Posted on: Monday, March 1, 2004

Letters to the Editor

Golden anniversary of Great Statehood Petition

In February 1954, a petition with 120,000 signatures left Hawai'i for Washington, D.C. "We, the undersigned people of Hawai'i, hereby petition the Congress of the United States to act favorably on Statehood for Hawai'i now."

A roll of newsprint had signatures running more than a mile by people lining both sides of Bishop Street. Pages were circulated throughout the Islands.

One photo of an elderly man signing the petition has the caption: "Jack Paoakalani Heleluke, 74, retired member of the Royal Hawaiian Band who was born under the reign of King Kalakaua. Under his name he wrote '100 percent Hawaiian.' "

The 250-pound petition was taken to the steps of 'Iolani Palace for a ceremonial sendoff, including the Hawaiian civic clubs presenting chants, songs, hula, kahili and torchbearers.

In Washington, the petition was delivered to the Senate, and later to its permanent place in the National Archives.

Fifty years later, does the governor have the political courage to organize any celebration of the Statehood Day (Admission Day) holiday?

The Great Statehood Petition of 1954 was a proud chapter in Hawai'i's 110-year struggle to achieve statehood, from 1849 until 1959. For more information see: http://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/statehoodpetition1954.html.

It isn't intolerant to defend principle

"The fundamental principle of our Constitution enjoins that the will of the majority shall prevail."

Obviously, the mayor of San Francisco and activist judges have no concept of the Constitution that they are sworn to uphold, nor are they aware of the words spoken by the father of our country, George Washington.

It appears to me that the opponents of morality and religious conviction are more than ready to use the word intolerant to describe those who refuse to accept what is being forced upon them, but are not willing to accept that label themselves when faced with compelling arguments against their views.

Fifteen hundred years ago, Augustine pointed out that the best way to undercut an opponent's argument is to "co-opt" his language; take his words, assign them new meanings and make them your own. That way your opponent has to stop and define his terms or invent new ones. Intolerance is one of those words that have been co-opted and given a new set of meanings by God's opponents.

Today, intolerance has become the worst sin in the world's eyes and tolerance the highest good. To be principled or to have informed moral convictions is to be declared intolerant, out of touch or mean-spirited. The "tolerant" thus take the moral high ground.

Whatever happened to moral judgment? Whatever happened to sin? Whatever happened to letting the people decide?

The actions of the aforementioned mayor and judges are intolerable. There are times for intolerance, and its time is now. It is time to define marriage as between one man and one woman, period. Failure to do so would leave the interpretation of the meaning of truth to those who feel they can usurp the will and vote of the majority.

Crime vehicles should be permanently taken

The returning of a vehicle to someone convicted of racing, speeding or reckless driving is tantamount to returning the weapon used in a robbery to the robber. Would we condone that? I think not.

I'm all for confiscating the vehicle on the first offense, not the second or third. That second or third offense might be the one that takes the life of your loved one.

Let the person convicted ponder the remaining three to four years of car payments on a vehicle now owned by the city. In turn, the city could sell the vehicle and that money could go toward police pay.

Let's not return those weapons of death and destruction to those irresponsible individuals who just can't seem to live and drive within the law.

Letter writer could use some education

Professor Marcus Daniel makes 21 errors in 14 assertions in his Feb. 18 letter about education. Space limitations prohibit a detailed rebuttal, so I will mention just a few of his errors.

Schools are "underfunded." False. Comparisons between countries, between U.S. states and between school districts within states find no systematic relation between funding and performance.

"We know what will help (a particular student), and it's not standardized testing or bureaucratic reform." Three errors in one. "We" do not know. It is because remote authorities do not know individual students that local control works best. Standardized tests measure performance. Corrective action begins with recognition of a problem.

"Most European countries have one big school district for all their kids." Not according to OECD "Education at a Glance" or TIMSS "Mathematics Achievement in the Middle School Years."

"(S)maller classes ... " The NEA's favorite reform. Class size is not systematically related to student achievement. More teachers means less money for lab equipment, books, supplies and lunch. It also means less-qualified teachers.

To raise state test scores, "abolish private schools." In large districts, children of privilege get magnet schools and GT classes. Political control of school harms most of the children of the least politically adept parents.

Principals know best what schools need

I enjoyed Milton Shishido's Feb. 23 letter ("Give principals what it takes for success"). I'd like to hear from more principals. I believe in decentralized districts made up of principals who best know their teachers' and students' needs.

I also like funding based on the the number of children in each particular district. Perhaps funding based on the number of teachers and principals would help with providing the training they need to help one other, too. Same standards for all districts, but leave them the creativity to decide how to achieve it.

Price-cap proponents ignoring real problem

Proponents of an amended gas price-cap law appear to be ignoring the facts in favor of a feel-good approach to dealing with Hawai'i's retail gasoline price issues. In reality, that approach would likely lead to higher prices at the pump.

Prior to advancing the latest price-control bill, members of the Legislature at a public hearing heard from many mom-and-pop retail gas dealers that a price-cap law of any kind would likely put them out of business, since it would render them unable to respond to fluctuating operating costs. This is consistent with the findings of independent energy expert Stillwater Associates, which is retained by the Legislature to evaluate impacts of the cap.

Stillwater also concluded that such a law would harm consumers by offering them fewer choices, eliminating much-needed local fuel supplies and probably driving prices higher.

Your article correctly points out that if the proposed new formula were currently in effect, Hawai'i consumers could be paying even more than they would with no controls at all. That is because the "amended price cap" is not a cap at all — it is a floating price tied to Mainland gasoline markets.

