Special interests fight minimum wage hike

Daniel Barretto's letter (Star-Bulletin, Dec. 31), besides claiming that "Hawaii is in the worst economic depression perhaps since the 1920s" (perhaps Barretto has not heard about the Great Depression, which was the 1930s answer to the 1920s financial debauchery by the leisure class), manages to connect a measly 50-cent raise in the minimum wage to "pseudo-socialism" and "stupidity" because it will "increase the burden on business."

Besides the questionable historical and political accuracy -- paying $5.75 per hour will result in neither a living wage, nor the ownership of the means of production by a "peoples' proletariat" -- there's an underlying attitude that, while increasingly common, leaves out one small detail. The last time I checked, there was still some pretense to refer to our nation's system of government as a "democracy," and if that's the case, then readers might ask themselves whether our government exists to better the lives of its owners, (i.e., We the People) or to respond to the interests of the fast food industry.

It's becoming less clear just who does own our government, and special interests continue to promote the idea that what's good for them is good for the country.

Joseph Castignon
Kailua

Physicians offer free eye care for seniors

As one of 44 volunteer ophthalmologists here in Hawaii, I am compelled to tell you about the greatest gift you can give a loved one -- the gift of sight. One call to the National Eye Care Project (NECP), a public-service program sponsored by the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the Knights Templar Eye Foundation Inc., could mean the difference between sight and blindness for you or someone you love.

The program is designed for, but not limited to, financially disadvantaged seniors. All U.S. citizens or legal residents age 65 and over, who have not seen an ophthalmologist in the last three years or longer, are eligible for the NECP. A simple phone call to the toll-free Helpline at 1-800-222-EYES (3937) can match patients with a volunteer ophthalmologist in their area. That doctor will provide a complete medical eye examination and a full year of treatment for any condition diagnosed at the initial visit.

The best part is that there is no cost to the patient. As volunteers for the NECP, we have agreed to accept Medicare or other insurance reimbursement as payment in full, with no out-of-pocket expenses to the patient. Those without insurance of any kind, including Medicare, receive care at no charge.

In Hawaii, 948 people have called the NECP's Helpline, with 635 patients referred to a volunteer in their area.

I urge you to take advantage of this amazing program, and give the gift of sight.

Malcolm R. Ing, M.D.
Ophthalmologist

[Quotables] "We have always said that speeding is speeding, and if you exceed the posted speed limit, you are subject to citation." Marilyn Kali Department of Transportation spokeswoman, on the photo enforcement cameras used to ticket speeding cars. The state has acknowledged it stands to lose money on camera-issued tickets for cars going less than 6 mph over the speed limit, a loss the state seems willing to take. "The first people who lived in Waikiki are now back at home, and they now are in place." Kilo Keohokalole Member of a family that traces its lineage back to High Chiefess Ane Keohokalole, the biological mother of Prince David Kalakaua and Queen Liliuokalani. Kilo Keohokalole was speaking at the dedication and blessing of a burial mound in Waikiki that holds the bones of 200 Hawaiians displaced by construction projects.

Other isle universities need sports coverage

Jerry Campany's article ("Hawaii's D-II schools make noise against Division I," Star-Bulletin, Dec. 28) on D-II basketball misses the point of the last 15 years of Hawaii basketball. He says, "Before this year, the thought of any Hawaii school competing with the Rainbows was just that; a thought never to be uttered aloud."

The fact is that Hawaii Pacific University has been the dominant power for the past 15 years, ever since it pounded the Rainbows in 1985 in the Rainbow Kick-off Tournament. It was this humiliation, in which UH was behind by as many as 40 points before closing to an 18-point loss, that ended UH playing the other universities.

Riley Wallace admitted as much in 1997 when at the Quarterback Club he said he would never play HPU, which was not only the best team in the state, but one of the best in the country.

UH regained its dominance in 1998, but this hardly justifies language such as that the other schools "pick up the University of Hawaii scraps."

This language does capture, however, the condescension of the Star-Bulletin in its minimal coverage of the other four universities. Nowhere can we find that the HPU men's tennis team is ranked No. 1 in the country and BYUH's is No. 3, nor that HPU defeated UH, 3-2, for the City Championship on Nov. 30. But that would just add to the humiliation, wouldn't it?

Gregory G. Gaydos

U.S. must help avert India-Pakistan war

Regarding your two adjoining articles of Jan. 4 ("India-Pakistan summit talks unlikely" and "Israel pulls back as U.S. envoy arrives"), India, in its escalating conflict with Pakistan over Kashmir, has adopted the script written by Israel's Sharon and legitimized by the Bush administration, in which the superior military force demands that clandestine militant groups be apprehended before addressing the fundamental causes of conflict.

The Kashmir situation differs significantly in two ways: Pakistan is not as weak compared to India as is Palestine compared to Israel and as Afghanistan was compared to the United States; and both Pakistan and India have missiles with nuclear warheads.

Escalation from the present skirmishes at their border to all-out war will have dire consequences, including further polarization between the world of Islam and that represented by the United States. With the volatile nature of religious and tribal politics and the increasing tensions regarding control of territory and resources of the planet, it behooves the United States as the dominant world power to take the lead in advocacy of fair and equitable settlement of such disputes and grievances.

The choice is between the methodology of peace and an eternal war with no winner.

Andrew Jones
Pahoa

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