LEGISLATORS WERE OVERDUE FOR INCREASE

In response to Russell Pang's complaint (Letters, July 7) about legislative pay raises, certainly the timing for legislative pay raises was, to put it mildly, very bad. However, I'm getting quite tired of the bashing they are getting.

They had not received a pay increase for 12 years. Can you imagine a public employee going that long without an increase? They would toss the union bosses out on their ears.

Private-sector employees would head for greener pastures if they were not given pay increases in that many years, also. And as to the frequent statement that they are part-time, I challenge anyone to follow a good legislator around for a month when not in session.

They are constantly called on by their constituents for help, advice, speeches and other public presentations, and they respond, even if the matter is not in their district or is a county problem. They are not part-time.

Shirley Hasenyager | Kailua

NATUROPATHY

BILL COULD THREATEN PATIENT SAFETY

Hawaii Medical Association respects the practice of naturopathic medicine; however, HMA's position is that Senate Bill 420 should be vetoed. SB 420 would increase prescriptive and practice privileges of naturopathic doctors (NDs), and could threaten patient safety.

While Hawai'i needs better access to medical care, expanding health care professionals' authority should be reserved for when education, training and regulations justify it. Public health is better served by enacting legislation to attract and retain medical professionals, such as House Bill 343, which supports rural health care training and has private matching funds.

Many NDs are well-trained providers; however, ND training and education requirements are not rigorous or consistent enough to warrant authorization of these prescriptive rights.

NDs do not attend the same medical or osteopathic schools as MDs and DOs and are not subject to the same admissions or licensing requirements. Compared to medical school and residency, their education consists of less patient contact and pharmacological training, and provides less reinforcement of pharmaceutical intervention on patients during clinical rotations or post-graduate training.

HMA believes NDs can contribute to our community's health and collaborate with MDs and DOs, but that Hawai'i's focus should be on recruiting more physicians and health care providers, not expanding authority.

April (Troutman) Donahue | Executive director, Hawaii Medical Association

MICHAEL JACKSON

STAGED EVENT WAS AN EMBARRASSMENT

Since when has death become a form of entertainment?

I was in L.A. on layover Tuesday morning when that staged media event of a funeral for Michael Jackson took place, followed by the right honorable mayor's public appeal for donations. What sauce! And that rampaging gasbag Al Sharpton, showing up in more places than Zelig. The whole spectacle has been a national embarrassment.

All I can say is, thank God the president didn't cameo.

Theodore N. Pizzino | Honolulu

HEALTH CARE

MORE GOVERNMENT CONTROL IS A MISTAKE

The advocates for public health care claim that a government-run option will provide better care at a lower cost for the citizens of this country.

With respect to service, has anyone tried to get a building permit, driver's license or other government service recently? If people think the wait for current doctors is long, imagine adding the federal bureaucracy to the already cumbersome process. Citizens of other countries such as Canada and much of Western Europe die while waiting for their necessary procedures to be performed because of the nationalized health system. Do we really want this for ourselves?

As for costs, how can adding more red tape to the process reduce costs? Government does not magically create the money to pay for additional services. All of us, either directly or indirectly, will pay the high price of additional government regulation and hurdles. Less government involvement, not more, is the answer to our health care issues.

Robby Field | Honolulu

HAWAI'I ATHLETES

FAMOUS FIGHTERS NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN

Aloha mai — I have read the list of local athletes who made good, but noticed not much has been mentioned of Hawai'i's famous fighters.

Carl "Bobo" Olson was the world middleweight champion (1953-1955) before the alphabet titles came into being. Salvador "Dado" Marino was the world flyweight champion (1950-1952). Stan Harrington was a welterweight and middleweight contender in the 1950s and the 1960s. He defeated Rueben "Hurricane" Carter before he was imprisoned. Paul Fujii is a former WBA junior welterweight champ. These men brought honor to themselves and Hawai'i during their prime.

Wayne Hinano Brumaghim | Mililani

USE OF SLANG

HEADLINES SHOULD SHOW RESPECTABILITY

I recently read the headline on hotel room occupancy. The headline used the term "tanking." ("Hotel occupancy tanking," July 6) As one who is not up to speed with slangs or alternative terms in current use, I was puzzled by the use of the term. I have heard it used by young people in their conversations but have never seen the term in print.

I was intrigued as well as disturbed that a reputable publication would use this term that is trendy and generation-specific. My initial reaction was that the paper was not far from being another supermarket checkout tabloid. I do hope that The Advertiser would take greater care in its usage of terms so as to convey an attitude of respectability.

Jan Youth | Mililani

STATE BUDGET

LAGGING UH FACULTY PAYROLL COULD HELP

Why is there no discussion about lagging the payroll of the UH faculty? Years ago in a cost-saving measure for the state, employees' payroll was lagged from five to 30 days depending on the date of hire. The UH faculty fought the action in court and won, since it was determined that it should have been agreed upon in collective bargaining. The state now has the opportunity to negotiate the lag legally. If successful, having two payrolls a month instead of four would be a cost saving to the state.

Laura C. Glenn | Honolulu