Posted on: Friday, September 5, 2003

Letters to the Editor

The bus-riding public must be protected

This bus strike is not really a strike in the usual sense of the word.

Workers go out on strike against an employer risking their potential loss of income against the loss of profits to the employer. If a strike takes place in an automobile factory, the public can always find another car to purchase.

In this situation, we are dealing with a monopoly in which the employer is subsidized by the government. The public becomes the victim of the "strike," i.e. the elderly, the handicapped, the underprivileged, the working couple, the working parents of schoolchildren, the schoolchildren and all others who either don't have a car or a license or don't know how to drive. This is not a strike; it is eco-terrorism against Joe Citizen.

This event will almost assuredly lead to a serious rethinking of our public transportation system. Do we create or allow competing mass transit systems to operate here? Do we declare that the drivers, in this monopolistic situation, are essential public servants who should not be allowed to strike?

I trust our elected officials will come up with some answers that will not be pleasing to the drivers but, hopefully, be in the interests of the general public.

Bus drivers won't be strike winners

Dear Mr. Kahele:

It is obvious TheBus strike does not have public support and holds out little, if any, benefit for the bus drivers who are walking the picket lines.

It is difficult to support the bus drivers when they are earning more than our teachers, police officers and firefighters. In the end, after losing pay, the bus drivers will no doubt have little more than when they went out on strike, and that will be on the backs of O'ahu's other working people, people with disabilities and the organizations that support them.

Due to the strike, Handi-van was unable to provide subscription services to people with disabilities who attend daily programs necessary to their health and well-being. This placed a huge burden on care providers and working families and has cost service providers thousands of dollars in lost revenue, not to mention the many businesses and vendors who are losing business due to the strike.

Our not-for-profit organization was one day away from layoffs when Handi-van announced it would resume services yesterday. In the meantime, our organization used its reserve funds, intended to provide more and better service to people with disabilities, to continue paying all 150 of its employees.

So, Mr. Kahele, do you really think your membership will consider you a hero when the strike ends? Does your membership understand who ultimately is paying the price for this strike?

Lessons learned from the bus strike

I think we learned a lot from the bus strike:

• Bus drivers have one of the best jobs in the state.

• Life goes on even though TheBus does not.

• In many areas, traffic is better than ever.

• The teamsters need to elect new leadership.

They don't work for me

Regarding the Sept. 1 comments from Russell Okata of the HGEA ("Generations of workers fought for our benefits"): He made a couple of profound statements in his letter: "Unions ... make good things possible." And "Hawai'i's unions are at work for you." So, the current bus strike by a "union" for the good of the union members at the expense of the general public is "good" for the people of O'ahu? I think not!

Beware rapid transit

I have three letters for the bus strikers: HRT. (Those who can recall the past may have to live it again.)

Pauahi didn't specify educating Hawaiians

That was a great story Aug. 21 by Beverly Creamer about Kamehameha Schools' admissions policy except for a key point: Pauahi's will does not say her purpose was to "educate Hawaiian children." It says " ... to erect and maintain in the Hawaiian Islands two schools, each for boarding and day scholars, one for boys and one for girls, to be known as, and called, the Kamehameha Schools." There is no mention of race.

Strictly interpreted, the will's language shows she wasn't being discriminatory. As a granddaughter of Kamehameha I, renowned for welcoming people of all races to his kingdom, it'd be nice also to assume she recognized a noble obligation to use the proceeds of the land he bequeathed her to help the children of all of her grandfather's subjects, whatever their ancestry.

It could be, too, she was just ahead of her time: In 21st-century America, the law does not allow schools, private or public, to discriminate on the basis of race.

Thurston's tactics were treasonous

Who is Thurston Twigg-Smith really trying to fool in his last letter? An apparent reason for his continual denial of the American role in the overthrow is that his grandfather was the principal conspirator of the coup d'etat to begin with.

I, too, am a fifth-generation descendant of Hawai'i. As a kama'aina, I'd say Lorrin Thurston's tactics in aiding and abetting the U.S. government were treasonous, genocidal and morally reprehensible. Twigg-Smith's own rationale and justifications for past deeds are equally repugnant.

In January 1893, the town of Honolulu was at peace. By landing armed Marines under the pretext of protecting American lives and property, U.S. Minister John L. Stevens' order was a clear violation of international law. The U.S. abrogation of bilateral treaties usurped the sovereignty of the Hawaiian Kingdom.

In 1993, the U.S. Congress and president signed Public Law 103-150 apologizing for the affair. The United States has admitted to the illegality of its role in the overthrow of the Hawaiian nation.

