Senate has a chance to redeem itself

How nice of Governor Cayetano to give the errant state Senate a second chance. By allowing its members the opportunity to approve Earl Anzai as attorney general, he is letting them regain some self-respect and improve their image.

If they are smart, they'll approve Anzai and win back at least a little support from their constituencies. It's time to do what's best for the general public instead of worrying about personal agendas.

Keith Haugen
Via the Internet

Cayetano shows Senate the way to salvation

Governor Cayetano has displayed his kinder, gentler nature with his selection of Earl Anzai as the next attorney general. He has provided our 14 venal, ethically incontinent senators an opportunity for redemption.

George Nakamura
Mililani
Via the Internet

Mink should get some credit for World Cup win

Anyone who watched the American women's soccer team defeat China in the Women's World Cup should be proud of the special contribution to women's sports made by Hawaii Rep. Patsy T. Mink, who helped introduce and shepherd Title IX through Congress, which mandated gender equity in school-related athletics.

Evan R. Shirley
Via the Internet

UPW leader won't be found guilty -- again

Does anyone really believe that true justice will prevail in the union trial of Hawaii's godfather of unions, Gary Rodrigues? A previous trial with 26 major violations resulted in charges being dismissed and Rodrigues learning that he is above the law.

Meanwhile, our governor is ignoring the entire issue. He doesn't wish to displease the head of the all-powerful United Public Workers union that helped to re-elect him when all hope was lost.

Nobody should be surprised when this trial ends like the last one did, with all charges dropped and an apology being extended to Rodrigues that anyone should have dared to challenge his absolute authority.

Don Arakaki
Ewa Beach

Quotables "All I hear is 'Down the road' and 'When the football team gets better.' I remember when we won the WAC and the Holiday Bowl, and we didn't use any of our resources then to improve gender equity. Now it's 'God help us, I hope the football team wins.' Well, that's not good enough." Jill Nunokawa UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII CIVIL-RIGHTS LAWYER Rebutting UH athletic director Hugh Yoshida's claim that women's athletics at the university will be more fully in compliance with Title IX gender-equity law when the UH football team rebounds from its winless 1998 season "Oh, I don't want to say anything else until I speak to my attorney because this is a felony and I never committed a murder before." Denny Usui 28-YEAR-OLD MURDER SUSPECT What Usui, charged with the asphyxiation death of his 78-year-old grandmother, allegedly told police who arrived to investigate a dropped 911 call from a McCully high-rise

Why must government bridge Internet gap?

Here we go again. We are now threatened by the "Internet gap." Oh, boy, we are definitely in need of rescue from the Clinton administration on this one. After all, what business do whites and Asian Americans in the $15,000-$35,000-a-year income range have owning computers or using the Internet more often than blacks and Hispanics in the same income range?

Since there must be some reason for the disparity between different racial groups when it comes to Internet usage, your July 12 editorial implies that perhaps blacks and Hispanics do not understand how useful and valuable the Internet can be, as compared to whites and Asian Americans. If this is indeed the case, then making the Internet available in schools and libraries should help to convince the children who go there.

Owning a computer and paying for Internet service is, with the exception of people who truly cannot afford it, a personal choice. Keep the Clinton administration out of it.

David Fitzgerald
Mililani
Via the Internet

A dearth of flags on Fourth of July

While driving around the island this past Fourth of July, I was struck by the small number of homes displaying the American flag. I suppose overt displays of patriotism seem old-fashioned, pointless or perhaps even politically incorrect.

But on the day when we celebrate the blessings of liberty (and those who sacrificed for this country), climbing up a ladder and hanging the flag seems a small price to pay to acknowledge that debt.

Independence Day should be a time to celebrate both country and family in equal measure. I would encourage everyone to take a few minutes next July 4, before the food and fireworks begin, to raise the flag and talk about the events that led up to the Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War. Even in Hawaii, thousands of miles from Boston Commons, we benefit from those events more than 200 years later.

Bryan Klum
Kailua
Via the Internet

Ko Olina Resort boasts the best beaches

I beg to differ with Marilyn Walsh's July 13 letter criticizing Ko Olina lagoons. My wife and I regularly swim there and the staff has always been friendly and courteous.

Parking stalls are provided at each cove. Availability however, depends on the timing of one's visit, as Ko Olina is so popular with local families that the most convenient parking spaces are taken quickly.

Apparently, Walsh was so busy complaining that she failed to notice the well-kept beaches, tidy restrooms and nearby showers. This clean condition exists because of the "restrictions" she complains of.

Thanks to the "formidable" security people "combing" the beaches, I don't have to worry about my car being broken into, blaring radios bothering me, or drunkards or rowdy people causing a commotion -- just a wholesome family environment and people having fun in the ocean.

Wyman W. Ling
Makakilo

Flashing shaka sign could be dangerous

Regarding your July 9 article on popularizing the shaka sign on the mainland: What a great idea! I've thought so for years, and have tried to implement it in my day-to-day life in Los Angeles. However, there's a small problem.

A lot of gang thugs use similar signs when they are trying to identify each other, and the wrong sign can get you killed by a rival gang member. This is bad enough, but there have been cases where deaf persons, while trying to communicate, have been killed simply because these thugs decided the deaf were "dissing" them. These gang members don't have enough sense or education to know that American Sign Language is a real language.

Until this thorny problem is overcome, flashing the shaka on the mainland might get you killed! Isn't that a shame?

Rita Ractliffe
Van Nuys, Calif.
Via the Internet

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