Same-sex marriage doesn’t hurt families

Several recent letters to the editor have parroted one of the recurrent but problematic rationalizations for opposing the basic civil rights of individuals who wish to legally pursue same-sex marriage; namely, that this will destroy the ancient social institution of the family.

This assertion has absolutely no basis in fact.

The executive board of the American Anthropological Association, the world’s largest scientific organization of anthropologists with well over 10,000 members, published the following "Statement on Marriage and Family" on Feb. 26, 2004, which is readily available in full with documentation on its website:

"The results of more than a century of anthropological research on households, kinship relationships, and families, across cultures and through time, provide no support whatsoever for the view that either civilization or viable social orders depend upon marriage as an exclusively heterosexual institution.

"Rather, anthropological research supports the conclusion that a vast array of family types, including families built upon same-sex partnerships, can contribute to stable and humane societies."

Leslie E. Sponsel
Hawaii Kai

Purpose of marriage is for rearing children

Same-sex marriage should not be legalized in Hawaii.

The natural purpose of marriage is for the rearing of children. Children need the complementarity of feminine love, expressed through nurturing, and masculine love, expressed through evaluation, correction, and mentoring.

These traits are strongly imbued according to parental gender.

To deprive children of these unique forms of love will promote only an imbalanced perspective of love, which could result in serious disorders.

If same-sex marriage gains acceptance, then more unconventional forms of marriage and sexual practice will also gain favor, and undoubtedly harm society.

Frederick W. Bledsoe
Kaimuki

Lease rent increase was exorbitantly high

It’s a shame to hear of the pending foreclosure of a needed farm program geared toward at-risk youth and recovering addicts by the Pacific Cultural Institute ("Farm program faces foreclosure," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 24).

It seems like a crime the manner in which the lease rent soared exorbitantly from $1,500 a year to $32,400 for the residential property. That’s more than a $20,000 increase.

Hawaii’s education system should not only stand behind the farm program but embrace it. We need a program that couches education in relevance to its citizens and surrounding environment.

Hawaii’s indigenous keiki have a high drop-out rate and comprise a large percentage of incarcerated youths.

The cost of investing in a program may be as little as keeping its original lease amount.

A program that teaches "traditional and sustainable farming" is cost-effective.

It trumps the alternative of sending convicts to mainland prison farms.

Vernetta Hall
Laie

Work to ensure beds for homeless citizens

There is one shelter bed for every 14 homeless citizens in Hawaii.

We don’t allow homeless citizens to sleep in public parks or other public places, so they sleep on public sidewalks.

Over the last few years, the City Council has spent our tax dollars to confiscate the belongings of homeless citizens and take down their tents. Now Councilman Stanley Chang wants to spend more money to arrest homeless citizens unless they have tried and failed to get one of those rare shelter beds.

If sidewalk safety is important, please let our homeless citizens sleep in safer places, such as the public parks.

As long as homelessness is still with us, Chang and all of our public servants should work to ensure that there is a shelter bed available for each of our homeless citizens.

Thomas S. Dye
Downtown Honolulu

Providing health care is not government job

Congress should kill Obamacare because the government has no business running a business.

Businesses are for the people to earn a living.

The government’s job is to collect taxes, keep the country safe and maintain the infrastructure.

Some say health care should be mandated like auto insurance, but there’s a big difference. Auto insurance takes care of liability for personal and property damage to others. Health care is for individuals to take care of themselves.

Lori Fukumoto
Kuliouou