Letters to the Editor

Stonebraker's actions aren't justified by facts

Rep. Bud Stonebraker (Letters, April 13) notes that he is fighting for the voices of Hawai'i's citizens to be heard. But is this exactly true?

Bud says he backed a bill to let the people decide on local school boards, but he and his Republican colleagues can't decide on how many boards to have: four, seven, 15 — which one is it? And providing no real evidence that these local school boards are sufficient to help the children of Hawai'i, they tried to cover it up with a catchy phrase.

Bud tried to help fix workers' compensation, but what he did was add an amendment that would take away the rights of the working class and give employers all the power.

And finally Bud said he introduced an amendment to balance the budget, but a balanced budget is mandated by Hawai'i's statutes.

So what exactly are you doing that's so extraordinary, Bud? The head of your party seems to be facing a little adversity in the White House, but you don't see him throwing temper tantrums in public because he can't find the weapons of mass destruction.

Stop putting down our public schools

As a public school teacher, I find it very frustrating to read letters to the editor that put down public school education while extolling the great virtues of a private school education. It must be great to be a teacher at a private school.

If a student doesn't study and fails his classes, the private school kicks him out and sends him to a public school. If a student misbehaves and disrupts the class, the private school kicks him out and sends him to a public school. If a student cheats or doesn't do his homework, the private school kicks him out and sends him to a public school. If a student can't speak English and understand the teacher, the private school sends him to a public school. If the student has learning disabilities, the private school sends him to a public school. If the student can't pass the private school entrance exam, he goes to a public school. If the student can't afford the private-school tuition, he goes to a public school.

It must be nice to pick and choose the students you want.

Unfortunately, the public school teacher doesn't have that luxury. The public school teacher has to take the poor students, the special-ed students, the immigrant students, the disruptive students, the lazy students and even the students who don't care and don't want to go to school. And despite all of these challenging students, the public schools are still able to produce quality students who become doctors, lawyers, politicians, businessmen, civic leaders, managers, teachers, firefighters, police officers and many other productive members of our society.

So instead of putting down our public schools and the hard-working, dedicated teachers of our state, get involved, support the teachers, make sure your child behaves and works hard at school. It's easy to complain and place blame on others. It's harder to be an active part of the solution.

New city bus: If it ain't broke, don't fix it

In the past weeks, I have ridden the city buses a number of times, both the old and new models. I find that the old ones are better for at least four reasons.

• Appearance: The old buses are more attractive with their classic white, yellow, orange and ochre streamlined appearance. The new ones with their multicolored "rainbow" décor are garish, reminding one of a circus or carnival wagon.
• Comfort: The new buses are not air-conditioned; they are refrigerated. When you board a bus on a hot Hawai'i day, you feel as if you are stepping into a deep freeze. Why not set the thermostat, if there is one, to a more comfortable temperature?
• Convenience: The new buses do not announce the upcoming stops on their message board as the old ones do.
• Consideration for seniors and handicapped: The old model has 12 seats at the front of the bus for the use of seniors and handicapped persons. The new model has eliminated seven of those seats, leaving only five for special-needs riders. This means that in a crowded bus, some seniors and handicapped will not be able to find a seat and will have to stand.

I would say this is a classic example of the saying "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

'Primetime' report on VA system was unfair

ABC's "Primetime Thursday" recently featured a one-hour investigative report on the VA Health Care System. Hidden cameras in several VA facilities unfairly put a bad light on the entire VA system. The program only served to alarm our veterans, who deserve to know the whole story.

If ABC truly wanted to help veterans, it should have brought these disturbing situations to the VA's attention immediately instead of withholding the tapes for over five months. The program does a disservice to the many dedicated VA healthcare professionals who provide quality medical care to millions of veterans each year.

As an example, the VA Pacific Islands Health Care System here in Hawai'i was recently judged one of the best medical centers in the VA system by a national organization, a direct result of the hard work, dedication and commitment of its staff.

While the situations taped by ABC are disturbing and certainly need to be corrected, they are not indicative of the outstanding work done by the nation's No. 1 healthcare delivery system. Hawai'i's Disabled American Veterans are proud of our VA and hope that ABC will follow up, investigating the excellent work being done by VA professionals.

