SUPPORT, NOT JUST MONEY, NEEDED

I am a special education teacher on the Leeward coast and I am sick of all the blame for the "Furlough Fridays" being placed squarely on teachers' shoulders. The gross allegations that teachers do not care about our keiki is insulting.

To be clear, I did not ratify the contract happily. I ratified because I felt coerced by a governor and a community who does not seem to support the public education system. For me, furloughs were the best of many poor options.

The frank truth is that what education needs more of is not money, but community support. We are in this situation now, so pointing fingers does nothing except waste energy and time. If you care about the keiki and their education, then help us make it work. Support the efforts we make at home so that learning does not only take place in a classroom. Donate books, materials, computers, time — volunteer at your local school.

I urge the community to consider honestly, why do you think it is so difficult to retain motivated and quality teachers? Why is there an exodus of teachers every year? Rather than exert efforts writing editorials and letters to the editors, be a part of a child's education.

Kristen Wong | Special education chair, Ilima Intermediate

TEACHERS BLAMED IN LONGTIME PROBLEM

The voices I hear in the news send a strong message that teachers have been selfish and disloyal to our students.

In teaching we are consistently asked to give up our time. While most people leave work at the office or get paid justifiably well, we stay late in meetings and student tutoring sessions; we spend most of our nights, weekends, and "breaks" grading and planning; we chaperone dances, judge academic tournaments, and attend sporting events. We buy our own supplies and give to student fundraisers. We willingly spend more of our personal time supporting education and students than most parents.

I agree that children should not have to share in this burden. Teachers are taking up much of the burden by agreeing to a plan with 8 percent less pay. I hope that we as a community will find ways to support student education at home beyond the school day. I don't view the Furlough Fridays as contract leverage. I view it for what it is: the plain fact that education in our state has long been underappreciated and undervalued — so much so that the teachers who serve are being blamed for letting that problem catch up with all of us.

Mariko Jackson | La'ie

WATADA

PRIORITY GIVEN TO STORIES MISPLACED

I was shocked and disgusted seeing your article about Ehren Watada's discharge from the U.S. Army on Page One of The Advertiser (Sept. 26) while a story about U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. John J. Malone from Kane'ohe's Third Marine Division was not as prominent and in another section of the paper.

Lance Cpl. Malone is a true hero deserving of our love and gratitude. He died defending our freedom and way of life in the Farah province in Afghanistan.

He joined the Marine Corps, trained hard and gave the ultimate sacrifice. He did not cut and run like Watada.

Watada escaped the court martial he deserved by a technicality in the law. He violated his oath as an officer in the U.S. Army, he turned his back on the troops he was trained to lead. He wasn't drafted, he joined the Army and received many benefits for doing so. If Watada's escape from his duty needs to be reported, it should have been buried back in the paper suitable for the bird cage.

God bless the men and women serving us in the armed forces of this great nation.

Mike Anderson | Kane'ohe

TSUNAMI THREAT

SCIENTISTS DID GREAT JOB, SAVED US CHAOS

Kudos to Chip McCreery and his staff at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. Their application of modern scientific models to predict that there would be no damaging tsunami in Hawai'i saved the state from the financial and personal grief that we would have gone through had the warning sirens gone off in the middle of a business day. Those of us who remember the traffic jams and mass confusion of tsunami warnings of the past appreciate the good work these scientists are doing.

FRIS CAMPBELL | Kailua

OBAMA

OLYMPICS TRIP SHOWS MISPLACED PRIORITIES

President Obama's unsuccessful Copenhagen trip is a sad indicator of the administration's priorities. With General McChrystal calling for additional troops, Obama managed to meet with him for a scant 27 minutes in Denmark.

What is more important, Chicago's Olympic bid or the safety and security of our armed rorces as they battle the Taliban and al-Qaida? Call me old fashioned, but I believe it is the latter.

Was it not President Obama who fired one commanding general in Afghanistan and replaced him with General McChrystal? Was it President Obama during his 2008 campaign who stated Afghanistan was the right war and that he would redirect U.S. forces accordingly if he was elected?

While we can debate the reason the U.S. failed in Vietnam, one noted factor was Washington policymakers' interference in the conduct of the war.

It is a tragic mistake for the Obama administration to rethink the Afghan strategy at this late stage. Let's hope he is not folding to political pressure, but will demonstrate real leadership and support General McChrystal's recommendations.

Richard M. Smylie | Hawai'i Kai