Posted on: Sunday, February 20, 2005

Letters to the Editor

Know travel routes before committing

One of the most important things to know before building a fixed-route transit system is, where is everybody going?

Obviously, they are not all going to Iwilei. And they may not even be going to anyplace along the route the planners are envisioning.

So, if a train is to be a reasonably useful way of getting anywhere, means must be provided to get from the train stops/stations to where everyone is actually going.

See San Francisco or Manhattan. And start saving the gazillion dollars it will take.

'Beauty contest' polling doesn't work

Last week you reported results of an informal Advertiser phone and e-mail survey of readers that suggested overwhelming resistance to a tax hike for rail transit.

But such quick-and-dirty surveys can be misleading. People with strong opinions tend to respond, while those with less-extreme views sit them out. In this case, those who are ideologically opposed to all taxes may have responded big time, and those of us who support mass transit and are willing to pay for it may simply not have been worked up enough to call in.

Regrettably, "beauty contest" polling of this type is becoming increasingly popular.

The Advertiser should resist this trend. If the issue is important enough for a survey, let's see scientifically based randomly sampled surveys. Otherwise you are not contributing to informed discourse on key public issues.

Thanks for keeping the E bus route

What a nice gesture on the part of our new mayor to retain the E bus route.

I was very pleased when Mayor Harris started this new route. I am 93 years of age and in good health, except I can't walk too far so I couldn't go to Waikiki Beach and restaurants on Kalakaua, but now I can as this bus goes down Kalakaua and I don't have to walk from Kuhio.

Since I live downtown, I can get the E bus on Hotel Street, and it also takes me to the Ward entertainment center for the movie theater and restaurants as well as Ala Moana Center.

I have friends who come here during the winter, and they also use and enjoy this route. So thanks, Mayor Hannemann, for continuing this great route.

Red-light cameras are a proven failure

It seems that they just don't get it. Now our elected officials are pressing ahead with another camera-happy idea, this time for red-light runners.

If any of them had watched the Fox News channel on Feb. 10, they would have gained some valuable insight on the use of the cameras. Red-light cameras are in use in several states, including Prince Williams County, Va., on which Fox News reported.

Fox reported that initially, four out of five people favored the cameras being installed. As a result, injury accidents increased by 24 percent because of an increase in the number of collisions. When some drivers saw a sudden yellow light at an intersection, they jammed on the brakes because they knew they would be photographed.

It was also noted that communities make big bucks from fines — camera makers pulling in 90 percent of the fine money. Camera makers decided where cameras were to be installed to rake in as much money as possible from fines.

Police reviewed photos to determine if fines were applicable. San Diego removed its red-light cameras.

Public health school would have helped

The tsunami relief effort gives pause for thought. If the former School of Public Health at the University of Hawai'i had been teaching students from Asia and the Pacific since its doors were closed, then a cadre of graduates would have been in place to assist in relief efforts. Trained responders who know their countries well would help ensure aid is better distributed.

For example, the director general of the World Health Organization, Dr. Lee Jong-wook, attended classes at the former school.

When Dr. Edwin Cadman first arrived as dean of the medical school, he promised the community that an accredited school of public health would be reopened within five years. Five years have now passed. I invite Dr. Cadman or another UH administrator to respond to this letter to update the community on when a school of public health is going to reopen.

If never, the community needs to know that also, so that resources may be directed elsewhere to get the job done.

State should amend bottle-deposit law

The bottle law was created to try to help people to recycle. It creates an extra fee of 6 cents per bottle or can.

When people return their bottles or cans to designated redemption centers, they get 5 cents back per container. The state only receives 1 cent for every bottle and can that is purchased. Over 800 million cans and bottles are bought each year. The money that is raised is given to the redemption centers that are participating in this project. The money earned by the state by people who don't recycle is kept by the state for whatever it needs money for.

This law is a complete waste of time. I think the state should amend this law and pay something like an extra 5 cents for every can or bottle recycled. Yes, the state would lose some money, but I'm sure if the purpose of the bill actually was to encourage people to recycle, it wouldn't mind spending the extra money.

There's plenty of blame to go around for our schools

While in Hawai'i, "Megatrends" author John Naisbitt emphasized that education is the single most important factor that will improve the economy. (His visit was summarized by JAIMS president Glenn Miyataki in a Feb. 8 letter.) Naisbitt's assertion stands in stark contrast to Hawai'i's public school system, which has been ranked as one of the worst in the nation.

In a seeming contradiction, Hawai'i is blessed with well-trained and dedicated public school teachers and administrators. However, the organization in which these educators are forced to work is "obsolete," as Superintendent Pat Hamamoto said last year in a speech to the Legislature. The organizational structure of the Department of Education severely limits the effectiveness of our educators — to the detriment of our children.

In explaining the reasons for our educational predicament, there's lots of blame to go around:

• The superintendent can be blamed for not being able to move the huge DOE bureaucracy to do things differently.

• The DOE bureaucracy can be blamed for not wanting to move.

• The Board of Education can be blamed for being too concerned about the details of managing the public school system and not being concerned enough about the big picture of how to improve it.

• The Legislature can be blamed for addressing education reform only when pressured to do so by the public.

• The governor, the Hawai'i State Teachers Association, the Hawai'i Government Employees Association (the principals' union), the business community and even the education community itself can all be blamed for not doing what they should have done.

I have to admit that it's easy to blame others. But being that we live in a democracy, I have also come to the realization that, most of all, I must blame myself, along with my fellow citizens, for permitting our inferior education system to continue. We have not been forceful enough in demanding excellence in public education.

Unfortunately, our children will be the ones who will suffer from our negligence.