RAIL DEBATE

PERSPECTIVES ON THE RAIL TRANSIT DEBATE

OUTRAGEOUS TO SPEND $1.4M ON PROMOTION

Thomas Jefferson said that the most immoral use of governmental power was to spend the people's money for things they themselves would not approve.

It seems outrageous that the city has spent $1.4 million in taxpayer money to promote the rail project the mayor knows we do not want.

Now our mayor is spending his campaign funds to prevent our being able to vote on the project, fearing his scheme won't survive our vote. Who is he really campaigning for?

What is wrong with this picture? We establish government to carry out the will of the people, not to pander to campaign donors, contractors, union leaders and real-estate developers.

There are better alternatives. The mayor knows the truth, and fears it. Let us vote.

HANNEMANN SHOULD NOT BLAME CONSPIRACY

According to the mayor, a right-wing conspiracy is responsible for recent campaigns to halt his rail dream.

It's a common tactic, taken by the left, to blame others for personal follies. We've seen it time and time again.

First, a vast right-wing conspiracy assailed Bill Clinton, then it was a vast left-wing outfit that threw his wife under the bus in her recent run for the White House.

Mufi, don't be goofy. Crying conspiracy, even with the ex-governor's support, is just weak.

Stand up, be brave and let the chips fall where they may. But stop talking conspiracy theory.

It's embarrassing, and folks are going to start thinking you're spending too much time in the sun.

MAYOR ELECTED TO DO JUST WHAT HE IS DOING

It is strange that this so-called Grassroot Institute gets so much prominent space.

Who are they and how many people do they represent? On Monday, they said that the mayor should "tone down his transit rhetoric."

Say what? The mayor was elected to do just what he is doing (which should have been done years ago).

Tom McAuliffe and the Grassroot Institute have no such authority.

Their campaign against the Akaka bill and now rail makes us wonder who they are and who is behind them.

TRIBUTE

MEL SEKI DID IT RIGHT MANY TIMES AROUND

A wise man once said, "You go around only once in life, but if you do it right, once is enough."

Mel Seki did it right. He did it right by becoming an all-star shortstop on one of Saint Louis High School's powerhouse baseball teams.

He again did it right by marrying Laura, the kindest, most gentle person you would ever hope to meet.

Mel and Laura did it right by having two sons, Steven and David, two of the finest gentlemen I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.

And Mel did it right by being involved for almost his entire life in one of his greatest passions — baseball.

Mel was a coach's coach, a player's coach and a fan's coach. He could take his team and beat your team, then take your team and beat his team.

My son and nephew are two of hundreds of baseball players who benefited from Mel's expertise and knowledge of the game.

Mel, as another wise man used to say, "Thanks for the memories!"

TAXES

MIDDLE CLASS SHOULDN'T HAVE TO SUBSIDIZE RICH

In recognizing that some of the poor deserve public assistance, Richard Saas clearly values work ethic and fairness (June 28 letter). But he assumes all the "prosperous and successful" deserve their wealth through hard work and fair competition, and that Sen. Barack Obama's "fair taxation" will unfairly tax the deserving rich to give to the undeserving poor.

If hard work should not be unfairly taxed, why should people who work for a living be taxed at a higher rate than the 15 percent capital gains on non-work income?

Should hard-working taxpayers subsidize the risks of the wealthy, who can absorb their investment mistakes? Not that the super-wealthy take many risks as they buy off the government for handouts at the expense of 99 percent of the rest of us — destroying the middle class, free and fair competition, and democracy itself with their corporate socialism.

What some poor individual moochers cost taxpayers is far exceeded by the costs of the organized rich moochers.

It's time to regulate the undeserving rich, and have the deserving rich pay what they owe to the nation that gives them their opportunities in the first place.

CURBSIDE RECYCLING

MORE TRASH BINS MAY ALSO MEAN MORE CLUTTER

Although we could be applauded for recycling efforts, has anyone considered what the big ugly multicolored trash cans will look like on the front lawns of neighborhoods that have no place to store the cans when not on the curb?

There are neighborhoods that have the big ugly black cans 24/7 on their front lawns.

Some leave them on the curb and paint signs on them. What will these neighborhoods do with three ugly cans?

PRE-K PROGRAM

EARLY EDUCATION EFFORT MERITS PUBLIC SUPPORT

Research shows that quality early-learning experiences are critical to a child's success in school, and ultimately in college or at work.

Children who attend high-quality preschool programs enter school ready to learn and succeed.

Furthermore, emphasizing early education makes good economic sense. Early education and care play a significant and demonstrable role in the health of our state's economy. We at the Hawaii Business Roundtable have been supporting quality education efforts for many years, as we believe an educated citizenry is critical to a healthy and vibrant community, society and economy.

Congresswoman Mazie Hirono has sponsored a bill, the Providing Resources Early for Kids (PRE-K) Act, HR 3289, which would support states' efforts to assure quality pre-kindergarten programs for our young children.

The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and Labor is now considering this important legislation. HR 3289 is a forward-looking investment in our families with young children. It provides states like Hawai'i with the flexibility to invest in professional workforce development, quality early-learning environments, and in developmentally appropriate state-funded preschool program facilities.

We hope that the efforts in Hawai'i to move early education forward will keep Hawai'i in the forefront of the drive to nurture and educate our keiki from an early age. The roundtable commends Congresswoman Hirono for her leadership in introducing this legislation, and in supporting states' efforts to provide high-quality early education for all of our children.

HAWAI'I

IS BEING HOMELESS OR POOR NOW A CRIME?

I'm tired of waking up in the morning only to read about the loss of another freedom.

A recent morning's headlines were: "City proposes $2-$3 toll just to drive into downtown at rush hour" and yet another story about evicting homeless people, this time the ones under the H-1 viaduct who have nowhere else to go.

Law by law, it seems the state has been doing everything it can to make being homeless and/or poor a crime.

From taking pets away from these people to the almost weekly beach sweeps, what do they really hope to accomplish?

I know that a lot of people who do have homes are just a stone's throw away from being homeless.

The cost of living continues to rise, while wages are stagnant if not declining.

So is jail what awaits us all? Does running into a hardship in life now equate to being a "criminal" for not being financially secure enough to be an eyesore to a tourist?

I often wonder how the "leaders" of this state can even stand to look at themselves in the mirror.