I was very disappointed with Gov. David Ige’s response to the mayors of Hawaii, who requested an extension to the legislative session (“Ige says no special session for rail,” Star-Advertiser, May 4).

Does Ige not realize that he is the leader? Does he not care about Honolulu’s rail project? Does he not understand that the rail project is the economic driver for Hawaii for the next 20 years at least?

Without rail and the transit-oriented development that is planned along the line, we can say goodbye to affordable housing. Ige’s lack of a strong, supportive stance against the Legislature’s gridlock on rail may have cost him his next election.

Stand up, Gov. Ige, for the people of Honolulu, for the residents of the West side and for our future.

Catherine Graham

Kamehameha Heights

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Tokuda’s fate shows politics at its worst

I am outraged to read that state Sen. Jill Tokuda’s fellow legislators ousted her for doing her job as chairwoman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, a job for which she was superbly qualified and chosen (“Tokuda out due to rail, Souki also to lose post,” Star-Advertiser, May 4).

She is one of the last voices of reason left in our Legislature, and her spineless colleagues have been bought out and left her high and dry for doing the right thing. She was stabbed in the back.

Something is very sick with Hawaii politics, and Tokuda saw it square in its face.

We should all be fighting back and making big noise. This is such a disgusting turn of events.

Make your voices heard, loud and clear. We do not want legislators or City Council members holding positions of power when they do not represent the people.

Mary J. Culvyhouse

Kaneohe

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City needs to live within its means

Free markets say that the price will be whatever the market will bear. In the case of rail, the costs will continue to increase as long as we keep paying for it.

The current cost estimates for rail show that one of two things has occurred: gross negligence in cost controls or gross incompetence in budgeting. Either case shows complete ineptitude and, potentially, outright deceit.

The city must live within the current budget or give up the rail system. Rail officials can change the design, reduce the length of the guideway, or convert what has already been built to an elevated highway for use by the bus system.

If Mayor Kirk Caldwell wants to commit political suicide by raising property taxes, that’s his decision. Enough time in the candy store, throwing tantrums about what he wants to buy. The state has already bailed out the city several times with additional funding. Now it has to live within its means.

Charles Hill

Kailua

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Cannabis component can relieve pain

Now that marijuana cultivation has been legalized, there is a great opportunity to develop a cultivar that is very low in the psychoactive component THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and high in the pain-relieving component CBD (cannabidiol). We could potentially make a dent in the opioid addiction epidemic.

CBD can be reduced to an oil form and then encapsulated. The remaining stalks can be used for rope, cloth, paper and biomass for electricity production.

Twenty-one states allow medical marijuana; we have a ready-made market. Also, we can produce three crops a year to only one in Colorado.

Paul Gundlach

Pupukea

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Don’t limit fishing with too many rules

Thanks for asking for public input (“Creation of Molokai fishing area needs public input,” Star-Advertiser, Island Voices, May 2).

It will be challenging when each community develops its own set of fishing rules.

I thought our state’s rules and regulations were science-based and designed to ensure we have a sustainable resource. Commercial fishing may be one of the few ways Molokai residents can make a living, so let’s not limit their ability to do so.

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources does encourage the public to report violations and provides one-half of the collected fine to the informant.

Let’s enforce our existing fishing regulations rather than adopt new ones.

Kevin J. Mulkern

Kuliouou

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Standards for bail don’t make sense

The Star-Advertiser reported that two Oahu women were charged with illegally owning a massage parlor and promoting prostitution (“Alleged owners of massage parlor arrested,” Star-Advertiser, April 29).

Bail was set at $100,000 each.

In the same edition, in the very next column was an article about a man on Kauai driving a stolen truck, who collided with and killed a 19-year-old girl (“Man nabbed after crash in stolen vehicle kills 1”).

He was charged with negligent homicide, accident involving death, driving intoxicated, driving without license, resisting arrest, and other offenses.

His bail was set at $32,000.

It’s hard to believe that a Lihue court would even grant bail, and such a low figure, especially to someone with prior prison time for theft.

Sandra Conrad

Ala Moana