I am not a fan of University of Hawaii sports; I tend to gravitate to pro teams.
However, once in a while, the UH teams do something extraordinary: the Fab Five of the ’70s; the 1992-93 football team under Bob Wagner, winning the Holiday Bowl; the undefeated 2007 team under June Jones (until the Sugar Bowl); and the many women’s volleyball teams.
In 2016, I witnessed both the men’s and women’s basketball teams qualify for the NCAA Tournament. I couldn’t believe what I was watching. These teams overcame great odds, disappointments and adversities. What a great night of UH sports!
And this is why I am a sports fan. Once in a while, I witness something special: the 1969 New York Jets and Mets; the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team; the 2004 Boston Red Sox.
The UH men’s and women’s basketball teams are a testament to the human spirit. Once in a while, something magical happens.
Robert K. Soberano
Moiliili
Will someone tell Trump he’s fired?
While watching recent clips of Republican primary debates, I had an epiphany. What we actually are watching is a reality show called “Celebrity Candidate.” It’s all entertainment, with Donald Trump just waiting to see how far he can go before someone tells him he’s fired.
Ann Beeson
Chinatown
Majority of isle GOP didn’t go for Trump
Allen Canter’s letter chiding Charles Djou and Pat Saiki for opposing Donald Trump was off base (“Saiki, Djou out of step with isle GOP voters,” Star-Advertiser, March 13).
Trump did win a plurality in Hawaii, but more than 56 percent of caucus attendees voted against him. Furthermore, the voters in 15 states representing 140 electoral votes that went Republican in 2012 have given Ted Cruz a slight lead over Donald Trump in actual votes, if averaged out.
If the Republicans choose Trump as their candidate this year, they’ll be nominating the blue states’ favorite.
John LeRoux
Waikiki
Term limits could boost voter turnout
Why don’t state legislators require term limits for themselves when other elected officials abide by them (“Lawmaker shelves term-limits bill,” Star-Advertiser, March 4)? What makes the Legislature so special?
It is a huge waste of tax dollars to hold a hearing on a bill the chairman has no intention of letting see the light of day. Public comment is merely a waste of energy and a lesson in futility.
Of course we need term limits. State Sen. Gilbert Keith-Agaran is wrong. Elections are not enough to assure legislator turnover. Every resident knows the length of time served can add to the deep corruption of the system.
And we wonder why Hawaii voter turnout is so dismal. We are disgusted with such an unfair playing field and those who enable it.
Shannon Rudolph
Holualoa, Hawaii island
Slom is refreshing with his openness
It’s not surprising to learn that state Sen. Sam Slom is the only legislator to release his calendars and email activities (“Slom is lone isle legislator to comply,” Star-Advertiser, March 14).
His outer door is always open. So is the door to his inner office. Staffers are welcome to join any conference he may have, whether it’s with the governor, the chief justice, a business executive, a community activist or a homeless man. Constituents often wander in unannounced for a quick word with Slom.
Slom not only says where he stands, he intently listens to others. It’s refreshing to know a public official who lets you know what he thinks and does on any matter, regardless of controversy or complexity.
I worked the 2015 legislative session in his office and know all of this first hand.
Michael G. Palcic
St. Louis Heights
European refugees like migrants in U.S.
The hundreds of thousands of migrants (refugees) flooding into Europe looking for better economic opportunities are the same as the homeless in America.
But unlike the situation in Europe, with people fleeing wars, starvation and political upheavals, our problems come from within. They are self-created. There are no outside forces.
The crisis in the U.S. is reminiscent of the John Steinbeck novel, “The Grapes of Wrath,” in which thousands who lost their homes and jobs in the great Depression and Dust Bowl of the 1930s, were forced to abandon their prior lives and travel on uncertain routes, only to land in municipalities that lacked the means to support them.
If there is such a thing as enlightened leadership, we need it now for Lifeboat Hawaii.
Chip Davey
Downtown Honolulu
Homeless sweeps just perpetuate crisis
When I tried to get my homeless brother into the Institute for Human Services shelter, his mobility issues could not be accommodated because showers and toilets were upstairs with no elevator and sleeping mats were on the floor.
Next Step shelter is a ways off the beaten path, so again, someone with mobility issues cannot make the trek to the shelter.
People who are paranoid of other people are not going to go to a shelter packed with people. Some homeless would be perfectly happy living in a tent or cabin. Surely the city and state can create inexpensive campgrounds with toilet facilities, even temporarily, to give homeless people a sense of stability, rather than chasing them away with the sweeps. The sweeps are not a solution. They just perpetuate the homeless situation.
Kathy O’Connor
Downtown Honolulu
