Burns a man of fine character

Leon Siu states, "This legacy of death and violence is what Gov. Burns unleashed on the world when he decided to set his religious and moral principals aside" ("Burns setting aside his religion was costly," Star-Advertiser, Letters, Sept. 19).

Shame on Mr. Siu for disparaging such a fine man as Gov. John A. Burns. He acknowledged allowing the legalization of abortion was one of the most difficult decisions of his life, but in the end, he relied on the wisdom of our founding fathers, who knew there was no place in government for religious ideologues, and who placed first into our Constitution above any other words, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…" They knew quite well the bigotry and needless murders that took place in the name of religion in Europe.

Endorsements don’t win votes

Saturday’s election results offer the following compelling message: Money doesn’t win an election, nor does the endorsement of your newspaper or the backing of U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, whether implied or explicit.

My sense is that Inouye should henceforth be more a senior statesmen and refrain from interfering or seeking to influence any race other than his own.

Members key to SHOPO picks

This is in response to Letha A.S. DeCaires’ letter arguing that SHOPO’s commercial endorsing Kirk Caldwell for mayor was not a decision by a majority of SHOPO members ("Carlisle has clear leadership vision," Star-Advertiser, Letters, Sept. 15). Prior to making its mayoral endorsement, SHOPO engaged in a methodical and comprehensive endorsement screening process. SHOPO state and county directors and union stewards, who are also active police officers, engaged in extensive daily conversations and meetings with fellow officers and asked for their input. SHOPO also reviewed the candidates’ history, background, vision and character. This is a process that SHOPO takes very seriously because the mayor has a direct impact on the police department, SHOPO members, our families and the public.

Based on this thorough and meticulous process, acting Mayor Kirk Caldwell was the overwhelming choice for SHOPO.

Time to clamp down on signs

I wonder about all the candidates who have posted signs on every possible space all over the island. Yes, they have even started to hang them from trees. How can these signs possibly represent a candidate who is concerned about their community and environment? How do we look to visitors as they tour our state?

Now that the primary is over, it is time to pay attention to the issue of sign regulations. This should include the many churches who are putting their signs up in illegal places, including median strips.

Election shows anti-rail mood

The defeat of three of the biggest proponents of rail transit — Mufi Hannemann, Kirk Caldwell and Gary Okino — showed that the people of Oahu are against rail. Our candidates for governor should rethink their position on building the rail system. Do they truly believe we can fix all our roads, sewers and water systems while adding an expensive mass transit system that will not solve our traffic problem?

‘Hawaii Five-0’s’ Jack Lord was more than a TV star

Jack Lord had a successful show that was filmed entirely in Hawaii for 12 years. He used many local actors and even trained some of them himself. "Magnum, P.I.," which came along later, mostly used local actors as background. I hope the new show is also successful, but I don’t think it needs to be praised by downplaying the original.

In addition, I hope the new show’s actors will be as friendly to people watching their filming as Jack Lord was. Once, when I was walking to lunch through the grounds of Iolani Palace, I saw him stop a scene and walk over to a group of ordinary-looking visitors. He posed for photos with all of them, being completely gracious the entire time. People today also need to be reminded that Lord and his wife, Marie, loved Hawaii and left millions of dollars to our charities through their gifts to the Hawaii Community Foundation.