Letter: TMT protesters can’t be law unto themselves

I was undecided about the Thirty Meter Telescope, since there are good and thought-provoking arguments on both sides. But no longer. I joined the majority who support ending the standoff and building the TMT after reading that the protesters have given themselves the right to deny or grant access to the summit. And at this writing, none of the mountain’s telescopes can be used (“Frustration Opens in a new tab mounts for Mauna Kea  Opens in a new tabtelescopes Opens in a new tab,” Star-Advertiser, Aug. 8).

Arbitrary actions that block people from their jobs, endanger irreplaceable equipment and result in the permanent loss of priceless scientific information now look less like “kapu aloha” and more like simple extortion.

If past injustices give the kiai (protectors) the right to hold other people’s rights hostage, then we can continue to debate the TMT forever. But for many observers, when the protesters show they are a law unto themselves, the question becomes whether society benefits from allowing a fervent minority to prevail against the common good.

Dan Binkley

Makiki

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