HISTORY NOT WRITTEN YET ON WAR MEMORIAL

Your story on Mayor Hannemann's endorsement of his task force's recommendation ("Honolulu mayor backs plan to demolish Waikíkí war memorial," Nov. 29) predicts that the historic Waikíkí War Memorial Natatorium will soon be history itself.

Don't write that history yet. We have a very long way to go. We choose a public policy position that honors our war dead by preserving the Waikíkí War Memorial Natatorium as the national treasure that it is — intact. And we will win because the law is on our side. As the National Trust for Historic Preservation pointed out in a recent analysis, federal environmental, commercial and historic preservation statutes present "very significant legal constraints on any proposal for the city to demolish the Natatorium."

Those who would raze the Natatorium are claiming a premature victory. They may have won the round but they will not win the day. In the end, the state motto — "Ua mau ke ea o ka äina I ka pono," the life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness — will prevail. Ku'e!

PETER APO | President, Friends of the Natatorium

BULKY PICKUP

MAYOR'S PROPOSAL BULLIES HOMEOWNERS

Mayor Mufi Hannemann is introducing a bill to fine property owners $500 a day for bulky trash left in front of their homes ahead of the scheduled pickup day. Under the bill, even if the homeowners do not dump the trash themselves, they are still responsible. In other words, homeowners are now tasked to catch these illegal trash dumpers, a job the city and police are supposed, but fail, to perform.

What is next? Would homeowners be arrested for all crimes committed in front of their properties because "You've got to be your own eyes and ears too," as the mayor stated?

Mr. Mayor, please stop bullying us homeowners. Instead, you should channel your resource and creativity to come up with workable solutions for the problems.

I hope the City Council will hold their collective noses to this bill. It just doesn't pass the smell test.

VUONG TANG | Honolulu

VOG

GRANTS CAN HELP FIX AIR-MONITOR SYSTEM

On Oct. 28 I was contacted by a constituent who was having respiratory problems due to the vog coming from the Big Island. The constituent was frustrated by the discrepancies between the data presented on the Department of Health's Online Air Quality and the EPA's AirNow.

It was very puzzling for him to look outside and witness a thick, unhealthy haze but also observe that the AirNow Web site was reporting "good" air quality.

After speaking with representatives from the DOH's Clean Air Branch and the EPA's Region 9 office, we learned that one of the major problems was that some of our air quality monitoring equipment is in need of replacement.

Given our state's massive budget shortfall, it's important that we look for other funding sources. I've been communicating with the DOH director, Dr. Chiyome Fukino, and am urging her to take full advantage of the federal money available through the EPA's equipment replacement grants.

It's the government's responsibility to provide the public with the necessary information, so we can protect ourselves from vog.

SEN. MIKE GABBARD | District 19

ENGINEERING

YOUTHS SHOULD LOOK INTO EXCITING FIELD

It's refreshing to read Andrea Kay's article (Nov. 23) Advertiser on how engineering as a career is not well understood by young students. Of course, I am biased since I spent 39 years in the field as both a technical specialist and as a manager.

As Andrea suggests, most students believe that only "nerds" can cope with math and science and that belief is extended to the engineering career field. Nothing could be further from that perception. I tell young people that even if you don't like math and science it's just something to get through when your goal is to get the engineering degree.

Too many quit in the first year of college. There is just a wide spectrum of fields within engineering that requires minimal to extensive mathematical knowledge. I for one never achieved high grades in high school or college math. Engineering is visible in just about everything we see in a urban landscape — high-rise buildings, roads, electrical transmission lines, and even things we don't see such as in pacemakers, chemical processing and software creation.

It's an exciting field, combining technical knowledge with practicality, and all young people should be encouraged to enter this career, which is rewarding monetarily and for social good.

PAUL MIZUE | Aiea

FURLOUGHS

HSTA PLANNING-DAY STANCE IS SHOCKING

As a parent of a DOE student and a business person with coworkers and employees with DOE students, I am shocked at the HSTA's position not to give up its "planning" days. This position harms Hawaii's keiki, putting their interest second to those of the HSTA.

Clearly the HSTA is out of touch with state and local officials, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, the people of Hawaii and even local schools and teachers, many of whom voted in favor of replacing "planning" days with instructional days at school-level meetings.

The HSTA leadership apparently sees itself as "too big to fail" and is shortsightedly maintaining that it doesn't have to give anything up. I strongly urge the people of Hawaii, both individually and through their elected officials, to encourage HSTA to reconsider its position.

MATTHEW COHEN | Honolulu