Nothing is so powerful, so unstoppable, so irreversible as an idea whose time has come.

Some Hawaii examples, whether for good or ill, include: ending the bombing of the Target Isle; almost 100% mail-in voting; same-sex marriage; and medical aid in dying.

My unsolicited advice to the Navy is to put its vast store of engineering talent to work to safely and permanently deactivate the Red Hill Bulk Storage Facility while continuing to meet its commitments to the fleet and other military. The Navy has already lost in the highest court in the land, that of public opinion. Continued resistance is foolish and will only further damage its once-stellar reputation.

After all, if the Navy can train young adults to operate ships and submarines costing billions at an age when parents would not let them drive their family Buick, it can do this.

John Priolo

Pearl City

Thanks to those who fight for clean water

Our deepest thanks to Ernest Lau, manager and chief engineer at the Board of Water Supply, who for years has worked tirelessly in protecting Oahu’s critical fresh water aquifer against the Navy’s leaking Red Hill fuel tanks.

Thanks also to the Sierra Club of Hawaii, which took on the role of protector of our precious aquifer — a role our state and city leaders and legislators should have assumed years ago but didn’t until now — by fighting against and filing a lawsuit against the Navy.

And thanks also to the whistle- blower whose job is endangered because he or she believed that the health and well-being of Oahu’s residents should take precedence over the Navy’s insistence on prioritizing its fuel tanks over the health and well- being of the people of Hawaii — including its own military families.

Are we mistaken in believing that the Navy should prioritize the health of people over property?

Myra Taketa

Mililani

Car registration cost more than expected

I sure hope this will save someone else from going through what I just did. I never received my registration notice for my vehicle for November. I found out too late that it had expired.

I normally register my car online. I went online to try and register it, but the message said I had to go to a satellite city hall to register my car with a safety check that was current.

The customer service was excellent. Everyone was very pleasant. I told the clerk I had not received a notice and that was why I was late. She apologized and said a lot of people have been saying that, but I still had to pay a $16 late fee. I used my credit card, but before she ran the card she asked if I wanted to use a check or pay cash, since there was a $9 service charge for using a credit card. So for something that was really not my fault, it cost me an extra $25.

Ken Takeya

Kailua

High environmental fee may stop budget tourists

The “environmental fee” mentioned in the Star-Advertiser is too little (“Proposal to charge environmental fee to come to Hawaii gaining support,” Dec. 12).

If we really want to reduce the number of tourists coming to Hawaii, don’t try to nickel-and-dime them. Go big or go home. Make the fee $1,000 per person. The message will go out very quickly that we don’t want the discount traveler to visit here.

I prefer the high-net-worth visitor. There are much fewer of them and therefore less strain on our infrastructure and environment. They stay longer and spend more, and they are impervious to recessions.

Hawaii is known as a “tax hell” for good reason. Make sure our residents are exempt from this fee. We already are being hit with an “invisible tax” called inflation. We don’t need more. The government needs to keep its hands from creeping into my pocket — again.

Bert Oshiro

Hawaii Kai

Loud fireworks booming in drums on Judd Street

While along Judd Street, I heard two loud booms. There were two men on Judd Street apparently setting off fireworks in a drum. Many trucks and a car surrounded them. They were having fun. A few minutes later another boom was heard.

I thought setting off these types of fireworks was illegal. Unfortunately, I did not get a picture of them doing the deed.

Mary Jo Segawa

Liliha

HOPES AND DREAMS

It’s time to reflect on the past year, and to share some hopes and dreams for 2022. Time to wish for better — whether it be in community spirit, public health, policy issues or personal growth.

In the spirit of the season, we are accepting letters (150 words max) and essays (500-600 words) with uplifting or hopeful messages to share during this holiday season; the deadline is 5 p.m. Dec. 21. A collection of them will run on Dec. 26.

Email to letters@staradvertiser.com; or send to 500 Ala Moana Blvd. #500, Honolulu 96813, care of Letters.

EXPRESS YOURSELF

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser welcomes all opinions. Want your voice to be heard? Submit a letter to the editor.

>> Write us: We welcome letters up to 150 words, and guest columns of 500-600 words. We reserve the right to edit for clarity and length. Include your name, address and daytime phone number.

>> Mail: Letters to the Editor, Honolulu Star-Advertiser 7 Waterfront Plaza, 500 Ala Moana, Suite 210 Honolulu, HI 96813

>> Contact: 529-4831 (phone), 529-4750 (fax), letters@staradvertiser.com, staradvertiser.com/editorial/submit-letter