ROYAL HAWAIIAN

BAND HAS IMPROVED, BUT MAHI IS MISSED

Michael Nakasone has symphony-ized his leadership of the Royal Hawaiian Band. He has definitely made improvements. He has added musicians to the band, giving the appearance of a symphony band. His high-caliber and well-trained musicians produce a new quality.

But Aaron Mahi, former band leader, always came through with the true spirit of the Royal Hawaiian Band, past and present, drawing from his knowledge, history and repertoire of Hawai'i's music for all the world to enjoy.

It would have made Henry Berger, the originator and band leader of the Royal Hawaiian Band for 43 years, very proud.

Henry Berger invented, organized and preserved Hawaiian music. Queen Lili'uokalani called Henry Berger "the father of Hawaiian music."

Michael P. Augusta | Honolulu

NU'UANU

DEVELOPMENT CONCERN ISN'T A NIMBY ISSUE

In the July 3 article "Nu'uanu residents object to new homes," the developer's spokesman dismissed residents' objections as being a NIMBY issue. That is not the case. Government also has been concerned about the development of the valley for decades. It realizes that zoning done in the 1940s is no longer appropriate.

The 1967 General Plan and Detailed Land Use Map showed a proposed rezoning of a large mountainside area above Dowsett Highlands, designated urban, to preservation. This area would have had a footpath through it so that Hawai'i residents could access the mountain trails.

In 1974, Councilwoman Marilyn Bornhorst proposed Bill 118, requiring certain parcels zoned residential, but which were considered preservation in the GP, be rezoned preservation. A Department of Land Utilization (now the Department of Planning and Permitting) memo to the City Council said that the data assembled by the DLU tended to affirm the "validity and accuracy" of the preservation designation of this land.

In 2004, the City Council passed Bill 65, which authorizes the director of planning and permitting, under certain conditions, to require submittal of an engineering slope hazard report with a grading or building permit application. This legislation will help to prevent rockfall and landslide tragedies for all residents, not just those near this development.

Clearly, this is not just a NIMBY issue; the valley residents are not the only ones concerned.

Cindy Johnstone | Honolulu

REFUSE

MAUI HOTEL DEMOLITION WILL CAUSE PROBLEMS

Regarding the proposed demolition and development of the Kapalua Bay Hotel: Apart from the emotional considerations of tearing down Colin Cameron's pride and joy, I am writing to ask two important questions.

The first is, just where does the developer intend to dispose of the hundreds of thousands of square feet of a 200-room full-service hotel building? There will be a mountain of refuse, and the Maui landfill is bursting at the seams.

This will be a first for Maui, where a modern building is being demolished to make room for another modern building. We must get this right and not allow errors to be made in the name of progress. County and state governments must insist that the demolished remains be removed from the island (by ship, I would think) and disposed of out of Hawai'i. "Impact fees in lieu of" must not be allowed, as this accepted practice only closes a blind eye to our real problem: the landfill and its limited capacity and future.

The second question involves the actual removal of tons and tons of demolished remains. We are looking at hundreds of semi-tractor/trailer loads traveling across the island on our already overused Honoapi'ilani Highway. Planning must be made to truck this refuse out of Kapalua at times when the road is quiet. Safety and noise consideration must be seriously considered and respected.

All of us are living on a small island and must face this challenge with a plan that respects our population and the 'aina first. Full and transparent disclosure of the answers to these questions will not only be appreciated, but are demanded by the public.

Richard Cochrane | Napili, Maui

RENTALS

WOULDN'T IT BE BETTER TO CUT THE TAX RATE?

City Council Budget Chairwoman Ann Kobayashi has a very interesting solution to the increase in property taxes, as reported in the July 28 Advertiser. This turns out to be a means test that one has to meet in order to get any relief.

This will work for some, but how about those who rent? If the owner of a rental unit paid a $580 tax in 2002 and in 2005 finds the tax to be $1,000, that amounts to $420 more. So what is the landlord to do? Increase the rent about $35 a month to cover the tax increase. And don't forget that the landlord also has to pay the GET on the $35.

Would it not be more reasonable to just cut the tax rate? Why would it take until 2007 to implement a rate change?

John C. Laughlin | Waikiki

WAHIAWA EXIT

LANDSCAPE CONTRACTOR DOING GREAT JOB ON H-2

A big mahalo to the landscaping contractor who has been doing an outstanding job along the H-2 corridor from the H-1/H-2 merge to the Wahiawa exit.

It is such an eye-pleasing drive to have a well-manicured landscape along the freeway, which would rival most of our own lawns. The state should be commended on its selection of this contractor and monitoring his performance standards, but most of all mahalo to the hard-working crew who made this possibly the best stress-releasing drive in the state.

Leonard K. Ihori | Mililani

TERRORISM

NUCLEAR ARMS SHOULD GO ON LIST OF TABOOS

I am writing to thank The Advertiser for the July 17 column "Nuclear reactions" by Pakistani professor of nuclear physics Pervez Hoodbhoy. I agree that nuclear arms need to be added to the list of weapons considered taboo, which already includes biological and chemical agents. If terrorism is to be reduced and eventually eliminated, I believe the world's richer or better-off nations will have to demonstrate a clearly superior morality.

