Local politics is like three-ring circus
The Senate rejects Anzai and Bronster, so the governor renominates Anzai for attorney general. Meanwhile, the courts seem more concerned with the rights of perpetrators than those of their victims. What's going on?The executive, legislative and judiciary branches of government are supposed to establish a balance of power that leads to strong leadership, sound policies and fair treatment for all.
In Hawaii, though, these bodies offer no more than a three-ring circus. Bring on the clowns.
Robert Chanin
Kailua
GOP, media don't like good Democratic news
There are monthly publications from the University of Hawaii and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. But if Hawaii's Democratic administration prints one like 'Imi Loa, it is portrayed as an altogether different and even sinister animal.In the eyes of Republican Rep. Barbara Marumoto, it is "propaganda" and a "sunny diversion from real news and reporting." Meanwhile, to the conservative print media, it's great partisan hay.
The real story is the cynical political agenda behind such overcharged criticism of this publication.
Grant Peters
Bronster wasn't such a great attorney general
Too many people have been saying how courageous Margery Bronster was for taking on the Bishop Estate. Shibai! She went after the estate because her boss, Governor Cayetano, told her to.A truly courageous attorney general would have investigated Cayetano's campaign "irregularities," such as:
The "labor rally" at the state Capitol, which was really an HGEA "Cayetano for Governor" rally in which union members were allowed to take off from work to attend.
Bronster also "courageously" declined to investigate all those non-bid construction contracts awarded to Cayetano's golfing friend, Bert Kobayashi. In fact, she defended those shabby deals.
As the state's top law enforcement officer, Bronster was supposed to pursue crime but, for all practical purposes, she protected the governor and his agenda. An appointed A.G. is a joke.
Roy Westlake
Flag burners should get their okoles kicked
I read Diane Chang's July 5 column, "Protecting the right to burn the flag," and agree with her, partially. As a military man, one of my duties was to defend my country and all it stands for, which includes the rights of fellow citizens.But the idea of burning what some call "just a piece of cloth" makes me want to take physical revenge on those involved. The flag stands for the country I love and respect. If flag burners believe that it's "freedom of speech" to burn the flag, it is my right to express "freedom of speech" by taking actions to prevent them from doing it in my presence.
Burning a flag should be considered along the same vein as shouting "fire" in a crowded theater. It could incite a riot: the flag burners vs. the flag protectors.
I wonder what would happen if a flag burner tried to burn the Hawaiian flag at the Kamehameha Day Parade? Don't you think he would get his okole kicked?
Lee Laquihon
Bellevue, N.E.
Via the Internet
Processed food and drink can cause stress
Your July 5 "Best stressed" article provides calming food for those starved for peace. However, the statement, "The goal is managing, not eliminating, stress," ignores the big picture.The first line of stress doesn't come from scrambling to pay for that second $23,000 van but from severe chemical imbalance -- due to a diet of processed "food" that "feeds" our bodies the way cigarette smoke "feeds" our lungs.
Many processed foods and drinks are loaded with corn syrup, salt, fats and unpronounceable concoctions with the nutritive value of cardboard. Diets heavy in processed foods produce mineral, vitamin and protein imbalances, as well as people who are moody, irritable and stressed.
The first steps to restoring personal peace involve walking into a supermarket's produce area and loading up on the natural foods that fed our relatively unstressed ancestors for tens of thousands of years.
Organic foods, especially, offer the same power-packed nutrition that kept grandpa and grandma stress-free before they left the farm.
Howard C. Wiig
Ala Moana crew keeps park in good shape
Kudos to the grounds crew at Ala Moana Beach Park. I walk the park every morning (I have for years), and on Monday there was a massive amount of debris from the Fourth of July weekend. Yet, at 6 a.m. on the morning of July 6, the grounds were pristine -- in a condition fitting of Punchbowl in cleanliness.Nice going, ladies and gentlemen. Take a bow!
Bill Harper
Natatorium has seen its glory days
I think the Natatorium should disappear, leaving just the arch and restrooms.Seventy years ago the concept of a "swimming pool" was probably exotic, with few private pools on the island. People had reason to be delighted with an Olympic-sized pool.
I don't know the date of Duke Kahanamoku's feats, but maybe that had something to do with the Natatorium's desirability at the time. The attitude is different now; pools are commonplace. Who needs a salt-water or even fresh-water pool next to the ocean?
Population density is also different. There was plenty of beach to spare for such a project back then. These days, beaches are often crowded and the beachfront is more environmentally precious than back in the 1930s.
