Letters to the Editor: June 7, 2020

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Support your local restaurant

We were so excited to see Ready to Rock and Roll on the front page of the June 1 West Hawaii Today. The Fish Hopper, our favorite restaurant overlooking the Kailua Pier has been treating customers to fresh fish and gorgeous views of turquoise waters for many years. We quickly secured a reservation for lunch and were not disappointed. Our hostess, Cheryl was there with a lot of aloha to make us feel welcome once again; manager, Joel stopped by our window table to let us know about the specials of the day. We started with a finely crafted mai tai by our favorite bartender, Tim. We then enjoyed calamari perfectly prepared by their chef. Homemade clam chowder that just melts in your mouth followed by sandabs, rounded out our meal.

These are all local folks, our friends and neighbors, who are so happy to be back doing the jobs they enjoy and we want to support them as much as we can. So please stop by and “support your local restaurant ” either by dining in or curbside take away.

Ron and Karen Hinchcliff

Kona

Restrictions are probably why we’ve been spared

Yes, Hawaii has had very low rates of coronavirus and now folks are agitating to lift restrictions because of that fact, neglecting to consider that those very restrictions are probably why we’ve been spared. So, I’m not sure I’d call extending these safeguards as “unwarranted” as Ms. Melendez would have it. We really don’t know how many people on the Big Island have been infected, because of the limited testing that is available.

We know people can be infectious without symptoms, and that wearing a mask is one way for us to protect each other. If masks are so dangerous, how is it doctors and nurses are able to perform surgical procedures without dropping over at the operating table? Certainly, those health care workers now tending to ICU patients are all wearing masks, without passing out. House painters often wear masks and aren’t known to fall unconscious from ladders. Dentists have been wearing facial protection for years, and don’t tip off their stools while drilling.

If you want to stay healthy, please get your information from reliable sources, rather than Facebook. Wear a mask, wash your hands and try to keep your distance when possible. I’d appreciate it because you’d be helping keep me safe.

Phyllis Hanson

Keauhou

Fines too small

After reading Wednesday’s article about the fish poachers, I was appalled that their fines were so small. Breaking the law is just that. If they only get a small fine, what is there to discourage them from going out and doing it again? The boat captain should have his license revoked and the poacher fined thousands of dollars. Laws are meant to be obeyed.

Let’s also keep in mind that our reef fish are meant to live out their lives in the ocean to which they were born, not to be taken and sold so they end up living in a confined aquarium.

Colleen Miyose-Wallis

Kailua-Kona

Party has lost its way

The Democrat party has lost its way. They have become the party of the illegal immigrant. They have become the party of Antifa. They have become the party that can no longer discern the difference between peaceful protesters and violent criminals. They have become the party that wants to de-fund the police. They are the party of open borders. They are the party that wants to take away your guns along with the right to protect yourself and your family. They have abrogated their responsibility to protect America and Americans.

The Democrat party no longer believes in America and the American dream. Indeed, the Democrat party has become the enemy of America. The Democrat party wasted the last nearly four years trying to topple and remove a democratically elected president. And now that the Republicans are trying to get to the bottom of how the politically motivated Russian witch hunt began, the Democrats have the unmitigated gall to call the Republican search for the truth a politically motivated a waist of time.

America was built on entrepreneurial capitalism. American capitalism has given the world so much. Everything from automobiles to space travel. Everything from jet air travel to smart phones. Please tell me anything that has benefited the world that has come from socialism. A rhetorical question that cannot be a be answered because the answer is nothing. Yes, the Democrat party has lost its way. Frankly, like Bernie Sanders, they have come to hate America. Very sad.

Dave Chrisman

Kailua-Kona

Letters policy

Letters to the editor should be 300 words or less and will be edited for style and grammar. Longer viewpoint guest columns may not exceed 800 words. Submit online at www.westhawaiitoday.com/?p=118321, via email to letters@westhawaiitoday.com or address them to:

Editor | West Hawaii Today

PO Box 789

Kailua-Kona, HI 96745