Letters to the Editor - Hawaii Editorials

Thomas Graham Gans from Honolulu wants us to all share the sacrifice to provide a sound education to our children.

Perhaps the time has come for the parents of the children to sacrifice a bit to provide a sound education to their children and pay a small portion of the costs for the services they receive from the schools that their children attend.

Auntie writes: "Perhaps the time has come for the parents of the children to sacrifice a bit to provide a sound education to their children and pay a small portion of the costs for the services they receive from the schools that their children attend."

Aren't we already doing that?

Auntie Tutu wrote:

Thomas Graham Gans from Honolulu wants us to all share the sacrifice to provide a sound education to our children.
Perhaps the time has come for the parents of the children to sacrifice a bit to provide a sound education to their children and pay a small portion of the costs for the services they receive from the schools that their children attend.

"Auntie Tuta" Couldn't agree more. The schools get around 9000 dollars per student per year. n I don't know about Hawaii but here, property taxes are based on the schools budgets. HOW MUCH MORE CAN WE SACRIFICE? We somehow have to be able to live and support our families.

"The aloha spirit this state used to be noted for has somehow disappeared."

An inherent problem is that the "aloha spirit" was created by the Hawai'i Visitors' Bureau to make a profit from visitors.

Unfortunately stating that the aloha spirit does not exist puts blame on the local people. If one wants to put blame on anyone blame the HVB for miseducating the public or perhaps oneself for failing to read about Hawaiian history.

If some people read about Hawaiian history and read about Ka'u and perhaps about Molokai then they would not be so ignorant.

For example Ka'u ku makaha and Molokai pule o'o. "Aloha spirit?" Typical ignorance.

-Lana- wrote:

"The aloha spirit this state used to be noted for has somehow disappeared."
An inherent problem is that the "aloha spirit" was created by the Hawai'i Visitors' Bureau to make a profit from visitors.
Unfortunately stating that the aloha spirit does not exist puts blame on the local people. If one wants to put blame on anyone blame the HVB for miseducating the public or perhaps oneself for failing to read about Hawaiian history.
If some people read about Hawaiian history and read about Ka'u and perhaps about Molokai then they would not be so ignorant.
For example Ka'u ku makaha and Molokai pule o'o. "Aloha spirit?" Typical ignorance.

Good morning Lana. A big Aloha Oe to you. I'm not sure if I can agree with you about the HVB creating the aloha spirit. During our 4 trips to 5 islands, everyone we came in contact with were so friendly and more that willing to help if you needed help. Well Lana., you could be right. We have been told numerous times that the polynesians that came to hawaii..were outgoing and careing. Don't know if that is true. Aloha from Northeast PA.

Lana., just another point. We noticed that hawaiian people are so layed back as there is no hurry to get anywhere. Maybe that is part of the aloha spirit. I know here, everyone is always in a hurry and barely has tome to say hello.

Robert Loyd of ewa beach. Robert, we, the people have not lost the Aloha spirit but our politicians have. They have traded the aloha spirit for political ambition, greed, cronyism and indifference. There is plenty of taxes being paid but when $5 Billion goes to one mans rail system so he can become Governor, it makes the rest of us feel cheated. You should know better than anyone else, ewa beach isn't even getting a rail station yet we have the worst traffic on Oahu. Our schools are falling apart, you say our teacers are underpaid yet we can spend $5 Billion on a rail system that will leave us bankrupt and unable to afford the basics like education, health care and road repair. No Robert, we haven't lost the Aloha spirit, it has been taken away from us by our politicians.

glenn paul wrote:

<quoted text>Good morning Lana. A big Aloha Oe to you. I'm not sure if I can agree with you about the HVB creating the aloha spirit. During our 4 trips to 5 islands, everyone we came in contact with were so friendly and more that willing to help if you needed help. Well Lana., you could be right. We have been told numerous times that the polynesians that came to hawaii..were outgoing and careing. Don't know if that is true. Aloha from Northeast PA.

Aloha kaua a Glenn.

I would not call that the Aloha spirit. Aloha can mean many things but being in Hawai'i does not extrapolate to being full of aloha. It is a romanticized word for some. For others it is used to try to criticize local people and/or Hawaiians though covertly. Instead of saying that people were "nice" they use "aloha spirit."

