Letters to the
Editor

Write a Letter to the Editor

Tuesday, April 7, 1998

OHA board members should all resign

I support Ho'omalu ma Kualoa's call for the OHA board to step down, with Frenchy DeSoto taking the first plunge. The board members, in their futile conquests for individual power, have failed this constituent. It has made me take another look at Ed Case's bill. Why shouldn't DHHL run OHA? Let the incompetent be governed by the inept.

Surely there are other Hawaiians with higher IQs than those whom we, the Hawaiian electorate, have voted into office. If the board members had any ethics, they would recognize their ineptitude and step down.

And, to Haunani Apoliona and Colette Machado, you failed to live up to your platform. You were supposed to work with all sides, not take sides!

Miche'le Namahoe
Hilo, Hawaii
(Via the Internet)

Partial-birth abortion bill was dismissed too lightly

We must hold Senator Levin accountable for his disrespect of Hawaii's citizens. He wronged Hawaii by casting aside partial-birth abortion ban legislation as a "waste of time."

It's not "a waste of time" when hundreds of ordinary citizens show up at hearings to give testimony.

Partial-birth abortion is forcibly delivering a baby. Then there's that nasty little detail about killing the child in the birth canal.

Perhaps Levin thinks this procedure would revive our economy by attracting mainlanders to our institutions of "healing." Hawaii wants no hint of opportunity for legal infanticide.

Lindy Styer
Kailua
(Via the Internet)

American people expect more of their president

I'd like to comment on Chris Hatico's March 27 letter about the presumption of innocence being lost in the Clinton case. "Innocent until proven guilty" could probably be said of someone who has never before been accused of sexual abuse and promiscuity, but Clinton is not that someone.

It's much more than a sex scandal. If Clinton had an affair with Monica Lewinsky, then lied about it and it's a big thing. How many other things has he lied about? What kind of role model is he for our children? What do we expect of someone who represents the whole of our country?

Paris Holskil
Waianae
(Via the Internet)

Hasty reorganization could endanger city programs

Many city employees agree with the mayor about a need to streamline city government. They are willing to participate in formulating a plan that will provide the people of Honolulu with "more for less" and at the same time protect the city's essential functions.

However, Mayor Harris' proposed reorganization plan failed to allow time for any meaningful input from the city employees and public who are most directly affected by his proposal. This hastiness is evident in the plan's elimination or restructuring of some important city functions and the staff that is needed to provide them.

Many workers worry that their projects will be severely compromised if the plan is implemented and employees who have little or no knowledge about them are asked to take over.

Let's hope that the mayor and City Council will have the wisdom to defer the reorganization and give all of us a chance to work with them in designing a better city government.

Kathleen S. Kudo
(Via the Internet)

It's not surprising Lingle avoids 'feminist' label

I cannot believe the narrow-minded audacity of Diane Chang to pigeonhole Maui Mayor Linda Lingle over semantics (Changing Hawaii, April 3).

Chang has an extremist reaction to Lingle calling herself a "humanist" instead of feminist. Chang says this is a "disappointing cop-out of an answer. Chalk up another person -- and a strong, capable leader at that -- who considers 'feminist' to be a dirty word, when it actually is a synonym for a simple yet elusive ideal: someone who believes in equal rights for women."

I too call myself a humanist. I believe all people should receive equal treatment and respect, including minorities, handicapped, men, women and children. Once people treat others equally, we can get away from this divisiveness under feminism.

Lingle is living her "feminism" by being a mayor of the only prosperous islands in the Hawaiian chain. Her actions show a woman taking charge and commanding others.

Carol Banks Weber
(Via the Internet)

Taxpayers will pay for larger class size

When I entered kindergarten in 1988, I was in a "regular-sized" classroom with a student-to-teacher ratio of approximately 22-1. Now, 10 years later, legislators are trying to reverse the ratio, asking for larger class sizes and fewer teachers due to budget cuts.

Through all these possible changes, one question comes to mind: Who will benefit from this?

With smaller class sizes and more teachers, students have the opportunity for a better education. Why take opportunities away from the students?

Common sense dictates that if there are larger class sizes, students will be literally neglected. And educational neglect often means unemployment and dependency on government support programs. In the end, the people of Hawaii will be the ones paying for this support system.

Brad Kageno
Grade 9, Mililani High School

---

Write a
Letter to the Editor

Want to write a letter to the editor? Let all Star-Bulletin readers know what you think. Please keep your letter to about 200 words. You can send it by e-mail to letters@starbulletin.com or you can fill in the online form for a faster response. Or print it and mail it to: Letters to the Editor, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802. Or fax it to: 523-8509. Always be sure to include your daytime phone number.