The Federal Trade Commission, Stillwater Associates and well-respected local economists agree that it is the high cost of doing business in Hawai'i, not oil company pricing practices, that determines what consumers here pay for gasoline. Rather than punishing small-business owners and consumers, the Legislature would better serve Hawai'i motorists and consumers by trying to improve our state's inhospitable business climate.

We sure showed those education reformers

Aloha kakou. We stuck it to them Lingle-ites, pulled a kaka-roach and kept the keiki under the control of the DOE. Who do these people think they are? Just because the people of Hawai'i voted us out of the governor's office, do they think they are in charge? We showed them, bruddah, damn the keiki of Hawai'i, keep the status quo!

Aloha kakou, special interests and politicians. We did your bidding and kept the education of the keiki under our control. What do these people think, do they think the voters of Hawai'i know better than us on how to educate the keiki? We have been doing this for over 40 years, and if it was good way back then, it is good now. The voters are not as smart as we are, bruddah, damn the keiki of Hawai'i, keep the status quo, we know better.

We sure showed them Lingle-ites, didn't we, bruddah? What do we do now?

Utilize helicopters, neighborhood boards

Regarding the school boards issue: Neighborhood boards are already in place throughout the Islands; there needs to be a stronger connection among the boards, the schools within their jurisdiction and the various related government agencies.

Regarding the racing issue: With some paint, better use of the HPD helicopters and other air units, a lot of racing could be stopped with minimal risk. It's a fact that there is no car that can outrun a radio wave. California Highway Patrol has used this technique on I-5 and other "open areas conducive to excessive speed" for years. The concept is relatively simple: The car crosses the first painted area and is timed to the second, giving its speed to the air unit, which relays to ground units to intercept the car safely with minimal risk.

Highway patrol would free up Honolulu police

In his Feb. 24 letter, Honolulu Police Chief Lee Donohue cites what he feels to be a "duplication of services" that would exist in the field of highway traffic enforcement were the state to take over that responsibility. In actuality, a highway patrol unit would free up police officers for more traditional city and county responsibilities, i.e. 911 calls, complaints, proactive patrol, etc.

This would decrease response time for these calls and save the counties money. The cost of this effort would be no additional burden, as the funds currently diverted to the Honolulu Police Department for highway traffic enforcement are actually intended, by federal regulation, for state use.

It seems the city's opposition to these measures stems more from issues of retaining control than from altruistic concerns regarding the state's financial position.

As to the creation of a statewide training facility for law-enforcement officers, the HPD's current training academy was originally intended to be such, as is the trend in most states. This central academy model results in a standardization and consistency of training. In its current condition, I agree the academy's resources are taxed, but with input and contributions from all counties, and the state, improvements could be made so that it would rival any academy in the nation.

County police chiefs have already gone on the record stating that their agencies are over-tasked and under-manned. State contribution can only improve this situation. Forty-nine states already have some sort of a highway patrol; do the taxpayers of Hawai'i deserve any less?

Lingle should turn gaze to local issues

I find it amazing how much time away from Hawai'i our illustrious governor spends. Iraq, Washington, D.C. When is she at home to discuss the issues that face our state?

It seems as if she's more interested in the national Republican agenda than the issues facing our state. There's a strike crippling our economy, important issues related to education and the ice epidemic, to name three that are left by the wayside when she goes to Iraq or Washington or wherever else.

I guess getting "brownie points" from the national Republicans is more important.

Students are the major education stakeholders

As executive officers of Students First!, representing over 200,000 Hawai'i students, we would like to offer some clarification on some of the recent statements made in the media.

The mission of Students First! is to allow for students' voices to be heard, students' perspectives to be considered and student concerns to be addressed at all decision-making levels within our institutions of education. We are asking our state leaders to keep in mind that our schools are here for the education of students. Students are the major stakeholders — do not exclude us from the process, do not marginalize our voice.

We ask that you allow us to sit at the table with you to discuss matters that are important to students. Together we can make meaningful changes to our educational system, changes that will benefit students, faculty, staff, business and our state.

Together we can be the change we want to see.

Give us education reform now

I have been pleased with the extensive coverage education reform has received during the past few months because I believe it is the most important issue facing our state.

My administration has proposed a comprehensive reform plan that I believe will raise student achievement after decades of failed attempts at putting Band-Aids on a mortally wounded system.

The plan includes: letting the public decide on whether we should replace the existing statewide Department of Education with seven local school boards; moving at least 90 percent of state operating education funds to the school level; fully funding and removing the cap on charter schools; empowering principals and holding them accountable for student achievement; and giving teachers the tools they need to restore discipline in the classroom.

A national study of 37 states found that local school boards lead to higher student achievement. Hawai'i is the only state in the nation that has a statewide board of education, and it doesn't work. That's why no other state follows this model. It is also a fact that our students consistently score at or near the bottom of the nation.

In addition, the studies that really matter most are those done right here at home. For more than 30 years, those studies have all pointed to the need to place control over money and decision-making at the school level, and for local school boards to be based in the communities they serve and be accountable to the public.

In more than 20 years in public office as a council member, mayor and governor, I have never experienced the intensity of desire to protect a system that obviously is failing its citizens. Our current statewide school system just doesn't work. It didn't work last year, five years ago or 10 years ago. And, most importantly, it won't work next year either.

Now is the time for change. Our proposal addresses a long-standing problem with a comprehensive, community-based approach that will produce better results than our current system as evidenced by our bottom-of-the-nation ranking on national tests.

For now, we are asking the Legislature to put the issue of local school boards on the ballot. That is the first, but most important, step on our journey of reform and higher student achievement.

The people of Hawai'i have long recognized the need to change our public education system. We have been on the brink of school reform before, but our leaders lacked the courage to move forward.

It would be sad indeed to watch this opportunity for change pass us by again. Now is the time for action. Let's just do it!