Letters to the Editor
Give us a tax credit for hurricane fund
It's taxation through misrepresentation.
A few years back, I was required to contribute to the Hurricane Relief Fund. The purpose was to create a rainy-day fund (no pun intended) for the aftermath of the next big blow that will surely hit our state in the future.
Now this fund may be used to cover a proposed deficit in the state budget.
Is there anyone else out there who thinks that we should get a tax credit for our contribution if money is diverted to the state's general fund?
O. Butch Groves
Wahi'awa
Islands have lost a beautiful person
I was saddened to learn from a friend in Hawai'i that Moe Keale had died.
Moe's warmth, his beautiful voice and his pure heart blessed us with true aloha. The world has lost a great voice for Hawai'i, a heart that resonated with the pulse of the Island waves and the kiss of the breezes scented with plumeria.
Moe's voice, and the rich timbre of his songs, would reach right into my heart when I listened to him at Duke's or the Sheraton in Waikiki. Even listening to his soothing voice on the radio when I was driving in Honolulu traffic or worrying about something would calm me. His incredible singing enriched our lives and soothed our anxious souls.
A relative of Brother Iz, he was a true spirit of the Islands. Moe's Hawaiian heart and spirit will be missed by all who knew him, loved him or loved his singing. The world is a smaller place without a pure Hawaiian like Moe, but his aloha is still a lei around the world.
Joy Hewett
Pittsboro, N.C.
AARP is hypocritical on prescription drugs
Recently, AARP Hawai'i has been very vocal in its lobbying efforts regarding prescription drugs and long-term care.
The group submitted extensive testimony relating to the two prescription bills moving through the Legislature and took out a full-page ad on April 11 in support of the long-term-care tax.
Part of AARP's argument in support of these recent policy proposals addresses the "greed" of pharmaceutical companies and the insurance industry. The claims are that such organizations are vultures in search of million-dollar revenues at the expense of the consumer, especially seniors. A survey by National Journal magazine points out who is actually reaping millions.
AARP's total revenues in 2000 exceeded $468 million. That number exceeds the combined total revenues of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Association of America, the American Pharmaceutical Association, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, the Health Insurance Association of America and the American Hospital Association.
AARP's executive director, Horace Deets, also pulls in an annual $550,000 compensation package.
While this "grassroots" organization strong-arms government to shield seniors from the true cost of their healthcare, we must sacrifice other priorities such as education, defense, environmental protection, border patrol and conservation.
Dan Morin
'Aiea
Road finally repaved; expect it to be dug up
Finally, after years of neglect, the city repaved the much used and abused Kane'ohe Bay Drive fronting the 'Aikahi Shopping Center.
This newly smoothed road is a great relief to those of us who travel it daily. It also tells us two things: It's an election year, and pretty soon the Board of Water Supply will come around digging up the newly paved road to work on old water lines.
Glen P. Corlin
Kailua
Think outside of box; make libraries inviting
When one sees the plight of our state libraries, one detects a critical and chronic lack of legislative and administrative initiative — even among the candidates for office.
Has political and entrepreneurial imagination taken a holiday in the Islands? All that the politicos come up with are ideas for privatization and cutbacks, or schemes to legalize gambling.
In Kapolei, a major library building stands unused and unfinished due to lack of funds. And our shortsighted state administration is planning to close or reduce hours at more libraries. What a sad commentary on our Island priorities and our leadership.
Look at Borders, WaldenBooks and Barnes & Noble. They are packed with customers, browsers and readers. Daytime and nighttime. They serve food and beverages and allow talking and socializing. Our state libraries are underutilized and underfunded. Why not learn from the private book enterprises and be more in step with today's book-reading clientele and culture?
Silence is not necessary throughout a reading area or throughout a library, and food and beverages are part of the culture.
The state libraries, at least some of them, could be refurbished to allow sections that allow conversation and accommodate food and beverage vendors, with tables for patrons. The libraries could also sell extra books or old books at sale prices, as is done annually by the Friends of the Library.
A partnership of public-sector libraries and small, private food caterers could do the trick and also provide the library system with more patrons and more funds (lease money or percentage of vendor sales).
The Kapolei library could be a pilot model, and this could help kick-start it in the so-called "second city."
The only sure way to failure is to try nothing new. Let's save our libraries and use them fully.
John Witeck
School uniforms good for students
I'm a student at Kaimuki High School, and my school doesn't have uniforms. Some students in my school don't want to wear uniforms because of their truancy. If students cut but are wearing the uniform, the teacher or police officers can find them out.
School uniforms are good for students. Another thing, wearing a uniform helps identify which school you go to.
