Letters To The Editor
May 21, 2008 - MidWeek
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Del.icio.usViva Natasha!
After reading in the paper about Natasha Kai scoring three goals in one game for the U.S. women’s soccer team, I wished I could learn more about it. Acouple of days later my MidWeek arrived with Natasha on the cover. You guys, like, read my mind - in advance!
Brian Yamada
Aiea
Auwe to tats
Natasha Kai is obviously a very talented soccer player. But with all of those tattoos defacing her body, auwe, what a terrible example for young girls who looks up to her.
Helen Yu
Kaimuki
PIneapple ethanol
Why is the making of ethanol from sugar cane a non-issue here in Hawaii?
With the price of fuel rising and the price of corn contributing to our higher food prices, why doesn’t a state like Hawaii turn to making ethanol from sugar cane like the country of Brazil has done so successfully?
Here in Hawaii, we already have decades of sugar cane production expertise and can add to that the knowledge of Brazilian engineers about how to most effectively cultivate that resource and produce cost effective fuels. No corn subsidies. Let other countries continue to make sugar more cheaply for export to the world, what we should be doing here in Hawaii is growing sugar cane to produce enough fuel for our state’s needs and consumption and if we should be fortunate enough to create a surplus, so be it. Sell it to either Mainland states or to foreign countries the way the Brazilian government does.
Where are our leaders and the people on this issue and why are the politicians always behind the curve on these matters?
For more on this topic, see the following links:
http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/display.article?id=6817
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etha nol_fuel_in_Brazil
Doug Olivares
Kapahulu
We’re all victims
Bob Jones thinks the efforts by certain groups to establish a constitutional monarchy in Hawaii Nei are motivated by what he calls “victimhood.” I say all people who reside in the 50th state of Hawaii are the real victims. Residents of this state have no real government, just a corporation run primarily by lawyers. Think about all the politicians, legislators and those employees of the alleged criminal justice system. A large percentage of these people are attorneys. It has expanded way beyond what a government’s just functions ought to be, yet it is called the Hawaii state government.
I think it is far better to live as a subject in the Kingdom of Hawaii than to exist as a person in a corporation.
Ross Myers
Honolulu
Rail facts
Larry Price in a recent column claimed that the city’s rail transit project will cost “$4 billion for a train route that will take a rider from Kapolei to Waipahu.” The $3.7 billion estimated cost is for a much longer, 20-mile route, stretching from East Kapolei to Ala Moana Center. Included in that cost is a required reserve of nearly $1 billion for unexpected expenses.
The segment from Kapolei to Waipahu is merely the first phase of that 20-mile route. The 20-mile route is, in turn, part of the longer “Locally Preferred Alternative” (LPA) that will eventually link West Kapolei to UH-Manoa and to Waikiki. A spur to the airport is part of the LPA as well. The intent is to build the 20-mile route first but extend and complete the full LPA when additional funds become available.
Second, Mr. Price’s suggestion that “Hawaii’s salty air” would unduly threaten steel wheels on steel tracks is also wrong. Modern steel-on-steel systems are highly successful in many tropical, coastal or island cities with climates that are very similar to ours, or harsher. These include Bangkok, Hong Kong, Manila, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, Singapore and Vancouver. Also, one only needs to look at the old OR&L railroad tracks still in place in Ewa to know that steel wheel on steel tracks can and will last for a very long time.
We are always willing to listen to alternative ideas. Keep in mind, though, that every major transportation study for the last 30 years has identified a need for a high-capacity transit system in the urban corridor of Honolulu.
Our bus system is already reaching its limits, and Oahu Transportation Services President Roger Morton recently explained to the City Council that adding more buses would soon be futile because they would become stuck in the same gridlock as other traffic.
Wayne Yoshioka, Director,
City Department of Transportation Services
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