Hanabusa could weaken delegation

What is U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa thinking? She and Hawaii’s three other Democrats in Congress have a lock on their seats since there are no viable challengers. But if she vacates her House seat to run for the Senate, it creates the kind of opportunity that Republicans relish.

As soon as it was announced that Hanabusa was going to run for the Senate, Stanley Chang announced his candidacy for her House seat. That race will be a mad scramble that anyone can win, and it would be unfortunate for Hawaii if it is a Republican.

A Republican victory would fracture Hawaii’s unwavering support for issues such as access to health care, especially for seniors and children from low-income families, abortion rights, gay rights and the rights of all minorities, environmental preservation and energy sustainability.

In vacating her House seat, Hanabusa would be thinking more about her personal career than what’s best for Hawaii and the nation.

John Kawamoto
Honolulu

CORRECTION: City Councilman Stanley Chang, who has announced his candidacy for the U.S. House, is a registered Democrat. A letter to the editor in an earlier version of this story and on Page A8 Tuesday called him a Republican.

Electric-car drivers can pay fair share

We have not seen much discussion of user fees as a way to properly charge owners of all-electric and hybrid cars their fair share of road costs. Most of us who drive electric cars or hybrids are environmentalists who are eager to see this state wean itself away from fossil fuels. We are not trying to avoid paying our fair share.

Yes, we know that most road paving involves petroleum products. Perhaps that issue could be addressed in other ways.

We also think vehicle registration fees should be raised to help cover road maintenance costs.

Sarah and Duane Preble
Manoa

Don’t let developers take school land

The article, "Development on school land OK’d" (Star-Advertiser, April 27) overlooks one major problem with Senate Bill 237 that would allow private development on public school land. SB 237 gives the state Department of Education unfettered power to decide which public school lands can be leased to private developers.

Currently, the power to lease public land is given to the Department of Land and Natural Resources, and its board must follow specific rules during its decision-making that protects the process from corruption and abuse of power.

SB 237 states, "Notwithstanding sections 171-13 and 302A-1151, or any other law to the contrary, the department may lease public school land on terms it deems appropriate…"

SB 237 comes up for vote today. Please urge your legislators to vote "no" to this bad bill that allows for private development on public school land, even if the schools that sit on that land have full enrollment and the land is being fully utilized by the community and our keiki.

Liz Larson
Waikiki

Congress shouldn’t act on some bills

Much about our government is distasteful and corrupt. Much correction is needed, but I offer a different perspective on the specific rap that Congress does nothing.

It is understandable that to those advocating for a particular bill, Congress fails to act if the bill does not pass. Many, many bills come before Congress for consideration. Congress may or may not act on them. For this, it is often labeled a "do-nothing Congress."

I suggest that Congress also acts when it refuses to act. The great majority of bills deserve to die on their merits. Congress may be faulted for many things, but the rap that it does nothing may, more often than not, be a bad rap.

Nelson S.W. Chang
Kaneohe

Changes restrict access to marijuana

State Sen. Josh Green, chairman of the Senate Health Committee, is responsible for some very hateful, non-compassionate changes to the bill on the compassionate use of marijuana.

One of the changes made last week by Green would require a primary-care physician to recommend and certify patients and caregivers. We all know how few doctors there are available in Hawaii, not to mention their fear to recommend cannabis due to intimidation and exposure by Keith Kamita and the state Narcotics Enforcement Division.

As the law stands now, any physician can recommend cannabis, which is necessary because of the lack of physicians in Hawaii. Needing a primary-care physician to recommend and certify patients and caregivers makes medical marijuana unavailable to a large majority of patients. This certainly appears to be a thinly veiled attack to make medical cannabis unavailable to the patients in Hawaii.

Contact your legislators immediately and ask them to stop these changes. Their names are available at www.capitol.hawaii.gov.

Vincent Callagher
Keaau, Hawaii island

Japanese live with limits on smoking

Although your editorial, "Don’t expand smoking ban — yet" is spot-on in most respects, highlighting Japanese visitors as being particularly accustomed to smoking in public places draws upon an outdated picture (Star-Advertiser, Our View, April 26).

Even without any penalty provisions in the law, protections from passive smoking in public places became widespread after the 2002 enactment of Japan’s Health Promotion Law. Since then, government surveys in 2003, 2008, and 2010 revealed dramatic drops in exposures at home, in workplaces, and in restaurants and bars. Even outdoors, the busiest commercial districts in Tokyo and other major cities and the beaches of the famed Shonan coastline have become smoke-free.

Then again, at last count, only about 20 percent of Japanese adults were still smoking and 2012 cigarette consumption dropped below 1968 levels. With so much less smoke in the air over there, our Japanese visitors are probably less accustomed to smoking in public places now than we are.

Mark Levin
Professor of law, University of Hawaii