Teenage musicians showed top form

From the Top would like to thank the arts and broadcast community of Hawaii for an incredible five days here in paradise (Star-Bulletin, Nov. 12). First and foremost, thank you to our host, Hawaii Public Radio, for bringing us here for the third time to record live concerts for our weekly National Public Radio program. Concerts at the Hawaii Theatre in Honolulu and at the Castle Theatre in Kahului showcased 31 teenage classical musicians from Hawaii and four from the mainland to wildly enthusiastic audiences.

With "From the Top Live From Carnegie Hall," our new 13-episode television series, our new colleagues at PBS Hawaii were inspired to bring some of From the Top's young musicians to schools on the Big Island, Oahu and Maui to share their music and stories. We held 10 school programs with more than 500 elementary, middle and high school students. What an amazing experience for us all.

In addition to the breathtaking scenery and warm-hearted people, Hawaii is also blessed with wonderful young musicians, great teachers and an incredible spirit of cooperation among those who care about music. Thank you for including us in that community. Mahalo!

Makahiki at Makua is a facade

Protesters at Pililaau Makua Military Reservation attempting festivities there to revere the god Lono and hold a makahiki (sports and religious festivities and taboo on war) are giving a false impression that it's a traditional Hawaiian activity. It is not and has not been since 1819 when Kamehameha II abolished the Hawaiian religion.

Decades ago the Boy Scouts in Hawaii held an annual competitive event called makahiki at the Honolulu Stadium. It was strictly a competitive event without ties to any religion.

These protesters should apologize for their lack of knowledge in Hawaiian cultural history and for wanting to hold the makahiki on military property, thus inferring that the god Lono, for breaking his kapu forbidding war during the festivities, will punish our Hawaiian servicemen and women serving their country in Iraq and Afghanistan.

We Hawaiians of Waianae's VFW Post 849 take serious opposition to this group and consider their activities an affront to all who have and are serving their country to preserve our freedom.

Puppy mill ruling sends awful message

In response to the article on the 2005 Hawaii Kai puppy mill case in which 25 counts of animal cruelty were dismissed despite overwhelming evidence (Star-Bulletin, Nov. 10), Hawaii's courts are sending a misguided, unjust and immoral message to the community.

First, the Hawaiian Humane Society filed charges against breeder Lucy Kagan expeditiously after a comprehensive, air-tight investigation.

Second, Oahu courts granted Kagan every trial delay she asked for, which spanned more than two years.

It is appalling that our justice system can condone animal abuse and allow puppy mill profiteers to continue to keep animals in deplorable living conditions. Each of us has an opportunity to educate everyone we know about this travesty of justice, as well as how to responsibly acquire a pet. Before you buy a puppy, demand to see the parents and how all the dogs are housed and cared for by the breeder.

It is important for buyers to beware and for all to report suspected cruelty and puppy mill operations.

Whale slaughter continues unabated

Japan's whaling fleet is beginning its yearly massacre. This year, 50 humpback, 50 fin and 935 minke whales will be harpooned (Star-Bulletin, Nov. 18). Japan has slaughtered 10,000 whales in the past 10 years.

Even more disturbing are Japan's efforts to subvert the worldwide ban on whaling. By attaching conditions to its foreign aid to impoverished Pacific nations, Japan is close to purchasing a majority of votes on the International Whaling Commission, close to achieving a yearly kill in the tens of thousands without a need for the flimsy pretext that it is conducting "scientific research."

Whales and the great apes are the only animals who possess in common with humans a small section of the brain related to social interactions and complex emotions. Of all the animals nobody should be killing and eating, they and the great apes are at the top of the list.

Japan sells more automobiles per capita here than in any other state. I haven't bought one for years. May I suggest that we all get the attention of the Japanese government with our checkbooks? Some great cars are coming out of Korea, Sweden, Germany and Detroit these days.

Homeowners deserve better trash service

Many homes in our area are large and have one-acre lots. To fill one small trash can does not quite work out. Our home constantly has an excess of trash. A friendly call to the government produces nothing. I pay five times the taxes of others in the community because I live in a big home, yet I have poor service and little to show for the tax bill on my home other than accumulated trash by those who know what is right for me.

The new system is a bureaucratic fiasco invented by big government in Hawaii.