Passage of bill may hurt farmers

House Bill 2290, despite its language to “;conserve and protect agricultural lands,”; does not help the agriculture industry—nor does it support farmers, who often need major financing sources to sustain their operations.

This bill will present farmers with many challenges, including obtaining leases, which may lead to difficulties in securing financing and ultimately negatively affect their operations.

Kioni Dudley's commentary “;Bill saving Oahu's precious farmland needs public support”; (Star-Bulletin, “;Island Commentary,”; April 15) includes the Hawaiian value of pono. I ask him this: Is it pono to deny our children the opportunity to live and thrive in Hawaii? If the vision for the new city of Kapolei—which includes smart planning and development—is not fulfilled, where will our keiki go?

Not the North Shore. When the city adopted a general plan that designated a directed growth policy more than 30 years ago, it set out to develop the Ewa Plain to accommodate growth and to ensure the protection of country areas in other parts of the island.

School's closure offers key lesson

The state employees' health fund is destined to collapse, warned Gov. Linda Lingle (”;State employees' health fund running on empty,”; Star-Bulletin, April 14). Union board member Randy Perreira is already in denial and will not shoulder the responsibility for the collapse of the health care insurance system. I can see it already: Let's raise the general excise tax to pay for this. The unions will refuse to do the needed cost-cutting measures (reduce benefits and increase rates).

The simple cure-all suggestion for any budget shortfall in Hawaii is increase taxes. Again. Again. And again. It will not stop. You're on alert now, unions. Start working on the solution NOW.

I thought it was interesting that Holy Trinity School will close in June due to a lack of income. They didn't opt to keep raising tuition for the sake of keeping everyone happily employed and in school. They decided to do the right thing: cut the losses and get on with life. The Legislature and the unions could learn a lesson from Holy Trinity's decision. A sad decision, but a fiscally responsible one.

Blessings to all at Holy Trinity

As I write this, I'm still close to tears thinking about Holy Trinity School closing. Where else can I enroll my son where he is cherished as an individual, inspired academically and spiritually, and loved like family?

I would like to say mahalo to our Holy Trinity parishioners who have always been very generous in their financial support of the school. Thank you so much for the opportunities you've provided so many children to achieve and make a difference in this world.

And mahalo nui loa to every dedicated Holy Trinity teacher who helped shape responsible, compassionate and exceptional children for the last 51 years at a much lower salary than your peers.

May God bless you, as you have blessed all of us.

Appointed board would be a farce

If the school board is to be chosen by the governor, why even have a Board of Education?

I've heard people say this is a step in the right direction; the school system is broken. We need change. It's true we need change, but are we really considering letting the governor choose the Board of Education?

Letting the governor choose the BOE is a bad idea for so many reasons. When you elect someone, the governor has the right to remove them. When an elected official appoints an individual with special interests, you usually have hidden agendas or close friends who were owed a favor. Why do you think the public sector is so corrupt with inappropriate use of funds? Because friends and relatives are appointed to cover you especially when they hold high positions.

If the governor is going to appoint the BOE, why bother having a board since it would merely be a farce to make people believe their opinions matter?