Pass progressive laws for Hawaii

Gov. David Ige is facing a tough re-election race. Eyes are also on new House Speaker Scott Saiki. Both were once outsiders who argued for reform. Both will be judged by the results of the 2018 session. So let me give them some advice: Be bold!

After the Bernie Sanders campaign, the Women’s March and the sprouting of progressive groups from Our Revolution to J20 to Young Progressives Demanding Action, progressives will be out in force in the August 2018 primary. So give us a reason to support you with enthusiasm.

Pass a $15 minimum wage. Pass family-leave insurance to help young families and family members caring for kupuna. Pass a medical aid-in-dying bill. Ask voters to add a real estate surcharge to fund our vastly underfunded education system. Reform our criminal justice system by legalizing marijuana. Protect our environment and ban oxybenzone.

Show the rest of America that we defy Donald Trump. Pass a vigorous progressive set of laws.

John Bickel

President, Americans for Democratic Action Hawaii

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Developer abandons ‘Hawaiian ideals’

Well, Howard Hughes Corp. has done it again: selling off Hawaiiana, this time for a price of $500,000-$600,000 for an approximately 300-square-foot micro condo, referred to as “smarter living” (“$500K-plus micro condo units to hit Kakaako market,” Star-Advertiser, Jan. 4).

Howard Hughes is doing a good job perpetuating the centuries-old tradition of mainland companies promoting “Hawaiian ideals” for sheer profit and bastardization of the people and the land.

When the state Hawaii Community Development Authority cut a deal with Hughes to build more affordable housing, the hidden plan was to continue to squeeze out the regular working people of the local area. Just as annoying, while its multimillion-dollar condos will come with the option of a 3-year lease on a Mercedes Benz, the micro condos won’t even come with a roll of toilet paper.

Ward Village’s “Great Wall of Kakaako” is a border wall preventing any concept of reasonable affordable housing in downtown Honolulu.

Doug Valenta

Kakaako

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Chin lacks local political experience

Attorney General Douglas Chin might be an interesting candidate for U.S. Congress. However, I cannot support him because he has yet to serve and prove his worthiness in a local legislative capacity and become intimate with the issues facing our state.

Chin was not born and raised in Hawaii so I doubt that he can truly represent what the local people feel are our priority issues.

Chin’s efforts to challenge the federal immigration bans represent an insufficient body of work. To me a congressional candidate will have earned his or her way up the state legislative ranks, in the state House and Senate, before even attempting a run for any of our precious few national seats.

He should run for his local district first and earn it, because skipping rank is not pono.

Von Kenric Kaneshiro

Downtown Honolulu

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Jerusalem as capital of Israel, Palestine

The Trump administration recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel makes sense, but the administration is only halfway there.

Now is the time for the Trump administration to recognize West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine. This is probably the only path to lasting peace in that part of the Middle East.

Then maybe someday Israel will be able to tear down the wall that separates them from their Palestinian neighbors.

Andrew Kachiroubas

Moiliili

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System failure shows gross incompetence

Much has been said and written about the lack of leadership and failed responsibilities of those involved in the false missile alert.

Often repeated is that mistakes happen and that firing the person responsible isn’t helpful and that the person responsible should be involved in the solution. But the individual responsible for the mistake is choosing not to be part of the solution and refuses to cooperate with the Federal Communications Commission and the two internal investigations.

The public is outraged, but there should be as much outrage over the incompetence of the system design.

The alert was triggered through a simple screen choice during a shift change, a mistake for which there was no going back. Having sent out a false alert, no one in charge could figure out a way to alert the public it was an error?

This isn’t about just mistakes, this is gross incompetence. It’s almost unbelievable that there was no way to inform the public immediately that the alert was a misfire.

Frank Oliva

Kailua

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Select team needed to handle gridlock

In the Jan. 23 morning rush hour, traffic gridlock occurred on the H-1 westbound in a span of a few hours.

Out of this unfortunate situation could be an opportunity for Honolulu Police Chief Susan Ballard to address the problem.

Are there qualified personnel, with sufficient training, equipment and cooperation from other agencies to handle such unfortunate gridlock?

These traffic tie-ups are unusual but not rare.

The problem must be discussed and solved; otherwise, how will traffic move if these occur during evacuation or a natural disaster?

Loke Leong

Kalihi