Letters to the Editor
Weeds are ruining public landscaping
The city and the state spend large sums of money to have landscaping done on newly created traffic islands, freeways and highway embankments, and once the plantings are established, weeds pop up and begin to take over and consume the original ground coverings.
Rather than pulling the weeds out, the weeds are often "weed-whacked," thus spreading the seeds from the weeds, causing them to multiply and eventually take over what was supposed to be beautiful landscaping.
An example of neglected greenery is along Salt Lake Boulevard between Foster Village and Stadium Mall. Along the high concrete walls are ivy vines intended to eventually cover the wall, but the lack of watering is causing many of these vines to dry up, and now weeds and litter are evident within the ivy planter boxes.
Most of the maintenance workers who tend these landscaped projects are private contractors hired by the city or state. Hopefully, there will be much better government watchdogs out there to see that proper maintenance is carried out for such expensive projects.
Rick LaMontagne
Long-term-care bill should be approved
Relative to the article on long-term care in the May 4 Advertiser, the passage of SB 1088 has been important to many of us. The bill now needs to be signed by Gov. Lingle, and I strongly hope she does so; also, those who see this bill as needful should urge her to sign it.
Many have seen this bill as simply another tax to tangle in with all the other taxes. But the investment moneywise promotes a good return, a return that might be the difference in some people being able to stay at home longer than otherwise. The persons I have talked to have all, without exception, expressed the hope that they would rather be at home with family than in a nursing home or care home, however well provided those homes or hospitals might be.
My father was fortunate enough to be able to stay at home at the end of his life with his wife to take care of him — he would have been most unhappy in a nursing or care home away from his wife and family. And I am thankful to this day that he was able to do so.
To see the bill itself, anyone with a computer can enter SB 1088 into a search engine and go to the menu. Starting with the first payments of $10 per month, which do increase yearly, the total amount paid in for seven years would be $1,620 with the present figures. The amount available for the care would start at the rate of $70 per day for 365 days and increase to $83.58 per day by 2013. The total amount of the insurance available by 2013 would be $30,506.
Frances Mariposa
Blame the DOE for special-ed problems
Regarding the April 28 article "Attorneys' fees add up for DOE" and Terri Nakamura's May 6 letter: Special-needs children are equally entitled to a free and appropriate education.
These children with special needs were granted these rights by a federal law called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997. The state Department of Education is court-mandated by the Felix Consent Decree and has the full responsibility to provide every child, including special-needs children, with a free and appropriate education.
Unfortunately, the reader's response reflects the attitudes that a lot of parents of special-needs children face when dealing with the DOE and even among some members of the community.
Parents are not always the bad guys in all of this. Parents are pursuing what the law requires by holding the DOE accountable for its actions and inactions to provide appropriate programs and services for our special-needs children. Until people's attitudes change and people can fully accept that these special children are an integral part of our schools and communities, parents and their special-needs children will continue to face these barriers.
We all agree that the monies should be spent on the children rather than attorneys, but if the DOE were doing its job, parents wouldn't have to hire an attorney to represent their child's interests.
Naomi Grossman
President, Autism Society of Hawai'i
Improve schools by focusing on teachers
I really appreciated the Island Voices commentary "War not yet won to better schools" (May 6). People in Hawai'i should be told that our schools need to be improved.
The commentary stated that we should make teaching a job well paid and worth doing. More kids nowadays in Hawai'i are deprived of an excellent education, and many kids believe school is a waste of time. That is why we need more willing teachers to teach. But who wants a low-paying job?
Kelliann Arakawa
Cockfighting assault another historical error
Pamela Burns, president and CEO of the Hawaiian Humane Society, made some comments about cockfighting (Letters, May 7) that I have to respond to.
I find it fascinating that she praised Hawai'i as "a melting pot of cultures" ... and then expressed a desire to eliminate a practice of one of the cultures that make up this bastion of tolerance. She referenced a law passed in 1884 banning the cultural practice of haka moa (cockfighting). In past letters, she declared that any "civilized" society would never tolerate such practices, and that several states on the Mainland have made it illegal. Others have also called the practice "shameful, disgusting, inhumane, insensitive" or just plain "wrong."
Many moons ago, other "progressive" peoples felt the same way, and came to Hawai'i nei on a mission. They too were appalled to find residents performing "uncivilized" and "shameful" ceremonies — practices that the Mainland would never tolerate and that were thus illegal. They were shocked and awed that no one minded that these practices promoted immorality and behavior that surely would be intolerable in a "civilized" society.
Being the natives' moral superiors, and since it was their business, they declared certain cultural practices as "wrong" and "misguided," and passed several "enlightened" laws during the good ol' 1800s that did away with practices that did not meet with their moral approval (you know, the "you will be assimilated, resistance is futile" bit). They imposed strict restrictions against many such "disposable" cultural practices (hula, 'olelo Hawai'i, etc.).
