Letters to the Editor

'Buddha Bar' a new low in crass commercialism

The two recent news items regarding the renaming of Jap Road in Jefferson County in Texas and the use of the name "Kauai Kolada" for a new line of cigarettes now have a third, local cousin of gross bad taste: the Aug. 5-8 grand opening of the "Buddha Bar" at 260 Lewers St. in Waikiki, formerly the House of Hong restaurant (phone: 1-877-CLUB411, ext. 86).

As a new low in crass commercialism, naming a bar after one of the world's major religions is bad enough. Insult is heaped upon injury when it is done in the middle of the major tourist showcase of our multicultural state. To let this example of extreme insensitivity pass unnoticed would be shameful.

Is anyone listening? Hawai'i's Buddhist community? Our governor? Our mayor? The City Council? Surely one more name change is in order. Does anyone give a hoot?

Reinventing Education funds must be released

The governor's restriction of $4,303,900 in appropriated funds under the Reinventing Education Act of 2004 (Act 51) is a setback to the educational initiatives and strategies in the law to improve student achievement.

The restriction prevents key educational restructuring components from moving forward by holding back essential funding for: technology to support school operations; parent-community networking centers that create supportive relationships among school, home and community to improve student achievement; student activities coordinators in all public high schools; and programs that support parents in working with students who require additional help to succeed in school.

The release of the appropriated funds is necessary to strengthen educational accountability and compliance with the federal No Child Left Behind Act, and support school-home-community collaboration and participation in raising the educational experience and success of students.

Act 51 represents the end-product of the 2004 regular session in which the Board of Education, DOE, legislators, educators, unions, parents, student organizations and others in the community participated to improve student learning and achievement. Planning and implementation of the educational initiatives and strategies contained in Act 51 rest on the governor's release of the remainder of the funds appropriated in the act.

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Let's hear Democrats denounce the lies first

President Bush should indeed denounce the Swift Boat ads and the attempts to discredit John Kerry's Vietnam War service — just as soon as Kerry (in the strongest of terms) denounces Michael Moore's slanderous, veracity-challenged version of Bush's military record and service as commander-in-chief on Sept. 11.

By the way, "Fahrenheit 9/11" has received quite a bit more media attention than this Swift Boat ad has. What's that I hear from the Kerry campaign? Oh yes, the sounds of silence.

Safe driving distances

Many of our traffic accidents are caused by drivers following too closely. Many drivers do not know the safe distances to allow between two cars. Prudent and safe distances should be approximately one car length per 10 mph. This guide is applied under normal weather conditions. During inclement weather, the distances between two cars should be increased.

I wonder how many drivers are aware of safe distances to follow.

Keep aloha driving in right lane, please

I have never written a letter to the editor before, but since the first letter came in and sparked this driving-with-aloha debate, I've felt compelled.

I am truly amazed at the sheer number of people writing in to defend driving in the left lane under the auspices of "it's my right," "it's not against the law," "not driving L.A. aggressive," blah, blah, blah.

I am one of the fast drivers who get upset when your "aloha" prevents me from getting where I'm going in an efficient and safe manner. I pay very close attention to traffic, noting conditions and the rate of attrition of traffic.

As much as you feel it's your right to go the speed limit or below, I feel it's my right to get where I'm going as quickly and safely as possible.

As pointed out previously, most posted speed limits are lower than they should be for the roads they are posted on. I know that it becomes "the law" and I can be cited for exceeding it, but that is my choice, and you don't own the right to interfere with it. You are creating the more dangerous road conditions by forcing me to find a way around you rather than staying in the right lane and letting me by.

For those of you who want to say "leave earlier" and "you're only saving a few minutes," I leave when I think I should and I'll take those few minutes because guess what, I got there on time (actually with a few minutes to spare) and that works for me.

So please, keep your aloha in the right lane and I will shaka you on the way by.

Building homeless center a bad idea

Regarding "Wai'anae selected for homeless site" (Aug. 9): What does the executive director of the Wai'anae Community Outreach group mean by there will "likely" be a public hearing? What's the point? Apparently, the federally funded $5.3 million project on state land has been secured and is practically a done deal.

Why would the outreach group, Mayor Jeremy Harris and other city officials want to further compound already existing neighborhood problems?

Has anyone told them that at least one of the local churches and a Christian camp near the proposed complex have experienced first- and second-degree burglary no less than a half-dozen times in the past year alone?

