Doesn’t anyone in the state have the cojones to stand up to Todd Dunphy and other North Shore beachfront property owners who brazenly flaunt their violation of Hawaii laws, by temporarily and illegally shoring up their properties with “sand burritos,” concrete debris, giant tarps and all kinds of fill?

Those property owners gambled against Mother Nature, temporarily enjoyed their prime locations, and have now lost. Unfortunately, sand moves, especially sand on North Shore beaches. They will lose their houses. They knew what they were doing, and Hawaii taxpayers bear no responsibility for their selfishness and should not come to their rescue in any way.

Don’t delay — start the $15,000 daily fines today. When those homeowners start bleeding from the fines, they will be forced to retreat and return the land to Mother Nature.

Where is the Native Hawaiian community on this issue? Everyone appreciates their support in protecting Oahu’s aquifer; protecting the fluid shoreline is also important.

James Proctor

Hawaii Kai

Marcos Jr. run recalls dark days of Marcos Sr.

Maria Ressa, the first individual of Filipino ancestry awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace, is absolutely correct in pointing out that a return of the Marcos regime to power in the upcoming May presidential election “will destroy our collective memory through the seeding of lies and false narratives” (“Marcos poised to restore family to power,” Star-Advertiser, April 15).

Indeed, it will be a repetition of the Philippines’ darkest history in recent years, in which Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and his cronies had plundered with impunity billions of dollars, violated the human rights of thousands of Filipinos, and abolished democratic institutions — until the “People Power Revolution” in 1986 toppled the regime and sent Marcos and his family fleeing to Hawaii in exile.

The current campaign of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is targeting the younger generations of Filipinos in Hawaii and other states who have little or no knowledge of the plunderous Marcos regime previously in the Philippines. Ressa further describes the coming campaign and elections a “microcosm of a global battle for facts.”

Belinda A. Aquino, Ph.D.

Moiliili

Extinction scenarios test humans’ level of care

The universe doesn’t care if four species of Hawaiian honeycreepers will become extinct within a decade or two, any more than it cared about the 99% of all species that became extinct before.

Mother Nature doesn’t care if we are in the beginning of a sixth mass extinction, or that 90% of all tropical rain forest birds have been eliminated in the last 40 years, or that deforestation and climate change have destroyed the habitable areas for many other species, or that approximately 60% of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles have been wiped out since 1970, all primarily due to humanity.

We have overpopulated our planet as our numbers approach 10 billion people within 100 years.

The universe may not care. Mother Nature may not care.

The question is, do we?

Robert Griffon

Makiki

Jones Act waiver has many pros, few cons

John Witeck’s letter missed the boat when he argued a Jones Act waiver would not benefit Hawaii (“Jones Act waiver would hurt workers, consumers,” Star-Advertiser, April 15).

First, he is misguided when he cites the Reeves & Associates study and claims the Jones Act does not add to Hawaii’s high cost of living. The Reeves study is highly flawed, and other more serious studies have concluded the Jones Act hikes the price of goods coming from the mainland — something he implicitly admits when saying that foreign ships do not have to pay the same high taxes U.S. ships do. That’s the entire idea of comparative advantage.

Second, whether oil companies are price gouging or not, the Jones Act is a contributor to Hawaii’s high gas prices. Any Jones Act ship bringing oil from the mainland carries a premium that consumers eventually pay for. But there’s also the issue of energy security. According to the Hawaii Refinery Task Force, the Jones Act is a big reason Hawaii imports oil from Russia, Libya and other countries. A one-year waiver could help change that.

Jonathan Helton

Downtown Honolulu

Do not beat war drums by citing CIA fears

“Russian setbacks raise nuclear fears” — an April 15 article quotes CIA director William J. Burns of that possibility. Please quote some more credible source instead of the CIA, an organization unreliable as a source and with hands soiled beyond belief. It has an unbelievable history over the decades.

Russian President Vladimir Putin may be mad, but please do not field the idea that the Russians are “insane.” Please do not beat war drums; the situation is bad enough.

Birendra Huja

Kuliouou

2 homes facing erosion get unequal treatment

How come one family can build a wall to protect property, which it doesn’t even live in full time by the beach by Waimanalo — and another family, whose house by the North Shore is lived in full time and could be washed away, is being fined for protecting its property by the ocean?

Ernie Itoga

Waialae

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