Governor’s race
pros and consBattling bumper stickers make sense after all
Friends and strangers have made harsh comments about the bumper stickers on my car -- one supporting Linda Lingle for governor, the other for Neil Abercrombie for Congress. One of the more polite responses was that I must be schizophrenic. Others have said I clearly don't understand political issues; if I did, I couldn't support such opposite people.But answer this question: Would you have the best obstetrician in town perform brain surgery on you? Certainly you wouldn't, because it's not the job the OB is qualified to do.
I would never vote for Lingle for Congress, nor would I want Abercrombie to run for governor. They're both pursuing the jobs they're best qualified to do, and they'll both get my votes.
Ken Armstrong
(Via the Internet)
Cayetano should finally stand up to the unions
Ben Cayetano, in his need to be re-elected governor, is becoming a very desperate man. He is proposing unrealistic promises of pay raises to the two biggest unions for government workers -- the HGEA and UPW. Shame on these two unions for backing him and for their threats not to endorse any candidate who goes against union proposals.If Cayetano is re-elected and safe in the govenor's seat, it will be business as usual. He will say there is no money for government pay raises "at this time" and may order another payroll lag.
Ben, if you are the fighter you claim to be, you will not be threatened by these unions. Only then will you become the greatest and most honest govenor the state has ever had.
Lloyd Y. Yamasaki
Wahiawa
(Via the Internet)
Governor displays bravery in tackling estate trustees
Many people say they are having difficulty deciding whether to support Double K (the Kalihi Kid) or Triple M (Maui's Miracle Maiden). For me, the choice is simple and based on facts.Ben Cayetano, the Kalihi Kid, is the only politician in modern times who has had the guts to climb into the ring with Bishop Estate and do battle.
He did it because he really believes that the little Hawaiian kids in the hills were being abused by greedy and well-connected politicians. His decision to fight the trustees took guts.
Cayetano proved that he can make tough choices and do the right thing. When is the last time you could say that about a local politician?
Kalihi Kid, by a knockout...
Joseph F. Zuiker
Mayor Lingle is famous for blaming others
I'm deeply concerned that Maui Mayor Linda Lingle's so-called method of leadership will not suffice for the office of governor. She is very quick to place the blame elsewhere and not take responsibility.Everything that happens within the boundaries of the county falls within the realm of her responsibility. This includes a run-off of sludge and silt into Maalaea Harbor, a low-cost housing subdivision standing idle after millions had been spent on infrastructure, a by-pass highway that has encountered delay after delay and still remains on the back burner, lengthening of the Kahului Airport runway that she voted against six years ago, a Maui Convention Center that turned out to be all talk, an upcountry water problem that continues to plague residents and farmers, and on and on.
How does the mayor handle these situations? Easy, she points the finger and blames others. Can you picture our governor dealing with the military and federal government in this manner?
Remember, there is a great deal of difference between rhetoric and accomplishment. Lingle is the master of rhetoric.
Foster Hull
Lahaina, Maui
Cayetano did not snub U.S. on annexation
Cori Hamilton, in his Aug. 12 letter, is misinformed to suggest that Governor Cayetano "has bowed to political correctness" and turned his back on his country by not celebrating Hawaii's annexation to the U.S.The state seldom plays a lead role in observing holidays and other events because of fiscal constraints. Celebrations of that nature are generally organized and paid for by community organizations.
The governor did ask Office of Hawaiian Affairs Trustee Gladys Brandt to head an ad hoc committee to work with the Bishop Museum on its exhibit of the 1897 petition against annexation. It was on display for a week, free of charge, to the public.
While Governor Cayetano has been sensitive to the native Hawaiian community on the subject of annexation, and has supported their constitutional right to gather, it has nothing to do with political correctness.
Peter Apo
Special Assistant to the Governor
Incumbent doesn't have much to brag about, really
"Think About Re-electing Governor Cayetano," the campaign implores. So I think about someone who:
Since I thought about re-electing Governor Cayetano and it scared me silly, it has clinched my decision to vote for Linda Lingle."Finds" millions of dollars just as the election nears and his poll numbers lag.
Kerry A. Krenzke
Air conditioning should be mandatory in schools
Why does the Board of Education believe that having computers in the classroom is more important than having air conditioning? Many kids are suffering in the sweltering heat, and are too busy trying to stay cool to appreciate the computers in the first place.It seems that money is being spent on all the wrong things and the students are expected to pay for the essentials.
Hawaii spends only about half the amount of money that other states spend on their students, so it's no wonder our schools are ranked number 49 in the nation.
We have only one logical choice on this issue. The government needs to start funding the schools with enough money to pay for air conditioning.
Greg Nash
Mililani
Public school teacher's life isn't so wonderful
I read your Aug. 26 editorial about what a "great deal" public employees have at taxpayer expense. Want to switch? It was 98 degrees Fahrenheit in my classroom today.My classroom has six fans, a CD player, a stereo system, a set of novels, a computer and a modem -- all of which I paid for out of my own salary. I net about $22,800 a year and out of that spend an average of 10 percent or $2,200 for school-related equipment, supplies and maintenance.
