Homeless should avoid spotlight

When are we going to wake up?

No one is being unsympathetic toward the homeless, and we are out to get them off the streets.

Those who put themselves in a position of homelessness should simply try to get into one of the homeless shelters or programs.

I pay $12 a night to camp on public property. Why do people think they can camp on public property for free and in areas where there are no facilities like restrooms?

If they want to camp out, then they should find private areas to camp and the government won’t bother them. The private landown-er might, but not the government.There are many areas where they likely would not be bothered and not be affecting the law-abiding, wage- earning or visiting public.

The state needs to come up with a plan to get the mentally ill off our streets. If they cannot fend for themselves, then they go into a mental institution.

Clif Johnson
President, Wailana at Waikiki board of directors

Brower violated property rights

How exactly does a person get the right to destroy another’s property under any circumstance?

This has less to do with homelessness, no matter how repugnant it might be, and everything to do with the legal system and police not doing their jobs for justice.

If a homeless person went up to state Rep. Tom Brower’s house and bashed his mailbox, the FBI and local police would show up and the homeless guy would get jailed for at least a year on several counts.

Or is there a special "above the law" dispensation for legislators in Hawaii? Is this the proposition that "all men are created equal?"

Even more troubling is how someone so insensitive ever got elected.

John Hannah
Columbus, Neb.

Boating safety not a racial issue

"Control of private data gone" trumpeted the headline of an Associated Press article in the Star-Advertiser (Nov. 11), referring primarily to the social media phenomenon.

This also is true when the BoatUS Foundation, authorized by the state of Hawaii to administer its boating safety course, requires people to state their race when applying for the course.

What does one’s race have to do with boating safety? Well, the foundation sells the private data for commercial purposes, of course.

I called them on it and the person I spoke to denied this. Later, when my wife signed up for the course, she, too, asked the foundation the same question. She was told it was for identification purposes, since the course completion certificate and its wallet card do not have ID photos on them.

An ingenious response perhaps, but a bald-faced lie sinceneither the certificate nor the cardstates the race of the holder.

Jack M. Schmidt Jr.
Kailua

Let ticket buyers name buildings

Recently it was proposed that the University of Hawaii athletics department might sell naming rights for huge contributions.

We could eventually have the Bank of Hawaii Arena, etc. — enriching the department by millions — all for the cost of leftover paint.

However, lacking millions of dollars, most people in Hawaii would be left out of the fun. So let’s have lotteries to make naming an athletic facility affordable to the general public.

Simply sell tickets for a nominal fee and the ticket holder picked gets to name a small building or something else. There could be expiration periods on name rights so you could hold multiple lotteries over time.

I can just see the Leighton Loo Lua now in my mind’s eye. In England it would be the Leighton Loo Loo.

Leighton Loo
Maunalani Heights

Neon green best when running

While running the Val Nolasco half-marathon last Sunday — it started at 5:30 a.m. — I was pleased to see numerous fellow runners wearing neon green in their tops, caps and even shoes.

It’s a color one sees often worn by roadside workers as a safety measure. It’s hard to miss. And clearly it has grown in popularity. But I also noticed many runners wearing black or dark blue shorts and tops and caps — hard to see in the dark.

On training runs around my neighborhood, I often see dark attire, even before sunrise or after sunset.

My advice: Whether training, racing or just strolling, shelve fashion statements. Think neon green.

Kit Smith
Hawaii Kai