CAMPUS VIOLENCE

PARENTS, NOT SCHOOLS, MUST BE ACCOUNTABLE

I am dumbfounded that parental responsibility is never mentioned in any discussion on violence on high school campuses.

I keep hearing that today's youth are a big problem. Why do we continue to push the blame on the kids and the system of education? The blame lies firmly on us as parents and what values, virtues and conduct that are taught, reinforced and allowed in the home.

Although our kids spend a third of their time at school, it is not the job of the school to teach these basics, but to reinforce them. When are the parents of these children who cause this violence going to be held accountable?

We have some excellent educators in our public system. We as parents should support them and work closely with them to solve issues. The answer lies in the school, counselors, police and parents teaming together to resolve and squash this violent behavior.

It is not acceptable in our schools or in our community. Where are the parents?

KAKA'AKO

A&B PROJECT WOULD HAVE IMPROVED AREA

I've got a suggestion for hard-working Loretta Yajima of the Children's Discovery Center on how to deal with her graffiti problem.

Why doesn't she ask the Save Kaka'ako Makai group and their legislative supporters to show up every Saturday morning for the next 10 years to clean the paint off their walls? Because that's what it õs going to take, unless they start organizing a patrol.

You may recall that it was Save Kaka'ako Makai who put a stop to the A&B project that would have brought badly needed activity to the area, which would have greatly lessened or eliminated the graffiti. For a hundred good reasons, their "People's Park" is just not going to happen. I don't foresee any improvement for this wasteland for a very long while.

Maybe we should consider asking A&B to give it another shot.

IRAQ

WAR EFFORT HARMED BY POLITICAL 'GOTCHA'

The University of Hawai'i Press recently published "Combat Chaplain: The Personal Story of the World War II Chaplain of the Japanese-American 100th Battalion," by their former chaplain, Israel Yost. The preface states, "To the young men from subtropical Hawai'i this combat in freezing temperatures was a nightmare. Without winter uniforms or the proper weapons, their officers also lacked experience and expertise for this kind of combat." The campaign in Italy "was a dark, difficult, and costly effort that some at that time, and later, would complain had no strategic purpose."

What would have happened to the war effort and morale if reporters or ambitious politicians had attacked President Roosevelt for mismanagement on the Italian front? Or if Republican newspapers had carried on an unrelenting campaign of attacks on the administration, misstating FDR's speeches, and printing selective leaks of national security documents? FDR was also accused of knowing about Pearl Harbor beforehand and "letting it happen" so we would be dragged into a world war.

Fortunately, Republicans had higher ethical standards than to undermine the war effort with political "gotcha." There is a vast difference between honest criticism and the Bush derangement syndrome displayed today.

POSITIVE THINKING

DUKE AIONA PRAISED FOR 'POWER OF ALOHA'

Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona is doing a very good thing with his aloha "positive-thinking cards." Aiona's project is following the path laid out by Hawai'i's icon of aloha, the first ambassador of aloha, Duke Kahanamoku.

In the late '50s and early '60s Duke Kahanamoku greeted movie stars and politicians at the boat and at the airport. Duke would give them around-the-island tours and take them for canoe rides and surf lessons. While providing his aloha service for guests of our new state, Duke wrote his "Creed of Aloha" which all of us at Waikiki Beach Activities use today. Our staff of beach boys, lifeguards and attendants are often the first local person a visitor meets and the last they see when they leave. Visitors tell us that aloha service they receive on the beach is what they remember when it is snowing outside.

ELECTION 2006

DEMOCRATS HEAPING BLAME ON GOV. LINGLE

The Democratic Party has blamed Gov. Linda Lingle for complicity in the Iraq war and the defeat of the Akaka bill in Congress (a bill which, I believe, the governor supported wholeheartedly).

Following that logic, what's next? How about tensions between Japan and North Korea? The starvation crisis in Africa? Rioting in France? Maybe even global warming — the trapping of too much hot air in our atmosphere. No, that one is on the Democrats.

TRASH

TAX VISITORS TO PAY FOR BEACH IMPROVEMENTS

I made a return visit to Honolulu and the North Shore in September after a 30-year absence. I would first like to thank the citizens of O'ahu for allowing me to enjoy the beauty of their island, but I would also like to point out some changes that I noticed.

Congestion on the beaches and parks and trash on the beaches are problems in desperate need of more effective management.

Judging by the overwhelming number of tourists and newcomers, a low-impact solution might be a head tax on visitors to pay for clean-up crews, additional parking, boardwalks for some turtle-only beaches, environmental monitoring teams, etc.

I love the welcoming, non-judgmental attitude of your state, but I fear that if you do not actively manage your tourists and new residents, they (we) will inadvertently destroy the natural wonders of your island.

SINGLE-FAMILY HOMES

WHERE TO FIND WATER IN EVENT OF A DISASTER

I am amazed by the concern about sufficient drinking water in the event of a disaster.

If you live in a single-family home and a disaster strikes, you have 60 gallons of pure water at your disposal. It is called a water heater, and all you have to do is take off one of the hoses connecting to your washing machine, or use a simple garden hose and connect it to the bottom of your water heater. Sixty gallons of water ought to last for awhile — until things improve.

KING KAMEHAMEHA

CELEBRITY AD IN POOR TASTE BUT NOT OFFENSIVE

I had to laugh at the reactions to the Celebrity Cruises ad featuring King Kamehameha raising a champagne toast.

Self-appointed guardians of our culture were "shocked," "appalled" and "deeply offended." There was even gasping. What, no gnashing of teeth?

Come on, people. It was a silly ad, done in poor taste, but hardly worth the furor it's caused. You want shocking, appalling and offensive? Pick up a copy of the very paper in which you've been quoted — and read it.

ENDANGERED SITES

'VIRTUAL' TECHNOLOGY CAN PRESERVE HISTORY

Preserving history is important. However, historic preservationists should start to use technology to preserve and share historic sites and buildings.

Too much taxpayer money is wasted on "preserving" the actual property when it could be photographed, videotaped, placed on the Internet and easily accessed by everyone for a virtual tour.

A check of the Historic Hawai'i Foundation Web site will give you a list of registered sites, but nothing else. They have a copy of a story and pictures of a few endangered sites from a 2005 Honolulu Magazine article, but that was weak documentation.

Stop trying to dictate to private property owners with taxpayer money. Allow for progress and efficient use of land to move forward by using technology to preserve and educate.

TRANSIT

LIGHT RAIL ONLY LOGICAL CHOICE FOR HONOLULU

OK, so now the transit critics and highway users/highway huggers are saying that they don't trust our government and lawmakers to do the right thing if a rail system is built. They say this will be the biggest public works project built on O'ahu, and point to potential cost over-runs.

They neglect to acknowledge that the biggest and most expensive public works project this state has seen so far was in fact a highway project, the H-3 freeway. And the main reason for the cost over-runs was due to delays caused by critics and opposition.

Light rail would have been much cheaper if it were approved in 1992. And it would have been built now, and we would have transit as a travel option. But some of these same rail critics stopped it, citing the same reasons for their opposition today. They prefer we invest in more highways to accommodate more cars. Now they even want to charge drivers a toll to help pay for the highway. At $10 a day for roundtrip use of this toll road, that's a whopping $2,600 a year for every toll road user, over and above the cost of your gas, parking fees, and the cost and maintenance of your car.

More importantly, that just puts more cars on the road.

The only logical choice we have is light rail, and we need to act now and act decisively for our future well being.