We spend so much time talking about keeping trash out of the ocean, and have wonderful volunteer groups doing regular beach cleanups. Good efforts, and thank you to all who participate.

However, we seem to be missing the boat on some basic preventative measures, including having lids on trash cans.

I recently visited Hanauma Bay and was blown away by the beauty of this magical place — as I am every time I visit. What a shame to see trash on the walk down to the beach and in the bushes on the beach.

I’m sure that many visitors don’t want their snack wrappers blowing into the ocean, and diligently put them in the trash cans that are there. But there were no lids and every time the wind blew, the trash flew out.

I’ve noticed this at other beaches and hiking spots, the ones where there actually are bins. Thank you for the bins, but please: Can we get some lids?

Margot Schrire

Hawaii Kai

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Offer solutions, not just complaints

I read with a sinking heart the commentary from Lynn Lee (“Tourism economy failing local families,” Star-Advertiser, Island Voices, Aug. 27).

The first paragraph pretty much sums up the gist of the rest of the article, which is that a lack of strategic planning or vision has allowed Hawaii tourism to run amok to the detriment of our native culture, our calabash culture, and especially our labor force.

Lee does appeal to community leaders to come up with solutions to a profound management-versus-service workforce dichotomy. But she’s left the islands. She gave up!

She is writing from the I-couldn’t-take-it-anymore safety of somewhere else without offering any galvanizing call to action or specific solutions to making things better.

What a feel-bad article. Feature a few more of these and we’ll all need therapy. We can do better, but as our public voice, the Star-Advertiser has a special responsibility to seek out leading community voices to respond to the challenges of our time. Please step up.

Valerie Koenig

St. Louis Heights

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Spectrum’s ‘right’ still isn’t right

Spectrum may have had “every right” to exclude Hawaiian Telcom from Wahine telecast, but pulling the plug at the last minute is what we in Hawaii call “pilau” (“Spectrum has ‘right’ to exclude Hawaiian Tel from Wahine telecasts,” Star-Advertiser, Aug. 28).

Dennis Kohara

Kaimuki

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Texas floods show America’s strength

I hope North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is watching how thousands of American volunteers and professionals can rally together.

Agencies and volunteers are acting independently to relieve and repair flooded Texas communities. They are getting the job done.

The scale and resources of America amaze young people worldwide. If Kim doesn’t know now how our spirit copes with acts of God, he should wonder what we can do when a chubby little fascist throws rocks at us.

Beverly Kai

Kakaako

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State, local officials must act on climate

In the absence, even resistance, from the Trump administration and too many in Congress, our state and local officials must step up and lead us to respond with sufficient resources and consciousness to the climate wake-up call presented by Hurricane Harvey. Now.

Thomas DiGrazia

Kailua

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Rail project debacle needs to be salvaged

Two recent events at the state Capitol dealt with rail. Salvage The Rail’s public forum detailed a way to transport commuters through a livable cityscape using existing rail funding within five years. The modified, grade-level route from Middle Street through downtown would bring many West-side commuters closer to their workplaces than the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transporation’s view-destroying path. An extension to the University of Hawaii becomes possible, unlike a route that dead-ends at Ala Moana Center.

By contrast, Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s and HART’s presentations one month later brought no fresh ideas for reining in expenses on an elevated guideway that blocks out the sun and its graffiti-magnet support piers. Walk under the Waipahu stretch on Farrington Highway to see what I mean.

As taxpayers, we must make our voices heard every bit as loudly as the special interests behind the status quo.

Donna Ambrose

Kailua

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Rail needs honest, independent audit

Thank you for the honest and revealing look at our rail funding debacle (“Rail project audit needs to be comprehensive, independent,” Star-Advertiser, Island Voices, Aug. 24).

These highly regarded gentlemen are offering an honest and clear assessment of the situation as it now stands. I ask myself why the rail and city officials will only support an audit by city auditors, not independent auditors, and even then only if they assume honesty on the part of HART, the contractors and subcontractors.

This would be less an honest audit than a clear attempt to avoid the criminal and civil liabilities that would surely follow in the wake of an honest, independent audit.

Daniel Mcintyre

Pearl City