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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Thursday, April 13, 2006

Letters to the Editor

INFRASTRUCTURE

COUNCIL MUST RETHINK PLANS FOR TURTLE BAY

It is with great disappointment that we see the City Council has so far failed to act to slow down and re-evaluate the 20-year-old agreement that grants Turtle Bay resort permission to build 3,500 new hotel and condominium units in the rural area from Kawela Bay to Kahuku Point.

Developers like Oaktree are allowed to continue with plans for massive overdevelopment that will alter the North Shore forever while, as recent headlines have graphically shown, O'ahu is paying the price for decades of failing to plan for and implement sustainable growth.

Our sewers and highway infrastructure are in critical condition; our public schools are overcrowded and in appalling disrepair; and our landfills will be totally full in just a few years.

The City Council must stop letting developers like Oaktree take the money and run, and start addressing and properly managing the basic infrastructure we taxpayers pay for.

Jeff Cotter
Kailua

NUCLEAR THREAT

WORRY ABOUT A WAR WITH IRAN MISPLACED

Poor Stephan O'Harrow. He's frightened the U.S. may go to war with Iran.

Don't worry, Steve, Iraq was about the liberation of millions of people from the worst despot since Hitler — oil or no oil. If the liberated choose civil war so be it. One thing we know for sure, it'll be a long time until Iraq has a nuclear weapon.

As far as Iran is concerned, close your eyes, Steve, and picture every Islamic terrorist organization in control of an atomic bomb supplied by the mullahs of Iran. Then picture New York and Los Angeles gone in 60 seconds.

Finally, their centuries-old dream of a world controlled by God and them is realized. Of course, the Free World would collapse into anarchy. But don't worry, Steve, you'll get used to the women you love being offered to Taliban chiefs as gifts and wearing burkas.

And one more thing, Steve, you won't be able to write a letter to the editor about your government or you will be tortured and killed. Talk about fear — that's real fear!

Gordon Oswald
Kealia, Hawai'i

SEWAGE SPILLS

CITY MUST MITIGATE AGAINST THE DAMAGE

I read with great interest your April 9 articles on the dumping of 48 million gallons of sewage into the Ala Wai Canal. The city came up with this contingency plan in the 1990s, but now says it is no longer an acceptable option.

This is untrue because there will always be a "worst-case scenario" in which such an outcome will be unavoidable. We must immediately reduce the possibility of future dumping by correcting our wastewater system deficiencies.

However, fixes will take time, and we are making ever-increasing demands on an aging system.

In the meantime, the city is evaluating the cost of a temporary bypass system for the Beach Walk force main until a new permanent line is completed. If implemented, this system will someday only upgrade this one line. What about now? And what about the other 50 miles of pressurized sewer line?

When the unacceptable happens again, we have to mitigate the damage. We allowed 48 million gallons of sewage to pour into our environment with no attempt to reduce that total. City officials tell us that O'ahu doesn't have 108 tanker trucks per hour to haul away sewage or stockpiles of 42-inch-diameter pipe for an emergency bypass line. What is wrong with 54 tanker trucks per hour or a 30-inch-diameter bypass to halve our mess?

If it was too radical a notion to cut off water service to those areas that impacted this sewer main, then what about a few hours of water each day until repairs were made?

Don't let your elected representatives off so easily. Have we gotten a good return all these past years?

Stanley J. Yanke
'Aiea

OFFICIALS

DECISION-MAKING STINKS AS MUCH AS THE SEWAGE

The floods have gone but we are saturated with news of our state becoming a wasteland.

The recent sewage spill sums up how deeply incompetent all levels of government in Hawai'i appear to be. Hawai'i is plagued with more than bacteria: stagnant officials who make devastatingly stupid decisions.

How akamai do you need to be to realize the sewage system needs a massive overhaul? Or that rain will eventually fill an empty reservoir? How many spills will it take for us to do more than just something? Can't just patch up this pothole of a problem. Hawai'i needs to wise up and fast!

More than just the tourism industry is at stake. Bacteria seems to have affected our brains' ability to think long term. We reap what we sow. God help us.

Kalani Chong
Waipahu

TOURISM

UPGRADE SEWERS NOW

The City and County of Honolulu needs to upgrade its sewer system as soon as possible to prevent future spills on our world-famous beaches to preserve our No. 1 industry. Let's show tourists that we can provide for them with open arms.

Michael Nomura
Kailua

SYNERGY

A COMMON SOLUTION TO RAIL, SEWAGE ISSUES

Our two latest and greatest problems are sewage and rail transportation. My suggestion is that we combine the two with the simplest operation possible:

  • Put them side by side underground where one has to go and the other should go.

  • Bore holes down through the deepest of the current potholes for access to both.

  • Provide circular staircases up through the current manholes (or is that personholes?) for exits.

  • Sign up City Council and Legislature members to punch water/sewer bills as tickets for train passage.

    Don Neill
    Kane'ohe

    ANNIVERSARY

    2003 FALL OF BAGHDAD WAS MISSING IN PAPER

    Thanks to the Sunday paper, I learned several significant bits of trivia about April 9. I learned that General Lee surrendered at Appomattox in 1865, that the islandwide power outage in 1991 occurred on this date and that O'ahu Sugar Co. was grinding its last haul of cane in 1995. I also saw two articles on difficulties in Iraq and two articles on the growing Iranian crisis.

