Council wise to not derail rail

The vast majority of City Council members have wisely acknowledged there’s too much at stake to allow City Councilman Tom Berg’s anti-rail resolution to see the light of day. Too many jobs and livelihoods, and our economic future, hang in the balance.

Thousands are already at work in design, engineering and construction on the project. And just when thousands more are about to return to work, Berg tries to pull the rug from under them and Hawaii’s tentative economic recovery.

The Council members who voted against Berg know the people in their districts — especially those with the professional, technical and trade skills to deliver this state-of-the-art transit system — expect the Council to get on with this project. Now.

Hundreds of thousands of Oahu residents have given their input in public meetings, in the environmental review process and at the ballot box.

Berg’s attempts to subvert established decision-making processes insults the public and jeopardizes our economic future.

Stephen Lee
Waipahu

Ansaldo deal is worrisome

Would Honolulu City Council members, as individuals, hire a contractor to work on their own homes when the contractor’s future solvency is in question? Would they hire someone who might not be there to finish the job?

But we are not talking about individuals using their own funds. This City Council is responsible for all Oahu residents’ money and should act responsibly regarding Ansaldo Honolulu and the rail transit project.

If not, the question becomes: Is graft and corruption involved?

Anne Tam
Honolulu

Police must choose sides

Nationwide, if not worldwide, local police departments have unmistakably demonstrated that "to serve and protect" only applies to their political leaders who are themselves the servants of Wall Street lobbyists.

To be a police officer you must understand that you are not only part of the 99 percent but you may be ordered to violate the constitutional rights of your fellow citizens by illegally arresting them and using non-lethal weapons against them when they rightfully protest against inequality — inequality supported by congressmen who are owned and enriched by lobbyists.

If you don’t stand with the protesters, you stand with the 1 percent. There is no middle ground.

Jeff Bigler
Wailuku

Keep ads out of public schools

Kudos to state Rep. Chris Lee for his commentary warning us of the pitfalls of a plan to allow advertising in public schools ("Schools are for education, not advertising," Star-Advertiser, Letters, Nov. 7).

Advertising has already entered the halls of our university system. I was shocked and dismayed when I attended a University of Hawaii volleyball game and saw emblazoned across the ticket envelopes, in bold green letters: Hotel California Hotel and Casino.

It is outrageous that we allow such advertising in our public schools. What message are we sending to our kids? Shame on us. Let’s draw the line and keep greed and profit away from our schools and our children.

Andrea Song
Kahala

APEC photo snubbed Hawaii

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference delegates were uniformly impressed by the unparalleled hospitality of Hawaii, according to media reports. There was evidently little question that the state rose to the challenge of hosting this international event.

Jocelyn Fujii expresses well the collective lament over the aloha shirt snub ("Aloha shirts in APEC photo would have been powerful image," Star-Advertiser, Island Voices, Nov. 21). Nothing about the 2011 APEC summit group photo distinguishes it from any other tropical location — no aloha shirt, no muumuu, no lei. Not wearing one for the photo is like a foreign guest who receives a gift and promptly stashes it in the closet.

A snub to the host is bad manners. I suppose we can draw some satisfaction that the true emblem of Hawaiian hospitality (aloha) isn’t found in what we wear. But really, would it have killed them to wear it for the 15 minutes it takes for the group photo?

Betty Bayles
Waipahu

Aloha shirts don’t reflect U.S.

I am perplexed by the comments about APEC leaders not wearing aloha shirts. Although APEC was held in Hawaii, the aloha shirt is not traditional wear in the United States. APEC is not exclusively a Hawaii event, rather a national event, and the national wear of America has not been determined.

If we were to hold this event in California or Massachusetts, what kind of wear should be worn by the leaders?

Ikat is a traditional Indonesian wear, from Sumatra to Irian Jaya (West Papua). No matter where you go, ikat is found in every tribe or clan and ikat is textile art produced by local artisans. Although the design varies from one to another, there is a similarity in that it’s woven by people in the villages throughout Indonesia. So until we decided what our national wear is, we should not bicker about this stuff.

Rosita Sipirok-Siregar
Makakilo

APEC ignored many issues

Now that the conference is over, we can ask ourselves: Did APEC deal in a genuine, intelligent manner with any of the major issues that face us in the Asia-Pacific region?

One thinks of the environmental deterioration of the Pacific Ocean and its resources, the growing hostility between the U.S. and China over hegemony in the region, the continuing plight of indigenous peoples in the face of economic globalization, the threat posed by climate change (note the recent floods in Thailand and the destruction of Pacific atolls), the growing gap between the haves and have- nots in nearly every country.

These issues need our immediate and focused attention, but APEC managed to ignore them. We in the Pacific region and generations to come are the losers.

Noel Kent
Kaimuki

Return visits will measure success

President Barack Obama did right in choosing Hawaii to represent the United States for the APEC conference. The residents of Hawaii should be proud of this honor and the success of the conference.

APEC delegates experienced living in a democratic country with an open economy. They might not have seen the protesters, but this is the U.S. and our citizens have the right of free speech.

They might not have had time to spend money, but that is not the measure of success. We wanted them to visit us for the same reason we visit their countries.

They might have been here only a few days, but hopefully they will return because of our aloha spirit, beautiful beaches, multiculture and other unique attractions.

Return visits will be the measure of success.

Leonard Leong
Manoa