THEBOAT, THEBUS

CITY MUST BE MORE TRANSPARENT WITH DATA

Since when does the city have the option of not providing the public data on programs when The Advertiser requested information about recent daily utilization from TheBoat? The city needs to immediately release all current data on TheBoat and TheBus. Where are the council members on this issue?

Not only did many taxpayers still think that the program was subsidized by the feds, I am sure they were shocked to see the $120 cost per ride.

And if certain routes on the TheBus are not cost-effective that should be addressed. The public needs to know especially in understanding which routes could be less cost effective when rail begins.

Also, the city needs to request and release all GPS data that show which bus routes continue to be excessively late — or, worse, leave their assigned stops too early.

If this is the way the city plans to operate when the rail starts — hiding data — then we need a long talk with Honolulu Hale.

CIVIL UNIONS

BILL DOES NOT ALTER DEFINITION OF MARRIAGE

The passage of HB 444, A Bill For An Act Relating to Civil Unions, on Feb. 12 by a vote of 33 to 17 in the Hawai'i House of Representatives was a historic moment in our civil rights struggle for equality. Civil unions represent a very important step toward treating all couples and families equally under the law in Hawai'i. There has been one area of misunderstanding about the bill and this needs clarification.

HB 444 extends to partners in a civil union the same rights, benefits, protections, and responsibilities that are granted to spouses in a marriage. It does not, however, alter the definition of marriage which would remain between a man and woman according to Chapter 572, part 1, of the Hawai'i Revised Statutes.

Other states' same-sex marriages would only be recognized as civil unions by Hawai'i, not marriages.

PRO BOWL

WHY NOT TRY HOSTING SBS OPEN FOR A YEAR?

Hawai'i lost the Pro Bowl for at least one year. The Fields Open couldn't find a sponsor for 2009. Now the SBS Open looks like it could disappear if the LPGA and/or Seoul Broadcasting System don't renew.

Since the Pro Bowl won't be here in 2010, maybe the Hawai'i Tourism Authority can step up and use the $4.5 million they paid the NFL to host the Pro Bowl and host the SBS Open for a year instead. Even though times are hard, it seems a shame to lose all these events.

Not knowing what the numbers were for 2009, the Pro Bowl previously generated $28 million in visitor spending and $2.5 million in taxes. A golf tournament won't match those numbers, but should be able to generate an economic impact to make it a worthwhile venture. Also, don't forget the charitable component of these events that give back to the community.

Let's give it a try for a year and see how everything works out. We don't want to lose another event.

STATE WORKERS

BLOW TO RETIREE BENEFITS WOULD AFFECT PUBLIC

House Speaker Calvin Say has introduced bills that will destroy state employees' retirements. He proposes to eliminate the state's share of medical benefits for retirees after June 1, 2009. He also wants to eliminate all overtime pay from the calculations for retirement benefits. This would mean that the retirement of a state employee would be drastically reduced.

Should this bill pass it would cause a mass exodus from police, fire, EMS, and other state agencies. Employees with enough time in will retire and new employees would seek employment elsewhere. Public safety would diminish and public programs would suffer. For some state workers who contribute a large amount of their salary to the retirement system, it would be blatant theft. This is not the retirement I was told I would get when I started 16 years ago.

The state Constitution states "Membership in any employees' retirement system of the state or any political subdivision thereof shall be a contractual relationship, the accrued benefits of which shall not be diminished or impaired."

These bills are a violation of the state Constitution. The unions that represent state employees should join forces and demand that these attacks on the ERS cease. If the state is in need of additional money why not increase the state tax? That way we all share the load.

SEX EDUCATION

PROBLEM WITH TEACHING IS IN LACK OF CREDIBILITY

In reporting that a bill recently passed out of the state House Education Committee would compel the state to reject federal funds for abstinence-only sex education, Advertiser education writer Loren Moreno noted the Planned Parenthood Hawaii director of education expressed concern that students exposed to abstinence-only education will not get the proper information of how to protect themselves: "I can say from...hearing from what kids think they know [t]here's a huge lack of education." ("Hawai'i bills would reject abstinence-only sex education," Feb. 12)

The problem is certainly not the lack of education! Abstinence works every time it is practiced. The problem is a lack of credibility.

As a public school teacher, I can say with assurance our kids can sniff out a phony with uncanny precision. Children will rise to the level of expectation of their teachers — and vice versa. If those tasked to teach abstinence-only do not believe in (and practice) self-control, their hypocrisy will most certainly undercut the results.

Worse, we sin against our children by not holding high expectations for them. For teachers — or lawmakers — to believe children are not capable of learning to exercise responsible self-control is to cripple them for life.