Hawaii works slavishly -- for off-shore employers
In the March 7 paper, a couple of letters sparked a chain of thought. Letters from Kioni Dudley and David Broyles about gasoline companies charging exorbitant prices led me to mention that the corporate headquarters for my company have mandated that we in Hawaii should operate on 60 percent of our revenue and the remaining 40 percent to be sent to the main office in Texas.My wife's company, a Japanese wedding service, is run by two women supervisors who make less than $1,500 a month while the management from Japan has the task of playing golf every day with their suppliers. They charge $500 per day rental for dresses and do 30-plus weddings a day with all profits going to Japan.
The list of foreign investment in Hawaii is daunting, skimming all the cream from our economy. Gee, sirs, how about some fresh linen or a shoe shine? I do sure appreciate the job, Massah!
Michael A. Murry
Liberty House touches lives beyond customers
I was saddened to hear that Liberty House has filed for bankruptcy protection. We grew up counting on the services and merchandise of Liberty House.Liberty House supports our community in so many ways, even beyond providing goods and services.
It has been the training ground for many of our existing retailers in Hawaii.
Liberty House was founded in Hawaii and has always had a stake in the community. We need Liberty House not only for its continued community support, but to keep the doors of opportunity for job advancement for Hawaii's people.
Carol Ai
People suffer because it's too expensive here
After one has paid the highest rents in the country, highest gas prices in the nation, mandatory money to the greedy insurance companies, and high air fares to the greedy airlines, there's not a lot left to spend on the economy.As my boss said recently, "What does it tell you when a task force is finally put together seven years into a recession?"
Michael Cashman
Story illustrated damage that budget cuts may cause
We would like to thank reporter Helen Altonn for her March 17 article on the state Aquaculture Development Program. The story, "All Wet," is a wonderful piece of journalism that presented the reader with the viewpoints of various people in our industry (government, farmer, industry leader) to demonstrate the major problems that will accompany the elimination of our program.Too often, decisions to effect major changes in government programs are arbitrary and capricious. In the case of the aquaculture program, the Star-Bulletin has shown the people of this state what the true effects of budget slashing will be. For this, we are most grateful to you and Helen Altonn.
C. Richard Fassler
Aquaculture Development Program
State Department of Land
and Natural ResourcesMcCorriston's insinuations reflect his desperation
Bishop Estate attorney Bill McCorriston's despicable attempt to further politicize the investigation of the estate by implying that the investigation is an attempt by Governor Cayetano to win votes for his re-election is ludicrous.His inference that Cayetano, an honest man, is using this issue to deflect attention away from a failing economy is laughable to say the least. You can blame the old boy Democratic political machine, led by ex-president of the Senate Dickie Wong and ex-speaker of the House Henry Peters, along with a lot of other bimbos still running this state, for the economic collapse.
His further attempt to deceive the public into believing that Margery Bronster has been promised a federal judgeship if she wins this case is obviously an act of a desperate attorney who sees the inevitable noose beginning to tighten around his clients' necks.
Rod Ferreira
Kamuela, Hawaii
Bishop Estate Archive
One lawmaker stands in way of motor-sports bill
I'm one person in a large group of motor-sports enthusiasts who are trying to change the law on reconstructed vehicles and state Rep. Ken Hiraki won't even have a hearing on a bill that already has passed the Senate with the support of the city administration, the state administration, the Honolulu Police Department and numerous private citizens and businesses.Hiraki seems to think that he knows more than everybody else already and so he doesn't need to hear any more.
It's time to vote these know-it-all politicians out of office and elect people with open minds who will listen to the people.
Art Frias
Ewa Beach
Gambling is a social curse that will ruin isle families
Gambling is an emotional and financially draining obsession similar to a drug addiction. A compulsive gambler is always searching for the ultimate high of a big jackpot. To allow gambling in Hawaii would ruin the wholesome family ambience and charm of our islands while financing more political corruption and criminal organizations. Like drug addicts, gamblers will be tempted to commit crimes to support their habit.Many members of my family have lost their life savings and are now borrowing money to continue gambling. Does anyone ever wonder how the biggest gambling capital of the world, Las Vegas, can continue to not charge any taxes while its hotels continue to add more luxurious buildings with the most extravagant shows and amenities available and the highest electric bill anywhere?
The casinos must bring in millions of dollars a day just to break even and where do you think they get that money? Go figure.
Colin Kau
Don't mistake unqualified nutritionists for real thing
I am concerned about the objectivity of two recent columns in the Star-Bulletin food section. Both columns seemed to confer credibility upon certified clinical nutritionists (CCNs). CCNs are credentialed by the International and American Associations of Clinical Nutritionists (IACCN), which has certified graduates of so-called "diploma mills," granting degrees in nutrition.In a Feb. 18 column, Joannie Dobbs and Alan Titchenal describe the professional education and training for registered dietitians, certified nutrition specialists, certified diabetes educators and certifications by the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Council on Exercise. These credentials and organizations are recognized by the medical and scientific communities because they set high standards of education (graduation from nationally accredited universities) and training.
Including the CCNs in this column implies that this credential is also recognized. In fact, none of the 40 states that issue certifications, plus Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., recognizes the CCN in their licensure or certification statutes for dietitians and nutritionists.
Barbara Burke's Feb. 25 column quotes a CCN alongside Drs. James Duke and Varro Tyler. Duke and Tyler are eminently respected experts on botany and pharmacognosy.
For those of us who have actively supported licensure of qualified nutrition professionals, these columns are thinly veiled attempts to give credibility to practitioners whose education and training are suspect.
Carrie Mukaida, M.S., R.D.
Group Nutritionist
Women's Health Hawaii
Consensual sex law doesn't make sense
Let me get this straight: A proposed new law would make a felon of a 21-year-old who had consensual sex with a 15-year-old, but not a 20-year-old who did the same? Or, if the younger person was a worldly 16, both potential felons would be home free?Do you mean that a 17-year-old can only have a boyfriend, girlfriend or, God forbid, a spouse under the age of 23? But, as soon as they turn 18, they could marry the Hawaiian equivalent of Sen. Strom Thurmond?
Who comes up with these daffy proposals, and why are they in the Legislature? If this idiotic measure is really "key" and "moving in the Legislature," it should keep moving out the door -- and its sponsors along with it!
Richard Miles
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