PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA

CONGRATULATIONS FOR WINNING PRESIDENCY

I want to congratulate Barack Obama for winning the campaign for the president of the United States of America.

It was an historic day for all the American people and the rest of the world and for all of us in Hawai'i.

Barack Obama is an amazing person and I am so proud of him for a tremendous job and perseverance throughout his campaign.

He brought people together with the common goal of working with each other to accomplish what needs to be done to make our lives better.

To Barack Obama and his family, our condolences on the loss of his grandmother. Seeing Barack throughout this campaign shows what a kind, caring person he is and what good values were taught to him by his mother and grandparents.

Wishing Barack Obama and his family a great experience while leading the people of the United States of America.

May God keep you and your family safe and guide you during all your decisions as president of the United States of America.

ELECTION WAS TRIUMPH AS WELL AS A VICTORY

The election of Sen. Barack Obama as the next president of the United States was more than a victory — it was a triumph.

President-elect Obama took the high road and won with dignity and strength of character.

We are truly at the dawning of a new world.

FUEL COSTS DOWN

DON'T EXPECT AIRLINES TO LOWER THEIR FEES

Kudos to Matson for lowering the fuel surcharge rate so quickly, and to Horizon for following suit.

I don't personally use their services, but I know most everything I buy gets here by ship and have confidence this savings will be passed on to me.

The airlines blamed fuel costs for all the new charges they have recently imposed.

Something tells me not to hold my breath for them to rescind these outrageous added fees. Mahalo again to Matson and Horizon.

HONOLULU AIRPORT

FOREIGN ARRIVALS GET POOR RECEPTION HERE

Hooray for Reyn Yorio Tsuru's Nov. 2 letter about the poor reception for arrivals at Honolulu International Airport.

I agree that the airport staff can do a better job.

Arrivals from the Mainland are OK. Get off the airplane and look for baggage claim. Not much different than a commuter flight.

Considering the fact that this is the Aloha State, the international flight arrivals are horrible.

People are herded off the planes and into a staging area, to wait for the worn wiki buses.

They are then shouted at, "Move to the back! Make room! Stand clear!"

Once the wiki-whacky bus reaches the customs and immigration area, only a few of the stations are open.

Everyone is muttering, "Why don't they open more stations?"

I've been to many European and Asian countries, and most of them show that they appreciate us visiting them from the time we step off the plane.

They smile, they bow, they are there to answer questions (very courteously) and they say thank you.

I agree with Mr. Tsuru. We spend millions of dollars to court foreign visitors but forget that aloha is necessary as part of their first impression of Hawai'i.

GOVERNMENT FUNDING

HAWAI'I'S GET IS AN UNFAIR FORM OF TAXATION

Greg Wiles wrote an excellent story about taxation by the state in Hawai'i. However, he didn't mention what many consider Hawai'i's most unfair tax of all: the general excise tax. The GET taxes everything, even the essentials of life: food and prescription drugs; services such as medical and dental care; even rent. No other state does this.

According to Wikipedia, Hawai'i is unique among the states in imposing an excise tax on all business transactions in the state. Worst of all, this tax impacts most those who can least afford it.

It's one thing to tax things such as liquor or cigarettes; other states typically use an excise tax on those items, hoping to change behavior or to fund treatment. There's only one correct word for Hawai'i's decision to tax the essentials of life: outrageous.

Whatever your opinion about the rail system, please rethink allowing its present and future financing to be linked to this truly dreadful tax.

Instead, let's substitute a sales tax on nonessential purchases. We may also want to consider an additional tax levied specifically on the purchase and registration of luxury cars.

STRUCTURE COLLAPSE

SHOULD HUD CHANGE HOMELESS CRITERIA?

The front page story on the "hidden homeless" who lived in the Gulick Avenue house (Nov. 2) was well written and enlightening. I always appreciate stories that educate the public about the issues of hunger, homelessness, poverty and the lack of affordable housing in Hawai'i.

While the collapse of the Gulick Avenue structure was rather extreme, it clearly highlights the lengths people have to go to in order to survive in paradise.

In what is perhaps a darkly comic twist to the story, however, is the fact that none of the 50 people living in that "house" would qualify as "homeless" as defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The vast majority of shelter providers are required to adopt HUD's definition of homelessness, which explicitly states that people paying excessive amounts of rent or living in substandard or crowded housing are not considered homeless.

I can't help but wonder if any of these 50 new "homeless" could have benefited from shelter services before they actually ended up without shelter.