•We will survive •The aloha moment We will survive Poor, poor Scott (“A business plan,” Letters, July 3). He lives in a horrible country where democracy has vanished and bribocracy is the rule. The CIA is a torturing menace and
•We will survive
•The aloha moment
We will survive
Poor, poor Scott (“A business plan,” Letters, July 3). He lives in a horrible country where democracy has vanished and bribocracy is the rule.
The CIA is a torturing menace and Big Brother is looming over us all to make our lives miserable. Along with North Korea, Venezuela, and Iran, we are war mongers out to destroy all that is good.
All of our politicians are crooks, except Obama of course, who is riding to the rescue with trillions of working Americans’ dollars.
There is no doubt the United States and world are in trouble. Excesses of capitalism and now a socialist having been voted in by that portion of our population who actually believe in “free” stuff.
A majority of us fell for politicians who successfully convinced them Robin Hood is alive and well, and that will lead to consequences for which I hope we’re prepared. Get ready for a bumpy and painful ride for a few more years.
Oh well, since we live in a country where the system can actually self-correct without a coup de ta only time stands between our current situation and eventual recovery. Thank goodness we live in America where we can learn and grow in a positive direction for the future of our children and country.
One thing is for sure, the millions of world citizens who are leaving their families, risking their lives, and undergoing great sacrifice to live in the United States of America might disagree with Scott.
Despite all our current problems America is still the model for which the majority of our world is looking to emulate. May god bless our magnificent country and the many millions of wonderful people who live here. Happy Fourth of July!
Gordon Oswald, Kapa‘a
The aloha moment
I recently spent a week on your beautiful island and had an experience I would like to share.
I went snorkeling one afternoon on ‘Anini beach. Unbeknown to me, I had my wallet in my swim trunks. Later that evening, as we were dressing to go to dinner, I realized I had lost the wallet.
I retraced my steps and the panic slowly began to set in. Not only was there cash and credit cards in the wallet, but also my New York State license which was my only form of identification. I have learned that no one particularly cares if you lose cash or credit cards, but you are a non-person without an I.D.
To make matters worse, my wife and I were scheduled to fly to O‘ahu the next morning to visit Pearl Harbor.
I called the Kaua‘i police and talked to a dispatcher named Joanie. When I gave Joanie my name, her immediate response was, “you lost your wallet, didn’t you?”
She told me a gentleman had called in to say he found it. She asked him to bring it in and they would try to find me but he told her he would just mail it back to my home address and left no phone number. Joanie proceeded to send an officer out to our rental home.
At 9 p.m., Officer Bandeman arrived and took my information. He was professional and kind and incredibly helpful. Throughout this experience, Joanie and Officer Bandeman kept in touch with me.
The next morning, after undergoing an extensive security check at the Lihu‘e airport, I was allowed to board. While at Pearl Harbor, my cell phone rang. The call was from my bank about my credit card. They told me a gentleman had called and said he found my wallet with their credit card.
This time he left his name and phone number. I immediately called him and made arrangements to meet him the next morning for breakfast.
I met Mr. Brent Cook at a restaurant in the Princeville Plaza. Ironically, our rental home was only two miles from where he lives. Mr. Cook is an island resident who owns a small farm in the Princeville area. We talked for an hour and a half. His description of how and where he found my wallet is beyond my wildest imagination.
Later in the afternoon of the day I went snorkeling, he too was snorkeling with friends on ‘Anini Beach. Getting up out of the water he saw a black object floating by him about 2 feet down in the water. He picked it up and began his efforts to find me.
Being a New Yorker, I would have expected that anyone who found it would have taken the money and thrown it away. Not Mr. Cook. He went far beyond what would be expected. He spent several hours and made a number of long-distance phone calls trying to find me.
At the end of our get-together, I asked Mr. Cook to let me give him a reward for all the trouble he went through. His response was, “Absolutely not. If I took money from you it would ruin the aloha moment.”
Mr. Cook and the others involved in this episode have changed my jaded attitude and restored my faith in the goodness of others. I want to extend my gratitude to the beautiful, warm, and kind people of Kaua‘i as exemplified by Mr. Cook, Joanie and Officer Bandeman.
Frank R. Peduto, Clifton Park, N.Y.
