Letters to the Editor
Cayetano is wrong on age-of-consent law
He just doesn't get it. Gov. Ben Cayetano responded angrily to becoming the first governor in 40 years to have a veto overridden. Accusing the Legislature of caving in to political pressure, Cayetano said legislators failed to address the needs of the public.
What Cayetano fails to understand is that it is exactly that public — some 70 percent or more of us, by some counts — who feels the legislation is needed.
According to Cayetano, the new law will unfairly penalize 19-year-olds who have sex with 14-year-olds. Huh? Any 19-year-old boy or girl who is taking advantage of someone five years younger certainly deserves prosecution under the new law. A young man or woman — old enough to vote, drive and serve in the military — is certainly not a social, emotional or sexual peer of a middle-school student.
If there are flaws in the new law, those flaws can be addressed in the future. For now, it is far more important that our children are protected.
Ken Armstrong
Criticism of WWII letter wasn't well-founded
My May 17 letter regarding the two current World War II films "Merdeka" and "Pearl Harbor" drew a response from UH Professor Valdo Viglielmo on May 28 implying that I held, as he put it, "a blanket condemnation of all Japanese people."Indeed, its bold heading, "All Japanese aren't to blame," reinforced this racist charge. Such blanket assertions warrant and deserve a response.
Since the first of many travels to Japan a quarter-century ago, I developed a keen academic interest in understanding that nation's past. Moreover, I was married in the Japanese Buddhist temple I had been a member of and have a daughter who is hapa-Japanese. My father-in-law, a stockbroker, had been an economist for the Imperial war machine that drove Asia into the mass carnage I wrote about.
My primary sources to the alluded war treacheries, however, have been my father, a naval officer and physician in the South Pacific, as well as uncles who served both in the air and on Pacific beaches throughout the war. Family members also watched bombers loom over Moanalua Bay on Dec. 7 from Kahala.
I would have expected Viglielmo, as a self-described UH literature professor, to have been a far more careful reader of the words to my letter and set aside the expressed anti-nuke emotionalism that evidently clouded his opinion.
He "disagrees with (my) gentle treatment of U.S. military atrocities" (in Vietnam), when, in fact, I had characterized them with the words "brutalities" and "murder." He then quoted my reference to "a healthy hunger among Americans" to get to the facts by asking in the same breath, "all Americans, Mr. Hall?" Not only did my letter not "blame" "all Japanese" (each citation pointed specifically to the militarists), it made absolutely no reference to blaming, as he put it, "wartime crimes" on "the majority of the Japanese who were born after WW II."
But there were less excitable people who were far more careful readers who called to thank me for the letter, including an elderly Filipino man who lived through the horror.
W. Thomas Hall
Lanikai
Here are the facts in Ka Iwi transaction
To ensure that the facts surrounding Kamehameha Schools' sale of the Ka Iwi shoreline are not overlooked, here is a summary of what led to the final settlement:
• The property was designated by the city and state for resort and commercial development in the 1960s and '70s, and assuming full development during a real estate boom, speculation was that the property could have been worth up to $100 million.
• The city downzoned the property to preservation in 1983, thus limiting its development potential.
• Kamehameha Schools and its lessee, Kaiser Hawai'i Kai Development Corp., vigorously challenged this change with a lawsuit in 1984.
• The U.S. District Court dismissed the suit in 1986, and the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld this ruling in 1990.
• In 1991, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear further appeal of this case, upholding the government's action.
Given the reality of the court rulings, followed by the state's 1998 condemnation of the property, Kamehameha Schools appraised the property's value at $13.4 million. The state appraised it at about $10.9 million. Settlement between the parties set "just compensation" at $12.85 million plus interest.
Kamehameha Schools retains the right to repurchase the land if the state ever designates it as surplus or seeks to transfer fee ownership.
Speculation about what might have happened if circumstances were different may be interesting, but the facts of this situation are what matter most.
Hamilton I. McCubbin
Kamehameha Schools CEO
Mirikitani, Bynum helped us greatly
So much of the talk and writings have been "coming down" on Andy Mirikitani regarding his recent misfortune. Lest we forget, he was elected and then re-elected twice to serve our district. This means a great many people felt he was doing a good job.
In a number of essential areas, Andy has been a crusader against the problems plaguing our district. He has helped to enact myriad laws that work to improve our quality of life. He, his office and Sharron Bynum have done much to help and support our community.
In their time of trouble, let us send to them our good thoughts and best wishes, and thank them for all the good they have generated.
Dick Morris
Mirikitani should tell us why he's staying on
Regarding the July 11 editorial on Andy Mirikitani's decision to remain in office: Mirikitani doesn't represent just Manoa; he represents Makiki, Tantalus, McCully and maybe a few other areas — not just Manoa.
