Reardon’s rant was inappropriate

University of Hawaii football coach Norm Chow now knows not to have a beef with a reporter ("Coach’s tantrum adds another loss to bleak record," Star-Advertiser, Further Review, April 2).

A reporter might take his complaint to the front page and whine that Chow wants him gone and is yelling at him rather than reporting on the players.

Dave Reardon complains about just that, even suggesting Chow focus on coaching his team, which won only one game last year.

I don’t know what happened at the field, but this kind of immature venting is not news and shouldn’t be published in a newspaper. Personal vendettas should not be aired in a public medium, especially one that is accessible to only one side. Shame on the Star-Advertiser and Reardon.

I don’t care, or need to know, that Reardon and Chow don’t get along. Grow up. Report something we want to know.

Jane Fee
Hawaii Kai

Black was hostess with the mostest

Cobey Black’s death creates an immense social void.I can’t think of anyone like her in Hawaii today — a hostess with the mostest who was a true small-d democrat.

I question if reporter Michael Tsai has it on good authority that Cobey "threw parties that might have made Gatsby blush" ("Isle celebrity columnist rubbed elbows with stars," Star-Advertiser, March 31). Her parties were Kahala parties. Kahala, at the time, was not Gatsby’s West Egg, though there’s no telling what it might become in the future.

At a cocktail party she gave for Edward Teller, the noted bomb maker, I asked Teller what brought him to Hawaii. He said an inves-tor group wanted advice on possible uses for Lanai.

"What did you tell them?" I asked.

"We think Lanai is suitable for a retirement community," he said.

Warren Iwasa
Makiki

Crimes in Hawaii are undercounted

According to the editorial, "Get tougher on habitual thieves" (Star-Advertiser, Our View, March 19), "Overall crime rates in Hawaii have fallen to record lows over the past decade."

This statement is made in reference to the Crime in Hawaii 2012 report. However, a list of caveats at the beginning of the report explain how these statistics are gathered. When collecting data, the Uniform Crime Reporting Program uses the FBI’s hierarchy rule, which reports only the most serious charge during an arrest, rather than all offenses an individual is charged with when booked. As a result, many crimes go vastly underreported.

Also, crime rates are determined per 100,000 residents. Crimes committed upontourists and non-resident military personnel are excluded from these statistics. To conclude that overall crime in Hawaii has reached a record low is a very distorted, misleading statement.

Lisa Cates
Kailua

Find volunteers for election day

I am not sure whether Susan Matsudo’s letter was simply another rant against city and state workers or actually solution-based ("State workers should work on election day," Star-Advertiser, Letters, March 30).

One of the best ways to alleviate the shortage of election workers is to encourage volunteerism.

For example, young people would be a good source to target, since they provide energy and the willingness to learn more about our political system. Retirees and able-bodied citizens also have something to offer.

Simply demanding that state and city employees work at these sites does not really solve the issue. Also, should election day become a normal work day, the general public would probably appreciate them performing their general work duties and not some specialized function.

Ryan Loy
Nuuanu

Does estate support food sustainability?

I’d urge the Star-Advertiser to publish an interview with Neil Hannahs, director of the land assets division at Kamehameha Schools ("Achieving sustainability takes bold action and commitment," Star-Advertiser, Island Voices, March 27).

I’d like to hear his responses to these questions:

» What is Kamehameha Schools doing to project sustainable use of its land holdings for local food production?

» In what ways is KS fostering education, visioning, startups and loans to young people desiring to produce locally grown food in reaching the "Aloha + Challenge"?

» How does leasing KS lands to multinational agribusinesses like Monsanto fit in with local food sustainability?

» Would KS consider investing a specified portion of income from such agribusiness leases to sustain more programs for education and incentives for local farmers and food production?

Kamehameha Schools can be a powerful player in sustainability in Hawaii and the public would benefit by hearing from Hannahs.

Daniel Benedict
Waialua

Create temporary prison guard pool

I’m sure that it is no fun working in a prison where kind acts of humanity are rarely practiced. I’m sureguards being able to stay home on Super Bowl Sunday with their families feels good ("Excessive sick days by guards deny visits by inmates’ families," Star-Advertiser, March 23).

But what about the women and children leftwaitingfor visitswhen a man goes to Oahu Community Correctional Center or Halawa?

Create a temporary guard pool where prison officials can call up someone last minute and have them come in. I’m sure there are retired policemen or those off-duty who might fit the security clearance needed.

CassandraAoki
Kaneohe