DRILLING

CASE, ABERCROMBIE LET US DOWN ON GAS

Gasoline prices are high. So we need more gasoline to drive the prices down. We should be drilling for more oil and doing so in the U.S.A. so that our money will go to Americans, not to foreign countries.

How very strange, then, that Reps. Ed Case and Neil Abercrombie recently voted against drilling for oil in Alaska. We need that oil to keep gasoline prices from going even higher. Case and Abercrombie let us down on this one.

And, how strange that Abercrombie voted to send your tax money to Hamas, a terrorist organization. Abercrombie, in particular, is too extreme to represent us in Congress.

'EWA HOUSING

HOMEOWNERS TOLD NOTHING OF PROPOSAL

Your May 24 story on the 10,000 to 15,000 more 'Ewa houses planned by the Schuler Division of D.R. Horton Inc. was both astonishing and appalling.

It was astonishing to read that while the start of construction is five years away, "it can be built from the ground up around rail." To my knowledge, no one in government has even remotely suggested rail will be built in five years.

As one of the 600 homeowners in West Loch Estates, let me assure the reader that notwithstanding the statement by the builder that over the last several months seven or eight meetings were held with community groups to share general planning concepts and to receive suggestions and concerns, at no time were any plans or concepts discussed or meetings held or offered between the developer and the homeowners. Furthermore, the minutes of the West Loch Estates board of directors shows no such meeting with them either.

As such, it was appalling to read Ms. Teri Ikehara, president of the West Loch Estates Homeowners Association, state that she's "excited" about Schuler's plan because of its focus on mass-transit connections as well as development of schools, parks and job-creating commercial centers.

The fact that the 'Ewa Neighborhood Board has had numerous discussions relative to increasing housing stock prior to having the infrastructure in place appears lost on Ms. Ikehara. The chair of the Makakilo-Kapolei/Honoka Neighborhood Board and the chair of the 'Ewa Task Force formed by the 'Ewa Villages Community Association seem to have the pulse of the community in that the infrastructure should come first.

POLITICS

CONVENTIONS SHOW NEED FOR INVOLVEMENT

On behalf of the Hawai'i Republican Party, I would like to thank the hundreds of delegates and guests who participated in the Hawai'i State Republican Party Convention last weekend, one of the most well-attended conventions we've seen.

The unity and energy at the convention were contagious, and we could not have done it without the many volunteers who put on a well-organized event. To the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel, we say thank you once again for your professionalism and attention to detail.

I would also like to congratulate Mike McCartney on his election as party chairman for the Democratic Party of Hawai'i. This election will be about the future of Hawai'i and the leaders who will guide us. I look forward to open and honest debates with Mr. McCartney.

The two major-party conventions this past weekend demonstrated the importance of having citizens involved in politics and taking time to know the issues and the candidates. I can assure you the Hawai'i Republican Party will do its share to offer candidates who will give the voters a clear choice on election day, and we will continue to work hard to ensure a strong two-party system in Hawai'i.

ON-RAMPS

SEAT-BELT CHECKPOINTS SHOULD BE CHANGED

The recent tragic death on the H-1 Freeway of a man who was thrown from a vehicle because of not wearing a seat belt once again underscores the need for the police to change their tactics in the Click It or Ticket campaign.

Why do the police checkpoints continue to be on streets in neighborhoods? The checkpoints should be at all the entrances to the freeways to most effectively prevent these kinds of deaths.

'OLD GUARD'

DEMOCRATS WRONG TO HOLD ON TO THE PAST

The recently held State Democratic Convention demonstrated again the historically repetitive syndrome of "the old guard won't let go." This is justified under the banner headlined "Respect."

Respect for what?

Respect for the past, yes! Respect for past accomplishments is a wonderful memory, but it does not ensure that the state will get its fair share of federal monies in the future.

We keep repeating that this or that person does not have the experience. Well, how are they supposed to get it?

This type of divisiveness within the state Democratic Party has led to a lack of young leadership because there is no program to support aspiring politicians.

Despite what the party chairman says, the glaring example of this is that the party has not brought us a credible candidate to challenge Gov. Lingle. How can you trust the entrenched party powerful when their total program is "Don't rock the boat"?

By their action, they are telling us that there is no Democratic candidate good enough to hold the top position in our state. I do not believe this. This attitude, of course, spills out into the other races where only the old is good enough. Beware of the young upstarts! No wonder young people don't vote.

