Let the public decide
what services should be 'cut'

My wife and I are both employed by the state. She is a school counselor and I am a social worker with the Department of Human Services.

In response to Governor Cayetano's remarks on March 14, I agree that certain departments should not be cut any further. I am also aware, however, of a great number of unessential areas in government that should be trimmed or eliminated.

While I do not feel qualified to make the judgment, I feel taxpaying citizens are. So why not put it to a vote as to what the people want from their government?

Stop the grumbling already. I have no problem with being retrained for an area in public service that the people request or even to work in the private sector. But I am very tired of the stigma that state workers are lazy and just waiting for a fat retirement.

My wife works at least 60 hours a week and comes home exhausted. I used to put in as much or more until our department directed that this cease.

Make your feelings known to your legislators. They are voting for you now.

Larry Dolan
Waipahu
(Via the Internet)

Cockfighting is no sport:
It is cruelty to animals

Every so often there appears a letter to the editor advocating the legalizing of the so-called "sport" of cockfighting. When I see such a letter, I am reminded of my experience at a cockfight while traveling in the Orient.

The first bout resulted in one of the cocks being disemboweled. As the bird wandered around, apparently in a daze, its owner stepped into the ring, picked up his bird and pulled out some more of its guts. He wrapped the guts around the bird's neck and threw the unlucky creature in front of the other bird. The victor proceeded to peck the dying bird's skull until its beak penetrated the brain.

The second bout was equally disgusting. After the first encounter between the two birds, one of them started to run around the ring pursued by its aggressor. The owner of the fleeing bird entered the ring, picked up his bird and broke both its legs. Then he placed the crippled bird in front of the aggressive one. It took a few minutes for the victorious bird to peck the struggling victim to death.

If we legalize cockfighting, what will be next? Dogfighting, bullfighting or the ultimate manly sport of no-holds fighting between men? I sincerely hope not.

August L. Ahlf

Fitz's column captured
heart of UH basketball

Mike Fitzgerald's March 14 column, "Rainbows have the heart of champions," captured the essence of this year's UH men's basketball team.

Despite being undermanned by way of injuries and disciplinary suspensions, suffering the slings and arrows of WAC schedule makers and maniac bus drivers, this team didn't know when to quit. And for once, Fitzgerald was in sync with the spirit embodied by this team and all of the fans who gleefully jumped on the bandwagon.

Usually his efforts are off the mark -- like a Shaq free-throw clanking off the rim. But for one day, Fitzgerald was "in the zone." Clip that column and tape it to your terminal, Mike. I did.

Chance Gusukuma
(Via the Internet)

Student was mourned
at Kahuku High assembly

With respect to Anne Workman's March 4 letter, "Don't forget another teen who was killed in car crash," Kahuku High and Intermediate has not forgotten Jeffrey Henderson or any of the other 47 students, parents, graduates, staff or community members connected to our school who have died in traffic related accidents since 1980. Each had a life which was precious to us. We remember and still mourn.

We did honor Jeffrey's memory and his life in the first assembly of the 1994-1995 school year.

As we remember, our mission remains to do all we can to teach and promote traffic safety for our students and similarly to work with the Koolau Loa communities to ensure safer driving conditions on Kamehameha Highway.

The close-knit communities and strong faith of our people -- as well as the commitment of our school to do all we can to keep our students as safe as possible -- are the only things that keep us going in the face of the otherwise unendurable and intolerable loss of so many of our Kahuku family.

Lea E. Albert
Principal
Kahuku High and Intermediate

Attention bank customers:
Beware the $5-a-month fee

The latest statement of fees mailed out by some of Hawaii's banks may say that a $5 fee may be assessed on dormant accounts (accounts that have seen no deposits or withdrawals). This $5 fee is not yearly, mind you, but monthly.

What does this mean? Well, take for example an elderly person or a construction worker, who managed to scrape up enough surplus money at the end of paying bills to start an account with the minimum $250, hoping to see it grow and keeping it safe from robbers by placing it in a bank.

Let's say, for some reason, they can't add to the account and are leaving it alone, hoping for the interest to grow. In four to five years, the whole amount will be gone.

This is hardly a compassionate stance to take in austere economic times. It would be safer to pull out one's money from such a bank and deposit it in another, less predatory one.

Call your financial institution today and see if it assesses a monthly charge on dormant accounts.

Gary Viveiros

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Same-sex archive