All these restrictions do little to stop the spread of COVID-19; they simply hurt businesses and people doing things right (“Oahu to suspend large gatherings; Hawaii County expected to follow,” Star-Advertiser, Aug. 24).

The unvaccinated are going to do what they want, the way they want, regardless, in part as a means to ignore or protest restrictions. Businesses and restaurants, bars, clubs and other establishments have to start requiring proof of vaccination before people can enter — proof, and not just saying, “I’m vaccinated.”

Reducing capacity achieves little to nothing if unvaccinated people still go there. Any action in the near term needs to get the unvaccinated to get the vaccine.

Clifton T. Johnson

Waikiki

Aggressive measures now to stop COVID-19

Gov. David Ige and our mayors continue to practice a sit-on-the-fence stance because they don’t want to walk back on business. Meanwhile, our island COVID-19 numbers continue to escalate.

How shortsighted! If Hawaii continues to be the Pacific epicenter of COVID-19 infections, there will be no business to speak of. Aggressive measures need to be implemented now. If shutdowns and restricting gatherings to five people are needed, then do it.

They need to show some spine before the state is buried by their ineptness.

Richard Ernest

Hawaii Kai

Masks, vaccinations for UH sports fans

What is wrong with our government and the University of Hawaii (“Fans not allowed to attend University of Hawaii season-opening home events over rising coronavirus cases,” Star-Advertiser, Aug. 20)?

The simple solution to the fans-in-the-stands problem is to require proof of vaccination and mandatory masks. This is a twofer: fans in the stands and promotion of vaccination and mask use.

If UH sets the rules, it is legal and responsible.

Melvin Sakamoto

Palolo

Pressure businesses to require vaccinations

Until our government imposes a vaccination mandate, there are things that we can do to increase incentives for the unvaccinated to get the vaccine.

If we formed a voluntary group with sufficient numbers, we could put pressure on local businesses to require proof of vaccination.

If enough of us agree to boycott business until they require proof of vaccination, I think that vaccination rates would go up quickly.

If you agree, please share this idea on social media. It would be great if someone set up a website where we could share ideas and information.

Victor Levine

Waikiki

Politicians should not mandate health care

Vaccine mandates cross the line. It is not right to force any medical procedure on a person.

More problematic is the latest state Department of Education mandate to vaccinate student-athletes — essentially minors.

The implications of giving the government this kind of power is unthinkable. Remember, this is the same government that gave us the $12.4 billion rail project, median-priced homes of $1 million, with corruption at all levels.

Politicians should stay out of health care. They should not be giving medical advice to the public. That’s between individuals and their doctors, not the government — especially ours.

Kaiwiola Coakley

Wilhelmina Rise

Biden administration failing in Afghanistan

The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan will go down in history as a major foreign policy debacle orchestrated by President Joe Biden and his inept administration.

The deadline for withdrawal of our troops and civilians is Aug. 31.

The brutal terrorist group, the Taliban, already has occupied many areas of the country. Americans and Afghan loyalists are still stranded all over the provinces waiting to be evacuated by the U.S.

Approximately $85 billion in military equipment, including aircraft, armored vehicles and other weaponry, are now in the hands of the Taliban.

The problem is not why we are withdrawing, but how this catastrophe occurred. The secretaries of defense and state, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the rest of the foreign policy team failed miserably in implementing a withdrawal scheme. Our NATO allies are critical of Biden’s goals.

America needs strong leadership from our commander-in-chief in this time of crisis.

If we don’t resolve this disastrous operation soon, our country’s image as the leader of the free world will be justly tarnished.

Robert Hatakeyama

Salt Lake

Biden cleaning up mess left by predecessors

There were many letters to the editor critical of President Joe Biden for America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan. People seem to forget how we got here in the first place.

After the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, President George W. Bush and military intelligence said Osama bin Laden was in Afghanistan and launched an invasion. Bush took his eye off the ball and got America involved in a war with Iraq, claiming Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

Wrong! Osama bin Laden was assassinated by SEAL Team 6 in Pakistan, under President Barack Obama.

President Donald Trump negotiated a deal with the Taliban for the withdrawal of American troops and the Taliban agreed not to harbor terrorists (yeah, right).

Former National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said, “This collapse goes back to the capitulation agreement of 2020. The Taliban didn’t defeat us. We defeated ourselves.” Biden was bound by this agreement.

It looks like the Democratic presidents are cleaning up the mess created by Republican presidents.

Robert K. Soberano

Moiliili

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