The new live action Snow White movie should have been even MORE WOKE

Dear Editor,  Mar 23, 2025

The new live action Snow White movie has been criticized as TOO “woke”.  But I think that they should have gone all the way woke! 

The characters should have had lines like these:

Evil queen:  I‘m worse than evil;  I’m a fascist oligarchical MAGA Republican!  And I don’t need a mirror to tell me crap!  I don’t even need facts or reasoning to KNOW I’m the fairest one of all!

Prince:  Did you know they’re charging me with sexual assault for kissing Snow White without her permission?!  Not to mention desecration of a corpse and inappropriate relations with a minor!  What is the FAIRY tale  – uh sorry, I mean medieval fantasy world coming to?

Snow White:  I think being pale white is really unhealthy.  Nothing wrong with a good tan as long as you’re not orange like that Hitler fascist in the White House!

Doc:  That’s DOCTOR, to you!  Though I have no training, that’s what I identify as!  So I demand EVERYBODY address and treat me as such!   

Bashful:  I’m not shy.  I just hate everybody that disagrees with me!

Sleepy:  You have to let Narcoleptics sleep on the job!  It’s my DEI right!

Happy:  Yeah, I’m happy but wait ‘til the drugs wear off and my depressive side takes over!

Sneezy:  Bug off! The CDC says we don’t have to wear masks anymore!

Dopey:  All of you are a bunch of freakin’ bullies for calling me Dopey!  The ADA will burn you all in hell!

Grumpy:  Free speech means I can say and do any hateful thing I want!

Leighton Loo

Mililani, Oahu

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The tax holding American shipbuilding back

(The following is a letter to the editor of The Wall Street Journal published originally on March 17, 2025.)

Dear Editor,

As reported in “U.S. Lags Far Behind Rivals Like China in Building Oceangoing Containerships” (WSJ Business News, March 3), America’s shipbuilding industry is minuscule compared with the rest of the world. But relying on protectionist policies as a solution is a mistake. We’ve already tried that with no success.

Take the Jones Act of 1920, which requires goods transported between U.S. ports to be carried on domestically built vessels, among other requirements. Advocates claim the law is essential for protecting the maritime industry, but as the article documents, the industry has declined under the act’s watch, largely because U.S. shipyards enjoy a captive domestic market with no real competition.

There are dedicated lobby groups whose sole purpose is to block even the most narrowly tailored exceptions to the law. 

Meanwhile, as Matson builds three overpriced vessels in the Philly Shipyard, residents of my home state of Hawaii can expect to foot the bill through higher freight costs. The inflated cost of U.S.-built ships, which has risen faster than international counterparts, acts as a barrier to entry for potential competitors.

Protectionist policies such as the Jones Act are more effective as de facto taxes than as a legitimate strategy for strengthening American shipbuilding.

Melissa Newsham

Grassroot Institute of Hawaii

Honolulu, Oahu