We should also make a convincing effort to substantially reduce oil imports by fast-tracking the use of new technologies for vehicle propulsion. By doing this, we can let China have more of the world's oil production and reduce the per-barrel price increases that can otherwise be expected in the intermediate to long-term future.

We can't blame have-nots for hating our military and economic domination, which has been highly destructive of the environment. If we can come to understand that we must make changes to the economy to better reward peaceful pursuits while reducing military and homeland security expenditures, we can also have more to give to help others overcome ignorance and disease.

While this logic is almost deceptively simple, I believe it holds the promise of a new age.

James Richmond | Manoa

RECYCLING

WHERE'S THE MONEY?

Here's an interesting question. All of the stores are charging customers a fee per bottle because they get charged by the government for each bottle they sell. The majority of Hawai'i residents don't bother turning them in for recycling because it's too much of a hassle and not worth the time and money.

So where does all of the extra money go that is not returned to the bottle-buying public?

Colin Kau | Honolulu

GLOBALIZATION

SHIPYARD: RETHINKING OLD NOTIONS

I had thought that anyone with a brain realizes the strategic importance of Pearl Harbor; however, I began to question that thinking when the BRAC Commission was two votes short of dismissing the "strategic location" argument based mainly on economic and operational efficiency concerns.

I began to recall other experiences of economics and operational efficiency at work. I recently purchased and repaired a laptop computer. As I unpacked the box, I noticed that the unit was assembled in Malaysia, with parts obtained from other countries from around the world. The technical support call center was probably located in a foreign country. The very knowledgeable and may I say pleasant technician I spoke with was patient and polite. He walked me through some diagnostic tests of the computer to determine what was wrong. I was the hands and eyes, and the technician was the brain. The parts were sent to a service representative who does the work in Hawai'i.

I also understand that a large insurance company on the Mainland several years ago set up an operation in a village in Europe for processing insurance policies. The literacy rate in this particular village was college level. With very little training, and using the Internet, the insurance company processed their policies efficiently.

Globalization — to make global or worldwide in scope or application.

Efficiency and economics changed the parameters for assessing the importance of military installations, strategic or not. Efficiency and economics cause companies to move programming, call centers and technical support to locations where these services are provided not only at a lower cost but with no drop in quality. This is reality, and it is actually happening.

The Internet allows for a more rapid pace of globalization. Private businesses have adopted this approach for many years. Look at Brand X Computers. Now, interestingly, with the BRAC process, government institutions that many of us have thought to be permanent are being reassessed with new criteria and expectations of performance.

This has caused me to take a step back and rethink how things are done in Hawai'i. What other historic institutions could or should benefit from globalization? There are 49 other states and thousands of county and municipal government entities with similar processes and procedures for delivering government services. Has anyone considered whether or not the services we provide have any value to other governments or if we may benefit from someone's existing system?

It may be, as the consumer of these services, we should demand more efficiency in how these services are provided and delivered. This is not so much about privatization but globalization among the various levels of government nationwide.

The Pearl Harbor lesson indicates that even in government, a healthy dose of competition in the delivery of services may be what is needed to reinvigorate the system and create value for both the providers and consumers.

Dean Uchida | Honolulu

BIBLE BEING MISINTERPRETED TO OPPOSE GAY MARRIAGES

When Jesus speaks of God making male and female "one" at the creation, he is responding specifically to a question regarding the legality of a husband "putting aside" his wife (19:3). In the biblical period — through the 19th century — a wife was her husband's property. Husbands did what they wanted with their property. Fundamentalists had best face up to the fact that this property relationship was the basis for "biblical family values."

Fortunately, even after the last words of Scripture, God is still speaking. So slavery, accepted as a given by the authors of Scripture, has been abolished; parents no longer kill children who are drunk or unruly (Deuteronomy 21:18-21); and most Christian and Jewish husbands no longer believe their wives are property. Their wives adamantly disbelieve it.

Many practicing Christians and Jews believe that the God who is still speaking is the God who creates us in our variety of human sexualities and calls us all to become the best straights, gays or bisexuals we were created to be. We also believe that the God who creates gays and lesbians calls most into committed relationships — as certainly as God calls heterosexual couples together. Jesus says nothing against same-sex marriage.

We must stop selective literalism: Leviticus 18:22 opposing "a man lying with a man as with a woman" is among verses that forbid two crops in one garden, two kinds of fabric on the same article of clothing and the eating of shellfish. Further, the verse is about one male abusing another, not about a relationship.

God is the source of same-sex marriage. We can fight against God as we did when God was bringing an end to slavery. We can fight against God as we did when God was bringing an end to racism and segregation — institutions supported by the same false interpretations of Scripture being used against same-gender marriage. We can fight against God as we did when God was bringing an end to the subjugation of women and against their right to vote — again based on false interpretation of Scripture.

Or we can move with God's Spirit, now calling humanity to recognize the many kinds of families God is creating — including same-gender marriage.

Rev. Dr. Stephen Wayles | Pastor, 1st Congregational United Church of Christ, Phoenix, Ariz.; visiting Honolulu