Praise for Shipman
Thursday’s Tribune-Herald headline, “Keaau spaceport nixed,” brings a sigh of relief and a breath of fresh air to this neighbor, a Pana‘ewa Ag Farm lessee and resident.
From my front porch, as I gaze east out over the treetops to the shoreline, I would have been able to see the launch pad.
Mahalo to Peggy Farias, president of W.H. Shipman, for allowing the public and your neighbors to express their opinion to you in your consideration to make the most responsible decision. As neighbors, we look forward to assist and hear of W.H. Shipman’s plans to develop educational and employment opportunities in Puna.
Robert Yamada
Hilo
‘Misplaced priorities’
Could the citizens of Hawaii County ask for a more revealing example of our incompetent county government than the revelation that 10% of the county’s emergency sirens are inoperable (Tribune-Herald, Oct. 6)? Some of the sirens have been out of commission for months!
Our elected representatives — both the Mayor and County Council — focus on misplaced priorities, waste millions of dollars providing security for illegal demonstrations, and pander to vocal minorities.
It’s government based on who screams the loudest, while the lives of Hawaii County citizens are placed at risk.
Tragically, Hawaii County has experienced three major tsunamis in the past 75 years — in 1946, in 1960 and in 1975. Well over 200 people were killed and families and friends were forever scarred by these tragedies.
There is simply no excuse for inaction. The next test of the emergency sirens is scheduled for (today). The only acceptable performance standard is that 100% of the sirens are operable for the test.
If all of the sirens do not operate as required, we can only hope that the citizens of Hawaii County will act in November 2020 and toss every single one of these idiots out of office in the next election.
Kenneth Beilstein
Kailua-Kona
Rising seas
Hawaii is known for surfing, but will we be able to swim when the island sinks?
As we advance in technology, the more we hurt our planet. We use factories and vehicles that produce carbon dioxide; carbon dioxide warms up the planet by trapping the heat in and causing the ocean to be more acidic.
The warmer climate is causing the ice caps and mountain glaciers to melt, making sea level rise. If the sea level continues to rise, the beautiful beaches like Pine Trees or Koa Bay will be underwater. If water gets high enough, we won’t be able to cruise Alii Drive.
My friends and I go out to spear fish, and with the warmer water there is a smaller amount of fish and the coral has changed — it is uglier because it is sick and dying.
We need to take care of our planet and especially our oceans, because it is the only one we have. We have to make it livable for the next generation. They wont be able to fish for food because the fish would die out.
We can make a difference by switching to a more environment-friendly power source such as solar or wind power. We can also switch out our gasoline or diesel engine cars for hybrid or electric cars.
Every attempt to work environmental green actions into our daily lives will help.
A. Talledo
Hilo