Closing arboretum to the public unjustified

I read in the Aug. 28 paper that the University of Hawai'i has closed Lyon Arboretum to the public, supposedly in response to some safety issues raised by the state auditor.

My wife and I have volunteered on a regular basis at the arboretum for over 25 years, and we can see no rational basis for this decision to deprive the public of the opportunity to enjoy a wonderful botanical garden — the only U.S. university botanical garden located in a tropical rain forest.

Every month, we work with a group of volunteers in the upper arboretum, doing such things as weeding, clearing brush, pruning bushes, maintaining trails, etc. We are not aware of anything that is a "safety issue," any more than taking a hike on the adjacent Manoa Falls Trail is a "safety issue."

Several old cottages located in the lower arboretum are in bad condition (the result of many years of not-so-benign neglect by the university), and those buildings should be immediately repaired. However, to arbitrarily close the entire arboretum to the public is unjustified and appears to be a way of punishing the arboretum staff for their recent exposure (to the regents and the Legislature) of mismanagement of the arboretum.

University management should immediately reverse this ill-conceived action and allow the public to enjoy the arboretum (and also allow the volunteers to continue to offer their services).

Trees are essential to a community's life

Although I sympathize with the frustrations stated in Carol Kauliakamoa's Aug. 31 letter regarding the negative effects that trees can have upon a community, I would like to remind folks of their positive impact.

The benefits of trees can be grouped into social, community, environmental and economic categories. For example, trees provide shade and cooling, clean our air by using the carbon dioxide we exhale, support our ecosystem by preventing erosion with roots holding the soil, and increase property values. In addition, trees enrich our visual environment, break the monotony of endless sidewalks and miles of highways, and soften the outline of a harsh cityscape.

I ask all readers to close their eyes and envision a Honolulu devoid of trees. Is this the paradise that we sell to would-be visitors and is this the paradise in which we all choose to live? I think not.

For more than 90 years, The Outdoor Circle has been totally committed to the beautification of our Islands. Anywhere you travel, trees are an essential part of what makes a place special. Hawai'i is no different.

Anderson's Hokule'a concept is a bad idea

I can appreciate creativity, interesting architectural features and a Hawaiian sense of place. Andy Anderson's Hokule'a concept for Kaka'ako has all that and at first sight seems as if it could become a world-renowned structure much like the Sydney Opera House.

Taking a closer look at the conceptual drawings, however, makes me doubt that this grand vision is even possible.

As a windsurfer and sailor, I know how much power the wind can exert over even a very small foiled sail. These 300-foot-tall sail-shaped buildings have no way to bend or "sheet out" excessive wind pressure. I would not want to be in one of these buildings on a regular tradewind day, let alone during hurricane-force winds.

I can't imagine that these buildings could be built strong enough to withhold those kinds of forces. Did the design team consult with sailors of the Hokule'a? I doubt it. The "sail buildings" look more like yacht sails than traditional Polynesian-style sails to me.

It's back to the future with city's light rail

I went to school in the '40s on a bus connected to overhead electrical power lines. In the previous decade, trolley cars using rails embedded in the roadway were Honolulu's light-rail system. Both systems were discontinued as they appeared to be more costly and less efficient than the internal combustion engine buses we now use.

Imagine some old-timer watching a construction crew install rails in the roadway where he saw them ripped out in the 1930s. His parents paid the tax to have them installed, he paid the tax to have them ripped out and now he has to pay to have them installed again. Hello!

Rail systems in numerous Mainland cities have demonstrated low ridership and runaway cost without alleviating the traffic jams. After Seattle voters approved a rail system, the cost escalated another $2 billion.

If we build a light-rail system and make paradise look more like the Mainland, tourists would go elsewhere and the economy would go south with them, as would many visitor-related jobs. But with fewer people having to go to work, this results in less traffic, so in way a rail system would reduce traffic congestion.

Safest place in U.S. was New York City

When the Democrats held their national convention in Boston, they had to worry about terrorists.

Then the Republicans met for their national convention in New York City, and their biggest concerns were the hundreds of thousands of American patriots who came to peacefully demonstrate and protest against the GOP leader, George W. Bush.

That should tell us something.

The safest place in America this week was in New York — even though hundreds of Bush's "enemies" were arrested by the NYPD. Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida group owe the Bush administration for past favors such as helping the terrorist's family flee the USA after the Saudi attack of 9/11 and the diversionary war against Iraq, which took the pressure off bin Laden and his gang. It stands to reason that bin Laden's killers would not want to harm Bush or those who support him, hence the feeling of security in New York City.

'Hurting' businesses didn't take advantage

America was in recession in 2000. The 9/11 tragedies affected most of the United States. Several units of the 25th Division from Schofield were sent to Iraq in 2003. In 2004, the 411th Hawai'i National Guard and some of the Army Reserve were sent to Iraq. The 29th Brigade from Hawai'i will be sent to Iraq in 2005.

In an article dated Jan. 18, Wahiawa businesses said they were "losing customers" because of the military's departures. In a more recent article in another newspaper dated June 21, many Wahiawa businesses said they were "really hurting."

During the 2004 legislative session, many calls were made to businesses in Wahiawa and several in Kane'ohe urging them to testify and ask for help at the committee hearings. Only one or two showed up. Programs to help areas impacted by the military's leaving, such as low-income loans, were unanimously passed by the 2004 state Legislature.

What happened? A loan program, funded by HB 1662, was accepting loan applications in Wahiawa on July 29 but only three businesses showed up.

So, Wahiawa businesses, next time, if you don't take the initiative and participate in your survival, don't complain about your "hard time."