Navy-UH center would protect protesters
The Navy-sponsored
University Affiliated Research Center will allow the University of Hawaii faculty the academic freedom to support the defense of America.
The Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C., was not consecrated with the blood of American warriors seeking adventure. Their sacrifice and those who commit the full measure of devotion today in Iraq ensure the freedom of those who ungraciously publish "Hate America" speech in the daily news with impunity. American freedom, is it not grand?
Joe DeFrank
Mililani
Schools did not make Kakaako plans clear
I believe the headline on a May 18 article, "
Kakaako legislation carries unintended consequences," is incorrect.
The intent of the measure was to ban residential development from Kakaako because of recognized incompatible land use issues. Kamehameha Schools' proposed biomedical complex was not advertised as a mixed-used, commercial-residential development, but rather as an incubator-industry biomedical building. To pretend that the intent of the legislation was to affect high-rises on state land is contrary to the simple language of the bill itself.
This is the old bait and switch. For argument's sake, what would happen when the incubator industries fail?
Would Kamehameha turn the whole building into residential rich-folks' condos? What are the assurances that the "workforce housing" is other than the same market that the A&B crowd were considering?
The comment by Larry Preble, vice president of developer KUD International LLC, that the state "threw the baby out with the bathwater" when residences were banned from this area, is more of the greed-headed attitude we have seen time and time again.
There was no roadblock thrown at this project. Kamehameha Schools and its developers are instead trying to bulldoze the public order.
Brian Hunter
Honolulu
Kakaako opposition permeated community
I appreciate
C. Richard Fassler's column in last Sunday's Insight section regarding Kakaako Makai. Although Mr. Fassler makes some interesting points, the issue is more complicated than a simple scorecard of winners and losers.
As one of the few people who attended and testified at the early Hawaii Community Development Authority board meetings on this issue, it became apparent that a public policy question required an answer. Should a semi-governmental agency be allowed to sell public land in fee for private development?
Fassler opines that a small group of "veteran protesters" stopped the project. Yes, some of the concerned citizens had been involved in past development issues; however, at every rally or meeting or hearing, I met people who had never done anything like this before. They just felt strongly that the last undeveloped shoreline on South Oahu should remain open space.
Fassler also supports his viewpoint by stating that the Manoa Neighborhood Board voted down a resolution intended to stop the A&B project.
In fact, Manoa was one of five neighborhood boards presented with this resolution. Four of the five adopted some version of it, indicating more support than opposition.
The residents of the area are concerned that Kakaako is quickly becoming overdeveloped and its infrastructure stressed beyond capability. They appealed to the Legislature to stop this project and answer the above public policy question. Winners and losers? At least our future generations will have a shoreline to enjoy.
Rep. Anne Stevens
R, Ala Moana-Kakaako-Waikiki
Forum helps kids move to middle school
On May 2 at the Blaisdell Center, 4,000 students from Oahu elementary schools gathered for
a convention designed to assist them with the often traumatic move from elementary to middle school. We can all think back to our own experiences, and no doubt shared the same concerns these young students face today.
A number of these concerns were clearly articulated by the students themselves. Selected representatives from each school stood to voice their questions before the 4,000 participants, then had their questions immediately addressed by a panel of "elders" composed mostly of eighth-graders. They asked questions about bullying, gangs, drugs and how to make friends, to name just a few.
The convention, sponsored by Adult Friends for Youth, approached the learning process from a number of subtle avenues, including Frank DeLima in his own inimitable style, and Jordan Segundo's charismatic performance, lifting student spirit to new highs.
AFY does this for about 12,000 elementary students annually on all islands. If your child or children experienced one of these conventions, let the AFY CEO, Sid Rosen, or the co-chairpersons of this event, DeLima and Lynn Waihee, know what you think. While you're at it, write to our superintendent of education, Patricia Hamamoto.
Albert S. "Al" Nakano
President, Board of Directors
Adult Friends for Youth
Honolulu
Graffiti artists are not major criminals
The furor raised about graffiti is amazing. It has been raised to the level of a felony, with big fines and jail sentences. It was even proposed that there be bounty hunters with rewards for turning in graffiti artists.
Nobody has been hurt, no structure was damaged. The extent of this "criminal property damage" is only marking up a wall or fence, easily repaired by simply painting over.
