Letters to the Editor
Outdoor Circle does choose battles carefully
The condescending, tsk-tsking tone taken toward the Kane'ohe Outdoor Circle, in The Advertiser's Dec. 8 editorial ("Not every tree should be considered sacred"), was offensive, and the "facts" you described were inaccurate.
First, I don't believe the organization's membership considered that tree "sacred" — your word, not ours. We did, however, believe the banyan to be a magnificent specimen, one that was important to our Windward communities and worthy of saving and which could have been retained through minimal effort and expense.
The banyan did not affect users of the highway, as you said, except for the welcome shade it provided to drivers stopped there and its pleasant visual softening of the surrounding asphalt and concrete. Some of the tree's branches did project above the overpass but did not interfere with pedestrian use of the structure. In any case, those branches could have been removed without harming the tree.
Regarding alleged damage to the concrete slabs of two neighboring homes: The Outdoor Circle asked an independent certified arborist to examine the tree and its roots in relation to nearby properties. In his expert opinion, the tree's roots had not affected the slabs and certainly had not "undermined" them.
It was the circle's position that responsibility for the banyan's maintenance should fall to the state Department of Transportation, since much of the tree was on its right of way, in years past they had cared for it, and because they have the budget to do so easily. Nonetheless, individuals and organizations from Kane'ohe were willing to raise the money to care for the tree, if the state refused, and made that offer to all who'd listen.
Finally, your editorial cautions the Kane'ohe Outdoor Circle to "choose its battles more carefully," instead of "defending any and every tree." The organization does not defend any and every tree; nevertheless, we believed this battle was worth waging. The banyan was a healthy, magnificent landmark that framed the entrance to Kane'ohe. It was destroyed unnecessarily, and our community is poorer for it.
Barbara Duran
Kane'ohe
Cups source of pollution
Writing in response to Morton Brown's Dec. 12 letter: Not only is the Honolulu Marathon a great inconvenience, but it is also the greatest polluter. Look at all those cups the unconcerned runners threw on the side of the road. A large amount of the trash was blown out to sea because of the strong winds. I don't believe anyone went out to sea to retrieve the trash.
The marathon has turned out to be a money-making venture for a select few and a problem for the 'aina and the local residents.
Remember the saying from a very wise kahuna: "Take care of the 'aina and the 'aina will take care of you."
Protect the 'aina, by "trashing" the marathon and its organizers.
Eric Po'ohina
'Talibum's' book could be best-seller
I envision the day when Johnny "Jihad" Walker publishes a book recounting his exploits as a "Talibum," a potential best-seller: "Hairy Plotter."
Steven Maier
Negotiated peace not only thing leader wants
With regard to your editorial on Ariel Sharon and Yasser Arafat making choices (Dec. 4), I urge that writer and other members of your editorial hierarchy to read up on Arafat and the Palestinians.
Arafat is a terrorist, plain and simple. He was offered everything he could conceivably want by Sharon's dim-witted predecessor to the shock and amazement of the Western world — and he turned it down. He wants more than a negotiated peace, he wants the elimination of the Jews.
H.C. Coleman
Re-evaluate limits before trying to enforce them
Who is the state Department of Transportation trying to kid?
The speed limits in Hawai'i are extremely off on many of the roads on which motorists travel. If these speed limits "are not set arbitrarily," then maybe they should be.
On many of our roads, as I like to tell my friends, it feels as though you can run faster than you can drive the speed limit. Of course this is not true, but it certainly feels that way. Just the opposite is also true, because on many of our roads the speed limits are set way too high for the "design of the road ... and on the use of the road."
The DOT would like us to believe that all the speed limits are correct, when in fact they are not. Many of these speed limits need to be re-evaluated and changed to meet the current times and conditions of our society. They need to be fixed before the state tries to enforce them.
Clifton Uyeda
Do police know where traffic cameras are?
Shortly before 6 p.m. Thursday, I sat on Richards Street waiting to turn onto King Street. Well after the light turned red for those on King, a police car, a white sedan with an unlit blue light on the top, casually drove through.
Do the men in blue have special dispensation from Big Brother, or did he know in advance that they weren't there?
James Frolich
