U.S. is benevolent, but not perfect

It amazes me when people refer to American foreign policy as bloody. This description is naive and one-sided.

These same people forget about, oh, the Berlin Airlift, which saved a trapped city from the predations of the Russians, achieved entirely without bloodshed. These people forget that some of the blood shed has been American, in defense of other countries like France and South Korea. These people forget that, in place of punishment, we helped revive our World War II enemies and made them our allies, in the hope of preventing future wars.

No, America's conduct hasn't been perfect, but I defy these critics to cite a country that has conducted itself entirely without remorse or mistake.

James Ko

Hurdles in special ed far from cleared

In response to the Star-Bulletin article ("Schools clearing special ed hurdles," Oct. 31), I wonder if anyone has contacted the mental-health pro-viders who have been working with the Felix-class students.

As a mental health provider, it has been my unhappy experience that most of the news, most of the information going to the courts and most of the information going to the state Legislature is coming from the Department of Health, Department of Education or the court monitor. None, as I understand it, is coming from the contract providers. I believe if these avenues were more closely looked at, it would be found that the schools are not much further along now than they were several years ago.

It is true they have made progress in many areas. Unfortunately, we all too frequently cannot provide the needed services a student requires because they are not available (especially here on Maui). What takes place, then, is that services available are fit into students' needs rather than, taking students' needs and developing educational programs around them, as the law requires.

Furthermore, according to the schools, they are moving away from mental-health therapy for the students who have required it and moving into behavioral counseling. As a Ph.D. in psychology I have never heard of a person having a behavioral disability or a behavioral diagnosis. Thus, one of the main purposes behind the Felix cases -- providing equal educational opportunity for all students with physical and emotional handicaps -- eliminates outright those with emotional handicaps.

Isn't it time to meet with the parents and mental-health providers to hear what they have to say about compliance?

Clifford Ostrover

[Quotables] "One day they won't order anything, and the next day they'll order a ton." Dean Okimoto Nalo Farms specialty greens grower, on the uncertainties of doing business since the downturn in tourism in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack "We think they just opened the trunk (and) took the bag not expecting to find a mouse and two otters." Sara Campbell Spokeswoman for Vee Entertainment Corp., of Minneapolis, on the theft of three puppets from a rental car in Waikiki. The puppets were the "stars" of a children's production set for this weekend at Hawaii Theatre Center, which will go on as planned with a spare set of puppets.

Memminger keeps readers laughing

While scanning the Sunday edition of the Star-Bulletin, my husband lay sound asleep next to me. So as not to disturb him, I tried to stifle reaction to the column, "Fowled up headline writers deserve a pullet surprise." But midway through, bursts of spontaneous laughter roused a response from my mate. "It must be Memminger," he said. Indeed, it was.

Then, as I read aloud and as we laughed together, we agreed that Charley Memminger never fails to provide humor in a troubled world. His insights are one of many reasons why we continue to subscribe to the Honolulu Star-Bulletin.

Mrs. Norman Goldstein

Passengers should be warned about dengue

A friend just got back from an environmental trip to Tahiti, which happens to be one of the hotspots for the dengue fever epidemic. He told me that neither the airlines, immigration, nor the state were doing anything to inform the passengers about the risk that they could be carrying the disease.

I was shocked to hear this and am becoming more and more concerned that a dengue epidemic is very likely here in Hawaii. So, why isn't the government doing anything to inform and educate the airline passengers about dengue? This is totally irresponsible and I think that we should start demanding that Governor Cayetano and Health Director Bruce Anderson start doing something about this.

Evette Shamon

Suspend Jones Act for cruise ships

Our sinking economy needs the return of boat days. The problem is that people cannot get here from the mainland without flying.The airlines have cut service. Our hotels are losing $2.7 million a day. Interisland cruise ships are being mothballed. Jobs are being lost.

I ask Sen. Daniel Inouye to obtain a suspension of the Jones Act to permit cruise ships to provide passenger service between the mainland and Hawaii. To be sure, the effort has been made several times to overcome the onerous impact of the Jones Act, but never under such emergency conditions. Inouye is the only one who can accomplish this feat now.

E. Alvey Wright

It's time to seriously consider gambling

Isn't it time to consider legalized gambling? The state has now tried everything to stimulate the economy without success. How about a public referendum on the subject?

James Lam

Trask encourages debate and thinking

As usual, Haunani-Kay Trask has obscured her worthy ideas with incendiary rhetoric. If she were calmer, she might have said this: Our nation is an opulent mansion in a world of hovels. Human nature being what it is, and with all the lessons of history before us, are we surprised that our neighbors, starving in ignorance, should try to tear down our house?

There is no disrespect to the victims of Sept.11 to consider the possibility that their tragic end might have been averted by a different foreign policy. We owe them at least that much.

It is worth remembering that professors such as Trask are paid not to applaud the status quo, but to think unpopular thoughts and to state those thoughts, to urge us to consider that we may be wrong. That is their job. That is why we have a university.

Neil Frazer

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