The maximum penalty when caught should be only to buy the paint from the city at a high price (the fine), do the repainting, to paint areas for which nobody was caught and maybe some community service. There should be no jail sentences.
Leave the prison space for real criminals who do real injury or damage. Treating graffitists like they are dangerous criminals is insane.
Ted Chernin
Honolulu
Don't have kids if you won't care for them
It is no coincidence that the crime rate has spiraled out of control since all the liberated mothers have gone back to work full-time.
I guess my generation (college class of 1959) was the last group to consider mothering to be an honorable profession. The product -- responsible progeny -- was well worth the effort. People even criticized me for working part-time (while the children were in school), but that was to meet expenses -- mostly food, tuition and sports equipment/fees.
My children learned to be responsible without me completely abandoning them by leaving them with tired grandparents (who deserve to enjoy life) or illiterate sitters. Part-time work is the key; the mother has enough experience to smoothly enter the workforce full-time when she is done rearing successful children.
Women, if you can't afford children, don't have them. I am tired of the problems that neglected children generate.
Nancy R. Jones
Foster Village
Littering still mars beaches and malls
Our beaches, malls and communities are filled with trash.
This is very important to me because I am mostly outdoors and at the beach, and all I see is trash lying around. I would really like to see a change. My class went on a field trip this year to Nanakuli Beach Park and picked up rubbish. We collected about five to seven big bags of trash. The beach and the park included were not even a big place.
In my eyes, that is a problem. I am going to volunteer to do a clean-up. I want people to stop throwing rubbish out of their cars or while walking down the street. Also, take time to volunteer and pick up rubbish or do a clean-up.
Jaylyn Nathaniel
Eighth grade
Washington Middle School
Use microwave device to fix potholes
I continue to be dismayed by the state of our roads in Honolulu. While watching a TV segment on Kirkuk, Iraq, I was struck by the good condition of their roads and the lack of potholes, in spite of years of war. One look at the roadway in front of Sam's Club in Pearl City will show you how a roadway in a war zone or Third World country should appear. This is a shame for the people of Hawaii, a rich state in a rich country.
Recently, while perusing a municipal equipment catalog in a state engineering office, I came across a device for permanent repair of potholes. It is basically a truck-mounted, six-foot circular microwave device.
A pothole is repaired in our standard way by dumping hot asphalt into a cold, damp hole and whacking it with the back of a shovel, which causes poor adhesion and the return of the pothole in a short time. The truck could be driven over the repair and the microwave activated for a short time. This action would melt the pothole and the surrounding road surface into one solid piece, reducing or eliminating the dislodging of the repair due to water, traffic and poor adhesion.
This makes so much sense that our former mayor predictably rejected the idea when I wrote to him about it, saying that this would cause too much smoke and disturb the public. The manufacturer refuted this, saying that mostly steam would be produced. The idea would, however, disturb the asphalt makers, the car-repair shops and the crews who do the repairs, all of whom profit from poor pothole repairs.
I trust our current mayor will give this some consideration.
Steve Farmer
Pearl City
Recycling contest could be improved
Congratulations to Jack Johnson, Kokua Hawaii Foundation, Reynolds Recycling and Ball Corp. for an exciting recycling contest (
Star-Bulletin, May 18). Congratulations to Punahou School, too, for winning. Let's hope for more activities to encourage recycling.
If this Cans for Cash Challenge happens again, the organizers should consider a more equitable method to select a winner. With 13 grades and almost 300 students each, large schools like Punahou would be guaranteed to win each year when matched up with any elementary, intermediate or high school in the state.
Maybe the total pounds, or the number of bottles and cans collected, divided by the number of students at the school would allow even a small school to win. It also would really boost the total number of recycled bottles and cans.
Carlson Mun
Mililani
After border vote, isle senators must go
Why would the two senators from Hawaii vote against the three-tiered fence with Mexico to slow illegal border crossing?
Could it be:
» The fence is not long enough?
» Hawaii is unaffected, so why be concerned?
» A matter of party politics?
» They are not even involved with the issue?
Maybe our two senators are no longer able to keep abreast of national issues. It is time for both to retire and give the jobs to younger, energetic persons. People in Hawaii should revere their elders, not prop them up!
Paul Miller
Kaneohe