Why tomfoolery on police chief?

It's disappointing to see the phony shenanigans of the Honolulu Police Commission regarding Police Chief Boisse Correa's contract renewal.

First, they gave him an exemplary rating, supported by Honolulu Prosecutor Peter Carlisle and many diverse members of the community. Then, they make the disputed claim that he was unwilling to commit to more than one more year.

The final straw is when they would rather hire an interim police chief when his contract expires on Aug. 27 than keep him on temporarily. There's something very wrong with this picture.

Maritime Center should reopen

The Bishop Museum closed down its Hawaii Maritime Center recently. The maritime museum and the decaying hulk of the adjacent Falls of Clyde had both been allowed to fall into inexcusable disrepair. Apparently the Bishop Museum has considered the Maritime Center to be something of a poor stepchild and hadn't bothered to even marginally market or maintain it. This, although it was simultaneously plowing ahead with the multimillion-dollar construction of its new over-the-top Mamiya Science Center on its own “;campus.”;

For many of us, however, the Maritime Center was much more than a poor stepchild. Indeed, it was a living testimonial to the time, vision, energy and major monetary donations of some of Honolulu's most notable kamaaina kine folks. Men such as the original prime mover Tommy Holmes, A&B's Bobby Pfeiffer and columnist Bob Krauss poured everything they had into this wonderful facility and must be rolling over in their graves to see it shut down.

For me personally, it brings back nostalgic reflections on the over 16 classic April Fools charity fundraisers that my Boys Bunch of Honolulu club hosted annually on the Falls of Clyde between 1987-2003. Thousands of people came, had a blast and raised tens of thousands of dollars for groups such as Make-A-Wish Hawaii (and the Maritime Center itself) in the process. Like so many of the other wonderful kamaaina institutions that we have lost here in Hawaii of late, it is a shame to see yet another bastion of Hawaii bite the dust.

The honchos of Bishop Museum have described the closure of the Maritime Center as “;only temporary.”; I certainly hope they stand by their word.

Props to workers in civil service

Have you ever renewed your license, registered your vehicle or paid your real property tax, borrowed a book or had to get a marriage license? I bet you went to a government-sponsored agency or library.

The men and women who helped you are the same people who are being asked to sacrifice their health benefits and in some cases relinquish their jobs. These are the men and women who contribute to make our lives easier by doing their jobs efficiently. Let's not cut them out of our lives.

Bush justified in antiterror tactics

Columnist Cynthia Oi seriously distorts the reason enhanced interrogations were used during the Bush administration (”;If Watada goes to jail, so should Bush lawyers,”; Star-Bulletin, May 10). Rather than seeking justification for attacking Iraq as she claims, they were used on 9/11 al-Qaeda terrorists to determine what follow-up attacks were planned. Prior to the use of waterboarding on him, the 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed said we would soon find out. Afterward, he gave up information that subsequently saved untold lives.

Key members of Congress, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrats and Republicans, received over 65 briefings and gave the CIA bipartisan support for the techniques they were using. None objected. The effort by Pelosi to pretend otherwise is disingenuous.

By revealing our security secrets and turning the entire issue of our national security into partisan politics, the Obama administration has gravely undermined our intelligence community's efforts to keep our country safe, which President Bush certainly did. Oi's suggestion that if Ehren Watada goes to jail so should Bush lawyers is flat-out ridiculous.

Cuba is example for North Korea

It was good to hear the news that our country is opening up our relations with Cuba, with President Obama leading the way. There are many Cuban-Americans who have wanted to visit relations in their native country, but were held up by restrictions and rules that made it difficult to do so. Now that the restrictions are lifted, that should improve out trade and, hopefully, our attitude toward that country.

Now, if only that other country ruled by a dictator would launch not rockets but gestures of goodwill such as opening up his country so that relatives could visit their kin, whom they have not seen since the Korean War (1950-53). Also, to provide access for bringing food to the people who are starving and need it urgently.

Wishful thinking? I hope not!