Letters for Wednesday, September 9, 2020

Koloa ducks need our help

In these troubled times, we focus on our families, our neighbors, and other loved ones. We stay home. We wear masks at Foodland. And many of us ask, what can we do to break the monotony, the sad suspension of our greater aloha?

Perhaps we expand our aloha to include Koloa, our Hawaiian duck, one of the rarest ducks in the world. Koloa needs your help. Avian botulism currently plagues the Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge, and Koloa are its primary victims. We need volunteers to walk the berms, rescue ailing birds and remove those who have passed. Only with a large group of volunteers can we win the day against this deadly disease.

You will walk beneath and within one of the most majestic places on earth. You will save avian lives. You will get out of the house, and you will tell your grandchildren you have saved Koloa. You will share that legacy with them forever.

Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge, in an effort to save native birds, is looking for volunteers to patrol around the taro fields. Five species of endemic birds are found in Hanalei, and one, the Koloa Maoli, is an endangered island duck. The entire world population is found on Kaua‘i and Ni‘ihau. The birds are affected by avian botulism C, which doesn’t harm humans but can be detrimental to waterbirds. If the birds are found in time, they can be saved. Schedules are flexible and volunteers are asked to be trained first with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service staff before being on your own. You can work with a partner or by yourself and easily maintain social distancing.

Please call Jennifer Waipa at 635-0925 for more information on how you can malama Hanalei.

Robert E. Broshears, Princeville

Debra Gochros, Kilauea

My politics, my opinion

To start with, this is my opinion, and if you are thin-skinned and offended, just remember that Don Henley lyric, “get over it.” Take some deep breaths also.

On Labor Day a convoy of Kool-Aid drinkers traveled the island, and at first I thought they were celebrating labor. But wait, Donald Trump only celebrates himself, and everyone else is just a pawn. Here is a litmus test for working-class folks who support Trump. Ask yourself, would Trump invite me to dinner at one of his resorts? Of course not. You are not his kind of people and you could not afford the admission fee.

Once again, you are just pawns.

On one of the trucks was a banner that stood out to me, “Veterans for Trump.” Trump’s polling with vets is not very favorable, with comments (like) that those who died in war are “losers.” I am not a vet, but I support a group called VoteVets. They are not Trump supporters, and are working to make sure that Joe Biden wins and that Senate seats become blue. OK, I realize I am rambling, but sometimes that what one’s opinion becomes. Remember, “get over it.” But maybe grow from it, also.

Mark Perry, Lihu‘e