So much for peace
They don’t bomb this island … do they!?
This was the response of a person who I spoke to at the “Peace walk with the mayor” reported in the Sept. 19 Tribune-Herald.
I had offered her a flier announcing the Malu ‘Aina peace group vigil to end the bombing at the gate of the Pohokuloa Training Area on Peace Day (Wednesday, Sept. 21) from 10 a.m. until noon.
The mayor, who introduced himself to me as Mitch, had expressed his opinion that the military, who bomb the ‘aina regularly, were good stewards of the land — they picked up the shells after themselves, he explained in a television interview a day or so before.
He declined to be photographed with a sign advocating an end to the bombing practice. Perhaps the lack of any depth to the story by the Tribune-Herald reporter there has something to do with the ignorance some have about the priorities for peace and the practice for war the ‘aina endures.
“Hawaiian Soul,” the movie at the Palace Theater the night before about George Jarret Helm Jr. and the his leadership to end the bombing of the ‘aina, was an opportunity for the mayor, the peace walk project and the reporter to reflect with pono on the investment this community has in aloha ‘aina. Peace indeed.
Stephen Paulmier
Hilo
Fear of outsiders
It seems that the attacks on Donald Trump are accelerating in anticipation of his possibly running for reelection.
I can’t see where his policies in office were any better or worse than those of other recent presidents, but he’s been under attack since his election, and not just by the political opposition.
I suspect the underlying motivation is that he’s an outsider, not part of the elite class, and they’re sending a message to him and anyone else who dares to try to break into that exclusive group that they’d better not even think about.
I dare to say this in a local news outlet read by very few. If this were the New York Times or Wall Street Journal (who wouldn’t publish it anyway), I could expect the FBI to be breaking down my door at 5 a.m., and I’d never see the light of day again.
Such is life in the “land of the free.”
Richard Amacher
Hilo
The benefits of dogs
With my daughter away attending her second year of college, my husband and I were feeling a mixed sense of freedom and emptiness.
At work, my co-workers shared about online postings of dogs available for adoption through local shelters. After weeks of contemplating and searching, we adopted a 13-year-old scent hound that had been rescued from the streets of Hilo and living in a Kona foster home.
My co-worker has a cool phone app that can scan a poi dog and suggest its possible pedigree. Turns out that our Rosie has beagle in the mix, and our 7-pound, 14-year-old boss Chihuahua named Tobi is part German shepherd!
It’s been almost two months since Rosie joined our “pack.” Never a dull moment these days with our new daily routine involving on-leash walks in various local dog-friendly parks (pick up poop!), baking and buying treats, and doing our best to ensure mostly smooth times in a two-dog forever home.
The physical, mental, social and spiritual benefits of dog ownership are numerous and invaluable. I really get that car window sticker in the shape of a paw that reads, “Who saved who?”
Sharon F. Wong
Hilo