ALOHA STADIUM

PUT THE ONUS ON THOSE WHO CREATE THE TROUBLE

When someone at Aloha Stadium creates trouble or is drunk, let's have the police or security forces register this individual as an offender and for the rest of the season make him check in at the downtown police headquarters within 30 minutes after the game starts and 30 minutes before the end. If he fails to do so, throw him in jail.

If he is a visitor from the Mainland, throw him in jail for the day, let him sober up, and make him miss his flight because of a trial a few days later.

Just forget the ban on serving alcohol. Let's have responsible people enjoy the game with a beer.

OKINO

PROPERTY TAX RELIEF PROPOSALS ARE BEST

Hats off to City Councilman Gary Okino. His proposals to double the exemption for homeowner-occupant and provide tax credit to get relief for tax bills due this year are the best options for homeowners.

One proposal would give owners who are 75 years or older an added benefit since the present exemption goes up to 70 years old.

Hopefully the mayor and the City Council can agree quickly and end the stress of homeowners who are struggling to pay their property taxes.

If the administration cannot run the city with $60 million in additional anticipated property tax income to cover other costs, maybe we need another administration.

VALUATIONS

CITY APPRAISER'S OFFICE SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED

As I understand the system, the mayor and City Council determine the financial needs of the city for the coming fiscal year. Once that is settled, then a tax rate is implemented to bring in the necessary money to cover the city's needs.

For the past number of years, there has been little adjustment to the tax rate to reflect the foregoing. The rate has been left in place to bring in more money without enacting a tax increase. And that is the crux of the matter now. The tax assessment notices show the tax if last year's rate is used. The City Council should be the checks and balances on the mayor's grandiose impulses.

A major part of the problem is the inflated property values being set by the city appraiser. I have had dealings with city appraisers and I know that any number of statistical techniques are ignored or abused in determining property values. So a good place for the City Council to begin would be to have a thorough investigation of what is going on in the city appraiser's office and not just rubber-stamp whatever is put forth.

PROPERTY TAX

MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE

Mr. Mayor:

If I cannot sell my termite-infested half-century-old home for the value you placed on it, will you purchase my home from me? I am 87 years old.

PROPERTY TAX

ENOUGH, ALREADY

My property tax for 2005 has gone up by 185.76 percent from my 2002 tax bill! And the estimated tax bill for 2006 is 19.10 percent higher than 2005!

PROPERTY TAX

FORKED TONGUE CUT

Let's see, a proposed $40 million reduction of a $125 million property tax increase is being called a tax cut. Sure smells like a $85 million tax increase to me.

HAWAIIANS

INVOLVING U.S. JUSTICE SYSTEM WAS WRONG

Shame on you, La'akea Suganuma and Abigail Kawana-nakoa. Your decision to involve the American "just-us" system is very troubling for Native Hawaiians.

You have decided to place your trust in a judge who is ignorant of our way of life, beliefs and culture. Now he will decide what is right or wrong with our way of life and our religious beliefs. Do you truly understand what you have done? You have just opened another door for future judgments against Hawaiians on what is the American way of life or the Native Hawaiian way of life.

There is no problem among Native Hawaiians that cannot be solved by Hawaiian ways. Ho'oponopono is one way. Instead, you have allowed a judgment against a Hawaiian that has resulted in his imprisonment. Now, who is the winner?

We have all lost because you put your trust in a system that has consistently eroded our way of life. Please, for the sake of all Native Hawaiians, reconsider your effort to deal with a problem that should involve only Native Hawaiians. An ali'i should never side with a foreign government to achieve any goal.

FAST MOVING

EUROPEANS HAVE ANSWER TO TOILETS

Wouldn't it be considerably better just to adopt European standards? When I was stationed in Germany, GIs quickly adjusted to urinating against a wall, where it ran down to a slanted trough leading to a single drain, i.e., nothing but one tiny piece of metal for thieves to steal.

When I was stationed in France, most public toilets were just a hole behind two footprints, again nothing for thieves to steal, nothing for taggers to tag, and nowhere for perverts to hide.

The popularity of such toilets among French women was obvious: No one dawdles to read their receipts, shopping list, magazine, menus, adjust their cosmetics, etc., because one must maintain one's balance and it is necessary to jump up when adjacent toilets flush.

Adopting European standards would immediately and substantially reduce maintenance and repair costs and most certainly speed up public access to the toilets. What do we have to lose since most of our existing public toilets are out of service?

STUDENT DECLINE

OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS NEED A MAJOR FACELIFT

Cary Grant had $100 for a suit when he came to Hollywood. He paid $100 for one suit rather than get ten $10 suits because he would always look great in the $100 suit and lousy in a $10 suit. Our public schools need a $100 suit!

We should use as much of the surplus as possible on public education. People can't learn in dilapidated, hot, noisy environments. We do need to fix our schools ASAP.

I have taught at the university level in Hawai'i for 14 years. I was very favorably impressed with local students when I first came here. I have seen a marked decline in student attitude and capability over time. My colleagues have seen the same trend.

The students have not become less able. Their K-12 education has failed. We may not be able to persuade the Board of Education to adopt sensible teaching practices, but we can rectify the physical environment that students confront and provide textbooks for each and every student in each and every class.

We will eventually pay dearly for the failure of our schools.

BURIAL ITEMS

HAWAIIAN COMMUNITY AGREES ON KEY ISSUES

As a member of this community reading about the conflict surrounding the Forbes burial items, it bothers me to hear comments about "how the Native Hawaiian community cannot agree on issues, fight all the time, etc."

No one talks about the dozens of other successfully negotiated cases that have occurred between the claimants, and how over 20,000 kanaka maoli and their supporters took to the streets this last year in solid support of what they hold valuable. People are fast to criticize Hawaiians who feel passionate about their culture and traditions. And who must continually battle strong, negative stereotypes regarding their culture.

There are many areas the claimants agree on, one being that the items are an important and valuable part of our past, that they belong back to the site they originally came from, and that they were taken from their original resting site by thieves.

Is there any way that the claimants can come together and concentrate on their common areas of belief and move beyond their differences? I hope so, for the sake of our community.

Kanaka maoli are a strong, proud group, and if we turn to the appropriate channels that our ancestors knew and held sacred, we should and will be able to arrive at a position of what is right for all.