Legislature should help caregivers

Reporter Nina Wu should be commended for focusing attention on the challenges facing residents who care for friends and loved ones with Alzheimer’s disease ("More men in caregiving role," Star-Advertiser, Jan. 15).

However, the article understates the number of family caregivers in Hawaii and the value of their unpaid care. It refers only to those who care for someone with memory loss, not the total number of caregivers statewide.

AARP’s Public Policy Institute estimated that in 2009 there were 247,000 family caregivers in Hawaii on any given day.These caregivers collectively provided 162 million hours of unpaid care valued at $1.9 billion during the year.

As the Legislature convenes this week, it’s essential that we provide lawmakers and the public with accurate evidence of Hawaii’s caregiver and long-term care crisis.Family caregivers are quietly shouldering the responsibility of care for our aging population, and we must do everything in our power to support them.

That is why we are advocating public support for Kupuna Care and our Aging and Disability Resource Centers.

Gerry Silva
State president, AARP Hawaii

Early education gives children best chance

As early childhood educators, we are thrilled at the possibility of a funded statewide early childhood program.

We know play-based and project-oriented experiences enable young children to become competent and capable learners and thinkers, healthy in mind, body, and spirit, confident in who they are and how they contribute to a democratic and equitable society.

We know skill-oriented readiness narrows children’s opportunities to learn joyfully in the context of their families, communities and schools.

We also know academic readiness diminishes children to numbers defined through readiness assessments. (According to readiness scholar Beth Graue, there are no scores, tests or behaviors that can determine readiness.)

We strongly endorse an early childhood program empowering children to be active and participating citizens, contributing to the building of a sustainable Hawaii. A commitment to this kind of program compels schools to be ready to teach all children, regardless of abilities, experiences or readiness skills.

Jeanne Marie Iorio
Manoa
Susan Matoba Adler
Kapolei
Richard Johnson
Kailua

Children really need more time outside

The research as to the long-term effectiveness of preschool actually indicates there is probably no benefit after third grade.

The governor, the state Department of Education and others, though, ignore scientific research and throw out feel-good phrases ("We owe it to the keiki") to justify what is yet another unnecessary, deliberate expansion of government and government control.

In fact, the research is clear that kids need more time outdoors. The last thing our keiki need is two more years cooped up in a classroom.

If the goal really is to increase the quality of life for pre-K children, the very best thing the DOE could do is to implement parenting classes that every student must take their sophomore and junior years of high school. Leaving what is probably the most important job a person will have, raising children, to be learned ad hoc and on the job has to be the ultimate foolishness of our society.

Michael Richards
Kaneohe

GMO opponents have diverse backgrounds

Thank you for at least some small coverage of the anti-GMO rally at the Capitol on Wednesday ("Protests target land development, GMO," Star-Advertiser, Jan. 17).

The march and rally were attended by hundreds of private citizens and students. Previous comments by Alicia Maluafiti stated that the protesters would be Occupy Honolulu activists and environmental groups. In Thursday’s paper, she said these people are a group with religious and philosophical opposition to GMO technology. She is a mouthpiece for Monsanto and the biotech industry and does not have a clue as to the makeup of these GMO opponents. There were farmers, students, children from charter schools, educators, people interested in organic gardening, people of all ages and ethnicity. I met people from neighbor islands. Many wanted their voices heard by our legislators to move on labeling GMO food and urge Kamehameha Schools to evict Monsanto.

We are sick and tired of large corporations coming here and fouling our soil and water and taking their profits back to where they came from. If we don’t malama our aina, who will?

Pat Chung
Manoa

Kudos to Bill Kwon for receiving award

Congratulations to Bill Kwon for receiving the Aloha Section PGA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Kwon was not only a longtime champion of golf in Hawaii, but a great supporter of all local sports, coaches and athletes. He was also a terrific newspaper columnist, an excellent golfer and the nicest man I have ever worked with or met.

Hooray for Bill Kwon!

Mike Fitzgerald
Moab, Utah

Give Manti Te’o time to sort out problem

The Manti Te’o frenzy is ugly and it mirrors our psyche today.

I liked your editorial ("Te’o scandal is cautionary tale," Star-Advertiser, Our View, Jan. 18).

Give him time and space to sort this out. The media should focus on what affects the largest segments of the community.Stop putting this matter on the front page.Stop giving it the priority it has on television broadcasts.

Robert Nawahine Mansfield
Kaaawa

Second Amendment helps ensure freedom

James B. Young’s understanding of the origins of the Second Amendment and the responsibility of police forcesdiffers considerably from mine ("Tighten reasons for owning guns," Star-Advertiser, Letters, Jan. 18).

At the time the Bill of Rights was ratified, the young United States of America had only recently reduced its large, well-equipped standing army.Gen. George Washington defeated the British with the help of the French navy, state-of-the art artillery and regular troops armed with the latest small arms.

The founders of our republic feared just such an army as George II had so recently unleashed on them.

Maintaining an armed citizenry was deemed "necessary to the security of a free state." To be a credible deterrent against an autocratic government, some parity of arms is still required.

If our citizens believe the Second Amendment is obsolete, and so trust their government, then they should direct Congressto prepare an amendment repealing it.Until ratified, our public servants should honor their oaths to defend and protect the law of our land and leave interpretation of that law to the judicial system.

Maxwell Cooper
Kaneohe

Assault rifles seem to have no purpose

I don’t own any and am naive when it comes to guns.

Can someone explain to me why a private person, not in the military or in an official protective organization, needs an assault rifle? It doesn’t make sense to use it for hunting, as the prey would become minced meat or hamburger. If it’s for recreational purposes, there must be cheaper ways to have fun (paintballing is one).

If a person intent on doing harm didn’t have access to an assault rifle but had to use a knife, most of the children and adults who are now dead would still be alive.

Gwen Heliker
Makiki