Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde?
Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde?
I’ve been torn trying to figure out who Billy Kenoi really is. I thought I knew. Here is this adolescent-behaving chief county executive who could crack up, at will, an audience with his self-deprecating antics, facial gestures, and Pidgin talk. I once observed him at a memorial service pick up the flowers and walk in the wrong direction, toward the wrong memorial — while looking over his shoulder with a unique smile of bewilderment and confusion on his face. He is a funny guy. Even the grieving had to smile at him.
That was the Kalapana Kid at his best.
But then I see (West Hawaii Today, March 31, “Connecting the dots”) another part of Billy that just doesn’t add up. All those hefty charges at up-scale places many of us who find him so devilish and kolohe could never afford to patronize. I thought that Baltimore charge for $479.88 at the Hilton lobby bar could have been made while commuters were stuck in 5 o’clock Kona traffic. Maybe a roofer was installing a solar panel in the hot sun while the mayor was in Washington, D.C. charging $600 at Clyde’s Gallery Place.
It’s a disturbingly long list of charges made at pricey places and destinations we Big Island residents couldn’t frequent. Many of us can’t afford to visit our families on the neighbor islands. We hope our doctor won’t find a suspicious growth and then refer us to a Honolulu specialist.
It just doesn’t add up. Have I been duped? How was I to know what was going on? Dr. Jekyll at the memorial service, making us laugh at his foibles. Then Mr. Hyde pCarding at a hostess bar. The courts will establish his guilt or innocence. But I’m dismayed by all this seedy business and I feel disappointed with myself. I thought I was a better judge of character than I prove myself to be.
Richard Dinges
Hilo
Dear dumb driver …
To the person driving the white SUV north bound on Mamalahoa Highway just south of the refuse station:
There you were suddenly in my lane, head-on, driving too fast, texting I suspect. The only reason that we are not both hospitalized or dead, at this moment, is because I slammed my brakes and laid on the horn to get your attention.
I loathe your moronic attitude and your arrogance for thinking that rules do not apply to you. That somehow you are exempt from the tragedies of life. Fine, if you choose to suffer by your own foolishness. But really, why must I and my family suffer because of your stupidity?
Sandra Chaviel
Holualoa
Please bring back plant
On behalf of the Waimea Outdoor Circle (WOC), I’d like to thank everyone in the community who came to the Waimea Nature Park last Saturday for the blessing ceremony of our new Education Center and our annual Spring Plant Sale.
The newly completed building fulfills a long range goal of the WOC and we are proud to offer it as a venue for classes, workshops and special events.
Unfortunately, one of our Native Hawaiian plants was mistakenly removed from the park greenhouse during the blessing. The Brighamia insignis, more commonly known as the Hawaiian Alula plant, is listed as endangered and is therefore protected under the United States Endangered Species Act. It was a gift to the park and was never intended to be sold or given away.
If you have any information, please go to our website and contact us. We are offering a $50 reward for its safe return. The Waimea Nature Park is dedicated to Native Hawaiian Plants and is maintained entirely by volunteers and donations. Please kokua.
Cheryl Langton, branch president — Waimea