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Reporting on fireworks bill was even-handed

I commend writer Mary Adamski for her even-handed reporting (March 7, Star-Bulletin) on the House and Senate's differences in the banning of fireworks.

The Senate is willing to compromise on this emotional and important issue. But in view of previous failures in having each county with policy-making discretion, the only effective ban is having state-wide control, as testified by the police and fire departments.

If the Senate were to compromise on this point, we would be back to square one. All that Hawaii then could expect, with its increasing and aging population and its seemingly more daring youth, is more health and safety problems, with increasing danger to life, limb, property and pets.

Cal Kawamoto
State Senator, 9th District
Waipahu/Pearl City

Aiea project would benefit community

Falsehoods and allegations in Richard Rowland's March 9 letter may jeopardize the fate of our proposed Aiea Town Center project, one of the best community projects that I have seen in my 33 years as a city planner.

I was disturbed and discouraged when friends, because of the letter, asked me why I'm against business and why the city is wasting money on this project.

In fact, the project is full of benefits for the community with no negative effects on business, the landowner or the taxpayers. The landowner had previously indicated that it doesn't matter whom he sells to and he just needs to sell the property as soon as possible.

Because of the significant benefits the project will bring to the community, it is more than worthy of city funding and implementation.

Gary Okino

Column was off-base in MADD-PETA spat

I am a senior at Pearl City High School and an active member of MADD Youth in Action, comprised of teen-agers who are taking a stand against underage drinking, an epidemic that has been sweeping the nation.

I am also taking a stand against a recent piece by columnist Charles Memminger. In his March 15 Honolulu Lite, he described MADD's stand against the recent PETA campaign against milk to be an overreaction.

What Memminger does not seem to realize is that not every student in college is of legal drinking age; therefore the ad does promote underage drinking.

When faced with the cold hard facts of underage drinking one will realize that MADD's stand is entirely understandable and should be supported. Too many of today's youth are drinking, drinking and driving, and as a result, dying. As a responsible group of concerned people, MADD is doing the right thing by taking a stand against the irresponsible ad.

Had Memminger known about media literacy and the fact that youth are extremely impressionable he would know that this will increase the number of youth drinking and driving. Also, in having the "come and go" attitude toward underage drinking and drinking and driving, Memminger is showing his ignorance of the effects of alcohol on the human body, the number of alcoholic youth, death, and the many other problems associated with the consumption of alcohol.

It angers and saddens me that there are individuals who take this issue lightly when thousands of lives are ruined every day by alcohol.

Perhaps what hurts the most is that until their lives are affected and they realize the severity of the problem, it will have been too late for them to save the thousands of lives lost while they foolishly brushed the problem off as one of life's minor irritations.

Aimee Takaki

Quotables "The image of politics sucks, Republican or Democrat. If I go into this race, I'll run on my image." Harry Kim HAWAII COUNTY CIVIL DEFENSE CHIEF Considering a run for Big Island mayor "This, by far, has been the worst drought we've ever seen. The effects will be felt for the next several years." Sumner Erdman MAUI RANCHER On the scarcity of rainfall for the third consecutive year

Don't let businesses displace resident golfers

The primary reasons given by the state for proposing the closing of Ala Wai Golf Course and making it a park with an amphitheater and commercial enterprises are: 1) that this will extend the green belt from Waikiki to downtown and 2) opening the land to the entire public rather than golfers only will increase the "livability quotient" of urban residents.

Sounds good, but this may be another attempt to rid Waikiki of residents and obtain more space for tourist-related enterprises.

The structures proposed for the park will cover much of the golf course greenery. That will reduce, not increase, the green space. Waikiki is already saturated with wonderful but underutilized showplaces such as the Waikiki Shell, the Kodak Hula site, the Kapiolani Park Bandstand, the Natatorium and Kuhio Beach Park.

Kicking out resident golfers and giving their space to businesses and tourists will not make it more liveable for urban residents.

Richard Y. Will

Get as tough on autos as on handguns

In Hawaii, three times as many people die in traffic accidents as are victims of homicide. Our misuse of motor vehicles causes about 140 annual traffic deaths, thousands of injuries and millions upon millions of dollars in personal and property losses.

Why don't we "get tough" on cars? In contrast to the difficulty inherent in obtaining a handgun, no formal, certified safety training is required to obtain an automobile driver's license.

Furthermore, the driver's exam is ridiculously easy. Virtually anyone can careen down neighborhood streets in an 8,000-pound, 350-horsepower truck, even those with poor driving records.

The grim results of this double standard should surprise no one.

Recently, two cyclists were hit and left injured seriously, one by a hit-and-run truck driver and another by an uninsured motorist who ran a red light. Hardly a week goes by without a pedestrian being hit by a car.

If we really want a safe community, our government leaders should put more of their time and effort into making our lives safer from the often-misused family car.

We should limit the use of automobiles in congested areas, raise the standards expected of drivers, impound the autos of uninsured motorists, and get tough on moving violators.

Khalil J. Spencer
President
Hawaii Bicycling League

Hawaiians are better off under U.S. control

I wish there was a way that people were not aggressive and that certain cultures were not dominant over others, but that would not be true to history, and it would not be life.

That fact of history as it pertains to the Hawaiian islands is one that politicians might debate for decades. However, one thing is clear: Hawaiians -- what percentage of them I don't know -- are better off under the United States than under Japan or other imperial powers.

If one understands human migration and domination, then the emigration of people to Hawaii is the greatest and most successful of all.

Scott Murphy
Laguna Beach, Calif.

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