Immigration causes problems for Hawaii

Housing crisis, water shortages , traffic collapse and tax increases to build mass transit system -- what do they have in common? Overpopulation caused by a human tsunami called immigration.

Who is benefiting from historically record high immigration? Not the inhabitants, but the companies that can sell more and more to increasingly crowded people. We have now reached a population density where more immigration will just cause more misery.

Governor is a liberal in GOP clothing

It's time to "out" Republican Gov. Linda Lingle as a tax-and-spend liberal Democrat. When she was campaigning, she promised to cut taxes. When she took office, she again promised to cut taxes ... when the state's economy improved. Now that our economy has improved, she has supported raising the general excise tax, approved hikes in the minimum wage and real estate conveyance tax, and negotiated whopping raises for the public worker unions.

Enough is enough. She and Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, who also lobbied for the GET hike, will never get my vote again.

And if all the blank votes from fiscal conservatives like me mean Lingle loses her re-election bid -- so what? At least we'll have a new governor honest enough to correctly declare which party they actually represent, and we'll have put all future Republican candidates on notice that you can't run roughshod over your conservative base.

Are you listening, Duke Aiona?

[ QUOTABLE ] "I'm not going to be bullied by a hired gun (who's) going to tell us how ... taxpayers' dollars are going to be spent." Mayor Mufi Hannemann Objecting to a deal negotiated by attorney Eric Seitz to put his client, embattled Liquor Commission administrator Wallace Weatherwax, on a three-month paid leave. Instead, Weatherwax will work in another city office before taking early retirement.

Governor's veto harms Hawaii's gays

Governor Lingle's veto of HB 1450 that would have prohibited discrimination on the basis of gender identity, violated one of her campaign promises and sent an appalling message.

Lingle's message is that members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community (GLBT) do not deserve the same basic human rights and protections provided to everyone else in Hawaii.

This is the same message that Ronnie Paris Jr., a father in Florida, heard loud and clear when he beat his 3-year-old son to death because he thought his son was gay. The arsonists in Fayetteville, Ark., heard this message when they decided to torch that town's only gay bar. The school bullies have heard this message so often that they think it is OK to harass GLBT students. It is only reaffirmed when the bullies go unpunished for their actions.

Lingle's veto was not only a violation of trust but also an affirmation to every homophobic bigot out there. So the next time a parent disowns or kills his or her own child; or when an arsonist burns down a gay-affiliated building; or a bully harasses a GLBT student, Governor Lingle needs to remember she is part of the problem when she could have stepped up and been part of the solution.

Old-fashioned feel of Lewers is missed

I've been to Hawaii six times, including four times since September 2001. Unlike many visitors, I actually like Waikiki, which always has been a part of my itinerary.

I just came back from a one-week visit in Waikiki. I was very sad to see that some of the delightfully old-fashioned places along Lewers Street and Beach Walk have been demolished as part of some modernization scheme.

While I am sure that the modern stuff that will replace them will be so very wonderful, I will miss Henry's Fruit Market, the Italian restaurant, the smorgasbord restaurant and even the fast-food place that have been demolished to make room for the fancy new stuff.

The problem with Waikiki is that there are far, far too many upscale places. But the older places, the less-fancy places, are what gave the place character in the first place. But it seems that you can't get rid of them fast enough.

I really miss the real Lewers Street and Beach Walk, and think that Waikiki and Hawaii is a much lesser place now that they have fallen to the bulldozer.

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