Icebergs Ahoy!

Asking Sam Slom and Gene Ward for their views on how to revive the economy is like asking the captain of the Titanic for boating safety tips. Predictable to the point of monotony, Slom and Ward both argue that lower taxes will save the day. Make Bush's tax cuts to the wealthy permanent! Support corporate subsidies! That's the ticket! Get government out of the way and all will be great!

If this sounds too good to be true, it is. Both anti-tax, non-regulatory free-marketers, Slom and Ward fail to acknowledge that these very views helped produce the current economic mess. Remember, while lamenting a lost job or low wages or the lack of job opportunities or high gas prices or the high costs of medical care or a diminished stock portfolio, it was Bush, the self-anointed "CEO President," and his free-market buddies who led us into this grim economic state. Slom and Ward may decry the present economic mess, but in the end they argue, without a hint of self-doubt or ingenuity, for the same policies that helped create it in the first place.

Todd Shelly, Hawaii Kai

Kamilo Nui Valley: Nurseries vs. Gentleman Estates

In 2010, the nursery leases of Kamilo Nui Valley are up for lease rent negotiation with landowner Kamehameha Schools. I can only hope the farmers' new annual rent will not be too inflated, as their leases don't expire until 2025 and all efforts should be made to uphold agreements dated back to Henry J. Kaiser days, when Hawaii Kai was taking shape. But what seems to be of greater concern is the vision of some people to transform the nurseries into Gentlemen Estates, thus displacing our local farmers and killing any chance of increasing the amount of produce the valley can supply. Local Nurseries vs. Gentlemen Estates? The answer for Kamilo Nui Valley lies with the landowner as they have the ultimate power to welcome true farmers and encourage diversified agriculture or hold hands with the non-farming community. Time will tell where truth lies, as 2010 is just around the corner.

Sara Yacuk, Hawaii Kai

Getting emails from Dog Owners

When you said "build it and they will come," you hit the nail on the head. The park has been so well received and so constantly in use, it's amazing. Sometimes our volunteers count dogs out of curiosity, and have counted anywhere from 50 to 100 dogs during the busier evenings. We get emails from thankful dog owners, and park users often take the time to stop and thank the volunteers for helping with the park.

We have a lot of first-time dog park users. One of the challenges for our volunteers is encouraging people to read the dog park rules before they enter the park. Dog parks are not like other City parks; they have their own special rules and regulations that are part of the City's ordinances. Things will go more smoothly for all park users once people are more aware of the City's regulations as well as common "dog park etiquette." The volunteers have a temporary handout of etiquette tips; we are working on a brochure that will be available in the park.

The park is open every day from dawn to dusk, except for Tuesday mornings when the Department of Parks and Recreation will be mowing the lawn and doing other maintenance from 7 A.M. to 12 noon.

The new "Hawai'i Kai Dog Park" page has been posted on our website. It includes a link to the park rules/regulations as well as an etiquette page. The page is still under construction, but I had to go live with what I had. Check it out! www.hui-ilio.org.

Elaine Dobashi, President of Hui 'Ilio Hawai'i

Democratic Unity is Imperative

While Senator Clinton supporters may understandably be saddened by the Democratic primary outcome, I am perplexed when some claim they will vote for Senator McCain instead of Senator Obama in the general election, considering the fact that Obama's and Clinton's stances on various issues are remarkably similar to each other, but contrastingly different from McCain's. For those who lived during the second wave feminist movement, the 1973 Supreme Court case of Roe vs. Wade legalizing abortion was a major triumph. If Clinton women vote for McCain, they are electing someone who writes in his campaign website that Roe vs. Wade "is a flawed decision that must be overturned." Furthermore, although Senators Obama and Clinton co-sponsored and voted for the 2007 Senate Fair Pay Restoration Act, Senator McCain opposed it. Unity in the Democratic Party is imperative to reform the multiple crises that afflict America today AND it is imperative to continue upholding the rights women have fought for throughout history. Senator Barack Obama will be the one to do just those things - not only will he uplift America from her troubled economic, social, and political problems, but he will also lead Americans and the entire world towards a newer direction of meaningful change.

Sophia Chen
Hawaii Kai

Hanauma Bay Bureaucracy

East Oahu Sun, once upon a time there was a bay called Hamauna Bay. The parking lot was dirt and you went down a funky trail, but that was then. Now there is the same bay, but it is regulated like a bureaucracy. Even if you live in Hawaii (lucky you live Hawaii), you have to go through the indoctrination program before going down to the harbor. Around the lot, people whose only claim to fame is a walkie-talkie, watch over us like Big Brother. Once there was a bay that was fun to swim in and the fish would gather around. Once it was free to see and be at this bay. Once before the crazies of the world and the environmentalists, it was a place of fun. So, for Father's Day, 2008 I am taking a hike up Kuliouou trail and looking out at the vistas of Waimanalo while views are still free and not regulated!

Jim Delmonte, Hawaii Kai