Letter

For all of us who are shocked by cases of domestic homicide-suicide in Hawaii and seeking to understand and prevent them, there is no better discovery than the book "Why Do They Kill? Men Who Murder Their ...

[dargent77]

Gee, putting an AK-47 in a 19 year old's hands, grenades, pistols, and asking him to go kill people the US government lied about....and their actions come back to haunt them? Ya think?

[published]

"....the city is stopping at no end to prevent this (scraping the barrel to find reason for not allowing the issue to be placed on the forthcoming ballot)."

"consider voting for someone else if the parochial and immature fighting does not cease"

[Keith Haugen]

If the Mayor does not oppose letting the public vote in the time-honored democratic way, why is it not happening?

Keith Haugen
Nu`uanu

[Obama Ohana Member]

So Windward commuters get the Pali Highway, the Likelike, and H-3 and the Leeward commuters can't even get rail....where's the justice? Just do it. We don't put people in office to let the people decide these issues.

[Bumpercrop]

Bernard Judson. Thank you for saying "let's act like adults". Enough infighting already. We could have had the train years ago if not for the single vote of Rene. The island of Oahu cannot add more and more cars and more and more highways. Listen to what Iz sang, he understood it way back then. Pave over paradise? I don't want to see a concrete covered island, do you?

[Newtowner]

It seems to me the rail-no rail is a debate between the people that look at now and the people that look at the future. Rail is not a panacea for now. Rail is the opportunity to have a choice in the future when the auto has run its course and is the option of the very wealthy. All this talk of hot lanes is just moving the bottle neck some where else. Eventually the lane must end and let cars out to the city street infrastructure. The city street and freeway infrastructure is not going to grow. Hot lanes just kick the problem down the road but do not add to easing the problem.

[manini]

Bumpercrop wrote:

Bernard Judson. Thank you for saying "let's act like adults". Enough infighting already. We could have had the train years ago if not for the single vote of Rene. The island of Oahu cannot add more and more cars and more and more highways. Listen to what Iz sang, he understood it way back then. Pave over paradise? I don't want to see a concrete covered island, do you?

Just a reminder. There were 5 nay votes on rail, not 1.

[Pat]

dargent77 wrote:

Gee, putting an AK-47 in a 19 year old's hands, grenades, pistols, and asking him to go kill people the US government lied about....and their actions come back to haunt them? Ya think?

Evidently nothing was learned from Vietnam, you think? The criminals are in the Executive, Judicial, and Legislative Branch of our government. They are murdering our children with their lies.

[manini]

Obama Ohana Member wrote:

So Windward commuters get the Pali Highway, the Likelike, and H-3 and the Leeward commuters can't even get rail....where's the justice? Just do it. We don't put people in office to let the people decide these issues.

They provided ferry service, it went unused. They still provide a HOV lane which is under utilized. Now you want a train built so it will go unused. And even if it were used, it won't ease the traffic one iota. That last tidbit is from the Mayor's own study.

[Bongo Fury]

With all due respect to Kat Brady, the potential of algae to replace an existing fuel (diesel) in the near term will render billions of dollars of existing assets (turbans, buses, trucks, generators, heavy equipment) cleaner and more sustainable. Three years, which HR Biopetroleum say it needs to get commercially operation is not "far off in the future."

No other renewable bio-fuel comes even close to the efficiency of and yeild of algae. It does't require potable water (does fine in sewer effluent or brackish water) or ag land to cultivate.

The residual from extracting oil from algae is high in protein and can be used as food for fish cultivation.

You need to do a little more research into the benefits of this new technology before you "question" it.

[Bongo Fury]

Keith Haugen wrote:

If the Mayor does not oppose letting the public vote in the time-honored democratic way, why is it not happening?
Keith Haugen
Nu`uanu

Because it's a legislative function you bonehead.

[Scorpio58]

Please, Mr. Benigno, tell me how a rail system will cause people to lose their jobs and cause mortgages to not be paid. I truly don't nderstand your logic. If anything, building a rail system will add jobs (at least during the construction phase) and people working can, indeed, pay their mortgages. I'm sorry, I must be dense, but I just don't understand what you are saying.

