Hawaii incomes don't seem that high

In your Jan. 5 article "Rise in home prices seen," Paul Brewbaker of Bank of Hawaii commented that one of the reasons Hawaii's home prices will align themselves with California markets like Orange County, San Diego and San Francisco is because those areas have comparable income levels to Hawaii. Mr. Brewbaker, can you send me a list of job openings in Hawaii with salary ranges within even 20 percent of the comparable California wage? I'd love to move home and will do it as soon as you find me that job.

If Hawaii salaries are driving the increase in home prices, I'd cash out now if I owned there.

Tsunami center failed to get the word out

Did the Hawaii Tsunami Warning Center do its job? What is its job? If it is to send faxes, e-mails and make telephone calls to various agencies in countries in imminent danger, I suppose it did its job. If its job is to actually "warn" the most people possible in imminent danger by alerting the international news media, which are in a position to reach them, it did not do its job!

If there is another 9.0 earthquake in the Indian Ocean or elsewhere, am I to assume that CNN, the BBC and other world news agencies will continue to be left out of the loop?

There are easy ways to avoid bottle deposit

There is a simple solution to the big "Bottle Bill Scam," which it seems mostly the sugar addicts have fallen victim to. The simple solution: Stop drinking the poisonous garbage-in-a-can called soda. This high fructose corn syrup-sugar-water mixture is just terrible for the human body.

Furthermore, there are more options available other than buying plastic bottled water, such as a simple water filtration system in the home or workplace and re-using the plastic bottles that you already own. Also, local health food stores, such as Kokua Market and Down To Earth, have water purification machines where you can refill your plastic bottles. These stores also have recycle bins available where one can recycle paper, glass and plastic, not for the paltry 5-cent deposit, but for the good of our planet, which is priceless.

I have used the same shampoo bottle for five years by refilling it with bulk shampoo. One may also bring their own cloth bags or re-use old plastic bags at these stores. Recycling and re-using is nothing new to those of us who do it not for the money, but for the health of our bodies and our planet.

Powell had courage to admit mistake

You gotta admit, it takes lots of courage to admit you're wrong, but Colin Powell did just that: "The gravity of this moment is matched by the gravity of the threat that Iraq's weapons of mass destruction pose to the world." (Feb. 5, 2003)

"We got it wrong. We have seen nothing to suggest that he had actual stockpiles." (Oct. 1, 2004)

Minor mistake. Just 1,300 America soldiers dead, 10,000 wounded, somewhere around 100,000 Iraqis killed.

Right on, Colin. We're proud of you admitting you made a mistake.