a mostly people of color neighborhood in New Mexico’s largest city. I grew up in a 10-room, two-story house, plus attic and cellar. I now enjoy living in one sunny rented room 9 ½ by 12 feet. As a youth I was spoiled with too many toys, clothes, books and records. I now enjoy living on less than half the U.S. poverty level for me, as a single person.

Opinion

Letter: David Harris defends himself from cronyism allegations

Daily Lobo Readers | September 13

Editor, On September 11, you published an letter by an individual named Brian Fejer, which contained numerous inflammatory comments regarding my service to the University of New Mexico over the past thirteen years. While Mr. Fejer’s knowledge of the administrative actions during my tenure amount to no more than biased conjecture and interpretation, I understand that he is welcome to his opinion. However, his piece contains so many inaccuracies that it is difficult to know where to begin.

Opinion

We'll always remember what we were doing on 9/11

Nichole Harwood | September 10

There are certain memories that become cemented in your mind. Certain events, times and places that when they happen, you know you are going to remember where you were and what you were doing at the time for the rest of your life when it occurred. You’ll remember even if you don’t understand why. The viewing of the news feed of the attack on Sept. 11, 2001 is certainly one of those memories. According to an Aug. 2011 Pew Research survey, “97 percent of Americans who were at least eight years old when the attacks happened said they remembered exactly where they were or what they were doing when they heard the news.”

Opinion

Letter: UNM is rife with cronyism

Daily Lobo Readers | September 10

Editor, The two worst governors in this failed state's history, Republican Susana Martinez and Democrat Bill Richardson, left a corrupt and vile stain on the University of New Mexico! UNM needs to drain the swamp of all appointees of these crooked Governors. Cronyism is defined as the practice of awarding jobs to friends or trusted colleagues, especially in politics and between politicians and supportive organizations. This also includes appointing "cronies" to positions of authority, regardless of their qualifications! Why does UNM VP for Finance David Harris still have a job, after the LOBO/Scotland/Pit debacles?

Opinion

Letter: What is Albuquerque doing to attract commerce?

Daily Lobo Readers | September 10

Editor, Several cities across America are competing to host Amazon's second headquarters! The company is looking for a city with a population of at least one million people, a strong university system and a stable and business-friendly environment. The winning city would see an investment from Amazon of $5 billion and 50,000 new jobs created. As much as I would love to see Albuquerque win this bid to have Amazon boost the New Mexico economy, I hate to admit we have a slim-to-none chance of having Amazon build their second headquarters here.

Opinion

BioBlog: Politics, science and Thomas Jefferson

Guest Columnists | September 7

Editor's Note: This piece was originally published online in the UNM BioBlog on Sept. 12 2012. This is part of our new project to help connect the Daily Lobo audience to more members of our community. In February of this year, the New York Times published an article called "Why don't Americans elect scientists?" — the essay noted that while other nations value leaders who hold advanced degrees in science (German Chancellor Angela Merkel has a doctorate in physical chemistry), it is often a liability in the United States. In the 2012 House of Representatives, for example, there are only nine scientists among the 435 members; compare that with the 200 who are lawyers. In the United States, science has become a tool to exploit public opinion on controversial issues, or as the article put it, American politicians use numbers “to provide decoration rather than information.”

Opinion

Letter: Don't be swayed by media misinformation

Daily Lobo Readers | September 6

Editor, “Those who are able to see beyond the shadows and lies of their culture will never be understood, let alone believed, by the masses.” — Plato The Nazi propagandist Josef Goebbels is generally thought to have said, “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.”

Opinion

Letter: Trump's appeasers/enablers are the real snowflakes in safe spaces

Daily Lobo Readers | September 6

Editor, Here, in the reality-based community, The reason there are no statues of Nazi War Heroes in Germany is because, they lost, just like the treasonous confederacy. These statues are not historical relics of the Civil War, but 20th century symbols of propaganda and Jim Crow White Supremacy. If they belong anywhere, they belong in museums. Poor Trump snowflakes.