[Bongo Fury]

According to Bernardo P. Benigno
"a lot of jobs will be lost and mortgages will not be paid if we have a rail system."

What!!!!????

Actually the exact oposite will be true, in fact, this could provide a much needed economic safety net for Hawaii's economy during the anticipated downturn.

[FixIt]

The enormous effort of the citizens of Hawaii to get the rail initiative on the ballot reveals how difficult it is to have a democratic vote in Hawaii. Anyone who tries to have a debate is labeled an "outsider" or special interest. SRN has not received one dollar from anyone outside of Hawaii. However, check the Mayor's campaign spending report and you will see contributions from Parsons Brinckerhoff engineers, lobbyists, etc. from all over the country. This is about BIG money and BIG development on the Leeward side. This plan will not help relieve congestion and the cost of building, running and maintaining it will bankrupt the city. Are we Hong Kong or are we Hawaii? Let's Vote!

[Bumpercrop]

manini wrote:

<quoted text>
Just a reminder. There were 5 nay votes on rail, not 1.

Rene was the deciding vote and she waffled at the end till she was ... coerced?... into voting no? So who will be coerced this time?

[Environaut]

Bernardo P. Benigno
Mililani

"...And we also must remember a lot of jobs will be lost and mortgages will not be paid if we have a rail system. We are walking between two double-edged swords."

Please explain that statement. In the short term, jobs will be created to building both the system and the transit-oriented development as well as in the long run with the businesses which will move into these commerical areas.

Are you speaking of gas station cashiers and car salesmen and taxi drivers losing their jobs or something else?

[paul]

Bongo Fury wrote:

<quoted text>
Because it's a legislative function you bonehead.

Thank you, you took the words right out of my mouth

[Scorpio58]

Evidently a stop rail now person or persons are judging blogs of folks who are questioning Mr. Benigno's letter because we are all getting the same responses as far as the "Judge it" responses go. That's OK because I think the stop rail now folks are closeted pro rail as there are no truly viable alternatives. Adding HOT lanes is not the answer, because they will dump cars, trucks and busses into very crowded surface streets in town, Waikiki and the university areas. Toll roads - not an option as a Federally funded highways (H1, H2, H3 or Moanalua Freeway)cannot be turned into a privately operated, ie state, city, or county toll road. Only privately funded roads can be toll roads. Why, US tax dollars were used to build these roads and you can't make a private road out of a publicly funded highway. So, come on folks, get real - get rail started now!

[huh]

Environaut wrote:

Bernardo P. Benigno
Mililani
"...And we also must remember a lot of jobs will be lost and mortgages will not be paid if we have a rail system. We are walking between two double-edged swords."
Please explain that statement. In the short term, jobs will be created to building both the system and the transit-oriented development as well as in the long run with the businesses which will move into these commerical areas.
Are you speaking of gas station cashiers and car salesmen and taxi drivers losing their jobs or something else?

He's probably talking about the jobs lost due to businesses being displaced for your beloved TOD.
Mortgages unpaid due to hugely increased property and sales taxes.
The jobs that you say will be made thru TOD and tram system construction will be outsourced to mainland professionals. More jobs for outsiders. The construction unions cannot get new local people into jobs because they lack the basics in math and geometry.
Also expect many more illegals here, as the mainland contractors will bring them down here so they won't have to pay union wages, as we have already seen in recent highrise developments on Oahu.
Gas station attendents and car salespeople won't be going anywhere for a long while. The tram won't be set to go for at least 5 to 10 years, if not longer. More gas will be sold because people will be stuck in huge traffic gridlock due to tram construction. More cars will be bought due to damage from unsafe roads caused by the construction, and the fact that road repairs cannot be made on existing streets because the cost overruns of tram construction will drain funds from every other part of the city budget. Police, fire and EMS services will have to do with old equipment as their funds will be cut. And forget about hiring new personnel.

[L SHERROD SFC Retired]

Ref:(Group therapy can help vets with PTSD)
Not everyone who suffers from PTSD wants, nor needs a shoulder to cry on. Other treatments are warrantied. Try telling this to your government.