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POSTED: Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Housing project will hurt island

I respectfully oppose Castle & Cooke's proposed development at Koa Ridge (Docket No. A07-775). This project would directly pave over some of the best agricultural land left on the island and add thousands of cars to the commuting traffic nightmare along the H-2 and H-1 freeways. We need to stop urban sprawl.

This project will reduce our ability to feed ourselves and future generations and decrease our already extremely fragile food security. We need to be thinking now about smart and sustainable growth.

Sprawl and gridlock cause more pollution, reduce family time and decrease the productivity of people who just spend over an hour in traffic. Honolulu already rates as having one of the worst U.S. city rush-hour slowdowns. Let's not make it worse.

Let's look at more creative ways to house and support our people that don't require us to steal from future generations.

 

               

     

 

 

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Editorial ignored project opponents

Your editorial on the River Street housing project (”;Housing project on River Street worth pursuing,”; Star-Bulletin, March 14) is way off base.

While you mention the full-page advertisement signed by 1,300 parishioners in both dailies in February, you omitted mentioning the “;Save Our Chinatown”; ads in newspapers islandwide sponsored by the Concerned Citizens on River Street Housing. These ads explained, in detail, why the community objects to the project.

Your editorial talks about church leaders meeting with the mayor and giving him a petition with 3,000 signatures urging the project go forward. You omitted mentioning opponents of the project submitted two petitions to the City Council, one with more than 3,100 signatures opposing the project at this location, and another with more than 3,300 signatures supporting the Council resolution for a neighborhood plan. Those signatures were from residents, property owners, businesses and shoppers.

You neglected to mention that city Prosecutor Peter Carlisle opposes the project in its proposed location because it is contrary to the Weed and Seed crime fighting program. Additionally, River of Life stated in a letter to donors that “;Chinatown is not ideal for a residential program and it is also in the Weed and Seed area, which limits who we can take into the program.”;

While Bishop Larry Silva seems to be spearheading the faith-based support, he does not say the church owns vacant, improved land in the Vineyard Boulevard area. The bishop should put the church's money where his mouth is and build them a home on church property.

 

 

Please vote 'no' on health reform

Again I implore U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono to vote against the pending health care bill in Congress.

This proposed bill is clearly unconstitutional in many sections.

In addition, this bill is a socialistic step of huge and disastrous proportions that will destroy the best health care system in the world. It takes so many personal freedoms from our citizens that it will effectively place us into socialistic servitude.

Finally it is economically unsustainable and will further accelerate the demise of the dollar.

Those who vote for this bill must surely be listed in the annals of history as the legislators who did the most to destroy the freedoms afforded U.S. citizens in the Constitution by supporting the worst bill in the history of our country.

 

 

Stop rail or we will all go down

Thank you, Joseph DeMarco, for your on-spot letter of March 13 (”;Tap the rail fund to tackle deficit,”; Star-Bulletin). Our state deficit is $1.2 billion? How much is in the rail fund?

It's a slam dunk, and we'd better hurry up before our schools, infrastructure and social services implode.

We will all go down. Stop this Mufiasco.

 

 

Army on Big Isle still of concern

Why hasn't the Pohakuloa Community Advisory Group (CoAG) met for seven months?

I welcomed the startup of CoAG, since I had given up after repeatedly requesting such a group through the Sierra Club eight years ago. Two years ago, the Army announced CoAG's startup at County Council, and invited me to join.

Pohakuloa Cmdr. Warline Richardson and staff person Steve Troute did a commendable job of recruiting members and listening to conflicting views during several meetings.

But the last meeting was canceled on less than a day's notice, and when I ask the Army about future meetings, no one replies.

Meanwhile, military actions continue to impact Hawaii Island. Decades-old military sites remain in hazardous condition. Unexploded ordnance turns up on land and in near-shore waters. Questions linger about depleted uranium and other forgotten hazards. Stryker training pre-empts thousands of acres of agricultural land. It brings noise, increased fire risk, soil compaction and erosion, and multiple construction projects that may destroy cultural sites. More military aircraft and more runways may impact Kona.

Why can't the Army find time for CoAG?

 

 

Hawaiians have distinct history

In response to Kitty Hogan's letter (”;Lovely Honolulu has its downside,”; Star-Bulletin, Letters, March 15), I agree with her opening statement that we need to fund our schools, yet her argument quickly devolves into a simplistic rant shortly thereafter. Homelessness is a complex problem and not all homeless are “;druggies and drunks.”;

But, it is her statement that “;Hawaiians are Americans”; that truly shows her ignorance. Until the 1890s the Kingdom of Hawaii was an independent sovereign state, recognized by the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan and Germany. However, during the 1890s Hawaii fell victim to occupation and subsequent colonization by American business people and missionaries backed up by the American military. Hawaiians are a distinct race of people with no ancestral link to Americans. Hawaiians have had their homeland stolen and genuinely deserve restitution; this is not an issue of “;playing the race card.”;

Daniel J. Bogert
Honolulu