Until I read the article about legislation to address DUI offenders, I had no idea that there are 1,000 arrests for repeat drunken driving in Hawaii annually.

Clearly we need to do more to effect change in these 1,000 individuals. Requiring these drivers to wear a monitoring device for 90 days — that they may have to pay for — sounds quite fair to me.

After all, these are offenders who didn’t learn their lesson the first, second or third time, and who, left unchecked, may go on to hurt or kill someone.

My husband is a Honolulu fire captain, and he has gone to so many terrible accidents and even deaths due to these offenders, who neglect to think about the consequences they create.

It’s the people, sometimes children, they kill.

Ensuring that they stay sober for 90 days may help them learn to change their behavior. We can only pray and if so, we all win. I hope the state Legislature will pass House Bill 306.

Janice Silva

Mililani

—

Lots of local talent for next police chief

The Honolulu Police Commission should pick the next police chief from within. We have many highly qualified and motivated officers, most of whom have also received additional training at the FBI Academy; they could readily fill that spot. He or she could hit the ground running.

We need a new chief now. Anyone coming from outside would have an elongated learning curve, both culturally and in how local police work. All the other 49 states have multijurisdictional policing; we do not.

Steven Burke

Retired HPD/former SHOPO president,

Aiea

—

Clean-energy costs compete with needs

If AES Hawaii Inc., which produces 20 percent of Oahu’s electricity, shuts down because it burns coal, how will HECO replace it? Much of our biomass already goes to HPOWER. Where will AES get 200 megawatts (MW) of biomass?

AES provides a “firm” 200 MW now. In contrast, solar and wind are intermittent, so we would need brand-new 800 to 1,000 MW to replace AES. Light rail, the homeless, school air conditioning, Obamacare, retiree pensions, new windmill and solar farms — at what point do we run out of land, money and taxpayers?

Gordon Kitsuwa

Kaimuki

—

Sight-seeing copters mar military event

On March 17, my wife and I attended a retirement ceremony for Lt. Cmdr. David Durazzo on the aft deck of the battleship USS Missouri. We were at David’s graduation from the Naval Academy 20 years ago, so this was a special day for all family and friends.

What wasn’t special was the interruption of speeches by the noise of sightseeing helicopters circling around Pearl Harbor in general, and the “Mighty Mo” in particular. Our servicemen, family and friends, along with officers and sailors deserve better.

Lon H. Records

Santa Fe Springs, Calif.