Letters to the Editor

Pro medical pot

Roy Chang’s cartoon regarding medical marijuana struck a raw nerve because of my good friend who passed away last year.

Jerry was a combat Navy veteran and never complained about anything, ever. We did not even know he was sick until January 2012. In February he went in for tests. In March he was diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer. By May he was gone. Doctors prescribed methadone and morphine for the breakthrough pain, but these drugs had adverse side effects in terms of bodily functions and healing.

Jerry confided to me that marijuana allowed him to take just one morphine tablet instead of three or four when the pain got really bad.

The cruel irony is that there is no legal place to obtain medical marijuana. You have to get a license and then grow it. That takes four months at least. There was no happy ending. Hawaii needs a more-humane medical marijuana law.

James Berlin
Waialua


Keep Malkin

This is in response to the letter from Philip Gottling “kvetching” about Michelle Malkin’s column in MidWeek. If you don’t like her column, don’t read it. I don’t read the liberal columns, but I don’t urge MidWeek to drop them. I like her column because she tells it like it is, and liberals like Mr. Gottling think Obama can do no wrong. It’s been reported that Obama’s recent vacation cost the taxpayers from $4 million to $7 million. If Bush had gone on a vacation costing the taxpayers that much, people like Gottling would have screamed bloody murder, but when it’s Obama you don’t hear a peep. To each his own.

Bob Kruse
Honolulu


Vote by mail

Our Legislature must pass a law that allows all registered voters to vote by mail. Such a bill, HB-1007, is presently in the House. Hawaii’s poor record of participation must be improved and get people involved in what goes on in government.

Can we please get this bill passed so that we will be ready for the next election in 2014?

Roy E. Shigemura
Honolulu


Overlooked

Regarding inaugural inductees into the Hawaii NFL Legends, and who should have been part of it: What about Kurt Gouveia, who played 14 seasons in the NFL and won two Super Bowls with the Redskins?

James Silva
Honolulu


C’mon, man

Nothing against the NFL inductees, especially the old-timers, but c’mon, Kimo von Oelhoffen played 14 seasons and won a Super Bowl ring with the Steelers.

Michael Lee
Honolulu

Send your letters dchapman@midweek.com. Letters may be edited for clarity and space.