Hilo
Use common sense
Regarding the letter about the “bag ban” from General Manager Rick Maiava of Ken’s House of Pancakes (Tribune-Herald, Jan. 11): Gosh, Rick, if I was getting some hot takeout food, and I was concerned it not spill on me, my passengers or my vehicle, I’d just put it in a plastic bag.
If they’re banned in stores and restaurants, I’d make sure I’d carry one of my own. Doesn’t seem like a big deal to me. Just save some of your current bags, and store them in your car.
I’d guess 98 percent of the time there’s not going to be a spill, so you can just re-store them in your car again for next time.
No need to go into “attorneys mashing their palms together” if you just act responsibly.
Don’t you think your customers are smart enough to carry a plastic bag? It’s not that much different than carrying jumper-cables or a jack and spare; it’s just being cautious and reasonably intelligent.
I’ve got a couple bags folded up in my car right now, in case I need one. If you have no lightweight ones like the stores give out, just use a plastic garbage-pail liner. That would work even better than the lighter-weight ones you’re thinking of and, again, just fold it up and re-store it in your vehicle when you’re done using it for transporting.
You say you save and return your plastic bags. Do you even consider that it takes energy, fuel and pollutes our precious planet when you do that? I use cloth bags, for the most part, and reuse any plastic ones when I need a plastic one.
Stores also carry heavier-duty plastic bags. Some even work as (insulators), so that covers the safety factor and keeps the food warm or cold.
It just takes a little common sense to solve most of the issues we face, Rick.
Jim Ketcham
Hilo
Celebrating unions
Regarding “Overdue unions” (Tribune-Herald, Jan. 11): Congratulations to all the same-sex couples. What should have been a right to all from day one of civilization finally has arrived. Better late than never.
If, according to religious and political fanatics, these unions are not religiously correct, let the all-mighty Kahuna deal with it when the time comes.
Maybe now all the so-called “know-it-all” people can get to the more important issues the human race here on Earth faces, such as lowering the number of people on and abusing the social service programs, educating our children, and finding a way for all of us on this fragile planet to live together in harmony.
Good luck and long happiness to all you same-sex lovers.
Carmine Spada
Pahoa
Hilo is a mess
I just read John Gallipeau’s letter on Tuesday morning (Tribune-Herald, Jan. 10) about the trash on Hilo Bayfront, and he’s right on, although he should expand his sights a little.
My wife and I walk almost every day around the streets near Auntie Sally’s Luau House, the highway in front of HPM, and all the way down to the Ford dealership, Wailoa Park, Railroad Avenue and a lot of the side residential streets — and they are an absolute mess. Litter is virtually everywhere, and it hurts the eyes (and sometimes the nose) looking at it.
We pick up all the bottles and cans we see (for the 5-cent deposit refund, mainly) and usually collect anywhere up to a dozen every walk. This doesn’t even make a dent in the litter, though. It’s really bad and sad to see how all this looks. Nothing ever seems to be picked up (even around the civic), and it seems like there’s no agenda in place to clean things up.
My suggestion is when the judges in the court system mandate community service to the various misdemeanor offenders, these people should be instructed to walk the streets and pick up ALL litter that they see. That would help a lot. And how about short-time prisoners? Surely they could get their exercise and help clean up our streets (with supervision, of course), rather than sit on their butts in a cell all day.
Hilo looks bad right now, and something needs to be done.
Jim Cheney
Hilo
A reason to fear Iran
In regards to Mr. Abolghassem Abraham Sadegh’s letter, “Leave Iran alone” (Tribune-Herald, Jan. 13), your assertion that “Israel … would use (nuclear weapons) against Iran if it could get away with it” exposes the same sort of paranoia that has put sanctions on Iran.
Many people in the U.S. are afraid Iran would use a nuclear weapon or give it to one of the terrorist groups it funds. Are they right? I don’t know. But you seem to know the thoughts of Israel’s leadership. There is free press and open government in Israel, so maybe that is possible. But in Iran, there is veiled secrecy, bombastic threats and support for Hezbollah and Syria’s butcher.
That is why people are afraid of Iran getting a bomb. Because nobody knows what they will do.
Daniel Raiman
Hilo