While Lu Buxuan has won much public sympathy, his story, of a university-graduate-turned butcher, has triggered a lively debate over China's century-old reverence for the diploma.

Many angrily denounce what they regard as a waste of talent, but others choose to study the issue from a more analytical viewpoint.

More than 3,000 netizens participated in an online survey about the subject conducted by sina.com. About 71 per cent said Lu's experience did not merit the public's wrath, arguing that possession of a diploma does not necessarily guarantee that someone is talented.

Only 21 per cent considered Lu's story an example of wasted talent, while 7 per cent remained undecided.

A commentary in China Youth Daily hailed Lu's case as an indication of social progress in China in the midst of its transition from a planned to a market economy.

"The market-economy era is giving all citizens more freedom to make their own choices, and all people have the right to freely choose their way of life," the commentary said.

"It is the common rule that any competitive society will bring about both opportunities for free choice and due risks, as there are always losers in any competition."

The piece stressed that Lu's fate was as natural as that of a billionaire who ends up incurring heavy debt.

Cao Lin, a media commentator, went further to describe Lu's case as a blow to China's outdated tradition of equating a person's educational level with the sort of job they should have.

"Critics tend to believe that just because Lu was the top student from his county and got into Peking University does not necessarily mean he is qualified for the best jobs," Cao said in a commentary in the Guangzhou-based Southern Weekend.

"While Lu's experience has resulted in personal misfortune, it will greatly benefit the rational use of talent ... because continued diploma-worship will only damage the utilization of talent in a rational society," asserted Cao.

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