I applaud all the current COVID-19 testing and tracing, but this will not stop the spread the deadly delta variant in Hawaii.

The only solution is for most unvaccinated people to get the COVID-19 vaccine into their bodies. Yes, there are some valid reasons not to vaccinate. However, the unvaccinated are the primary cause of the large increase in the daily numbers, and they will stop our return to the hazy, lazy days we enjoyed before this pandemic arrived in the islands.

Please do your part to keep your family, friends and co-workers safe and healthy before summer 2021 ends.

Truth be known, the failure to vaccinate only will prolong this deadly virus and may even allow it to mutate into a more deadly one.

Gilbert Horita

Ala Moana

More information on unvaccinated needed

My friends and I are deeply concerned with the high count of COVID-19 cases recently occurring. It would be nice if we can get more information from our health department as to the count of vaccinated and unvaccinated people getting infected and areas on the island where these infections are occurring. Also, island residents returning from abroad with infections, and the states where they contracted COVID-19. This information will be greatly appreciated.

Elma Ebisuya

Aiea

Enforce law against expired safety checks

I used to be a certified Hawaii state vehicle safety check inspector and as such, now, when I am driving on Oahu roads, I notice so many vehicles with expired stickers.

I know that there was a halt to issuing new stickers for a while during the COVID-19 restrictions, but that is long over. Are the police enforcing the law or are they being told to refrain from stopping vehicles for expired safety checks?

I worry about driving around some of these vehicles on the road, not knowing what condition they may be in.

Randy Borges

Kaneohe

Neighborhoods aren’t dedicated to tourism

Shiyana Thenabadu seems to think it is the duty of residents to provide legions of visitors and locals parking access (“Protect access to Hawaii’s trails, beaches,” Star-Advertiser, Island Voices, Aug. 4). She specifically singles out Lanikai.

I suspect she would feel differently if her street was an endless line of stopped vehicles, often blocking the one-way exit, every day. For someone with a medical emergency, it’s very serious. And the nature Thenabadu is concerned about is overburdened.

Both sides of Lanikai’s roadways are unimproved sidewalks, and the city requires three feet of clear space for pedestrians. Yet, cars are strangely tolerated there, so pedestrians walk in the street, making things worse.

Our neighborhoods are not dedicated to tourism. Access does not mean everyone needs to be able to park wherever there is a beach. That is what city beach parks are for. In Lanikai, for now, parking is restricted weekdays because of a water line project. People are simply walking in and the beach is as crowded as ever, so apparently getting there on foot is not a problem.

Brian Barbata

Lanikai

Time to cut our losses on rail project fiasco

The article, “Honolulu rail costs ‘unimaginable,’ retired transit official says” (Star-Advertiser, Aug. 3), got my blood boiling. This is crazy how our leaders just keep throwing more good money after bad; this never seems to end. The official monitored 21 rail projects that has cost overruns averaging 6%. Here we have the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation at 143%.

I probably will never ride the rail as I live on the Windward side, and I’m in my 70s, so this project may never get finished before I die. This rail fiasco is taking so long that I would bet it will be out of date and useless by the time it’s up and running.

It’s a railroad all right, and we are all being taken for a long ride on it. Let’s finish what we have and cut our losses now.

Chuck Dozier

Kailua

Build simple backrests for UH football fans

As an alumnus and longtime supporter of University of Hawaii athletics, I have concerns regarding the upcoming sports season. My wife and I have season tickets for six UH sports. We are looking forward to the 2021 football season at the school’s Clarence T.C. Ching Athletic Complex starting at the end of August.

For home games, the concrete spectator seating areas will be very bad for the elderly fans who (like us) must sit for hours during the UH Warriors game without a backrest to relieve back-muscle aches. I think it would be a relatively simple and low-cost solution to resolve the problem by installing backrests before the first game.

A simple backrest could be installed inexpensively and quickly if the design is simple, using a wooden plank secured with concrete screws. This small improvement would be a godsend for the elderly and those fans with physical problems.

I hope my suggestion is worth looking into. I will contribute $100 if this project is considered and happens.

Danny Tanaka

Kaimuki

Medal of Honor isn’t an Olympic award

I was appalled to see Sunday’s sports page with the large headline, “Medal of Honor” (Star-Advertiser, Aug. 8) above the photograph of the four U.S. women who won the gold medal in the 4×440 relay.

They were awarded an Olympic gold medal, not a Medal of Honor. The Medal of Honor has been awarded to 3,527 U.S. military personnel for bravery in combat, not running around a track in the Olympics. There have been 670 Medals of Honor were awarded posthumously.

A public apology should be made for this blasphemous error.

Lt. Col. Ken Zitz

USMC Ret.

Waialua

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