If you were looking for the tallest building in Hawaii, it would make sense to look between downtown Honolulu and Waikiki, where you would find the First Hawaiian Center at 429 feet.

So it’s hard to justify how approval was given for eight new wind turbines that will be more than 100 feet taller at 568 feet, but placed in Kahuku, 35 miles from Honolulu, in an area that is supposed to be the country.

Although developers of the wind turbines (and the Thirty Meter Telescope) like to repeat that they went through the government approval process, that just clarifies that something is wrong with a process in which the objections of the public are ignored under the pressure of well-funded and connected business, science and development.

Robert Graham

Kahuku

Bias, inaccuracies alive and well at Fox News

When David Peterson wrote, “Mainstream media comes from the major Democratic cities … with a Democratic agenda,” he completely left out the major conservative Republican media outlet spelled F-O-X (“Filter media reports and make up one’s own mind,” Star-Advertiser, Letters, Nov. 21).

As for the “Democratic-leaning” networks dominating the airwaves: As of October 2019, Fox News was the most-watched network for the third consecutive year and doing well in terms of its prime-time audience, with 2.68 million primetime viewers in that month, far ahead of CNN or MSNBC. And, as for demanding “fair and accurate reporting,” Fox often has been branded as the unofficial propaganda outlet for the Trump administration. Factcheck.org has determined that at least 60% of Fox reports are partly or completely false.

Two inconvenient facts: Russian interference in the 2016 election was investigated by President Donald Trump’s own Justice Department, and the impeachment inquiry in the House of Representatives may lead to a trial in the Senate.

Even Fox reported these stories.

William E. Conti

Waikiki

Full hearings, sans edits, reveal violation of oath

U.S. Rep. David Nunes’ questioning of witnesses at the impeachment hearings seemed designed to get easily digested soundbites and video clips. If we as a nation are relying on sound bites, tweets, short video clips and Facebook postings to be informed, we are in a whole lot of trouble.

May I suggest C-SPAN as a news source for congressional hearings? You will get no soundbites there — just our beautiful, free democracy in action.

Having watched and listened to the recent impeachment hearings, I can come to no other conclusion but that our 45th president violated his oath of office to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.

No carefully edited sound bite of someone saying, “No quid pro quo,” can take the place of the truth of what I saw, heard and learned during the live and complete broadcast of the impeachment hearings.

Jim Howard

Manoa

Kapolei homesteaders can run own community

I have been living on Hawaiian homestead lands in Kapolei (Kaupe‘a) for 13 years now.

I am concerned with the rules we must follow with the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands dealing our community to the Villages of Kapolei Association (VOKA).

I feel that we Hawaiians should have had a say and voiced our opinion on how we govern our everyday living within our community. Every day we are policed on how or what we can or cannot do to our Hawaiian Homes property. Simple things like growing certain indigenous plants on our lawn that beautify and add curb appeal is prohibited without justification to VOKA and it’s not guaranteed to be approved.

I am all for rules and regulations, but we Hawaiians are educated and are fully capable of governing our own community.

We do not need an outside entity to dictate to us and run our community. Please understand my concerns and hear my plea.

Kaydee Young

Kapolei

Crack down on expired registration, safety check

R. Ronnie Goo is right regarding numerous vehicles driving on the roads with expired registration, expired safety checks or both (“Adopt simplified gas tax program,” Star-Advertiser, Letters, Nov. 24).

What is troubling to me is when I am at a stop light and see these violations, I have seen police vehicles behind these violators, and the officers do nothing. Goo is right: The fines need to be increased. Also, the police need to take these violations seriously.

If your safety check has expired, you should pay a late fee or fine when you receive the safety check, not when you get caught by the police, because you probably will not get stopped.

Regarding the idea of a road tax to replace the current gas tax, leave the tax as it is. It sounds like another way to grab money from us.

Steve Loring

Kapolei

Kids’ free lunches fulfill their need, our aloha

Spend just one day in a public school lunch line in a low-income neighborhood, and it is quite possible you might change your mind about offering free lunch to children.

I have watched children who perhaps come from a home riddled with poverty and/or drug use by most adults they live with. Do you really think “soaking the middle class to pay for free lunch” describes the plight of these children (“Soaking middle class pays for ‘free lunch’,” Star-Advertiser, Letters, Nov. 23)?

If children are not given money to eat lunch because their caregivers have no money, should they just starve? I think not!

Feeding children doesn’t “soak the middle class.” It provides the only meal these children get in a day. We live in Hawaii. The land of aloha. Aloha equals love, sharing and giving.

Bill Schroeder, please find it in your heart to see hungry children as your chance to show aloha. They have no other way to feed themselves. Please don’t deny them the most basic of life’s needs.

Pamela Nakagawa

Makiki

Tell us what you’re thankful for

Maybe it only seems that things have gotten more divisive. Maybe we’ve become too focused on the negatives instead of the positives. Here’s your chance to reflect on things to be thankful for, and to share with fellow readers. Today through Nov. 24, we’ll be accepting “Be thankful” letters (150 words max) or essays (500-600 words). A collection of these will run on Dec. 1, Thanksgiving weekend. Email to letters@staradvertiser.com or send to 500 Ala Moana Blvd. Suite 7-210, Honolulu, 96813, c/o Letters.

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