I can’t put my finger on it but there’s something creepy about arresting someone just for strolling out of his hotel room, especially in Hawaii.
It’s getting ridiculous. On Maui, there is an islandwide manhunt for an escaped tourist! Her crime was going to a 7-11 for a soda, or something similar. That set off the whole island. The mayor of Maui called a special news conference alerting the public to be on the lookout for a lady who willfully and maliciously left her room.
I’m sure she’s armed and dangerous drinking her soda. Look out! She might be carrying a hot dog!
They show the mug shots of those who committed the crime of walking out their door and they look like America’s most wanted.
Really folks, there has to be a better way. We could have a private beach they can go to, a safe, patrolled area they can visit, something. But throwing handcuffs on someone for leaving the hotel lobby. Come on. A $5,000 fine for walking to an ABC Store? Have we lost it?
But you have to wonder about tourists wanting to come here when the all the hotels are quarantined. What goes through their head? They are sitting in Idaho, the guy turns to his wife and says, “Hey honey, wanna fly to Hawaii and watch television in a room for two weeks?” and she replies, “sounds good, let’s go!”
Room service is really booming, all other businesses in the state have cobwebs on the cash registers.
It’s getting weird. I was driving by a beach recently and there was a cop car with the blue light on top flashing. Being niele, I stopped and watched a policeman grilling a sweet old lady about leaving her hotel. She did not look happy, this was not her lifelong vision of a beach in Hawaii.
We get 500 visitors a day, down from 30,000, all ready to spend their money and give a tourist shop a trickle of business. Do we welcome them with aloha? No, we call the cops and toss them in jail.
Will they ever come to Hawaii again? Will all of their friends and relatives ever come here? Doubtful. After talking stink about their horrible trip, telling how they went to jail in their aloha shirt, and instead of mai tais, had water in a metal cup, just on principle their friends and relatives won’t ever come here. Bye-bye tourist dollars and new friends.
I know the quarantine is the rule to not spread the virus, but like I said, there has to be a better way. More than 20 people in Hawaii have been arrested for walking around town. Each one can be fined $5,000 and go to jail for a year. Seems pretty steep. How about a warning, that would be more aloha.
Right now, on our island of 185,000, according to our newspaper, there is only one person sitting at home with the virus. Like all the rest who had it they will probably be alright real soon. That’s great news.
You almost wonder what all the fuss is about, but to say that is blasphemy, so I’ll be quiet. But it’s not far off.
Dennis Gregory writes a bi-monthly column for West Hawaii Today and welcomes your comments at makewavess@yahoo.com