‘An embarrassment’
Regarding “The Big Squeeze” (Tribune-Herald, Dec. 23): Hawaii County continues to initiate increases in taxes and fees. I would not have a problem with that if there was an increase in services provided or an improvement in the efficient use of those funds.
However, if the Mountain View/Glenwood transfer station is an example of the service provided by our county, I would deem that the increases would constitute a grave injustice to our citizens.
Since completion, there have been numerous changes in the traffic pattern — each change causing more confusion.
There have been changes to the parking pattern at the bins. Now, a parked vehicle will obstruct the roundabout traffic, causing a backup.
Perhaps our county officials should be posted as traffic directors during a trash day after a holiday — without pay, of course. Perhaps any fees paid to the design consultant should be reimbursed.
This transfer station is an embarrassment.
Walter Tominaga
Mountain View
Too expensive
Back in the old days, Henny Penny cried: “The sky is falling!” But nobody reacted. That’s because she couldn’t get her local politicians on board.
Now we are in the New Age, and Henny Penny’s environmental false alarms make lots of money for her nest egg. Henny Penny’s latest scare is: “Nutrients are pouring into the ocean!”’ and Hawaii County joined her flock. Now, the wastewater people are ready to build an elaborate lagoon system for Naalehu, a town far from the shoreline.
These lagoons cost tens of millions of dollars. They will put us in debt up to our eyeballs. Meanwhile, Henny Penny keeps feathering her nest with county sewer fees and county tax dollars.
Please consider: Each $1 million that county politicians squander is a $20 bill plucked from a local family of four. To that, Henny Penny says: “Never mind; it’s only chicken feed.”
Jerry Warren
Naalehu
Freeze their pay
President Trump has been installed in the White House for less than two years, yet we already have our third federal government shutdown. Truly, that’s the definition of a failed state!
How can we avoid this infantile behavior (the U.S. government must be the laughing stock of the entire world by now)?
Simple: The next Congress must pass a bipartisan and binding legislation that, should there be another shutdown in the future, ALL top government officials — starting with the White House and both congressional houses — must not be paid until the crisis is resolved.
The Treasury must not issue any paychecks for our elected SERVANTS, who are not doing their job of passing a simple budget for the running of the nation. Problem solved!?
Danny H.C. Li
Keaau