Letters To The Editor
May 10, 2006 - MidWeek
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Del.icio.usLeave hula alone
King David Kalakaua said “hula is the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people” - so who is Bob Jones to say it is boring?
Does he understand what hula is all about? It is not just waving the hands and moving the hips - it is a deeply emotional and spiritual rite of the Hawaiian people.
Hula dancers learn mentally and physically the movements of the dance, they learn the language, the chants, all tied together in their heritage.
One only need look at the faces of the dancers to see how proud and beautiful they feel as each step is taken.
What an emotional experience it is each time we get to witness these beautiful people share their heritage with us.
For Mr. Jones to criticize someone else’s culture shows just how ignorant he is.
I am not Hawaiian nor am I a hula dancer. Can we try to not change the very core of the Hawaiian culture - enough has been done to the people of this land. Leave well enough alone.
Do Mo Warden
Honolulu
Toll road troubles
Larry Price is wrong about toll roads in Hawaii. The resolution in the Legislature is not the solution to ease Hawaii’s transportation problem. Ask the man who owns one. Oh - I don’t have the deed to any toll road, but I’ve paid, out of pocket, enough to have purchased at least one.
During the colonial era, toll roads over rutted, muddy roadways were cash cows for land owners. Later it was the politicians who did the milking - the public-be-damned spirit.
Gasoline taxes extract more than enough to build and maintain highways. Tolls only slow traffic, confuse travelers and cause problems. Where money is involved you can bet you’ll find corruption. Best to avoid it. The state of Connecticut removed its road tolls after so many scandals and deaths. Accidents are caused by in-a-hurry commuters dodging in and out of traffic snarls in the toll booth areas.
Instead of providing more highways, thus inviting more cars and pollution, why not remove some of the present roadways? Restrict to bicycles only. It would improve air quality and the health of our commuters.
Fred Mazik
Mililani
Get Lost, Rodriguez
Thank you for publishing Susan Page’s excellent column, “A Lame Excuse For Driving Drunk.” I too was disgusted when I saw how easily Michelle Rodriquez got off and her arrogance about the whole situation. She obviously has no clue, and if a club is formed called “Lose Michelle,” I want to join. She is a guest in our islands, and she doesn’t have the right to drive like a reckless idiot and maim or kill innocent people. If anything further is done to try to send her back to the Mainland, let me know. I’ll be the first to offer her a ride to the airport, but I won’t be driving 80-plus mph.
Karen Scharff
Honolulu Editor’s note: Rodriguez’s character was killed off in last week’s episode of ‘Lost’.
Punish taggers
Great column by Rick Hamada on the growing problem of these graffiti “taggers.” The punishment should be to clean up and maintain the property they’ve defaced. Maybe that will teach them some respect.
This hip-hop, rap culture we now have in our Islands is looking more and more like the Mainland. It will get worse. They copycat all the negative attitudes of the Mainland. Tagging/graffiti is part of this. With no discipline they do what they like. It’s sad because they waste time and energy, when they can be putting it to good use.
At one time we were different from the Mainland. Our aloha spirit, you don’t see much in the younger generation anymore. The thug-looking lifestyle is in. There is no soul in this.
Richard Juliano
Honolulu
Snow job
After reading Rick Hamada’s column on the president’s new press secretary, Fox News analyst Tony Snow, it appears that Mr. Hamada has long been living under a “snow job.” So tragic for the country. I felt physically ill by Hamada’s ignorance.
Patricia Blair
Kailua
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