Quit coddling these squatters

The photoof homeless people on a Waikiki sidewalk is, plainly,unsightly ("In plain sight," Star-Advertiser, Jan. 19)!

Are these local people? If so, I’m sure they have family orfriends to put them up. If they’re from the mainland, they should be deposited on airplanes departing to wherever they came from to appropriate authorities there.

Government officials and others in this state need to quit coddling these squatters, who seem to be given more rights than we, the people.

I’m not as hard-nosed as I sound. I’m well aware most of these "homeless" are not just "homeless." They are alcoholics, drug addicts and surely mentally ill persons who need some assistance in getting them out of the public square and off the taxpayer’s backs.

If many more responses like the Ihaksi’s from Vancouver are received, there won’t be many sales in those multi-million dollarcondos in Waikiki and Kakaako.

Joanne Fong
Ewa Beach

Good doctors merit good pay

In response to the recent attacks on doctors and the rewards they enjoy from their choice of profession, I suggest we all personalize our perspectives a bit.

If we agree that Ferraris should exist, then it is the doctor who extended the life of my father by five years that I want driving one. There is no one in our society more worthy of a luxurious lifestyle than those who operate on children’s hearts, work in the emergency room, and have to deal with death on a daily basis.

As George Carlin eloquently stated, "Somewhere out there is the worst doctor in the world … and someone has an appointment with him tomorrow."

I hope to live in a world where great doctors are rewarded for their amazing work, not one where doctors are on salary scales that can’t differentiate between great and poor health care decisions.

Kris Schwengel
Hawaii Kai

Judge Kobayashi unfairly dissed

David T. Johnson’s commentary holds no surprises for those involved with the judicial system ("Sad truth is our prosecutors don’t always wear white hats," Star-Advertiser, Island Voices, Jan. 12).

However, singling out U.S. District Court Judge Leslie Kobayashi is unfair. For those of us who have filed civil rights lawsuits against the state of Hawaii, as a magistrate judge Kobayashi stood out as a hero, intolerant of lying and false evidence from the attorney general’s defense team.

The practice of the state’s defense team presenting false evidence is so widespread that many attorneys have discontinued taking on claims against the state, especially civil rights claims.

If Johnson is willing to extend his research to all government attorneys, including those who defend the state, I will volunteer to be his research assistant, as I already know a group of angry plaintiffs and their attorneys who have been victimized by this practice.

Kahala Motoyama
Manoa

Some politicians need to move on

Both Duke Aiona and Mufi Hannemannmaybe seeking political office againdespitetheirlatest overwhelming losses,according to an article in Saturday’spaper ("Aiona eyes another run for governor," Star-Advertiser, Jan. 18).

I can remember once- famous but now faded Hollywood stars trying to make a comeback, too. Most folks felt only pity for these poor,tarnishedhas-beens.

Will someone please tell Hannemann and Aiona that their time has come and gone? Hawaii has moved on and so should they. Personally, I wouldn’t vote for either one of them, evenif they were running for dog-catcher. Well, maybe dog-catcher, but that’s about it.

Walter Mahr
Mililani

Buy trash cans that are sturdy

I have always wanted to complain to someone about this, and your front-page photo in Friday’s paper gave me the push ("Be warned," Star-Advertiser, Jan. 17). It shows Sunset Beach with a beach trash can, sans lid.

You will notice the trash laying on the beach around it. Why can’t we supply good, stable, heavy trash cans withconnectedlids, as we see on bases and some federal parks? Of course it will cost more, but with our winds blowing trash out of the cans 24/7, why can’t we invest in the environment in this way?

Judith E. Thomas-Benito
Kapolei

Ads on buses a bad tradeoff

Let’s all close our eyes for a moment. Visualize yourself on a street corner in Los Angeles with city buses passing by, carrying advertising messages up close and in your face. Now open your eyes.

You’re now standing on the corner of Bishop and King and every bus you see reminds you of what you saw in Los Angeles.

Are we willing to accept our 500 Oahu buses driving up and down our streets and roads, advertising products and services?

One more point: It is not right for our mayor to hold our community hostage by saying, "If you want to keep fares down and add more routes, that’s fine, but then I get my bus-billboard advertising revenue to cover these services."

For all of us who live here, it’s a bad tradeoff. Let us not legislate away what makes Hawaii what it is today — special and beautiful.

Martin D. Schiller
Kahala

Don’t let state hijack GMO issue

Residents of Hawaii and Kauai counties must protect their GMO- and pesticide- related laws from being emasculated by the state Legislature this session.

For years, the state has failed to protect us from the Monsanto cronies. State Rep. Jessica Wooley, the new chairwoman of the House Agriculture Committee, last session got a GMO-labeling bill out of the House only to have it blocked by state Sen. Clarence Nishihara, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee.

If GMO is so great, why not label it?The federal government now proposes more pesticides on GMO corn and soybean seeds.

Because of the anti-GMO laws on Kauai and Hawaii island, the state offers a woefully inadequate voluntary disclosure solution.

It is the responsibility of county governments to protect the health and safety of citizens when the state and federal governments do not. Hawaii and Kauai counties refuse to be bullied by these multinational corporations.

Moanike‘ala Akaka
Hilo

Immigrants need to obey the rules

Immigration laws on the books must be enforced, or more lawlessness will continue. Immigrants who enter the U.S. lawfully should not be penalized by those who enter the U.S. undocumented, unlawfully.

Undocumented immigrants are depleting senior citizen benefits. U.S. citizens are shoved aside to pander to noncitizens who vote unlawfully. Does Congress know who its constituents are? In order to vote, one must be a U.S. citizen — not an undocumented immigrant — or a permanent resident.

Congress should listen to the people and not politicize the immigration issue, which will continue to hurt our country.

Juney Ishida
Makiki