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Flag proposal would
weaken free speech

THE ISSUE The U.S. House has passed a proposed constitutional amendment giving Congress the authority to ban desecration of the flag.

FREEDOM of expression is under assault again, with the U.S. House voting in favor of a constitutional amendment that would allow Congress to ban desecration of the American flag. Reps. Neil Abercrombie and Ed Case are to be commended for opposing this destructive attempt to weaken the First Amendment's protection of free speech and press.

Conservatives have been attacking the First Amendment since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1989 and 1990 that statutes against flag burning made a mockery of free expression, a hallmark of American liberty. The amendment protects such expression, however distasteful or outrageous. Proponents of chipping away at liberty are as misguided as those who practice the most outrageous act protected by the amendment.

"Indeed," Abercrombie said, "the greatest honor we can render our flag is to protect the principles it represents."

First Amendment opponents have won House approval of the amendment several times in past years under the guise of patriotism, but it has been narrowly rejected by the Senate, which takes constitutional protections more seriously. However, last year's election brought changes in the Senate's makeup that could tip the balance in favor of the amendment.

Terri Ann Schroeder, a lobbyist for the American Civil Liberties Union, counts 65 solid votes in the Senate in favor of the amendment -- two votes short of the two-thirds required, if all senators vote, to send it to the states for ratification. It is crucial that Senators Inouye and Akaka again cast votes against the amendment as they have done in the past.

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Hawaii teacher pay
inching closer to top

THE ISSUE Teacher salaries in the state's public schools fell short of the national average in 2003-04.

The Hawaii State Teachers Association's goal of raising average salaries here to $60,000 a year does not appear to be an unrealistic target when figures from a national survey are reviewed.

Two states paid public school teachers close to that average in 2003-04, according to a report by the National Education Association, the country's largest teachers union, with which HSTA is affiliated.

The report shows that 17 states had higher wage averages than Hawaii's and that at $45,479, teachers' pay here fell below the national average of $46,752.

However, island teachers have fared better recently, winning an average 9.56 percent increase in contract negotiations earlier this year, which will raise mid-level salaries to $53,000 and the highest salaries to $73,197 by the 2006-07 school year.

The HSTA hopes to push up the average to $60,000, a figure the union believes will help attract teachers to fill the 200 or so vacancies the Department of Education seems to have perennially. Top state Connecticut neared that amount last school year at $57,337, just a bit more than the District of Columbia's $57,009.

Ajifu gave her all for schools

SHANNON Ajifu wrapped her life around public education, first as an elementary school teacher, then as a counselor, vice principal and principal. After 36 years of working on campuses from Waimanalo to Ewa Beach, she directed her passion to the state Board of Education, elected initially in 1998. Though she had become ill, she seldom missed meetings through her second term, riding to the twice-weekly sessions in her wheelchair, a jaunty, brimmed hat perched on her head.

Ajifu's death Thursday leaves more than an empty seat on the board. She brought a no-nonsense, insider's grasp of the school system.

"Shannon was aware of the realm of possibilities in improving public education," said board colleague Herbert Watanabe. Board chairman Breene Harimoto described her as "a true advocate for Hawaii's public schools and public school students."

She will be greatly missed.

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