Kobayashi supporters benefited from effort

Someone seems to be making quite an effort to smear City Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi and Fresh Start, Inc.

Yes, Fresh Start did ask those in the program if they would hold signs for Ann -- a longtime Fresh Start board member and benefactor -- as an opportunity to work in a political campaign and to learn about the political process. Ann also provided meals for the volunteers at her headquarters. Ann was there every morning and afternoon sign-holding, smiling and waving with her many friends, oldtimers and loyalists. It was a fun and exciting campaign lasting four weeks.

The young volunteers worked about an hour each afternoon. It was a good experience for them, and they helped to elect a strong supporter for themselves and their program.

Nancy Bey Little

Harris should support traffic cameras

One of the qualities I look for in selecting a candidate for public office is his or her ability to provide for a safe community. The recent comments by Mayor Jeremy Harris (Star-Bulletin, March 20) not to support the traffic van program have me wondering if he understands that this program is necessary for a safer Hawaii.

Michael Nomura
Kailua

[Quotables] "All those people who had a negative experience in end of life could have been helped with our current law as it stands." David Matsuura Chairman of the state Senate Health Committee, refusing to allow his committee to consider approving a bill to permit physician-assisted suicide. "Every diocese is re-examining itself in light of what's happening in Boston and elsewhere on the mainland. We want people to be reassured that we are not ignoring this." Patrick Downes Spokesman for the Catholic Church's Honolulu diocese, on cases of sexual misconduct by priests.

Don't forget military in their retirement

Each day as I read and hear the stories about the war on terror, I am so proud of the men and women who are doing so much to keep our country safe.

A nation whose success is tied so strongly to the military should be forever grateful to those who serve. But what happens when these heroes are finished serving? As a recently retired Air Force senior master sergeant, I can attest that after the service is over America forgets. I retired and the first thing I noticed was I became a second-class citizen, a burden on America. We were always told we would get 50 percent of our pay in retirement for serving 20 years, but we get only half of our base pay. So overnight our pay shrinks to less than a third of what we were making on active duty.

Although we have Veterans preference to help us get a job, that rarely occurs. Although we are entitled to disability pay for injuries received during active duty, that is subtracted from my retired pay. The supposed free medical coverage for life costs me about $470 a year.

The government has given those who serve a bad deal and someone needs to rectify the treatment of those who sacrifice for freedom. Don't tell me how proud you are of me and then push me aside.

Robert Barnes
Ewa Beach

Late Olympics finish gave KHNL the edge

Your March 19 article trumpeting KHNL's "win" over KHON in the 10 p.m. news wars failed to report the real story. By running the Olympics coverage till 10:10 p.m. each night, KHNL forced its viewers to watch their late news if they wanted to know the top local stories of the day, because by the time the Olympics were over so was one third of KHON's more popular newscast with Joe Moore.

Now KHNL is running commercials thanking Hawaii for making its 10 p.m. news No. 1. Thanks to their scheduling, one had no other option other that switching stations before Olympic coverage was over. KHNL manipulated its viewers and its ratings.

Gordon Hino

Quarantine lovers refuse to believe facts

As a dog owner and breeder, I am appalled to learn that Sen. Jan Buen's Resolution No. 78 calls for yet another risk analysis study to be conducted and submitted to the Legislature in 2003. Dr. Peter Holck has already completed a rabies risk analysis. A copy of that analysis was presented to Buen. She killed SB 2267 and is now trying to make us go away by delaying this issue another year.

We had two dogs come through quarantine in the past four years. One came the year the 30-day quarantine went into effect. At that time, the cost was only $285 and the 120-day quarantine was $855. We brought another dog over two years later and the 30-day quarantine had jumped 130 percent to $655. We heard the reason was because the quarantine station was not making enough money with everyone utilizing the 30-day quarantine.

Why are James Nakatani and Buen against listening to the facts laid out by Holck? We are the only state in the union that has quarantine.

Holck's study shows Hawaii's citizens would be safer from rabies under the new proposal. Only 2.4 cases per thousand years would be the risk under the most conservative assumptions, while 3.8 cases are projected under current rules.

We feel like prisoners in Hawaii. We can't travel to the mainland to show our dogs or for breeding because our dogs would have to go back into quarantine. This is not the Aloha State when our pets are treated like common criminals and owners are held hostage.

Jennie Wolfe

Oil money motivates futile Colombian aid

Two recent Star-Bulletin articles -- "U.S. will help Colombia protect oil from guerrillas" (Feb. 6) and "Colombia aid ... to provide military intelligence against Marxist rebels and to rush spare parts" (Feb. 23) -- confirm my suspicion as to the true nature of the multibillion- dollar "Plan Colombia" bill passed in 2000.

It was touted to keep cocaine away from our shores despite wide criticism of the prolongation of discredited supply-side strategy in the war on drugs. Long experience in the upper Amazon had clearly demonstrated its destructive futility. Furthermore, potential was seen for Vietnam-style involvement in a jungle-guerrilla conflict of some 40 years duration that was then approaching some sort of resolution.

It is clear that the original and continuing plan was to aid and encourage the Colombian military and paramilitaries to suppress the indigenous rebellion and its increasing conflict with U.S. petroleum exploitation. More fundamental is the U.S. imperative to foil any possible success by (recertified) Marxist rebels in democratic land reform in Latin America.

We may be told next that our involvement in Colombia is part of the war on terror. Islamic fanatics have provided our reconstituted "Cold Warriors" an excuse for continued interference in the political evolution of other societies.

Andrew Jones

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