Column on Aiona belonged elsewhere

I found it extremely curious that the May 18 column "Aiona: God's love can transform Hawai'i" by David Shapiro was in the editorial section instead of in another section, like the Saturday religion section, for example.

Indeed, Mr. Shapiro is scrupulous in not opining one way or the other on the propriety of Mr. Aiona's public professions of Christian faith (which restraint I found admirable), even though your editorial staff contentiously subtitles the article "Evangelical push opens questions of church/state." Nowhere in the column itself does Shapiro express any opinion; so again, why the editorial section?

I can only surmise from the placement of an otherwise factual piece in this section (and other editorial decisions made over the last 30 years of my Advertiser readership) that your paper's specific intention was to highlight conduct it perceived to be inappropriate for a public official — an attempt to "out" the lieutenant governor, as it were.

The only thing I found more peculiar than the placement of the column in the editorial section was the statement by Rev. Alison Dingley that she (as one presumably ordained to minister in the Christian faith) found Mr. Aiona's letter "really inappropriate" and disconcerting. To criticize the lieutenant governor's sincere expression of faith in a public forum seems a bit doctrinaire, especially coming from someone apparently claiming the personal attribute of religious tolerance.

Nowhere do I see in the Constitution an injunction that public officials divorce their religious convictions from their public personas.

Minimally invasive surgery promising

I read with great interest the article "Treatment of prostate cancer easier with new surgical tool" by Dr. Rallie McAllister in the May 12 Health and Fitness section.

First, I would like to thank you for providing this public service. I think it is most important for the public to stay informed about the latest trends in prostate cancer treatment.

I spent a year at the University of California at Irvine as a minimally invasive surgery fellow, where I worked closely with Dr. Ahlering to learn and help train other surgeons in robotic surgery. It is a technique I strongly believe in. Although the long-term efficacy is unknown, the short-term data look very promising. The advantages of minimally invasive surgery, and the degree of precision, as stated in the article, are obvious.

Currently, we do not have a robotic system in place in Hawai'i. Our prostate cancer patients have to travel to the Mainland if they desire this type of treatment. As the patients become more informed, there has been a steady increase in the number of patients who choose to leave home for their care.

A small group of surgeons and I have been in discussion with one of the local hospitals to bring robotic surgery, not limited to treatment for prostate cancer, to Hawai'i. It has been an extremely slow process, but I continue to be hopeful.

Majority of people are against roundabout

I am confused. We elected the president since he received the majority of electoral votes. Similarly, Gov. Lingle and Mayor Hannemann are in their positions based on "majority rules." All very important positions.

Why is it, then, for something as simple as a roundabout in Foster Village, this principle does not apply?

Yesterday, the city was due to proceed with the construction of a roundabout at the entrance to Foster Village. There are 20 people who are in favor of this project and an overwhelming 505 who are opposed! I just don't get it!

Kahuku High School students a great bunch

Recently I had the pleasure of being a guest lecturer for three of Jerylin Florimonte's art classes at Kahuku High School. It was a joy to be in the presence of those fine young men and women.

They showed such respect, attention and courtesy, asked good questions and gave good responses, that I was most pleasantly impressed. They were also very cooperative when the teacher or I asked for assistance. They were the most polite group of young people I have come in contact with in quite some time.

So often the various media show such negative things happening among our young people nowadays, but these sterling teenagers showed the other side of the coin and give one hope and faith in the younger generation.

I don't usually write letters to the editor, but I felt it was important to let the community know about these fine young citizens of Kahuku. Kudos to the school, the administration, faculty, staff and, most of all, to the students of Kahuku High School.

Pedestrians shouldn't be treated third-class

The May 15 commentary "O'ahu needs to be safer for walking, bicycling" by John Goody and Khalil Spencer is so one-sided in favor of bicyclists that it is a joke.

The truth is that cyclists are scared to death of autos (rightly so), and pedestrians are scared of bicyclists, most of whom are grossly inconsiderate of walkers. Bicyclists race on narrow walkways and speedily zigzag through crowded bus stops. They are on the sidewalks against the law, but the only place where they seem to be cited is in the center of Waikiki.

