Letters: Community took action on reapportionment; Aloha Stadium plan just a bait-and-switch scheme; Hawaiians put at risk by Red Hill fuel tanks

Mahalo to journalist Ashley Mizuo for her continuing coverage of the state’s reapportionment process (“Commission adopts new Hawaii district maps despite community pushback,” Star-Advertiser, Jan. 29).

Reapportionment and redistricting play a vital role in ensuring fair maps that reflect the values of our community and culture. Initial maps appeared to favor political interests over serving the citizenry of Hawaii. Members of the community took action and fought for their neighborhoods to remain intact.

The commission made modest changes and remained opaque when addressing concerns. Much like in 2011, final maps most likely will be challenged in court. Hopefully those who mobilized to submit testimony and create maps will take that passion and look ahead to 2030.

Stacie Burke

Aiea

Aloha Stadium plan just a bait-and-switch scheme

The reactions to the proposed development plan of the Aloha Stadium site is just what all unscrupulous schemers in charge desire. By first providing a bloated and unrealistically expensive plan, they soften up the taxpayers and voters’ resolve to oppose it by providing a new plan that is a bit less massive (“New visions for Halawa site,” Star-Advertiser, Jan. 27).

We see this bait-and-switch strategy over and over across the islands.

Let’s say no to dishonesty and say no to overdevelopment. A simple stadium and parking will suffice.

Eric Phillips

Kapahulu

Mahalo for restoring KIKU-TV programming

A big mahalo to the owners of KITV4 and all those involved for restoring Japanese and Filipino programming to KIKU-TV (“KITV4 owner purchases KIKU-TV, restores Filipino, Japanese programming,” Star-Advertiser, Top News, Feb. 1). They have made a lot of folks very happy, especially us kupuna.

Thank you very much.

Howard Ishizuka

Aiea

Military in Hawaii won’t admit to wrongdoing

Did anyone really think the U.S. military would admit that it was in the wrong (had been for decades) and would accept the local government’s decisions, cleaning up the mess it had made (“Feds take Hawaii to court over Red Hill defueling order,” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 3)?

Yeah, sure.

Thomas Luna

McCully

Why can’t tainted water be put to other uses?

I’m just curious: All the tainted water that is going to be filtered by the Navy and run off into Halawa Stream is supposedly not safe enough to be recycled for public use (“Millions of gallons of water to be filtered and flushed from contaminated Red Hill well,” Star-Advertiser, Jan. 29). And yet it is going to be runoff to possibly be absorbed into our aquifers and into the ocean. So is the water safe for the fish and sea life in the harbor? Is a desalinization incident possible in our harbor?

Could the water be recycled to hose down construction sites? Could it be used to water plants? Could it be reused in our wastewater system? Could the millions of gallons of our precious resource be used for something useful, instead of just dumping it into the ocean? Or is that too much money to add to the more than $200 million supposedly already spent for this whole fiasco?

If someone has an answer to all these questions, please let us know.

Bob Mariano

Salt Lake

Hawaiians put at risk by Red Hill fuel tanks

Decades ago I listened to Poka Laenui talk about the military using Hawaii as a buffer between our enemies and the Pacific Coast. Better the war and battle over here in Hawaii than over there. Brown and Asian lives were more expendable than other American (white) lives on the West Coast.

I always had trouble with this position. Now I am not sure. The military’s main, and really sole, purpose is to protect American lives first and foremost. The delay in decommissioning the Red Hill fuel tanks puts the lives and health of our Hawaiian people at risk with a potentially unimaginable ecological/ human catastrophe. And the military is putting its own families at risk as well.

Our aquifer is essential to our well-being. It should never have been put at risk in the first place. But now? Let the Hawaiian people and our representatives do the only right, rational and moral thing: Drain and shut down the Red Hill fuel tanks.

Roman Leverenz

Aliamanu

Blaming gun violence on everything except guns

After reading about the horrific killings of two police officers in New York, it irks me to hear people like columnist Cal Thomas call for the return of capital punishment while at the same time blaming everyone from illegal immigrants to Democrats to district attorneys trying to reform the criminal justice system (“Crime, an officer killed, and a widow’s eloquence,” Star-Advertiser, Cal Thomas, Feb. 1).

Thomas blames everything except the true cause of this violence: guns. Guns that are readily available in this country, legally and illegally. The Republicans consistently refuse to help enact basic gun reform. They block it every time it comes up.

President Joe Biden said that gun violence “stains our character and pierces the very soul of our nation.” Until Thomas and his Republican cohorts stop blocking common-sense gun reform, the stain will continue to spread.

Paul Gutekanst

Kealakekua, Hawaii island

Genuine dialogue could lessen polarization

I agree with Leslie Sponsel (“Republican should fight polarization of America,” Star-Advertiser, Letters, Feb. 1).

Yes, Republicans could pursue reason, truth and more. Do you think Democrats can do the same?

If civil dialogues were practiced by political parties and different genders and races, we may see different results. I think dialogue means compromising and seeing differences and similarities, and then coming up with workable solutions.

Why are we so worked up about making others so wrong? Nothing gets done and it becomes a blame game.

Emi Arnold

Hawaii Kai

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