HEAVY RAINS

LOTS OF EXCUSES OVER CITY EMERGENCY CENTER

I found the comments by Ho-nolulu's emergency manager in last Friday's paper filled with excuses for not being at work to help the city's emergency responders.

He stated "he did not believe the center needed to be started up earlier." Based on what — his experience? Maybe Honolulu should follow Kaua'i's example.

If he really believed his hands were tied by staffing and budget restraints, where was he? His salary doesn't pay overtime. He's on duty 24/7.

Tell the people who lost everything you didn't want your employees' overtime to be a burden on the city's budget. Don't tell me what they said — I have very tender ears.

He said that state Civil Defense was monitoring the situation. Did the rules change? The city is responsible for emergency response and obtaining help from the state and feds when, and if, necessary. That's hard to do if you're not at work.

RAIL SYSTEM

COUNCIL SHOULD PASS BILL 63 WITHOUT DELAY

The state's top procurement officer has ruled that under state law it is improper for the City Council to approve the specifications for a rail system.

But beyond the law, there is good reason for the council to rely upon professionals to prepare system specifications and to control the proposal/bidding process.

The development of a steel-on-steel rapid transit system will be Hawai'i's largest public works project. Now that the policy decision has been made to implement the system, proposal/bidding must be done in a business-like manner.

Rail systems are complex, and it's important that there be meaningful competition from the several global conglomerates that are capable of developing a system appropriate for Honolulu.

Professional transit engineers have the qualifications and experience to ensure that Honolulu can develop the most cost-effective system possible.

Injecting politics into the proposal/bidding process may well delay the project and result in higher costs.

The council should make it clear that the city administration is responsible for a transparent proposal/bidding process.

They should then hold the administration's feet to the fire and monitor the process closely.

Bill 63 provides that transparency, and the council should pass the bill without any further delay.

CEDED LANDS

STOLEN FROM MONARCH, HAWAIIAN KINGDOM

Gordon Pang's Dec. 6 story about the governor's "new tack" regarding the ceded lands case at the U.S. Supreme Court is more than a "new tack," it is a desperate "come about" before it hits the reef and has to sound "abandon ship!"

Gov. Linda Lingle is right, the ceded lands don't belong to OHA, but they don't belong to the state of Hawai'i either.

The Advertiser finally got the facts straight by saying these lands "belonged to the Hawaiian government prior to its overthrow in 1893," and "were taken by the provisional Hawaiian government following the overthrow of the monarchy — then handed over to the U.S. government when Hawai'i became a U.S. territory, and finally the state of Hawai'i in 1959."

The crucial step omitted in the illegal chain was the illegal Republic of Hawai'i.

That's OK, Attorney General Mark Bennett reminded us that the republic "ceded" the (stolen) lands to the United States in 1898. Hello! Doesn't that prove, Mr. Bennett, that the state is holding stolen lands?

There you have it. The ceded lands are lands stolen from the monarch and government of the Hawaiian kingdom. They remain stolen property no matter how audaciously it was passed on down the line from one illegal "owner" to another.

BUDGET CRISIS

CONFIDENT CULTURE, ARTS WILL BE TREATED FAIRLY

In response to Lara Cowell's heartfelt letter ("Arts foundation cuts will hurt our youth" Dec. 16), the Hawai'i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts' commissioners agree that culture and the arts — including arts education for our school children — are essential.

We believe the arts affirm life and, in fact, public support for the arts and arts education may be more important in hard times.

We have made our concerns known in cordial, sympathetic exchanges with the director of the Department of Accounting and General Services (where the HSFCA is attached for administrative purposes) and through arts advocacy organizations directly with the office of the governor.

Our message is simple. We understand that in hard economic times, some sacrifice will be necessary from all departments of state government. We are prepared to shoulder our fair share. We would find it very hard to accept disproportionate cuts in the relatively small arts and arts education budget of the commission.

We now await the governor's budget, but we are optimistic and feel strongly, based on our discussions, that the culture and arts budget will be treated fairly and proportionately.

We look to the Legislature to do the same. And we do thank the arts community for their continued vigilance and support.

TIME FOR HEALING

LET'S SHOW MORE ALOHA ON ROADS, FOR OTHERS

I would like to voice my sadness and condolences to the families of the motorist and motorcyclist who were killed Wednesday morning in a collision on Nimitz Highway.

Whatever the factors in the accident, lives were lost and I would like to mourn them and pray for their families and friends, not offer words of sarcasm and put those words in blog form for all to read and become desensitized at the loss of life.

Come on, folks, it's the time for healing, helping and being fortunate for what we have. Have we become so critical of each other and our actions that we cannot sympathize with people who do not use sound judgment in their daily lives and pay the ultimate price?

Let us continue to show aloha on the roads when we drive, on the streets that we walk and in all the areas that we interact.

Slow down, take a breath, give a smile, and say and show aloha and really mean it.

In conclusion, I hope the blog screeners will use more tact when allowing comments to be printed.

Happy holidays to all, peace on Earth and goodwill to all humans.