It's time to name stadium for Coach Les

To our legislators and to the University of Hawaii Board of Regents: It's time to do the right thing. Time to do what you should have done before. Time to honor the man who has brought honor, integrity and respect to University of Hawaii baseball, and who has taught countless others whose lives he has touched to live by those principles.

Please don't let slip away this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do the one thing that would most honor the man who made UH baseball what it is today. It is something that you should do without any more hesitation. Name Rainbow Stadium for Coach Les Murakami. Now. In his lifetime.

Anson Lee
Hilo, Hawaii

[Quotables] "The people need a place they can belong...for fellowship, a family." The Rev. Brian Mauricio, Pastor of Su Gran Albanza Evangelical Christian Church, who ministers to a Spanish-speaking congregation that has turned the pagoda-roofed Palama Theater into a church. "It wasn't a matter of 'should I go,' we just went and helped out." Lorraine Pescala, One of six striking nurses at Molokai General Hospital who left the picket line Saturday to help care for a family -- parents and three children, including an infant -- injured when their Ford Bronco flipped over.

HMSA's gains should offset loss

Hawaii Medical Services Association lost money in 2000. While it sounds bad, it really isn't when one looks at the overall picture. In the late 1990s, in a two-year period, according to its reports, HMSA made a net profit of $1 million a week. I do not recall my premium dropping in that period nor do I recall an increase in my reimbursement. That means HMSA made a profit of more than $102 million! So the loss last year is a regrettable but minor item.

Walter Young, M.D

Church doors open only slightly for gays

Regarding Jeff Mead's commentary in Sunday's Insight section, "Many churches open doors to gay faithful:" I would agree, but not for many of the congregations and churches he mentions. He conveniently omitted the ones that are also supportive of gay and lesbian rights.

What he considers an open door seems rather broad. He gives "Dignity" as an example of Catholic outreach. However, the Catholic Church will not allow Dignity to meet on church premises, no priest or nun is to administer or provide rites for anyone within the Dignity context and the group is condemned by the Vatican.

I would not even try to deal with the mental contortions one must go through to imagine the Mormon church has any sort of outreach to gays and lesbians, other than to attempt "aversion conversion."

However, these exercises might be similar to what an aware gay or lesbian person must go through to imagine that the Republican Party (local or national) actually welcomes them and supports their issues.

Personally, I decided when the Republican Party invited Buchanan to speak at its convention in 1992, that it would never get my vote again!

Lance Bateman

Doctor's history isn't anti-homosexual

According to a Associated Press story in the Star-Bulletin May 11, Dr. Robert Spitzer, of Columbia University, had spoken at an American Psychiatric Association meeting about his new study, which argues that gays can change to a heterosexual lifestyle. I find it ironic that Dr. Spitzer has been attacked by academics, journalists and gay activists as a result of his findings.

This happens to be the same Dr. Spitzer, who was on APA's Task Force on Nomenclature in 1973, and got homosexuality removed from its list of mental disorders. I read where Spitzer has said that he started this new study as a skeptic and was not looking to prove that homosexuals could change.

However, after he completed his interviews with 200 ex-gays, he concluded that it is possible for them to change their sexuality. Of course, this is hard for the politically correct crowd to accept. They would like us to believe that homosexuality is an immutable characteristic, like race and gender, and that there is no way to change your sexuality. It looks like science has won this battle over demagoguery.

Bonita Newland
Kaneohe

Principals in other states are unionized

Contrary to a claim made in a May 18 letter, it is not "only in Hawaii" that school principals belong to labor unions.

Has unionization of public elementary and high school principals enhanced achievement of teaching and learning objectives? That's arguable.

However, since the 1960s, unionization of principals has neither been rare nor universal. In the continental U.S., it has probably been more common in the larger school districts than in suburban and rural areas.

And where principals are unionized, typically they do not belong to the same collective bargaining unit with classroom teachers and school counselors, clerks, cafeteria workers and janitors.

Finally, my views differ from the letter writer in another respect. While educational unions are far from perfect and while their leaders often will benefit from criticism, I see no reason to compare them with the "mob." That's a stretch.

Perhaps if political power were not so highly centralized, it might be easier to resolve substantive issues affecting the quality of primary and secondary public school education for Hawaii's children.

Vincent Kelly Pollard

Bush's energy plan pays off for 'Big Oil'

As evidenced by the release of his energy policy, George W., our appointed president, is well on his way to paying back his special interest campaign contributors. I'm concerned that with all the major 'Oil Barons' in the Oval Office, there may not be enough room for our president.

I hear and see a great deal of concern that gas prices might get as high as $2 per gallon! Why aren't we telling the politicians and news media that our gas prices are $2.199 per gallon for regular and $2.359 for 92 octane? And we have our own refinery in Hawaii.

Everyone is aghast at the electric utility prices in California. Why not tell the them that even after the obscene price increases in California caused by big oil, Hawaii's electric utility rates are still higher! Maybe I'm asking too much. We wouldn't want to upset anyone in Washington, D.C.

Robert G. Devine
Ocean View, Hawaii

Privatizing can breed corruption

A recent PBS program highlighting the economic investment and development in Singapore might have some meaning here in Hawaii. Success was laid on honest government, educating the working force and setting priorities. Is there a parallel in Hawaii?

The hotels of Bali are the most beautiful in the world, but there are restrictions and planning. Privatizing Honolulu's harbors, building more hotel towers in crowded areas and steam rollering over condo associations is not good growth.

If private interest and money is allowed to rule over planning, corruption and chaos will be the result. Exposing mismanagement and abuse through the media and voting out those responsible is the only answer -- or prosecution -- if that is called for.

Go for it voters!

Susan Lenz

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