Let's get together to help our schools

We all know our schools are in financial trouble and the children are sometimes going without the basics in some of the classrooms, so here is an idea that could be a small but effective way to help:

>> Pick a school, choose a grade level and get the name of a teacher.

>> Decide how much you can afford to spend and which shopping place will give you the best value.

Our code phrase will be "Take a Teacher Shopping."

This way, you will know exactly what a teacher needs for her classroom; you will have personal involvement as to how your money is spent and used; and -- who knows? -- you might even gain a friend.

If you would like more information or have some input for this idea, you may contact me at Margelfromhi@webtv.net. Come on, let's go shopping!

Marge Lane

Employees should not smoke at schools

I wanted to let everyone know how my friends and I feel about HB 248, which would ban smoking by public employees on public school campuses. We think it is a no-brainer; we support it and can't believe any elected officials worth re-electing would vote against it. We were surprised this wasn't already a law! Everyone knows how bad smoking is for your health. Our doctors tell us, our parents tell us, our coaches tell us; but smoking is allowed on school campuses? What kind of a role model does that create?

Something is very wrong with this message. It is hard enough to be a teen today; please, state Legislature, don't give us mixed messages. We hope all legislators who really care about the health of Hawaii's kids will vote "yes" on HB 248 to make school campuses smoke-free.

Leiana Evensen
Kaneohe

Bush is carrying out Clinton-era policy

All the pundits who are bashing President Bush, as Star-Bulletin columnist Cynthia Oi ("Under the Sun," March 19) and others in the liberal media, plus these anti-war protesters, are simply engaged in partisan politics. Where were they in 1999, when President Clinton bombed Kosovo and sent troops to the Balkans? This was to oust Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic -- who, by the way, didn't even have weapons of mass destruction, as Saddam Hussein has and will use again, if given the chance.

As Oi knows, or should know, Clinton and the Democratic-controlled Congress voted to make removing Saddam Hussein official U.S policy in 1998, better known as "The Iraqi Liberation Act." This is exactly what George Bush is going to do; liberate the Iraqi people.

Do these anti-war people want to be in a situation with Saddam a couple of years down the road as we are today with Kim Jong Il of North Korea? If history has taught us nothing else, it's that you can't be soft with despots. Look how many millions of people have been killed because of the Neville Chamberlains of this world.

Fred Cavaiuolo
Waikiki

Let people decide who will be human shields

I agree wholeheartedly with Dan Saito's letter (Star-Bulletin, March 14) saying that we should support the real human shields in Iraq (our fighting forces) and disregard the ones who are just trying to draw attention to themselves.

But it is time to take this human shield idea a step further.

Why not have a system where we can nominate people to be human shields -- people who you feel should be over there on the front lines? It would be a great way of clearing the needless flotsam from our lives: the guy who cut you off in traffic, the P.E. teacher who flunked you, the woman with the 18 packages in the 9-items-only checkout line. Even the yo-yos who block your way into the convenience store. But wait -- let's get more creative.

We could clear all those slow drivers out of the left lane, reward the family up the street whose July 4 and New Year's Eve debris always winds up in your driveway, and resolve any and all in-law problems.

Moreover, our current preoccupation with super-size means that our larger population could actually find meaning in their lives: shielding two or three people in Iraq while simultaneously freeing up more open space on Oahu.

Chip Davey

9/11 fear tactics made America stronger

Now is the time for all of us to take a stand and support President Bush. As the wife of an active-duty soldier, I wholly understand the consequences of the U.S action against Iraq and other foreign enemies. On the same note, I believe that we cannot stand by and allow tyrants to bully our country into fear and submission. We saw the fear tactics on 9/11, and it brought out our strength instead. Let's come together once again and support our president and troops overseas.

I pray for President Bush, his family and the leadership of the U.S. and its allies. Please, do the same.

Kelsey A. Raposa
Wahiawa

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