CROSSWALKS

MILITARY, VISITORS NOT COMPLYING WITH LAW

Working in an area with multiple car rentals and numerous military, I've noticed that many who do not comply with the safety laws for pedestrians in crosswalks are visitors or members of the military.

A friend who drives a cab confirmed my observation.

I do not think this needs legislation, but as a "good business" measure, I'd suggest that car rental companies provide all renters a brief summary of the law regarding crosswalks, including the fine for violation.

And it might make more of an impact if the renter at least initials the form.

The military could do a "high level order" meeting with any new arrivals to accomplish much the same.

HECO, BLUEEARTH

BIOFUELS HERE WON'T HARM ENVIRONMENT

Bill Kamanu (Letter, Feb. 22) raises a legitimate concern about the impact of increased use of biodiesel from palm oil on rainforests and the creatures living in them.

At Hawaiian Electric Co. and BlueEarth, we believe that doing the right thing also means doing it the right way.

From the start, HECO and BlueEarth committed to develop a policy that will require that we do not accept biofuels from sources that are harming the environment. We are consulting with national and international experts to make sure that our policy is truly effective.

Hawaiian Electric's and BlueEarth's goal in partnering to build a biodiesel refining plant on Maui is not only to reduce Hawai'i's dependence on fossil fuels and limit our impact on global warming, but to encourage locally grown agricultural energy crops.

HECO takes no profit on fuel and will take no profit from this biodiesel enterprise. All profits from HECO's part in the partnership will go to a biofuels public trust fund to support research to find the most efficient, environmentally benign plants to grow here and encourage production of Hawai'i-grown energy feedstock.

The first step in this process, subject to needed approvals from the Hawai'i Public Utilities Commission, is to build a plant that will help drive this movement.

SAFETY

CUTTING TRAFFIC DEATHS SHOULD BE U.S. FOCUS

The war in Iraq has resulted in more than 3,000 deaths of our brave service men and women since it began in 2003.

Every day, we are reminded of the increasing number of war deaths by the media. However, I believe we should also be aware of the number of traffic deaths during the same period.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, traffic deaths have exceeded 40,000 annually since 2003.

Many of our elected officials in Washington want to put a halt to the war in Iraq based on the mounting number of casualties, but they are a small percentage of the number of highway casualties that have occurred since the war began.

Why isn't the Washington crowd also concerned about reducing the number of traffic deaths?

HMSA

MDS HAVE NOT SEEN MEANINGFUL INCREASE

I have been practicing medicine (ophthalmology) in Hawai'i for more than 20 years as an HMSA participating provider.

The typical letter from HMSA to me each year reads that payments for some medical services will increase, some will decrease and some will remain the same.

In aggregate, I have not received a meaningful reimbursement increase from HMSA in years.

In his letter to the editor of Feb. 15, HMSA Senior Vice President Cliff K. Cisco did a tricky little thing. He stated, "Between these fee increases and ANNUAL UTILIZATION INCREASES, payments to Hawai'i physicians overall (on a per member basis) have increased by 82.5 percent over the past 10 years."

So, Mr. Cisco, how much of the 82.5 percent increase was due to increased provider eligible fees and how much was due to increased member utilization? And what was the total inflation rate over the 10-year period?

Obfuscation is HMSA's stock in trade.

TRANSIT

COUNCIL SHOULD STUDY SAN FRANCISCO'S SYSTEM

With all the travels the City Council has made, I've often wondered why they apparently never went to San Francisco.

For the ferry system, I recommend using the sightseeing vessels that sit at Kewalo Basin until they start their tours. They are licensed for food and beverage service, which is a plus.

Riding a ferry from Kapolei to Aloha Tower while enjoying a continental breakfast is far more enjoyable than sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Should you need further transport, a shuttle bus or one of the many trolleys could get you there with ease.

There are simple solutions to our transit problems, and the San Francisco system could provide a lot of the solutions because of the similarities of the needs of both locales.

Instead of traveling to Holland, take a flight — Hawaiian to San Francisco or Aloha to Oakland — and see what a real efficient multi-vehicle (bus, boat and rail) transit system looks like, and save the taxpayers some money in the process.

CARE FACILITY

CABANILLA LETTER SHOWS SHE HAS NO REMORSE

The letter to the editor by Rep. Rida Cabanilla (Feb. 20) reveals that she is without remorse for her obvious conflict of interest in attempting to submit a bill that would allow her campaign treasurer to build an elderly-care facility within 1,000 feet of another care facility in Waipahu.

She again fails to disclose that she intended to be an employee of this new care facility.

The reason the city and county have this zoning requirement is that care facilities intrude on otherwise-quiet neighborhoods with continual HandiVan pickups and dropoffs and with more traffic from relatives.

While these are worthy endeavors, the impact to people in these residential neighborhoods is tremendous.

For Rep. Cabanilla to attempt to bypass the city and county laws in order to enrich her campaign treasurer and herself is not only a conflict of interest but self-dealing at its worst.

Her apology to her colleagues is contrite and without true remorse.

She should resign from her office in shame.

ENERGY

HIGHER GAS TAXES ARE GOOD FOR ENVIRONMENT

Bills that propose to cut gas taxes are bad for the environment and encourage purchases of gas-guzzling vehicles.

Gas taxes in the U.S. are a fraction of what they are in Europe, where taxes make up as much as 75 percent of the price of gas and gas costs more than $6 a gallon.

The only way to encourage people to buy fuel-efficient vehicles and conserve energy is to raise the price of gasoline via higher gas taxes.

People worried about gas prices should buy fuel-efficient vehicles. This will help save the environment and reduce our nation's dependence upon foreign oil, often supplied by terrorist-friendly nations.

If concern for the poor is the problem, give them a tax cut, but don't take away the incentive for everyone to conserve.

The cost to our environment per gallon is far higher than the small gas tax we currently pay.

OCEAN MANAGEMENT

RESPONSIBLE FISHERMEN WILL PUT RESOURCES FIRST

HB1848, "The Right to Fish Act," was introduced by a fisherman, but does not represent the sentiments of all fishermen statewide.

I was born and raised on Maui, and fishing is a way of life for me.

Unfortunately, our fish stocks have declined severely in the past 20 years, and it's time to give back to the ocean from which we took too much.

It is sad that we must ban a technique of fishing, but when that method is so indiscriminate and has been abused with such greed, we are left with no choice.

As fishermen we are responsible for our ocean. A true fisherman is a sportsman, one who puts the resource before himself. He refrains from taking too much and frowns on those who take too many.

I am determined to see Maui become a shining example of proper fish management without area closures.

Each island should determine the fate of its own reefs. Obviously, those who have introduced and support HB1848 don't share that sentiment. This is a message to other true fishermen — step up and don't let tyranny rule.