Letters to the Editor
Quit taking money out of my pockets
House Speaker Calvin Say is floating a buoy about raising taxes. He is being joined by Senate President Robert Bunda. They are talking about the 2003 or 2004 fiscal year.
Many reasons were stated in your May 1 story, printed on page A7 (could it have been buried deeper?). Say would like a tax increase to cover the amount of future government costs.
Well, I am a taxpayer. I would like a pay increase that would cover the amount of future family costs. The reality is that I must live within my family's earning capacity. Yes, my wife works, too, just so we can get by.
Forget about construction projects. They are not in my future. This is called fiscal responsibility. The government gets its cut of every extra buck I earn. Increase in revenues is built in for the government. When the population as a whole earns more, the state revenues increase.
Tax credit elimination, user fees and any other method the state has of taking another nickel out of my pocket — these are all tax increases. Enough already!
Mark S. Woods
Youth symphony put on a wonderful performance
On Sunday, April 20, I shared a wonderful musical experience with about 1,000 others at the Neal Blaisdell Concert Hall when the Hawai'i Youth Symphony Association presented its spring concert.
We listened to over 250 talented young musicians from grades five through 12 attending public and private schools on O'ahu, Maui, Kaua'i and the Big Island perform in three different orchestras. They wowed the audience with the outstanding level of music.
Obviously the caliber of their music was the result of months of preparation and years of excellent training. Congratulations to all of the musicians, conductors, teachers, coaches, parents and volunteers who made this concert possible. Keep up the great work.
Louis Vuitton Hawai'i should also be congratulated for its generous support of this concert. Hawai'i has benefited greatly from Louis Vuitton's expansion to our state.
David Matsumoto
Child booster seat bill too costly for families
I hope the governor will think about the consequences of approving the child booster seat bill.
A child booster seat is expensive enough when you are buying it for just one child, but what about those families who have two or three children to buy for? They say that this is in the child's best interest, but what about what's best for the family?
I have a 7-year-old and a 5-year-old, and I'm expecting in November. I barely have room in my car for the baby seat and two children, let alone three booster seats.
There is a simpler solution: We can put our children over 4 in safety-seatbelt adjusters, which run from $8 to $21.
Michele Brune
Fluoridation data also show negative effects
I do not understand why you so strongly supported fluoridation in your May 1 editorial.
While some studies do show it has a beneficial effect on preventing tooth decay in children's teeth, other studies show a far worse fate for those who perhaps are sensitive to ingestion of this strong toxic substance.
You state that "it seems clear from abundant scientific study that fluoridation of Hawai'i's water supply would have considerable public health benefits." But I would suggest that you are ignoring other scientific evidence that has shown fluoride responsible for pock-marked teeth and cripplingly brittle bones.
In any case, I wonder why you so strongly support polluting Hawai'i's wonderfully clear water supply with a toxin that everyone will have to drink, whether they want to or not. Let's let Hawai'i's water remain as natural as possible.
Bob Farrell
Roosters' racket begins early in the morning
Your article on residential rooster problems was grossly mistitled "Dawn's foul racket ... " but you did set the record somewhat straight within the piece.
Anyone who lives in a neighborhood plagued with these beasts knows that roosters don't go off at the crack of dawn. They start around 2 to 2:30 a.m.
In Wahiawa, most of those who own roosters are the same folks who use them for cock-fighting, sell "ice" to those who live in our neighborhood and others who come here to buy it, and don't hold any taxpaying (legal) jobs.
Neighborhoods are waking up already worn out to face another workday, school and college. What do those bums care? The Humane Society can't do anything because the bad guys won't acknowledge ownership.
When we call to complain to the Humane Society about roosters, they offer us traps to catch free-roaming chicken broods. Yeah, like I'm going to start bagging illegal chickens that belong to armed drug dealers.
The only rooster I want to see in my neighborhood is the one I'm about to eat.
Madison Clark
Wahiawa
