LIVING ALOHA

THANKS, FLOYD, FOR A DEED DONE UNSELFISHLY

If we had more people like Floyd Kawamoto, this world would be a better place.

On July 3, my friend George Furukawa and I picked up a heavy TV chair at a furniture store and we were struggling to unload the chair from the pick-up in front of our house. We are both 442 vets in our mid-80s.

A complete stranger was passing by, turned his car around and single-handedly carried the chair up the stairs and placed it exactly where my wife wanted it.

Thanks again, Floyd.

RECYCLING

SHIPPING OUR GARBAGE RAISES SOME QUESTIONS

Thank you for putting Suzanne Jones on the Hot Seat to help inform us of the city's efforts to promote recycling.

I was hoping for an answer to a nagging question regarding off-island shipping of our solid waste. How does the city reconcile the minimum tonnage requirements of the waste handler with efforts to recycle, which will reduce the waste stream?

The two seem counterintuitive. On one hand, you have a shipper of waste, who will contract for a minimum amount of waste to make it profitable. On the other hand, you have a program to recycle and reduce the amount of solid waste.

What if our efforts to recycle are successful? Will we be stuck with paying for the waste handler to ship a half-full barge? Or worse, will you continue your shibai curbside recycling program to make a shipping contract lucrative?

I suppose the answer is a political one, but I hate to be so cynical.

MIDEAST

Iraq withdrawal will restore trust in U.S.

Recently, there has been criticism of the Democratic majority in Congress for not setting a deadline for withdrawal from Iraq.

However, voters gave the Democrats only a razor-thin majority.

In effect, control of the Congress is still in the hands of the Republicans, who cannot afford to repudiate the policies of the Bush administration in an election year. The onus for being unable to withdraw from Iraq lies with the Republicans who put us there in the first place.

Further, we are trapped in Iraq because we do not control the course of events there. We only react to them.

The only way to regain control over events in any degree and repair our standing in the world is to withdraw from Iraq.

It will not be our first defeat, but it can be a step in rebuilding trust in our government in the world. We will gain influence by renouncing the policy of aggression that led us there.

We should focus, together with other nations, on the struggle politically, culturally and spiritually against extremism in any form.

We must rededicate ourselves to the fundamental principles of the rule of law and the search for equity and justice for all people.

CAMPAIGN

RON PAUL CAMPAIGN SIGNS DISRESPECT ISLES

What a shame that Libertarian presidential candidate Ron Paul's supporters are illegally posting campaign signs.

Not only are they polluting the beauty of Hawai'i with litter, they are violating state and county laws, despite claiming otherwise. It is illegal to place any signage of this type on public property. That includes along public rights-of-way and on utility poles.

If Ron Paul or any other candidate wishes to place campaign signs on private property, there are no laws to prevent it. But posting these signs on any public property is not only illegal, it disrespects the people of Hawai'i by creating an eyesore that lowers the quality of life for residents.

Anyone who claims otherwise is wrong.

CARE HOMES

STATE MUST RESPECT NEIGHBORS' CONCERNS

Re the July 3 article, "State may move 415 Medicaid patients:" The state and federal governments are saying that they will solve a problem by moving Medicaid patients into a "residential setting."

But what they are really saying is that they want to save money by imposing more group care homes in our residential communities with little respect for the people who live there.

For many years, the city has recognized the problems created when there is a concentration of group homes in residential neighborhoods, but the state has not.

The city requires that group homes be at least 1,000 feet apart to avoid a concentration that is incompatible with residential living.

It is time for Gov. Linda Lingle and Human Services Director Lillian Koller to adopt a similar rule providing a minimum of respect for the neighborhood residents who create and represent the very "residential setting" that they desire to take advantage of.

SAFETY

BICYCLISTS MUST BEGIN OBEYING TRAFFIC LAWS

Every day, bicyclists don their jerseys, strap on their cycling helmets and shoes and climb on their bicycles to hit the roads of Honolulu.

Riding alone or in groups from two to 60, they are admired for their dedication to fitness, perseverance through adverse weather and fearlessness of Ho-nolulu traffic.

One trait constant with this band is their disregard for the laws governing the use of roadways.

How often do you see a rider blow through a stoplight or sign with merely a glance? How often do you see that group of cyclists riding six abreast fancying themselves the peloton in the Tour de France?

The laws governing the use of roadways seem fairly clear. Bicycle riders cannot impede the flow of traffic by riding two to six abreast, even on a multiple-lane road.

They must also stop and obey traffic signals and signs.

Should HPD begin ticketing bicycle riders for their blatant disregard of the traffic laws?

Perhaps the bicycle riders who wrongly believing these laws don't apply to them need to understand they are obligated to obey the same laws we must obey.

HANDICAP STALLS

NUMBER NEEDED TO REPORT ILLEGAL PARKING

A friend of mine lost his leg from diabetes, a legitimate reason for getting a placard to park in handicap stalls.

While I was driving him to Pali Longs, we observed two young ladies in a Mercedes parking in a handicap stall.

They then put the handicap placard on the rear-view mirror and walked into Longs. We followed, only to find them buying makeup.

It appeared that neither needed to use handicap parking stall. And they prevented us from obtaining access closest to the store entrance.

It seems that people whose parents and relatives have these cards for legitimate reasons are passing them along, or people are using their vehicles and taking advantage of the close parking.

There should be a phone number on the parking stall signs to call to report people who abuse this law.

We had to park in a standard stall further away, and my friend had to use a wheelchair to get into the store to get his prescription while the young ladies walked past us.

KEY PROJECT

VOLUNTEERS PITCHED IN TO HELP REMOVE TRASH

I would like to send a big thanks to the volunteers with KEY Project and state Sen. Clayton Hee for removing the items in front of the housing units at the bottom of 'Ahuimanu Road.

I have been calling to have these items picked up for several months. I tried the Environmental Concern Line, the Bulky Item Pick Up line, Department of Health Solid and Hazardous Waste and the Kapa'a Station.

It seemed as if those who answered the phone were only interested in telling me what they did not do. I was finally told the items would be picked up on July 2. To no one's surprise, they were not.

Sen. Hee responded quickly and lined up volunteers with KEY Project and the Kahalu'u Clean Up to take care of the project and the items were removed on July 7.

So, to them and those who helped them, I offer sincere thanks. It's good to see that, for some, caring for the land is more than a slogan.

INEFFICIENT

USUALLY, GOVERNMENT IS SOURCE OF PROBLEM

I just read in the paper that because of a computer issue, it might take up to three to six months for a teen to get his or her driver's license. So much for efficiency.

Remember this when you think that government-controlled healthcare is a good idea.

Can anybody name anything the government does better than the private sector?

Most of the time, government is the problem, especially when it is as big and bureaucratic as ours is.

CAN'T WIN

WHAT'S A PERSON TO DO? JUST GO BACK TO HIS CAR?

Well, thank you to the Motor Vehicle Control Section.

With climbing gas and parking prices, I decided to try TheBus.

There were no seats. So now I'm standing. Stops were eliminated, so now I walk farther.

Kids on the bus think the back is their reserved section.

I wake up earlier and get home later, to find my car being checked as abandoned because it needs to be moved every 24 hours.

Well, I guess I'm back on the road when my bus pass expires.