Should the fans of sports, public TV be made to pay?
As a longtime financial supporter of public television in Hawaii, I must disagree with the premise of your May 28 editorial that public television should be supported, not so much by taxpayer dollars, but by "the people who want public television to survive."Can we expect you, then, to be consistent and oppose the governor's proposal to combat the incipient disintegration of the Western Athletic Conference by using public funds to support travel costs of mainland athletic teams coming to Hawaii to compete against UH?
After all, your logic should dictate that the people who want intercollegiate athletics to survive should take responsibility and support it financially.
Charles Lamoureux
(Via the Internet)
Highlight of budget cuts at public TV is end of show
Good riddance to the dribbling nonsense provided by the local PBS political program, "Dialog." Yawning viewers watched an apologetic host toss out softball questions ad naseum to a homogeneous panels of guests.Viewers would call in questions to a corp of volunteers-of-the-week who would transcribe them on cards. The host would then shuffle the cards and, with a subtle smile or obvious jeer, deprive any question of impact.
Follow-up questions were avoided, as the host showed more interest in fostering friendships with local politicos than going after the truth.
In the end, it is far better to have a complete void of any television debate then to continue to suffer the intellectual dysfunction called "Dialog."
Brian C. Buckley
(Via the Internet)
Rep. Tom is not helping fight crime in Hawaii
Our governor is making every effort to build a prison on the island of Hawaii. The police and prosecutors are trying to make it true that "crime does not pay."Meanwhile, the Legislature -- especially House Judiciary Chairman Terrance Tom -- is not cooperating with them to bring an end to giving the criminal an advantage in Hawaii.
If we pass truth in sentencing and make the criminals serve their time, the federal government will give a million dollars to our state to help build a prison. As it is now, Rep. Tom has thrown a roadblock in the way of truth in sentencing.
We should make every effort to remove him from office this November.
Kwock Young
Goldwater was great supporter of oppressed
Many thanks for the lovely tribute to Barry Goldwater. He was a great American. I didn't always agree with him in my younger days, but then I grew up and he learned about the discrimination that members of our gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community face everyday in the workplace and in the military in particular.I would like to see a bill for equal rights someday named for Goldwater. This would be a wonderful tribute to him and a way to touch parents, grandparents and other family members who are struggling to understand their GLBT children, grandchildren and relatives.
Carolyn Martinez Golojuch
President, PFLAG Oahu
(Parents, Families, Friends of Lesbians and Gays)
(Via the Internet)
Heco's plan will save consumers big bucks
Your June 1 editorial described Heco's balanced proposal to place its new 138,000-volt transmission line underground from its Kamoku substation to the base of Waahila Ridge, and then convert the existing 46,000-volt overhead line on the ridge to 138,000 volts.This proposal would save tens of millions of dollars compared to placing the entire line underground. Considering our state's economy, we must be very careful where we spend our limited funds.
No one wants a power line but everyone wants the TV, lights and dishwasher to work.
Alan S. Lloyd
Kailua
Young's battle with cancer is inspirational to others
Your June 2 front-page article on Jackie Young's battle with cancer was uplifting and strengthened me in facing my own battle with breast cancer. I extend my aloha to Young, and applaud her brave sharing of her story.May I say to all women that, if there's a little spot or question about your mammogram, make a serious effort to go to the doctor and have that spot checked out with a biopsy. I was always told that mine was only a "fibrous tissue," etc.
Nancy Gushikuma
Aiea
Kwon's column on golfer wasn't racist by long shot
I was somewhat surprised to read the two May 28 Star-Bulletin letters blasting sportswriter Bill Kwon for his May 19 column on Korean golfer Se Ri Pak.Both Dr. Philip Suh and Janet Kwak found his column to be offensive to Koreans. They branded Kwon as racist and culturally insensitive. I wonder if either of them realizes that Kwon is a Korean American!
I have enjoyed Kwon's columns for as long as I can remember. On the days his column appears, it is always the first thing I read in the Star-Bulletin. As a Korean American, I enjoyed reading this particular column and was not offended in the least.
By making Se Ri Pak's winning of the LPGA Championship the subject of his column, it seems he was showing his own ethnic pride. From his previous column about Pak in February, it is clear that Kwon is a big fan of hers.
While it is unfortunate that many people do associate Koreans with hostess bars in Hawaii, I don't believe Kwon's comments were meant to degrade Koreans. In fact, Kwon is a constant, visible reminder that Korean Americans have made their mark in Hawaii far beyond the hostess bar scene.
Andrew Pak
Aiea
(Via the Internet)
How dare Cayetano refer to 'free' services
If you want an example of the difference between operating a business and running a government agency, take note of a recent memorandum the governor sent to state workers concerning one of its agencies. In it, he stated that "services are free to the public."That is the mindset that has gotten our state economy in such dire straits. The concept of "value" or "cost effectiveness" has been lost. Just because you don't charge a fee for a service doesn't make the service "free."
All government services are paid for by either tax revenues or user fees, or a combination of both. Government services are never free!
R.D. Greenamyer
Mililani
Hawaii political system can be changed at polls
The economic pie continues to shrink, yet many of my brethren continue to subscribe to the lip service paid them by leaders of the Democratic Party of Hawaii.They don't seem to understand that Hawaii's children will never be able to compete against their mainland counterparts, who have benefited from strong two-party systems.
They lack the courage to acknowledge that change is necessary sometimes, and should be embraced, not resisted.
The choice in the upcoming primary and general elections is abundantly clear -- Hawaii's future or their party's interest? Which is more important?