If Mirikitani just needs his paycheck, maybe he should go out and get a job — like the rest of his constituents. We need competent representation on the City Council.
In the five years I have been a resident in this district, I have never seen Mirikitani — even during a campaign. I've never gotten anything in the mail from his office. Oh, wait — I guess I did get a form letter a few years ago in response to a complaint. Not a solution to the problem, just passing the buck — just a form letter.
Even now, he should be walking his district door-to-door to tell us why he should remain in office. Don't explain just to the other council members — tell us. We are the ones who put him there.
I would like to see him point out just one thing he has done for the residents of his district to make our lives better. Give us just one reason why he should remain in office. He has no influence on the council; he is not a part of any committee. He would better serve his constituents by showing class and concern for the people he represents and resigning now.
The people of Honolulu need full, effective representation on the council — so does our district.
Fran Orian
Just say no to felons
To improve our City Council, it may be a good idea if we picked politicians who were not in prison or just about to go in, if any such there be.
Rian McMullin
Kane'ohe
Traffic cameras may be just to hike revenues
I read your July 9 editorial about traffic cameras with bemused skepticism.
As reported in several stories by The Honolulu Advertiser, once the local politicians discover they can raise revenues by shortening the time of the yellow light, it happens. As several stories in this paper illustrate, it very quickly becomes an issue of revenues vs. safety.
Since the method of financing the cameras gives a percentage of each ticket to the company building or installing the cameras, an obvious conflict of interest is present. Only the government would allow such an obvious conflict.
Unfortunately, this system is coming to Hawai'i, and I reluctantly anticipate this paper uncovering the inevitable story that local politicians have manipulated the cameras and lights to increase revenues instead of increasing safety.
William C. Grund
Fine should be tough for using cell phone
If you want to drive, drive.
If you want to talk on the phone, pull over and talk on the phone.
I used to joke with my friends: "I don't answer the phone when I am driving. I have to shift gears, smoke my cigarette and now answer the phone? I'll spill my beer."
It's not funny any more, in view of the near-disasters I've encountered on the roads recently and serious accidents others have experienced.
The penalty for using a cell phone should be no less than for holding a beer while driving.
Lisa Wiley
Waimanalo landfill must be addressed
Imagine for a moment that a landfill is located next to the Convention Center in Waikiki for the next 12 years to greet both tourists and residents alike with unwelcome flies, odor and trash. Ignore the fact that the Convention Center and Waikiki are important economic engines of this state.
Unimaginable? Well, it has been a reality for residents and visitors to Ko Olina Resort and Kapolei for several years. The Waimanalo landfill is not a simple "not in backyard" case because the landfill has been in Kapolei's backyard for the last 12 years.
Kapolei residents should no longer be expected to suffer littered roadways and unsightly views. It is time to recognize that Kapolei is an area of major investment, not only by private companies but by the state and city governments as well. To ignore Kapolei's potential as an important economic engine is unimaginable.
If the landfill has to stay, the problems associated with the landfill must be addressed. If the measures to resolve the concerns carry a cost, then maybe that is the price residents in other communities pay for keeping the landfill out of their backyards.
Dave Rae
Public Affairs Manager, James Campbell Estate
State Hospital is improving security
Recent stories characterizing all seriously mentally ill patients as dangerous do a disservice to patients at the Hawai'i State Hospital and the community.
The State Hospital is not a prison. It cares for and treats individuals who are seriously mentally ill and those deemed unfit to stand trial for their actions or are acquitted by the court.
We recognize our obligation to protect public safety and have recently made changes to improve security. For example, we have bolted down windows, installed unbreakable Laxan on all the exterior windows and removed furniture that may be used to break windows. In addition, new fencing has been put up around the perimeter of some buildings, and we're working to increase perimeter security.
Perhaps most important, the hospital's Performance Improvement Council thoroughly and independently evaluates each and every incident and make changes to improve staff performance based on what we learn.
Every elopement (unauthorized leave) is a very serious concern. It is important to note the hospital's rate of unauthorized leaves has decreased over the past six years. In 1996, the hospital had 24 elopements; in 1998, there were 25; last year there were 16.
The Advertiser has implied that the hospital has allowed potentially dangerous individuals to leave, with no warning to the public. The police are contacted within an hour when it has been determined a patient has eloped. The police, in turn, release whatever information is determined to be necessary to aid in their search.
If there is an imminent danger to the community, appropriate information is made public by the police as they can best determine how to protect public safety while finding and returning individuals to the hospital.
Like any hospital, we are bound by laws that protect the rights of individuals with mental illness. These laws protect our most vulnerable and encourage those who need treatment to seek it out. Prisons are built to secure criminals. Hospitals are to provide care and treatment for patients. There must be a clear division between the two or we risk regressing to a time not so long ago when we locked away our mentally ill and tried to forget about them.
Let's not go there.
Bruce S. Anderson
State director of health
