Brainstorm! Challenge

---

Ticket tailgaters to raise police pay

If the city is having difficulty funding well-deserved raises for our hard-working police officers, let the police make the money. Have them ticket the many reckless drivers who tailgate other cars or ignore speed limits, and have all the fines go into a special fund specifically for their raises. We'd end up with safer roads and a better police force.

It doesn't make sense for the police department to write tickets, and then hand over the fines to the state. Something needs to change. As it is, there's very little incentive for police to enforce existing traffic laws. Just take a look at the cars passing you at 80 mph, or the guy or gal in your rear-view mirror tailgating you.

A.K. Carroll
Kailua

Opening Haiku Stairs may dampen protests

I strongly support the reopening of the Haiku Stairs hiking trail and request that the city government review the hiking trail status, and also provide the public a formal update on the progress of reopening this Hawaii treasure.

I support both sides of the concerns, both as a hiker and resident of the Kaneohe area. The fact is that most hikers are good natured, healthy and responsible adults who love nature and have respect for the privacy and security of those who live near the hiking trailheads.

The closure of this particular trailhead has brought out a minority on both sides -- as the minority of hikers who are willing to break the law and trespass do not support the majority of hikers willing to sit by until the trailhead opens. There is also a minority of residents opposed (and largely vocal) to free access to the trailhead. They do not represent the views of the majority of residents.

Certainly if the trailhead reopens, problems of trespass will cease. I would encourage an increase in Neighborhood Watch for that unruly minority who choose to litter, trespass, or cause problems. Also a good presence of law enforcement officers or bike patrols could provide another level of responsibility and safety to the residents of this treasured area. I also propose an honor system payment box at the trailhead to help offset the maintenance and security for this trail. With compromise and a responsible attitude, I think the stairs could benefit the majority.

We live in one of the world's most beautiful locations --close enough to see the stairway to heaven but unable to view it in all of its beauty.

Al Reinauer
Kailua

Our borders should be secure by now

There are about 1.5 million illegal aliens crossing America's borders each year, despite our so-called homeland security.

Nothing has changed in the past two years. The same number are still coming here. How many of these people are coming to harm Americans?

Why are politicians still talking about securing America two years after the terrorist attacks? Everything should have been decided on and acted on within six months after 9/11. Our ports are not safe at all. Our borders are still wide open.

If illegal drugs can cross our borders and come into our country on cargo ships, then so can weapons of mass destruction. If illegal aliens can cross our borders at will, then so can terrorists.

Very little has been done since 2001 and much money has been spent for a little taste of security in America.

Ronald L. Edmiston
Honolulu

HIV is an equal opportunity disease

Kathy Martin's Dec. 26 letter implies that transmission of the AIDS virus HIV-1 is especially likely when gay men engage in sex. However, a look at global (as opposed to local or U.S.) data shows that the worldwide AIDS epidemic is advancing primarily through unprotected heterosexual contact.

Scientists have thus far identified 14 different subtypes of HIV-1, as well as mosaics or blends of the various subtypes. One possible reason why HIV-1 has not become more prevalent among heterosexuals here is that subtype B, currently the dominant subtype in this country, does not readily infect the Langerhans' cells in the lining of the cervix, vagina and foreskin. But several subtypes (other than B), which can readily infect heterosexuals, have reached our shores.

Heterosexuals should not be lulled into dangerous complacency by the misconception that homosexual activity is inherently perilous. Tens of millions of infected heterosexuals throughout the world have already learned the hard way that HIV-1 is a potential threat to heterosexuals and homosexuals alike.

Kent Hirata
Honolulu

Britney's lark demeans marriage vows

Empty-headed tarts like Britney Spears who get married as a joke are the ones destroying the sanctity of marriage, not gay people.

Marriage is not a joke. Marriage is not a toy to play with and discard like a cheap plastic doll. Marriage is supposed to be forever. Her annulment should have been refused. Forcing her to divorce might have taught her (and the children who idolize her) an important lesson.

Francine LaPorte
Honolulu

Lucky we live Hawaii, and the U.S.A., too

The New Year is here already! Twelve months have come and gone by so swiftly. Time marches on and flies, too.

Our life span on this Earth is indeed short, so it behooves us to do the best with what we've got and be thankful and happy for all the blessings given to us just because we are privileged to be citizens of our great nation, the United States of America.

To top all the good things bestowed upon us as Americans, we are still pampered by being allowed to live in Hawaii, the best place on Earth to be.

Wat kood bee mo' betta dan det?

Tetsuji Ono
Hilo, Hawaii

---

BACK TO TOP
|

[ BRAINSTORM! ] What should the city do with the elegant old sewage pump station? It's empty and fading, and now it's taking a beating from all the construction going on around it. The O.G. Traphagen-designed sewage pump station on Ala Moana Boulevard, more than a century old, is a monument to the glory days of municipal architecture, when city fathers took such pride in their community that even a humble sewage station became a landmark structure. Millions of tourists drive by it every year, and it's an embarrassing reminder of how poorly Honolulu treats its historic landmarks. Over the years, dozens of uses and excuses and blue-sky speculations have been suggested for the striking structure. Now we're asking you, Mr. and Mrs. Kimo Q. Publique, what should the city do with the elegant old pump building? Send your ideas and solutions by Jan. 15 to: brainstorm@starbulletin.com Or mail them to: Brainstorm! c/o Nancy Christenson Star-Bulletin 500 Ala Moana 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210 Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 Fax: Brainstorm! c/o Nancy Christenson 529-4750