Nothing means nothing to developers
I learned something interesting from
Corky's cartoon of May 21, in which protesters of North Shore development are asked if they live there, and they reply, "Nah, there's nothing there."
In other words, if the land is covered with condos, malls and freeways, then there would be "something" worthwhile. To the pro-development crowd, a natural area is "nothing."
Thanks, Corky, for the education, I always wondered what made developers tick, other than greed.
Pat Caldwell
Kailua
More bike lanes needed for safety
I took part in the "Ride of Silence" on the evening of May 18. It was a somber event. The main objective of the ride through town was to bring about an awareness of the many local bicyclists who have been injured or killed while cycling. Of the 25 or so riders in the group, many had been hit themselves by motorists.
The news of yet another bicyclist fatality Monday in Waianae is distressing, never mind the fact the motorist didn't stop to render aid or bother to call an ambulance.
As the price of gas continues to escalate, it is likely that more people will turn to bicycling for transportation. Although cyclists have a legal right to share the road with motorists, many motorists don't acknowledge this. Poor conditions of our streets along with heavy traffic make bike riding in Hawaii extremely dangerous.
The time is now for more designated bike lanes. Bike lanes across our island would allow bicyclists to commute safely, attract more eco-minded tourists, as well as ease our traffic woes.
Eleanor Thurber
Honolulu
Senators' anti-English vote discouraging
Our U.S. Senators must know that in America the inability to speak, read and write in English is a sure recipe for personal economic hardship.
Therefore, it's discouraging that Senators Akaka and Inouye voted against making English the national language of the United States.
All but one Republican and a sizable number of Democrats voted in favor. I guess it's important to the leadership of the Hawaii Democratic Party that a large number of its constituents remains on the economic outside looking in. Our senators' multi-cultural pandering helps assure it.
Mike Rethman
Kaneohe
Bush actions insult our nation's veterans
Memorial Day, next Monday, is a time to honor those brave Americans who gave their lives to preserve our way of life and the liberties defined in the U.S. Constitution.
But it's in vain if we allow President Bush to start a war that profits his supporters and claim that he's a wartime president so that the press is no longer free to report on his misdeeds (warrantless wiretaps), alleging that will hurt his war effort as he runs the First and Fourth Amendments through the shredder.
The president is so upset that someone told the press about these illegal wiretaps that as "the Decider" he's talking about prosecuting reporters who reveal these not-so-self-evident truths about U.S. involvement in un-American secret foreign prisons and illegal wiretaps. If that comes to pass, Bush will eliminate part of the First Amendment that states that no laws will be made to deny the press the right to report the truth.
Our forefathers crafted the Constitution to ensure that Americans would be free and without the tyranny of a "Decider." Are we going to roll over without a whimper or be mad as hell and not take it anymore?
Smoky Guerrero
Mililani
Rules are rules, but where are the signs?
In recent weeks I have been cited four times, in two different vehicles, for parallel parking on the Ala Wai Boulevard. My vehicles were within 12 inches of the curb, the curb was not marked in any way to indicate "No Parking," nor was there any signage to that effect and there was no fire hydrant within a hundred yards in either direction. Yet I was cited for "Parking in restricted area and within intersection"? I've witnessed thousands of other cars parked in this very location over the past decade, without being ticketed. Surely something is wrong with this picture.
Dale F. Leslie
Waikiki