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Letters to the Editor

Letter: Aloha so embedded here, it can still touch us

When I first arrived on Maui in 1975 with my one-way ticket, the airport as I remember, was some counters under a roof and nearby one beautiful tree. The smell of the tropics was in the air when I walked down the steps onto the runway, and while no one knew I was coming, a woman with a flower in her hair came up to me and placed a fragrant plumeria lei around my neck. Everywhere, the sites, the sounds, the coconut trees swaying in the warm breeze, and the smiling local people, all communicated aloha. There was an immediate feeling of having come home. I’ve lived here ever ...

Letter: Kama concerned Bill 9 moving too fast?

The rush to repurpose the Minatoya properties has been moved from Jan 2026 to July 2028 or 2030. There are at least three things wrong with this. Tasha Kama is concerned that this bill is moving too fast. She should be, but no amount of time will be enough if the bill does not evolve to provide sufficient relief from the housing crisis. If we want to get some controls on tourism, why not solicit proposals that have been vetted by community planning experts, and make changes gradually in digestible bites? We also need input from experts in applied economics to avoid risking economic ...

Letter: Vote on vacation rentals well intended but flawed

The recent decision by the county to move forward with Bill 9 restricting vacation rentals is well intended but shortsighted. This will in no way create affordable housing for the folks who need it most and certainly not any time soon. While I appreciate the efforts of Maui County Council to try and address the issue of affordable housing, it is too little, too late, and will not only negatively impact the economy of Maui, but the owners of units that were purchased with the legal right to rent short term. It’s a messy and slippery slope for the county to consider this a ...

Letter: Gabbard did nothing for Maui or Hawai‘i

When she was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Tulsi Gabbard did nothing for the people of Maui or Hawai‘i. She continues to be ineffective as a member of the White House cabinet, and has only one motivation, to be a lapdog for a potential despot. Michael Kaipo Nye Maui Meadows

Letter: Animal cruelty not taken seriously in Maui courts

The recent sentencing of Krys-Ryan Saito Carino and his accomplice, Jayden Jarnesky, in the killing of pet pig Eddie has sparked outrage in our community and highlights a troubling deficiency within Maui’s legal system: its failure to deliver justice for animals. A mere five days in jail for Carino, and just two days for Jarnesky, for such horrific abuse reinforces the reality that animal cruelty is not taken seriously on Maui. Our justice system is failing. Judge Kirstin Hamman excluded crucial audio and video evidence just five minutes before court began, blindsiding the ...

Letter: No place for communism here, history shows

History has proven Communism is deadly for the people who are living under it. If you study history, the number of dead under Mao, Stalin, Pol Pot, Castro and others is a sad and deadly legacy. Reject Communism. There is no place for communism in this country. David Mumma Kihei