Waikiki doesn't get the best from TheBus

Bill Millan (Letters, Jan. 2) hits the nail right on the head when he complains about the state of affairs on both bus routes 22 and 58.

Overcrowding on these routes has been a problem for years. When questioned about this situation, both TheBus and Department of Transportation Services respond in the same fashion, saying that tour operators complain that more buses would cut into their business and that adding buses would be too costly.

What they overlook when making these statements is the fact that not all riders are tourists headed for Sealife Park or other tourist destinations along these routes and that if more frequent service were provided it would pay for itself in the long run.

When complaints are made to TheBus about this situation all they can suggest is "take the 2, 13, or B City Express to King Street and transfer to the 1. Smart move by them. Attract more riders to the system by making it more difficult to use. How is riding two buses easier than riding one?

Adding more service would hopefully cut down on the number of cabbies and van operators approaching tourists at bus stops and charging them three times the bus fare to use their service.

All too often the interests of those who reside in Waikiki and the surrounding areas are swept aside and forgotten. It is unfair that because we live in a "tourist spot" that no quarter is given to those of us who proudly call Waikiki home.

Charlie Doremus

Airlines monopoly is bad news for Hawaii

The fact that we might become a single airline interisland market would be devastating for Hawaii's commuter, tourist and cargo shipper alike. The schedules will be decreased, flight availability will be reduced. Employees will suffer because of staff reductions.

Monopolies are the antithesis of democracy. Business thrives off of competition -- everyone benefits.

Hawaiian Airlines has been growing for the past five years and has one of the strongest cash reserves in the industry plus a completely new fleet of airplanes and a very dedicated employee base.

Ask yourself -- who does the merger really benefit? Who's going to be left out?

Deborah Bocken
Certified financial planner

[Quotables] "I am so honored, so pleased and so humbled by the fact that I never in my wildest dreams as a boy knew I would be here. It's really an American dream." Ed Kubo Jr. Hawaii's newly appointed U.S. attorney, at his swearing-in ceremony. "It's different this year. Legislators who were with us are beginning to change their minds." Dorothy Bobilin Head of the Hawaii Coalition Against Legalized Gambling, on lawmakers whose resolve to keep gambling out of Hawaii may be weakening.

Merger layoffs won't be so 'comfortable'

A primary benefit for stockholders, not employees, of corporate restructuring is the cost savings from slashing off a big chunk of the payroll.

In the case of Continental Airlines' successful turnaround in 1993, much of the credit has been attributed to then-president Greg Brenneman's ruthless layoff strategy.

In a Harvard Business Review article and in interviews, Brenneman, now CEO for the upcoming Aloha-Hawaiian airlines merger, claims that his policy of handling the human resources aspect of restructuring is with "dignity and respect." What, exactly, does this mean?

When Brenneman ordered all of Continental's aircraft to be refurbished in six months, not two years, workers balked. He gave them a choice: six months, or you're out of here. So the job got done in six months, with or without dignity and respect.

In Hawaii, Brenneman thinks the merged corporate culture should be comfortable, since many local families already have members working for each of the airlines.

How comfortable will it be when one family member ends up supporting another member who has been laid off in the shuffle?

Dai Kokusai

City employees offer help without fail

As a member of the Downtown Neighborhood Board, I make frequent requests to various city departments to pick up trash, fix potholes and replace burned out stoplights.

I am writing to single out the Traffic Signal Section of the Department of Transportation Services and Charles Kowalski of the Refuse Division of the Environmental Services Department for a special mahalo.

Over the last year I have made numerous requests to the Traffic Signal Section to repair broken pedestrian crossing buttons, replace light bulbs and repair the visors over traffic lights. Virtually without fail, the requested repairs have been made within 24 hours, often the same day. The personnel there have always been friendly, despite the fact that every time I call they know it is going to mean more work for them.

The small neighborhood bounded by Vineyard Boulevard, Punchbowl Street and the H-1 had a serious problem with people putting couches and mattresses on the street weeks before the bulky item pickup days for the area.

Kowalski and others at the Refuse Division have gone above and beyond the call of duty in controlling this problem. They not only had the couches and mattresses picked up immediately, they canvassed the neighborhood letting residents know when they should put their bulky items out. Thanks to Kowalski and others in the Refuse Division, that neighborhood looks 100 percent better.

These individuals have been extremely helpful in making the Downtown/Chinatown area a better place to live.

Karl Rhoads

Rogers' dedication to flag still inspires

Seven days a week, I would pass former Air Force Master Sgt. John Rogers, the "General," as he entered or exited the YMCA on Atkinson Drive, carrying the encased American flag that he devotedly waved each day at the corner of Kapiolani and Kalakaua avenues.

As a retired United States Marine Corps major, a "Mustang," I often donned my cap with the Marine Corps emblem and the lettering, "Mustang, USMC." Rogers never failed to acknowledge me with a salute and a quip: "Good morning, sir, good afternoon, sir, how's it going?"

I would reply with, "How's it going, Sarge?"

His reply, "Great, great, it can't be any better. Have a great day, sir."

Somehow I am assured, that with the passing of this patriotic American, within minutes, he was sitting at the right hand of "his God," looking down and commenting, "Major, it just got better."

Have a happy New Year and a happy new life, Sgt. John Rogers. You're missed, more than you know.

Richard A. "Doc" Doherty

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