Yes there are some really nice people in Hawai'i. For those who have roots in Ka'u though... terms like "the aloha spirit" is inaccurate as applied to people in Hawai'i. Same for those from Molokai (Molokai pule o'o.) Aloha spirit? That is inaccurate LOL

As for Polynesians... there are some cool ones and there are some not-so cool ones. Being nice is not limited to any one group of people though....

Aloha, Lana

I'm a senior citizen and have hiked on Hilo among the lava flows for years. This year, alas, my income has taken a deep cut (like everyone else) and all I can do is read online about my favorite activity in Hawaii. My only regret is that I didn't see more.

I made 14 trips to Hawaii with friends or family, but mostly stayed on Oahu because we didn't have a car. Boy, how I miss my annual trip. Being older people, we just got fun out of staying at the Sheraton PK and "People watch". Maybe next year? meS

glenn paul wrote:

Lana., just another point. We noticed that hawaiian people are so layed back as there is no hurry to get anywhere. Maybe that is part of the aloha spirit. I know here, everyone is always in a hurry and barely has tome to say hello.

Aloha kaua e Glenn.

The "aloha spirit" is a romanticized term usually used to criticize local people. To me there is NO such thing as the aloha spirit and when people say that it doesn't mean anything to me.

Were the local people nice? Then yes. Were they laid back? Then yes.

But "aloha spirit?" When people use that term that tells me that they believe the Hawai'i Visitors' Bureau misinformation and mischaracterization of Hawaiians. They did this purposefully too .

For some local people to drive slower is not the "aloha spirit." The aloha spirit of the people of Ka'u was to kill their oppressors. The aloha spirit of some Molokaiians was to pule o'o. That was their aloha.

An accurate way would be to say that some local people drive slower and are laid back. "Aloha spirit" is only a tag line and a very inaccurate one at that LOL....

Aloha, Lana

-Lana- wrote:

"The aloha spirit this state used to be noted for has somehow disappeared."
An inherent problem is that the "aloha spirit" was created by the Hawai'i Visitors' Bureau to make a profit from visitors.
Unfortunately stating that the aloha spirit does not exist puts blame on the local people. If one wants to put blame on anyone blame the HVB for miseducating the public or perhaps oneself for failing to read about Hawaiian history.
If some people read about Hawaiian history and read about Ka'u and perhaps about Molokai then they would not be so ignorant.
For example Ka'u ku makaha and Molokai pule o'o. "Aloha spirit?" Typical ignorance.

Lana., Just one more comment. I have been thinking about what you said and you might be right. I remember the first time we came to Oahu and we loved it. Especially the north shore. We went to a real estate agent and inquired about possibly buying a home on the north shore. We were told not to do it as we would not be welcome there as we were outsiders. Aloha from Northeast PA.

Thomas Gans, what do you expect? our leaders are idiots! they sit in office and think of us but that's it when it comes down to their own paychecks hell they put themselves first!

-Lana- wrote:

<quoted text>
Aloha kaua a Glenn.
I would not call that the Aloha spirit. Aloha can mean many things but being in Hawai'i does not extrapolate to being full of aloha. It is a romanticized word for some. For others it is used to try to criticize local people and/or Hawaiians though covertly. Instead of saying that people were "nice" they use "aloha spirit."
Yes there are some really nice people in Hawai'i. For those who have roots in Ka'u though... terms like "the aloha spirit" is inaccurate as applied to people in Hawai'i. Same for those from Molokai (Molokai pule o'o.) Aloha spirit? That is inaccurate LOL
As for Polynesians... there are some cool ones and there are some not-so cool ones. Being nice is not limited to any one group of people though....
Aloha, Lana

Lana. I think you are right. Living in hawaii as a resident is just like living here in PA. There are nice people and some not so nice. We, the tourist, tend to forget that the people we come in contact with have to be nice if they want our return business, A huge aloha from Northeast PA. PS. We are going to Williamsburg, VA , Newport News, and VA beach next sprig. Will try that.

Linda Smith's letter raises some questions. Some schools are already ooking to use waiver and staff development days to offset fulough days. Lingle had nothing to do with that. Aren't the "seasonal breaks" considered job benefits and not shecdules work duty. Since furlough is defined as absence from duty(teaching days) these days should not fall under furlough. Extending the school year - doesn't that take more money, as it costs 5 million per day to normally operate the schools? Where is that going to come from.

The AARP is a clever front for the insurance companies. I stopped my membership long ago. Rep. Dennis Kucinich and John Conyers have sponsored the only equalible Health Care proposal for America's citizens. It is nice to know that there is at least two Congressmen not bought by Health Insurance and Drug companies. Medicare for all is the only responsible health care system for Americas citizens. Make it happen!