Robert P. Webb
Salary cuts would help our lagging economy
I have a "5-2-1 Plan" to help jump start the economy.This blueprint would call for a 5 percent cut in the salaries of all city and state employees. I am not suggesting that private businesses do the same, because they are already far more efficient. But they might consider this also.
Next there should be a freeze on all pay increases, including judges, for at least two years.
Lastly, this resolution would call for each of us to come up with at least one way to economize. For example, a friend of mine recently purchased a bicycle and is commuting to work on it, thus saving on his car expenses.
We need courage to try new ways of accomplishing our goals. Maybe this bad economy is the way to get us all thinking again.
The Rev. Dana L. Clevenger
High-tech firms are doing industry proud in Hawaii
Our experience as a successful Hawaii high-tech firm belies your May 19 article, "Isles rank near bottom in high-tech." While other industries (retail, tourism, finance, agriculture, military, construction) have downsized recently, the high-tech sector has been growing. Our companies, GST Telecom Hawaii and GST Hawaii OnLine, are testament to that.For the past four years, we've seen strong technology-related job growth. We began in 1994 with one employee and currently employ 81 individuals in Hawaii. This year alone, we're planning to expand our workforce by 30 percent. We're even helping to reverse Hawaii's "brain drain" by enabling former residents to return to the islands to work in their area ofexpertise in competitive, high-level jobs.
There's no question that high technology continues to hold much promise for Hawaii. Just ask the more than 6,300 people working in high-tech jobs identified by the survey, not to mention all the others in non-traditional technology positions in ocean science, astronomy, film animation, etc.
Doug Kindrick
Regional Vice President
GST Telecom Hawaii
(Via the Internet)
Lower lease rents would ease economic pressure
We need expeditious methods to fuel our current stagnant economy. One of the most effective ways is to have large landowners, including the state and city, lower lease rentals -- especially to companies that are barely surviving.A major cause of the rash of business bankruptcies has been high lease rentals, which indirectly have caused high unemployment and individual bankruptcies. When the economy becomes healthier, higher rentals may become justified.
Toshio Chinen
Pearl City
Low legislative salaries lead to conflicts
Having just returned from Indonesia, where "conflicts of interest" have led to economic crisis there, I sadly read about "conflicts of interest" within our own state Legislature.Ideally, full-time elected officials are less likely to have such conflicts, but the present salary level of state legislators does not provide them with enough income to live in Hawaii.
Perhaps a unicameral legislature with fewer and full-time elected representatives would solve this problem, although that is not likely in the near term.
In the meantime, the fact remains that most of our elected officials need added income. Too often, companies hire them as staff or retain them as consultants, based on their incumbencies.
It takes an unusual person to separate the two pressures -- elected public duty and job requirements.
D. Richard Neill
Kids must be told that only the stupid resort to violence
Regarding your Saturday Insight story, "Kids who kill," someone has to educate young people that violence equals stupidity. People get angry, and resort to guns and other means of violence, when they run into a problem and their brains are too small to solve it.I know this goes against the great American media, which promote various gunslingers: cowboys, gangsters, warriors and soldiers killing each other over various issues. They are made heroes.
Sooner or later, though, we'll have to admit that we made a national saga out of a bunch of dumb, uneducated dorks who did dumb things to each other.
Then maybe the media will start exploring intelligent heroes, too -- scientists, artists and successful, creative people whose stories are just as interesting.
Randy Cordell
(Via the Internet)
Young killer only seemed rehabilitated on outside
Last Saturday's Insight article by Anne E. Kornbult on "Kids who kill" brought out something very disturbing. The story focused on Alfred Brown, a 35-year-old man in prison who, at the age of 15, shot and killed his parents and sister.One of Brown's problems at the age of 15 was his low grades in school. Yet while in prison, he graduated with a 3.8 GPA. One of Brown's professors described Brown as an "extremely unusual student," "a very dedicated student," and "someone who really deserves a second chance."
Does this professor really believe that because Brown's schoolwork improved, and that he showed unusual insight into the literature he was studying, that the person inside had also changed?
The article brought out that there is little diversion for Brown in prison and that he had contemplated suicide. With virtually little else to do besides reading and burying himself in extra research for his classes, the climate was perfect for his "intellectual" growth.
We need to stop equating intelligence, talent in art, science, etc. as a reason to go easy on a person who commits crimes.
Caroline L. Dunn
(Via the Internet)
Senate didn't kill aquaculture funding
In C. Richard Fassler's May 30 View Point column, "Gutting funds for aquaculture program was shortsighted," the writer chastised the Senate Committee on Ways and Means for eliminating four positions in the Aquaculture Development Program (ADP), including his own.However, Fassler failed to acknowledge that the executive's supplemental budget request, which was adopted by the House, eliminated the ADP in its entirety. It was largely due to the insistence of the Senate that the program remained funded.
We acknowledge the valuable contributions made by Fassier and the staff of the ADP. We are confident that the program will thrive under the auspices of the state Department of Agriculture.
Sen. Rosalyn H. Baker
Sen. Carol Fukunaga
Co-chairwomen
Senate Committee
on Ways and Means
Write a Want to write a letter to the editor? Let all Star-Bulletin readers know what you think. Please keep your letter to about 200 words. You can send it by e-mail to letters@starbulletin.com or you can fill in the online form for a faster response. Or print it and mail it to: Letters to the Editor, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802. Or fax it to: 523-8509. Always be sure to include your daytime phone number.
Letter to the Editor