TRIBUTE

ISLES FORTUNATE TO HAVE THE LEGACY OF PAUL LOO REFUND

Paul Loo was a model of integrity, of vision, of kindness. He was wise, complex, and down to earth.

In today's business environment we'd do well to hold on to those values, and remember this gentle man.

In our philanthropic community, we will have to stretch to follow his generous lead.

How fortunate we are in Hawai'i to have his legacy.

REFUND

MAYBE TIME HAS COME TO SUE THE LEGISLATURE

Gary Chun of Mililani might have stumbled on to an idea that might get the point across to the state Legislature ("Why can't Legislature obey the Constitution?" June 26).

How about a class-action lawsuit? Only registered voters would qualify. Hmmmmm.

VETO THREAT

LEADERSHIP NEEDED ON PEDESTRIAN ISSUE

For some reason, Gov. Linda Lingle is planning to veto an important pedestrian safety bill, SB 1191.

In recent years, almost three dozen pedestrians have been killed annually in Hawai'i, and half of those have been 60 years old or older.

The governor should know that by 2020, 25 percent of Hawai'i's population will be over 65, and it is shameful if she doesn't show some significant leadership on this critical issue.

HORRIFIED THAT SAFETY BILL MAY BE VETOED

I was horrified and sickened at the news Gov. Linda Lingle may veto the paltry $3 million earmarked for pedestrian safety.

This is yet another clear message on where our state government stands on this issue.

How much did the Indonesian goodwill trip cost? The state wastes more then the safety legislation asks for.

Why can't some of the $50 million yet to be spent on anti-terrorism be used? I and most other pedestrian/cyclists are terrorized daily on our walks, jogs and rides by the anarchy on the streets that Gov. Lingle now will continue to ignore.

My faith in our elected officials is hopelessly lost on this news.

DEFINITION

YOU'RE 'LOCAL' IF YOU GREW UP IN HAWAI'I

I shall attempt to explain the term "local" to Mr. David Proudfoot ("What is the definition of the term 'local?' "June 26).

If a person is from Virginia, he is a Virginian. If from Texas, a Texan. Those of us born and raised in Hawai'i cannot truly be called Hawaiian unless we have Hawaiian blood. For want of a better term, we use the word "local."

Along with this is the experience of growing up in Hawai'i:

Eating crack seed, sushi, lau lau, saimin, malasada and more recently adobo.

As kids, speaking pidgin, going barefoot, swimming at Kapena falls, Hanauma Bay, Ala Moana beach, attending high school and going to football games here.

Understanding 'ewa, diamondhead, mauka and makai better than east, west, north and south.

Being a kama'aina ain't bad, and you're married to a local, so after 45 years I wouldn't let it bother me. Take it from this local haole.

WORLD WAR II

FILIPINO HEROES ALSO SERVED WITH 100TH

Your articles about the glorious 100th Battalion are very impressive.

However, there are a a few non-niseis who served honorably with the 100th.

In particular, there was a local Filipino named Alvin Planas who trained with our honorable senator at Camp Shelby. Planas also received a battlefield commission, Silver Star, and Purple Heart. His widow and one son live in Honolulu.

There was also another Filipino hero, a B-17 pilot who received two distinguished Flying Crosses. His name is Capt. Stanley M. Sabihon. His widow lives in Lawndale, Calif., and his son, Darrell, lives in Gardena, Calif..

HAWAI'I KAI

'07' ON KOKO CRATER IS NOT THE WORST EYESORE

It's amazing that the simple act of the proud graduates of Kaiser High School putting a blue/white "07" on Koko Crater has created such a brouhaha.

I've missed it the past few years — and now that it is back, I'm sure the new senior class of '08 will be climbing their way up there to put up '08, not wanting to spend their senior year under the '07.

If these Hawai'i Kai residents want to complain about an eyesore, then just cast your eyes a bit to the north of the crater, where you can see the biggest eyesore of all time out in Hawai'i Kai: that horrible subdivision at the top of Hawai'i Kai Drive on the way to Kalama Valley. Now that is a terrible insult to the "natural" look — chopping up a hillside, and building warehouse homes that are more suited for the industrial district.

HEALTHCARE

PAY TOO LOW TO ATTRACT NURSING INSTRUCTORS

I was recently offered a position to teach young, intelligent adults to become certified nursing assistants.

I thought it would be very rewarding to give back to the community as I am a registered nurse with 32 years of diverse experience.

Unfortunately, I will not be teaching as the pay was so undignified that I will not quote it. I turned down the position.

The program is run by the government — the U.S. government. I have heard that this is also the problem at the University of Hawai'i — no money for qualified instructors. Plenty of applicants but no instructors.

Pitiful. Tell me who actually cares — not the government.

LANDFILL

CUT WASTE AND RECYCLE, LET'S NOT EXPORT TRASH

We're about to join the ranks of the lazy and uncreative by exporting our garbage to the beautiful state of Washington. Are there any other ways we can shove our problems out of sight and out of mind?

While the Department of Planning and Permitting whips out permits to build and build and the state revels in its abundance of revenue, we are left with solutions to real problems like this?

Is it okay that products that fit in one's hand come packaged in plastic so wastefully cumbersome?

When "more is more" perpetrates our social consciousness, and more than one generation knows nothing else but to consume then throw away, is it a mystery that we've run out of space?

It's our job to compost those valuable organic wastes; take our own shopping bags to the store; reduce, reuse AND recycle as much as possible.

Everyone should take an eye-opening field trip to the dump. But maybe an outgoing shipment of governmental departments might be a better solution.

VICE PRESIDENT

CAN SOMEONE EXPLAIN DICK CHENEY'S ACTIONS?

Vice President Dick Cheney continues his unusual accumulation of power in the Bush administration.

Regarding his most recent refusal to release classified documents to the National Archive in violation of an executive order from 1995, he claims to be neither part of the executive branch nor the legislative branch, and therefore not subject to any rules governing those two branches of the federal government. This logic is not only alarming because it makes his office essentially a fourth branch of government, but it runs completely counter to his previous claims of executive privilege in not revealing the names of those who helped him draft federal energy policy.

Considering these actions, his role in the build-up to the war, and the complete disconnect between his statements about progress in Iraq and the actual events on the ground, my question is: Who possibly supports this man as our vice president?

Perhaps some of your readers who represent the 18 percent (give or take) of Americans who approve of his job performance could explain why they feel he should remain in office and how that benefits the nation and the world.

VETO THREAT

LINGLE SHOULD LISTEN TO INNOVATIVE THINKERS

Innovation. That was the big push from the Lingle administration throughout the 2007 legislative session. The governor testified numerous times on the innovation initiative bills, and now she intends to veto the one bill that is supported by some of our nation's most innovative thinkers and inventors.

James Fergason, inventor of the liquid crystal display; Raymond Damadian, inventor of magnetic resonance imaging; Wilson Greatbatch, inventor of the implantable pacemaker; and John Fenn, inventor of electrospray ionization, have all written to Governor Lingle asking her to sign HB 1670, the Ingenuity Charter bill, into law.

They said, "there are no shortcuts en route to a truly innovative economy. Real innovation, by its very nature, tends to be quite disruptive of the status quo. So it takes political courage to advocate for a policy framework that is supportive of the independent innovator whose inventions and creations may be threatening to large entities that are wedded to technologies of the past."

The creation of the Hawaii Ingenuity Company will empower inventors, fund innovative public education and create good-paying jobs for local people with high technology skills.

If the governor will not listen to the people of Hawai'i who support this bill, I hope she will consider the opinions of some of the greatest inventors of our generation.