[ OUR OPINION ]
Bainum our choice
for Honolulu mayor
THE ISSUEHonolulu will elect a new mayor on Nov. 2.
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Bainum, who emerged from a 10-candidate field as the largest vote-getter in the primary, has used the time to flesh out his ideas to guide the city and its citizens through what will be by necessity a transformative period.
The new mayor will confront many challenges. Some are due to a lagging municipal bureaucracy unable to keep pace with quickening economic growth. Others came about because the current City Hall occupant, for most of his two terms, attempted to serve two masters: his ambition for higher office that required flash without increased cash from taxpayers and the custodial duties that are the nuts and bolts of running a city.
Mayor Harris' aspirations and style at times provoked conflict with the City Council, whose members had their eyes on their own agendas, resulting in finger-pointing and half measures that never quite became solutions to the city's problems.
The next mayor will have to work hard to establish a cooperative spirit among the city's political leaders for there is much to do. Aging sewer lines and waste systems need repair and expansion, garbage and landfill issues remain unresolved while traffic congestion -- which a Star-Bulletin poll found at the top of voters' list of concerns -- seems to worsen with each passing day.
Long campaigns test a candidate's mettle and fiber. As he did before the primary, Bainum has shown that he has the right stuff.
He is deliberative and analytical, reflecting his skills as a physician. He chooses collaboration over contention. His experience in the state Legislature and the Council supports an understanding of government and its operations and has connected him with community and business groups. His blue-collar roots arm him with an understanding of working people and the value of his own success. His vision for Honolulu contains a balance of smart growth and development to maintain and enhance Oahu's natural and cultural assets.
We believe Duke Bainum is the best choice for Honolulu.
Isles left vulnerable
to brown tree snakes
THE ISSUEThirty-four military planes have arrived in Hawaii from Guam in the past two months without being inspected for brown tree snakes.
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The brown tree snakes arrived in Guam in the 1950s and have killed off eight species of native birds, decimated other wildlife, caused power outages and even attacked human beings, especially young children. After years of Hawaii's congressional delegation inserting expenditures for control of the snake, President Clinton included funding in the administration's budget for the first time seven years ago.
As many as 10,000 brown tree snakes per acre now slither in Guam, and about 6,000 are caught each year at Guam's ports. In the decade prior to inspections, seven live brown tree snakes were found in or near cargo arriving in Hawaii. Strong measures are needed to prevent further infiltration.
Congress has approved expenditures for the program on Guam at about $1.5 million annually for the last several years, but costs have increased, along with the military presence on Guam. Layoffs have eliminated night work, allowing 34 Hawaii-bound planes to have flown uninspected since Sept. 1.
Inspecting the planes in Hawaii instead of Guam is "a lot scarier," Lester Kaichi, supervisor of the dog handling inspectors, told the Star-Bulletin's Diana Leone. "Guam is considered the front line of inspection. It's always easier to catch a snake at the point of origin than after it gets here."
Congress has approved legislation calling for $15.5 million a year to fight the snakes in Guam, Hawaii and the Northern Mariana Islands. Even if President Bush signs it into law, it would not take effect until next year, and only then if Congress funds it.
Hawaii's congressional delegation has asked the Bush administration for an additional $1 million for efforts this year, but Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman has not responded. The Lingle administration should press the White House for assistance.
