Letters: 2-11-16

Bromeliad blame uncalled for

I, Howard Hofelich, am the one who planted them, and I don’t like the fact my work was viciously vandalized. I reject the idea that my work and efforts can be vandalized and then justified in the paper.

To all who use the Makaeo Walking Path, I admit to being the planter and the “waterer of the bromeliads.” And it’s my fountain that the two perpetrators are grinning in front of on page 11A in the Sunday paper. And it’s not filled with stagnant water as we flush it pretty much every day.

I take great offense to the publication of outright nonsense that has no factual basis and clearly no evidentiary nor scientific support. It is obvious to me that neither of the complainers are in any way endowed with any scientific credentials and all of their published heresay is unsubstantiated. I would expect a small city publication such as West Hawaii Today to stick to the facts and only publish material that has been screened by the scientific community.

I ask the readers to observe themselves the beautiful bromeliads and notice not a single mosquito resides amongst the flora and fauna held within. I purposely avoid putting water inside these beautiful plants that are almost always dry inside, and my wife dutifully sprays them with soapy water on almost a daily basis.

I completely reject the idea that these two can rip my plants out of the ground and throw them on the old airport runway. I have a bachelor’s degree in biology with a specialty in parasitology and until the state sends a biologist to find a single mosquito in my plantings, and that he proves that that mosquito carries dengue fever, I respectfully request the paper not support vandalism of my hard work.

If you want the source of the dengue fever infection, stop allowing infected tourists from elsewhere to come here.

Howard Hofelich

Palisades

Judge’s decision downright flabbergasting

I’m utterly shocked that Judge Takase acquitted several Thirty Meter Telescope protesters of obstruction. These protesters were obviously breaking the law by purposely blocking a publicly accessible roadway. However, Judge Takase accepted the protesters defense of their actions. The protesters assert they were preventing the desecration of Mauna Kea by blocking access to the mountain.

It boggles my mind that she accepted the protesters defense of their actions. The TMT project has followed the law every step of the way. The project’s EIS was accepted in 2010, and it had a valid conservation district use permit until the Hawaii Supreme Court invalidated it in December. The court took this action because the petitioners’ due process rights were violated. In short, Judge Takase took it upon herself to determine the TMT project is a desecration to Mauna Kea. This is an utter travesty, as there is nothing officially that would support this position.

I suspect she was more afraid of being charged with a possible “war crime” instead of following the law.

Aaron Stene

Kailua-Kona

Letter writer got it right

Bravo, Mr. Domingo, My Turn Feb. 1, “Homeless must help themselves.” One additional factor not mentioned by Mr. Domingo is that our welfare state is attracting an ingress of freeloaders from outside the state. I think a little less political grandstanding advertising our welfare state generosity would be wise. We still need to help the kamaaina who are needy and efforts in that regard are commendable.

Donald Nelson

Kailua-Kona