Advances being made to protect pedestrians

While it’s disturbing to see the rate of pedestrian fatalities increasing ("Rate of pedestrian deaths climbing," Star-Advertiser, July 23), AARP Hawaii is encouraged by developments on Oahu that are likely to improve public safety in the long term.

» Mayor Kirk Caldwell kicked off the year by announcing his intention to make Honolulu an "age-friendly city."

» The four city departments that work with roadways have implemented a shared Complete Streets checklist to improve inter-office coordination.

» City Council members and their constituents are involved in planning and implementing pilot and demonstration projects island-wide to show the effectiveness of Complete Streets.

» The University of Hawaii Cooperative Extension has undertaken the "Communities for a Lifetime" project in Liliha.

» Iolani School and the UH Center on Aging are initiating the "1 Mile Project" to engage students in assessingthe age friendliness of the area around the school.

Looking ahead, we see as promising the number and diversity of intergenerational efforts aimed at making our streets safer.

Meaningful change takes time. We need to stay the course.

Jackie Boland
Director of outreach, AARP Hawaii

Obama should rise above divisive politics

In yet another speech, President Barack Obama is restarting his focus on the middle class ("Obama draws focus back to middle class," Star-Advertiser, July 25).

He takes Republicans to task for their "endless parade of distractions, political posturing and phony scandals" and states he will restore the middle class to prosperity and reverse trends that were decades in the making.

He said we need more "investments" (more taxes). Further, Republican opposition has hurt the fragile recovery and we need to set aside the kind of "slash and burn partisanship we’ve seen in the past few years."

Sound familiar? It should. We have been hearing the same partisan litany of accusations and excuses for four years. Rather than more speeches that entrench opposition, the president, like a true executive, must rise above divisive politics, take responsibility for his initiatives that are meeting resistance, failing or having mixed results and seriously seek solutions involving real legislative compromise.

Tom Freitas
Hawaii Kai

China doing better than Krugman let on

Economist Paul Krugman misleads when suggesting that wage earnings are too low to enable China’s families to consume a reasonable share of the nation’s rapidly increasing wealth ("Day of reckoning nears for China’s economic boom," Star-Advertiser, July 21).

He does acknowledge that wages are rising in China, but by adding the word "finally," he implies this is happening just recently. He is wrong about the timing, as the rapid increase in factory wage has been happening for the last decade.

And he is remiss in failing to mention the astounding rate of increase in the wages earned, for example, by some 200 million migrant workers.

The facts are that factory workers were paid between 300 and 600 yuan per month in 2002. This was raised to 875 yuan by 2005, and to over 2,000 yuan by 2012. This rate of increase is many times faster than the growth rate of China’s entire economy.

Oliver Lee
Aina Haina

Drivers need to know English to read signs

I completely disagree with Chu Lan Shubert-Kwok that it is "unrealistic and cruel" to expect immigrants to understand English in order to pass a driving test ("Driver’s exams an essential service," Star-Advertiser, Letters, July 25).

Drivers must understand English in order to read traffic signs. This is basic common sense. People who move to the United States should understand basic English if they wish to have the privilege of operating a motor vehicle.

Native American Indians were forced into boarding schools, robbed of their right to speak their native language and forced to learn English. That was "unrealistic and cruel."

Courtney Battise
Kihei, Maui

Royal baby brouhaha was welcome respite

Despite our nation’s heritage, many Americans respect the British royalty — not as kings and queens, but rather as living vestiges and symbols of a long-enduring nation. We recognize the duty and diligence that all the royals perform in their endless and most difficult task.

It must be difficult to spend a life under constant scrutiny and "at work" most all day, every day. The wedding and now the birth of a son to Prince William and Kate Middleton lifted the spirits of all those around the world who believe in fairy tales. I believe in fairy tales.

Fred Hemmings
Kaneohe