CONTAMINATED LETTUCE

HEALTH DEPARTMENT SHOULD NAME FARM

It's unacceptable for state health officials to withhold the name of the Kaua'i farm where E. coli-contaminated lettuce was grown and made several people sick.

E. coli is a potentially fatal infection and a serious threat to public health. Hawai'i residents have a right to know the name of the farm so they can avoid buying vegetable produce from it.

Was the contaminated lettuce shipped to Honolulu and other Neighbor Islands? Did the state Health Department even bother to find out?

TRANSIT

BETTER BUS SYSTEM A MORE EFFICIENT ANSWER

I applaud those on the City Council looking at alternative ways to solve mass-transit problems.

When I was in Denver in July 2006, their rail system was nearing completion. On a subsequent trip to Denver in May, a newspaper article reported that their transit authority is considering eliminating stops and cutting service because of poor ridership, especially on weekends and evenings.

Are we going to do the same after spending $5 billion?

An improved bus system will be more efficient. It can serve more people from more areas, if people are willing to change their habits. And, changes in routes can easily be made to accommodate change in ridership patterns.

What will the fare be to use the rail system?

We have spent millions of dollars on studies over the years and we are still on the same page as we were when Frank Fasi was mayor. Only the technology has changed.

We need to use common sense on this. Changing bus routes is cheaper than changing rail routes.

NIGHTCLUBS

IS ESPRIT BECOMING JUST ANOTHER TOURIST BAR?

The closing of the Esprit Nightclub at the Sheraton Waikiki last week marks the last of Hawai'i's venues offering live bands churning out dance tunes from Motown to the '80s.

Every weekend, most of us local folks would look forward to dressing up and gett'n our groove on at the Esprit — but alas, someone decided to make the club follow suit with the rest of the garden variety "tourist bars" and renovate it as such.

Waaaaat?! Eh brah, make mine extra scoop mac salad, rice, and — sigh.

STREET PROJECTS

MANY CITY ROADWAYS ON LIST FOR RESURFACING

Joe Carini is certainly entitled to criticize in his letter ("Don't residents get more of a say?" Aug. 11), but he should try to be more accurate when he does.

He mentions that the state-owned Ala Moana is in horrific condition, which we understand the state Department of Transportation will be rehabilitating in the near future. So he shouldn't blame Mayor Mufi Hannemann for the condition of any state road.

The Hannemann administration has been very proactive in fixing our city roadways.

The city not only patches potholes (more than 140,000 since we took office in January 2005), but also provides new road surfaces. The latter can range from a temporary "skin coat" of asphalt to complete rehabilitation of the road, as we've done on Pi'ikoi Street, Waimano Home Road, Hind Drive, Hamakua Drive, Makakilo Drive, Tantalus Drive, and streets in Mililani, to name a few.

The Department of Facility Maintenance has requested $3.4 million in its fiscal year 2008 budget for skin-coat resurfacing.

The Department of Design and Construction has $49.75 million in this year's budget on top of $44 million last year. We've already started or completed work on Harding Avenue, Ala Wai Boulevard, Ke'eaumoku Street, Sheridan Street, South Street and University Avenue. We've also started local streets in Waipi'o, Crestview, Seaview and Pearl City areas.

Projects soon to start are Kilauea Avenue, 'Alewa Drive, and various streets in Manoa including Lowrey Avenue.

Future projects include Lusitana Street, North King Street, California Avenue, Keolu Drive, Moanalua Road, and Ka'ahumanu Street.

The bottom line is that we're doing a lot more to keep the roads smooth, thanks to our hard-working city employees.

ADVERTISER

CATALUNA'S COLUMNS INSIGHTFUL, HUMOROUS

Thank you, Lee Cataluna, for the comments in your Tuesday column reminding us of gentle but enthusiastic teller of tales Bob Krauss, our Islands' own Mark Twain, who passed away almost a year ago.

But please don't sell yourself short. Your insightful commentaries and humorous observations qualify you to write in the spirit of Krauss' "Our Honolulu," including the telling of stories of the comings and goings of the kolea each year.

CONSUMERS

BOYCOTT UNSAFE GOODS THAT ARE MADE IN CHINA

China's reputation as a manufacturer is in the toilet as far as this consumer is concerned.

The recent recalls of toys and household and food products is disconcerting, and infuriating when the health risk imposed on innocent children is considered.

Mattel and other U.S. manufacturers who partner with China to get cheap goods to peddle to U.S. consumers also shoulder the blame.

After reading about the recent toy recall, my wife and I went through our children's toys and pulled everything made in China for Mattel and stored them in plastic bags for permanent storage. Luckily, most of the toys were just collecting dust. However, it was heartbreaking to confiscate my little girl's Fashion Polly, which she plays with constantly. After some explaining, she understood the reason and accepted the fact that she can never play with it again.

As a consumer, the only recourse I have is to boycott any products that disregard the safety of the public.

No more "Made in China" products for this consumer. This includes the 2008 Summer Olympics.