UH should invest in academics, not sports

With the recent brouhaha about University of Hawaii athletics and associated costs, I decided to see where athletics figured in the university’s mission statement. Online were several versions. The short one states that the university’s mission is "To serve the public by creating, preserving, and transmitting knowledge in a multicultural environment."

Only one version even mentioned athletics — and then as item six of six.

Courses, not athletics, should be the university’s main concern. Families and students should not have to pay the costs of a "world-class" athletics department, when what is really needed is the opportunity to obtain a solid education without assuming debt that may take decades to repay.

Let’s put our focus on academics. Were we to do so, we would not pay our professors far less than we do our athletic director and personnel. We would focus on increasing the number of full-time professors, rather than so many adjunct faculty who are poorly paid.

As a land grant college, state support was initially substantial. Now, we increasingly ask students to fund operations, including more administrators, through tuition increases.

Jean Manly
Aina Haina

Tourism workers sent into the storm

State and city offices closed. Major shopping centers closed. Stay home, stay off the roads and be safe. Secure your trash bins. But, if you work in Waikiki, second-class citizens, please report to work!

Wesley Wilhelm
Mililani

Measures could boost affordable housing

Your editorial, "Candidates need a plan for housing" (Star-Advertiser, Our View, Aug. 17) omitted several proposals considered by the City Council that would affect developments seeking zoning approval.

Resolution 13-168 CD1, which I introduced, requires developers to increase the number of affordable homes to households with incomes not exceeding 80 percent of the median income from 10 percent to 15 percent. With the pending review of Ho’opili and its proposed 11,750 homes, such a requirement could result in nearly 600 additional affordable homes.

I also introduced Resolution 13-202 CD1, which requires 30 percent of homes built for those earning less than 80 percent of the median income be set aside as affordable rentals. The city’s current affordable-housing policy does not mandate the development of affordable rentals.

The Council deferred both measures since the administration is crafting a comprehensive affordable housing policy that would also apply to transit-oriented development.

I urge the mayor and Council to move forward with these proposals to help solve Oahu’s affordable housing crisis.

Ron Menor
Council member, Council District 9 (Ewa Beach-Waipahu-Mililani)

General election can foster change

It doesn’t take too much to see what is going on with our elected political officials in the Legislature and City Council.

The primary election is history, it has been a battle within the ranks of the Democratic Party.

Now comes the main event, the general election.

Could 2014 be the year for the Republicans? The people of Hawaii are not ignorant, stupid or naive, and can see that the past years have been tragic, with the problems of high cost of housing and rentals, the homeless problem and the ever-rising cost of food in restaurants, at supermarkets and in Chinatown.

What actions have our present representatives taken to stop this abuse of "free enterprise" — raising the cost of living — rather than just introducing bills to ban smoking, ban fireworks, ban plastic shopping bags and ban Styrofoam containers?

Isn’t the homeless problem much more of a health problem to the public?

Philip Ho
Kuakini

Brundtland: An ‘Elder’ worth seeing

Of Hawaii’s distinguished guests, "The Elders," featured in the current MidWeek, I am most excited about Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland. She is probably the most accomplished and most influential human being on Earth.

Not only was she prime minister of Norway and director-general of the World Health Organization, but is currently U.N. special envoy on climate change. She chaired the U.N. Commission on Environment and Development, which published the famous Brundtland Report — "Our Common Future" — setting the foundations for sustainable development worldwide.

She has served as vice president of Socialist International and has been awarded numerous prestigious honors, including the Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture. With her world-changing achievements, too many to list, she is truly the renaissance woman in the 21st century.

The upcoming public forum titled, "A Just and Inclusive World Community," spotlighting Dr. Brundtland and The Elders, is an event not to be missed.

Richard Morse
Makiki

FROM THE FORUM

"’Huge changes’ likely for troubled exchange," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 17:
>> Hawaii should have been exempted from this mess.
>> It’s funny how educators sitting in their ivory towers of the university will still advocate for a failed system without any suggestions for how to fix it.
>> Let failures fail. Do not spend a single taxpayer dime to keep this zombie alive.
——
"Visitor industry pushes for more help from city," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 18:
>> There is no excuse for failing to prohibit urinating and defecating in public areas. None. The City Council should be ashamed of itself.
>> The tourist industry in Hawaii is probably the biggest taxpayer. They have a right to complain. Where are all our tax dollars going?
>> The city and the hotels should provide facilities. Together they could get it done.
——
"Chief elections officer hit by calls for ouster," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 19:
>> Why don’t these crybabies just blame (Scott) Nago for the hurricane? They think they can do a better job?
>> Nago is in way over his head.
>> Nago says "just doing our job." Fine. But sometimes you got to go above and beyond just doing your job.
——
"No UH sports are at risk of being cut, director says," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 19:
>> If football fans don’t pack the stadium and thus cause more losses, football should go away for good starting next year.
>> Put any money into our academics. Our brand is not the bad football team. It is the winning national academic programs we have.
>> Let’s remember that fewer than one in 10 college sports programs operates in the black. It is ridiculous to think that UH sports can do so.
——
"16% of educators earn top marks on new rating scale," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 20:
>> No one ever doubted that there are many good teachers in the system. Let us recognize and reward them!
>> Snapshot evaluations don’t really provide the true evaluations. A teacher may be observed in one of their "horror" classes and still be a very good teacher and vice versa.
——
"Albizia wood crafted to help storm relief," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 21:
>> Cut the trees. Then give them away to artisans and crafters or at a very dirt-cheap price.
>> Bookmarks? Who reads paper books anymore? Better to make chopsticks out of albizia trees.
——
"1 person in 5 receives aid through Hawaii Foodbank and its agencies," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 21:
>> While these big companies who earn massive profits every year keep hiring more low-wage workers, it seems like the public needs to subsidize these company’s workers in order for them not to starve.
>> 1 in 5 in Hawaii also receives food stamps. I know some folks really need help, but I bet some are living well off the freebies.
>> This is a well-led and solidly run organization under Dick Grimm. Let us all support them.
——
"ACLU challenges primary election," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 22:
>> Not having electricity or water does not prevent one from voting. Just ask the people of Kauai after being hit by Hurricane Iniki.
>> Kauai didn’t have albizia trees blocking roads.
>> The primary reason why the ACLU felt it had to get involved was because, being that voting is a cornerstone of democracy, it is likewise a fundamental right upon which all of our civil liberties rest.
——
"UnitedHealth signs pact to repair state exchange," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 22:
>> This is stupid. Why pay for a portal to the only two companies participating? Why not go directly to Kaiser or HMSA?
>> The problem is that our market is simply not big enough to support the Connector.
——
"Regents approve interim chancellor," Star-Advertiser, Aug. 22:
>> Wouldn’t you want an administrator whose field of expertise is administration?
>> Robert Bley-Vroman is a good, honest, approachable, kind, family man who tries to be fair to everyone.