We at the Daily Nexus would like to apologize profusely for the contents of Tuesday’s Weather column, which included racist and offensive statements, the likes of which have no place in this newspaper.

In that day’s Weather, in which a ghostwriter employed by the Daily Nexus offers its daily two cents, we printed the following:

“In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day yesterday, I slept in until 4 p.m. and had many dreams. Tuesday’s forecast: In honor of the day after Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, today, I will be assassinated for joking about a civil rights hero…twice.”

The title of the column ran as “King of Spades.”

In an attempt to play on the word “King,” the author made a profoundly regrettable mistake.

For those who are not aware, the word “spade” has in the past been used as a racial slur.

While this may not have been the author’s intention, we recognize the potentially offensive nature of the column and its headline.

The Nexus does not tolerate racism in any form, and we would like to make it known that such offensive statements in no way represent the views of this paper or its staff.

As such, the person responsible for the statements in question has been dismissed from the staff of the Nexus.

While we have not received any complaints about the offending headline, such complaints would be justified in every respect.

We owe it to our readers to constantly strive for perfection, and to hold ourselves accountable when we make a mistake.

Our deepest apologies.