Even today, the effects of this form of cultural circumcision can be felt.
I guess some things nevah change, eh?
Ken Kamal Kapoor
Mosquito, horsefly incidents unlikely
In April, two columns appeared in The Advertiser that compelled me to write this letter.
In the first column ("Land agency needs help more than lake," Focus, April 20), the writer stated in the first paragraph that "workers from the DLNR have been wading knee-deep into the murky mosquito-laden waters of Lake Wilson to remove the invasive species Salvinia molesta."
In the second column (Volcanic Ash, April 30), the writer wrote about his loving dog, which was enjoyable reading; however, he refers to an incident where his dog was being "chased and attacked by horseflies" in his backyard.
In both columns the writers imply that both insects are a public health problem due to their presence.
I would like to suggest to the writers that they should just check their sources of information concerning the "mosquito infestation" in Lake Wilson, which has not happened, and for the "horsefly" incident, which to my knowledge does not occur in Hawai'i.
Roy T. Furumizo
Bypass government over school repairs
Your May 9 editorial on the state's responsibility for school repairs perpetuates the misplaced notion that government is the only solution to today's problems.
While government does bear the brunt of the burden, communities today can ill-afford to wait for government to get it together, particularly in the absence of resources. (How did this backlog occur, anyway?)
Therefore, the underlying basis of Hawai'i 3R's — to grow community involvement via neighborhood schools — is an idea that should be supported and nurtured rather than knocked. It could be the way of the future and a way for people to reconnect with their communities.
In time, communities could begin to address more than just the repair and maintenance backlog at public schools; the process could extend to other specific community issues as well.
Waiting for government to make more resources available could mean a long wait for our children. Why wait?
Kalowena Komeiji
Quackenbush comment about 'rice bowl' racist
Chris Quackenbush recently fled to Hawai'i from an insurance scandal in California. Now she accuses local people of being indoctrinated regarding Hawai'i's pet quarantine regulations. She says the reason has something to do with disturbing someone's "rice bowl."
The appropriate pet quarantine method is an issue upon which reasonable minds can differ no matter where you stand on the issue. It has nothing to do with being "local," or the shape of bowl you eat out of, or what you put into it. Such racist comments are not welcome in Hawai'i, or anywhere else for that matter.
Quackenbush should apologize to the people of Hawai'i.
Kirk Caldwell
President Kennedy urged cut in taxes
"It is a paradoxical truth that tax rates are too high today and tax revenues are too low, and the soundest way to raise revenues in the long run is to cut rates now.
"The experience of a number of European countries has borne this out. This country's own experience with tax reduction has borne this out.
"The reason is that only full employment can balance the budget, and tax reduction can pave the way to full employment.
"The purpose of cutting taxes is not to incur a budget deficit, but to achieve the more prosperous, expanding economy which will bring a budget surplus."
— John F. Kennedy, December 1962
Don McDiarmid Jr.
Kailua
Stop wasting money on traffic-calming
To the powers that control Hawai'i's roads: Enough already! We have limited funds and we desperately need many things, such as a police station in Hawai'i Kai, school repairs, etc. You guys and gals know the list.
Stop talking about, and implementing, traffic-calming devices. Besides, we already have such devices on practically every road in Hawai'i, and they are the unbelievably bad conditions of those roads ... the worst I have ever seen.
I will be voting for politicians who use our tax money much more wisely.
Arnie Abrams
Two programs also are combatting 'ice'
It is with great interest that we have been following the series on the Kahalu'u community's courageous efforts to confront its "ice" issue head-on. We would like to highlight two programs that are also working to combat this horrific problem.
Both Marimed Foundation and Maui Youth and Family Services (MYFS) offer substance abuse treatment on a residential basis. Both programs do indeed take ice-addicted youth and are incorporating a new continuing-care program that will help to strengthen the success rates of these programs.
Marimed Foundation (on O'ahu) offers the Kailana Program while MYFS (on Maui but serving youth from the entire state) has a substance abuse program called Ho'omaka Hou, both dedicated to providing enhanced treatment for substance abusers, including ice users.
Imua Mau Ohana ("Families moving forward") is a new partnership project that will provide a continuum of care for youth clinically discharged from our programs. It provides federally funded therapeutic, case management, life skills and vocational training services to youth and their families.
A continuing-care team based at Marimed and MYFS consists of case managers and youth therapists who work together to serve as after-care follow-up for the entire state. Our continuing-care services respect, nurture and incorporate the 'ohana and other vital community resources together.
We are excited about this new collaboration and will look forward to parents and community members, such as those of the Kahalu'u community, who will become leaders and facilitators along with our staff on working to end this devastating problem.
Gail Gnazzo
CEO, Maui Youth and Family Services
Matt Claybaugh
CEO, Marimed Foundation