Playing politics will be remembered at polls

When I go to the polls in November I am going to remember that:

• This current legislative body thinks it's fine to leave the state government open for lawsuits and would rather play politics than play it safe by simply changing "shall" to "may" in the air ambulance bill.
• This current legislative body will keep a gas-cap bill in place to "protect the consumer" but not the taxpayer who will pay the attorney fees to defend the bill from lawsuits. Did the legislators forget the consumers they are protecting are also the taxpayers they are leaving vulnerable?
• This current legislative body thinks I am smart enough to decide due process in criminal hearings but not smart enough to decide on local school boards.
• This legislative body thinks having school councils attached to each and every school will help schools perform better and that by creating 255 councils each made up of the principal, teachers, school staff, parents, students and community representatives, it is creating "real educational reform." How will 255 school councils be less bureaucratic? Who will organize the councils? The principals? DOE?

But, what I will remember most is Sen. Shan Tsutsui's comment that maneuvering projects away from one lawmaker and giving them back to another lawmaker is "just the way it is" when he was asked to comment on CIP funds taken out of the House budget and put back in the Senate's budget because the representative for District 12 is a Republican.

If I remember these things and others do, too, maybe it won't have to be that way any longer and then we can look forward to a legislative body that works politically instead of just playing politics.

They don't believe we have the right to vote

Whether the education reform bill is fake or real is a moot point for me, my friends and community. We are concerned that our leaders do not believe we should have the right to vote.

Our opinion regarding the local elected school boards is not as important as the issue of our representatives not allowing us to vote on it. The problem lies in the fact that the Democrats are letting their opinions turn into a patriarchal debate over the idea that the public is somehow incapable of voting on this issue, therefore the bill will not make it. The Democrats are acting as authoritative leaders, not democratic representatives.

They base their representation on the past, allow little competition for or interference with the rightful power of their regime (although they may negotiate and compromise over issues important to one or two lesser sources of social concern), and try to enforce cultural, and often social, norms. This is not democracy.

Believe in the power of the people. Believe that the public whom you represent has enough intelligence to vote on issues regarding social change. As democratic representatives, believe in the right to vote whether there is agreement or disagreement with the representatives' beliefs or opinions.

'Drop-downs' in Act 221 should be eliminated

With all due respect to Robin Campaniano (Letters, April 15), the problem with a "drop-down," where a parent company "invests" in its own subsidiary and pockets a 100 percent tax credit, is there is no check and balance in the investment process.

The state ends up picking up the tab for the parent company's IT budget. Even if the parent spends a fraction of the tax savings on new jobs, it still makes a big windfall, and there is no safeguard that state revenues are being spent on good business prospects.

If used as a cost subsidy, rather than an investment subsidy, Act 221 becomes the entire justification for an "investment," as opposed to the longer-term value of the company. And when Act 221 goes away, so go the jobs.

Act 221 is supposed to be training wheels, not an anti-gravity device. Investors use Act 221 to learn how to invest based on the merits.

It's time for Hawai'i to adopt the New Jersey self-dealing restrictions to eliminate drop-downs. Requiring more than 20 percent outside ownership will bring discipline and integrity into the investment process, and comfort that every company receiving Act 221 money has good prospects.

Without this and other modest but meaningful reforms (see "It's time for modest reforms to Act 221," March 28), Act 221 should not be extended.

Fond memories of Bruddah Iz

Wayne Harada's April 14 article about Iz was excellent. Like many, I, too, am a huge fan of Israel Kamakawiwo'ole. I just loved Harada's personal touch in the story. He brought back some great memories about the legend.

Iz

A week later he was at a grand opening up in Mililani and I took my first daughter (who was then about 3) up to him after the mini-concert because she wanted to meet him. When I approached him, I said "I don't know if you remember me, but my daughter wanted to meet you." Before I finished he said, "I remember you, Bruddah Dave." I couldn't believe that a man who meets so many people could remember everyone's name.

We also had the pleasure of seeing his last public performance. It was a kids' ocean festival at Aloha Tower on a windy, drizzly day. After dropping relatives off at the airport, I stopped by the festival with my kids, not even knowing if Iz was supposed to play. When I arrived, I recognized Iz's Ford Bronco and thought, "Oh darn, we missed seeing him." But as Harada pointed out in his article, he always took a while to get on stage. Because of the weather, there were only about two dozen people out by the Pier Bar. There was a Hawaiian family sitting under a table with umbrella, and they invited me and the kids to share the protected table with them. Then Iz came out and played and laughed for a half-hour.

That week was when I, too, heard the sad news on KCCN. I was working for KHNL as the 6 p.m. producer, and I immediately called the newsroom and told them to get ready to dedicate the entire newscast to Iz. Our first two blocks covered Iz. I never understood why so many people were so emotional over the death of performers like Elvis until Iz died. I think that was the first time I ever cried for someone who wasn't a part of my family.

Anyway, thanks for the great article. It was much better than a simple article telling you to watch the special Wednesday night.