Democrats love to spend and raise taxes, too

Well, it looks like Hawaii's Democrats are going to give us change. The change, of course, is raising taxes but, hey, that's about all the Democrats can do -- spend and raise taxes.

How about Mayor Harris' proposed 17 percent hike in property taxes? How many people will that put out on the streets? Owners of rental property can follow his lead and raise the rents.

If the governor gives taxpayers any kind of tax break, it will be eaten up by city tax hikes. You cannot win.

Think of relocating to one of the other islands. Tourism there is increasing and should not stop, as they are the places to go if you want to see Hawaii and feel the aloha.

Bruce Tetreault

Hate-crime legislation protects the minority

I agree with Charles Memminger's Jan. 18 column, "Hate crimes law would flop here." Many judges and juries often do not convict and punish criminals to the full extent for many of the heinous violent crimes committed.

But if thugs attack people because they are Japanese, black, haole, of the religious faiths of Judaism or Buddhism, gay or straight, and then also rob victims, they are being targeted because they belong to a certain group. Yet if the perpetrators are caught, they are charged and hopefully convicted of assault, battery and robbery. However, the act of targeting someone for a hate-crime goes unpunished.

Since our society abhors bullies picking on those who are weaker, less fortunate or different. Hate-crime legislation is an important step toward ensuring that people are protected. Then they will be able to share in society's benefits without fear of retaliation because of where they come from, what they believe in or whom they love.

Keola Akana

School voucher concept would hurt private schools

I do not believe in school vouchers, not because it would undermine the education bureacracy, but because it would undermine the quality of education in private schools that took the government money.

It would only be a matter of time before the private schools would become addicted to taxpayer money and become entangled with the strings that would be attached to this money.

Instead of making public school systems more accountable, it would probably drag the private school system down to the level of public school mediocrity.

Bruce Wong
(Via the Internet)

Who cares if Clinton lied about an affair?

In their diatribe against President Clinton, the House Republican prosecutors seem to imply that he is endangering the country and the majority of the populace who voted him into office. What kind of convoluted reasoning and innuendo is this?

I do not care whether the president lied under oath to a grand jury about a sexual encounter. The grand jury (or anybody else for that matter) has no right to know about a sexual encounter by two consensual adults, be they president, king or commoner!

I don't condone Clinton's actions, but I don't condemn his sin as heinous, rather it is one that mortals do make. Penitence toward his maker and family should be his only penalty.

Chris Hatico
Pearl City

Judicial system should be overhauled

Right: Thomas Sowell, Cal Thomas, Alan Keyes, Rush Limbaugh.

Wrong: O.J. Simpson, Bill Clinton, Alan Dershowitz, James Carville.

There is a war that is not in Iraq, Bosnia, North Korea, etc. The most serious war is raging within the United States, between the left and right as noted above. How ironic that the head of this country leads this charge to the downfall of our basic values and eventual destruction, as history has proven.

More important than the annual rhetoric on Social Security, taxes and education, we need to overhaul our justice system. Start with tossing out law books and professors whose teachings have miserably failed the intent and spirit of the law.

Toss out technicality as the rule of law. What is happening now needs no polling.

Alexis Wong

Clinton showed Congress that he means business

President Clinton is a master politician. His State of the Union address is but one example of his skill. The exceptional number of standing ovations he received is indicative of his approval rating.

Republicans were dismayed by the positive reaction. Never in the history of State of the Union addresses has a president singled out so many worthy individuals in the audience and heaped praise on them. It was very effective and added a personal touch missing in past addresses.

Clinton, a lame duck president? Not if he accomplishes a major portion of his program. Wounded by the impeachment process in the Senate, he has issued a challenge to Congress that he will be an active president who will fight for passage of his programs!

How Tim Chang

Flynt shows Republicans are actually hypocrites

It's no surprise that our national morality hustlers -- members of the Republican Party -- have been so put out at being exposed by Larry Flynt. What a great con they had going, using the Ten Commandments to get their political enemies while all the time picking and choosing which ones applied to them.

They can call Flynt a sewer rat, but that won't change the fact that he got the goods on them. All their talk of decency and family values was just that, talk.

Lucas A. Wheeler

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