Deregulation means nothing in Hawaii

In 1989 I started an airline called Discovery Airways here in Hawaii. It was designed to bring competition to the interisland market, with modern four-engine jets, low fares and quality service. The aim was to make interisland air transportation affordable to everyone.

I am not much into archeology, so I will not dwell on the past. But everyone in Hawaii knew that a gross injustice was done to Discovery.

At that time, I tried to convey the danger of having a duopoly in a state in which air transportation is a vital part of the economy. The politicians saw it otherwise and now, years later, the ultimate achievement -- a monopoly!

The money that the consumer saved during some semblance of competition now will be repaid back with hefty interest. Deregulation will remain a word without meaning.

Franco Mancassola
Founder, Discovery Airways

City should defend property tax hikes

The assessment on my 50-year-old home increased from $278,000 for 2001 to $374,900 for 2002, for an increase of $96,900.

The taxes for last year were $576.70. The estimated taxes for 2002 are $930.39. That is an increase of $353.69. This is an agonizing increase of 61.32 percent.

My neighbor, who has a 10,000-square-foot lot, has been informed that her taxes can expect to be increased by $314.63 compared to a year ago.

According to your article ("Property assessment values raise concern," Star-Bulletin, Dec. 20), "The value of all taxable properties on the island went up 4.7 percent ..."

The notice we received informs us that we can appeal to the Board of Review. But it also says we have to prove that the assessor made a mistake. Under most laws, the burden of proof rests on the person who makes the changes or who presses the charges. In this case, the assessor is contending that our properties went up in value in the amounts he indicates on his notice. Shouldn't the burden of proving this assertion be his burden? Why should the taxpayers be charged with the burden of proving the assessor made a mistake if we aren't first told what the criteria were for the new valuations? I know that nobody asked me for my opinion on any increase in the value of my home or about the flooding and other problems that I have been having.

I hope that our representatives can figure out some way to curtail the power of government to act in such an arbitrary and capricious way.

A. J. Calabro
Kailua

[Quotables] "We'll see what happens. We have to plan it together." Anita Jones Special education teacher, who received her master's degree Sunday along with her daughter, Dussy Lehua Jones, on whether the mother-daughter duo will pursue doctoral degrees together. "He had a blank look. The people who saw him, remembered him." Nicholas Green Passenger on an American Airlines flight who helped subdue a man with explosives in his shoes.

School of Social Work needs a dean

Your article of Dec. 17 regarding the "dissension" at the University of Hawaii School of Social Work highlights an immediate concern -- the appointment of a permanent dean to the University of Hawaii School of Social Work.

We at the National Association of Social Workers, Hawaii Chapter, would like to clarify our position on this issue. Our main concern is that the state of Hawaii maintain a high-quality school of social work at the university. The appointment of a permanent dean for the school is critical, and we strongly encourage the university administration to take steps toward filling that position immediately.

The school is in the process of reaccreditation, and the absence of a permanent dean may hurt this process. If the school loses its accreditation we also could lose future licensed social workers in the state who would work in a variety of settings such as schools, hospitals, mental health clinics and government positions. While the UH administration feels that the School of Social Work "lacks consensus about its mission and how it should be achieved," we believe that a permanent dean is an essential part of building consensus and would provide necessary leadership.

We hope the university administration will recognize the importance of maintaining a professional school of social work by appointing a permanent dean as soon as possible.

Sharon Otagaki
President

Debbie Shimizu
Executive director
National Association of Social Workers
Hawaii Chapter

Orwell's predictions have come true

Even as our president and his cohorts have fomented a frenzied patriotism throughout the country, they have limited civil rights, subsidized many of the nation's largest corporations, and worked to give tax relief to the wealthiest segment of the population.

Locally, the governor has assumed extraordinary executive powers, the state's airline industry is poised to become a monopoly, oil and shipping companies continue to extort the public and intrusive cameras are springing up ubiquitously along our roadsides.

Although it is 17 years beyond the predicted date of his prescient novel, the greatest tragedy of Sept. 11 may turn out to be the emergence of George Orwell's Big Brother.

Robert Chanin
Kailua

War will bring only more violence

I condemn the Sept. 11 attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., and I deplore the mass killings and destruction that resulted. Osama bin Laden and his group of supporters should be apprehended and brought to justice. What is disturbing, though, is that Afghanistan has been assaulted by massive military might.

It is estimated that more than 3,500 civilians have been killed by U.S. air attacks so far. Some relief organizations have estimated that 1 to 2 million people in Afghanistan could die.

Will these deaths make up for the deaths of those in New York City or at the Pentagon? I think the victims of Sept. 11 and their families would not want further killing of innocents.

The so-called U.S. war on terrorism will only produce more violence and reaction, especially if spreads to other countries alleged to be harborers of terrorists. We must urge a halt to what may well be seen as state terrorism by our own government.

The war has cost more than $12 billion, funds that could be used much more wisely and humanely. This war also is eroding our basic freedoms, an ominous result of an ill-defined and ill-conceived war.

John Witeck

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