Democrats bow to public workers

It is so disappointing, but not shocking, to see the great majority of Democrats vote for tax increases after Gov. Linda Lingle's vetoes of four bills—now laws, unfortunately.

The Democrats are pandering to the government employee unions and special-interest groups, gouging most of the citizenry, and in return expecting to be repaid by these special interests with help getting re-elected. The legislators are getting a “;two-fer”;: raising both taxes and their already bloated egos.

I thought America was about equality for all citizens. Perhaps I misread the part of the Declaration of Independence that apparently reads, “;We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Democratic special-interest groups are created equal, that they are endowed by the legislators they own with certain unalienable rights, that among these are confiscating the life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness of those less politically powerful.”;

Legislators give little hope for kids' future

Whether it should be classified as abuse or neglect, or whether it's the result of ignorance or confusion, the Legislature has once again done very little to improve the quality of public education.

Although bills were passed that correct a few minor deficiencies in our public school system, nothing was done to solve deep-seated systemic problems that affect the entire Department of Education and its 180,000 students.

The continuation of the status quo means that there is no hope that Hawaii's public school system will be able to climb above its ranking of 47th in the nation.

There is no hope that our children will learn enough to become a highly skilled workforce. There is no hope that Hawaii will attract high-wage jobs in meaningful numbers. There is no hope that Hawaii will build a healthy, diversified economy.

Instead, Hawaii's economy will be dependent on low-wage jobs. It will be too weak to support the quality of life that people want. In time, the real income of the average worker will decline. Fewer and fewer workers will earn a living wage.

Sadly, that is the kind of future that we are creating for our children. They are the first generation in Hawaii's history that can expect the future to be worse than the present.

Society should set the norm for policy

First, if you are gay, you have a lifestyle that could signal the end of the human race. Why would I want to sanction this? Second, the state preamble says: “;We reserve the right to control our destiny, to nurture the integrity of our people and culture, and to preserve the quality of life that we desire.”; All voters have a right to voice their opinion. In our “;politically correct”; society that gets harder each day.

Third, we are getting a little tired of homosexuality being pushed at us every time we turn on the television, go to movies or read our dwindling newspapers.

Fourth, being gay is not a civil right. We as members of society have a right to dictate what is moral and how our society should be run.

I am proud to live in a state that is standing up to the far left in their push to make a “;tolerated”; behavior the norm.

Raising taxes harms employers

Not being a state legislator, I don't understand the intricacies of the state. But from a layman's viewpoint, hurting the industries and businesses that pay taxes by imposing more taxes on them does not seem like a good long-term solution.

Sure, for the first few years more tax revenue will come in. After that, as fewer visitors come to Hawaii, hotels will be forced to take cost-cutting measures, which may include layoffs. Small-business owners will be forced to lay off employees. Then the tax revenue will begin to shrink and people who were once employed and paying taxes will now be unemployed and collecting unemployment. What will our legislators do then? Raise the general excise tax?

Police are right to cite offenders

Thank you to Dolores Mollring for reminding us that lawbreakers do deserve citations given by HPD officers in Chinatown.

Do these citizens realize the effect their complaints have on families with relatives serving on the police force? Each and every day I am aware that my son may not be returning home from his job as a police officer. If there are fewer law offenders, there will be fewer citations.

Waikiki issues are increasing

I have noticed two trends that are increasing not for the better, but for the worse in Waikiki.

First, the homeless are much more visible on our tourist-traveled main streets. They tend to pick spots around town, or go into a fast-food restaurants with many tourists and ask for money, or just sit until they are told to move on.

Another issue that I feel needs attention are the many bikers in Waikiki using the sidewalks as their own personal roadways. I hope there is a crackdown on these bicyclists. I am afraid these two issues will not be looked at until someone is hurt or killed.

Obama's humor needs stimulus

Having seen clips of Barack Obama's performance at the Washington correspondents dinner I have come to the conclusion that he has no more talent as a stand-up comic than he has as president of the U.S.—even with a teleprompter.