Or that the open field next to the proposed complex has been ablaze with fire no less than a dozen times in the past three months?

I would have thought that those whose property values and overall quality of life will decrease as a result of the influx of homelessness and less-than-savory elements of Hawai'i's lawless community should have had a greater say in the chosen site.

'You people' comment challenged immediately

Robert Rees simply got it wrong and continues to get it wrong (Focus, Aug. 8). Mr. Rees ignored the fact that as soon as Evan Dobelle finished his statement about "you people," I challenged him immediately. I told him very clearly that I did not appreciate the use of that phrase and that I found it offensive. I spoke to Mr. Dobelle in front of the same group of regents and staff that he just finished speaking to.

Mr. Rees mistakes the kind of person I am. I have not and will never let an offensive, inappropriate or disparaging remark go by no matter who utters it and no matter what the occasion. I am not the kind of person who will mutter about it in hushed tones for the next few weeks. The only reason it came up several months later was that a reporter asked me about it and I told him what had happened.

The second, and more offensive, mistake made by Mr. Rees was blaming Gov. Linda Lingle for my failed nomination to the Circuit Court position in Hilo. Throughout the nomination process, Gov. Lingle's efforts were tireless. She went door to door talking to senators. She sat through the marathon nomination hearing, much to the surprise of some senators. More importantly, she was kind and gracious to my family throughout.

Mr. Rees overlooked the simple fact that my nomination failed because the Senate Democrats wanted to punish me for supporting Gov. Lingle in her election and make an example of me. Lorraine Inouye wanted "payback" because she lost her bid for mayor of Hawai'i County to Stephen Yamashiro, whom I also supported. Ms. Inouye paid for Del Pranke to fly from Hilo to Honolulu to testify against my nomination.

I am tired of the same old politicians who lack vision and leadership. The same old politicians who pay more attention to their campaign coffers than the voices of the people. The same old politicians who fulfill the every desire of special-interest groups like the HGEA instead of the needs of the people. There are some great people running against these out-of-date, spiteful and greedy politicians. And I'm there to help. In 2002, we voted for "A New Beginning." November 2004 will be time to vote for "A New Reality."

Legislature must focus on ice

Many legislators missed a great opportunity this past legislative session to support common-sense tools that could have aided law enforcement in the fight against drugs. By not enacting meaningful legislation that would bring back the "walk and talk" and "knock and talk" programs, as well as rejecting a change to the state's wiretap laws, the majority party ultimately hurt what should have been a bipartisan effort to battle the horrible ice problem.

Simply stated, "walk and talk" would allow a police officer to stop an inbound passenger without probable cause if the officer suspects the passenger of carrying drugs or drug paraphernalia. Because of Hawai'i's constitutional privacy protections, "walk and talk" and "knock and talk" are not admissible in state courts because the state Supreme Court found that such a stop could be intimidating and that consent cannot be given voluntarily.

The majority party of the Legislature also ultimately opposed legislation (through actions by the state House majority) that would have updated Hawai'i's antiquated wiretap laws. This means that law-enforcement officials are still required to go through an in-camera hearing before approval of an application for a wiretap. This in-camera hearing is a mini-trial in which an attorney is able to cross-examine witnesses, including undercover agents regarding information about the wiretap application. Additionally, under current statute, information obtained through a federal wiretap is inadmissible in Hawai'i's state courts.

The bottom line is that it now appears as if Hawai'i may stand to lose federal dollars because of certain majority party lawmakers' unwillingness to give local law enforcement these additional resources.

Senate Republicans, along with Gov. Linda Lingle, wholeheartedly supported the efforts of the Law Enforcement Coalition to enact methods that would make it easier to combat the ice epidemic in our communities. The final report of the Joint House-Senate Task Force on Ice and Drug Abatement showed that the primary point of entry of ice into our state is via Honolulu International Airport. That report stated that 80 to 90 percent of the ice seized was coming in via packages carried by couriers.

What better sense than to allow an officer to use "walk and talk" to intercept drugs before the drugs hit the streets?

The Senate Republicans are urging Democrats to join us in the continued efforts to help eradicate drugs from our community by supporting programs such as "walk and talk" and "knock and talk" and by bolstering wiretap laws. Yes, rehabilitation and treatment are important, but those efforts must be coupled with other effective tools such as strong law enforcement in order to efficiently fight the ice problem in Hawai'i.

Help us win the fight against drugs and ice. Give law enforcement what they need to fight a winning battle. Call your local legislator today.