Shades of Inspector Javert. The authors of the letter urging retention of a $300 felony threshold should take a few hours to view the recent film version of “Les Miserables” (“Keep threshold at $300 for felony theft,” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 11).
The United States shines as a world leader in many progressive policies but, shamefully, also when it comes to incarcerating one of the highest percentage of its own citizens for non-violent offenses.
House Bill 2561 makes some long-needed adjustments to avoid destroying the lives of perpetrators and their families through excessive imprisonment. Adjusting the minimum threshold in Hawaii Revised Statutes 708-831 for felony theft from $300 to $750 does not decriminalize the act — it remains a prosecutable misdemeanor.
The adjustment merely recognizes that, adjusted for inflation, the $300 threshold when originally enacted is about $750 today. The legislators should, in their wisdom, compassion and common sense, enact HB 2561.
John Keiser
Makiki
State ivory bans enhance federal laws
The Legislature is considering bills that prohibit selling parts of endangered species and products made from them, like ivory.
Federal regulations do not effectively govern the multi-million-dollar intrastate commerce in these products. State bans are critical, because every time another state bans ivory sales, it closes another market for blood-ivory in the U.S. and sets an example for other countries that killing elephants for ivory should not be tolerated.
Every day 96 elephants are slaughtered and butchered for their ivory. But this isn’t just an issue in Africa. It’s an issue right here in Hawaii, which has been identified as one of the top three states in sales of ivory, one of the wildlife products covered by the proposed legislation.
Closing down these local markets will send a powerful message that we all want a future where our children and grandchildren will share a planet with these majestic creatures.
John Calvelli
Executive vice president for public affairs, Wildlife Conservation Society
Helping homeless via AUW a good idea
I was encouraged to read the positive story on Gov. David Ige’s decision to invest $5 million with Aloha United Way to help end homelessness in Hawaii (“State to give $5M in relief to United Way,” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 5).
The insight of this approach is to deliver both immediate help to families and individuals living on the streets while investing in ways to prevent people from falling into homelessness.
As a deeply trusted, highly respected leader in our community, AUW is an ideal organization to help lead this innovative initiative.
Hawaii’s current homelessness crisis is complicated, and the solution is simple — it’s housing.
I’m confident that with this money — coupled with our collective public will to solve this issue — we can help put families and individuals in need back into homes and on a sustainable path toward proud, productive lives.
Greg Payton
CEO and executive director, Mental Health Kokua
Spending on homeless must be done smartly
Hawaii was the last of the 50 states to join the union, but our great state ranks No. 1 in many aspects.
We are the most expensive state in the nation to purchase a house, as well as having the highest monthly gross residential rent, the highest cost of living, and the highest homelessness rate per capita.
We certainly do not want these bragging rights.
Of course, we must strive to assist each and every homeless and potentially homeless person, but we must do so more smartly. There are different categories of homeless and potentially homeless people. Different categories require different goals and clearly defined programs and approaches.
Hawaii is not ranked No. 1 in spending to assist its homeless population, but we do not want that distinction.
Dennis Larm
Makiki
Don’t let litigation fear derail equal-pay bill
Women in Hawaii make 7 cents less for every dollar a man earns for the same full-time job performance, according to 2014 statistics from the U.S. Labor Department (“Shortchanged,” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 7).
Senate Bill 2313 proposes to reduce the number of legally permissible reasons that allow an employer to pay a woman less than a man for the same work.
However, what is more disturbing to me, is that there is a group of women in the National Federation of Independent Business who believe that “Hawaii’s equal-pay law provides adequate protection for women and that changing the law as proposed will invite more frivolous litigation efforts against employers.”
When did feeding and caring for one’s family become frivolous?
Mary Jo Morrow
Kailua
FROM THE FORUM
Readers of the Star-Advertiser’s online edition can respond to stories posted there. The following are some of those. Instead of names, pseudonyms are generally used online. They have been removed.
“Kapolei Hale turns 15” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 8:
>> Kapolei has grown into a gigantic “bedroom community,” much like Mililani is today. All the traffic in the morning is going into town, to where all the meaningful jobs are. Where are the city and state offices that were once envisioned to make Kapolei a true second city? Still in downtown Honolulu. A second city — not! A bedroom commuter suburb — yes.
>> It is a terrible town to drive through. Takes forever. Oh, and it looks like when they planned the rail, they kind of abandoned the second city idea. Rail does not go to Kapolei.
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“Oahu behind the times, road repair experts say” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 8:
>> Hawaii taxpayers have been paying among the highest gas taxes in the nation, which is used for road maintenance. There is plenty of money flowing into the road funds. We should have gold-plated roads.
>> Vehicle registration taxes were also raised significantly in recent years, enough for a second layer of gold.
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“Bills forcing land sales are tabled” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 9:
>> This is an issue that is relevant to every landowner. How can it possibly be in the public interest to take commercial land generating income from one private entity and give it to another private entity simply because that entity leased the land from the landowner? That is ludicrous. And you wonder why Hawaii has the reputation of being a horrible state in which to do business.
>> House Speaker Joe Souki’s retirement is long overdue.
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“Mayor signs off on curbside ‘parklets’” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 9:
>> Is the mayor saying that we have too many parking places?
>> More resting places for the homeless.
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“Beach cleanup nets hundreds of nails from illegal bonfires” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 10:
>> Mahalo nui to the Obando ohana and others who perform this kind of cleanup for everyone’s benefit. Maybe one way to make it more difficult to build these bonfires would be to hold the companies responsible for disposal of these pallets that are such popular fuel. They should be required to properly dispose of them via recycling, not just hand them off to someone else to pollute the landscape and endanger the public and wildlife.
>> Is this what motivates young people to perform such thoughtless acts — what they see on social media? I hope not, because that’s pretty pathetic.
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“Panel, process for pot licenses to remain secret” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 10:
>> This kind of secrecy is the perfect environment for lack of accountability and the breeding of corruption. Anonymous selection committee/panel members, closed doors, lack of transparency; these factors/conditions serve only to instill mistrust in government. And the politicians and bureaucrats wonder why the general public is cynical of them.
>> I’m willing to bet that the state Department of Health bureaucrats really do not have a selection process. They will all look at the brown envelopes of love found on their desks, then decide who gets a license.
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“H-Zone in the red, faces closure” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 11:
>> The reason for lack of sales is that the designs of the products sold in H-Zone and at Stan Sheriff Center and Aloha Stadium are terrible. Game after game we walk into the stores and see the same old tired and bland designs. People walk in and walk out without buying.
>> They’d probably make more money opening up a booth at the flea market instead.
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“Time to consider lowering ticket prices to fill Aloha Stadium” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 11:
>> It’s not just the ticket prices that is needed. You also need a better product on field, better traffic control for the parking lot, and better and cheaper food choices. Also, let the people into the stadium an hour earlier, fix the escalator and clean up the bathrooms, and let the high school bands perform at halftime sometimes.
