Refund the fund

Arthur Lessing's March 8 letter proffered the reasonable rationale that if you buy insurance protection from some unwelcome event, in this case, hurricane insurance, you should not expect a premium refund if you suffer no damages.

This is the nature of ordinary commercial insurance. The Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund, however, was certainly a horse of another color.This insurance was created in emergency circumstances, the most compelling of which was that all commercial insurance companies in Hawaii dropped hurricane coverage after the devastation wreaked by Hurricane Iniki, rendering most mortgages null and void.

Certainly, mortgage loans would have been impossible to obtain. Our legislators responded with the Hurricane Relief Fund as a stop-gap measure.

The state insurance was relatively expensive, carried a very high deductible and there were insufficient funds in the kitty for losses similar to those sustained by Iniki. The policy would have reimbursed for loss only to the extent that funds were available. Buying this insurance was not a good deal except for satisfying the conditions of a mortgage.

Whatever remains in the fund should be restored to the people who were forced to buy this monopolistic product.

Frank J. Kocsis

Quotables "I'll be supporting her morally. As human beings, we all make mistakes." John DeSoto Honolulu City Councilman referring to his colleague Councilwoman Rene Mansho who has been fined for misusing her campaign funds "What is important? Turtle or human life?" Kim Hyo Sun Member of a longline fishing family. Longliners have been ordered to stop fishing for a least three weeks in the ongoing battle over the protection of endangered turtles

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Dear 'Governer'

Dear Governer Benjamin J. Cayetano,

I am a student that is concerned about the salaries and wellbeing of teachers. I beleive that the teachers have the most important job in our community. They teach students the skills they need to succeed.

As a student I have learned from my teachers and I beleive that they deserve more than they are receiving from the government.

Our state has the lowest paid teachers in our nation. This is making teachers not want to come to Hawaii because of the low salaries and limited supplies. This is causing schools to have more students in a class where there is less time for students who don't understand the lessons taught. This makes it hard for the students to grow and be able to give back to the community.

Four out of eight of my teachers have left for better jobs. I request that you take this subject into consideration for the bettering of Hawaii's schools and teachers.

Name withheld

Editor's note: Please see the Editor's Scratchpad in the column at left.

Regents should speak

Governor Ben Cayetano appointed the University of Hawaii Board of Regents. Understandably, they feel a sense of loyalty to him. However, the regents should also be looking out for UH students. They also have an opportunity to facilitate a win-win solution to the present contract impasse.

In October 1994, candidates Ben Cayetano and Mazie Hirono spoke up for higher education during a campaign swing through the Manoa Campus Center. I heard them. If the governor is not trying to provoke a strike, perhaps the Board of Regents can step outside its usual role, remind him of his pledge and prevail on him to find a collaborative solution.

Vincent K Pollard

Filling teachers' needs

In her March 7 letter to the editor, Jackie Kido of the governor's office mentioned the 17 percent raise that teachers got in exchange for extending the school year.

Working more days for more money is not a raise. The actual raise was much less than 17 percent. We already work more days for more money. It's called having second jobs.

Suddenly, the governor is concerned about textbooks and computers. Why the sudden interest when he has ignored our pleas for years? Granted, we have more computers than in the past, but there is no tech support or additional funding for upgrades, or even printer cartridges. I have the same yearly allotment now that I had 10 years ago.

Kido mentions that the time it takes to build a school has been cut in half. Fantastic!

Meanwhile, Kealakehe Intermediate has been waiting for over 10 years for a library. Now that building time has been halved, when can we expect construction to begin?

Robert Flemm
Kailua-Kona

No tax cut now

I have spent a fair amount of time at the state Capitol during this legislative session and have noted:

1) The needs of middle-income public workers have been pitted against the poor in decision-making over the budget. Either-or choices, such as "if we fund raises for teachers, we can't fund programs for the homeless," obscure the fact that there ARE alternatives.

2) Legislators have become so engulfed in party politics and their own re-election that the notion of the "common good" has all but disappeared.

Thus, I was surprised and gratified at the Ways and Means Committee hearing when my senator, Brian Taniguchi, boldly suggested that the time is not right for major tax cuts. I am proud of the 14 senators who had the courage to support this position.

Those who agree need to speak out, including the public workers struggling for fair contracts. Strong public opinion favoring economic justice will bolster legislative support and may change the governor''s mind about a veto.

Nancy Aleck

Protecting pedestrians

Hideo Yoshimoto's idea of building pedestrian overpasses is wonderful (Insight,March 10). In the meantime, I suggest that community members volunteer to act as safety patrol volunteers to escort pedestrians across the street. It works in the schools very well. Those vests and stop signs are as good as a red light because there are people wearing them and holding the signs.

Women with babies, elderly and children wait for traffic to clear before they even attempt to cross the street in a designated crosswalk. And when they do get up enough nerve to cross, they do so very quickly and wave when someone actually lets them pass.

Where are we going on this island that we don't have the time to wait for another person to cross the street? Why are pedestrians treated in such a manner by motorists?

I invite elected representatives to respond to my questions. If they do not come up with a solution, they will continue to read about fatalities. One person killed is too many.

Emma Howard
Kailua

Go, Harry Kim!

Regarding the story "Shopping center delayed," Star-Bulletin, March 10: Three cheers for Big Island Mayor Harry Kim! If the center developers want a road to bring them business, let 'em build it themselves. We've got more than enough, legitimate, places to spend our tax money. I knew Harry Kim would be a good man as mayor.

Bob Devine

Ocean View, Hawaii

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