Letters to the Editor
Police should patrol drag-racing area
This is in reference to the recent accident on Kalaniana'ole Highway involving teenagers racing their cars and the senseless death of another young life. Fortunately, no innocent motorist or pedestrian was hurt or killed.
Residents in this area are very familiar with racing cars on this stretch of road since this takes place all too frequently. One solution to this problem would be to post police officers during the late evening and early morning hours, or at least have them patrol the area regularly.
Obviously, these teenagers will continue to participate in this ridiculous and dangerous activity. It is up to the community and police to work together in preventing this whenever possible. Police need to patrol these areas and residents need to report this type of activity whenever they hear or see it taking place.
Cristina Andrews
Anti-gambling stance is missing the point
Your editorial staff is missing the point by taking an anti-gambling stance. Please think rationally. Your continued editorials are one-dimensional.
Gambling would eliminate the need for our high state income tax. Gambling would provide extra money to create higher-paying jobs. Our state and city wouldn't have to worry about where our next dollar is coming from.
The issue is: Who is going to reap the profits — the city, the counties, the state, the casinos, the hotels, the Hawaiians? Let's divide it up.
Carole Brooks
Time has come for surfing recognition
I am a former Hawai'i state and U.S. surfing champion, having competed in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. While I was in high school, I tried to convince my school to recognize the ancient Hawaiian sports of outrigger canoe paddling and surfing as competitive sports activities within the school system.
Notwithstanding the obvious "local roots" and popularity of these activities, I was met with objections based on concerns about safety and potential liability. I really did not see how surfing or canoe paddling could be any more dangerous than contact sports that were already recognized in the schools at that time, such as football and wrestling. I am glad to see that outrigger canoe paddling has been part of most school sports programs for a number of years.
It now looks as if the time has come for the schools to give surfing the recognition it deserves and allow this ancient sport of Hawaiian kings (and queens) to be part of the school curriculum.
Evie Black
Bush nominations raise serious question
While browsing the U.S. Senate calendar recently, I was shocked to discover two very disturbing nominations for federal service: Janet Rehnquist has been nominated by President Bush to the post of inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services. Bush also nominated Eugene Scalia to be solicitor for the Department of Labor.
These names are no coincidence. They are, in fact, relatives of Supreme Court justices.
What makes it even more alarming is that — if this is indeed a quid pro quo to conservative members of the Supreme Court — these are only same-surname nominees. Are there others?
Naturally, quid pro quo in Washington is about as surprising as a McDonald's in a strip-mall. But if this is actually a case of quid pro quo with the Supreme Court — the same Supreme Court who ushered Bush into office — that would be highly disturbing.
Ken Armstrong
State GOP position on abortion centrist
The 2000 Hawai'i Republican Party state platform does not directly address the abortion issue by acknowledging a woman's right to choose as determined by the courts.
The platform states, "Hawai'i Republicans advocate: the right, as determined by the courts, of every woman to make her own decision regarding abortion, but we oppose partial-birth abortion."
As you can see, the party has officially adopted a more centrist position consistent with the majority of the people in Hawai'i.
Darwin L.D. Ching
Republican Platform Committee Chairman
Republicans forced Democrats to center
I read with interest the June 6 article "Hawai'i GOP, Democrats looking alike." The headline, if taken literally, would lead the average citizen to believe that his or her vote does not matter because both parties are the same.
Could it be that the blurred lines between the parties were caused by an assertive group of 19 Republican House members and three Republican senators who, in this legislative session, pulled bills that were important to voters?
For the first time, Democrats in the House had to vote publicly on bills such as raising the age of consent and taxing food and medicine. Suddenly, Democrats were supporting Republican bills that were popular with the public. That certainly made the Legislature seem more Republican.
There are vast differences in the philosophies of our two parties. One of the greatest is that as Republicans, we understand the need for balance and a two-party system in Hawai'i. The citizens of our state can no longer afford one-party dominance, which is beholden to special-interest groups and therefore finds it impossible to enact meaningful reforms.
Republicans favor decentralizing our school system with local school boards selected by their communities, whereas Democrats favor our current centralized system run by bureaucrats.
After years of hearing Republicans vilified, perhaps The Advertiser's article is a compliment. With the lines so "blurred," we must have had a real impact in moving the Democrats to the center to address issues that matter to the people.
Miriam Hellreich
National committeewoman, Republican Party of Hawai'i
State GOP hypocritical on Hawaiian issues
When I first read the news reports of the Hawai'i Republican Party's convention resolution supporting the Akaka Bill, which seeks to establish a legal status for Native Hawaiians similar to that of American Indians, I thought they had suddenly become aware of the justice of this Democratic proposal. But it's merely a continuation of their cynical attitude toward the Native Hawaiian people and their record of pandering to Native Hawaiian voters.
After annexation, when the territorial government was required to give the franchise to all citizens, the Republicans made sure that Hawaiians, who made up the largest voting bloc, were placed in government positions. During election campaigns, Republican candidates and their party held huge lu'aus in Hawaiian precincts in an effort to seal up their vote. And they laughed about it.
Now, in a similar fashion, the Republicans, after the decision in Rice v. Cayetano and the formation of the Aloha 'Aina party, think their statement will swing the Hawaiian voters over to their side.
