• Union protection important • Path problems • Atrocities of the past • Strength of Hawaiian Nation in spirit, not land • Thanks for the help Union protection important “Aloha retraining senior pilots to fly cargo planes” was a recent
• Union protection important
• Path problems
• Atrocities of the past
• Strength of Hawaiian Nation in spirit, not land
• Thanks for the help
Union protection important
“Aloha retraining senior pilots to fly cargo planes” was a recent headline in The Garden Island. If not for the seniority clause in their union contract, these older employees would be out of a job, with little chance of being hired by other airlines. On the other hand, younger pilots displaced by the seniority rule will have an easier time finding new employment.
As I have pointed out before, government cannot possibly substitute legislation for free collective bargaining. Government can establish a level playing field for various industries and their employees to engage in free collective bargaining, as a means of enabling these employees to receive their fair share of the wealth that they help to create. If the company falls on hard times, employees are in a position to bargain wage reductions as well as wage gains to temporarily assist their employer to survive temporary reverses.
This is not as uncommon as one might think. Union security clauses such as seniority, mean a person cannot be fired without cause, and are important elements of a fair collective bargaining agreement.
Corporate mergers and the outsourcing of jobs make union protection even more important today than they have been in the past. The first thing that Congress should do is repeal the so-called “right to work” sections of the Taft-Hartley Act that allow individual state legislatures to prohibit management and labor from negotiating union security clauses. It has taken a long time, but the gradual decrease in union membership is a direct result of Taft Hartley. The recent dispute over a card check for union recognition, could also be settled by strengthening the unfair labor practices section of Taft Hartley. Under the present setup, anti-union employers have far too much freedom to intimidate employees by threat of closing down if they vote the union in, or by other subtle threats to discourage a pro-union vote.
Harry Boranian
Lihu‘e
Path problems
A simple solution to the use of the walkers/bicyclist path: Why not at certain times of the day make it be only for walkers to use (morning and evening) and at the middle of the day for bicycling only?
Or, switch off every other day? Like any other exercises the body could rest for a day before starting over again.
As for dog owners, it was a sad day in hell when they prohibited dogs on the path. But their point was valid. No one wants to smell or step into doggie poop.
It only took a few or two to ruin it for every dog owner by not being responsible for their dog’s mess. Maybe with the help of KPD officers being present, they can enforce to the few dog owners who aren’t responsible, to pick up or be cited. Impose a $100 fine for maintenance or equipment that could be added for public safety such as adding cameras on high poles to view and record activities in the area.
Howard Tolbe
Kaumakani
Atrocities of the past
Anyone who has ever had anything stolen from them should take offense to Gordon Oswald’s recent letter to the editor (“Focus on Hawai‘i of today,” Letters, April 18).
In his infinite wisdom and with good conscience he suggests that we forget about the atrocities of the past and move on even if the lives of hundreds of thousands of people today have been dramatically impacted by the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom.
Oswald needs to take off his rose-colored glasses to see that forced assimilation has taken a toll on generations of Hawaiian Nationals and their descendants.
The problems he speaks of were brought forward by the same type of greedy people who were responsible for the overthrow of the Kingdom.
Mr. Oswald: If my grandfather stole your grandfather’s home and land by force 80 years ago, displaced his heirs, then did a major fix-up for the comfort of my grandfathers heirs, does the passage of time make the home and land lawfully ours? Using your “modern logic,” would you move on? I seriously doubt it.
Tiare Shepherd
Kekaha
Strength of Hawaiian Nation in spirit, not land
Why are Hawaiians still arguing about land? Many cultures all over the world were wronged during the age of imperialism. Those for sovereignty would have Hawai‘i go backward over a hundred years and reinstate a monarchy?
Why not go back 200 years and reinstate every government that was wronged, or 400 years? The world is never going to spin backwards, but I believe the Hawaiian Nation, with or without land, is a relevant entity that can change the world for the better.
Every Hawaiian-blooded person I’ve ever met treated me with genuine aloha. The strength of the Hawaiian Nation has never been in the land; it is in the Hawaiian people. It’s in their spirit. The spirit of aloha that emanates from a unified Hawaiian Nation can never be stolen, but it can be a guide for the rest of the world on how to treat each other.
The collective voice of Hawaiians is a powerful force for righteousness no matter who has a paper that says they own the land. I once told a friend I was envious that he owned property here and he said he didn’t own anything — he was just passing through.
Jason S. Nichols
Koloa
Thanks for the help
I just returned a week ago from a stay on your beautiful island and wanted to let you know how lucky and wonderful all of you really are!
My heartfelt thanks and gratitude goes out to other hikers on the trail and the search and rescue team from Inter-Island Helicopters for flying into Hanakapi‘ai Falls trail on April 3 and hauling me and my injured knee out. You pilots are awesome!
I also have to thank the ambulance crew (Chris and Tom) and the emergency room staff at Wilcox Hospital for their kind care and professional manor.
It was a memorable vacation in more than one way! Thank you all for everything. I just wanted everyone else on the island to know what great people you are.
Hope to visit again soon, but I think I will skip that particular hike next time.
Chris Carter
Whitefish, Mont.
