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Friday, August 28, 1998

Question on gay marriage is very confusing on ballot

After looking at a sample ballot for the amendment to the state Constitution, there are questions that must be asked: Who wrote the wording of the ballot? If someone is disinterested and does not vote, does the blank vote really count as a vote for homosexual marriage?

A blank vote should be just that. It should not count as a "yes" or a "no." And if you disagree with that, then it should count as a "yes," meaning that if you don't want to vote "no" on this issue, that means you support the current definition of marriage as the union between one man and one woman. A blank vote should mean that you oppose homosexual marriage, bigamy, polygamy, etc.

The language of the ballot must have been written by a proponent of other than traditional marriage, or someone who just wanted to confuse the voters once again. How could the State Elections Office allow this to happen?

Since it is probably too late to change the language on the ballot and the method of counting, don't let the government confuse you. Vote "yes" on the amendment.

Carmen U`ilani Haugen
(Via the Internet)

Mink, Abercrombie took money from veterans

Your readers should know that congressional representatives Abercrombie and Mink voted to steal $15.5 billion from the veterans budget and put it in the new highway budget. It is still up for grabs, and I hope the honest people prevail. The current issue of Disabled American Veterans magazine has a big article on this steal.

In a state with so many veterans, many of them disabled, these two people should be kicked out of office in the next election.

Frank H. Black
(Via the Internet)

Bill Clinton isn't fit to lead armed forces

The commander-in-chief of the U.S. armed services has revealed himself to be a liar, a cheat and a disgrace to the office he holds. I am astounded that Sens. Akaka and Inouye, with their war records, appear to support him.

Stanley B. Snodgrass

Mahaiula doesn't exist for Hollywood to exploit

The recent controversy over filming at Mahaiula on the Big Island has been diverted from a boring land-use issue to a more sexy Hollywood/jobs issue.

The Kona Coast State Park was created to be a noncommercial, public wilderness park. The decision to allow filming there was done quickly and without outside input. The permit was "fast-tracked," resulting in a debate being waged in the media instead of at a public meeting prior to decision-making.

Citizens should be concerned when a single unelected public official can approve projects of this nature at whim. There is too much potential for closed-door deal-making.

The critical concern isn't temporary jobs or structures. An agreed-upon land-use policy is being corrupted before our eyes, setting a precedent that will affect our community long after this mess is forgotten.

Read the permit. Go to Mahaiula and think about what's at stake. We need to stay focused on the real issue, on our real island, with healthy skepticism toward those who have the power to influence, at will, the condition of our future.

Carey Peterson
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii

AFSCME has perfect right to get involved in politics

Your Aug. 26 editorial on the AFSCME convention being held this week in the Hawaii Convention Center did a huge disservice to Hawaii's public employees. Your statement that "the great clout of the public employee unions is not good for democracy" is ridiculous and seriously downplays the right of public employees to participate in the political process.

Taken to its logical extreme, you seem to imply that public employees should not have the same fundamental right to vote in elections or participate in the political process, since they would be "hiring their own bosses."

That your paper would suggest such an idea should send a chill to the 50,000 active and retired public employees in Hawaii represented by the HGEA, UPW and AFSCME Local 928.

AFSCME is a democratic union, as witnessed by the participation of some 4,000 union delegates at our international convention. They are voting on policies that will chart the course of our union's political and legislative agenda for the next two years.

We cannot implement an agenda without a consensus vote of our members. Unlike large, multimillion-dollar corporations and other business interests that are politically and legislatively active, AFSCME's agenda is set by member delegates who have been in Hawaii all week.

You owe the public employees of Hawaii an apology and recognition of their great service. The state's economy may be lagging right now, but that is no reason to disparage public employees and the vital contribution they make to the political process.

Gerald W. McEntee
International President
American Federation of State, County
and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO
Washington, D.C.

Cayetano vs. Lingle
. . . and the winner is

Maui has done good job preventing sewer spills

In a July 24 statement to the Star-Bulletin, state Health Deputy Director Bruce Anderson demonstrated exactly why the County of Maui decided that the EPA and state were not negotiating in good faith over wastewater spill issues.

Anderson said that the county made improvements to its system only because the state forced it to. This isn't true and he knows it.

Not one penny of the $120 million that Maui County spent during the past five years to upgrade its wastewater system was required by any state or federal enforcement action. We did it on our own initiative to protect the public health and the environment.

Maui County has done a great job improving its system. In 1997, there was only one EPA regulated spill of 5,000 gallons, to a capped-off pipe, that was cleaned up and which never touched the ocean.

When people like Anderson make such misrepresentations, meaningful negotiations are not possible.

Charles Jencks
Director of Public Works
and Waste Management
County of Maui

Lingle should clean up Maui wastewater mess

Mayor Lingle doth protest too much. Her reaction to the Maui wastewater situation shows that she takes credit for what she is forced to do (make improvements required by the EPA and the state) and whines about what still needs to be done (additional improvements still being negotiated).

Lingle should show some leadership, go back to the bargaining table and save some money that will otherwise go to high-priced attorneys.

Peter M. Bareng

State workers have only themselves to blame

Hawaii is looking at years of painful downsizing of state government. As usual, the lack of leadership and creative ideas to turn around our economy was evident this past legislative session.

State workers have only themselves to blame for this economic mess. Their votes put the current Democratic governor and legislators into power, year after year. These leaders hired over 10,000 excess state workers in a shrinking economy, so now government cannot offer any raises for years to come.

Those who blindly follow union leaders who tell them whom to vote for all share the blame. Vote Republican or state workers can get ready for no raises and pink slips.

James Lee

Union should be ashamed of itself

After its recent endorsement of Governor Cayetano for re-election, I cannot help but wonder whom exactly the Hawaii Government Employees Association represents. The HGEA's catchy slogan is, "We're on your side."

Does "your" refer to:

Thousands of state employees now suffering through a payroll lag imposed on them by Cayetano with the support of HGEA leaders?

Hundreds of state workers who were fired because the administration was too inefficient to meet payroll, while keeping on hundreds of temporary hires who do not get regular benefits but who do the same job as regular employees?

Those state employees whose offices are being moved to more expensive quarters in Kapolei?

HGEA members should think about who is really on "your" side when it's time to go to the polls.

Ken Taira
Haiku, Maui

Cayetano is best friend of ocean resources

As an avid sports fisherman and ocean enthusiast, I ask all those who share my love for the sea to think hard during this election season. We need government leaders committed to protecting our precious ocean resources.

Ben Cayetano has that commitment. Whether it's fisheries management, his new Ocean Initiative, new coastal management program or the whale sanctuary, Cayetano has showed that he understands how important the ocean is to all of us.

Based on her Maui record, I am afraid Mayor Linda Lingle will not have the focus and drive to protect our ocean resources for Hawaii's future generations.

Richard Shiroma
Kaneohe

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