RE-ELECTION

LINGLE'S TIES TO BUSH SHOULD RULE HER OUT

Gov. Lingle has a clear and unambiguous record on which to run her re-election campaign: She is Hawai'i's most fanatic supporter of President Bush.

Remember in the last election for governor, Lingle said that as a Republican, she would have the ear of the White House for Hawai'i. It seems the nation's Republican leaders only listen to her when they need something.

As part of an ongoing devotional campaign for the president, Lingle's administration thought it acceptable to mislead the press when she traveled to Iraq as part of a White House PR junket to build support for the war in Iraq. Gov. Lingle has never talked about being misled by the White House, even though most Americans and people around the world feel this way. The governor campaigned extensively for George W. Bush, both here and on the Mainland during the 2004 presidential campaign, despite the fact that Hawai'i voters overwhelmingly supported John Kerry.

Gov. Lingle has poorly served Hawai'i with her uncritical allegiance to the Bush White House. She does not deserve re-election.

PEDESTRIANS

TURN KALAKAUA INTO A VEHICLE-FREE MALL

Why is the City Council trying to spoil the evening fun in Waikiki? After the street performers are gone, Kalakaua Avenue will revert to just another strip mall.

In most seaside resort towns, there is a boardwalk where the tourists can stroll along enjoying all sorts of entertainment. One finds sea-foam candy shops, hotdog and hamburger stands, beverage stalls, along with lots of souvenir shops and, yes, even street performers. There is usually a small amusement park, a Ferris wheel and other colorful diversions.

Where is the Waikiki boardwalk? What? There isn't one? Could it be because the beach is lined with hotels instead? So the only "boardwalk" we have, such as it is, is Kalakaua Avenue. And now they want to take all the fun out of that because the street performers draw too many people. And these people spill out onto the street, causing a problem.

I have a suggestion. Instead of removing the street performers and their appreciative audiences, why not convert that four-block area of Kalakaua into a vehicle-free pedestrian mall from 7 to 10 p.m.? We need some kind of entertainment/amusement/fun area in Waikiki.

Or, as a poor second choice, why not convert the grassy area in front of the World War I memorial into a place for the street performers, hotdog and hamburger stands, penny arcades and a small amusement park. Of course, this would draw shoppers away from Kalakaua, which is exactly what the merchants along Kalakaua don't want.

PANHANDLING

STREET PERFORMERS EXPECT TO BE PAID

Forget what the ACLU has to say about the street performers and look at them for what they really are — under-the-table service providers.

Whether it's a massage, caricature, balloon animal or just a few laughs, these people expect to be paid. They are not there to let you know their thoughts on God, government, war or how dangerous it is to have to walk into busy Kalakaua Avenue to get by them.

First Amendment or panhandler — decide for yourself.

ACCOMMODATIONS

EASY WAY AROUND CITY'S TRANSIENT LAW

Regarding the Nov. 25 letter by Warren and Carolyn Stenberg: There appears to be a rather easy way around this law.

Pacific Heights, zoned residential, will soon be home to an authorized transient vacation (short term) rental. The Department of Planning and Permitting has approved a conditional-use permit for the Kofuku-No-Kagaku USA, The Institute for Research in Human Happiness Center for Prayer and Meditation. This allows a continual flow of 10 (aspirations for more after one year) overnight guests who will each make a significant "tax-free donation" to this operator.

The site will be complete with a commercial kitchen and other hotel amenities.

The overwhelming disapproval of this action by the entire neighborhood, and our legal appeal to not allow such an adventure here, was to no avail and readily defeated by the department.

The fragile infrastructure of Pacific Heights — a narrow, winding road, not suitable for delivery trucks, no sidewalks, etc. — is apparently insignificant to the department.

This, too, is a business operation no different from the unauthorized transient vacation rentals. It should be in an area zoned for commerce, not in a quiet, residential neighborhood.

UNPLEASANT

H-1 FREEWAY SHOULD HAVE NOISE INSULATION

It is unbelievable that the H-1 freeway has no noise insulation. The traffic noise can be heard from all the houses within hundreds of yards of the freeway.

I believe about one-quarter of the population of Honolulu is bothered by the noise. Honolulu is the noisiest city I have ever been in. Noise insulation on both sides of the freeway would make the city a much more pleasant place to live in.

The mayor should visit some of the families beside the freeway and ask them what they think.

VOLLEYBALL

ONCE AGAIN WAHINE GET SHORT END OF STICK

Well, the NCAA tournament selections are posted, and it looks as if our team has been snubbed again this year.

