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POSTED: Thursday, June 03, 2010

Hanauma hours should stay same

Some potential decisions defy common sense and require public clamor to be reviewed. The city Parks and Recreation Department is considering changing the hours of access to Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve from 6 a.m.-7 p.m. to 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. to accommodate city furlough plans.

When Hawaii is trying to promote tourism and inspire visitor experiences here, it is astonishing that we would allow a change that would increase visitor frustration, cause traffic congestion and decrease the self-sustaining revenue the bay generates.

Many residents swim in the bay daily early in the morning or late in the afternoon due to work/school schedules and to avoid midday sun and crowds. This is the safest beach for residents of East Oahu.

Excellent Thursday night marine educational programs and Saturday night snorkeling would also be eliminated with this plan.

Please contact the Mayor's Complaint Office at 768-4381 and object to this proposal. Hanauma Bay, our treasure, should be maximally enjoyed by all.

 

               

     

 

 

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Some soldiers abusing aloha

As a retired Vietnam veteran, perhaps I've earned the right to say this.

I am all for a strong military, and it is not my intent to bash the military as a whole. However, I am concerned over the example and behavior of some military members in our community. While I know the specific behavior I am outlining in this letter is not limited to military members, the military is certainly a large contributor to it.

Specifically, I am disgusted at the lack of responsible conduct and respect shown by mostly Schofield personnel while off base. The boom-box car stereos, the speeding in cars and other dangerous and discourteous operation of sport bikes - all contribute nothing to endearing the military to our community.

I gladly accept the role of higher expectations as a military retiree. I just find it hard to swallow when we lavish all kinds of praise on the military because they go into foreign lands to enforce the rule of law and yet act with total disregard for the rule of law in their own.

 

PSAs for HiOSH promote Ching

In recent weeks, I have been listening to commercials and public service announcements promoting the Hawaii Occupational, Safety and Health Division.

They offer listeners a place to call to report health and safety concerns and identify the governor and the state labor director, Darwin Ching. This promotion I have not heard before, but now I find out why these messages have been on the airwaves: Darwin Ching is running for city prosecutor. If this isn't abusing one's office for personal gains, I have no idea what is. I can't imagine having a prosecutor who does not understand ethical standards, even if PSAs do not cost taxpayers any money.

 

Freeway work was dangerous

Was the massive traffic jam on H-1 eastbound on May 29 necessary?

Some contractor working on the right lane elected to close two lanes in lieu of a single lane of traffic. Back-up on the freeway quickly occurred, including on the Makakilo onramp.

Cars were doing U-turns on the Makakilo onramp, thus creating the possibility of a head-on crash. It was unfortunate that the special-duty officer remained in his vehicle and did not notice this traffic tie-up or could not respond.

A review of this situation should be conducted to avoid future incidents.

 

Thanks for story on U.S. war hero

I want to thank the Star-Bulletin's Gregg Kakesako and MidWeek's Jerry Coffee for the articles about James Gabriel III.

I was a classmate of Gabe - that's what we called him in Farrington High School, class of 1956. He was a really good guy in school, always smiling and joking.

I felt so hurt and sad reading the article about how Gabe was tortured. I knew he had lost his life in Vietnam, but did not know how he was tortured. My heart goes out to his family; I am so sorry.

 

State should use trash for power

Our modern society necessitates trash disposal as a way to organize trash in a sanitary manner to cleanse our homes and communities. But people are disposing objects that can be reused and recycled, flooding our landfills with nonessential waste.

The city is currently proposing sending our trash to the mainland to preserve the “;aloha”; on Hawaiian land. Without a proper solution to this garbage disposal crisis, more people would have to live with community landfills next door.

One solution to this predicament is to invest our government money to expand our garbage-to-electricity power plants.

We would first limit depositing into our landfills. Second, electricity prices would decrease, with garbage power as a decent renewable energy source that would reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

Further, if the rail transit were to be built on Oahu, our traffic problems would ease significantly with a renewable source of energy that will make the rail solution most efficient for the future.

If we consider our future today, we will solve the problems of garbage, fuel prices and traffic problems with the expansion of the HPOWER plant solution to ease tomorrow's complications.