I must pay 40 percent of my health insurance premium; the state pays the other 60 percent. I get 13 unpaid holidays a year and an additional 40 days of unpaid summer time off, so I can study at my own expense to improve my teaching skills. Teachers get paid only for the 187-day school year. If I do not get sick, I can credit unused sick leave days to my retirement.
Our school administration has just been officially notified that the next capital improvement project for our school is planned for the year 2030. That is no joke. If I live that long, I'll be 88 in 2030 and, having retired in 2014, I will have used up about $216,944 of the state's retirement money, eating caviar, swilling champagne and living high on the hog. As a government teacher, I can't tell you how grand all of this sounds.
Speaking of sounds, four years ago the governor said that if we endorsed him and if elected, he would provide every school room and every classroom teacher with a telephone. Four years ago, the closest telephone to my classroom was a block away. In four years, it hasn't moved a foot closer.
I have hopes of getting one of these 19th century tools sometime in the 21st century.
Diane L. Radcliffe
English Teacher
Radford High School
Chinky Mahoe didn't get just punishment
Only in Hawaii can a convicted child molestor still be a hero among his peers. Mahoe showed that he is above the law with his light sentence, while the children he molested will be tormented for the rest of their lives.What kind of message is Hawaii's judicial system sending to other child molesters and would-be molesters? Where are the protectors of our most valuable assets, our children?
Ted West
Public can't pick and choose about appropriateness of sex
D.J. Trovato's Aug. 18 letter, "Like the president, gays too are hounded about sex lives," brings up a good point. If we are to be truly a nation under God, we should be upset about the president and his sexual escapades. In fact, we should also be critical of ourselves, whether we are homosexual or heterosexual.Sex outside of marriage is immoral whether it occurs between two men, two women or one man and one women. We must truly conform to all of our moral code, not simply pick and choose. Therefore, if a person is against homosexuality, he or she also should be against adultery and fornication.
We cannot have double standards. To be so would be hypocritical. Everyone makes mistakes and we should be forgiven. However, forgiving a mistake does not make it right.
President Clinton is right about one thing: This is now a matter between him and his God. Just too bad that he lied to the rest of us.
Abdul-Rashid Abdullah
(Via the Internet)
Religious should stay out of gay marriage controversy
In reading your Aug. 3 story about children's books on gay parenthood, I was rather shocked that such books even existed. However, reading further, Mike Gabbard and the Rev. Marc Alexander's hysterical reaction to these books reminds me of a Thomas Jefferson quote used by author Michael Dougherty to describe the missionaries coming to Hawaii:"The clergy strives for the control of frightened men, women, and children; their ultimate ambition is to perpetuate themselves in positions of power, backed by civil law, for the everlasting glory of their particular denomination."
The same religionists who used political scare tactics and extremist theology to manipulate the downfall of the kingdom of Hawaii are apparently up to their old tricks.
James McBee
(Via the Internet)
Homosexuals appreciate Hawaii's progressiveness
As a 1968 University of Hawaii graduate, I am so proud of Hawaii being the most progressive state in looking at the issue of same-gender marriage. This means so much to gay and lesbian people.I am a 56-year-old lesbian who would like to marry my loving partner to legally acknowledge our deep and long-standing spiritual commitment to each other. One of the many things I learned at UH is the spirit of aloha, tolerance and appreciation of racial and cultural differences.
Thank you for being a leader in this area. I hope to be among the first to be married in Hawaii.
Mary Gay Hutcherson
Richmond, Va.
(Via the Internet)
Media is selective about covering crime stories
Hey, where's your big article titled, "Another shooting by police"? I mean, there was an incident recently in Mililani involving a Honolulu police officer and three party crashers, yet there wasn't any huge debate or headline. What's wrong here?Is it because there were only witnesses supporting the police officer's side of story? What, no controversy?
Where are the people who say things like, "The officer should have shot the gun out of the suspect's hands like they do in the movies," or "The officer should have shot at the tires of the car, which would have stopped it."
We probably don't have to worry. That young male who shot at the officer was probably the "nicest kid" who never got in trouble (except for a prior arrest record), and who was only shooting because his friend told him to.
David Chong
UH students finally take parking concerns seriously
For many years, Manoa residents faced serious safety problems associated with thousands of students parking in the residential neighborhoods around the university. I commend Councilman Andy Mirikitani for his efforts to look at the problem and come up with a solution.As a result of this bill, ASUH student leaders quickly proposed alternative solutions and came to an agreement to temporarily defer Bill 33 so students can work with the community to help resolve these problems. Students are meeting the challenge and taking the responsibility for keeping roads around the university safe.
This agreement is a win-win situation for residents, who should notice a big difference in their neighborhoods, and for the students who park off campus.
Lehua Napoleon
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