NOISE

LESSONS LEARNED FROM THAI CITY'S APPROACH

I have been living on Ala Wai Boulevard, in Waikiki since 2003. I am frequently disturbed by the excessive amount of noise due to emergency vehicle sirens, garbage trucks, delivery trucks, etc. It is the same problem throughout all of Waikiki.

It would seem to me that with our entire economy being so dependent on tourists visiting our beautiful city, we should be more hospitable to them and make every effort to allow them a good night's sleep.

It is currently not happening. We are all awakened four or five times each night by police or ambulance sirens wailing through the town.

The siren is to raise awareness of an emergency vehicle. However, at 3, 4 or 5 a.m. when there is no traffic, why must they wake up thousands of people trying to sleep in their hotels or apartments?

I recently visited Chiang Mai, Thailand, and was pleased to observe that the emergency vehicles keep the siren level to just a few decibels above the other street noises.

People are aware that they are coming and pull over; however, they do not need to cover their ears.

My suggestion is that our city administrators contact their counterparts in Chiang Mai and find out what is the best way to make the change to our emergency vehicles.

Perhaps a toggle switch or a volume control could be installed in the vehicle so that the driver could turn up the volume, if he really needed to.

The garbage truck banging and delivery truck beepers are other issues that we need to find a remedy for. If we don't, then more people will be looking for alternative locations to enjoy a "quiet" and restful vacation.

PUBLIC SAFETY

MAJORITY OF RESIDENTS SUPPORT CROSSWALK

I have read the decision handed down by the City and County of Honolulu Department of Transportation Services Deputy Director Richard F. Torres not to install crosswalks and stop signs on Kainui Drive in Kailua, where motorists are regularly clocked at speeds in the 40 and 50 mph range, well above the posted 25 mph, on a stretch of road that includes bike lanes and the Kainalu Elementary School.

This refusal to act goes against the overwhelming support of a majority of Kainui Drive residents and the unanimous vote of the Kailua Neighborhood Board.

I quote Director Torres' solution to our traffic issues on Kainui Drive: "We have forwarded the speeding concerns on Kainui Drive to the HPD for their action."

This is a flawed solution, a cop out to a real problem that calls for more permanent means of slowing traffic speeding other than the presence of an officer, once or twice a month. Furthermore, I quote Director Torres: "The city's traffic calming program has been suspended." This is an insult to the majority of the city and county residents who want to feel safe on their streets.

Auwe to the City and County of Honolulu Department of Transportation Services whose answer to traffic issues in our city is limited to passing the buck to HPD when they should have the courage to implement sound traffic policies so that cars, bicycles and pedestrians can safely cohabit.

CONCON

HAWAI'I'S CONSTITUTION DOES NEED CHANGES

My response to Harry Boranian's letter (Letter, Dec. 22) "Hawai'i constitution doesn't need changing" is: "Yes, it does!"

In Hawai'i, to rely on the opportunity "to repeal a legislative mistake" is not always an option. I'd like to give a reason why.

By the State Constitution, Article X, the state provides for only one board of education, one educational agency (the Department of Education), one superintendent, one education budget authority.

In contrast, it is the duty of the Texas Legislature to provide a State Board of Education, to establish and provide for "the support and maintenance of an efficient system of public free schools" (The Texas Constitution, amended 1928).

With that in place, independent school districts are created, each governed by its own elected board of trustees.

I believe the Legislature cannot create another educational agency without the state Constitution being changed first. Hawai'i is the only state that does not allow for competition and choice through the provision of more than one educational agency. Even charter schools must ask for federal funding and special education services through the DOE, not independently seek and spend funds as charter schools might in other states.

Is that convincing enough to say yes to a Con-Con?

By the way, I have no political interest. I'm a mom who has a say!

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

MUSIC CLASSES CAN'T BE CONSIDERED LUXURY

At this time of year, many of us gather to hear the sweet voices of children raised in holiday song. Yet, some of these voices are in danger of being stilled, at least in our public elementary schools.

More and more public elementary schools statewide are giving up their music programs in answer to the pressures put upon them. Because music is not a tested subject, it is not considered to be a priority, even though it is still considered a core subject under No Child Left Behind.

However, most public schools throughout the rest of the country still have full-fledged elementary programs, despite NCLB/testing constraints. Studies have proven time and again that music should not be considered a luxury, but an important part of each child's education.

It should not be an unrealistic goal for every elementary child to have access to a qualified music teacher. Our job as elementary school educators goes beyond just the basics. We need to educate the whole child in order to give our keiki the opportunities that each of them deserve.

SUPERFERRY

ANTI-TOURISM MESSAGE AGAIN COMING THROUGH

The New York Times has a piece Sunday in its Travel Section about the Superferry as a symbol of some Hawai'i residents' being fed up with more and more tourists. (It ignores the incredible absurdity of protesters trying to block a few hundred passengers on a ferry boat while thousands of visitors land in airplanes a few miles away.)

The incessant drumbeat of the anti-tourism message again is clear in the national media: Visitors, stay away from Hawai'i.

As usual, the few noisy critics get far more ink than the vast majority of Hawai'i citizens, who appreciate tourism as a clean industry which is the lifeblood of Hawai'i's economy.

But we can't ignore the bad publicity caused by a few, because all suffer as a result of it.

Aloha spirit? This message, also expressed in national and international coverage of the fanatic campaign by a few Kailua residents against vacation rentals, has a cumulative damaging impact on all tourism here.

This "anti-tourism" message is going to wound, if not kill, the goose that lays the golden eggs— and that should get the attention of everyone in Hawai'i who stands to lose from a decline in tourism.

I'll bet a true economic model would show some interesting and very painful outcomes from a reduction in tourism. Jobs? Real estate values? Higher taxes to offset lost revenues? And, as The Advertiser reported Sunday, the tourism numbers are already in decline in Hawai'i.

You can just imagine a prospective visitor reading this stuff and saying, "Well, dear, how about the Caribbean?"

RECYCLE

PLASTIC BAGS ADD TO O'AHU'S LITTER PROBLEM

When Barnes & Noble opened in Kahala about 15 years ago, I purchased 6 canvas shopping bags and carry them in the trunk of my car. The bags cost $72.00. I use them for every shopping trip, especially at the grocery store. The store credits me .05 for every bag I use. I calculated over 15 years I have saved more than $234.00, but even better, I have not used over 800 plastic shopping bags.

Longs Drugs is the worst, for every eight items purchased they give 12 plastic and two paper bags. Sometimes they give more bags than items purchased.

It is depressing to see all the plastic bags blowing around the streets and piled up against fences and buildings, along with the cigarette butts.

PLASTIC BAGS CAN BE RECYCLED FOR TRASH BAGS

Let me see if I have this correct. The City and County has an ordinance that requires that we wrap our garbage before depositing it in our dumpster. Out of the stuff we bring home from the grocery store, a portion of this stuff eventually ends up in the trash. A large number of us live in condominiums that have trash chutes that are only so big. If you take our grocery bags away we will now have to purchase plastic bags, so we can appropriately dispose of our trash in the dumpster?

I recycle my plastic grocery bags as a trash bag, as I am sure many other people do.

LET STORES PASS ALONG COST TO CONSUMER

The simple solution for stores is to pass any extra cost (for paper bags or biodegradable plastic bags) on to the customer — a few pennies. That way, we quickly learn to bring in a bag or, with small purchases, to go without.

We all have to work together. Let Hawai'i inspire other places, as San Francisco has.

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