Civil-union foes claim too much

I'm insulted by Francis Oda's letter claiming that “;the people of Hawaii”; have spoken out against civil unions (Star-Bulletin, May 13). My husband and I are Hawaii residents, and we support same-sex marriages and civil unions. We're not the only residents who feel this way. The only “;people”; who spoke out against civil unions are those who voted to protect the sanctity of marriage, and not every resident voted in 1998 and not every voter voted against same-sex marriages. House Bill 444 is not a marriage issue. It's a civil rights issue.

If Oda understood this, he would see that fellow Americans are pleading for civil liberties — rights and privileges — the rest of us already have, and his selfishness makes him blind to the fact that these rights and privileges should be theirs, too.

If Oda had heart, he would have the compassion to extend these rights and privileges to others. If he had soul, he would be graced with the spirit of aloha.

Francis Oda struck out all three times, and if Gov. Linda Lingle follows his lead, it would be a major strikeout for our Aloha State.

It's wrong to raid hurricane fund

When hurricane insurance was not available, participating in the Hurricane Relief Fund was mandated. Property owners needed this safety net. So how can the Legislature simply take as it pleases from that fund? My insurance premium went up $200 this year. What happens when the average homeowner can no longer afford to maintain hurricane insurance, or worse yet, maintains it and the insurance company defaults when disaster hits our islands? Is anyone else outraged?

If the stewards of our fund insist on breaking our trust and move monies to the general fund, is it not outright thievery? Should property owners take legal action? Or is it now a tax? Can we at least take a full tax credit the same year they put those monies in the general fund?

Politicians who break constituents' trust no longer deserve to serve.

BP oil debacle recalls old song

The BP oil rig debacle reminds me of the old song, “;There's a Hole in the Middle of the Sea”;:

“;There's a hole in the middle of the sea. There's a pipe on the hole in the middle of the sea. There's an outhouse on the pipe on the hole in the middle of the sea. There's a top hat on the outhouse on the pipe on the hole in the middle of the sea. There's a tube on the top hat on the outhouse on the pipe on the hole in the middle of the sea. ... “;

I hope that there won't be many more verses to the song.

Mail-in ballot open to lawsuits

I see several hang-ups that could cause Hawaii Supreme Court challenges to our special election this Saturday by a candidate, a political party entered in the election, or any 30 or more voters.

» No. 1 is that instructions say the ballot must be mailed by May 22 in order to be counted. “;By”; seems by most logic to include that Saturday, just as “;by April 15”; for federal tax returns includes anything postmarked until midnight on the 15th. But if you mail your state ballot on May 22, it will not arrive at the counting office that day and will not be counted. I'd challenge that.

» No. 2 is that ballot instructions are moderately complicated and not written in our other state language, Hawaiian, or common languages of citizens here: Filipino dialects, Chinese, Japanese and Pacific Islander dialects. Marginal challenge.

» No. 3 is the instruction that the rectangle by a candidate's name must be filled in with dark ink. Filled in? Doesn't a heavy-lined “;X”; count as filled in? I'd challenge that.

» No. 4 is the signature. I can't remember how I signed my original registration. I signed my ballot “;R.O. Jones.”; Maybe doesn't match. Did I get trashed? I'd challenge that.

I could have designed those ballots better, and for free.