Don't burden us with a white elephant for sentimental reasons. The past should remain in the past.
Janet Callender
Via the Internet
Natatorium is now a sorry sight
As frequent visitors to your beautiful island, we sincerely hope that the Natatorium will be restored. It could be such a beautiful pool, as we have seen in pictures and the movies. We have strolled by it many times and are saddened by the way it now looks.Phil and Wilmetta Jeffries
Little Rock, Ark.
Via the Internet
Quotables
"It came to a point when
I had to stop listening to Hawaiian music.
It was too emotional for me. I think
I have a Hawaii soul."Kathleen Tyau
AUTHOR OF THE NEW BOOK "MAKAI"
On how the Oregon resident, in the islands for a
book tour, still misses her home state"They are doing an exemplary job
under very difficult circumstances.
They have been handed a bunch of
lemons and they are methodically
making lemonade out of them."Hugh Jones
HAWAII DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL
On the performance of the five interim Bishop Estate trustees
two months after they started running the trust
Barbers Point will go downhill under public care
I, for one, was saddened by the transfer of Barbers Point Naval Air Station to the state.The land at Barbers Point was well cared for by the Navy and was a beautiful, open area. Not for long. State and county governments will botch it up, like they've done before.
The civilian community will never take care of it. People will speed on F.D. Roosevelt Street causing accidents. There will be litter and graffiti. Selfish people will wreak havoc on the fishing grounds. Greedy business people will collaborate with local politicians and build poorly planned developments. It's not a question of if, but when.
There is mention of changing the present street names at Barbers Point to Hawaiian names, in keeping with a 1979 city ordinance. Maeda Timson, chairwoman of the Makakilo/Kapolei/ Honokai Hale Neighborhood Board, said these changes must be made because the names given at Barbers Point are of naval ships or battles. What's wrong with that?
These street names remind us of the historic role the area maintained during World War II, the Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam and Desert Storm. If not for the people, places and events mentioned in these street names, we'd all be speaking German, Japanese or Russian.
Don Arakaki
Ewa Beach
Via the Internet
More access roads are needed to Navy housing
Looks like the last block of new Navy housing along Radford Drive will soon open up and be filled with families. These pretty, steel-frame, tile-roof duplex homes replace many old, cracking, cinder-block multiplexes (and a lot of trees). They will triple the number of families in that neighborhood.Yet I wonder why the access roads have been reduced? Previously, you could drive in and out on Bougainville, Namur, Reeves, McMorris, Valkenburg and Salt Lake. Now three of those streets have been eliminated (Namur, Reeves and McMorris), while the population triples!
Robert D. Doleman
State Web site hackers should restore missing info
The hackers who ruined the State of Hawaii Web site committed a vicious act and set back openness in government. State Web sites are used for many reasons. I wanted to log onto the Department of Labor Web site but, when I clicked on a link to the State Tax Office, it was not there. Even the Governor's Office could not be contacted when I decided to check whatever links I could find.Please understand that the state Web sites are not totally complete, as I must usually go to the law library to obtain the whole story. But they are a starting place.
In many cases, the desired info may be contained in a link or found in a library, but it's still the best place to begin a search.
What should be done with hackers? They should be required to personally replace all destroyed information and, if their deed was malicious, the person owning the computer should be heavily fined.
If the hackers cannot be found, there should be a log-in system so that all parties using the system must identify themselves. In the meantime, I hope the destroyed Web sites can be quickly re-established.
Phil Sterry
Kailua
Via the Internet
Motorists are treating pedestrians very poorly
This morning I learned that a good friend in Waikiki had been struck in a crosswalk by a sports utility vehicle driven by a local female. The woman did not even give assistance to my friend when she was lying in the street!Again, I find the treatment of pedestrians by motorists completely insane. Why must we put up with this mindset? I have written letters to this newspaper on this subject almost monthly.
Well, folks, we've lost at least two pedestrians in June to vehicular felons who believe they can disregard marked crosswalks and who won't slow down for pedestrians.
Mr. Mayor, members of the City Council, we need help right now.
M.E. Powers
It costs too much to live in Hawaii
It's been reported that government fees are going up, and the one that got me was that a driver's license in my category would go from $10.50 to $18. Another example was the doubling of vehicle tax fees.You know, I'm getting very tired of this. I think that I'm just going to STOP paying and paying and paying...
Kenny Stevens
Via the Internet
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