KNIGHTHOOD

HONOR WAS OMITTED IN EDMUND HILLARY OBIT

I am surprised that Adam Bernstein's article about the late Sir Edmund Hillary in the Jan. 11 paper made no mention of one of the most signal honors conferred on that great explorer.

Sir Edmund Hillary was invested as a knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter in June 1996. His first knighthood, for the ascent of Mount Everest, had been in the Order of the British Empire.

The Garter is the premier order of knighthood in Britain.

LEGISLATURE

WHAT ABOUT ECONOMIC, HOUSING PROBLEMS?

Four state senators from the Ways and Means Committee go to UH and tour the Athletics Department and now our honorable senators are frustrated.

I'm sure the people living in tent city on the Wai'anae Coast or the tens of thousands of families that totally gave up and left Hawai'i because they just couldn't make it here financially, etc., etc., etc., will take comfort in the senators' frustration.

ELECTIONS

BIG ISLAND TAKES LEAD ON PUBLIC FUNDING

Many thanks to the Hawai'i County Council for taking the lead on supporting a pilot program for publicly funded elections.

States and municipalities around the country have seen publicly funded elections work to increase voter turnout and create a new interest in the political process.

The state and county of Hawai'i, with some of the lowest voter turnout rates in the country, will certainly benefit from the program. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

2008 CAMPAIGN

OBAMA'S EXPERIENCE WILL SERVE U.S. BETTER

Hillary Clinton's charge of "no experience" against Barack Obama bothers me because of the elitist conception of "leadership" her dismissal reveals. Clinton has done some useful things, but she has always led from positions of uppermost management — a partner in a law firm, first lady of Arkansas, a member of Wal-Mart's board of directors, first lady of the U.S., U.S. senator; this is the water she's been swimming in for 35 years.

Like Clinton, Obama has also been active in public service throughout his adult life. But, unlike her, he has earned experience at multiple management levels — in a small, street-level nonprofit agency, in the courts, in classrooms, as a state legislator and as a U.S. senator.

He understands what Clinton's "no experience" charge denies adamantly — there are insightful and able leaders at all levels of U.S. society.

He understands that we are not and should not be divisible into a group of people who get to tell others what to do and a larger group who have to do what the others tell them. Clinton's experience scares me.

TRANSIT

LET'S HEAR MORE ABOUT MAGNET-RAIL SYSTEM

We agree with Suzanne Teller (Letters, Jan. 11) that "we have a good bus system now and it meets (our) needs," and Dennis Callan that "Express buses can pick up passengers in the community, (get) onto the guideway and travel at 60 mph providing fast, convenient service."

And now there's a magnet-rail "super-express" available. People living outside the urban core need "super-express" transit into town to circumvent rush-hour congestion. Utilizing 21st-century technology and computer guidance, affordable magnet-rail meets a rapid-transit schedule on time, every time — better than buses do.

Magnet-rail's on-board computer and GPS technology make expensive track and electric grid wiring obsolete. Instead, the vehicle straddles a trail of small magnets embedded in the guideway — providing "super-express" transit at one-eighth the cost of existing, conventional "old" rail that requires expensive track and electrical grid to operate.

Magnet-rail has two modes — "bus" when in manual, picking up at bus stops, "rail" when in automatic — getting on the dedicated guideway and into town for the price of a bus pass.

We need to hear about magnet-rail. With its affordability, we can have super-express routes throughout O'ahu.

EXPERTS SHOULD MAKE TECHNOLOGY DECISION

As a former member of the Honolulu City Council and a resident of O'ahu's West side, I think that Councilman Romy Cachola is dead wrong in his approach to choosing technology for Honolulu's desperately needed mass- transit system.

Cachola says the council can do a better job of selecting the transit vehicles than a panel of nationally renowned mass transit expert professionals.

I've been a council member and felt the pressure exerted by special interest when big money is involved. I've waded through volumes of technical documents and tried mightily to make sense of complex, industry-specific information.

Speaking in all candor, I was not comfortable then, nor would I be comfortable now, making such a far-reaching technical decision.

Cachola says relying on experts shuts out both the council and the public. Not true. When the council members chose Honolulu's locally preferred transit alternative, they set out very specific requirements regarding the technologies that could and could not be considered.

Their decision came after hundreds of hours of public testimony, countless large and small meetings held islandwide, and at the end of an exhaustive alternatives analysis process that included public comment all along the way.

And let's not forget that the council members themselves will select some of the individuals who will make up this panel. Combine that responsibility with the role the council played in selecting the LPA and determining the system's route and that's more participation than any other council has had in making mass-transit decisions.

Here's my prediction: Let the expert panel choose the technology and the mass-transit project will continue to move forward in a way that will best serve Honolulu's citizens.

Give this responsibility to the Honolulu City Council and the process will, once again, become mired in politics and influence peddling and probably die a slow and agonizing death.

SUPERFERRY

FERRY CAME THROUGH FOR MAUI AFTER STORM

Hawai'i's Superferry came through on Jan. 7 for the people of Maui by transporting about two dozen Hawai'i Army National Guard heavy equipment vehicles to be used in clearing debris due to last month's storms that caused approximately $1.2 million in damage.

Gee, where were the protesters who opposed the Superferry carrying tourists and local residents visiting the Valley Isle? It is apparent that only when these same Superferry opponents are in desperate need for help do they now welcome and support the Superferry in their waters.

Mayor Charmaine Tavares and residents should appreciate the fact that the Superferry allows personnel to travel with their vehicles and equipment, making the National Guard operational in a faster and more efficient manner. The company even provided discounted rates to the state. Obviously, as a major tourist destination, it was vital that the National Guard complete their clean-up quickly, because who wants to visit Maui with scattered debris?

Hopefully, from this recent action, the people of Maui have learned that the Superferry has many positive aspects and makes water transportation between islands more efficient.

Perhaps they now realize that it benefits all people especially those in dire need as in the case of Jan. 7 and not benefiting just the tourists.

SUGAR BOWL

WARRIOR FANS EMBODIED WARMTH AND GRACIOUSNESS

On Jan. 1, I had the pleasure of participating in this year's Sugar Bowl and proudly representing the University of Georgia. Thousands of Hawai'i residents made the trip to New Orleans to represent their team after a wonderful 12-0 season.

While I am sure the outcome of the game disappointed many who might read this, I want to say, from an opponent's perspective, how much I admired the spirit and support of those from the Aloha State.

Even in the fourth quarter, when the game was clearly decided, the fans continued to cheer, the band continued to play and the cheerleaders continued to lead. After the game was over, I encountered literally hundreds of Hawai'i supporters in the French Quarter, in the hotel and on the streets of New Orleans. I have never met a more pleasant, congenial or collegial group of football fans.

While I have had the opportunity to visit Hawai'i on numerous occasions, I've never fully appreciated the aloha spirit until encountering so many Hawai'i residents more closely on "our turf."

The University of Hawai'i has much about which it can be proud — its academic program, its successful alumni and, yes, its football team. But what will remain for many of us from this year's Sugar Bowl is the warmth and graciousness with which UH fans conducted themselves.

I'm proud to have enjoyed positive interactions with the UH president, the Manoa chancellor and the state's governor.

I hope for future encounters that will evidence the height of both southern hospitality and the aloha spirit coming together.

Best wishes for a happy and successful 2008.