Protesters ignore fact that evil does exist

Let's support our troops! Fly the Red, White and Blue and lend the moral support that our military personnel and their families deserve. Let them feel the pride and honor they have earned as our heroes for peace.

Peace is the wonderful feeling of safety and security that decent people long for in their lives. How many times have we looked the other way and done nothing while terrorism increased? It was not long ago that pacifism led to Auschwitz.

We all know that evil exists. It is out there in many forms, be it illness of mind, body or soul. One has to fight off evil or become a part of evil by enabling it to become stronger.

No parent wants a son or daughter to lose life, limb or peace of mind through war. Who funds and benefits from these anti-U.S. protests? We all desire peace; the protesters are not alone in their quest. By raising a protest sign in our safe and secure neighborhoods and cities, they are not more righteous than the men and women who are willing to raise a gun for peace in a foreign land.

Meg Hesser

Protesters have a lot of explaining to do

War protesters, please explain these things to me:

>> Iraqi soldiers execute POWs by shooting some in the forehead and others by slitting their throats. They use women and children as human shields. And you stand silent.

>> Five thousand gassed Iraqi Kurds and the million or so people Saddam Hussein has killed in his own country don't seem to mean anything to you. You stand silent.

>> You would rather let Saddam stay in power to continue to terrorize and massacre his fellow human beings. And you stand silent.

>> Do you believe that only the people of the "free world" with their overdeveloped sense of righteousness, deserve to live free of torture, executions and tyranny? Who speaks for other people who are being systematically slaughtered by megalomaniacal dictators? You don't. Because you stand silent.

You're like the other kids on the playground who stand silent while the bully picks on the other kids -- hoping he won't hurt you.

And then you use some kind of wonky, cock-eyed moralism/humanism while trying to make excuses about why deposing a mass murderer is evil.

Please -- explain this to me. Because I'm wondering how many times a person gets to kill before someone stops him.

Frank Morgan
Victoria, B.C., Canada
Former Hawaii resident

Let Iraqis think they have upper hand

If we were smart, we'd describe the Iraq war with words that made the Iraqi defenders overconfident.

Instead of saying "Operation Shock and Awe is spearheaded by the 101st Airborne 'Screaming Eagles,'" we should say something like, "Operation Placid Bunny was retasked by the 3.23rd Bedridden 'Harried Accountants.'"

Jim Henshaw
Kailua

Airlines should give better service

The very "aloha" that the airlines business was built on and many of our families have dedicated their careers to working for in the airlines business is now gone.

What a embarrassment both airlines have become treating their local travelers this way! Now they are asking us to help them cope with the loss? ("Aloha and Hawaiian have lost $100 million in revenue since 9/11 and want state help," Star-Bulletin, March 13).

I know hotels that are getting great responses from Oahu residents because they would rather spend their money ($300 for two people to fly interisland) on a hotel that gives lots of perks. The hotels have the right idea.

Instead of being mean to us locals and jacking up the prices entirely, they have managed many affordable rates that include more incentives than before 9/11.

Why don't the airlines try that? The airlines cannot blame the feds or 9/11 entirely for what has happened to interisland travel.

Hawaiian and Aloha have contributed considerably to their revenue loss by taking unfair advantage of their mono-poly in Hawaii. Their success lies in the graciousness of the people of Hawaii.

Tisha K.M. Woytenko

Complainers must be barking up wrong tree

Regarding "Dogs likely to remain on beaches" (Star-Bulletin, March 3), I laughed out loud when I read the statement by Gary Moniz of the Department of Land and Natural Resources when he said that complaints about dogs are "usually few and far between."

But I laughed even harder when I read the statement by Richard Turbin of Waialae-Kahala's Neighborhood Board who said that his group "has not received a complaint in more than a year."

Of course, complaints have become rare. The only reason complaints have become rare is because the people of Hawaii know that our leaders are simply not going to do anything about the problem.

People have called the state, the city, neighborhood boards and everybody else, begging our leaders to take on the dog lobby.

But this has been to no avail, because our politicians are as afraid of dog owners as the general public is of dogs. This city and state have gone to the dogs.

Evette Shamon

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