• Asthma sufferer • Landfill concerns • County suit • Cheers for the Hawaiian Kingdom • Unions observation Asthma sufferer Balmy days and back yard barbecues are occurring all over our Island. Getting together with family and friends, the mouth
• Asthma sufferer
• Landfill concerns
• County suit
• Cheers for the Hawaiian Kingdom
• Unions observation
Asthma sufferer
Balmy days and back yard barbecues are occurring all over our Island. Getting together with family and friends, the mouth watering smells of barbecuing fresh fish, steak or burgers sizzling over the coals. Add in the longer days, the glorious sunsets. Yes, summertime is upon us. So is the prevalence of asthma.
Smoke from the barbecue is highly toxic to someone with asthma. Check to see who lives downwind from you. It can be a matter of life or breath.
As someone who has asthma, let me tell you what it is like. Imagine an elephant sitting on your chest, each breath an agony, each breath becoming more shallow than the last. Your body becomes engulfed in perspiration from the effort to take in air…suddenly, it feels like your air passageway is shrinking….a whistling sound emits from the narrowed passageway. It’s getting harder and harder to take a breath. By this point..it feels like you are about to black out. Emergency treatment must be taken immediately by inhaled medication…or dialing 911. Yes, this is what it feels like to me. It is very scary! It doesn’t end when the “attack” is minimized. Afterward, the horrible headaches, the exhaustion, and coughing up things best not described. This is a very serious affliction. Young children to the elderly. Asthma doesn’t discriminate ! Did you know that Kaua‘i has one of the highest asthma rates in Hawai‘i?
I am writing to implore the people of Kaua‘i. Be aware of your neighbors downwind. You can’t allow smoke from the barbecue ( or burning your rubbish) to billow into your neighbors’ home. If you are still using coals and lighter fluid, consider buying a less toxic alternative.
And please, move your barbecue to a place that will be safe for all. Burning rubbish? Look into alternatives. Consider who might be downwind from you. Enjoy your Summer. Be a good neighbor,
Landfill concerns
What concerns me about the landfill problem is the question of what we are going to do with all the debris in an event of another hurricane or other natural disaster. In addition, it is very annoying to hear that there is yet again not enough money for a project like this or other ones for that matter, with all those high taxes we pay every year. Isn’t this money that is supposedly being used for the residents of this state?
County suit
Three points need to be made regarding the Your Government article in the Sunday issue of The Garden Island.
First, and make no mistake about it, the County is the people! The people elect the Mayor and the Council to represent their needs and their wishes and when push comes to shove as with the Ohana Kauai Charter Amendment, they expect those elected officials to listen to them, the people! The property tax reform amendment was overwhelmingly passed by 13,000 citizens and instead of abiding by what their mandate was, they chose to disenfranchise these voters and sue themselves — remember The Garden Island headlines “county sues county”?
Second, the skyrocketing taxes being levied on property and homes is not due to assessed values going north. The secret word “rates” that is not mentioned by our government officials is the key to what your actual taxes are — assessed value times rate equals your taxes. No matter how high your property is assessed, if the rate is adjusted downward enough, voila, your taxes don’t go off the map. Forget the 2-percent cap, just adjust the rate and have it include the 2-percent increase — or less.
Third, this government’s continual hiring outside counsel and consultants must be challenged!
Whether it is solid waste where we spent $191 thousand on consultants and $350 thousand to site a new land fill (to date never cited) or outside legal counsel to do our work, we are simply telling the tax payers who pay these fees that we hire people who aren’t competent to do their job so we have to hire outside help to do their work for them! In other words we are paying double for every job we must contract out. Private enterprise would go broke in a month using this system but our bottomless pit (tax dollars) lets it continue.
Cheers for the Hawaiian Kingdom
I seem to have been spoiled by the ovations and official encouragement when nations fight for their independence. We cheered the Jews when they created Israel in 1948. We congratulated Bangladesh when they seceded from Pakistan in 1971. We encouraged the Hungarians in 1956 to fight for their freedom and independence. We jubilated when the Soviet Union broke up and the satellite states regained their independence. We are supporting the Palestinians to have their own state and sovereignty. But where are the cheers for the Hui Pu movement that wants 100 percent autonomy in governing a sovereign Hawaiian nation?
I am not a kanaka maoli, but I respect their nation, their goal and their striving for independence, and I fully support it. The Hawaiians should not be less important for us than the Jews, Hungarians, Estonians, and Palestinians etc. It is their right to seek independence, to make Hawaiian culture flourish in Hawai‘i, and to make Hawaiian the only official language of Hawai‘i, if they choose to. Hawaiians, you deserve the cheers! Fly the banner of the Hawaiian Kingdom proudly! You’ll see how many of us will support you. And those who are worried about it? No need. The overwhelming majority of Russians who had lived in the former Soviet republics decided not to return to their homeland, and they are happy they stayed. Malama pono! The same is bound to happen here.
- Keoni (János) Samu
Kalaheo
Unions observation
At one time in recent history unions were very necessary, but they got greedy and now want more money for less work using more workers.
What they should have done is to bargain with the management for better pay and benefits with a guarantee of better and smarter workers who would promise to work harder and smarter. Then the manufacturers wouldn’t have to raise the prices of their products to make a profit.
