Letters to the Editor

Remove racism from bioprospecting bill

Regarding SB 643 and HB 2034: Is this a bill to regulate bioprospecting on public lands, or is this a Hawaiian sovereignty bill?

Please remove from the bill all racial language, including the racial set-aside of seats on the advisory commission, the characterization that benefits from the public lands should be shared equitably between Native Hawaiians and the general public (aren't Native Hawaiians also members of the general public?), and the concept that Native Hawaiians somehow care more about the land or have a closer connection with the land than other ethnic groups.

Please do not place the advisory commission under the administrative supervision of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs — the same agency that files lawsuits against the state of Hawai'i over ceded land revenues and the use of Mauna Kea for astronomy. What a conflict of interest!

Hawai'i's public lands belong to all of Hawai'i's people. We all care about the land. We all are equally entitled to benefit from the public lands and to participate in protecting them. It is at least immoral, and probably illegal, to give racial supremacy to one ethnic group on matters of land-use policy.

For a careful analysis of the bioprospecting bill, see: http://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/bioprospecting.html.

Please either kill this bill or remove the racism from it.

Arbitration process played out, Lingle lost

Is it just me?

Gov. Lingle cries foul with the arbitration process. Does she not understand the rules of arbitration? Does she think HGEA members would not go out on strike if given the opportunity?

This reminds me of when I was in elementary school and my friend brought out his brand-new yo-yo to do a trick. However, when he tried to do the trick, he failed miserably. When I asked him if I could try it and completed the trick, he took the yo-yo back and ran off.

Gov. Lingle reminds me of that friend. Just because things didn't work out her way, she wants to run off in the other direction and cry foul. You play by the rules, and if you lose, you lose. HGEA played by the arbitration rules and proved that the state has the ability to pay for raises. The governor fails to see that these raises being asked for mean only a few cents more per hour for the underpaid government employee.

What about the governor and her administration's raises? That's right, raises! No wonder they don't want to pay any raises to anyone else. Hopefully people will see what is happening and it won't be just me.

High-tech association seeks responsible change

The Hawaii Technology Trade Association and our position on Act 221 continues to be mischaracterized by your paper.

HTTA is not advocating for no changes to Act 221. In fact, there is no one advocating for no changes.

HTTA and a variety of other organizations and stakeholders in Hawai'i's technology industry have been working with the administration and the Legislature since the close of last year's legislative session to come to a consensus on the issues around Act 221.

What we all collectively want to achieve are the right changes to Act 221. We do not want changes based on knee-jerk reactions to questionable and unsubstantiated data. We want changes that strike the right balance between building a sustainable tech industry in Hawai'i (the intent of Act 221) and fiscal responsibility.

The Legislature, the administration and the private sector have been working diligently for the last 10 months toward a collaborative solution for a comprehensive capital formation strategy for Hawai'i that includes a new State Private Investment Fund, an extension to Act 221 and the appropriate changes to Act 221.

Unfortunately, people working together in a positive way do not make headlines.

Del Monte should not evict longtime workers

Del Monte grows some of the best and sweetest pineapple on the market, right here on O'ahu. But for me that sweet taste quickly turned sour when I read that Del Monte wants to evict 300 of its own workers from Poamoho Camp (Advertiser, March 27). I support the Poamoho residents in their fight to stay in their longtime homes.

There has to be a better solution. Del Monte, be a responsible employer. It's good business. Work with Galbraith Estate, Bank of Hawaii, ILWU and elected officials to find an answer. Let's live aloha. Save Poamoho Camp.

Status quo better than wacko parents at helm

I'm sure the idea of splitting up the Board of Education into smaller units sounds fine when you're discussing it in the Legislature, but it becomes much less savory in practice. The most disturbing trend, I believe, would be that as the board became more local, those running for the seats would change as well.

More often, we would see "concerned" parents running for and winning these seats. And by "concerned," I of course mean "wacko." Overbearing parents who, not content with ruining their own children's lives, would insist on ruining the lives of many, many more.

No doubt there would be other caring parents who only desire what the principals, teachers and kids actually want and need, but in the public arena, it's all too often that the loudest and most deluded find their voice and use it to devastating consequences. The unfortunate fact is, there are individuals who believe in their own style of parenting to the point at which no other opinion can even be considered.

I would gladly take constituency-pandering bureaucrats any day over the threat of ignorant, narrow-minded parents running the fate of children in Hawai'i.

Looks like the beach doesn't belong to public

Tuesday night I watched them start to outlaw surfing in Hawai'i. In 2030, no one will believe me when I say the beach once belonged to the public. I was attending the public meeting about the surf school at Tonggs. Dumb me, I thought Tonggs was in the ocean. Then I learned Tonggs is a residential area, and no commercial activities should disturb a residential area.

In the "brainstorming/breakout" session, someone volunteered that the area up to the high-tide line belongs to the public. The recorder didn't believe it, and even after it was verified, it wasn't worth adding to his list.

Earlier, I had written the same thing on a Post-It note added to a mounted list of concerns. As the facilitator read the Post-Its aloud, she started to read mine, stopped and crumpled up my Post-It. I wondered, once they ban the surf schools because of the noise they make, how long until they ban non-student surfers?

I heard some interesting comments like: "Why do I have to give up my backyard so someone from the Mainland can get pushed around on a surfboard?" and "Since you can't enforce it (surfing), ban it." Truly a night to remember.