HONOLULU MARATHON

LONG ROAD CLOSURES INCONVENIENCE MANY

I consider anyone able to run a 26.2-mile run in under five hours proficient enough to participate in a marathon, anyone under four hours is moving pretty well and anyone under the three-hour mark is an elite athlete.

However, on Sunday at 1 p.m., eight hours after the start of the Honolulu Marathon, the H-1 east-bound was gridlock back past UH-Manoa. The culprit was lane closures courtesy of the marathon in Kahala.

How is it that thousands of Honolulu residents can be inconvenienced by the marathon and the city permitting department?

Eight hours after the race start and runners — or, more correctly, walkers — were still being given carte blanche on Kalaniana'ole Highway.

How is it that thousands of residents are denied access to our beaches, our parks and our roads by the selfish, profit-motivated interests of marathon organizers?

In every other marathon that I have either run or witnessed, there are cutoff times for participants. If you are not past a certain point by a certain time, you are pulled out and a van or bus takes you to the finish, where you can celebrate.

Not a single serious event staged in the United States allows runners to just come in at any time. It's time the citizens of this state pull the plug on this all-day fiasco.

KAHUKU

STUDENT MUSIC CONCERT WONDERFUL HOLIDAY GIFT

In a world full of violence and negative behavior, I would like to share a happy note. Kahuku High and Intermediate is well known for its outstanding athletes, but it also has an outstanding choir.

This is my daughter's first year in chorus as a seventh-grader, and their first concert was Tuesday night.

I sat in awe and listened to the melodious voices of the young students of the Kahuku Music Learning Center.

The music coordinator is Elizabeth Kammerer, and her love of teaching music was clearly reflected in their performance.

Sitting in the audience, one could feel the hard work, love and pride that every student put forth.

A big mahalo to Mrs. Kammerer, the intermediate choir, the high school choir, Vocal Motion and Wahine 'o Kahuku for a superb, heartwarming and chicken-skin performance.

What a wonderful holiday gift to all who attended.

UH REGENTS

POSITION ON ADVISORY COUNCIL IS CORRECTED

Jay Fidell's Think Tech column in Sunday's Advertiser contained several errors.

First, it's the Association of Governing Boards (not some fictitious Association of American Governors) that has recommended as best practice an advisory council for regent selection.

In addition, Mr. Fidell mischaracterizes both my testimony before the Legislature on this matter, and the AGB's position on this issue.

AGB President Rick Legon, in fact, expressed "serious reservations" about the special interest, constituent-based council proposed by Senate Bill 14 in implementing the constitutional amendment calling for such a council. Legon stated, "Such a constituent-based council may make it difficult for the council to recruit and screen regent candidates who possess the broad vision and qualities to lead Hawai'i higher education in the challenges ahead. To avoid such situations, AGB recommends that the governor select the members of the candidate advisory council or committee who are not tied to constituent groups or special interests, and without regard to political party affiliation."

My testimony simply brought President Legon's reservations to the attention of the Legislature, along with similar reservations expressed by his predecessor at AGB, Tom Ingram, and the reservations expressed by the leaders of the two accrediting agencies that oversee UH.

I did, in fact, testify in support of a candidate advisory council — the one proposed in Senate Bill 617, which was more consistent with AGB best practice recommendations. My testimony can be accessed at www.hawaii.edu/offices/eaur/govrel/senate/2007/index.html.

Mr. Fidell should have read my testimony before describing its contents.

DRUG TESTING

HSTA CAN USE OTHER UNIONS' GUIDELINES

The teachers union should abide by its contractual agreement with the state and get on with the random drug testing.

HSTA concerns of privacy rights or the potential for illegal searches and seizures can all be eliminated by using the same contractual language, with all the checks and balances, and protective guidelines for their members, that other public sector unions like SHOPO (police), the firefighters' union and UPW have in their drug-testing contractual policies with the city.

If they have nothing to hide, what are they afraid of? Enough Department of Education personnel have been arrested for using, possessing and selling illegal drugs to warrant mandatory random drug testing.

MIDEAST

IRAQ WAR WAS BOTH LEGAL AND AUTHORIZED

I had to respond to Mr. Danny Li's Dec. 16 letter, "Obama has no anti-war advocates in cabinet."

I respect everyone's right to form their own opinion, but once again I see a clear misrepresentation of the facts.

In his letter, Mr. Li insinuates that the Iraq war is illegal and that Nuremberg principles require soldiers and commanders to refuse an illegal war.

Congress and the United Nations authorized the events in Iraq, and the soldiers and commanders had to obey orders.

I'm not going to argue the merits of whether we were justified with what has happened in Iraq, but I will say it was legal and authorized.