Land trusts should remain intact

Regarding the story "Land reform law is next target" (Star-Bulletin, Feb. 27): The Land Reform Act applied to large tracts of land developments with at least 25 single-family homes occupied by the owners. This was supposedly because there was a shortage of fee-simple land for homes, to justify a "public purpose."

We can see what happened in Kahala after those "owner occupants" decided to take the trusts for a ride. And even worse was Lunalilo Estate where the lands were sold, leaving it with almost nothing but the home for the elderly.

The trusts tied up their lands to provide affordable housing to those who determined they didn't want to have to pay for fee-simple land. As per the Queen's wishes, the lands of the trusts are not to be sold.

Lessees come and go with the tides; the Queen's estates and other charitable trusts and families wish their contributions to continue for perpetuity.

Inviting speaker showed bad judgment

Will somebody please publish the names of the University of Hawaii faculty members who donated their personal funds to have Ward Churchill come and speak? I think it would be productive for the community to know this fact about the judgment of some of these activists. Who's next, bin Laden? Al-Zarqawi? Way to go, geniuses -- UH is now the laughingstock of the academic world.

Safe Vote bill will help leave paper trail

There is an important bill that will be discussed in this session -- House Bill 1740/Senate Bill 1325. It is a bill to require a voter verified paper audit trail for electronic voting: the Safe Vote Bill.

As voting becomes more automated, we need to remember that we can always count paper ballots by hand if there is any doubt in the process. Because the technology is not transparent, things can go wrong without voters being aware. Even if the voter can somehow verify his/her vote without a paper ballot, it is possible that a malicious or inadvertent error in the system will display what the voter has entered, but not what the computer has recorded.

The computer memory can only suggest problems in the system, but cannot verify that the problem exists because they are not independent checks as paper ballots would be. Please support a process that secures the democratic process by creating and saving a voter verified paper copy of each ballot that is cast at the polling place by an electronic machine.

Alternative medicine should be tested

In KHET's recent show "Holistic Health for Hawaii," two University of Hawaii educators made some disturbing comments. Medical school Dean Edwin Cadmen said that many M.D.s resist alternative medicine "because they are ignorant. ... They're authoritative. They don't want to lose control."

Last year Cadmen participated in LifeFest Maui, which presented several snake-oil hucksters who have no credentials in any health-related fields as "the world's foremost health experts." He apparently believes that the best medicine is whatever the media and the quackery industry succeed in pushing to the top of the health-fraud dung heap.

Professor Amy Brown criticized the medical community for proceeding "step by miniscule step" and ignoring anecdotal evidence, which, she said, is "criminal." She implied that physicians should prescribe herbs based on folklore rather than waiting for scientific proof that they are safe and effective.

If there is a crime here it is that our medical school, to a large extent, has jumped on the lucrative alternative medicine bandwagon and forsaken the standards of science that have led to so much medical progress in the last 50 years and the standards of consumer protection that are essential to a civilized society.

Don't waste tax money on curbside recycling

Beth Fukumoto's Feb. 23 letter to the editor suggesting that the bottle bill be repealed reflects the association line of Hawaii's retailers. She supports curbside recycling. I oppose using my property tax money to support curbside recycling.

City resources should not be spent on picking up trash, but penalizing those who do not dispose of their own. Waste disposal should be privatized. I am willing to take care of my trash and pay for, or be paid for, its appropriate disposition. Why does Fukumoto want to use my taxes to do curbside recycling when I don't need it?

I support the bottle bill. Retailers might consider supporting the concept instead of sabotaging it. Perhaps if grocers were prohibited from selling containers with redemption value unless a facility was open to redeem those containers, more retailers would offer redemption services rather than sacrifice sales. The bottle bill is not broken, the retailers are! They need competition from entrepreneurs who see opportunity in the vacuum left by their failure to service their customers.

There can no longer be victory in war

Victory is a dated notion from when the enemy defeated remained beyond the mountain or across the sea. It is the demand of those who see it as the only end to war, like Clifford D. May's Feb. 10 column, "Choice must be made for victory or defeat." Peace is the end to war; wars he cites are proof of that.

A race or football game can yield a victory. War today has no such possible outcome.

This mush we are fed about victory gums up any possible permanent peace in exchange for the thrill of destroying an evil, lurking "them." That is what they say, too. Do the math. Wrongs are multiplied. Right cannot divide.

There is no exit to this planet. Peace would be no small feat, but to fear defeat is thinking small. Those angry about discussing any Iraq exit strategy count on mounting fear. Theirs is a vile vice, not victory. Peace knows no fear.

Kaiser's Maui clinics aren't ADA-compliant

Apparently, Kaiser Permanente, their architects and Maui County are unfamiliar with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Both the Kihei and the new Maui Lani clinics have urgent care accesses designed for frequent ambulance use. However, neither has a wheelchair ramp for the ambulance gurney as required by ADA and as dictated by common sense. No, the gurney must be maneuvered with patient on board, over a curb. Repeated complaints to staff and doctors have no effect.

Suggestion: Should Kaiser decide to comply with ADA ramp requirements, please consult those who must use them prior to installing them to ensure appropriate placement and utility.

Socialism keeps isle students behind

Hawaii better hope that Mississippi and several other states never secede from the Union, or this state would be at the very bottom in education. The only answer from our local socialist politicians seems to be to throw more money at the problem. Why are teachers willing to do whatever their socialist union tells them? When will Hawaii's teachers start to teach students instead of indoctrinate them? The taxpayers want decentralization of school boards, yet politicians think they know better. Why are they re-elected?

Too many students in Hawaii suffer from LOPD (lack of personal discipline). Why don't teachers favor merit pay and try to motivate these students? Too many households in Hawaii suffer from LOPI (lack of parental involvement). Why don't the socialist politicians in Honolulu try to reverse this trend?

A majority of Hawaii teachers are content to be lemmings and pawns in the hands of their union. When are our teachers going to stand up as educated, professional individuals? The citizens of Hawaii deserve much better from public education than they are now getting.