FINANCIAL CRISIS

NOT COMFORTED BY AKAKA'S COMMENTARY

I was not comforted by Sen. Dan Akaka's commentary describing what he and his colleagues have done to stabilize our economy.

He wasted no time in bashing President Bush's administration over this issue. To hear him speak, Wall Street greed and lack of oversight is a new phenomenon caused by others over the last eight years.

Is he telling us that he and his colleagues on the Banking Committee have a lot of work ahead of them in order to correct this situation, now that it has been brought to their attention? Does that mean this Banking Committee never saw it coming? Now I'm really worried.

What the heck is this Banking Committee there for in the first place? There is plenty of blame to be spread among politicians on both sides of the aisle.

Along with the additional oversight his committee is planning, it would be a good idea for them to get people on that committee who aren't clueless as to what is going on in the banking industry. We need people who can look to the future as opposed to those who will deal with these issues with dropped jaws when they pop up at the next committee meeting.

STOP BLAMING OTHERS, SERVE WITH INTEGRITY

Sen. Dan Akaka blames only the Bush administration and Wall Street for causing the current economic crisis (Focus, Oct. 5).

However, the senator failed to mention that Congress, the Clinton administration, the Federal Reserve, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the SEC are also responsible for this crisis.

Furthermore, it was the Senate Democrats who successfully blocked in committee the Bush administration's effort in 2005 to impose greater oversight over the activities of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which encouraged the making of ill-advised mortgage loans to people who lacked credit worthiness.

I believe that a majority of Americans want our elected leaders to stop placing the entire blame of this crisis on others and to start serving our country with honesty and integrity.

CONGRESS TOLD BILL WAS BAD, OK'D IT ANYWAY

Despite the fact that leading economists told Congress this bailout bill was bad for our country, questioning its fairness, ambiguity and long-term economic effects, and the vast majority of American people opposed the bill, the U.S. Congress went ahead and approved it.

Not happy giving away $700 billion of taxpayers' money to the same folks who caused the crisis in the first place, our illustrious leaders decided this would be a great time to add some pork to the bill. What do earmarks for racetracks, wooden arrows designed for use by children, wool research, Indian tribes and litigants for the 1989 Exxon Alaska Valdez incident have to do with Wall Street?

To make matters worse, these same politicians snuck in a provision that allows banks to legally stop withdrawals from accounts on any given day. This bill has no provisions to help homeowners keep their homes.

No, this is all about bailing out Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's buddies on Wall Street. Instead of a bailout, these people should be in a federal prison.

Sens. Dan Akaka and Daniel Inouye and Reps. Neil Abercrombie and Mazie Hirono, shame on you. The cost of this mistake on your part will long outlive all of you.

TRANSIT

RAIL WILL NEVER BE BUILT WITHIN PROJECTED TIME

Do you believe that the rail system can be built for the $3.7 billion the mayor has told us and will be built in the time frame given? Then you also must believe in Santa Claus, the tooth fairy and the Easter bunny. It just won't happen, folks.

Try and think of anything this big for this much being done in Hawai'i — I don't believe there has been anything. Then think how long it takes to build anything here.

There is no doubt something must be done, but I'm not sure this is the most cost-effective use of our tax dollars. Most of us will pay taxes until we die and never get to ride it.

Then there's the maintenance. We don't keep up our schools, sewers, water mains, stadium, roads, bridges, dams and buildings, so how will the rail system be maintained?

One more thing: We don't want clotheslines sticking up from yards blocking views; think what an elevated rail system will look like and the views that will be blocked.

CITY SHOULD EXPEDITE ITS RESPONSES TO FTA

One would think that at a time when distrust of the government is pervasive the city would expedite the responses to the Federal Transit Administration regarding the building of a rail-transit system so that voters may have a more complete understanding of the financial impact upon the citizenry.

Furthermore, the economic crisis of the nation adds a second reason for the city to release the environmental statement and financial update for Honolulu's largest project. Voters have a right to the information before voting.

MAYORAL RACE

KOBAYASHI DIDN'T FAVOR STEEL TRANSIT SYSTEM

Your recent article regarding Panos Prevedouros' endorsement of Ann Kobayashi's campaign ("Kobayashi turns against train transit," Oct. 1) is misleading and incorrect on several counts.

First, the headline is misleading. Ann Kobayashi was never in favor of the steel train transit plan, so it's impossible for her to have ever turned "against" it. Second, the first sentence claiming she abandoned rubber-tire-on-concrete system is incorrect as well; both Ann Kobayashi and Panos Prevedouros have proposed mass-transit systems that utilize rubber-tire-on-concrete systems. Perhaps the confusion arose in Ann's clarification in that she does not support mass-transit systems that require tracks, in other words, trains.

Unlike Mayor Mufi Hannemann's heavy rail plans, Ann Kobayashi wants a mass-transit system that will cost-effectively reduce congestion and will neither bankrupt our city nor spoil the natural beauty of our 'aina.

Heavy rail systems cannot satisfy those simple conditions in a city of our size.

TRIBUTE

CHARLIE KEY — HIS MARK WILL BE LASTING

Anybody who met Charlie Key didn't soon forget him. Hidden beneath a gruff exterior and voice that could be heard several offices away was a mind that demanded close attention. Charlie was primarily concerned with fairness, and if that wasn't what you had in mind, he could eviscerate with a well-timed sentence quickly followed by his familiar ironic smile.

This, along with a well-made intellect, made him a formidable opponent, and just one more reason he would become one of Hawai'i's leading lawyers and an expert in Hawai'i real estate, condominium and development law.

Charlie, who spent his youth in Iowa and Michigan small towns, wore his Midwestern values on his sleeve. Right was right and wrong was wrong. These values directed him to Stanford Law School and, in 1959, to Hawai'i and the 1963 formation of the law firm now known as Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert, one of the Hawai'i legal firms that pioneered multi-racial partnership.

Ever the determined competitor, he was a committed runner and was known to destroy friend and stranger alike on the racquetball courts of Honolulu. As Charlie grew older, he discovered the maddening challenge of golf at O'ahu Country Club, where he and his buddies would compete for every dollar as if each one was his last.

To the end, Charlie loved nothing better than the practicing of law. It was, in every way, his life. For almost 50 years Charlie Key was a part of Hawai'i's legal community, and his mark will be lasting.

His family will miss a sense of humor that brought laughter to all. His friends will miss the possibility of winning sawbuck from him on the golf course. And Hawai'i will miss one hell of a lawyer.