LAY GILL NETS SHOULD BE BANNED IN HAWAI'I

Gill nets are an efficient fishing method, but indiscriminate in what they catch, including the Hawaiian monk seal.

Only 1,200 of the Hawaiian species survive today, of which fewer than 100 are in the main Hawaiian Islands.

Last October a young seal was killed in a gill net on O'ahu, and now last month an unattended, illegal gill net claimed another victim.

Gill nets, other nets, and marine debris that drift onto beaches in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands have killed an average of 11 seals each year from 1982 to 2004. Sea turtles have drowned after being entangled in gill nets.

The nets also are a serious hazard to scuba divers.

Many fishes not targeted by fishermen, including undersize and out-of-season species they cannot sell, are caught and discarded. The nets often become entangled on the reefs and are abandoned. Those that cover the reefs abrade the coral and in time become covered with algae.

Anyone who is familiar with our marine resources knows that our reef fish stocks are seriously depleted.

The time for a total ban of gill nets in Hawai'i is long overdue. Other maritime states, as well as a number of Pacific islands, have taken this action and have seen a rebound of nearshore marine life.

NOT JUST BEACH ISSUE

DOWNTOWN RESIDENTS SEE HOMELESS PROBLEM

To see another problem of homelessness, the governor should take a 6 a.m. walk through Downtown and Chinatown, especially near the Hawai'i Theatre pond.

Imagine my surprise early one morning on my way to Safeway to find one homeless person sleeping with 18 pieces of property lined in front of a jewelry story on Hotel Street.

Almost every shop entry up and down Nu'uanu was occupied by a sleeping tenant. The homeless problem is no longer a problem only for beachgoers.

ENERGY

STATE SHOULD SUBSIDIZE RESIDENTS' ELECTRIC CARS

The infrastructure for hydrogen fuel will not exist for at least a decade and will cost millions to create. Electricity is available to everyone right now. All we need are affordable electric vehicles, which are a year or two away.

What if the state took the extra money that it has and offered a subsidy to Hawai'i residents for the purchase of these vehicles? We would then have non-polluting electric vehicles on the road in no time at all.

Most would be recharged at night at home, when peak demand for electricity has passed.

One charge could easily last all day at a fraction of the cost of gas.

This would be a win for the environment, a win for reducing our dependence on foreign oil and even a win for Hawaiian Electric Co.

Eventually, we could power these electric vehicles with photovoltaic panels or other renewable sources, which would further reduce our need for oil.

Let's take a hard look at electric vehicles that travel at highway speeds for the future of our islands.

ELDERLY

MOST OF US COULD EASILY HELP OFFER MEAL FUNDS

The Lanakila Meals on Wheels program recently suffered a devastating loss of funding.

Our kupuna have fed and cared for us — now it is our turn to care for our providers.

Think about it — one grande coffee drink nearly equals the price of one meal a day for our elders.

Shall we at least give up something that we truly do not need for our folks who really need it?

EUROPEANS

RECOGNITION DUE FOR ALL INTERNED IN WWII

We all know the painful story of the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. Your June 10 article, "Interned Europeans seek recognition," addresses the lesser-known internment of German-Americans and Italian-Americans.

Although considerably fewer people were affected, the individual tragedies of some of those interned Europeans were as great as those that befell the Japanese-Americans.

Immediately after the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, 98 people of German descent and 14 of Italian descent were taken into custody on O'ahu. Some were naturalized American citizens and others had been given status as resident aliens awaiting their final papers.

Most of them were interned on O'ahu, although 13 were sent to camps on the Mainland. Some of them lost their homes, cars and furniture as a result of their incarceration. Joe Pacific lost his shoe and luggage shop. Ironically, one of the internees, architect Alfred Preis, designed the Arizona Memorial.

With the help of our congressional delegation it's possible that our local German-American and Italian-American internees or their surviving families can at least be publicly recognized and not forgotten.

DUKE AIONA

COMMENTS THREATENED RIGHTS OF GAY CITIZENS

According to James Roller's letter on June 16, Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona has a right to free speech about his religion.

I am Christian and gay, and have never felt religion should be pushed on to others.

I agree that Mr. Aiona has done a lot for the Hawaiian community. He's done great work with foster children and drug prevention.

When Mr. Aiona spoke out against civil unions for gays, based on his religious background, he threatened the rights of all gay and lesbian citizens in Hawai'i.

Gay and lesbian citizens pay taxes, are employers as well as are employees, and also contribute to and support the state of Hawai'i. How will he represent this population as governor?

In 1998, 68 percent of Hawai'i's people voted against giving equal rights to their neighbors, relatives and friends because they were born different. This was nine years ago, and I am optimistic that this number has lowered.

Gay marriage in Massachusetts has been very successful and heterosexual marriage there has not been "destroyed" because of it.

People's hearts can and do change.

GRAFFITI

DON'T SELL SPRAY PAINT, RAISE FINES FOR OFFENSE

What can be done about the graffiti problem?

Stop selling spray paint. And raise the fines for those who get caught.

WIE'S WOES

TEAM MICHELLE SHOULD START BY REORGANIZING

Whoa, everyone shouldn't come down so hard on poor Michelle Wie like they have in the past two weeks.

Let's help her to solve the problem by first firing her golf instructor, David Leadbetter, and humbly getting back Casey Nakama to help her with her game.

Get a new agent, and, by all means, have her parents follow her one hole behind.

DRIVING

NO LICENSE FOR STUDENT WITHOUT GOOD GRADES

There have been many solutions offered regarding the ridership of the future rail transit system.

Here is another. For all people under 21 years of age, require a minimum grade-point average of 3.0 in high school or college to be able to apply for a learner's permit or a driver's license.

People who have dropped out of high school or are not attending college can use public mass transit until they come of age.

UNSANITARY

ILLEGAL POULTRY CREATE KALIHI HEALTH PROBLEMS

The Health Department has wasted thousands of dollars on a media campaign to inform me that I should cough into my arm, stay home if I am sick and stockpile supplies in the event of a bird flu epidemic.

What they have failed to do is inform me of how to protect myself from my neighbors who raise large numbers of illegal poultry in our residential area.

The money spent on the current bird flu "educational" campaign could be better spent enforcing the unsanitary poultry conditions that already exist in my Kalihi neighborhood.