Park decision was pure politics

Your editorial ("Community deserves a park," Star-Advertiser, July 26) misses the issue by saying a regional park has priority over Oahu’s only construction and demolition landfill.

The city has no basis for saying it must use Leeward land for the park. In fact, the community has waited 20 years for a regional park that was supposed to be located next to Waianae High School, but was never built.

The true question is why the mayor chose this particular piece of land, then pushed it through the City Council with no site study or planning, in violation of city ordinances, while raiding the Clean Water and Natural Lands Fund to do it.

The obvious answer is that the site was chosen because it satisfies his endorsers by shutting down the landfill, not because it is suited for a regional park.

Your editorial is right on one point: With rail coming, Oahu must have a construction and demolition debris landfill. But your conclusion that we have to sacrifice the landfill to have a park is 100 percent wrong.

Don’t change post office name

Please do not change the name of our Makiki Post Office. It identifies the area of its location, as does the Kapalama Post Office, the Kahala Post Office and others.

Please honor Cec Heftel in some other way, such as a scholarship in his name. That would be far more meaningful.

Let’s leave post offices identified by their locations.

Gov should name BOE members

I laud Gov. Linda Lingle’s appointment of Caroline S. Wong to the state Board of Education to fill the vacant position left by Breene Harimoto. She is eminently qualified, having been a teacher and principal with state and national recognition awards.

The governor should appoint all BOE members based on their qualifications, rather than have them be elected.

I also would agree with having a governor-appointed BOE provide a list of nominees from which the governor must select a superintendent. If the state Department of Education proved ineffective, the governor would be responsible.

Attend a game and help UH

Watching University of Hawaii football on TV is not nearly as enjoyable and exciting as watching it in Aloha Stadium.

The crowd’s enthusiasm is exhilarating. It builds togetherness, camaraderie and local loyalty.

If you’ve got one sociable or loyal bone in your body, give up a few Cokes or beers and buy a ticket to a game instead. You may even get addicted.

You will also be contributing to Hawaii’s educational institution.

Not eating meat has many benefits

Thank you for publishing Michael Tsai’s column about Eva Uran ("Vegetarian promotes value of embracing simple lifestyle," Star-Advertiser, July 26).

Ms. Uran’s life teaches us what more Americans discover each day: Choosing plant-based foods reduces animal suffering, is better for the environment and is generally more healthful. And thanks to a growing number of vegetarian and vegan options in restaurants and grocery stores, it’s easier than ever to leave meat, dairy, and eggs off our plates.

Foreigners can influence elections

Recently Republicans in the U.S. Senate, by way of filibuster, defeated a bill passed by the U.S. House to reform election financing.

This bill was made necessary because the Supreme Court, in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, allowed multinational corporations and labor unions to donate as much money as they want to influence our elections. That could include any domestically chartered, foreign-controlled corporations. Theoretically, al-Qaida or any terrorist organization can purchase controlling shares of a U.S. corporation with the intent to elect a congressman who sympathizes with its views.

Republicans have opposed this bill on the grounds that it violates a corporation’s free-speech rights. In fact, the primary purpose of this bill is simply to require campaign ads to disclose who is paying for them. These same Republicans who are screaming for us to tighten immigration laws have no problem letting foreign interests influence our elections.

While Mazie Hirono, Dan Inouye and Daniel Akaka voted for this bill, Charles Djou, holding tight with Republicans, voted against it. American elections are for Americans to decide. Let’s keep it that way.

Be sure to check $3 on tax form

All of us who were impressed with Kory Payne’s commentary ("The Public Option," Star-Advertiser, July 25) and who really want to put our government into our own hands must remember to check the $3 on our state tax returns to start to fund it. Whenever I hear of those special interests that put thousands of dollars into campaigns, I despair that our government will ever listen to us.