Do-gooders should not repaint private walls
The McCully/Makiki area, specifically Kaheka Street, is "blessed" with an anti-graffiti citizens group of vigilantes who make anonymous telephone calls asking property owners to paint over graffiti. When this is not done fast enough to suit these callers, they take it upon themselves to go onto private property -- without permission -- and paint over the graffiti in question.
Concerning the specific instance at my condominium, the final result is a bigger eyesore and more damage than the original offending graffiti.
This misguided public service puts these do-gooders in the same criminal category as the graffiti artists. Likewise, if caught in the act, they should be prosecuted as the vandals they are.
Instead, it is my hope that they will read this letter and confine their future efforts at cleaning up the neighborhood to public property.
Willis E. Dunne
Honolulu
McPhee has height and looks of an 'Idol'
Katharine McPhee is the "American Idol" for this series. She has good looks, height, body, moves and voice.
Those are five attributes describing an American idol. And five is my favorite lucky number. I have a family of five. My three children have families of five.
I have never seen a more attractive performer on the "American Idol" show. And good looks is what show biz is all about.
Jane Watanabe
Pearl City
Switch to 10-hour days for win-win schedule
Aloha to all of Hawaii's workers. How would you like to have 52 extra days off per year and save 20 percent of your work travel expenses to boot? Then please consider finding a way to work 10 hours a day, four days a week.
Let's not forget the employers. Research shows that adopting a four-day, 40-hour week improves productivity and lowers absenteeism.
Would our government be interested in supporting this proposal?
Art Lepage
Honolulu
Banks should make it harder to be robbed
Why do financial institutions allow their banks to be robbed so easily? I'm tired of constantly reading about holdups.
What an inconvenience it must be for the tellers and customers, not to mention the police who must be assigned to each holdup. As a taxpayer, I want our police force to work on reducing the number of stolen cars, home invasions, car break-ins and drug trafficking going on in our state.
Financial institutions need to do better in helping reduce bank robberies, instead of making them as easy as they are. The grainy black-and-white surveillance photos shown on the news are unrecognizable. Is that the best they can do in this age of technology? Even retail stores and malls have better security than these guardians of our money.
Bank robbers need to be stopped at the door for the safety of the tellers and customers. Who cares if that makes banks seem unfriendly? Customers already are being charged service fees for every little thing the banks can think of. How friendly is that?
A.K. Carroll
Kailua
Constitution deserves allegiance above all
When you pledge allegiance before the flag, it is to the nation for which it stands, not to whoever wraps himself in it, and not to whatever flavor of religion is currently most popular.
When our elected representatives take their oath of office, it is to protect and defend the Constitution, not do whatever it takes to hurt the other party while ignoring the crimes of your own party leaders.
Neither does it say to favor the wealthiest petitioners so their generous checks will pay for your re-election.
The Constitution does not say to remove the balances that prevent a free press from being dominated by a few wealthy owners who will return the favor with unbalanced one-sided coverage.
The oath sworn by those entering the military is to "obey lawful orders." The war crimes trials of World War II made it clear that "following orders" was no defense against inhuman and illegal acts as described by the Geneva Conventions.
Double-talking lawyers, lying Cabinet members, a cover-up congressional majority and felons at the top hiding their crimes behind "national security" do not excuse a true patriot from paying attention and calling "foul" when appropriate.
We cannot blame the brainwashed for reluctance to see how badly they have been swindled. We could perhaps fault their courage for being afraid to look -- particularly when they accuse those who have looked of cowardice.
Daniel Grantham
Haiku