Editor's note: This week in comments is a new feature of the Viewpoint page that summarizes activity in The Daily Times Internet discussion forum. All quotes are taken directly from the forum and are not edited from their original form.
Outrage was the word of the week on the discussion forum as dozens of readers voiced their disgust over the story about the sentencing of a 70-year-old Navajo medicine man from Utah for raping a 15-year-old girl.
"this is a disgrace! and it is disgusting"
"Rape is rape. Being a 70-year-old medicine man does not give anyone the right to steal a 15-year-old youth ... "
"This further brings awarness that Parents need to continue teaching small children about inappropriate behavior and touching."
"He is certainly a danger to the community, more specifically a danger to adolescent girls." While the outcry was nearly universal, some focused their anger on the court system rather than the defendant. Many commenters were upset that the District Attorney's Office sought a plea bargain in this case and recommended only three years. District Judge John Dean's statement that the defendant should expect more than a year in jail also caused tempers to flare.
"He is simply a sick old man, and he deserves more than 3 years for this crime."
"It is short because our marvelous (soon to be ex) DA let him plead to a lesser charge"
"The point is that 3 years was the statutory maximum IF he had been convicted as charged. Rather than get into a real courtroom fight, the DA's office took the path of least resistance to secure a conviction."
"I too feel disgusted about our DA and some Judges, when are they ever going to realize you have to hold people accountable for their choices?"
Several posts ended up needing to be deleted because of vulgar and profane comments directed toward the victim. At least one commenter advised those angry at the courts to channel their rage elsewhere.
"The Judge does not write the laws. If you don't like the fact that the maximum time a Defendant can receive for committing this type of crime is three years then you need to talk to your legislators and get the laws changed."
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After Cornelia de Bruin's article last Sunday comparing the problematic service at Farmington's airport with the relative success of Durango's, many commenters responded with their own frank diagnoses of the situation.
"Why don't the morons who run Farmington just accept the fact that Durango has won the airport competition for commercial service."
"So why didn't Farmington think ahead and instead of the mess we now have on Crouch Mesa, why don't we have a better airport? No, instead they spend money on a restuarant that nobody eats at."
"I live in Aztec and I fly in and out of Durango/La Plata for two reasons. 1: Quieter planes 2: Lower airfares."
"The whole experience on Mesa got to be so miserable that everyone changed their habits and now it's unlikely they'll be willing to change back to boarding in Farmington. "
Other commenters had not only a diagnosis, but also a prescription for curing Farmington's airport ills.
"I just cant figure out why Farmington needs an airport when Durango is doing such a good job when Durango's airport is just up the road. It really is a huge waste of money,"
"I think Farmington DOES need an airport, but maybe not airline service when DRO is so close. You can't be this size of town in the sticks without an airport, especially in the oil and gas business. But also for air ambulance service."
"Farmington should just close it's airport to the public and only allow private and government planes to land and take-off there."
"I'm anxious to see if the Vision airlines takes root. The Dornier 328 Turbo is a really nice airplane that you can actually stand up inside and it has a flight attendent and restroom. Vision said they are thinking about trips to Vegas in the future from FCR."
For the most part, the commenters seemed well-informed and the discussion was civil. This doesn't mean the topic didn't fall victim to old-fashioned Internet annoyances. This is just the sort of comment the Web site could do without.
"You are truly an idiot and have know idea what you are talking about."
To comment on stories at The Daily Times Web site, visit www.daily-times.com, click on the story you wish to comment on and scroll to the form at the bottom of the page. Patrick Hogan is the online editor for The Daily times and a moderator in the discussion forum. He can be reached through e-mail at phogan@daily-times.com.
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