Letters: Individuals, not races, succumb to racism; Stimulus check will cost everyone who gets one; State should have helped Love’s Bakery

I am disappointed that you published the viewpoints in the letter, “White racism hinders reaching our potential” (Star-Advertiser, Letters, March 19).

I felt the opinions shared were extremely racist and inappropriate, especially as they to apply to Hawaii.

I am a white man who has had the privilege of living in this beautiful state for 34 years. My wife is Hawaiian. Our extended family has all colors of the rainbow, including Hawaiian, Asian, Black and White. We get along just fine. I believe the culture of aloha still rules the day which, for the most part, continues to lead to mutual respect and understanding.

During my time in Hawaii I’ve been called what I feel are racially offensive names. Yet I refuse to paint an entire race of people as racists because of the actions of a few. I believe for the most part those feelings of hate and superiority exist within the individual.

Since the writer did not cite sources for his inflammatory statements, I thought I would end this letter by quoting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.:

“I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”

Rich Gerber

Kapolei

State government needs to be more responsive

Have you driven around the island, especially Kamehameha Highway? You need to dodge the potholes or risk a large repair bill.

It is dangerous and unsafe as you have to weave in and out of your lane to dodge the potholes. We are pouring so much money into the rail and are neglecting our roads to an unsafe level. The vegetation also is out of control.

We need to manage what we have first before trying to do more.

Also, I can’t believe we still don’t have relief for the unemployed. You still can’t go down to talk to someone in person.

I know this isn’t how our government should be.

The state has received so much money from the federal government, but where has it gone to? Why can’t we use some of the money so the state can run more efficiently and take care of our basic needs?

Ernie Itoga

Waialae Iki

Clean up Chinatown, but don’t ‘revitalize’ it

While Chinatown has been ignored for decades, our new mayor has suddenly realized there’s a lot of money to be made by “revitalizing” (developing) Chinatown (“Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi highlights affordable housing, homelessness crisis in State of the City address,” Star-Advertiser, March 15).

Urban renewal must be carefully planned with transparency. Now that Honolulu’s population and urban core are expanding, Mayor Blangiardi will be able to convert this into political capital by gaining support from the construction labor unions. This will involve the building of luxury condos, office buildings and boutique retail outlets with a phony Chinese motif.

The appeal of Chinatown has always been the chaotic hustle and bustle of commerce, dozens of little stores, family-owned restaurants, dim sum shops and down-to-earth traditional eateries. Chinatown’s flavor could easily be ruined by the city’s “revitalization” efforts.

Please get rid of the drugs and homelessness, clean up the sidewalks, but leave our traditional Chinatown alone.

Donald Wyand

Makiki

Stimulus check will cost everyone who gets one

I would never take out a $1,400 loan if it would cost me nearly $6,000 to pay it off, but I’m being forced to do so by the government.

We are told that stimulus checks are “free money,” but there is no such thing. The government will recoup that money through taxes, or by borrowing from other countries on our behalf.

Don’t think for a second that only rich people will have to pay. Gas and other daily taxes will go up. Businesses will be taxed more heavily, and they will pass those costs along to consumers. The government may also print more money, which means every dollar you have will buy less.

Enjoy your check, but don’t think for a second it’s free money.

Shari Sprague

Manoa Valley

State should have helped Love’s Bakery

It is so sad to hear of so many of our treasured longtime family businesses failing due to the COVID-19 situation. But we need to ask: Did the state do its part to prevent this from happening?

If all of our state-funded meals included Love’s Bakery on the menu, could we have prevented this longtime business from failing? Schools, correctional centers, hospitals and nursing facilities, to name a few — if Love’s products were included in their menus, wouldn’t this help the situation?

Instead, we have a few hundred local residents on unemployment and needing retraining to continue to feed their families and pay their rent. Instead of the government simply handing money out in the form of a stimulus package, wouldn’t it be wiser if the process had some form of thought involved?

Sadly, this one example could have been a win-win situation.

Jason Takara

Palolo

Private letters should always remain private

We so value privacy that it is a federal offense to open correspondence that is addressed to someone else. Yet in the paper, I read a New York Times article applauding a new technique that enables one to snoop on old private correspondence (“Scientists find way to reveal messages locked up in letters,” Star-Advertiser, March 10).

How hypocritical! The person who employed the “letterlocking” technique intended his or her words to be read by no one but the addressee. No one is entitled to read the private correspondence of another, living or dead, period.

There are limits to our pursuit of information. We must respect the privacy rights of others, especially those who can no longer defend that right.

James Metz

Makiki

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