This is in replay to Jim Crowe who supports the AARP support of Obamacare.
What are you going to do when you call a doctors office and first question they ask is what type of medical insurance you have. Mention MEDICARE and right away the receptionist will tell you "Doctor is not accepting new patients". I have had this happen to me many times. Since a doctor is a private business, they are not required to take you as a patient. They are not refusing medical service to you but merely telling you they are "full". There is nothing you can do about it. Intelligently, how can you support a program that is taking $500billion from medicare to supposedly inprove the Medical health system when Medicare is already going broke. Another government program, where is that money coming from. We taxpayers are alredy broke.

-Lana- wrote:

"The aloha spirit this state used to be noted for has somehow disappeared."
An inherent problem is that the "aloha spirit" was created by the Hawai'i Visitors' Bureau to make a profit from visitors.
Unfortunately stating that the aloha spirit does not exist puts blame on the local people. If one wants to put blame on anyone blame the HVB for miseducating the public or perhaps oneself for failing to read about Hawaiian history.
If some people read about Hawaiian history and read about Ka'u and perhaps about Molokai then they would not be so ignorant.
For example Ka'u ku makaha and Molokai pule o'o. "Aloha spirit?" Typical ignorance.

Aloah Oe Lana. That is a shame the aloha spirit has disappeared. I'll share a quick story with you. Our first trip to Oahu, we just came from the Kodak Hula Show and was waiting for the bus to go to Hanauma Bay. This elderly gentleman stopped and asked us where we were going. We told him we were waiting for the bus to go to Hanauma Bay. He said no..no...You want the red bus. He stayed there for at least 15 minutes and when the red bus came, he flaged it down and got us on it. That wasa a good person. Aloha from Northeast PA.

"We seem to have lost aloha spirit

The evening news on KFVE-TV Nov. 5 had a poll question that asked: Would you be willing to pay higher taxes to help take care of the homeless? An astounding 82 percent said "No." I suppose given the state of our current economy, it might be expected."

The 18% who said yes went back to their beach tent to drink beer after responding to the poll.

-Lana- wrote:

<quoted text>
Aloha kaua e Glenn.
The "aloha spirit" is a romanticized term usually used to criticize local people. To me there is NO such thing as the aloha spirit and when people say that it doesn't mean anything to me.
Were the local people nice? Then yes. Were they laid back? Then yes.
But "aloha spirit?" When people use that term that tells me that they believe the Hawai'i Visitors' Bureau misinformation and mischaracterization of Hawaiians. They did this purposefully too .
For some local people to drive slower is not the "aloha spirit." The aloha spirit of the people of Ka'u was to kill their oppressors. The aloha spirit of some Molokaiians was to pule o'o. That was their aloha.
An accurate way would be to say that some local people drive slower and are laid back. "Aloha spirit" is only a tag line and a very inaccurate one at that LOL....
Aloha, Lana

The word Aloha really came up during the late monarchy and was imediately adopted by the people who pushed for tourism to the islands and of course was used as a selling point by the Hawaii Visitors Bureau. This so called "Aloha Spirit" or people caring and being kind to each other really stopped with the advent of Statehood and mass tourism by jet air plane which came at the same time in 1959. Yes sure their were pockets of this so called Aloha Spirit but most of this was lost in 1959. One of the reasons is quite simple - an ever exploding population base with fewer resources and much more economic pressure. As far as things being great in pre contact Hawaii - lets face it, it was a feudalistic society at best with lots of blood shed etc. For instance everyone praises Kamehameha One but in reality he used brute force and white mens weapons (ie John Young and Issac Davis) to reunite (exterminate) his opposition. With that all said I am just stating the facts and not trying to beat up our Hawaiian community by stating it - in reality its no different then the USA conquest of the native American population, its all distorted and used to ones benefit. Anyway their are still pockets of Aloha Spirit but its extremely hard to find and is found only occasionally in an older age group on the outer islands.

Pau wrote:

Auntie writes: "Perhaps the time has come for the parents of the children to sacrifice a bit to provide a sound education to their children and pay a small portion of the costs for the services they receive from the schools that their children attend."
Aren't we already doing that?

It would be kind of like a fare if you ride TheBus or gasoline tax if you drive you car to supplement the costs to the taxpayers for the public services/facilities they personally use. I think they call it tuition.