Help the planet by changing your diet

Earth Day was April 22, marking a half-century of promoting environmental awarenesss and calling for protection of our planet. But are we making a difference? Can we do more than reduce, reuse and recycle? Sure! We can adopt a plant-based diet and stop consuming animals.

Why the focus on meat and dairy? An article in Nature argues that animal agriculture is a major driver of climate change, air and water pollution, and depletion of soil and freshwater resources.

Oxford University’s prestigious Food Climate Research Network reports that solving the global warming catastrophe requires a massive shift to plant-based eating.

Animal agriculture is responsible for carbon dioxide emissions from burning forests to create animal pastures and the operation of machinery to raise and transport animals. More damaging methane and nitrous oxide are released from digestive tracts of cattle and animal waste ponds, respectively.

In fact, meat and dairy production dump more animal waste, fertilizers, pesticides and other pollutants into our waterways than all other human activities combined, and it’s the driving force behind wildlife extinction.

An environmentally sustainable world replaces meat and dairy products in our diet with vegetables, fruits and grains, just as fossil fuels are replaced by wind, solar and other pollution-free energy sources.

We can celebrate the observance of Earth Day at our supermarket.

LEX NAKAHARA, Lahaina

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County should enforce Front Street rules

(The following letter was sent to State Rep. Angus McKelvey regarding HR78 and HCR80, which would urge Maui County to ban “predatory” cosmetics stores in Lahaina.)

Seems to us there is a better way to overcome the termed “predatory” (we call “sales people”).

As explained this morning in an article I did for New York City’s Vanity Fair Magazine, have these cosmetics store operators, or employees, ever had police reports filed against them? Has the Maui Police Department done the Front Street walk to control such behaviors? Has MPD been involved in explaining why this behavior is not acceptable?

We here at Arts of Hawaii believe the repercussions of this resolution action may affect Lahaina Halloween parties, Maui performance arts venues, and theaters throughout the Hawaiian Islands (spilling into arts venues throughout the world), creating great prejudice against make-up artists.

We have many people that travel to Hawaii who may not understand a given culture of sales techniques. Residents of Maui that do the Front Street walk have also complained. Here, we have received e-mails questioning your resolution, even with the zoning permitting such a rule. Better to be diplomatic than a war hero.

LEO THINER-BRICKEY, Arts of Hawaii, Honokowai

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Don’t blame parents for the college admissions scandal

Like most people, I have followed the college admissions case, and it is sad. I am not so concerned about what the parents did, as good parents will do almost anything to help their kids have a better future. America has always been about improving the next generation.

What concerns me is that the focus of the case is the parents. I believe that these parents have been victimized by a third party. The perpetrator and cohorts are almost never mentioned in any of the articles.

The people at the schools who assisted the ring leader seem to be the real people to place blame. Why is the government wasting so much money chasing victims, not actual criminals? Are these parents really criminals, or are they actually victims?

I’m sure these parents are victims. The reason I say this is because I have personally experienced these college prep people with my youngest son. I was looking to find him a preparation course for the SAT exam. In the process, I interviewed three college prep operations. Two of them were very honest, but the third was nothing more than a scam artist telling me all kinds of mistruths. I was appalled at the things the guy was telling me to make a sale. I did go to college and know how the systems works, so I saw through his lies.

The real perpetrators are not Lori Laughlin and Mossimo Giannulli but instead the system and the person they paid. It is wasteful the way our government chases these parents. The cost by the government and the time spent by prosecutors, when real cases are sitting for decades with no action, cannot be justified.

The college admissions scandal started when a person who was being chased by the FBI for a Wall Street pump and dump scheme became a whistleblower. The Feds took quick action on the college scandal based on this person’s information.

However, on the Cooperative Finance Corp. and U.S. Department of Justice case involving billions of dollars of bribes, murder, drugs and more, the information by another whistleblower has gone ignored for a full decade. This case was ignored under the Obama Administration, as there are very high level people associated. So far, under the current administration, no action has been taken.

It’s time to stop wasting taxpayer money on things like this college admissions case and change the focus to something that is real. I am sure that other big cases are also being ignored. It is time to stop the nonsense of placing priority on cases like this college admissions scandal and stop chasing victims. The victims of the CFC case are the taxpayers… and sadly, the fraud on them continues.

Did I mention earlier this case involves drug dealing, murder, the stealing of billions of dollars, prostitution, corruption at the highest level, collusion at many levels (corporations, politicians, law firms, large corporations, government agencies, etc.), conspiracy and much more? Yet it is ignored, while parents who tried to help their children are being bullied by the government.

While I am unsure why certain important cases involving real criminals are ignored. I am certain that this must change.

JOHN PROBANDT