Soccer tourneys should rotate through islands

I am surprised and slightly shocked by Jill Nunokawa's Jan. 24 View Point column criticizing the Hawaii High School Athletic Association for moving the Girls' State Soccer Tournament from Oahu to Maui.

We on the neighbor islands don't complain about going to Honolulu -- taking time off from work, renting hotel rooms and rental cars, and eating out for every meal. We are not wealthy, but we go to Oahu for every state tournament.

We would like to see state tournaments rotated to every island, so neighbor island parents don't have to travel to see their children participate.

Maurice Morita
Wailuku, Maui

Recent deaths have hit Kamehameha hard

It is with profound sadness that we mourn the loss of three people our community could ill afford to lose. Their memories will be bound forever into the history of Kamehameha Schools.

Kekaulike Ishikawa, Kamehameha Class of '98, was killed in a tragic accident that left his family, classmates and teachers in disbelief and shock. He had already touched many lives but the common expectation was that he had many more years ahead of him as one of Pauahi's "good and industrious men and women."

The life of Rell Sunn, Kamehameha Class of '67, paralleled Bernice Pauahi Bishop's in many ways. They both died relatively young of breast cancer, Sunn at 47 and Pauahi at 53. Their homes were centers of hospitality. Whoever had need of an open door, a kind voice and a helping hand found them with both women.

Monsignor Charles Kekumano came to us with common sense, righteous indignation and a loving heart, at a time of great distress within the Kamehameha Schools community. He and his four cohorts broke right through that wall of fear and intimidation and, by writing "Broken Trust," assured us that we were not alone and never would be again.

How are we to cope with the loss of these three good souls?

We needed them. But God must have needed them even more.

Janet Zisk
Archivist
Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate

Kekumano will be missed for multitude of reasons

In his quiet way, Monsignor Charles Kekumano bettered lives and touched hearts all throughout Hawaii. He will be remembered for the good works and good will he brought to our organization and to so many others.

We will miss his wisdom and guidance, his ready willingness to lend a hand, and the wonderful wit he brought to every occasion.

Gretchen R. Neal
Executive Vice President
American Cancer Society
Hawaii Pacific Division

Reporting has been scandalous

Media are embarrassing the president, themselves

My regard for the press took a new low during a recent newscast on television. I wasn't paying much attention, but it was apparently some sort of meeting with Yasser Arafat, President Clinton and the press.

My attention was riveted, however, when one of the reporters asked Clinton a question about the latest scandal.

Incredible! There they were, discussing factors regarding a highly sensitive issue in the Middle East and this distracting interruption was rudely inserted. (Arafat very diplomatically pretended that he had suddenly been transported to some other venue.)

The introduction of such an unsavory domestic issue into a discussion regarding critical international issues goes beyond the bounds of decency.

Louis H. Trigg
Pearl City

Press might gain respect if it would stick to truth

As the so-far unsubstantiated claims of Monica Lewinsky were being milked for everything the press could get out of them, there was little or no concern for the damage that this kind of trashy reporting might cause to the nation.

One of Hawaii's most respected TV news anchors repeatedly has used sensational buzz-phrases to describe the situation, one night claiming the scandal had "deepened" to include former White House chief of staff Leon Panetta. Of course, the only way Panetta had been "included" was to give testimony that he was unaware of any impropriety. He was not personally implicated in any possible scandal, but that just wouldn't have sold as well as the sensationalism.

Columnists have encouraged President Clinton to "come clean" and "tell the truth," as though they had inside information that the president's denials were untrue. Many have even speculated on hidden meanings of the president's statements.

If President Clinton is guilty of lying, or of telling Lewinsky to lie, the media can cover that story when they know it's true. The Constitution ensures that an individual is innocent until proven guilty in court, and there is no special mention in the First Amendment of the freedom of the press to distort information and malign individuals before the facts have been made clear.

If the media want to recapture the respect of the public, they're going to have to start by reporting the truth, and not just the hype.

Ken Armstrong
(Via the Internet)

There certainly is a right-wing plot

The Star-Bulletin's Jan. 30 editorial states that the concept of a right-wing conspiracy against the Clintons and his administration is "hogwash." Evidently, you haven't been paying attention:

Jerry Falwell has been promoting a video which accuses the Clintons of crimes up to and including murder.

Convicted felon G. Gordon Liddy uses his talk show to attack the Clintons, most recently creating a national firestorm with his tale of "selling graves at Arlington."

The Rutherford Institute, a conservative think tank, is bankrolling Paula Jones' ugly suit against the president.

And what do you call Ken Starr, who has spent years investigating a 20-year-old failed land deal and now illegally wires a political enemy of the Clintons based on a completely irrelevant rumor?

My dictionary defines "conspire" as "to concur in action or endeavor." Exactly. What does your dictionary say?

People are trying to humiliate the president and bankrupt the Democratic Party.

Nancy Bey Little
Mililani

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Bishop Estate Archive

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