Hawaii can glow in Obama's limelight

The Hawaii Tourism Authority is sure having a bad year.

First, there's the Rex Johnson embarrassment and his nearly $300,000 buyout. Now, its state liaison, Marsha Wienert, questions the value of spending money to participate in President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration, being quoted as saying, “;We've never spent money on an inauguration in the past.”;

Hello? We've never had a Hawaii native elected president of the United States before. Value? The tourism authority couldn't get more bang for its promotional bucks for Hawaii by acknowledging someone who shortly will be America's No. 1 tourist.

Why so many problems with voting in Hawaii?

So why is it that within minutes of polls closing in most states, the networks have a good reading on how the votes went, while every two years in Hawaii we wait and wait and then learn that some ballots were mislaid or some further check is being done or some other excuse not to get any results until Venus is setting in the west?

Obama's actions prove his local roots

Obama strikes me as my kinda guy ... dude bodysurfs at Sandy's, chows down at Rainbow's, wears a black polo shirt, jeans and slippahs when he's kicking around, and visits and respects his “;Toots.”; I dunno, but sounds like one of the local braddahs to me. (I have never ever seen Gov. Linda Lingle doing any of these things.)

Presidential election has energized America

Not since the Kennedy era has America been so energized by a charismatic leader. Like many Americans and people from many countries, I watched Barack Obama deliver his victory speech on election night. Tears were flowing from my eyes.

Newspapers from Chicago and New York declaring Obama's victory are selling for $50 a copy on eBay. Posters, T-shirts and campaign buttons are still selling out, stores cannot keep stock of Obama items they sell immediately and babies born in Kenya are being named Barack Obama.

I have not seen anything like this. The closest I can compare it to is when the Beatles first came to America and appeared on the Ed Sullivan show. People were crying and cheering with hope and happiness.

The world loves Barack Obama, America loves Barack Obama and I love Barack Obama. Although he wasn't born in a manger as many seem to believe, he is definitely a sign of hope and inspiration for all man- and womankind.

Beatlemania or Obamamania - it sure feels great!

God bless America.

Raise DOE money with scratch card lottery

The only reasonable way to solve the Department of Education's money woes is a scratch card-based lottery system. You don't need the expensive lottery machines or the huge labor force it takes to run these computerized multitasking printing lottery devices.

The scratch card system is the way to go because the numbers of buyers and payouts are in total control. There are no losses because of the predetermined amount of dollars paid out to winners. The roll of scratch cards also pays a small premium to the stores that distribute the lottery scratch cards. There are many winners daily, some will win big and some will win small. In the end the state will raise millions of dollars a month to support education and health programs.

I ran the lottery machine in New York state for four years, and my experiences suggest this system that will also address many of the concerns of those who are against a lottery system. My question to those people is, What are you going to do or contribute to supplement the millions of dollars being cut from the education and health budget for Hawaii's children and elderly?

Abstinence is good; knowledge is better

Ninety-five percent of Americans become sexually active before marriage. Half of Hawaii's high school seniors have had sexual intercourse. And a new national study shows that one out of four teenage girls will contract a sexually transmitted infection.

Health educators recognize and teach that abstinence is the most effective and safe way to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. We also know young people do not always practice abstinence. Just as we teach our children how to cross the street safely because we know that someday they will experience traffic, youth that are sexually active need to know how to protect themselves from pregnancy and disease.

How to write us

We welcome letters of 175 words or less and guest columns of 500-600 words. We reserve the right to edit for clarity and length. Please include your name, address and daytime telephone number with all correspondence.

» E-mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

  » Mail: Letters to the Editor, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 7 Waterfront Plaza, 500 Ala Moana, Suite 210, Honolulu, HI 96813

  » Fax: 808-529-4750