• Kawika doesn’t deserve this • Abandon leaf for root • In KIUC we trust? • Canada seal slaughters Kawika doesn’t deserve this To the man who threatened, intimidated, and swore at my son at the Kalaheo Post Office last
• Kawika doesn’t deserve this
• Abandon leaf for root
• In KIUC we trust?
• Canada seal slaughters
Kawika doesn’t deserve this
To the man who threatened, intimidated, and swore at my son at the Kalaheo Post Office last week on April 15:
You must be new to our neighborhood if you aren’t familiar with Kawika who has been picking up our mail on his bike for the past 15 years or so. If you did know him, you wouldn’t accuse him of only thinking of himself; he’s been faithfully volunteering at Kalaheo Elementary School for over 10 years. Regardless if you know him or have been a part of our community for years, bullying tactics are always demoralizing, inhuman and hurtful.
I’m in the phone book. I look forward to talking stories with you about your suggestion of where he should park his bike, the village concept of supportive living for individuals with developmental disabilities and about aloha.
Suzanne Kashiwaeda
Kalaheo
Abandon leaf for root
What if we are focused on the wrong end of the problems … like we’re looking at the leaves of the plant, instead of honestly dealing with the roots.
The “ice” problem — the leaf is punishing and imprisoning the users/dealers.
The roots: Drug abuse, or abuse on many fronts, usually stems from a broken or splintered spirit. Look to the Native Americans with alcohol abuse; the healing cure is not treatment of alcoholism, but the source of what splintered the spirit.
American psyche is in denial of its own shadow. Heal the families, foster dignity, and fair pay for work, not minimum wage with no benefits at Wal-Mart while investors are billionaires.
Another leaf/root: drownings on Kaua‘i. The leaf — drownings are bad, get more lifeguards. The root — most drownings are visitors — educate the visitors in the tourism marketing, not that Hawai‘i is simply this blissful tourist destination, but that there are honest dangers here. The status quo is to keep the tourists blissful and ignorant, or they may choose a different destination.
Good emergency professionals put their lives on the line because someone else has purposefully kept visitors ignorant for profit.
Looking at and healing the roots, friends, and the leaf issues are remedied, or focus on the leaves and good money goes after bad, while the same power structure continues onward in the background unchanged.
John Tyler
Anahola
In KIUC we trust?
The public has the greatest respect and trust in the actions of Carol Bain, and she should be congratulated for penetrating the maze of restrictions that Kauai Island Utility Cooperative has created to restrict public expressions by KIUC directors and offering her Guest Viewpoint in Sunday’s The Garden Island, “KIUC Board Could Recognize Will of People.”
While directors of organizations should respect its confidential affairs, the imposition of prior restraints on other comments should not be acceptable.
Perhaps because of the pressure from the restrictions of her rights, her views could have been stated more forcefully. The KIUC bylaws provide that in the case of a vacancy on the board it “shall” be filled by vote of the remaining directors. However, KIUC has adopted a weasel-worded policy that would allow the directors to decline to fill the vacancy. The clear language of the bylaws should be applied and consistent with the standard practice elsewhere the board should act to replace the retired director.
While it is likely that there was no conspiracy, Alfred Laureta is experienced in public affairs, but the timing of his announcement is suspect. If Laureta is resigning because of health and wanting to spend time with his family as he says, it is most probable he was aware of his intentions before the March 22 director elections and could have made this known earlier and allowed the elections to be for four candidates instead of three.
KIUC needs to be more open with the public it serves who are, after all, the owners of the business.
Glenn Mickens
Kapa‘a
Canada seal slaughters
I am writing about the annual seal hunt that Canada allows every spring in their provinces of Newfoundland, Labrador, and the Gulf of the St. Lawrence Seaway.
This year Canada slots 275,000 baby harp seals to be clubbed and shot; last year the number was 250,000. This is the largest slaughter of marine mammals on Earth.
The country of Canada is disregarding the effects of global warming on these seals, misrepresenting their numbers and violating their own law against slaughtering “white coats.” During the last three years, 97 percent of those killed are younger than three months. This has been outlawed since the late 1980s. In 42 percent of the cases, the seals did not show enough post-mortem evidence to even guarantee unconsciousness at the time of skinning.
Our government along with other major countries have denounced this slaughter. Due to worldwide protest and boycott of seal products, the Canadian government is subsidizing research for new seal products.
“The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” That’s a quote by Gandhi.
Louise McGannon
Mitchell, S.D.
