Letters to the Editor

Just make Natatorium a freshwater pool

Why has the Waikiki Natatorium still not been completed? If the problem lies with it being a saltwater pool, I suggest that the memorial be changed to a freshwater pool like any other community pool. Many hotels like the Sheraton have swimming pools close to the ocean.

I remember swimming in the Natatorium. I also remember the brave divers who leaped off the various diving platforms. The purpose of the pool was that it be a fitting memorial to the servicemen who died in World War I and that the pool would be used by the public. Changing the pool to a freshwater pool would still be in compliance with the fundamental purpose of the pool. Maintenance of the pool would be a lot easier.

Local swimming meets could be held there. Perhaps the NCAA could hold some of its swimming meets at the Natatorium. This would also bring in additional revenue to the state's tourism.

Let's finish it so once again the Natatorium can be used by the people of Hawai'i.

Hanifin believed in equality for all people

Mahalo for Mike Gordon's June 17 article on attorney Patrick Hanifin's untimely passing. Pat was a friend and colleague who personified the best traditions of his profession.

If he could, though, I think he would gently object to the article's characterization of his advocacy on Hawaiian issues. The article refers to Pat's support for those who were "challenging Hawaiian entitlements," his work for plaintiffs who "challenged the validity of Native Hawaiian programs" and his role in a suit "against OHA and the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands." The implication, perhaps unintended, is that he was a quarrelsome spoiler who sought to deprive Hawaiians of important government benefits.

Pat had a nobler character and purpose. He truly believed in the Constitution and its goals of equal rights for all, without regard to race or ancestry. He was not against Hawaiians or opposed to necessary assistance for anyone. He argued for the best sort of government; for equality of political, economic and social opportunity for all the state's citizens, and for equal access to government support for those in need.

His advocacy for these objectives was positive, constructive and high-minded. For these excellent qualities and so many others, he will be remembered and missed.

Religious fliers are making a mess

I walk along the Ala Wai Canal early in the morning, and as I do, I pick up trash. I wear gloves so I can pick up everything. Some time ago, I noticed the Scientology Church was placing fliers on parked cars that were then discarded on the ground. As I picked them up, other walkers commented about how disrespectful it was of the Scientology people to do this.

I called "Diane," who is the head of that organization here, and she thanked me but told me it was another branch placing the fliers. Apparently she spoke to them because it stopped for a while.

In the last month, fliers appeared again, so I stopped by the Fort Street Scientology office and introduced myself to Diane and told her I thought the fliers were turning more people off than inspiring them to come to church. She just thanked me for telling her, but today I found more fliers, and this time it "cordially invited all to attend the Church of Scientology of Hawaii at 10 a.m. at 1159 Fort Street Mall," so these did come from Diane.

Actually, I picked up an equal number of fliers from "Erotica" at the Pussycat Lounge, and they all went into the same garbage can. Does anyone have an idea for getting these people to stop? I have tried HPD, and apparently we do not have a law against littering here.

Maybe we could start a fund so the Scientology folks can advertise in the paper like other churches instead of joining the likes of Erotica.

Signage project just style over substance

As a Nu'uanu resident, I am appalled at the enormous cost ($576,000) of our new residential "signs." I am even more incredulous at the formal explanation given by its planners to justify its grandeur.

Supposedly it is meant to put motorists on notice that they are entering a residential area and to slow down, which is necessary to safeguard the elderly crossing the Pali. Please.

Wouldn't the money have been better spent simply building an overhead walkway over the Pali, say between Jack Lane and Ahi Street? That would have protected the elderly and alleviated some stop-and-go traffic.

This signage project is another example of style over substance.

Columnist incorrect on North Korea views

In the early 1990s, I was U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel's primary foreign policy aide. When I read Richard Halloran's June 8 opinion piece on the situation on the Korean peninsula, I was shocked at his dismissive attitude toward a recent congressional delegation to Pyongyang that included my former boss, Congressman Engel.

In brief, Mr. Halloran argues that the delegation was wasting its time because it did not meet Kim Jong Il and ridiculed the conclusion reached by Congressman Engel that the North was "ready to deal." With regard to the delegation wasting its time because it did not meet Dear Leader Kim Jong Il, as Mr. Halloran points out, North Korea is a totalitarian state. The statements the North Korean foreign minister (or anyone else) made to members of the delegation were undoubtedly vetted by his superiors beforehand, probably by the Dear Leader himself. North Korean officials do not keep their positions (or probably their lives) for long if they stray from the instructions of Kim Jong Il.

Mr. Halloran goes on to put more weight on the ravings disseminated by the (North) Korean Central News Agency than on the impressions Congressman Engel received from his conversations with the North Koreans. He concludes the North Koreans have no interest in cutting a deal. That conclusion is very questionable.

Kim Jong Il has put himself and his country in a very difficult position by choosing to go toe-to-toe with a militarily dominant United States, which is supported, in varying degrees, by every other power in the region, i.e., China, Russia, Japan and South Korea. The North Korean economy is on the verge of collapse. Thousands or tens of thousands of North Koreans are scrambling to find their next meal, and the country cannot afford the massive amounts it is spending on its military.

Of course the North Koreans want a deal. They have probably wanted a deal from the beginning of the current crisis. Let us just hope that cooler heads, like Congressman Weldon and Congressman Engel, prevail and we can cut a verifiable deal that we can all live with. There really are no other viable options.