Letters To The Editor
December 30, 2009 - MidWeek
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Del.icio.usTougher gun laws
Regarding Rick Hamada’s column “A Case For Learning To Defend Yourself,” of 194 nations in the world, ours ranks in the top 10 for murders using guns, per capita. (We are also the world’s leading exporter of guns and weapons.) Because of our high gun crime rate and the fact that they don’t require pinpoint accuracy, shotguns offer the best means of defense as in the anecdote referred to by Mr. Hamada in his recent column. Shotguns generally are also harder to conceal and therefore are used far less than handguns to commit crimes.
Unfortunately, in a split 5-4 decision, the right of individuals to keep handguns by not only “militias” but individuals was recently acknowledged by our Supreme Court in the case of D.C. vs. Heller. The same decision also confirmed states rights to carefully regulate handgun ownership.
That is exactly what our island state and the country must do to protect our citizens from unacceptable levels of handgun violence.
Daniel Laraway
Honolulu
Unfair to Santa
After reading MidWeek for years and considering it a family newspaper, I was surprised to see the S. Kelly cartoon with Tiger Woods sitting on the lap of Santa Claus, and the words “HO! HO! HO!” (and Tiger responding “Where? Where? Where?”). It was in very bad taste to use Santa Claus this way.
Brenda Sepulvida
Ewa Beach
Teachers: speak up
Please permit me to draw a line of comparison between two MidWeek columns on very different subjects, Bob Jones’ column “Christmas And American Muslims” and Rick Hamada’s “HSTA All About Self-interest.”
Mr. Jones refers to a radicalized Muslim attorney who calls Christmas “evil” and “misguided,” and that any recognition of this cultural holiday by Muslims will lead to “hellfire.” Mr. Hamada rightly criticizes the public school teachers union for playing politics with our children’s educations and futures.
What’s the connection? Just as moderate Muslims need to call out their hateful brethren and say this is not right, so must teachers call out (and vote out) their leadership and say this is not right, we’re teachers and we want to teach.
If neither moderate Muslims nor school teachers speak out against these things, we’re left to conclude just one thing: They’re OK with it.
Dennis K. Jones
Honolulu
Muslim critics
After reading Bob Jones’ column on Muslims and Christmas, I have a couple of questions: Why would a Muslim move to America, knowing this is a “Christian nation,” and then be critical of the host culture’s traditions? Didn’t they know what they were getting into? And if they think our traditions are so evil, why not return to whatever Muslim country they came from?
I have an answer for the last one, at least - those places offer a crummy quality of life compared to the USA.
OK, one more question: What would happen to a Christian who moved to a Muslim country and started criticizing Ramadan as evil?
Richard Lopes
Kaimuki
The true long view
I’d love to see UH professors say, “You know what, we’ll take a pay cut, and please give that money to the public schools - otherwise we’ll be doing even more remedial education than we have to do now.” That, ladies and gentlemen of the Professional Assembly, would truly be taking the long view of things.
Wanda Hashimoto
Pearl City
Lapdogs?!
As a regular reader of MidWeek, I’m responding to a comment in Steve Murray’s column “The Death of Tiger’s ‘Perfect’Aura.” In it, Mr. Murray calls fans of Oprah “lapdogs”! What does he call people who read his stuff?!
It never ceases to amaze me how jealous people can be of others’ success - regardless of the color of their skin.
That’s not the aloha spirit, Mr. Murray!
Harold A. Williams
Kapolei
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