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The governor has led us into financial calamity. His labeling of certain businesses as non-essential has impeded their ability to survive. Simultaneously, renters are protected from eviction for non-payment of rents. Landlords now risk bankruptcy.
Business owners have given up and closed. Restaurants that can re-open on a limited basis have not opened. Many were looking at the end of August to restart. Maybe now it will be the end of September. It will not be a surprise if they choose to cut their losses and close permanently.
With so many people unemployed and no hope for the future, we can expect increase in suicides and other mental-health issues. Desperate people may steal to survive. Our elected officials seem unable to find workable solutions and instead vent their anger toward government officials who are trying their best to find painless solutions.
There are no easy answers. We need to embrace a survival mentality until the pandemic has passed. Sacrifice will be needed to survive.
John Tamashiro
Pearl City
COVID-19 is an enemy we are able to defeat
We’re in the middle of a war. Not a culture war, a biological war. So far COVID-19 is winning, even in Hawaii.
Our invisible enemy has only one weakness, but it’s huge. The virus has to have human hosts to survive. Don’t be a host. Mask up. Wash up. Back up in public. Want to be able to open up? Hold up on meetings, parties and family gatherings. Hole up alone the instant you don’t feel quite right. Everybody.
If we ease up now, we’re only serving as agents for the enemy, helping it sicken, kill and disable people and cripple our economy. What could be more uncomfortable, inconvenient or limiting of our freedom than that?
If you’re still skeptical, read up on how New Zealand managed to get down to zero new cases for two weeks running and is lifting all restrictions. Of course it helps to have informed and committed national leadership, but even without that, we can choose to do what it takes to defeat COVID-19.
Sue Cowing
Niu Valley
We’ll never be ‘safe’ from COVID-19
David Shapiro said, “Rushing to reopen before it’s safe only wastes the enormous sacrifices we’ve made in the past four months” (Star-Advertiser, Volcanic Ash, July 19).
I wonder what Shapiro would consider “safe”? With a population of 1.4 million people, Hawaii has about 1,400 confirmed cases of COVID-19 or 0.10% of the population. That means 99.9% of the people have not been infected. What number would Shapiro consider “safe”? Zero infections? We’re practically there now.
Many place their hope on a vaccine. The flu has a vaccine. It infects millions and kills tens of thousands, including hundreds of children every year. It affects all and nobody walks around with the flu and not know it. Yet nationwide, only 45% of people get inoculated (47% in Hawaii). A coronavirus vaccine will be helpful, but it won’t be the silver bullet that ends the outbreak. COVID-19 is here to stay.
Bert Oshiro
Hawaii Kai
Don’t blame discoverers for what happened next
I second the motion in Jim King’s letter about our national statues (“Some controversial statues should remain,” Star-Advertiser, July 10).
Those who tear down the statues of Christopher Columbus all around the country are acting out of a grievance, but they are directing it at the wrong person.
Columbus was an explorer who, against prevailing beliefs of his day, undertook great personal risk that led to the modern discovery of the Americas. He is no more responsible for what followed than is any discoverer for his or her accomplishments.
We do not blame Thomas Edison for developing electricity and the Industrial Revolution that led to global pollution. We do not blame Albert Einstein for his theories that facilitated the nuclear age and Hiroshima.
If the moon is someday exploited deleteriously, will they blame Neil Armstrong? Tear down statues of legitimate figures who actually performed acts of malice, betrayal and misdeeds, but leave figures like Columbus alone.
Gary Kawakami
Kaneohe
Hawaii doesn’t have racism of mainland
The sad death of George Floyd, a troubled individual with an unfortunate criminal and drug-use past, should never be forgotten.
A racist is often described as someone of a particular race who feels powerfully superior to others of another race. It’s often loosely used without knowing the true definition of the word.
Although we have some prejudices in Hawaii, we don’t have “local kine racism” here as described by James Farmer (“Black lives matter in Hawaii; here’s why,” Star-Advertiser, Letters, July 13).
Many times we have donned a Hawaii T-shirt, bracelet, lei or colorful dress, letting mainlanders know we are from Hawaii. I periodically sent my Filipino friend living in Alabama “Hawaii” decals for his car. Hawaii people don’t complain about the multitudes of mainland prejudices. We dress for the occasion.
Most longtime residents like me are multiracial. We enjoy, laugh at ourselves and each other with our ethnic jokes and pidgin English.
Feeling like a victim of racism is very different from truly being one.
Iris Mudgett
Mililani
Schools now paying for lack of support
Our Legislature never made public education a priority.
The Hawaii State Teachers Association almost got a raise based on taxing investment properties, but the Supreme Court stopped the ballot initiative from being voted on because the language was too confusing.
After witnessing a record amount of testimony and a record number of people protesting at the Legislature, I saw there never was an honest attempt to create a dedicated funding stream for public education.
Now we have a pandemic and, like any virus, the coronavirus will spread like a brush fire through our overcrowded schools.
The lack of funding means our schools can’t meet the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
We need new leadership!
Justin Hughey
Wailuku
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