• Incomplete stop halted plan
• Littering, intentional and unintentional
• Asthma and Hawai‘i
• Paying for the war
Incomplete stop halted plan
I so much wanted to do it; delivering hot meals to those in need.
I looked forward to meeting and talking with people who, for one reason or another, couldn’t get out.
I had done it before — years ago — in Maine. There, using my own vehicle, I picked up hot meals stacked in insulated cases at the Catholic Church (though this was not a church-related activity) in Winthrop, some 15 miles from Augusta where they had been prepared. I then drove back to Wayne where I had a delivery list of 10 or so shut-ins. In many cases I was the only person they would see all day and therefore their only contact with the local world outside their doors. Did we ever chit-chat. Quickly we covered family happenings, a blue bird seen, local politics, taxes, obits, the weather, world events and the cats next door.
Meals on Wheels (Kaua‘i) is part of the Food Service Program of KEO (Kauai Economic Opportunity), a non-profit corporation. When I called to volunteer my services, I was greeted with enthusiasm. What area would I like to cover? The Poipu-Koloa area. How many days might I be available? Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The call concluded: pick up a traffic abstract, get a TB test at the Health Department, and get back to me. OK.
On Monday I picked up a traffic abstract. It detailed an incident — not coming to a full stop at a stop sign — that occurred July 3, 2003. No problem, the clerk behind the traffic window assured me. I then got my TB test and was to return on Wednesday to find out the result.
This I did, and, with a certification that said I didn’t have TB and my traffic abstract in hand, I visited the KEO building.
I was rejected.
I would be using one of their vehicles to make my deliveries. Their insurance company would not allow a person with my heinous record to participate and, therefore, they had to turn down my request to volunteer. I know how dejected one must be when applying for a paying job and is passed over. How do you think it feels to volunteer — to give time and effort and perhaps bear some of the costs — and be gently ushered to the door. Thank you for coming by.
Well, perhaps I could hit more golf balls now.
Littering, intentional and unintentional
I got to thinking while I was picking up trash along the highway between Princeville and Anini Beach Road on Saturday. (My Rotary Club and the tireless Bud White of the Marine Corps League are responsible for cleaning this section).
I believe that there are two types of litterers: the intentional and the unintentional. The intentional litterer throws his or her empty plate lunch box out the window without a second thought. This type of litterer is probably unsalvagable and is eventually doomed to spend eternity wandering on a hot, smoldering rubbish pile.
The unintentional litterer, on the other hand, has simply used bad judgement in transporting trash, and can perhaps be saved.
This past Saturday day the roadside was littered with, among other things, hundreds of thousands of snowy white packing peanuts … unsightly, nearly impossible to clean up, and extremely long-lasting. This probably means that some otherwise upstanding citizen loaded a big box full of packing peanuts, with the top open, into the back of his or her pickup, and drove to the transfer station, not noticing in the rear view mirror the blizzard of white flying out of the back of the truck. This person has unintentionally committed a sin against Nature and the beauty of Kaua‘i.
However, they can be saved, but only if the next time they have a box full of packing peanuts , they remember to close and seal the top of the box before hitting the road. Securing a box of peanuts is amazingly simple. If anyone has trouble figuring this out call me and I will send detailed instructions with pictures.
Asthma and Hawai‘i
According to a July 23 article in The Garden Island, on page A5, “more than 103,000 people in Hawai‘i suffer from asthma. More than half are children and native Hawaiians.”
Kaua‘i is home to the highest rate of asthma sufferers of all the Hawaiian Islands. “The state government spent more than $43 million dollars combating asthma last year.” We should eliminate the causes of asthma as well as treat the symptoms. We need to breathe clean, pure, fresh air to be healthy.
Smoke from burning sugar cane and the plastic drip tubing — which creates cyanide gas — and burning household trash — which includes plastic wrap and styrofoam trays — also produce toxic fumes. Cigarette smoke contains 400 toxic chemicals which cause cancer and auto exhaust and herbicides, fungicides and pesticides also pollute our air. We need pure air and we need to eliminate air pollution. The Clean Air Act was passed by Congress to ensure we have clean air. Sugar companies get exemptions. Why? Because paid lobbyists get the legislature to give them an exemption to a law passed for our benefit. So while the Sugar Cane Companies save some money, our health suffers from air pollution.
Laws (The Clean Air Act) were passed for our benefit. They should be enforced by the agencies (Board of Health) entrusted without welfare. Will they do it? I doubt it. Corruption rules and the peasents suffer. Actually, we all suffer. Air pollution affects each and every one of us.
Paying for the war
Not too many letters appear in support or against the Israeli invasion, because people don’t know what stand to take. Hezbollah militants captured two Israeli soldiers and in retaliation the Israelis are destroying Lebanon. For easier understanding, let’s “localize” the problem: Somebody is growing paka lolo in a Hanapepe backyard. The feds sniff it out and drop bombs on Lihu‘e airport, blow up the bridges in Hanalei and elsewhere, and burn down Kaua‘i so that the grower cannot escape and to prevent the possibility of growing more “weed” on the island. Collective punishment seems to be effective.
Getting back to the actual hotspot, let’s look at who will pay for the war. It’s simpler than you think. Israel gets the largest foreign aid from the United States — a mere $2.2 billion (about $500 for every Israeli citizen) this year. Who pays for it? You, with your taxes. Israel is devastating Lebanon and we are sending humanitarian aid. Who pays for it? You, with your taxes. One day the destroyed Lebanon will have to be rebuilt and we will send them reconstruction aid. Who pays for it? You, with your taxes. Then, Israel will need more military aid, and I am sure that we will be more than willing to provide it. From your taxes, of course. And to make the picture more complete, add to this the cost of the war in Iraq.
But ultimately the situation is not that grave, because somebody must have a profit. No, it is not you, Filipino worker, you can go back to your three jobs to be able to support your large family; and neither is it you Kaua‘i policeman, you can still work as a road construction security man in the daytime when you do the night shift as a police officer so that you can afford your mortgage payment; nor it is you Kaua‘i teacher, you still can keep your second job as a weekend cashier at Wal-Mart to be able to pay your high utility bills. But don’t worry, those who profit from the war will come one day to this beautiful island, will buy a nice piece of property and we can all serve them obediently.
