Mayor Kirk Caldwell, or someone, owes us a serious, logical, believable explanation of why an operations executive — Dan Grabauskas — was hired to run the construction phase of the rail transit project.
At the same time, explain why Ansaldo, with all of its known problems at the time, was awarded the contract for the driverless rail cars.
Companies with financial problems will cut corners on materials, workmanship and safety.
Are the cars equipped with rope ladders so passengers can get off when they stall?
Bert West
Kalihi
Trump not only one to treat Putin well
Columnist Trudy Rubin opines that when visiting her like-minded pals in Ireland, they joked and called Donald Trump “Putin’s poodle” because of Trump’s overtures toward the former KGB Bolshevik (“‘Putin’s poodle’ could undermine U.S.,” Star-Advertiser, Sept. 18).
May I remind Rubin and her friends with selective memories of the comment by George W. Bush: “I looked the man in the eye. I found him to be very straightforward and trustworthy.” How about Barack Obama’s audible whisper about Russia: “After my election I have more flexibility.”
Trump is no neophyte. He is world-savvy, a very successful businessman and the ultimate capitalist. So why shouldn’t Trump be cut a little slack?
Isn’t it possible that there is a method to his madness: Using a carrot at the end of that stick instead of hot peppers?
Art Todd
Kaneohe
Caldwell’s 9/11 ads don’t do issue justice
I’m getting pretty fed up with all of the dishonest TV ads that are flying around this election cycle from both political parties.
A perfect example is the one about Honolulu mayoral candidate Charles Djou not voting to give the 9/11 first responders more money.
New York firefighters have life insurance up to $500,000. Their surviving spouses receive an additional $100,000, plus each child under 21 receives $4,000.
Along with their fully paid health, dental and vision insurance, that should be enough to keep any family going for a long time.
In January 2011 the Zadroga Act was signed into law, adding $2.775 billion to their health care.
The big problem with any type of medical insurance is proving that cancer came from a specific act, like the dust from the 9/11 collapse of the World Trade Center.
Enough from both parties, please.
Please believe that we are all smart enough to form our own opinions. Just us give straight information.
Tom Hermanson
Kaneohe
Solar panel savings haven’t added up
Once upon a time, a hard- working family struggling to pay a huge mortgage tried to find a way to decrease its skyrocketing electric bill.
The family thought it would get some relief with solar panels, and for the first six months after the purchase, the electric bill plummeted to about half of what it had been paying.
Soon, however, the electric company’s rascal meter started climbing higher and higher, so that the family paid as much or more than they did before.
Adding salt to their bleeding wounds were the monthly payments on these solar panels.
Hawaiian Electric Co. has been preaching about sustainable energy and lower costs for consumers for years, yet it makes it more difficult for people to make their own energy.
This monopoly has all the power.
And its excuses do not add up.
Someone is getting very, very wealthy on our misery.
Kelela and Steven Lombard
Laie
Kudos for article on fetal development
Thank you so much for the article citing “Scientific American” magazine on fetal development (“Fetuses have physical sensations early on in development,” Star-Advertiser, Strange But True, Sept. 4).
The article said that “the fetus uses its budding brain and senses to learn about itself and the outside world well before birth.”
It also said that “as early as seven weeks after fertilization, fetuses start to move, swinging their umbilical cords, climbing the walls of the amniotic sac and sticking their limbs in their mouths. Their coordination improves as they grow.”
I understand the fetal heart beat starts at about 18 days.
Thank you again for printing this column. These scientific facts are not well known.
Kay Williamson
Hawaii Kai
Student exam scores eagerly awaited
As noted in your recent article, more of Hawaii’s students are taking Advanced Placement exams than ever before (“Number of Hawaii students taking college-prep tests increases,” Star-Advertiser, Sept. 27).
The state Department of Education should be commended for expanding access to the exams, namely by obtaining federal grants to subsidize test fees for low-income students.
However, we should be just as interested in our students’ actual scores as we are in the number of students taking the exam. In 2015, Hawaii’s mean score was a 2.75, whereas the national mean score was a 2.82. A passing score is a 3.0. Hopefully, the complete 2016 data, which should be released soon, will reveal an improvement in Hawaii’s mean score.
It is important to celebrate success stories. The DOE has increased the number of students taking the AP exam. Let’s see if there has been any improvement in our students’ actual scores.
Andrew Michaels
Waikiki
