Letters for Sunday, March 4, 2007

• Outpouring of love overwhelming

• Customer is always right

• A true ali‘i acts like one

• I know Oscar

• Cow-Eye Sentinel update

• DJoker factor

• Take tongue from cheek

Outpouring of love overwhelming

On Sunday, Feb. 25, many friends gathered in the meadow at Koke‘e State Park to say aloha to David Boynton. Our family was overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and aloha and respect for David. There were so many who came and gave of their time, talent and love to make this celebration of David’s life a deep and heartfelt experience. The Koke‘e Discovery Center Association will be setting up a scholarship in David’s name with the donations received.

Our lives have been enriched by being part of that day. Thank you to all of you for the deep respect and love that you gave to us. We will never forget and be eternally grateful to each of you.

Customer is always right

In response to Stan Godes (“Win/lose for consumers,” Letters, March 2), is it possible that the Princeville Foodland offered these new products because several customers asked for them?

You are making an assumption when you state that they are doing it to answer Costco and a possible Wal-Mart Superstore. I can easily imagine that Princeville residents asked for such products, which they have likely seen elsewhere in their world travels, to be made available here. I doubt that the average shopper at Big Save or Ishihara’s cares about such produce, hence, they aren’t offered in those stores. I was thrilled when Big Save started stocking “Simply Orange” orange juice, but I don’t attribute this to some fear on their part about Costco or Wal-Mart. My bet is that several people asked for it.

If you want to really test your theory, Mr. Godes, ask Foodland to drop their prices to the level of a Wal-Mart Supercenter or Costco. If you can get that to happen, then let us know, because that will be news.

‘Ele‘ele

A true ali‘i acts like one

Isn’t Abigail Kawananakoa the same person who sat on the actual royal throne in ‘Iolani Palace for a photo shoot for Time magazine and damaged it?

The same one who would show up appearing drunk to Merrie Monarch?

Worse of all, the same one who caused the disturbance and removal of moepu (burial possessions) from the burial caves of Kawaihae last year?

Aue.

Are these the acts of an ali‘i? I think not.

What has she done to help provide affordable housing to Native Hawaiians? Pre-natal care for Native Hawaiian mothers? Drug enforcement to rid our neighborhoods of the dreadful crystal meth? Has she helped build dialysis centers in rural Hawaiian neighborhoods and health centers?

She received $250 million as a Campbell heir. Our people need help. A million dollar pledge to renovate Hawaiian Hall at Bishop Museum is a good start by Kawananakoa. She should please turn her attention to the health and housing needs of the Hawaiian people. I ali‘i no ke ali‘i i ke kanaka.

Hilo, Big Island

I know Oscar

I am a visitor from the Mainland and my wife and I love being here at Oscar time to watch the show with our friends here on this most beautiful island. I read your article this morning about the Academy Awards (“A stellar lens,” Life & Style, Feb. 23) which states that the first Academy Awards was “a straight forward dinner and trophy telecast from the Beverly Hills Hilton.” For the record the first Academy Awards was a dinner at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel and was certainly not televised.

I have had the pleasure of producing and directing television programs about the Oscars and have gone to all the locations where the Oscar show has originated over the years. While many of these places were the sights of entertainment and drama, none of them could ever match the beauty of Kauai.

Hanalei

Cow-Eye Sentinel update

The editor of the Cow-Eye Sentinel, Duncan R. Campbell, is my uncle (“The Cow-Eye Sentinel,” Island History, A2, March 2). After leaving Kaua‘i at the end of World War II, Duncan (Scotty) Campbell went on to a distinguished career in newspapers. He capped off his career as publisher of The Montana Standard in Butte, Mont. He is in his late 80s, long since retired and now lives with his wife in Bigfork, Mont.

John Uyeno, former publisher of The Garden Island had told me that he was an office boy at the newspaper when my uncle was here. He passed this information along to me when I came to be circulation director at The Garden Island from 1998 to 2006.

It truly is a small world. Thanks, Hank Soboleski, for adding this little slice of family history.

Lihu‘e

• Editor’s note: Aloha, David. Thanks for the information and good luck with your new endeavor.

DJoker factor

I read with interest Mark Beatty’s Guest Viewpoint in The Garden Island this morning. I think Mr. Beatty forgot one very important factor in his equation, and that is the religious factor. I’ll call it DJoker factor. By remaining in Iraq all we are doing is creating more terrorists. Worldwide. Yes, Iraq will become a breeding ground. Islamic fanatics will flock to this poor benighted country to rid the Mideast of infidels. That’s us. Once we’re out of the game they will continue to wage the loony sectarian fight and, hopefully, succeed in doing each other in. Perhaps out of this, a saner breed of Muslims will emerge. Perhaps a saner breed of Christians and Jews, too. I suggest Mr. Beatty read Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris and wise up.

As long as DJoker remains in the deck there is no way we can win. We cannot convert or kill all Muslim fanatics, no matter how many brave young men and women we send in the game. We also cannot appease the Christian and Jewish right loons by introducing the ‘nut factor,’ Armageddon, in the game. May the voice of reason ring out loud and clear.

Kalaheo

Take tongue from cheek

I appreciate the tongue-in-cheek quality of James “Kimo” Rosen’s recent letter (“We are all slaves,” Letters, Feb. 28), but I must respectfully remind him that “slavery” is not just a word, and that to trivialize it is to deeply dishonor the history of African-Americans.

Africans were violently removed from their homelands and families, forced to endure an unimaginably cruel ocean passage during which millions died, kept in chains, sold on the auction block, beaten, raped, tortured, murdered, ripped from the arms of loved ones to be sold again. An enslaved person who attempted to escape or resist such cruelty was often dismembered or murdered to set an example.

Some of the greatest fortunes amassed in this country were the direct result of these practices. Other fortunes were made by the theft of land from Native Americans and Hawaiians. Our society owes a possibly unpayable amends to the descendants of these enslaved people.

We must never forget this.

That the African-American community survived such a tragedy is a testament to the strength and heart of the people.

Let us honor that.

Hanalei