Nhan Nguyen
Outrigger Hotels: It's all about money
The only fault I find with Bob Rees' April 15 article is that he uses the word "clout" to describe Outrigger's power. The word is "money," not clout.
It would appear that they have rented or purchased many of the elected officials. As one Outrigger hotel manager said to me many years ago, "The Kelleys don't care if they throw seven bags of money into the vault each night or eight bags. Just as long as they are throwing money into the vault."
Arnold Van Fossen
Chivalry, courtesy, goodwill still alive
I refuse to believe it when people say the aloha spirit is dead and gone here on O'ahu. People as a whole are good at heart and that given half a chance, they will help out the next guy if they possibly can.
Only today, after leaving the gas station, I foolishly left my gas cap off and drove away with it still on the cover. A very courteous, and handsome, pair of gentlemen brought it to my attention while I was waiting at a traffic light.
The gentleman in the passenger seat could have left it at that and let me drive away, but he got out of his van and put the cap back on for me. He really proved to me that chivalry, courtesy, goodwill, whatever you want to call it, are still alive and well here at home.
Alison Ueda
Increased speed limits aren't justified
Your April 15 editorial claimed that improvements in engineering justified the increase of speed limits in certain areas. Sorry, but that assertion is absurd.
Engineering may have improved, but human behavior hasn't. It doesn't matter how slick or how fancy or how expensive the technology gets. Technology is only as good as the person using it. The majority of accidents on our roadways are due to human error, not engineering or mechanical problems. What good is improved engineering if people continue to drive in a reckless and unsafe manner?
Raising the speed limits might not increase the number of accidents, but it most definitely would increase the severity of the crash and increase the chance of victims being killed rather than merely maimed.
Every day, emergency room employees, law enforcement and EMTs see lives and families destroyed due to the actions of others. How many innocent lives are going to be lost every year because of speed demons who insist it's their right to get to their destination two minutes sooner than the next guy?
Debbie Stelmach
Kailua
Expect higher rates
With the demise of the traffic cam, Gov. Ben Cayetano proposed increasing some speed limits. With higher speeds, there will be more auto accidents. Increased auto insurance rates just announced by State Farm Insurance will be further increased.
How Tim Chang
Small school districts won't work
In a March 25 commentary, Cliff Slater took a seemingly distorted viewpoint on public education in Hawai'i.
On one hand, he turns a blind eye to the wide array of choices that public education provides to parents and students in our state. On the other, he offers a false utopia by grossly overstating the benefits of small school districts.
Under the guidance of the Board of Education, public education is a system of choice and a vehicle for parental and community involvement.
An excellent example of the Board of Education's work to balance rights and requirements for all children in our state is the geographical exceptions policy. Although each child is required to attend a neighborhood school, permission to attend another school can be granted with the welfare of the child as a major consideration.
In addition, the Board of Education recognizes that a child's education is a responsibility shared by the school and the family. Research shows that supportive partnerships between the home and the school help to improve student learning and achievement and serve to build a sense of community.
Thus, the board has required the Department of Education to establish programs and practices that welcome and encourage family involvement on school campuses and provide for family participation in decisions that affect their children.
Mr. Slater conveniently blurs the distinction between public and private enterprise. Private enterprise is not constrained by the ethos of community service, commitment to the welfare and safety of customers and clients, or the need to address the questions of equity and equality. Private enterprise is all about markets, competition and economic survival. This is good business sense, but it makes for poor public policy.
Mr. Slater advocates abandoning the excellent work that the Department of Education has already done to decentralize our public school system, promote flexibility at the school level and ensure that all schools are on a level playing field. He wants to create 58 "self-governing independent school districts."
This suggestion is faulty. If this were to be implemented, Hawai'i's public school system, with slightly fewer than 260 schools, would average about four schools per district. It would create 58 budgets for the Legislature to review and fight over. Do we really want to see our school fighting over operational and facility funding at the state Capitol?
Let us further suppose that each school district had a board of seven members. That would amount to approximately 400 board members creating an incredible array of diverse policies.
In Mr. Slater's vision, we would have 58 superintendents of education, 58 offices to support these superintendents, other personnel offices, technical specialists and the like. Who would pay for all of this? You would. Our students would. The money would be diverted from the schools, where it is most needed, to fund little fiefdoms.
We cannot buy into Cliff Slater's vision. It is one of bloated bureaucracy, political infighting, inequality and a waste of valuable resources. This is not a vision for the children. Perhaps someone will benefit, but our children are the ones who would suffer the consequences.
Herbert S. Watanabe
Chairman, Board of Education