DROPOUTS

REACH AT-RISK STUDENTS EARLIER

While the state Department of Education and public high schools are concerned with ninth-graders dropping out of school ("Dropouts left behind," May 28), I am concerned with students in the elementary level who are at risk.

You may think it's premature to have students set career goals in the elementary level. Not true. Take children who are born into a family of physicians, lawyers, educators, journalists — on and on. The likelihood that those children will follow in their parents' professional footsteps is evident.

Compare that to children whose home is unstable and shattered by their parents' bad choices — e.g., substance abuse, divorce, unemployment, single parenting and homelessness. At this tender age, they are emotionally fragile and vulnerable to becoming a statistic. As a result, these children go through school struggling with reading, writing, doing simple math problems, following simple directions, making the right choices and setting future career goals.

Some school personnel may grumble and blame the parents for not being better role models, but if the parents are out of it, who will rescue these innocent students? The schools then become the students' underlying rescuer, a role many frown upon.

Community intervention has been proven to be successful, like the cooking classes offered at Farrington High School. Over a year ago, I founded Our Children Can Succeed, a free reading program held once a month at a public park. The mission of the program is to reach out to families with children ages 1 to 7. In the beginning, the turnout was excellent, but attendance has dwindled. All of them are students of Wai'anae Elementary School.

Two girls, now ages 7 and 9, are a great concern because of their lack of reading ability. However, with the new principal, Mr. John Wataoka, at Wai'anae Elementary School, my confidence has been restored. I've visited the girls' homes to introduce myself and my faithful volunteer from Kahalu'u, Mrs. Lucy Gay. The young mothers were very receptive to our visit. The girls have stopped coming, but I have not given up on them.

Two sisters, ages 9 and 10, I would like to boast about, because since they have attended the program, their reading has improved and they have become avid readers. The 9-year-old would like to go into broadcasting like Liz Chun, and the 10-year-old would like to be a fashion designer.

Books are purchased from the Friends of the Public Library and other sources. Books are given away after each session. Writing book reports, a spelling quiz, artwork and a math quiz have been incorporated in the program. All expenses come from my tiny coin purse.

Reading The Advertiser about high school dropouts was somewhat awkward and yet edifying. Wai'anae High and Nanakuli High and Intermediate schools ranked top of the list in school dropout rates: 29.2 percent and 26.6 percent (2004-2005) respectively. It's obvious that they and other schools in similar situations have many challenges to overcome.

U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye and I are alumni of William McKinley High School, which ranked third in dropouts, 26.5 percent (2004-2005). This surprised me because when I attended high school, the standards were high. During my time, we had our share of teenage pregnancies, family problems and so forth.

What is significantly different today is the amount of technological devices that is on the market, such as cell phones, iPods, palm computers, the Internet, video games, personal computers, flat-screen TVs — the list is endless. Teachers now have to compete for students' attention to get them to listen in class and to complete their homework assignments. How does a traditional school system motivate and teach students of today's era?

MEDICAL ACCESS

RURAL RESIDENTS HAVE GREATER RISK OF DEATH

A 2005 study by the American College of Surgeons found that residents living in rural areas die younger, in some cases at a rate 10 percent higher for men and 14 percent higher for women, than their counterparts living in urban areas.

We know that in rural O'ahu and the Neighbor Islands, people die earlier and are hospitalized more often by coronary heart disease, injury and diabetes than people in metropolitan towns and cities.

It's worth asking to what extent these sobering statistics are a function of lack of timely access to healthcare? We know that Hawai'i has excellent hospitals and medical care professionals — but are they within reach of those who live in the country when they are needed most?

Today, the average time between a transport request and departure from Maui is over five hours. In some cases, patients on Kaua'i have had to wait for over 10 hours to be transported to Honolulu. This is an unacceptable situation. Neighbor Island residents deserve the kind of access to quality care that folks in downtown Honolulu expect and enjoy.

Happily, some steps toward improvement have been taken. There is some comfort to be had in knowing that the Hawai'i Air Ambulance is back in service after being grounded following the recent tragic crash that claimed the lives of three crew members. There is added comfort in the fact that a second air ambulance service — AirMed — is now available. But is this enough?

We must forge a partnership among state, federal and county governments and private service providers so that the lives of rural residents are not needlessly placed at risk.

State, federal and county governments must be united in their commitment to significantly increase the necessary financial support provided to the private service air ambulance providers in the form of subsidies or reimbursements. Such a partnership is the only way we can ensure that adequate, reliable service is provided and the lives of rural residents are not needlessly placed at risk.