Warriors needed to fight injustice

I couldn’t agree more with Roman Leverenz’s Memorial Day letter regarding the destructiveness, barbarism and stupidity of war ("If you want peace, work for justice," Star-Advertiser, Letters, May 28).

I also applaud his noble goal of working for justice through peaceful means.

Sadly, our world is shared with some who would force their ideologies on others, and wreak death and destruction on anyone who opposes them. As long as they exist, others in our world must be prepared to protect and defend freedom and peace.

An old Marine Corps slogan goes: "Nobody likes to fight, but somebody has to know how."

I humbly offer my deepest respect and gratitude to the men and women of our world who bravely and squarely face the horrors of war, so that freedom and peace may prevail.

Rich Hann
Nuuanu

Theaters gouge popcorn buyers

I am an avid moviegoer and was absolutely shocked when I went to purchase a small bag of popcorn at a local theater, only to be told that the price of popcorn had risen from $5 to $6, and this for a small bag. Outrageous!

It’s bad enough that movie tickets are rather pricey today. I thought it was outrageous when it went to $5 for a small bag of popcorn. You can only imagine the profit margin in this popular movie snack.

I would encourage other moviegoers to forego buying popcorn at the movies until theaters start charging a realistic price rather than gouging the consumers.

Barbara Van Dine
Moiliili

Find way to let all exist at beach

It sounds like the city’s corporation counsel had it right when it advised the city not to go forward with an outright ban on all commercial activity at the beach parks.

The Ocean Tourism Coalition (OTC) would agree. If a ban is allowed, it could lead to the eventual attempt at banning just about anything or anyone from everywhere. Besides being a possible separation-of-powers problem, outlawing otherwise legal operations is not a rational way to approach user conflicts.

The more rational and effective way is to impose regulations that allow all to exist. If some are less desirable, then restrict the activity to an acceptable level. OTC subscribes to what is often called a stewardship program, in which a limited number of operations are given exclusivity in exchange for their "adoption" of the park or area that they now need to help maintain.

Tim Lyons
Executive director, Ocean Tourism Coalition

Dr. Beach likely meant Michener

Stephen P. Leatherman said Ernest Hemingway called Hamoa Beach "the world’s greatest beach." ("Hawaii dominates annual ranking of top U.S. beaches," Star-Advertiser, May 25).

I think this is incorrect and he probably confused Hemingway with James A. Michener.

In Hana’s airport is a Michener quote that "the only beach I have ever seen that looks like the South Pacific was in the North Pacific — Hamoa Beach …" He goes on to elaborate on its beauty and perfection.

I checked on Hemingway and found he only visited Hawaii once (February 1941 for 12 days) and only saw Oahu and the Big Island. Moreover the Hotel Hana-Maui, where a Hemingway would have stayed, did not exist until 1946, so it is quite unlikely he ever viewed Hamoa Beach.

Great beach, wrong attribution.

Ward Mardfin
Hana, Maui

It’s dangerous to ally with U.S.

The CIA source in the U.S. hunt for Osama bin Laden was sentenced to prison for more than 30 years by Pakistan for conspiring against the state.

This reminded me of a comment I read recently made by someone from the Middle East who said, "It is dangerous to have the United States as an enemy, but it is even worse to have them as a friend."

Bob Dixon
Makiki

Tampa could use a rail system

I am not surprised that Honolulu was recently named the most congested city in the U.S. by the INRIX report released on May 22.

I am a frequent business traveler to Honolulu and have experienced the terrible reality of your traffic.

Traffic in Honolulu is unique because everyone squeezes through the narrow H-1 corridor.

And leeward areas are still growing.

Your community is lucky to have a rail project under construction.Rail provides a very real solution because riders will sail over traffic congestion.

In my current home of Tampa, the crosstown expressway HOT lane is our alternative to traffic. Yet it sits virtually empty because it doesn’t provide a real alternative to driving and traffic.

In Honolulu, you will soon benefit significantly from the new rail system. I can only wish the same were true for Tampa.

Jay Krueger
Tampa

Traffic here not worst in nation

While the traffic in Honolulu is bad, I disagree with the latest study that suggests it is worse than New York or Los Angeles.

I have had the misfortune of being exposed to the traffic in both cities, and Honolulu, while bad, is not nearly as bad as either of those cities.

The rail is not the answer.If it is such a good deal for the taxpayer, perhaps the people pushing this project could explain why no private enterprise has stepped up to provide the service.

Anyone ever wonder why most of the mass transportation systems in our cities are public? It’s because there is no profit to be made, and most, if not all, require taxpayer funding to continue operations.

Bill Meyers
Ewa Beach

Criticism of rail takes both sides

First the rail critics said no one is going to ride rail. Now they are saying that with only 76 chairs per train, even with a train coming every three minutes, rail will be so full you won’t be able to get a seat.

They should make up their minds. Which is it?

Curtis Kern
Pearl City

HSTA serving teachers poorly

I totally agree with Eddy Rivers ("Release teachers from HSTA grasp," Star-Advertiser, Letters, May 23).

I think the Hawaii State Teachers Association has done an injustice to the teachers and am equally surprised that the teachers cannot see that their union is selling them down the river.

For once, I agree with the governor when he stated that the union has rejected the proposal, therefore it is no longer valid.

The same goes with the drug-testing issue. The union urged its membership to ratify the contract and after it was ratified, it decided it didn’t want to go through with that part of the contract — but it readily accepted the raises.

Juney Kim
Halawa