SMOKING BAN

LAW IS UN-AMERICAN, RESTRICTIVE, RIDICULOUS

I thought I lived in America — the land of the free. I also thought I could vote on such issues as the new smoking law. Apparently not, in both respects.

Why not allow smoking bars where employees and patrons alike know this is the situation? I do not understand this total ban. It's un-American, restrictive and not democratic. As if my smoke from 20 feet away is gonna make a difference.

Ridiculous.

KAWAMOTO PLAN

IS IT NOW LEGAL TO RENT ON THE BASIS OF RACE?

Genshiro Kawamoto's offer to rent homes at low rents in Kahala sounds benevolent, but has anyone noted that his offers apparently discriminate on the basis of race and/or ethnicity?

Has this suddenly become legal?

TRAFFIC LAWS

SAFER STREETS WILL TAKE SOME TOUGH MEDICINE

The current system of traffic laws and enforcement is just plain broken.

If the public really wanted a crackdown on speeders, we would bring back those van cams that 99.99 percent of the public seemed to hate. We could enact laws that make driving while talking on a cell phone illegal, or install more red-light cameras.

These are the things that actually make the roads safer, but always cause a public outcry.

So instead of real laws and enforcement that makes sense, we have "speeding crackdowns" or "click it or ticket campaigns" that generally just annoy instead of making the roads safer.

Safer roads are kind of like getting a vaccine when you were a kid. You didn't want it and it hurt a little when you got it, but it was never as bad as you thought it was gonna be, and now you're glad you got them.

KAILUA

RESIDENTS SHOULDN'T BE PUSHED OUT BY TOURISTS

Angie Larson sure pinched some nerves among our community with her defense of B&Bs (Island Voices, Nov. 21).

The fact is that most of these rentals are illegal, and the bottom line is money. She even says it is the long-term renters who, by replacing visitors, "would be in our neighborhoods day in and day out, crowding the neighborhood with their cars, and our schools with their kids."

As a long-term renter in Kailua, I take great offense in that elitist-sounding remark. Apparently, we renters don't contribute anything to the community. We don't shop for food, gas, essentials, or nights out to a restaurant or movie. Let me assure her, I have only one car and no kids to crowd her kids' school.

Let's remember that Kailua is a residential community, and if B&Bs are to exist they need to be legal, taxed and regulated. The community should come first and not be turned into a place where people who need a place to live are pushed out by vacation rentals.

DEVELOPMENT

HELP PRESERVE KA'U, A UNIQUE COMMUNITY

I have lived peacefully in Ka'u for two years, after moving from Kailua, Kona. My community is caring and unique. We love the beauty of our surroundings and the culture. Our greatest wish is to preserve the 'aina and all of the wildlife inhabiting it.

Fast-talking developers and politically motivated individuals with big plans and greed have arrived to spoil all that, without considering the people enjoying the reasons we live here. Please print this letter so others can realize what could happen to Ka'u. It is one of the last sacred places that all can enjoy.

Help save our refuge.

TRANSIT

RAIL TAX LETS US SEE WHERE MONEY IS GOING

As citizens of a responsible, financially stable country, we are accustomed to paying taxes. Taxes are a part of life, and even though we grumble and groan about paying them, we are happy to drive on the streets, send our children to school and enjoy the security of well-trained, well-equipped first responders to keep us safe.

In a remarkable action of accountability, the City and County of Honolulu has proposed a tax that will be specifically used for something — a fixed guideway system. Taxes are going to increase, there's no getting around that. But, we have an opportunity here to see what we are paying for. Why are we complaining? At least this time we know what we are getting for it.

CAMPAIGNS

PASS CLEAN ELECTIONS, GIVE VOTERS REAL CHOICE

Your Page One article on Nov. 20 ("Campaigns Shun Public Fund") was excellent in highlighting the problems around the current "partial" funding system. Not only are the funds that are given to candidates insufficient, but also a candidate must raise money to receive public money.

So it fails to answer the dilemma of special interest money politics, which is at the core of the public's distrust of government. Raising the amount given to candidates under the current system is not enough to engage the constituency, but eliminate the need to fundraise and, all of a sudden, voters become more important than donors.

Put simply, Clean Elections reduces the impact of special interest money and spikes voter participation. Further, the amount necessary to make a publicly funded candidate competitive under the current system will rival the cost of a full pubic funding option in the state House of Representatives. Why don't we kill two birds with one stone and pass Clean Elections and give voters and candidates real choices?