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Forcing owners to sell property is wrong

When I fly to a neighbor isle destination, I go into the rent-a-car office, plunk down my credit card and in a few minutes leave in a shiny new automobile. Just imagine, it only costs me pennies-on-the-dollar compared to those expensive new cars in the lots down the street.

Perhaps I can get the City Council to pass a rent-to-fee conversion bill so that I can buy this rent-a-car instead of returning it to the business. But it's a "used" car, so I wouldn't have to pay full price for it. I'd negotiate a "fair" price with the owner. The business could then go out and buy another car to "rent" to the next customer.

When you rent a car, you pay only a fraction of its actual worth in order to use it for a while. When you rent an apartment, you do not expect to get fee title to it, only the right to live in it for a while. When you "buy" a leasehold home, you are, in essence, "renting" it for a while. That's what it says in the contract you signed.

If you wanted to buy a fee-simple home, why did you merely rent one in the first place? Why would you ever expect ownership of the rental to be forcibly extracted from the owner and turned over to you?

That's ridiculous! Why the confusion? Leasehold conversion is wrong.

Growth keeps draining energy resources

Like many Oahu residents, I am happy we were able to avert rolling black-outs due to electrical use during the heat wave we have been experiencing. More importantly, we ought to look at this as a warning. We are building and selling more homes than ever before. What do all these homes add up to? People. More people means more cars on roads that cannot handle the load, even with the many road-widening projects. It also means increased demand for water and electricity.

We must remember we don't live on the mainland where they are able to get water and electricity from other states. Am I saying not to build or grow? No, but are there any solutions to the upcoming mega-problems we will face in the future? Of course not, because our leaders do not think that far ahead. Expect the status quo.

Was giant book meant to be a moneymaker?

Add to the list of why Verizon decided to burden us with a 7-pound phone directory the knowledge that many people would refuse to use it and instead call 411, resulting in charges to the customer. Just another way to make money.

Not all Christians are in Gabbard's camp

Following a recent Sunday church service, I found some Mike Gabbard campaign literature jammed under my car's windshield wipers.

The literature admonished Christians for mindlessly voting without knowing his and Ed Case's positions on the issues, but then presented oversimplified, incomplete and misleading information regarding Case's views. The literature essentially made the dubious claim that Gabbard is the "true" Christian in the race and asserted that he alone upheld "scriptural values."

Case is also a Christian, yet he doesn't market his personal faith as the primary reason to vote for him. Case seems to have more respect for our diverse population and the important separation between church and state.

While I and many other people of faith find this type of campaigning repugnant, it is not unexpected. The Republicans have cynically made Christian-targeted campaigning a priority because they falsely believe that all people of faith are conservative right-wingers. By so overtly politicizing religion and asserting such surety in interpreting Christ's message for us, Gabbard is doing harm to the religion he seems to so dearly love and follow.

I encourage Gabbard and his supporters to join us in fellowship and worship rather than merely put campaign fliers on our cars. By worshipping together, we could get to know Gabbard better. More important, he may come to recognize the rich diversity in our shared faith and better understand other Christian beliefs that, while unlike his, are equally legitimate and strongly held.

Don't insult soldiers by calling them 'kids'

I am sick of hearing liberals refer to our soldiers as "children" or "kids." These are not children or little kids we are sending to Iraq and Afghanistan; they are professional soldiers.

I have many friends who are either in the armed forces or are married to members of the military. I challenge any liberal to tell the wife or husband of a soldier serving in Iraq or Afghanistan that their soldier is a "child."

These proud men and women of the armed services signed up for service voluntarily and with the understanding that they might one day be called upon to fight for our country. To paint them as ignorant children who have been tricked into going to war is disrespectful and demoralizing to them. Let's all give them the respect they deserve, and remember that they are brave men and women who are fighting for us.

Abercrombie, Case reflect public opinion

I think that Congressmen Neil Abercrombie and Ed Case have done a fantastic job of representing the people of Hawaii. For the most part, Hawaii is a liberal place. I see nothing wrong with allowing gay people to marry. When I lived in Kailua, I voted for Ed Case; now that I live by Pearl Harbor, I'm voting for Neil Abercrombie. I vote for people who believe that everyone should be equal and have equal rights.

Abercrombie gets bad grade in health

The Council for Affordable Health Insurance just released its scoring for elected representatives attempting to make health insurance regulations less onerous and more customer friendly.

One member of our Hawaii delegation got a failing score. The other three were not mentioned, which apparently means they were not real bad, but did not rise to excellence. Who was the "family dude"?

None other than Rep. Neil Abercrombie. Please see www.cahi.org for details.

Kerry proved superior in all three debates

I am a Republican and was a George Bush supporter prior to watching the debates. In my opinion, John Kerry clearly won all three. The Edwards-Cheney debate was a draw. After watching the debates, I have serious doubts about Bush's intelligence, honesty and judgment. Kerry is the right man for the job. Bush is not!

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[ BRAINSTORM! ] Planting an idea The first and last thing visitors see as they encounter Hawaii -- other than security personnel instructing them to take off their shoes -- is the elevated freeway by Honolulu's airport. Accordingly, when it was built, it was designed to be attractive, including a meandering garden running down the center of the lower level, and, up top, set between the elevated concourses, large planter boxes. The idea was to plant wonderful hanging gardens that would delight visitor and resident alike, and for a while, they did. But the state Department of Transportation is focused these days on potholes, not on making the roads look pretty. The elevated gardens have become choked with weeds and debris. So fire up those brain cells. What other use could these midair garden plots be used for? Thematic displays? Lei stands? Minimum-security prisons? Foosball diamonds? Storage for giant downtown Christmas ornaments? Headquarters for our newly reduced National Guard? A place for all the dirt from Castle Junction? Instead of offshore gambling, elevated gambling? Send us your ideas about what should be done with these highly visible, weed-racked lots. E-mail your ideas and solutions -- please include your name and address -- by Oct. 20 to: brainstorm@starbulletin.com Or fax to: Brainstorm! c/o Nancy Christenson 529-4750 Or mail them to: Brainstorm! c/o Nancy Christenson Star-Bulletin 500 Ala Moana 7 Waterfront Plaza Suite 210 Honolulu, Hawaii 96813