Regarding the state Department of Education’s concerns about the gap between high-need students and their peers (“Officials consider seeking $50M to further aid high-needs students,” Star-Advertiser, Sept. 7), as a volunteer who helps mainly Micronesian children with their homework in the afternoons, I see an unmet need for early intervention.

Any activity, in or out of school that will provide someone to just talk in English to these children regularly — about anything (games, friends, or whatever) — helps them learn language and social skills.

These students also fall below their peers during summer vacation. Often their time is spent “hanging out” or playing video games, while their peers are engaged in special activities that offer language growth and comprehension.

Working with these children has enriched my life immeasurably, and will do the same for other kupuna who can spare the time.

Bobbie Slater

Pacific Heights

Duterte’s ends justify his actions

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s no-nonsense brand of eradicating drug related crimes has drawn strong protests from the international human right advocates and the United Nations, who contend police activities there violate human rights (“In the Philippines’ war on drugs, killings escalate,” Star-Advertiser, Aug. 23).

Duterte was elected on the strength of his campaign promises to cure the country’s social and economic ailments and vowed to free the nation from the grip of corrupt public officials and drug criminals so that it can move forward.

Critics have denounced the methods being used by Duterte in fulfilling his campaign promises as immoral and antithetical to democratic principles.

But reports indicate that most Filipinos believe that Duterte’s actions are necessary to shield the future of young Filipinos from the destructive effects of illegal drugs.

Duterte’s actions may be disturbing to some, but ending the culture of drug violence and corruption justifies such actions.

Filipinos should determine their country’s future without foreign intervention.

Rod B. Catiggay

Mililani

Ho‘opili project goes against food goal

I can’t help but marvel at the irony of our governor “postponing” his campaign promise of “doubling local food production in Hawaii by 2020” pushed back 10 years till 2030 “Ige postpones local food goal,” Star-Advertiser, Sept. 11).

It was only late last week that the governor’s smiling face was on the front page, dressed in his best new aloha shirt, breaking ground for the D.R. Horton- Schuler Division’s Ho‘opili development that will take some 1,500 acres of prime agricultural land out of that use for development of some 11,000 homes.

Clearly agricultural sustainability is not a priority.

The chutzpah of this guy is remarkable.

Gordon Fowler

Aiea

Carbon tax could slow climate change

Honeycreepers disappearing because of climate change has made national news.

How many more articles about the effects of climate change will we have to see before we start taking serious action to stop it?

According to Oxford University’s trillionthtonne.org, we have to take immediate action. With such little time, we need to do more than simply change our light bulbs.

According to Elon Musk, Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz and dozens of our world’s greatest thinkers, the fastest and most painless path toward stopping climate change is to put a price on carbon dioxide.

A revenue-neutral carbon tax would create rapid demand for renewable energy as burning fossil fuels would become more expensive for companies and individuals alike.

At the same time the revenue would be returned to households to cover costs during the transition. It worked for Vancouver, and it can work for Hawaii.

Jeffrey Kim

McCully

Hope Solo is poor sports role model

The USA women’s soccer team traveled to Hawaii to play a game, but canceled when Hope Solo sent out pictures of the turf at Aloha Stadium.

Imagine the faces of all the keiki when the game was canceled.

Couldn’t the team have done some formal clinics or autograph sessions for the keiki?

In the Olympics, the women’s soccer team lost to Sweden and Hope called the Swedish team a “bunch of cowards.”

Sweden played for the gold medal; got the silver.

Hope should get a gold medal for poor sportsmanship.

Hope got suspended, then fired from the USA team.

In Hawaii, we say “Life’s a bachi.” Be arrogant, treat people badly and fate has a way of flipping your life upside down.

Allan Asato

Pearl City

More would vote if politicians listened

Nobody listens to the reason voter turnout was low.

It is because all the candidates want to raise our taxes and build the rail system.

The cost of living is already high and all the people running for office don’t care.

Adriano Eliazar

Kalihi-Palama

Lee Cataluna often our local truth teller

Lee Cataluna is a treasure.

Please keep her column coming to us. She is often our local truth teller — sometimes it is done with humor and sometimes with just hard and powerful insights into our island life.

Whatever she is saying is a much-needed message, and her love for Hawaii and our people shines through. Thank you for carrying her message.

Mary Ann Marciel

Kailua