LOSING SHORELINE

PAST GENERATIONS HAVE MUCH WISDOM TO OFFER

As I read that some Pacific islands are losing shoreline, I longed for the wisdom of my grandparents' and parents' generations, and despaired at how placidly Hawai'i accepts the under education of its children.

Those generations fought and won two world wars and they defeated a depression of biblical proportions.

Whine to them that you feared a shrinking shoreline and you'd be told: "Stop whining, and go build some more. That is why we pay so much tax to educate you."

And, in fact, an old Aloha Tower proposal included breakwaters outside Sand Island, relocating commercial activity and redeveloping the inner harbor exclusively for recreation and residential use (rather than a food court with insufficient parking).

To Hawai'i's young, I am sure they would say: Leave fear of change to the aging boomers, because you were raised to master, not fear change.

PAY POLICY

BUSH SHOULD TARGET NEW FEDERAL WORKERS

I would like to start this letter saying that I have much respect for President Bush. His responsibility as president is to keep America running as smoothly as possible. What I do not understand is how he just wants to change the pay policy for the employees of the U.S. government overnight.

When we are hired, we are promised a pay package. In this instance, federal workers who are employed in Hawai'i are paid a cost of living allowance.

If Mr. Bush wants to change the pay policy, he should do so with the newly hired. That is what happened back in 1984. The old workers who were hired before Dec. 31, 1983 kept the old retirement system, and the workers who were hired beginning Jan. 1, 1984, are offered the newer retirement system.

EDUCATION

DOE CLUELESS ON HOW TO IMPROVE THE SYSTEM

I would like to respond to John Kawamoto's (Letter, June 4) question: "Where is the outrage over the public school system?" He asks, "Why are the people silent?"

That is a great question considering Hawai'i's dismal educational system is second to last in the nation.

There is no outrage over this most important issue. The people of Hawai'i accept this as normal. Politicians, the Department of Education, the parents who send their kids to school looking like they're going to the beach or to the disco, and the teachers who refuse to take drug tests — these people don't have a clue how to change.

The DOE is incapable of change. The state refuses to follow the examples of other successful schools on the Mainland and in the Islands. Private schools start with the basics and that is a dress code. Nobody in the DOE has a clue to the connection of speaking pidgin in the classroom and reading books.

Education is low on the priority list when it comes to the state budget.

SUPERFERRY

WILL VEHICLES BE INSPECTED THOROUGHLY?

Unless each vehicle is checked from top to bottom before boarding Hawai'i's new Superferry, I can see contraband, such as illegal drugs, being smuggled in doors, seats, wheelwells, dashboards and other inconspicuous areas; it has been done for years all over the world.

The Superferry Web site does indicate that the vehicle's trunk, compartments, interior, etc., are subject to search, but will thorough searches be conducted for possible smuggled items?

ROAD WIDENING

FORT WEAVER ROAD PROJECT A MUST HAVE

In a letter dated June 4 by Mr. Keith Steadman, he enumerated that the state's initiative to widen Fort Weaver Road is ill advised and a waste of money.

I disagree. The Fort Weaver Road widening project will add a pedestrian path where there currently is none and feature closed- circuit television monitors to help synchronize the traffic lights in addition to adding lanes that can be contraflowed to cater to emergency situations.

When describing O'ahu's traffic situation the term "lane deficient" fits since Honolulu ranks dead last in the category of how many roadway miles are available to serve its population compared to other cities of its size in the United States. And to put O'ahu's traffic jams into perspective, the Big Island has 21.6 miles of roads per 1,000 residents to O'ahu's 1.5. Our lack of roads becomes most evident when lanes are closed to investigate traffic accidents. By adding lanes, motorists are able to bypass accidents more readily, definitely an asset when there is only one way in or out.

As for Mr. Steadman purporting that the widening will not make a difference but merely transfer the gridlock from Fort Weaver Road to the H-1 Freeway, I introduced HB70 which would double the carrying capacity of the freeway without raising taxes. My solution involves constructing more freeway lane miles using the private sector to get it done.

HB70 is supported by the 'Ewa Neighborhood Board, the Hawai'i Highway Users Alliance, the state House of Representatives and the governor to name a few. All that is needed in the equation for more freeway lane miles is for the state Senate to pass this bill. Until such time, let's be thankful that the federal government is paying for 80 percent of the road widening that will get more cars through the intersections faster and turn a 30-minute ride into 10 when finished.

IRAQ

TIME TO STOP FUNDING THE TRAVESTY IN IRAQ

I was most disturbed to hear that we are building several permanent military bases in Iraq. This is contrary to all that President Bush has said about leaving Iraq ASAP.

WWII put us on a collision course with the Japanese Empire. The carnage and utter stupidity of that war was graphically displayed in "Letters from Iwo Jima." Nations can get locked in a death-grip that suffocates reason to the point of insanity and self-destruction that was evident at Iwo Jima. I fear that we are on that course now because, once again, we are fighting a "Presidential War" like Vietnam rather than a "Constitutional War," such as WWII. Congress has not declared war on Iraq, Iran or Afghanistan. This is much more than a formality.

It is time to say no more funds for this travesty. The Constitution has been violated. Reason and truth have been abandoned.

DEVELOPMENT

SOME KEY AFFORDABILITY REQUIREMENTS IN PLACE

Ms. Lisa Naito's June 4 letter to the editor about the planned Leihano senior community in Kapolei asks the question, "What happened to the good old days that required developers to put aside a certain percentage of their units at reasonable prices so that locals could afford to move there?"

The developers of Leihano are required to provide affordable housing under conditions adopted when the zoning was established for the site.

In Ordinance 02-61, the City Council, based on recommendations by the Department of Planning and Permitting, did require the developers to provide 30 percent of the housing to be affordable housing if the site is developed for housing for rent or sale instead of the senior retirement community that was proposed at the time the zoning was approved.

If a senior retirement community is developed at the site, the council required, in place of the standard affordable housing requirement, that a nonprofit foundation be established to provide funds for those residents who become unable to pay for all or part of the care needed for the remainder of their life.

BABY SAFE HAVEN

BILL WOULD SAVE LIVES OF HAWAI'I'S NEWBORNS

The Baby Safe Haven bill will help to save the lives of newborns by providing immunity from prosecution to mothers who drop off an infant at a police or fire station, or at a hospital, during the critical 72 hours after birth.

Forty-seven other states have adopted "safe surrender" laws since 1999. The states that have not are Hawai'i, Alaska and Nebraska.

One of the criticisms of the bill is that babies who are dropped off may never have the opportunity to know their birth parents or family history. This argument is moot if the child doesn't survive the conditions of abandonment.

It's important to know that the Department of Human Services will have the ability to reunite the newborn baby with their parents given the information received at the time of the drop off.

Even if no information is received, nothing precludes the department from reuniting the baby with its natural parents at a later time.

They will also have the authority to search for relatives of the newborn child to provide a home for the child on a temporary or permanent basis, or to implement other placement options that giver preference to relatives.

Our current child abandonment law is obsolete. Prosecution was intended to deter mothers from taking what was considered a reckless approach, but the reality is that newborns have suffered and died as a result.

Regardless of statistics, my conscience tells me that if we can save one life with this new law, it will be worth it.