Looking out for their profit margin
Money in politics has allowed corporations to deceive voters for many years. I think it’s time to hold them accountable for how their influence harms people in America.
Notoriously, the tobacco industry knew about the link to cancer by 1950. The oil industry knew by 1960 that burning fossil fuels was causing air pollution; putting human health at risk. Pesticides have long been linked to cancer and now, the weedkiller company for “Roundup” is being fined $10 billion for its proven link to lymphoma. Purdue Pharma has pleaded guilty for claiming Oxycontin wasn’t addictive.
The gun industry is no different in caring more about money than people. Its NRA lobbyists deceptively claim that the Second Amendment grants citizens the absolute right “to bear arms” and that legislation is an infringement. They also say that citizens should have guns in case there’s a need to overthrow our government; neglecting to mention that it’s unlawful sedition and you’ll be going to jail.
The NRA skims over the wording in the Second Amendment stipulating that the reason citizens were allowed to “bear arms” was to establish “a well-regulated Militia;” in case a foreign power like Britain tried to take over again. That need for citizens to act as the militia ended when official state and federal Armed Forces were established. The NRA tries to ignore that when the 1980 Supreme Court ruling, in D.C. vs. Heller, eliminated a tie between owning guns and a “well-regulated Militia,” it didn’t eliminate the constitutionality of regulating the conditions of gun ownership.
Corporations fight regulations all the time; not for the good of the American people but to benefit themselves. They are looking out for their profit margin and getting politicians to lie for them. I think it’s past time to get money out of politics.
Martha Hodges
Kailua-Kona
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Ask your pastor
It is done. House Bill 576 was signed Monday by Gov. David Ige. The bill will greatly expand the number of abortions of native and naturalized Hawaiians. There was not even a whimper of push-back from the church. Why not? Ask your pastor why not. Any pushback from any of our Hawaii County or state Representatives? None. A final irony: Ige signed the bill directly in front of a large copy of the great seal of the State of Hawaii, which reads “Ua Mau ke Ea o ka ‘Aina i ka Pono,” which translated means “The Life of the Land is Perpetuated in Righteousness.”
George Woerner
Kailua-Kona
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Management plan has been submitted
In response to Patti St. Clair’s Friday letter to the editor regarding maintenance of the Kaloko trail: Mahalo Ms. St. Clair. I agree, the trails do need oversight and management. In the suggestion form that we submitted to the Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Commission (PONC), there is a management plan.
Jeff McDevitt, Grant Miller and I are the core group to form a 501(c)(3) to manage this trail. We are collaborating with Kaloko neighbors. Once properties are acquired with 2% Land Funds, they are eligible to apply for stewardship grants from the Maintenance Fund. Jeff and Grant have been building and maintaining the trails since the 1990s, as volunteers. Stewardship funds from the Maintenance Fund will enable them to expand the upkeep of this trail. We are working to form a nonprofit organization.
The cost of a Public Access Trail Easement will be far less than a fee simple land purchase. When Councilmember Brenda Ford and I wrote the enabling legislation for the 2% Land Fund program in 2006, one of the criteria, as you cited, was Access to Beach and Mountains. One of my most desired outcomes was to see more trails become available to get Big Island residents out in nature. The Kaloko Trail that winds through the unique Kaloko Cloud Forest environment is one of the few mauka trails that can be accessible to keiki and seniors because it is fairly level, not shady or mucky and not overgrown with tree roots. To my knowledge, this would be the first trail acquired with 2% Land Fund monies, hopefully trailblazing a path to more trails being accessible and maintained around the island. I hope this addresses your concerns. Please contact me at hecht.deb@gmail.com with other questions or suggestions.
Debbie Hecht
Campaign Coordinator for the 2% Land Fund Program
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How long can it take?
If you’ve never witnessed a well-connected contractor milk a government job, I suggest you take a drive along Alii Drive during working hours on a weekday. Try to count the number of Isemoto employees and you’ll lose count. It will take 30 minutes to travel a short distance. I wonder if there is any reasonable expectation of when this job will be completed. How long can it take to build a bridge?
John Totten
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 or via email to letters@westhawaiitoday.com.