TRIBUTE

NEWMAN WAS TALENTED AND GENEROUS ACTOR

I met Paul Newman only once, when I was a student at the AFI in May 1976. His wife, Joanne Woodward, was enrolled in the Women in Film program that taught women in Hollywood how to direct.

On this particular morning, a dozen of the graduates of the Women in Film program were showing their work in the conference room. I had an editing class upstairs that ran long, so arrived late and had to stand in the back, near the doorway.

Joanne Woodward's presentation came up right after Anne Bancroft's, and as she was introducing it, I turned to my right to see Paul Newman(!), who appeared out of nowhere.

The first thing I noticed is how short he was and how remarkably thin he looked. He had on a pair of jeans that made his legs look like matchsticks, a baggy grey shirt, and beige leather loafers with no socks. I couldn't speak, dumbstruck, but nodded and offered him my spot, which offered a better view of the screen. He shook his head kindly and whispered, "I've seen it too many times."

The lights dimmed and her piece was shown. Newman was watching the audience, not the screen. The 10-minute short was followed by great applause and I glanced over at Mr. Newman. From one corner of the bluest eye I had ever seen, a tear was just starting to form.

I have nothing but admiration for this talented man, who stayed married to the same woman for more than 50 years, quite an accomplishment in Hollywood.

PRESIDENTIAL RACE

ONLY NADER'S POLICIES WOULD BENEFIT VOTERS

Every four years, when election time comes around, I am amazed that the only candidates given a platform are the two main party nominees.

What ever happened to democracy? Mr. Ralph Nader is running on the Independent Party ticket and his name is on the ballot in about 45 states, including Hawai'i. But he is not allowed to take part in any debates. Are the two main candidates afraid of what he has to say?

He is the only one who espouses policies that would benefit voters, including corporate reform (needed more than ever), universal healthcare and an end to preemptive wars that have caused so much harm in blood, the economy and the respect of world nations.

HSTA

NO DRUG TEST, NO PAY RAISE FOR ISLE TEACHERS

I was not aware that teachers had different civil rights than members of other unions. UPW members, Carpenters, Operators and many, if not all, other trade unions have agreed to random drug testing for their members.

When will our spineless Department of Education tell the teachers to take a drug test just like the rest of us do on a random basis?

No drug test, no pay raise. I believe that the two items were linked in the same package that was agreed on by the union members.

FUEL

WHEN WILL OFFICIALS SEE ETHANOL IS A BAD IDEA

Our state government mandated that the gasoline we use in our cars must contain ethanol.

Ethanol isn't made in Hawai'i, so it has to be imported.

Ethanol doesn't provide as much power as gasoline, so our cars get fewer miles per gallon.

Ethanol absorbs water, so long-term storage and pipeline transport can't be used to store or transport ethanol.

Ethanol is corrosive, so it gums up important parts in your engine and gas tank — like seals, gaskets and hoses.

Ethanol is made from corn, so the price of corn went up, then farmers started planting more corn and less of other crops like soy beans, so agricultural commodity prices went up.

The U.S. can't grow enough corn, sugar cane or switchgrass to make enough ethanol to replace the gasoline we use.

Large agribusinesses stopped building more ethanol plants once the problems with ethanol became apparent.

The citizens of our country, who want to do the right thing, realize that the ethanol mandate was a bad idea.

How long will it take for government to figure this out and reverse the ethanol mandate?

Now don't get me started on those compact fluorescent light bulbs, all of which contain mercury.

GENERAL EXCISE TAX

ISLE TAXPAYERS KEEP SHELLING OUT MONEY

Barack Obama's running mate, Joe Biden, recently suggested that wealthy taxpayers could display their love of country by donating more of their earnings to the government.

Sen. Biden can rest assured that Hawai'i's residents, from rich to poor, rank second to none in patriotic fervor. As a result of the general excise tax increase (which in practice went from 4.166 percent to 4.712 perecent) to help pay for rail, we are eagerly shelling out an additional 13.11 percent in actual excise taxes paid. Those of us poor enough to spend only $25,000 per year on rent, goods, and services now pay $1,178 vs. $1,041.50, an increase of $136.50. Of course, one could easily double this amount to $2,356 by impulsively buying a new car or suddenly getting very sick (note: HMSA doesn't cover the GET).

A small part of our tax bill ($2.12 for every $1,000 spent) stems from the state's ingenious way of collecting the GET: Instead of having landlords and businesses add a 4.5 percent surcharge to their customers' bills and then requiring them to speedily deposit this money in a GET account, the state permits them to tack on a "4.712 percent GET," which it treats as gross business income taxed at 4.5 percent. The extra 0.212 percent charged to consumers covers the tax owed by the businesses on the amount collected, and thus maintains their tax burden at zero.

What a deal! The state collects extra taxes on the "4.712 percent GET" income, landlords and businesses get a free ride, while renters and consumers get — to live in Hawai'i nei!

WAIKIKI

ROOM RATES INCREASE WHEN HOTELS UPGRADE

I read Mr. Charles Carter's Sept. 30 letter to the editor ("Decrease room rates to increase tourism")

It occurred to me that many people might share his views, which reflect an incomplete understanding of the Hawai'i hotel market.

When the numbers show an increase in average daily rates for all hotels in Waikiki year over year it sounds as though each individual hotel is experiencing higher average daily rates. This is often not the case.

Often, newly developed hotels replace older, cheaper ones. For example, Outrigger demolished a couple thousand budget and economy hotel rooms with an average daily rate of about $65 to make way for Waikiki Beach Walk, a Wyndham Vacation Ownership Resort and the Trump Tower. Obviously, the Trump Tower average daily rates will be higher than $65.

In a more specific example, Outrigger renovated two budget hotels with 880 rooms with an average daily rates of $75 into the new Embassy Suites Waikiki Beach Walk with 369 suites and an average daily rate substantially higher.

It is often the budget and economy hotels that get eliminated or "reconcepted," thus removing from inventory the cheapest rooms. This is how the industry achieves great gains in average daily rates; we reinvent the product.