War Games

Training camp on the Big Island (June 5, 2018)
It always amazed me, when most of our wars are currently in desert areas, why use Hawaii at all? (“Military’s Live-Fire Training Ignites Resistance From Some Big Island Neighbors”) There are great expanses of desert areas with no one around for miles on the mainland.  Why use an island with fragile ecosystems? Does the military employ anyone with common sense?

— B.A.McClintock, Honolulu

History lesson needed (June 5, 2018)
The just-say-no island of Hawaii.  Doesn’t anyone at Civil Beat or on the Big Island know any Hawaiian history? Look back 250 years to the time of Kamehameha the Great where he honed his warrior skills via training on the Big Island. His special training included skills in warfare, oral history, navigation and other skills to become a district chief. At the time of Captain Cook, young warrior Kamehameha was described as a tall, strong and physically fearless man who “moved in an aura of violence.”

So please, to all those citing discretion, take an Hawaiian history class.

— Lydia Hemmings, Kailua

Volcanic Ash

Going with the flow (June 4, 2018)

A good person to know is anyone with a pickup truck. (“Lava Has Now Destroyed 117 Big Island Homes”) What do people on Oahu do when when they can’t cover the monthly rent? I’ll take my chances with Mauna Loa rather than contemplating life on the sidewalk.

— Richard Swann, Ocean View