Skull fragments cared for properly

In the case of skull fragments found at the Kahuku Plantation site, the State Historic Preservation Division has been proactive in ensuring protection of the those iwi ("Poor treatment of remains raises Kahuku residents’ ire," Star-Advertiser, Sept. 19).

In general, SHPD tries to keep burials in place. In this case, SHPD initially determined the burial should remain in place. Temporary measures were put in place to keep the burial safe. Unfortunately, the burial was tampered with on at least two occasions after the initial discovery. Tampering with a known burial is a criminal offense.

After SHPD was first notified the burial had been disturbed, protective measures were put back in place. However, after the second tampering incident, SHPD determined the best protection for the burial was to temporarily relocate it to a secure on-site storage facility. SHPD is responsible for these decisions under state law.

Storage facilities need to be located on the construction site, be secured, and be clean and dry inside. This means that burials are often relocated to trailers or metal containers, which can be moved and removed when no longer needed. Iwi are kept in boxes or lauhala baskets on shelves until they can be re-interred.

Pua Aiu
Administrator, State Historic Preservation Division

Panel had best idea for natatorium

Historically and culturally, the Waikiki shoreline from Diamond Head to the present Moana Hotel predates the War Memorial Natatorium and is about Hawaiian settlement. It is also the area where Kahekili and his warriors landed to conquer Oahu, and later where Kamehameha and his warriors landed to take control of the island.

The Waikiki Natatorium Commission met for several months to resolve the fate of the natatorium. Much time and effort resulted in a decision to demolish the pool and bleachers, retain the arches and return the beachfront to a public-access beach.

Fiscally this makes sense. Millions of dollars would be needed to rebuild. Maintenance would be expensive. Our priority should be schools and parks, which suffer from a lack of maintenance funds.

Historically and culturally, a sandy beachfront for public access to the ocean would be best.

Mandy Bowers
Manoa

Stop condemning successful among us

When you are in need of a job, where will you apply for it?

It is not the unemployment office or the food bank, but at a successful business that is hiring, and someone built that.

The rich pay taxes and taxes support our government. Remember where the money,jobs and charity come from. They do not come from the poor, the welfare recipient, the hoodlum, the lazy or the uneducated.

I have pity and charity for the mentally challenged and the unfortunate. I want everyone to have a chance without losing pride in themselves and to continue the climb, to wake up and motivate themselves each and every day.

Life is not fair. Failure occurs more often than success, but the need to continue the effort is what separates the successful from the unsuccessful. Let’s stop this condemnation of folks who work hard and acquire success. It is what brings people from around the world to America.

Larry R. Wilson
Aiea

Iwi may rest below Waikiki properties

Why were the Sheraton, Ilikai, etc., allowed to be built along the shoreline? The Hawaiians buried the deceased close to the ocean. So maybe we ought to tear down all the hotels and buildings along our coastlines to test for artifacts and iwi.

This effort to stop the rail is costing us big money. It is one of the solutions to help our worsening traffic situations. Those people who oppose rail transit, like former Gov. Ben Cayetano and Walter Heen, should stay in Makaha for one month, drive to work every day during rush hour and tell us that more buses and smaller lanes are going to solve the traffic problems.

Adrienne Wilson-Yamasaki
Wahiawa

Military spending reflects poor values

Where would our world be without explorations and discoveries of the past? The idea of peering into the dark corners of the world and seeing what was once unseen has driven our species forward. We still discover new things to this day.

Why is it that people complain about spending $2.5 billion on a one-time exploratory rover mission to Mars, but are comfortable with the U.S. military spending more than $700 billion a year to defend ourselves against other humans? That’s far more than any other country. It is understandable that defense is a large priority, but at what cost? How much of that money is actually protecting us, and how much of it is surplus due to fear and power-mongering? If people weren’t so greedy, afraid and separated by races and borders, less money could be spent on fighting and diminishing our own kind, allowing more money to be spent on broadening our knowledge.

Jaxon Servies
Liliha

Lingle, Djou should run as independents

In recent TV ads, former Gov. Linda Lingle and former U.S. Rep. Charles Djou are offering to bring bipartisanship to the offices they seek. It’s hard to see how that should please their Republican party supporters.If that is their true intent, why are they not truthful enough to runas independents?

Norman MacRitchie
Kakaako