Mink's dedicated staff carries her legacy

As much as I am stunned at the passing of Honorable Congresswoman Patsy Mink, I am impressed by her staffers who have continued to carry on her work. In front of me is a letter dated Sept. 11, regarding a situation of great concern to our family and Hawaii's Pacific Island communities. Aloha Patsy, thank you for your years of public service and thank you for the legacy of a committed and responsive staff.

Barry Markowitz
Hauula

Mink's protest showed her courageous spirit

I will always remember the courage Patsy Mink demonstrated on January 6, 2001, when she and 13 other members of the House of Representatives walked out of the congressional certification ceremony for the Electoral College in protest of Florida's fraudulently allocated electors. By taking a stand against the illegitimate regime of George W. Bush, Rep. Mink established herself as a true American hero. She will be missed.

David Harnden-Warwick
Bellingham, Washington

Let's get Aloha Parade back on television

After working the Aloha Festivals Parade for CBS for the last 25 years, I was able to watch the parade this year as a spectator. After last September's cancellation, the parade once again rolled through Waikiki. The local people were there along with the tourists. The Royal Court's float broke down again, the pa'u riders, floral floats, bands, clowns and marching units, all were back. Noticeably absent was the CBS television crew with its contingent of local technicians, craftsmen and artists.

It is ironic that the Aloha Festival's Web site stated that the parade would be shown on CBS this Thanksgiving Day. Wrong. Last year's last-minute cancellation of the parade left a bad taste in CBS's mouth, with the network having incurred large expenses with nothing to show for it. The parade should have gone on, to show our support of the war on terrorism.

I called Mike Gargiulo, the parade's CBS producer for more than 25 years, who said that no one had called him to ask him why CBS wasn't coming back. Gargiulo and CBS have given Hawaii a major boost in tourism by airing the parade. They supported our economy by hiring many local people. If the mayor and governor would contact Gargiulo, we may be able to bring back this tradition. All it takes is a phone call to start the ball rolling.

Rodney Kobayakawa
General manager
National Mobile Television, Hawaii

Democrats chew up tax money, each other

During the primary debates, Ed Case attacked Mazie Hirono, stating that she had no clear "plan" in her campaign. Andy Anderson attacked Hirono's "friendly ties" to big campaign donor Dennis Mitsunaga. So now does Hirono have any more energy to tackle Republican candidate for governor Linda Lingle in the general election?

Voters should really be asking if they want to continue their loyalty to a party that has clearly proven that it will devour not only our hard-earned taxes, but also each other.

Tina Winquist
Waimanalo

U.S. should help Iraq's innocent citizens

We should neither invade nor attack Iraq. The U.S. public has not been provided with any proof that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction, and some of the United Nations arms inspectors have stated that they are convinced that Iraq does not have any of these weapons.

If we were to bomb Iraq, we would kill those we were targeting as well as innocent individuals who might dislike Saddam Hussein as much as President Bush does. The families of these innocent individuals would blame the United States for their deaths, not Hussein; and these family members could become the future "martyrs" and take revenge against the United States.

We claim to be a Christian nation, yet only a few religious organizations, such as the Quakers, have spoken out against the impending war and the suffering this would impose upon innocent people. And yet, our media and government continue to scream about the "bloodthirsty Muslims" and "Islamic fundamentalists" who crave war. Based upon the rhetoric it would be difficult for an outsider to discern the difference between the "peaceful Christians" and the "Islamic fundamentalists."

Any and all actions on our part should help to decrease and should not impose more suffering upon a population which we claim is already suffering under Hussein.

Madhup Joshi
Kahului

Lessors should not have to sell property

Bill 53 would make it easier for those lessees who want to buy the fee for their condominiums by having the city go through a condemnation procedure using eminent domain. Since when does a property owner get real market value under those circumstances?

Those lessees signed contracts stating that they did not own the land under the residence and that if the lessors decided to take the property back they would lose interest to the improvements made on the property. The lessees knew this going in. The reason people went into these contracts is that the rent on the properties was dirt cheap. Now they are complaining because they realize that rents are going up and they have a valuable investment in their homes.

It is wrong for the city to support this bill because the lessors should not be forced to sell their properties if they do not want to. This is stealing for the good of the lessees. Eminent domain condemnation was not meant for this. The lessees have no right to change a contract at their desire. They signed the contracts and should honor them.

I think that if this is the way things are, then the Hawaiians should start condemnation proceedings on their land. We can start with Honolulu Hale and the state Capitol.

File Keliiaa
Waianae

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