Letters To The Editor

Extreme repairs

Driving home via Pali Highway last Wednesday about 6 p.m., I was surprised to see a road crew patching potholes in the right-hand town-bound lane. Seemed like odd timing. Then I got home and sat down with my MidWeek, and saw Don Chapman’s column reference to the “new sport” of Pali “extreme pothole slalom driving.”

Was the pothole repair timing just coincidence, or did some government official take Mr. Chapman’s hilarious mid-slalom epithet “Criminal (bleepin’) malfeasance!” personally?

It would be kind of neat if it’s the latter, but it doesn’t really matter. I was just pleased to see the highway somewhat less dangerous to drive the next morning.

Note to government officials: There is more work to be done on Pali.

Art Johnson
Kailua

Right is wrong

I’m glad I’m not the only reader who was outraged at Susan Page’s use of female genital mutilation as an excuse to wage a personal attack on the President and women.

But that’s not all.

How about Pat Buchanan’s column complaining about how poor people have it too good?

Or anything from Michelle Malkin, who uses her column for nothing more than baseless personal attacks on the president? That woman is so racist, she wrote a book defending the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII. Apparently she does-n’t own a mirror, and doesn’t realize she herself is Asian!

As for reader Karyn Abe’s letter, it doesn’t hold water. If no side is more truthful, why is it that all Republicans, including congressional leaders, candidates for president and Fox News constantly blatantly lie to further their agenda? Because they know if they were honest, only racist, white, rich people would support them. So instead they call Obama a Muslim-socialist-Kenyan-anti-colonial. Aren’t we all anti-colonial, and wasn’t that the purpose of the American Revolution?

Fox never cares about facts, they just spew words they know are false. MSNBC, on the other hand, is decidedly liberal, but always has facts to back whatever they say.

And if no side is more moral than the other, why is the GOP constantly trying to dismantle Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and any others programs that benefit the poor, disabled, and elderly to give more tax cuts to the rich, while Democrats are always trying to increase help for the least fortunate among us.

Which is more moral to you? Are these the values publisher Ron Nagasawa is teaching his teenage daughter? If so, shame on him!

Doug Mencoff
Honolulu

Thanks Kimo

On March 27th, you mentioned that 7,000 of us travel to Vegas every week. My background is the East coast. I was there when casinos came to Atlantic City. We heard all of the warnings of crime, prostitution and bankruptcy’s that would happen when gambling came. Using the experience of living through those times, I chuckled when our politicians warned of the same things, as well as a few I never heard before. I heard one of the senators say that we couldn’t afford to build a casino.

Let me get back on point. If 7,000 people spend $1,000 each that is seven million dollars a week that leaves Hawaii. In three years that is one BILLION Dollars that leaves Hawaii, and that has been leaving Hawaii for years.

There are people that live in mid America, especially wives, who have only dreamed of someday seeing Hawaii. If we built casinos here, and did not try to tax them to death, those folks would at least keep things even. Construction work and casino employees, what more could we ask for? Some people say that there is one man who has been responsible for keeping the casinos out of Hawaii. I do not believe that one person could be that powerful.

The Visitor’s Bureau would love the additional tourists, and as I said earlier, they would bring that additional income back to Hawaii.

Thanks Kimo for your article that prompted this response.

Joe Graham
Kailua