• Envious of statehood • Health care clarity •Power from the sun Envious of statehood In reading in The Garden Island the praises (and complaints) about Hawai‘i’s 50th year of statehood, I can’t help but feel a little envious. We
• Envious of statehood
• Health care clarity
•Power from the sun
Envious of statehood
In reading in The Garden Island the praises (and complaints) about Hawai‘i’s 50th year of statehood, I can’t help but feel a little envious. We residents of Washington, D.C. do not have the benefits of statehood, nor do we have the benefits of being a territory.
Like territories, we have no voting representation in Congress. Unlike territories, we pay federal taxes. Any law that is passed by our local D.C. leaders must go before Congress for approval, and they often veto them, mostly to impress constituents in their own states.
Also, Congress often uses Washington as a test tube for various programs, often against the wishes of the citizenry. In summary, we are deprived of democracy that is enjoyed by every other U.S. citizen.
So put in perspective, Hawai‘i, things could be a lot worse. Enjoy and celebrate your statehood! Wish we had it.
Kathy Chamberlain. Washington, D.C.
Health care clarity
The health care debate sounds complicated, confusing and directionless thanks to the fine young politicians currently leading our country. Being baffled by the issue is certainly understandable. (“Baffled by health care,” Letters, Aug. 27)
Perhaps a little clarity is in order.
The United States has the finest health care in the world — almost every wealthy individual worldwide comes to the United States for care when their life is threatened.
Our health care system in its current state is wrought with problems. Most people are covered but costs are rising faster than acceptable, especially in a recession.
Many people aren’t covered because they can’t afford it, are illegal aliens, or have just opted out. No one is turned away from the hospital or emergency room no matter what their financial condition or alien status. In fact, though penniless and not paying in, or illegal, their care under the current system is as good as yours and mine, which has contributed to our current system breakdown.
Almost half of us feel something is wrong with the current system and are against an Obama-created, more socialistic, “free for everyone,” government-controlled system subsidized with tax dollars.
Every current government-run system, including our current government itself, Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, is either dead broke or going bankrupt at an astounding rate.
Our current president is printing money and spending it at a rate never before seen in the 200-year history of our country. It’s now crystal clear that the “change” we all bought is simply printing and throwing more money at every problem we can find, or dream of.
Our budget shortfall over the next few years is over $2 trillion more than projected by the same politicians who want to control the health care system, and the unemployment rate is nearly 5 percent higher than they promised if only Congress would appropriate over $1 trillion dollars so they could throw it at the economy. Just a little $2 trillion dollar mistake by the same public servants who want to have total mandating power over the largest health care system in the world!
Conclusions: Health care needs to be changed. Our current politician leaders are fiscally inept. There is no such thing as a “free lunch” government run health care program. Adjust our current private and competitive health care system to weed out the problems.
Don’t listen to the fiscally inept dolts currently running our country who are adamant about “throwing our baby out with the bath water”!
Gordon Oswald, Kapa‘a
Power from the sun
Electricity can be produced by photovoltaic solar panels. So far panels are very non-polluting, silent, reliable and affordable. All the homes at the Kekaha Elderly Housing are electrically powered by photovoltaic solar panels.
Many homes, business buildings, government and military structures are powered by solar panels around the world and on Kaua‘i. Why aren’t KIUC and the state and county governments encouraging and facilitating photovoltaic electrical generation?
Could it be because they derive a lot of money from our dependence on oil, they are dragging their heels and haven’t figured out a way to make money by changing to a more efficient, affordable source of electrical power? How do you tax the sun? I’m sure they will try to find a way.
From what we’ve seen of wind generated electrical power attempts, they are unsightly, noisy, inefficient and we can’t accept killing birds as collateral damage. We watched a pueo (Hawaiian owl) cruising the neighborhood at sunset yesterday. Do you want to … no, we didn’t think so either.
And burning garbage green waste to generate electricity is so unhealthy. We don’t need more air pollution and another source of dioxin. Electricity is being generated on rooftops in glass windows, on boats, cars, paint, and solar photovoltaic electrical generation is powering lights and water pumps in villages in Western Samoa, South America, Africa and on Kaua‘i.
It’s time our government got on board. It is ours isn’t it? By the people, for the people, does what is best for the welfare and betterment of everyone on Kaua‘i and the planet earth to encourage and make photovoltaic electrical generation happen on Kaua‘i with help from the government that taxes our kala and KIUC should do all it can to help PV generation develop on Kaua‘i.
Kalamana, sunpower.
Kawika Moke, Kekaha
