Rescind rule at HPD on tattoos

The story on new Honolulu Police Department regulations requiring officers to cover all tattoos with either make-up or long-sleeved shirts in order to appear more professional is so absurd.

Tattoos are part of the culture in Hawaii. Most are created along Polynesian themes and in no way hamper the officer’s ability to perform much-appreciated service to the public.

Why should an officer be required to wear a long-sleeved shirt in our weather? We need to rescind this regulation now.

Janet Dagan
Punchbowl

Fund cleanup of Kahoolawe

I have recently been immersed in news and information about a place often forgotten around here: Kahoolawe.

There is a Native Hawaiian cultural revolution taking place on the almost- deserted 45-square-mile island, but state auditors have found no short-term success for the Kahoolawe Island Reserve Commission, the agency organizing the cleanup, because there is none. Success on Kahoolawe will be determined in the long term — not in a matter of years, but a matter of decades.

The federal government should provide all the funding necessary to remove every single UXO (unexploded ordnance) from the island, because it was the one that trashed the island by target practice for 50 years.

Kahoolawe is becoming a place for Hawaiian culture and tradition to flourish. I support those trying to sue the Navy for $100 million to clean up the island.

The Navy got the island into this mess. Now it needs to make sure Kahoolawe is a healthy place in the future.

Devin Hartzell
Lower Makiki

Water board grateful to Yuen

In memory of George Yuen, the Board of Water Supply (BWS) would like to highlight some of the contributions of our former manager and chief engineer. Yuen’s vision and commitment to research helped lay the foundation for the BWS’s operations long after his tenure (1967 to 1974).

Yuen helped steer changes that helped the BWS adapt to meet future needs, such as a corporate reorganization, adopting rules to increase organizational effectiveness, phasing out steam pumps for electric pumps, integrating Oahu’s water systems, and the release of a 2020 Plan that provided a framework for developing Oahu’s water resources and facilities.

In response to increased water demand, he created partnerships to research artificial recharge, aquifer testing for salt water intrusion, waste water reclamation and desalination, to name a few; some methods that were developed are still used today.

Through the years, Yuen remained dedicated to the BWS and its semi-autonomy. We are forever grateful for his support.

Ernest Y.W. Lau
Manager and chief engineer
Board of Water Supply

Smaller stadium is small thinking

It doesn’t seem like that long ago when we had the courage to dream big.

We dreamed of Hawaii’s unique location and cultural heritage as a catalyst for showing what we were made of on the national and world stage. Aloha Stadium was a product of those dreams.

Now we are thinking of replacing Aloha Stadium with a much smaller venue so we can save a couple million bucks a year. I guess that’s OK, since our dreams seem so much smaller now.

It wasn’t that long ago when the stadium was filled to its 50,000-seat capacity as Hawaii fulfilled a big dream of beating BYU after a decade of trying. At the time, people talked about how we could add capacity to the stadium.

Small dreams result in small thinking that limits our future to the small achievements of the also-rans. All the pieces are still in place for a great future, if only we can find the courage to once again dream big dreams and do big things.

Lester Iwamasa
Wahiawa