• Nice job on the monk seal series • Do something useful • ‘This We’ll Defend’ • Appreciation for a job well done Nice job on the monk seal series Thank you for your series on the Hawaiian monk seal. It
• Nice job on the monk seal series • Do something useful • ‘This We’ll Defend’ • Appreciation for a job well done
Nice job on the monk seal series
Thank you for your series on the Hawaiian monk seal. It is a welcome conversation and I appreciated the openness and honesty of all parties.
The front page of Sunday’s paper was appropriately ironic with a picture of the monk seal lying serenely on the beach and below it the image of a vehicle driven into the ocean.
It shows the level of respect and honor often given to both land and sea by local people here on Kauai. I see it everyday on the beach near my home. Vehicles racing up and down the beach at all hours of the day and night, tearing up the sand and the surrounding vegetation.
There are always more tire tracks than there are footprints. Two people have been seriously injured on Kauai beaches in the past 10 years that I know of and I myself have experienced near misses as I have laid on the beach trying to enjoy its beauty.
Many times, members of the community both Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian have asked for the situation to be addressed by restricting vehicle access to the beaches. Each time the suggestion of such a policy produces an outrage among many locals who claim it is a violation of their fishing rights and an intrusion upon the Hawaiian way of life.
Yet these actions suggest an apathy and a disrespect for traditions and beliefs the Hawaiian culture has always held sacred.
Rick Promer, Anahola
Do something useful
Another Longs? Last time I looked we already have a Longs in Kapaa. Particularly along the heavily used Kapaa corridor, this seems like a very poor growth choice. And cutting down the 100-year-old coconut trees? (They are going to die, anyway?)
Also, another big mall in Lihue with a Safeway? There are already big empty buildings in Lihue, like Borders and Big Save. Why put another big complex in Lihue when you can walk two blocks over and get it cheaper at Costco anyway.
If the current elected officials (likable enough people) cannot stop growth decisions that seem lacking finesse, to put it mildly, then the community needs to vote other people in. That is unless everyone wants to be more like Oahu over here. Next time you are sitting in Kapaa traffic going nuts, think about it.
Meanwhile, the problem of the solid waste these huge stores create continues unsolved. There is a mountain of trash out in Kekaha. Land “fill” is perhaps not the correct choice of words at this point. Granted, there are efforts to change this situation, albeit going very slowly.
Thanks to Bette Midler for doing nothing with her extensive Kapaa property except leave it be. A few cows and goats, and the rescued horse place that gives little kids rides.
Molly Jones, Kealia
‘This We’ll Defend’
In response to Ms. Dux and her comments regarding the military and more specifically “recruiters.”
Ms. Dux, let me remind you that it’s due to the men and women who have fought and died defending this country that gives you the freedom to express yourself. How dare you bash the military that gave you those rights?
The youth of our country have the freedom of simply finding out what opportunities exist in the military with no further obligation. And if they’re interested in pursuing any branch of our armed forces, then so be it.
It was an absolute honor to have served my country for 22 years and I take great pride in having been called a United States soldier.
I tell you what. I’ll get in my Army uniform and you go and round up some “tomatoes” and we’ll see what happens. I guarantee that none of those tomatoes will end up on my uniform. “This We’ll Defend!!!”
Aaron K. Ellegard, Sr., SFC, U.S.Army (Ret), Kalaheo
Appreciation for a job well done
I would like to commend the work that was done on the road leading to the Hanalei Bridge.
For over a year, those men, who became familiar faces worked day in and day out to secure the hill that was washed out during the rains from last March 2011.
While the line of cars was endless, they did their best to keep us all safe and moving. It was an extraordinary engineering feat that was handled and staged perfectly.
Workmen tethered to the side of the hill hanging precariously whilst we watched from far below. Finally, it is finished and as a surprise ending, beautifully landscaped as well!
I wanted to bring cookies and hand them out the window as a gesture of gratitude but I never did. Suddenly, you were finished with your hard work and I never got to say mahalo, so I’m doing it here.
To all who worked on that difficult project, please know that you were appreciated.
Pam Druary, Princeville