Opinion

Fall Sports Issue: Column — How to plan a great tailgate

Matthew Narvaiz | September 4

Football season is among us. And with football comes the pregame festivities — a tailgate. Tailgates are a national treasure for football fans, regardless of the team they root for. I mean, who doesn’t enjoy some grilled meats, ice-cold brews and being in the presence of close friends and family? Probably haters, that’s who. But a tailgate can always be improved with the proper preparation, starting with purchasing everything needed to actually gear up for one, and also following some universal rules that won’t ruin your, or anyone else’s, experience. Here's a list some of those preparations needed.

Opinion

Letter: Athletics budget issues would be unacceptable for anyone else

Daily Lobo Readers | September 4

Editor, Math is not everyone’s strong point. Many of us admittedly try not to bother with it. But when you are getting ripped off, it pays to start asking questions about numbers. Students here at UNM have been suffering. Tuition costs are rising, and lottery scholarships are falling. Each and every one of us have been sacrificing whether we know it not. Consider for a moment on how you sacrifice.

Opinion

Fall Sports Issue: Letter — With a new athletics director, it’s time to clean the books

Daily Lobo Readers | September 4

Editor, The recent announcement by the University of Eddie Nuñez’ appointment as the new UNM Athletics Director symbolizes more than a new hiring — this is a badly needed opportunity for UNM Athletics to hit the reset button. As a graduating senior and as a former student government staffer, I have seen nothing but fiscal mismanagement from the UNM Athletics Department during the time I have been in college. Last year, it seemed as though there was always a new financial controversy from the Athletics Department.

Culture

Fall Sports Issue: Column — Greatest sports movies of all time

Robert Maler | September 4

Sports has often served as a way of bringing people together who otherwise may not have anything in common with each other—but discussing where things in sports rank all-time is almost a sure-fire way to tear it all down. Here is a list of where some of the more notable sports movies rank, according to the Daily Lobo sports editor that may be fun to pick apart. The categories focus on the “big three” American sports and other popular sports genres in film. Some otherwise fine films were not considered for the list if it was determined that they fell into romantic comedy status or relied too much on nostalgia, for example “Jerry Maguire” and “Field of Dreams." Baseball: Editor Pick: A tie right off the bat (pun intended). “The Natural” (1984) and “Major League” (1989). Many people consider Robert Redford’s portrayal of Roy Hobbs his finest acting role.

Opinion

Fall Sports Issue: Column — Most memorable moments in Lobo history

Matthew Narvaiz | September 4

There are moments that define sports history at large. Spectacles such as the recent Mayweather-McGregor boxing match that, according to UFC president Dana White, sold 6.5 million pay-per-views — which would make it the most sold pay-per-view event of all time — and put on a 10-round show, that saw Floyd Mayweather win via TKO over the young-gun Conor McGregor. In other cases, there was one of the most famous Finals appearances, that saw — as many consider the greatest of all-time — Michael Jordan, while experiencing flu like symptoms, push his way to a 38-point performance to grab a 3-2 lead over the Utah Jazz in the 1997 NBA Finals.

Opinion

Letter: A new year, a challenge

Daily Lobo Readers | August 30

Dear UNM Community, I ask you each to consider something right now: How can you reach out and welcome the stranger in your midst? Are you bold enough to see — really see — another person? Do you recognize that you can make a difference in someone's life? My son will not be a sophomore this year at UNM.

Opinion

Letter: Why do some old people get cranky?

Daily Lobo Readers | August 30

Editor, I hear you already. All old people aren't cranky. I have a friend who is 96 years old and is the delight of all who know her. She is independent. She works in her garden every summer. She drives herself to church and the grocery store. She exercises a couple of times a day. She lives in a very small humble house, but it's her place, and she takes care of her home. Too often, my wife and I are out and "hear" crotchety old people. Often they are battering the waitress about the service or the food. Often we get out of their way at the grocery store in fear of being maimed for life by a grocery cart. When visiting in Florida, we look both ways when crossing the road more than once, because of several occasions we've almost been run over by a senior adult.