    Strangely missing was the tiny little fact that the statue of Saddam Hussein was toppled on April 9, 2003. How is it that the third anniversary of the fall of Baghdad completely escaped the pages of The Advertiser?

    Gil Riviere
    Waialua

    MAINTENANCE

    POLITICS OF DEFERRAL SHOT US IN THE FOOT

    A few years ago, Mayor Harris decided to raid the sewage fund to defer raising taxes a gross amount. The economy wasn't doing very well, so a majority of the people stayed silent since they liked the cake they were eating and didn't want to pay a higher price for it.

    Now the bill has finally come due.

    Not only will it cost more to repair, the deferred maintenance has literally caused us to shoot ourselves in the foot. The dumping in the Ala Wai is causing our beaches to stay vacant due to justified fears of contamination. Don't blame Mufi; blame all the voters who stayed silent when the special funds were raided.

    The pothole issue is the same as the sewage issue — don't blame the mayor or the governor. The money was used for general expenditures instead of what it was originally earmarked for instead of raising taxes.

    Nothing is free, especially in Hawai'i.

    Christopher Murphy
    Wahiawa

    STAR OF SEA

    FLOOD RECOVERY EFFORT WAS WELL REPORTED

    Thank you for your accurate coverage of the ongoing flood recovery effort at Star of the Sea Early Learning Center. It was refreshing, especially after these several days of hard work, to read an article that was able to find some lighthearted humor in the midst of the turmoil in which we have sometimes found ourselves.

    We appreciate reporter Karen Blakeman's ability to strike the fine balance between conveying the story of the seriousness of our situation with the ability of all involved to find humor in what has been, sometimes, just truly dreadful.

    We extend our gratitude to the City and County for its prompt response to calls, to our vendors for their support and to our families for their continued commitment to the center.

    Due to the wonderful support we have received, we have been able to keep our doors open to our children, and we look forward to returning to our own classrooms before the end of this month.

    Dawn E. M. Johnson
    Director of admissions & marketing, Star of the Sea Early Learning Center

    TAX FORMS

    THANKS FOR THE HELP

    After worrying about my income taxes for weeks, I was gratified and relieved to have the expert assistance of AARP volunteers at Central Union Church. Marcia was the most efficient and helpful person I have ever had.

    Nancy Bey Little
    Honolulu

    USS ARIZONA

    VISITOR CENTER SHOULD MOVE TO FORD ISLAND

    I hope the Navy and the National Park Service are not making a mistake by planning to build the new Arizona Memorial Visitor Center at its present site and will seriously consider locating it to Ford Island opposite the Arizona Memorial.

    I advocated that idea 25 years ago when I was deputy public affairs officer at Pearl Harbor Naval Base. It was not considered feasible when the center was built in 1980 because small boats and a ferry were the only means of transportation to Ford Island.

    That problem no longer exists now that a bridge connects Ford Island to the Pearl Harbor mainland. A catwalk or small bridge could be built from the Ford Island shoreline to the Arizona Memorial so that visitors could simply walk on and off. No boats would be needed, freeing the Navy crews for their primary duty and saving the Navy and U.S. taxpayers thousands of dollars every year in fuel, maintenance and staffing.

    Boat transportation has always been a major headache because of budgeting, breakdowns, foul weather and safety considerations.

    The twin visitor sites of the USS Missouri and the Arizona Memorial Visitor Center would be historical bookends and trade off each other. In addition, they would go hand in glove with the air museum to be built on Ford Island. These three attractions could share in the logistics involving parking, transportation and other support.

    Rock Rothrock
    Honolulu

    CONSUMER PROTECTION

    BILL ADDRESSES REGULATION OF MONEY TRANSMITTERS

    I agree with The Honolulu Advertiser's editorial on April 7 that "money transmitters should be regulated."

    In Hawai'i, money transmitters — ranging from large international companies to local "mom and pop" businesses — sell money orders or receive monies to send to other locations like the Philippines. Hundreds of millions of dollars are entrusted each year by Hawai'i consumers to transmitters.

    Unfortunately, there have been instances where that trust has been breached. Some Hawai'i consumers have been the victims of certain transmitters: Money doesn't get delivered when promised, less money is received at the destination than was agreed, and money doesn't get delivered at all.

    Hawai'i is one of only five states without any regulation of money transmitters. However, pending before the Legislature is Senate Bill 2143, which would change that by requiring that money transmitters be licensed. The bill provides for enforcement actions, civil remedies and criminal penalties.

    At four public hearings this year, testimony supporting the bill cited the same reasons as your editorial: the need to protect consumers and the need to prevent money transmissions from being used to launder proceeds from criminal activities.

    The Non-Bank Funds Transmitters Group (a coalition of various international money transmitters) strongly favors the bill, which has also garnered wide-ranging testimonial support from financial institutions, labor unions, concerned individuals, a local money transmitter and the law enforcement community.

    And, legislators have voted overwhelmingly for the bill as it progressed through the Senate and the House. The bill is now before a conference committee.

    MARVIN S.C. DANG
    Attorney for Non-Bank Funds Transmitters Group