Payroll tax cut will help small business

I would venture to say Volker Hildebrandt doesn’t need the $1,000 that the tax cut would provide ("Payroll tax cut is irresponsible," Star-Advertiser, Letters, Dec. 10).

Yes, this is a short-term fix, to give the average worker some financial relief now, in an economy brought about by the greed of Wall Street, two unwarranted wars, and an unfunded Bush tax cut. Where was Mr. Hildebrandt when this was happening? And the selfish citizens he says who would profit from the tax cut? They are the small-business owners who desperately need buyers of their products and services to survive.

There is a proposal to fund this tax cut. It’s called shared sacrifice. What’s wrong with the ones who can share to share? It’s like dropping a $1 bill in the red bucket.

Pedro Badua
Ewa Beach

Biodiesel fuel cost is mindboggling

RIMPAC going green? At $26 a gallon for biodiesel versus $4 a gallon for gasoline ("Going green," Star-Advertiser, Dec. 10)?

Mindboggling. And last year the Navy paid twice as much per gallon of biodiesel? God help us.

If the Navy really wanted to "go green," couldn’t it just skip a year of RIMPAC or just go nuclear on North Korea? Who else around the Pacific Rim would attack the U.S.?

Wynnie Hee
Mililani

Honor system for rail is too risky

Yes, the train should be free for a few months to build business.

No, the suggested honor proposal for the forthcoming rail system is not feasible ("Honor bound," Star-Advertiser, Dec. 11).

Our public library system depends on honor for a 15-cent-per-page payment to cover paper and the high cost of ink cartridges; 97 percent of our customers always pay, but there is little to be done for those who say, "I don’t have to." Recently, three people took advantage — about 20 unpaid pages from the first two, then a woman printed 335 pages — a $50.25 loss. There have been even worse examples.

Why not use something like a credit card with a magnetic strip for quick entry? The cumulative bill would come due monthly.

No pay? No ride.

Sylvia C. Mitchell
Makiki

Tebow not violating biblical commands

I find it ironic that Joel Mathis would use the Bible to support his argument against Tim Tebow’s public display of faith ("A telemarketer at dinner," RedBlueAmerica, Dec. 11).

Tebow is certainly not a hypocrite, but if he hid his faith, he would be.

Some players like to draw attention to themselves when they score a touchdown by doing a silly dance. However, Tebow gives all the glory to God and praises Him when his God-given talent allows him to be successful. If Mathis reads Psalms 146-150, he will find this behavior encouraged.

Mathis further goes on to state that we should live with boundaries and not "thrust our religion into arenas where it is unexpected or unwelcome."

Who’s to decide where these boundaries should be, and what is Mathis so afraid of? Why does such behavior make him feel so uncomfortable? What is so terrible about praising the Lord?

Peter Junker
Waikiki

Puppy mill owners must be accountable

Bradley International and its officers have allowed profit to take precedence over animal welfare, and these animals were indeed suffering in violation of our animal protection laws ("Puppy mill accepts animal cruelty charges," Star-Advertiser, Dec. 13).

As a volunteer at the shelter, I saw firsthand the condition of those dogs upon their arrival at the shelter, and there is no question that the Hawaiian Humane Society’s evidence was overwhelming and irrefutable.

The citizens of Hawaii will see if justice will prevail as we await sentencing on Feb. 15. Justice will prevail only if those responsible are held responsible to the fullest extent of the law and are prevented from owning or trading in the puppy sales business.

Steven Prieto
Makiki

Headline overstated eagerness of clergy

If I were one of the more than a thousand clergy here in the islands, I would be pretty unhappy about being misrepresented by Pat Gee in her article entitled, in big bold letters, "Isle clergy are eager to perform civil unions" (Star-Advertiser, Dec. 12).

At first glance it certainly does make it look like there was some kind of poll taken of all the clergy here in Hawaii. In actuality there were only 23 clergy who took part in an online class to learn how to officiate these ceremonies.

Was this headline put out there in order to attempt to give some sort of spiritual validation to civil unions?

Shame on you for certainly misrepresenting the majority of ministers.

John Bishop
Kailua

UH students lack status to pick coach

I believe the Associated Students of the University of Hawaii’s request for representation on the football head coach search committee is completely baseless.

UH-Manoa students contribute but a minuscule fraction as compared to other similar-caliber schools whose student activity fees cover several million dollars annually. Even the head of Na Koa, the football program’s booster club that gave the school more than $5 million last year alone, is not a member of the search committee.

The only student worthy of representation on the search committee would be a student-athlete, active-roster member from the football team. Any other student representation would be misguided at best.

Von Kaneshiro
Nuuanu