Letters to the Editor

Customer viewpoint: Taxi service terrible

In answer to the letter from Shannon Higa of Signature Cab Holdings, let me describe her "level playing field" from a passenger's viewpoint.

We arrived July 2 on Hawaiian Air flight 33 from Ontario, Calif.

We had no checked baggage; we were first in line at the taxi station. There was one rather disinterested dispatcher. We made our request. We watched as a number of empty cabs stopped at what we were told was "Station 1" and others went by on their way to "Station 3," but we were apparently at "Station 2." Yes, a number of them were Charley's, but none would stop for us.

We waited at least 20 minutes. There was quite a line forming behind us.

Finally, a cab from TheCab showed up. Nice driver. He explained that there were at least a hundred empty cabs waiting close by but they couldn't come into the airport unless summoned by a dispatcher, and that the dispatch order had to go through the main office to be relayed to the individual cab.

Airport taxi "service" from a customer's point of view.

Engineering community was slandered by judge

It was particularly insulting to see Judge Karl Sakamoto's comments in the recent money-laundering sentencing of Honolulu engineer Michael Matsumoto. Sakamoto reportedly said, "Mr. Matsumoto engaged in a common pattern and practice that has existed for several years and has been through several generations of campaigns."

This is a slap in the face to the many hard-working engineers in Honolulu who chose not to participate in these illegal activities. Such activities are not a "common pattern and practice" of the majority of honest engineers trying to make Hawai'i a better place.

Judge Sakamoto also was reported to have said, "That practice gave an unfair advantage to the campaigns involved and disadvantaged the others. It really, really diminished the integrity of the voting process."

"That practice" also potentially gave firms making illegal contributions an "unfair advantage" over and "disadvantaged the other" engineering firms in Hawai'i that did not participate in these illegal activities. It may have even "diminished the integrity" of the selection of engineering firms for public-sector work.

Ultimately the cost of the illegal contributions is passed on to and borne by the taxpayers. These were not just illegal contributions but were also "theft by deception" if the cost of the political contributions were built back into these non-bid contracts.

We need undercover police on North Shore

Aloha to Marine Cpl. Quentin Gwynn for saving a drowning Pupukea boy's life and for restoring an 'ohana July14. I, too, had the opportunity to save a person's life once, and it's a great feeling.

What happened to the 'ohana responsible for the moral upbringing of the person who stole Mr. Gwynn's belongings? In life all things connect. It could be Mr. Gwynn or someone like him who saves the life of the person who stole Gwynn's belongings. Return the belongings to him.

In light of the property crime statistics in Hawai'i, I think we need undercover police on the beaches of the North Shore, just as we have on Waikiki Beach.

Elderly should have driving simulator tests

The recent tragic accident in Santa Monica renewed concerns about the abilities of the elderly to drive safely.

Speaking as a maturing "boomer" who has no intention of giving up my wheels before it is absolutely, positively unavoidable, I understand that it is important to find a way to screen out incompetent drivers without infringing on the rights of the healthy, able elderly to drive.

I think that an easy, fair and cost-effective way to screen drivers of questionable abilities would be to install computerized driving simulators at each of the driver's license examination stations. A 15-minute session on the simulator, during license renewals, would easily identify drivers with perception, reaction time or skill problems.

Simulator checks during renewals could be mandated at a certain age, or when requested by family members, the police or the courts.

The test should be given twice, once for practice and familiarization, and the second time for qualification. Those who have problems on the driving simulator could then be required to pass a road test with an examiner in order to renew their license.

The cost of the computerized driving simulators should be shared by both the auto-insurance industry and the government.

No Sunday drivers

I just returned from visiting Oregon and driving on its freeways. What a joy — fast cars drive in the left lanes, and slow cars are in the right lane. And guess what? They use turn signals when switching lanes. What a concept!