Please fix Hui F Road

(The following letter was sent to County Councilmember Tamara Paltin and Mayor Richard Bissen.)

Please don’t respond with the canned message that the residents are getting from you! We deserve some answers. We know this road is “in limbo” — on the other hand, we are tax-paying citizens, and our taxes are not in limbo.

One would think that for our annual taxpayer dollars, we could afford to give our citizens a few cubic yards of pothole filling. If the county is collecting our taxes, where is our return?

Stop signs are missing; cars are driving on the left side of the road to avoid axle-breaking potholes. Give us some help, please!!

We don’t need a major overhaul, but some attention is in order and highly overdue. This road is getting more dangerous by the day. Please tell us how you are spending our tax dollars.

“BLUE” ROBINSON, AOAO Napili Ridge

Religion can’t be taught in public schools

In response to “Creation Enhanced School Curriculums,” Michele Lincoln, March 23, 2023: I tell my biology students that it is important to distinguish between their most important beliefs and the accumulated evidence of science. “Learn the Science and believe what you want” is my admonition to the students on the first day of class.

Creationism or Creation Science and Intelligent Design are religious beliefs, or so says the Supreme Court on two different occasions. The foundation of Biology curriculums is Darwin’s Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection. Many people make the mistake of thinking that the term “Theory,” when used in a scientific sense, is the same as a whimsical idea or even a hypothesis or an educated guess about how natural processes work. It is not. A scientific theory is the end result often of years of research, experimentation and accumulated evidence that explains how the natural world works. The Theory of Evolution is scientifically the same as the Theory of Gravity, the Theory of the Chemical Elements and the Theory of Sub-Atomic Particle Physics. For 164 years, since Darwin published, the accumulated evidence for the Theory of Evolution is the only scientific explanation of who we are and how we got here.

To suppose that personal religious beliefs are the same as 164 years of accumulated scientific evidence — “Both positions have insufficient scientific evidence to affirm definitively their positions” — denotes a significant misunderstanding of scientific processes and repeatable evidence. Your personal religion, as important as it is to you, cannot be taught in public school. The Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection is not personal; it belongs to everyone.

VICTOR DOMINOCIELO, Lahaina

Promote forestry development on state lands in Lahaina

I submitted the following testimony to the Department of Forestry and Wildlife. Considering all the tax revenues generated from West Maui, it is reasonable to request federal and state projects to benefit this region.

In Lahaina, state controlled properties recommended for forestry are Tax Map Key numbers 450210220000, 45021023000, 45021004000, 46018007000, 4601800400, and 46025002000. These parcels, north of Lahainaluna High School, are an excellent area to promote forestry for a few good and strategic reasons.

1) Proximity to visitor industry for eco-tours and tourist income resources.

2) Future scenic byway for when the state’s bypass extension is completed.

3) Proximity to schools and university annex for educational purposes.

4) Opportunities for exposure, promotion, and education of forestry overall.

5) Protection of important watersheds and environmental impact of major income-producing region in Hawaii.

Growing native trees for future wood harvesting, educational purposes, tourist attractions, and preservation is preferable in this area.

Another suggestion is for the state to make a concerted effort in promoting the reforestation of sandalwood trees.

1) Sandalwood oil and wood have an international demand, commanding astronomical prices.

2) Historical decimation of Hawaii’s sandalwood forests makes it paramount to be grown in an effort to right the wrongs of the past.

3) For state land, the 10- to- 30-year maturity rate is a reasonable time span for an investment in the future.

4) Sandalwood is a lucrative, income-producing commodity that will be beautiful and beneficial for Hawaii.

Thank you for your consideration of Maui’s future forestry development.

MICHELE LINCOLN, Lahaina

State measure would increase shipping costs

(The following letter was sent to state lawmakers regarding Senate Bill 824 and House Bill 714.)

Critical industries in Hawaii, such as building materials, fuel and other commodities, are banding together to express our concern about the economic impact this new legislation will have on Hawaii families and businesses. At a time when inflationary prices are already adding to our already high cost of living, this is not the right time to pass these bills. The growing number of ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained Employed) families in our islands are struggling to make ends meet, and this legislation will set Hawaii back in our post-pandemic economic recovery efforts.

For decades, building materials, fuel and other commodities have efficiently and safely moved between the islands by barges staffed with highly trained crews. SB 824 and HB 714 seek to impose a new and costly requirement to use local stevedore labor to secure vessels to the dock. While we use and support local labor and appreciate their highly-trained skill set and commitment to safety, these issues are not currently at stake. Rather, these requirements will unnecessarily increase the cost of barging operations throughout the state and lead to scheduling uncertainty for delivery and transport of building materials, fuel and other commodities to the Neighbor Islands. This could lead to shortages of vital supplies and ultimately increase the financial burden on families and businesses.

Furthermore, this coalition has grave concerns about how these measures will impact our Neighbor Island communities and how the increased costs will affect their everyday goods, groceries, fuel and housing. The negative impact these measures will have on families far outweigh the benefits that the measure’s supporters will reap, all at the expense of raising the cost of living for local families, especially on the Neighbor Islands.

We believe laws should lift up our entire community. Enclosed are some fact sheets with scenarios that outline the impact these measures will have on existing operations. We believe the information provided by various members of the coalition will help you to make informed decisions.

HAWAII COST OF LIVING COALITION