Nowhere in the column is any real emphasis given to pedestrians. I feel as though we are treated as third-class citizens, after automobiles and bicyclists.

In Vancouver, B.C., cyclists on sidewalks must walk their bikes. Somewhat civilized, wouldn't you say?

I wonder just what attention our legislators ever give to our (walkers') existence.

HGEA ignored the facts in administration pay raises

Alan Takahata, a negotiation committee member for the Hawai'i Government Employees Association, gave your readers a wrong impression in his April 27 letter regarding the binding arbitration settlement recently awarded to his union ("Who took the dollars and left the pennies?").

He seemed to justify the HGEA's hefty pay hike by pointing out that Gov. Lingle, her directors and state judges received salary increases in 2004.

First, the raises for the executive branch (the first in 14 years) were recommended by the Executive Salary Commission and approved by the Legislature, not the governor or any member of the administration.

Second, the governor is precluded by law from receiving a pay hike during her current term. The pay hike can only be received if she is re-elected in 2006. Moreover, the raises for state judges do not take effect until 2005.

Third, the raises in 2004 went to a relatively small number of individuals and will have a minor impact on the state budget.

The HGEA raises, by contrast, will cost Hawai'i taxpayers about $97.3 million over the next two years and set the standard for other public unions in the state. And, as Gov. Lingle noted, this latest award continues a trend of directing nearly all our revenue increases toward collective bargaining hikes.

Takahata also defends binding arbitration by saying it can be avoided if the state negotiates in good faith. As a member of the state's negotiating team, I can assure you that the administration did negotiate fairly and always with the public interest in mind. The problem is with the process in that there is no incentive to engage in give-and-take at the bargaining table because a third party, usually a Mainland arbitrator, makes the final call. By contrast, recent agreements with the HSTA and UPW, with give-and-take on both sides, are indicative of successful negotiations between the parties, without resorting to an arbitration hearing that costs thousands of taxpayer dollars.

That's why our state should do away with this costly and unfair process of determining pay raises. Moreover, the public has the right to know the facts and to know how its tax dollars are being spent.

Unions trump Act 51 intentions

Management decisions that impact individual public school communities should be made at the school level; at least, that is the consensus of those who supported Act 51 (2004) and school community councils.

However, Reps. Kirk Caldwell, D-Manoa, and Dwight Takamine, D-Kohala, and Sens. Brian Kanno, D-Makakilo, and Brian Taniguchi, D-Manoa, this session approved in conference committee Senate Bill 1352 SD1 HD1 CD1 by gutting language that provided for paid leaves of absence for state workers who are bone-marrow donors and inserting language that would negate management's right to "hire, promote, transfer, assign and retain (public union) employees."

To illustrate how this law would put special interests above the rights of a community, the Wai'alae Public Charter School Board recently decided to contract with a private food services provider for school meals after food service personnel left Wai'alae for other positions in the Department of Education. The award was based on the nutritional value of the meals and the service and because the provider agreed to integrate the food services program into the curriculum of the school.

According to sources at the school, the United Public Workers union subsequently harassed the board and charged it with "unfair labor practices" because there are no UPW food services workers at the school. The UPW claims this is a violation of an agreement between the UPW and the Board of Education.

Wai'alae School's troubles beg the question as to why the BOE would enter into master agreements with unions that run contrary to Hawai'i labor and education laws allowing schools flexibility and control to ensure that student learning takes precedence over adults' job security.

The 2005-2007 teachers' contract between the state and the Hawai'i State Teachers' Association still contains required staffing formulas. The contract also includes a memorandum of understanding requiring a fallback process where Bargaining Unit 5 can vote to derail decisions made by school community councils. A memorandum of understanding requires an SCC Exception Review Committee that gives decision-making authority to state-level DOE and union representatives.

Act 51, however, requires equal decision-making by all role groups on the individual school council. Allowing the interests of one group to take precedence over all others and mandating negotiations over each and every transfer of employee, assignment and layoff only serves to provide greater power to the unions over management decisions.

If Gov. Lingle signs SB 1352, the role of unions and union rules will supersede the role of management in leading public education toward excellence.