Letters: A big radar won’t save us from nuclear war; Navy fuel leaks could be as bad as COVID-19; Touching monk seals is not a major crisis

Regarding the article, “House bill includes $75 million for isle radar” (Star-Advertiser, July 14): One fervent supporter of this bill is none other than U.S. Rep. Ed Case, who is quoted as saying that this system is “designed to protect our country and state from ballistic missile threats from countries like North Korea … ”

This is an absurd claim. For one thing, China, armed with a huge stockpile of hypersonic missiles, is the U.S.’s real nuclear opponent in the Pacific. In the event an all-out war breaks out, Hawaii would become a prime target for Chinese nuclear missiles. The probability is that all human beings who live here and most, if not all, of the organic life in our islands would disappear. Not even the most pricey isle radar system would save us.

Case believes such a war can be avoided if we “maintain our competitive edge over the Chinese.” But this fierce struggle by both powers to “maintain a competitive edge” by building up arsenals and radar systems is setting the stage for the nuclear confrontation we all want to avoid. The only real security lies in dead-serious negotiations to begin building down our arsenals and ending the insane arms race.

Noel Kent

Manoa

Recycle wooden pallets piling up in Hawaii

A huge environmental and waste issue in Hawaii is discarded wood shipping pallets because the goods flowing into Hawaii far exceeds the out-flow from Hawaii. This imbalance renders pallets to being at best a nuisance.

Perhaps tens of thousands of pallets, amounting to hundreds of tons of wood, are discarded as waste each year. On the mainland, pallets are like gold and religiously recycled. Without a state-mandated return of pallets to the U.S. mainland, we will perpetuate discarding and dumping of pallets. Pallet returns should be mandated lest we continue to needlessly fill our landfills or find these discarded and burned on beaches.

Von Kenric Kaneshiro

Downtown Honolulu

Inconsiderate residents diminish island living

Hawaii used to be a good place to live. Not anymore. There’s no class and no consideration for anybody anymore. Bombs going off every night in every neighborhood and rocket ships on two and four wheels breaking the sound barrier on every street at all times of the day and night. Consideration for your fellow resident? Who cares? It’s all about me now, isn’t it? Look at me and hear my 120-decibel motorcycle or racer car! I’m da man!

Simply driving on our streets can be a death-defying experience. If you don’t believe me, I suggest spending a Saturday afternoon near the airport viaduct. You’d swear the Hawaii Raceway Park was still open.

How did we get to this point? Simple. No enforcement of our current laws. We pass new laws but we don’t enforce the current ones. What’s the use?

Don’t we have noise ordinances? Why aren’t we enforcing those?

How about the Honolulu Police Department putting our property taxes to good use? Enforce our existing noise ordinances and put some sanity back into our lives.

Brian Yamane

Moanalua

Navy fuel leaks could be as bad as COVID-19

Over decades, the Navy’s own documents reported leaks of thousands of gallons of fuel dumped into the ground at Red Hill, right on top of our main water source. Show me one other organization or business that gets away with this level of environmental poisoning with absolutely no consequences. Where are the fines and actions to protect the public?

There is nothing, just talk and delays. The U.S. can mobilize the military to go all over the world to fight wars that are not won, moving an incredible amount of equipment from one continent to another that cost hundreds of billions of dollars, but we cannot relocate these tanks that put everyone on Oahu at risk. It is just a matter of time before the whole water supply has to be shut down due to a major disaster.

You think COVID was bad for the state? Wait until Oahu’s main water source is shut down and water rationing begins for everyone.

Angelika Burgermeister

Haleiwa

Touching monk seals is not a major crisis

So the biggest news in Hawaii is that a tourist approached a monk seal not knowing that it was illegal, and we want to prosecute any visitor to the fullest extent of the law should they disturb a seal (“Gov. David Ige warns visitors who touch Hawaiian monk seals ‘will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law’,” Star-Advertiser, July 15).

This implies that visitors are the enemy and that this is a huge problem. Neither is true, but the headlines make it seem so.

We need to help the seals survive, but we don’t need to think that we have a major crisis on our hands.

Jim Killett

Lahaina

‘Law and order’ party should support IRS

Republicans claim to be the “law and order” party. So why do they oppose adequately funding the IRS so it can enforce the tax laws?

And while I’m getting things off my chest, why do Trumpers insist they don’t have to wear masks or get vaccinated because it’s their “God-given right” to do what they want with their bodies, but women can’t choose whether to have a baby?

Lunsford Phillips

Kailua

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