Not a whimper
Not a whimper
Regarding “Guillermo generates big surf, little more” (Tribune-Herald, Aug. 6): While the headline is accurate, your very first sentence is very misleading and is a disservice to everyone who worked hard in preparing us for Guillermo.
Tropical Storm Guillermo did bypass Hawaii Island, but it did not do so “with a whimper” as you stated.
Maximum sustained winds of 60 mph with higher gusts, and tropical storm force winds extending outward up to 185 miles of center, is not bypassing with a whimper!
Had it passed directly over our island, would you have said the same?
Mike Ben
Hilo
We were there
In his letter on Aug. 5, Ron Baptista asks, “Where were the protesters when the Thirty Meter Telescope was first proposed and during its planning stages?”
Well, we were there, protesting.
In fact, I personally was there in 2010 — five years ago, along with many dozens of other speakers against the project, at a meeting at the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority facility. Yes, there were one or two who spoke in favor.
Unfortunately, they were the ones listened to.
Donna Worden
Keaau
The rule of law
Ron Baptista’s letter in Wednesday’s paper asks where the Mauna Kea protesters were during the years that the Thirty Meter Telescope was being planned and permitted.
The answer is they were in court and at the hearings, raising their objections and being rebuffed every step of the way.
They did all they could to prevent, derail and delay the project. At every turn, the courts ruled they were wrong in their objections.
The TMT is legal, and its proponents have done everything according to law. There are no legal grounds to stop it.
So, the protesters demonstrated their contempt for the rule of law, and illegally blocked access to Mauna Kea. In court, many of them have stated they do not recognize any laws but those of their own making.
It is high time the protests ended. They had their days in court (many of them!), and they lost. Now, they have taken to illegal actions, and that is wrong. The rule of law must apply to everyone, even those who think they are above the law.
Dan Lindsay
Hilo