• Questions for Tokioka • Salary problem is homemade • Bothered by ‘culture of irreverence’ • Gating KCC … gating communities Questions for Tokioka Since when does The Garden Island call political races before they take place? Jimmy Tokioka is
• Questions for Tokioka
• Salary problem is homemade
• Bothered by ‘culture of irreverence’
• Gating KCC … gating communities
Questions for Tokioka
Since when does The Garden Island call political races before they take place? Jimmy Tokioka is not going to be running against Ron Agor because Tokioka has an opponent in the primary who is a true Democrat. The Democratic voters in District 15 are not going to elect a longtime Republican who changed parties to try and enhance his chances of being elected.
Tokioka states that as he got “involved more in the Democratic Party on the local and state level, I felt more aligned with the party because of the issues the party stands for.” Tell us, Jimmy, just how were you involved with the Democratic Party on the local and state level and what are the issues that attracted you to the Democratic Party? Also, tell us what Democratic candidates you have supported.
Salary problem is homemade
The Kaua‘i Charter Section 29 deals with the salary commission. If our elected officials would have followed the Section 29.03: The term of the commission shall be conterminous with the term of the council. The mayor and council shall make their selection within 45 days of their inauguration. Section 29.02 B: The commission shall review and recommend the salaries and minimum qualifications of all officers and employees included in Section 3-2.1 of the Kaua‘i County Code 1987, as amended.
One and a half years later, there is no established salary commission.
There are clear duties assigned to the mayor and council, one or both parties failed to appoint the commission. It seems those who have sworn an oath to uphold the law do not give a d…. anymore.
Taxpayer, get ready to spend another $100,000 for outside counsel, because I think the parties are ready to sue themselves for a pay raise and bypass the salary commission completely.
The $75,000-plus benefit question remains: Must an appointee serve the political establishment at their will? Should the whole process be overhauled to make sure the department heads operate independent from politics?
Bothered by ‘culture of irreverence’
On July 5, I hiked up Sleeping Giant mountain. When I got to the very top of the mountain I was greeted by a shocking scene. Apparently, some Fourth of July “revelers” had gone up the mountain and ignited a display of fireworks. I am sure they thought this was a very cool thing to do.
Yet, what they did not consider was the incredible danger they posed by possibly igniting a brush fire at the top of the mountain during a relatively dry period.
By grace, nothing happened, but it does not take much imagination to consider the tragic result of a fire at the top of Sleeping Giant, without any hope of fire trucks or other equipment gathering at the scene. Need I add that these revelers did not clean up their mess? The next day I cleared over two pounds of debris and packed it down the mountain. The wanton recklessness that occurred on the top of that mountain presents a very good reason why fireworks should not be publicly marketed here.
Yet, the purpose of this letter is not necessarily to “slam” the people who committed that act at the top of a sacred mountain, but rather to speak to a “culture of irreverence” that exists on Kaua‘i. The phrase “change is good” is overworked and misapplied when it comes to change without intelligent thought. Basically, there are two ways to develop. One way is to do it wantonly, without regard to the land or the culture which has lived on the land. Another way is to find ways to enhance and “modernize” if you will, but give thought to future generations and how they may benefit from improvements. Without an attitude of enlightened awareness, the island will remain “up for grabs” to the highest bidder. The impending superferry has now entered this “culture of irreverence” without so much as an Environmental Impact Study. This is a huge project with a potentially huge impact on Kaua‘i’s ecosystem, its culture and, in general the overall integrity of the lifestyle of all the island residents. People will love the convenience of the inter-island passage, yet without sufficient awareness to soften the blow of this project, the price to pay for this “convenience” may be higher than most people realize.
Without sufficient care, intelligence, and reverence for this beautiful island, we can all look forward to a very uncertain future at best as we witness the quality of life here debased by our unwillingness to slow down, smell the flowers, and give thanks for the extraordinary blessing of just being here. I believe there is still time, but it is important to re-examine our attitude about “progress.” and “change.” Superferry EIS anyone? Look for petitions that are being circulated.
- Richard (Diamond) Moll
Kapa‘a
Gating KCC … gating communities
I read with interest the headline story about vandals tearing up the lawn at Kaua‘i Community College with automobile antics. I was particularly interested in the following quote: “After an earlier incident which vandals stole batteries out of campus utility carts, Kaua‘i police officers suggested gating the campus.”
Now, I am not a supporter of gated communities, and I know that there is a loathing of gated communities here by people who say it destroys the fabric of the community. What does the community make of the fact that the KPD “suggested” that KCC put up a gate to protect its property?
Lack of sufficient police protection is the primary reason people give in support of gated communities, and here we have a situation where the KPD told an entity to erect a gate to protect its property — something that the KPD could and should be doing. Given the fact that the KPD doesn’t think it has a part to play in protecting property, and that erecting gates is the answer, who can really blame people for wanting to live in gated communities here?
What troubles me more, though, is that I can not believe that people were doing donuts on the KCC lawn and nobody heard it. Nobody reported it to the police? There is a residential neighborhood just across the highway, and nobody there bothered to call the KPD?
Or were the KPD called and they just failed to respond?
You know, you get what you ask for. If you don’t want gated communities, then people had better start making sure there is no reason for people to need gated communities. Be responsible.
