Hirono vote not irresponsible

I am responding to Michael Rethman’s letter to the editor in which he suggests that U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono returned to Washington, D.C., to vote for $26 billion in funds that will add to the deficit ("Feds out of money," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 8).

This is simply wrong. This measure adds nothing to the deficit — it is paid for, in part by eliminating tax breaks that reward corporations that ship American jobs overseas.

Congresswoman Hirono is voting on an emergency aid package that is, as President Obama says, "an important step towards ensuring that teachers across the country can stay in the classroom and cash-strapped states can get the relief they need."

HPD officer went beyond the call

This past Sunday morning, my car broke down on the leeward side of H-3, Kaneohe-bound.

Honolulu Police Officer Brian Valdez assessed the situation and remained on site until help arrived. He secured the scene and shared his umbrella during the downpour.

It took 45 minutes for the tow truck and a ride to arrive and rescue my passengers. When I asked if he gets overtime for staying beyond his shift, he smiled and said his shift had ended and he was due somewhere else.

Despite the downpour, his prior appointment and the fact that he no longer was on the clock, he sought to keep my passengers safe, while he himself was at risk from oncoming traffic. Mahalo to Officer Valdez for keeping us safe!

Students need to know English

If the Hawaiian-language immersion schools think their students are at a disadvantage because of the standardized English tests, wait until the ill-equipped students try to go out into the real world and get a job.

Please remember that we live in the United States, where English is the national language.

Yes, learn another language, as many as you like, and learn your ancestors’ history. But first and foremost we owe our children the best education possible to equip them for adulthood in the modern world.

Hannemann unfairly blamed

If Bill Riddle is going to be critical of former mayor Mufi Hannemann over the consent decree reached by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the city and other government and nonprofit agencies, he should at least tell the whole story ("Hannemann cost us $10 million," Letters, Star-Advertiser, Aug. 6).

Previous city administrations could have addressed the problem but chose not to, causing it to compound over time. The city responsibly petitioned the EPA for waivers exempting its treatment plants from performing secondary treatment, something that the EPA consistently had granted until recently. Hannemann knew it would be costly from the beginning. He initially estimated the cost at $1.2 billion in the years prior to the settlement with the final negotiated cost at $1 billion. Thanks to the settlement Hannemann reached with the EPA, Honolulu ratepayers are spared unbearable rate shock and can pay much less over time.

Kauai swamped by political signs

Kauai currently looks like a low-grade carnival is in town. If voters are electing our officials based on the greatest number of signs stuck in the ground, we have a problem.

Governor-appointed BOE depends on quality of governor

Regarding the ballot initiative for a governor-appointed state Board of Education: Why do people think that this would have avoided furloughing kids from school?

Remember that Gov. Linda Lingle initially wanted roughly 30 furlough days for DOE employees for the 2009-2010 calendar, and a board stacked with her picks would have been even less likely to fight for the preservation of instructional time.

We might be fine with a governor-appointed BOE if we knew we would always have governors who believe that quality public education is a right for all kids and not an optional budget item. But if we elect another person like Lingle, the kids are at even more risk with a BOE that thinks like she does.

We have a responsibility to educate ourselves about BOE candidates. That’s not easy, we know, which is why Save Our Schools Hawaii is planning a candidate forum for BOE hopefuls on Aug. 23 at University of Hawaii-Manoa’s Architecture Auditorium at 6:30 p.m. The public is invited.