Goemans is trying to dismantle justice

Isn't it funny that John Goemans is trying to dismantle programs set up to address historical injustices that were the result of the actions of the same community he represents today?

Kamehameha was set up to help a segment of the population most sorely in need of it: Hawaiian children, not a fussy housewife willing to offer her own child as a political target and insult the people with whom she claims to belong.

The Rice v. Cayetano ruling did not sate Goemans' delusions of grandeur nor his crusade to save the oppressors. He pledged to find new and more gullible customers to further his own vendetta as well as the hopes and dreams of the so-called "Coalition for a Color Blind America."

Are we to ignore centuries of oppression, double-dealing and genocidal policies because a handful of people claim the wrongs never happened and are unwilling to accept responsibility for the devastating actions of their society?

Goemans has his puppets now, and he will find more until he dismembers every semblance of justice in Hawai'i.

Homosexuality isn't something you choose

I was deeply offended by Steve Williams' Aug. 28 letter regarding homosexuality. As a gay man, I believe my experience gives me more authority to speak on the subject.

I recognized my own sexuality at a young age and can assure you it was not something I chose. Rather, it was a difficult path that caused me a great deal of pain growing up. People like Mr. Williams sent a constant message of homosexuals as perverts and criminals, which is especially damaging to hear when you are a child.

His science is not very compelling; describing the universe as a binary system that has no place for homosexuals is simplistic at best. "Dark and light, yin and yang, hot and cold" does not describe God's plan for things. It describes the view of a man who thinks he knows God's will more than any true Christian should ever claim. The world is a mystifying place, our understanding of which is only beginning.

Gay men and women do not want special rights. We only want to be able to live our lives in quiet dignity. I think Mr. Williams should be free to live his life as he pleases, and I think he should offer gay men and lesbians the same common courtesy.

Publishing articles doesn't create 'agenda'

It appears as though The Honolulu Advertiser has a "China" agenda and is actively pushing it. An example is its Aug. 24 article "Future of visitor industry lies in China, experts say."

This statement makes as much sense as Ben Clinger's Aug. 24 letter stating that the paper has a "gay rights" agenda because it had a story on gay tourism niche marketing.

By the way, if it weren't for the bigotry of society, as typified in Mr. Clinger's letter, there would be no need for "gay-oriented hotels."

Plethora of colors at games confusing

After watching the UH sports season get under way this past weekend, I'm a bit confused:

If the "new" UH colors are black, green and white, why does the UH band have gold sashes?

Why do the coaches wear drab gray shirts? Don't they have green aloha shirts?

Are the referees so blind that the TV-timeout guy (Timmy Chang's dad) has to wear a red polo shirt? Again, why can't he wear green?

Not that I minded one bit, but why did the Rainbow Dancers wear orange shorts?

Why are the Wahine volleyballers wearing high black socks? Are they going for the "gothic" look?

Why do so many UH "fans" wear reds, blues and yellows to the games?

Finally, why don't they have the blimp at the stadium?

UH controversies in proper perspective

The UH controversies, and how they are perceived, are much like those of our federal government.

We don't have to like George W. Bush as president to love America. We can support the troops on the battlefield, even if we disagree with Bush's starting the war in Iraq and his spending a couple of billion dollars a week over there.Ê

We don't have to like Evan Dobelle as president to love our alma mater. We can support our UH players on the football field, even if we disagree with overpaying June Jones $800,000 a year and denying raises to his nine assistant coaches. We don't have to like dropping the unique Rainbow name, or the hokey new UH logo, to cheer them on.

The 'Bows whupped Appalachian State in the season opener, and the senior duo of QB Jason Whieldon and wide receiver Jeremiah Cockheran showed all of the tougher teams out there that our 2003 Rainbow Warriors are a force to be reckoned with.

Playgrounds should be custom built for area

The city recently released a request for proposals to build 30 identical playgrounds. O'ahu's children will once again be inundated with bland playgrounds that are small, void of interesting play events, and reflect nothing of the local community.

People seem happy to obtain new playgrounds, but common questions that arise are: "Where are the swings?" "Why are they all the same?" or "What are the younger children going to play on?"

There is an assumption that a democratic process is unnecessary when it comes to constructing public facilities. This is an opportunity for community involvement that can teach children how to participate and influence their environment.

Imagine the possibilities if the Department of Parks and Recreation invited the public into the process of planning the next phase of playgrounds. Blandness could give way to custom structures that allow for a diversity of fun and interactive events. Businesses and private donations could help create more substantial play spaces. A combined effort to create unique playgrounds would promote good government and community participation.