to the Editor
Price-fixing won't guarantee low price
Gasoline in California is more expensive than here on Oahu. If we were to follow California's lead, our gasoline here would become more expensive. The gas caps did not work in the 1970s nationwide. Cannot we learn from our own history?
Phil Robertson
Honolulu
Speeding doesn't kill, reckless driving does
Irrational thinking abounds. Although more than 90 percent of Hawaii's drivers exceed posted speed limits whenever traffic conditions allow, the small number of those who don't have come out of the woodwork again with their "speed kills" mantra. National highway statistics indicate speed is listed as a contributing factor in only about one in six fatal accidents and one in eight accidents overall. Yet many proponents of a crackdown on speeding believe it is a direct cause of almost every accident.In Hawaii, the number of major accidents reported has dropped from 25,000 per year in the late 1980s to about 10,000 now, despite the almost universal speeding by our drivers. Indeed, traffic engineers can tell you the speed limits were set to indicate the highest safe speed a bus with standing passengers should travel in bad driving conditions. Passenger cars in good driving conditions can operate at far higher speeds than the posted limits without excessive risk.
Most of us who drive know there are places on Oahu where as much as half the traffic may be moving at speeds in excess of 25 mph over posted limits. A good example is the 45 mph zone on the hump of the Pali going downhill. Another is the left fork at the Ewa end of the Moanalua Freeway heading toward Pearlridge Center.
The increase in racing-related fatalities is not a speed issue. It is one of reckless and inappropriate use of public roads. It is the competitive nature of racing that puts all at risk. It is in the enforcement area, not the statutory one, that a solution lies.
Let's not start putting thousands of drivers in jail simply for going faster than some government sign tells them they can.
Tracy Ryan
Honolulu
Best to start early with autism treatment
Thank you for your article about autism (Star-Bulletin, March 11), which mentioned the importance of identifying children with Autism Spectrum Disorders as early as possible. The Department of Health's Early Intervention Section provides a variety of statewide services to address developmental delays and risk factors for children under the age of 3.In Hawaii, approximately 50 children under the age of 3 are identified with ASD each year and intensive behavioral services are provided to approximately 80-90 children each year. The children are identified by our team of EIS psychologists and by other programs at Kaiser Permanente and Tripler Army Medical Center. We are all actively invested in identifying ASD as early as possible. Regardless of who makes the diagnosis, EIS has a cadre of contracted agencies in place to implement these treatment services as quickly as possible.
When a child nears age 3, EIS works closely with the family and the Department of Education to support the transition of the child and family to the DOE.
If parents have questions or concerns about ASD or the development of their child under age 3, they are encouraged to call our information and referral line, the Hawaii Keiki Information Service System (H-KISS) at 808-973-9633 for Oahu and 1-800-235-5477 for neighbor islands. EIS services are provided at no cost to eligible children and families and there are no income restrictions.
Tammy Bopp, Psy.D.
Supervisor, Professional Support
Early Intervention Section
State Department of Health
Man is dead because Maui cops overreacted
I am saddened by the needless shooting death of Charles Benson Ogden on Feb. 29 in Kihei. As a former federal law enforcement training instructor in the use of force, I am disturbed to learn that Maui Police Chief Tom Phillips is again defending the use of deadly force under circumstances that compel an immediate examination of the department's policies, procedures and training.The gravity of an alleged crime should determine the intensity of pursuit by law enforcement personnel and the anticipated level of force required to subdue or apprehend the suspect(s) if so required. In the immediate case, the alleged crime was merely indecent exposure, though the suspect was ultimately killed. The number of shots fired (at least four) and the revelation that Ogden was hit in the back further suggests that the shooting was brutal and aggressive.
Read the scenario again and you will realize that something is terribly out of place -- the use of deadly force against a person who was pursued as if it were known that he had committed a felony. It is no wonder Ogden was evading capture and eventually resorted to defending himself from his "attackers" by spraying a chemical substance. He presumably was desperate, scared and thinking only of surviving. This is a "normal" reaction for most people and certainly not unusual behavior for a mentally ill homeless person.
Simply backing away from the suspect would have had far different consequences.
John Dunbar
Haiku, Maui
ACLU should take on child services agency
Regarding the Newswatch item "ACLU sues city over alleged religious event" (Star-Bulletin, Feb. 14): The ACLU seems to be nit-picking every time they think there is some sort of infraction regarding people's rights. Then why don't they investigate and sue the state's Child Protective Services? CPS continually violates the rights of parents, grandparents and adoptive parents. When they remove a child from a home or school, the tactics that the CPS workers employ most of the time are a violation of the parents' rights. They remind me of the Gestapo tactics of old.A report last August by state Auditor Marian Higa revealed a whole slew of wrongdoings, negligence, incompetence, mismanagement of funds and other infractions in the CPS system. If the ACLU is the watchdog of people's rights, then it should take a look at what is happening in Hawaii's CPS.
Harold Hong
Waianae
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[ BRAINSTORM! ]
Does Honolulu need a city museum,
and what should be in it?Does history matter? If so, whose history? Bishop Museum is one of the leading cultural museums in the United States, but it is not a history center. Honolulu seems to be the only state capital city without a municipal museum. Does Honolulu need a city museum? What should be in it? Where should it be? Should such a museum be a collection of artifacts or a learning center? Would such a museum be geared for Hawaii education or for entertaining tourists?
Send your ideas by March 17 to:
Or mail them to:
Brainstorm!
c/o Nancy Christenson
Star-Bulletin
500 Ala Moana
7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813Fax:
Brainstorm!
c/o Nancy Christenson
529-4750