How the NCAA determines its seedings for the tournament is beyond comprehension. This year No. 8 Hawai'i is seeded 7th. Good? Maybe not, when you look at the bracket. No. 11 Texas is unseeded and will play Hawai'i in the second round. How does that happen? If the Wahine beat Texas, they play No. 10 Missouri, and win again, they play No. 2 Penn State. So, not only does Hawai'i have one of the hardest brackets, it has to travel to Texas and then hopefully Pennsylvania.

When will Hawai'i get a break and host the first and second rounds? Let's all let the NCAA know how we feel about this.

Go, 'Bows!

HISTORICAL FACT

DENYING U.S. ROLE IN OVERTHROW DELUSIONAL

I would like to thank Mr. Thomas E. Stuart for his letter of Nov. 22, "U.S. a scapegoat in overthrow." His narrow-minded, delusional remarks only strengthen our resolve to persevere toward sovereignty.

Disgusting and deplorable comments about our queen and kupuna will never alter the historical facts that the U.S. military and its colonizing cohorts instituted events that affected the future of our nation. Continuing to deny or refusing to accept these facts will make him and others with such mindsets prime thumb-sucking complaining crybaby candidates running for cover and consoling under the skirts of his U.S. Constitution.

Historical fact refuters only fool themselves. Go on, keep living in a fantasy dream world, for someday the sovereignty movement will emerge as a strong new nation making things pono! By then it'll be too late for Johnny-come-lately wannabes like Stuart to admit that Hawaiians were wronged. Feeling sorry for himself, or worse, unwilling to grasp the politics of it all, will overwhelmingly cause lousy judgment and a lack of preparedness on his part to cope with it all.

We are here! We are the facts! We are the evidence! We will prevail!

PRESIDENT SEARCH

CAYETANO IS NO EXPERT ON THE UNIVERSITY'S AFFAIRS

In response to Treena Shapiro's article, "Stakes High as UH hunt begins for president," I was dismayed to see that former governor Ben Cayetano is still being cited as an authority at the university and that he is still singing his old songs about Evan Dobelle as a misunderstood man of vision and the UH faculty is lazy and "biding time until retirement" as those responsible for preventing Dobelle from realizing his dreams.

I would like to remind Gov. Cayetano that it was his drastic budget cuts to the university, in direct violation of his campaign promises, that put us dead last nationally in state contributions to higher education and that resulted in hiring freezes throughout the years of his administration.

Despite that, the university has managed to recruit exciting new faculty.

Those who have given decades of service to the university and the community are bringing in unprecedented research grants and are educating record numbers of students, while still dealing with the consequences of the Cayetano cuts.

As for the faculty preventing President Dobelle from fulfilling his vision, this is an absurd statement. What in the world could professors do to keep Mr. Dobelle from raising the money he promised and never delivered from bankrupting the university with enormous administrative salaries and from diverting funds intended for academic programs for his own uses?

The university does need to be vigilant in its search for a new president, and the faculty should be a vital part of that search. We know the university. Apparently Gov. Cayetano still does not.

CHANGE NEEDED

FORUM FOCUSES ON PRISON PROBLEMS

There has been much media attention on the need to improve Hawai'i's correctional system. Many problems continue to plague our state, including the continued high recidivism rate, the rapid rise in incarceration that has nearly doubled in the past 10 years, fueled primarily by the ice epidemic, and the overburdened prison and jail facilities that have resulted in Hawai'i shipping many of its local offenders to prisons on the Mainland.

On any given day, 50 percent of those processed at the Department of Public Safety's Intake Center are probation or parole violators. Overall, the yearly cost of this system, which serves nearly 6,000 inmates annually, exceeds $160 million.

A community forum is taking place on Saturday that will put a spotlight on these issues and help build momentum to bring about change that can improve our system and use our state money more wisely.

This forum will include a panel of former offenders telling their stories, profiles of inmates currently involved in re-entry programs, information about Hawai'i's eight prison and jail facilities, presentations by Hawai'i's public safety officials, and a community-driven strategic session to develop and prioritize recommendations for the upcoming legislative session.

The community is urged to attend this forum and help formulate and prioritize feasible action plans. Good and creative re-entry programs exist here and on the Mainland. If Hawai'i can take better advantage of these programs and work to improve other systemic problems, funds currently used for public safety could eventually be diverted for other public needs.

The sponsors of the forum invite the community to come, to learn and to strategize about improving our prison system. Nearly all prisoners eventually leave prison and return to our community. A healthy and productive return makes the neighborhood better for everyone.