Ford Island bridge cost too much money
The Ford Island bridge cost $78 million. I had always assumed maybe $25 million. You just don't get much for your buck these days.Looking it up in the World Book, I find that the Golden Gate Bridge is one of the largest and most beautiful suspension bridges in the world. It spans the Pacific Ocean for a distance of 6,450 feet and has the longest single span in the world.
It was completed in May 1937 at a cost of $35.5 million. It has taken in revenue many times its cost.
Meanwhile, the "Admiral Bernard Clarey Bridge" to Ford Island will take in no revenue.
Ralph Vossbrink
Private sector should help decide state job cuts
Although the Senate's proposal to lay off 431 government workers is a small step in the right direction, its implementation plan is badly flawed because it relies upon the very people who created the "fat" in the first place.It would be naive to believe that cuts would be made at appropriate levels. More likely than not, managerial positions would be preserved while lower level, working positions, where public service is really performed, would be hardest hit.
To ensure maximum efficiency and equity, a manpower survey should be conducted to evaluate the workforce from top to bottom, a practice commonly used in the federal government.
Also, to avoid being unduly pressured by the public service unions and with so much at stake, private institutions, companies and organizations should provide qualified individuals on detailed assignments to evaluate the government workforce.
Much needed expertise and experience could also come from the retired community. I, for one, would be willing to serve.
Lloyd Y.S. Kim
(Via the Internet)
Cayetano doesn't respect people who elected him
Governor Cayetano is quoted as having said, "Hawaii is one of the most provincial places in the world...I don't think there is any other community in the United States, the entire United States of America, which is as resistant to change as we are here."In other words, Cayetano believes the people of Hawaii lack a worldly outlook and are closed-minded. This statement shows he lacks confidence in the ability of ordinary citizens to make important decisions.
The statement shows nothing but contempt for the people who elected him. Clearly, it is he who is out of touch with the rest of the world.
Roy Yanagihara
Kaneohe
(Via the Internet)
Lower gas prices now to boost economy
With all the arguing about which economic recovery package is the best, the reality of a workable solution seems unreachable when no one wants taxes to be raised or jobs to be lost. Job insecurity and economic uncertainty certainly paints a dire picture of paradise and a correspondingly low public morale.What we need is hope -- a sign that things can move in spite of this economic mire.
I put it to the administration to do whatever it takes to change the gas-pricing system that we have now and use indexes similar to the national ones. Doing so will have immediate, positive effects on our wallets.
Doing so will give us that shot of hope we need. Do it by this summer!
Tim Lee
(Via the Internet)
Trusts should distribute their money to Hawaiians
With reference to the recent antics of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustees, some thoughts come to mind:First, it is a mystery why everyone, including Hawaiians, expects Hawaiian politicians to be less greedy and foolish than those of other races. If published reports are to be believed, then OHA Trustee Clayton Hee's behavior is surely no worse than what is seen in our Legislature on an almost daily basis.
Second, and I speak now as a "dumb haole" who has lived here only two decades, it seems that OHA, like Bishop Estate, is simply another conspiracy to deprive native Hawaiians of income that is rightfully theirs until such time as they become extinct as a race.
I've never understood why OHA and Bishop Estate income is not distributed to every Hawaiian every month, in proportion to his or her blood fraction, to be spent however he or she wishes. It is, after all, their money.
That the capital of the Hawaiian people should be withheld from them in trusts is bad enough, but that the income from that capital should accrue to those same trusts (as though Hawaiians were foolish children incapable of deciding how to spend their own money) is an outrage.
There are days when I am deeply ashamed to be governed by a Legislature that has allowed this unfairness to continue for so long.
Neil Frazer
Kailua
(Via the Internet)
Cartoonist has much catching up to do
Corky is back! And after a year's absence, we (editorially) have certainly given him a lot to "cartoon" about.Jerry B. Norris
(Via the Internet)
State used public money to rally support for tax hike
As a taxpayer, my money goes to feed, clothe and shelter the less fortunate of Hawaii. If they're on welfare, I help buy their car insurance. A portion of my paycheck goes to provide them medical benefits. I pay for the schooling of their children.Now I find that the state used my tax dollars to get these same folks that I'm already supporting to attend a rally to convince legislators to raise my taxes!
Mike Stetson
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