In late 2000, when two Republican senators were able to block passage of the bill, the Hawai'i Republicans offered absolutely no assistance to our congressional delegation. And earlier this year, when President Bush nominated Theodore Olsen, who argued the case for Rice against the OHA voting scheme, to be solicitor general, the Hawai'i Republicans were again silent.
If the Republicans hope to gain support of Native Hawaiians, they will have to match their words with action.
Walter M. Heen
Group's watch-dogging of legislator a waste
Mitch Kahle and his group appear overzealous in watch-dogging Rep. William Stonebraker's use of assets and political funding. Can't he see that his activities save taxpayer dollars and promote the well-being of our citizens?
What wrong is committed by Stonebraker in allowing high school students to call him at work to reserve space for a baccalaureate ceremony (or for any reason)? The majority of students involved in activities like baccalaureates are students upon whom we don't need to later spend money for rehabilitation in drug centers, halfway homes, hospitals, job retraining centers and jails. I'd much rather have a legislator's aide spend 30 seconds of his or her time taking a phone message from a student (cost is what, 10 cents or less?) than thousands of dollars further down the road.
Furthermore, Kahle's organization is the one costing the taxpayers money by drumming up nonexistent offenses that tie up the offices of the Ethics Commission and keep busy people like Stonebraker away from their official duties.
I believe this is because Kahle and Hawai'i Citizens for the Separation of State and Church have the separation of church and state issue backward: the Founding Fathers of America were Christians who came here to escape the persecution of the government; it was not the government that came to America to escape the church.
Lani Nicholson
Smoking-ban signs should be posted
Smoking on public school property or events is still going on. There was no enforcement by school officials or police who attended the Kaiser High, McKinley High and Pearl City High School graduations.
I have a simple solution. Put up signs that read: "No smoking on public school property — by school regulations" and "No smoking at public school events — by school regulations."
If money for the signs is the issue, get some from the tobacco settlement fund. The money will be well spent.
Alvin Wong
Pearl City
Attorney general is hypocritical on lying
I agree with the advertisement that was placed in your newspaper on June 10. The ad referred to the attorney general's insistence on prosecuting former state Senate President Richard Wong.
Perhaps the attorney general's office should take a look at itself before it goes after others for perjury. In fact, if the attorney general's office could be prosecuted every time it told a lie to prevent an injured person from receiving a dollar, it would be in court daily.
Perhaps it is time for an elected attorney general so that control of our resources will be given back to the public, where it belongs.
Laurie Turner
Okinawan artists wanted for exhibit
My name is Julian Igue and I am the Peruvian grandson of Okinawan immigrants to Peru.
There is an important Okinawan community here in Peru. I would like to organize a big international art exhibition in Lima as one of the celebrations of the 10th anniversary of the first Okinawan immigration to Peru, and I need help to contact Okinawan artists in Okinawa, Hawai'i and Los Angeles. I would like to invite them to exhibit pieces here.
We have built a young, small, virtual community as a first step to our official Peru-Okinawa Web page. You can visit it at: http://espanol. clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/okinawensesenelperu/ It's in Spanish, but you can see the pictures of the young Peruvian-born Okinawans performing.
Julian Igue
Lima, Peru
Harbor privatization reasoning is illogical
Thank you for your coverage of the privatization of the Ala Wai and Ke'ehi boat harbors. You reported that the governor justifies doing this on the grounds that "he who uses it, pays for it."
This sounds fair but does not hold up to scrutiny because it extends into "he who does not use it, does not pay for it," a position that might lead a taxpayer to assert that since he or she neither goes to school nor college, he or she should not pay for either.
A taxpayer could likewise argue that he or she does not wish to pay for either the police or the penal system since he or she neither committed a crime nor was imprisoned. Likewise, a taxpayer could balk at paying for the State Hospital in Kane'ohe or other state hospitals since he or she was neither mentally ill nor in need of a doctor.
Our general taxes pay for a whole slew of services that citizens want but which are not wanted by every citizen. A maritime state has harbors and a land-locked state has highways: That's the way it is.
If the state expenditure is reasonable and reasonable fees are charged for it to make up for it and recapitalize it, why do we need the state to hand over our state properties to private parties so that money can be made on the use of every state service?
If marina operators want to come into the state and set up marinas, then fine. Those who want to use their services may do so. If they prefer to stay put in the state marina, fine. The rents at marinas should be based on the expenditures made on them, not on the establishment of the profit margin they can sustain.
A. Fred Madlener
Kane'ohe
We owe so much to World War II veterans
Three cheers and more for Alan Reid's "Thanks, veterans, for the freedom" commentary published on June 8. His incisive comments should be printed in every newspaper and be on the flyleaf of every history book in the country. It should be required reading for every student and citizenship applicant.
Reid concisely writes what a few folks only think about. We do owe so much to our soldiers and sailors, who kept the wolf from our shores.
Here in Hawai'i, particularly on O'ahu, we still have the opportunity to visit with many of these old (vanishing) World War II veterans. Find one, say hello and thank him.
Bob and Julie Henderson
Kane'ohe
