JUDGES' SALARIES

COVERAGE ON PAY INCREASES INACCURATE

The headline in the Page One article, "Hawai'i judges want their 10% salary hike," (Jan. 2) and the statement that "The state Judiciary will not support Gov. Linda Lingle's proposed pay freeze for judges" in the first sentence of the article are grossly inaccurate, false and irresponsible.

The judiciary has not taken a position on the governor's recommendation to freeze the scheduled pay raise, contrary to the headline. Rather, the Judiciary's budget to the Legislature will include a request to fund the increase in judicial salaries to comply with the law (adopted by the Legislature and approved by the governor in 2007). To do otherwise would be to disregard the law.

We were shocked when we read the article because there is nothing in the Judiciary's response to The Advertiser's questions that even remotely suggests that judges "reject" the call for a salary freeze, "insist" on the raise, or that Judiciary officials disagree with the governor's proposed pay freeze.

Telephone calls and online comments from readers reacting to this article have been very critical, in part because the public is misled to think that because the judges "reject" the salary freeze or "insist" on a pay raise, they are being greedy and selfish. Nothing could be further from the truth.

GOVERNMENT

BUSH, CHENEY SHOULD BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE

I just finished watching MSNBC's presentation of "The Decider" with Chris Matthews. It took us from 9/11 through Katrina to present day.

As I listened and watched, I got more and more angry. Why aren't President Bush, Vice President Cheney and former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld being held accountable for blatantly ignoring our Constitution? Is this going to be like the bailouts that have no oversight?

Are our elected representatives in Washington asleep at the wheel? And why are those representatives not demanding justice for the administration's actions?

W. and his cronies have destroyed America's integrity. I guess if you have the money and power, you can buy yourself out of any situation. And then there is Cheney, who recently announced on television that he approved of the torture methods applied in Iraq and elsewhere.

Yes, they will soon be out of office, but they are all going to move on and make millions of dollars in book deals. If you feel as I do, write your representatives and demand that W., Cheney and Rumsfeld be tried for war crimes.

DEMOCRACY

SHOE-THROWING PROVES IRAQ IS TRANSFORMED

After reading the article on the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at President Bush, I could only think how much Iraq has changed.

The irony in the whole incident is that Iraq is transforming into a democracy, fragile as it may be, thanks to President Bush and the U.S. armed services.

Many Iraqis, Arabs and other anti-freedom vandals who are supporting the shoe thrower don't deserve the freedom that America has given them.

They don't realize that they are able to protest against Bush because of Bush liberating them. They are able to shout slogans, march in protest on the streets in support of the shoe thrower, picket conferences, etc., all because of Bush.

Funny that Iraq is the only Arabic country in the Middle East that holds open news conferences with its leader. So why did this man throw his shoes at our president? Because he knew he could get away with it. He showed the world that a free man can protest loudly; he can even wrongly throw a shoe at the most powerful man in the world.

Had he done that when Saddam Hussein had been in power he would have been beaten, tortured and killed. He would have not dared such a defiant act.

By this man throwing his shoes at President Bush, he unknowingly showed the world that Iraq indeed is transforming into a democracy.

JOB FAIR

TARGET NOT PREPARED FOR PUBLIC RESPONSE

Before Target held its widely publicized job fair at the Hawai'i Convention Center, its company representatives were quoted in the press as saying they had the job application process down "to a science" and therefore could offer jobs on the spot.

As we can see, Target's "science" did not consider the possibility of an overwhelming number of job applicants. Its job fair, advertised as running from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. for four days, started turning away people by 7 a.m. for at least the first two days.

I was told that even people who applied with Target online before the fair would not be considered unless they showed up in person at the fair. Target's science may be great for the company, but for the applicant, it's still not quite a bull's eye.

CEDED LANDS

LANDS SHOULD BENEFIT ALL PEOPLE OF HAWAI'I

As a Native Hawaiian, I have a few questions for Island Voices writers Jon Van Dyke and Melody K. MacKenzie (Focus, Dec. 28) regarding protecting ceded lands. Were not the lands divided in 1845 by King Kamehameha III, in which he gave one-third to the people, one-third to government and one-third for the monarchy?

And didn't Queen Lili'uokalani write in "Hawai'i's Story" that the crown lands did not belong to the people? Didn't King Kalakaua sign a new constitution giving up the power/authority of the monarchy? So if the Hawaiian government gave up (ceded) the monarchy's portion, with the U.S. assuming the monarchy's debts in order to be annexed, how can this be construed as wrong?

Gov. Lingle is right according to Article II of "The Text of The Treaty (How the Cession of the Islands is to be Accomplished)," which says, "... for the use of the local government, shall be used solely for the benefit of the inhabitants of the Hawaiian Islands for educational and other public purposes."

CHILD ABUSE

SOVEREIGNTY CLAIM NOT CONSISTENT WITH VALUES

The Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center does not normally comment on reports in the media, but felt compelled to express our views on the recent news article regarding convicted child abuser Rita Makekau.

Like many others, we were shocked by descriptions of the abuse Ms. Makekau inflicted on her five nephews and nieces, and appalled by her defense that state courts have no jurisdiction over her because she is a Native Hawaiian.

The Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center is an institution established through the Deed of Trust of our beloved queen. It is dedicated to the welfare of orphan and destitute Hawaiian children. As its president and executive director and a Native Hawaiian, I can tell you that Ms. Makekau's actions do not represent the values and practices of our queen and the Hawaiian people. It is inconsistent with Hawaiian cultural values to physically abuse children. Our children should be treated as na pua, cherished flowers to be nurtured and loved so that they can grow and flourish.

Ms. Makekau's actions are not Hawaiian; they are not pono; and our queen would not have condoned this behavior. There should be no immunity of any kind for the abuse of children. For Ms. Makekau to assert "Hawaiian sovereign immunity" as a defense is an affront to the Hawaiian people and our culture, and does a disservice to the sovereignty movement she claims to represent.