Not about separatism but about respect

In regard to the letter published on Sept. 10, obviously written by a very "disgusted" man named Ken Conklin, I, as a student at the Kamehameha Schools, was disappointed in his choice of words to confront Native Hawaiian issues and Hawaiians. "notice among dozens of flags," he writes, "not one was American." True, there were no American flags, but that doesn't show that we aren't Americans as well. As a Hawaiian nation, we are fighting for land and rights that are ours. We're not fighting for land in Florida. We have pride as strong-willed Americans.

The Ku I Ka Pono March was to bring together both Hawaiians and non-Hawaiians. Ask anyone who attended the march on Sept. 6: people from all walks of life were there. Passersby from Australia and even Michigan stopped to purchase shirts, then proceeded to march down Kalakaua for one cause: unity.

They were not there to defend "racial separatism." They wanted to show respect to the people of Hawai'i, the same respect that we as Hawaiians deserve from people like Ken Conklin.

Plantings, research need daily care

Lyon Arboretum is more than a nice place to go to look at palm trees. In those ramshackled little buildings, some of the most important work is being carried out to save many of Hawai'i's rare and endangered flora.

Those plantings and research materials need daily care. It's not as if they can be neglected for a few weeks and revived when funds become available. The arboretum deserves better management.

Are open-field tests inspected regularly?

The letter that you printed on Sept. 13 from Alan Takemoto was either disingenuous or naive. He states that biopharmaceuticals — that is, the experimental open-field testing of genetically altered plants to produce pharmaceuticals, industrial solvents and the like — is well regulated. "Current government regulations," he writes, "require exhaustive testing prior to open-air field testing."

This is somewhat true. Each phenotype category "oo" (which is how these abominable experiments are classified) is supposed to be inspected six times per year. But are they? There have been 112 permits issued for phenotype category "oo" open-field tests in the state of Hawai'i. If all of these permits were acted upon, that would mean that the USDA would be conducting 672 inspections per year.

Do they even have the manpower to do so? A couple of years ago I wondered. So I filed a Freedom of Information Act request for documentation of those inspections. So far, all that I have received from them is an acknowledgement that I filed the request.

Perhaps the Advertiser would have better luck than I, a mere citizen, have had in obtaining this information — if in fact, it exists. But of course, you'd have to be so inclined.

Experimental crops can cross-pollinate

Regardless of whether one is pro- or anti-genetic engineering, if genetically engineered crops are contaminating non-genetically engineered crops through cross-pollination, then the two cannot co-exist within the range of wind-borne pollen.

He's changed more than team's offense

When June Jones won the head football coaching job at the university, not a few were sorely disappointed that Norman Chow didn't get it. Little did they know that Jones would also become unofficial athletic director and proceed to change the revered name of Rainbows, change all the colors, change the school's fight song, and go for a base salary higher than the governor, among other things.

It was said that it was hard to recruit Mainland players to a school with the name Rainbows, even though it was the only such name in the world. Nothing was said about a coach with the name of June. The Rainbow band sits on its hands while Jones' new recorded music is played at the games. They are supposedly learning to play "A Boy Named Sue" when nothing else is going on.

You have to wonder if all the profits from the new UH logo caps, towels, shirts, etc., go directly to the athletic budget. A poll in The Advertiser earlier showed that those responding gave a rousing "thumbs up" to Channel 2's Joe Moore's suggestion that fans prefer things as they were before Jones.

'Reforms' overlook classroom interaction

All the so-called "solutions" to school reform have me amused but also saddened because they raise false hopes and continuous disappointments. Things like creating seven school districts instead of one, introduction of canned curriculum programs peddled by so-called experts, focus on a specific body of knowledge which schools must offer and students must learn, heavy reliance on standardized tests to determine student and school progress and success, and on ad infinitum.

So, what's the solution? You have it right in front of you in your editorial section in the Sept. 7 Advertiser, namely the commentary by Jon Andes entitled, "Third grade lesson is lasting a lifetime," in which he describes how his third-grade teacher using a positive and encouraging approach was able to motivate her students who were deemed losers to learn and succeed.

The key to school "reform" is encapsulated in the paragraph of Jon Andes' commentary which reads: "I learned that learning takes place in the classroom through interaction (emphasis is mine) between students and a caring and supportive teacher setting high expectations for the children by encouragement and using a positive approach in dealing with all the learners in your class."

I'm reminded of a song made popular by Tommy Dorsey in the '30s entitled, "Accentuate the Positive." We need to create an environment that encourages, not discourage. We need an environment that will allow learners to think, to try, to make mistakes, learn from them, and not be afraid to try again.

Are these comments simply idealistic pipe dreams? Need evidence to prove them otherwise? Just ask. Got some work of young elementary school students to show you that the positive approach does work and work real well.