1967 antiwar message parallels Iraq mess

As we approach the day on which our nation will honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I am struck by words written in 1967 by this true patriot and prophet of nonviolence:

"Somehow this madness must cease. We must stop now ... I speak for those whose land is being laid waste, whose homes are being destroyed, whose culture is being subverted ... I speak as a citizen of the world, for the world stands aghast at the path we have taken. I speak as an American to the leaders of my own nation. The great initiative in this war is ours. The initiative to stop it must be ours."

Dr. King's cry of moral and political outrage was, of course, directed at America's war against Vietnam — a conflict that people of conscience everywhere were denouncing and resisting. The parallel with our present-day occupation of Iraq is striking. I am convinced that Dr. King, were he alive today, would be in the forefront of the growing opposition to the violence inflicted by our government on the land and people of Iraq.

As in years past, I will take part in the Martin Luther King Day Parade Monday through Honolulu streets. I will march not only to keep alive the legacy of a great American, but to give voice and visibility to his message of nonviolent resistance by protesting the Iraq war. I invite others to join in this peaceful pursuit.

We've fought too hard to let snarls get in way

Wow. A bottle law in Hawai'i. I'm excited.

Expecting growing pains and glitches, I waited a week to turn in the bottles, which, in the past, I would have taken to Kokua for recycling. Since the 9-to-5 weekday redemption hours don't work for me, a working person, I went to the Reynolds site on Beretania at 12:45 on a Saturday.

Half a dozen folks with garbage bags full of cans and plastics were already waiting. As more people lined up, the early birds informed them that no more plastics would be accepted, and that the bottle caps have to come off. "They're plastic, too, braddah," someone says. "They no take 'em."

Shortly before 1, a Reynolds employee returned from lunch. The second employee, with the key to the container, arrived shortly after 1. He had a long phone conversation with his boss, then told us that until a new container arrives, no recyclables of any kind will be accepted, and that it is uncertain when or if another container will be brought. A few diehards stuck around. Most of us dragged our unredeemed stash back to our cars.

If we want to be good stewards of our resources and make recycling successful, we, the consumers, must not be discouraged by these initial glitches. The recycling companies must give us more convenient hours at more sites. And the state must do its part and work with retailers to accept the empties on which they made a profit when they sold them. Since the latter is not going to happen without consumer pressure, we must persuade our lawmakers to follow other successful programs around the country and institute the necessary changes.

That won't be easy. I know. I was part of the pioneering group at Life of the Land that attempted to get recycling started in Hawai'i. It's taken more than 20 years to get this token program off the ground, kicking and screaming, as it were. We're not going to give up now. Let's all of us do our part to make it work.

Allegations against Tanonaka unfounded

I just read online from Japan the article regarding allegations over Dalton Tanonaka's political finances. I was one of those in attendance at the October fund-raising reception at the Tokyo American Club, which included members of the local chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League, and I resent the implication that anything illegal took place. We were all reminded several times that donations can only come from U.S. citizens.

I have known Dalton for many years in both a professional and personal context, and find it extremely difficult to believe the accusations being made against him. This sounds like a fishing expedition to me, hurting a good man who left a good job in Asia for the sole purpose of helping his state and country.

Don't leave the media out of tsunami loop

Did the Hawai'i tsunami warning system do its job?

What is its job? If it is to send faxes and e-mails and make telephone calls to various agencies in countries in imminent danger, I suppose it did its job. If its job is to actually "warn" the most people possible in imminent danger by alerting the international news media that are in a position to reach them, it did not do its job.

If there is another 9.0 quake in the Indian Ocean or elsewhere, am I to assume that CNN, BBC and other world news agencies will continue to be left out of the loop?