U.S. troops still sick from first Gulf War

American military policies during the Gulf War were more dangerous to our troops than were Saddam's armies, as documented in Science and the Journal of the American Medical Association. About 25 percent of U.S. military personnel involved in the Gulf War are now sick with Gulf War Syndrome. The causes of Gulf War Syndrome are likely to include vaccines, the flea collars that some of our troops wore and the many drugs they took as a precaution against possible chemical attack.

Most dangerous of all for our troops was their exposure to U.S.-made depleted uranium. Successful use of depleted-uranium shells spreads low-grade nuclear waste, which directly affects the health of our troops as well as being a long-term disaster for the areas in which they were used. If there is another war, our troops could travel in contaminated areas, and so the cycle of sickness and death will continue.

I urge people to write to President Bush and ask him to follow the same diplomatic path with Iraq that he is with North Korea, if only in consideration of the lives and health of our troops.

John Casken
Kailua

It was so much easier during the Cold War

Not long ago, the world was torn between two ideologies. It was clear from this side of the fence that representative government and freedom of choice were far superior to godless, expansionist communism.

The Muslim world seemed to hate the godless expansionists and that was fine with us; any enemy of my enemy is my friend. So we supported corrupt, totalitarian regimes in the Middle East (and Latin America) and then, after the demise of the Russian threat, we encouraged democracy in places as far afield as Korea, Taiwan, Latin America and Eastern Europe.

Unfortunately, we did not have the courage to try to change the power structure in the Middle East. Bin Laden changed all that and the very legitimacy of these Western puppets was put into play, so now we have to make some hard decisions.

Should we become a colonial power, occupy and impose our system on Iraq and use that country as an example of democracy working in a Muslim country after our troops leave? Or should we remain the hated Western backers of regimes that have no legitimacy?

Cuba and Iran hate us because of our support of past regimes. Well, we kicked the bums out in eastern Europe, Latin America, Korea and so on. So let's start in the Middle East with Iraq, but let's not beat around the bush about weapons of mass destruction. Saddam is just a bad guy and has to go, period.

Life was so much simpler when all we had to worry about were those expansionist, godless Communists.

Peter Bihari

Hamakawa wrong to hold cruelty bill

It is unconscionable for Rep. Eric Hamakawa, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, to hold HB 165, the "cruelty to animals" bill, because he has "a lot of cockfighting constituents" (Star-Bulletin, Feb. 10). His admission of giving in to the cockfighters leaves one to wonder how much in campaign contributions have been given to him by these constituents. It must be plenty for him to kill the same bill two years in a row. Perhaps what Hamakawa is really telling the rest of Hawaii is that it is all right to conduct criminal activity as long as you pay him off first.

Cockfighting is more than animal cruelty. Gambling at these events is in the tens of thousands of dollars; drug dealing, prostitution and other forms of gambling also take place at cockfights. Is Hamakawa in favor of these criminal activities, too? A person with such questionable legal morals should not be the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

Fred Gartley
Kaneohe

Cops in Manoa should let cars park illegally

Last week a car parked on Armstrong Street was given a citation for being parked too far from the curb. I saw the police officer measure and re-measure the distance. I dashed out to question why he was citing the car and was told that the car was parked almost two feet from the curb, although it was not obstructing traffic. He said that many complaints from residents had reached the police chief, so officers in that area were instructed to cite the cars.

Now, the car was parked right in front of my home and cars seemed to pass by without any difficulty, so I saw no reason for the citation. I am sure that the complaining residents are the ones who wanted marked stalls on Armstrong Street, which I thought was ridiculous. These people probably never had children, especially children who attended the University of Hawaii.They should be more concerned about the condition of the roads in Manoa than picking on students. A warning to UH students: Manoa is not a student-friendly neighborhood.

Gail M. Tajima

Unions give principals too much comfort

I would like to offer this case in point regarding principals and unions (Star-Bulletin, Feb. 8). As a school principal in Los Angeles County and a former Hawaii resident, I would like to tell Rep. Marcus Oshiro that principals in California, as in other states, are hired and fired by the will of the school board.

I do not belong to a union. If principals are held accountable and face the risk of being fired, it gives them quite an incentive to actually work. If my school is not performing up to standards, I need to ensure that the staff is working up to its full potential and the students are succeeding or I will be out of a job. Yes, it is a difficult job, but if you choose to do it, then do it well!

Unions are quite strong in Hawaii, but it is up to the leaders like Oshiro to put the children first.

Irvin R. Lim
La Puente, Calif.
Former Hawaii resident

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