Invest at home, not Afghanistan

Why do we continue to stay in Afghanistan? Our primary mission was to find Osama bin Laden and prosecute him. He is now gone. So, now we are involved in nation-building by supporting a so-called leader who is questionable in his power to hold his nation together. While all this is going on, our own states are suffering.

Our infrastructure is deteriorating, our roads need fixing and resurfacing, and our levees need strengthening. Some of our states need trains, especially passenger trains, to help the people get from one place to another at a reasonable cost. And, we need all of this now or soon. Can we shift our priorities from Afghanistan to our own United States? I hope so.

Bring our troops home from Afghanistan!

Roy E. Shigemura
Honolulu

Legal delays didn’t stop H-3

As a longtime resident of Kaneohe, I remember all the lawsuits over the H-3 construction.The legal challenges delayed the highway for years, the cost increased to the taxpayers and no one benefited except the attorneys.H-3 finally opened and everyone now uses it because it’s a more convenient way to get to places like the airport, Aloha Stadium, Pearlridge, Mililani or Waipahu rather than taking Likelike or Pali.Like the H-3, when rail is completed, I expect that many will find it a convenient way to get around from Honolulu to Kapolei, and all the points between.

Dianna Lee
Kaneohe

Few options for train emergency

Many of our traffic jams on the freeway are caused by a car accident or car trouble. This can interrupt traffic, but there is always an alternative. Traffic can be diverted, or you can take an alternative route.

What happens if there is an emergency on the train? Would the train come to a stop to efficiently tend to the emergency? The only "alternative" for the passengers is to wait, patiently, or impatiently, and hope for the best. There is no other train to hop on, no alternative lane.

Karyn Abe
Honolulu

Bus route change a poor tradeoff

I support the idea that public services should be periodically evaluated to balance efficiency with the highest level of service for the greatest number of citizens.

The rerouting of the No. 65 bus fails to achieve this goal. Before rerouting, the 65 headed north out of Temple Valley on Kahekili Highway for about 1.5 miles before turning south onto Kamehameha Highway toward Kaneohe. Some 300 households along this route were provided an alternative to a long wait for the crowded 55 Circle Island bus. The 65 bus now heads directly south to Kaneohe along an uninhabited stretch of Kahekili. The new route cuts perhaps four miles from the route, inconveniences and discourages customers from 300 households, and utterly fails to serve new riders.

Without considering the loss of riders, the dollar savings in cutting four miles would be trivial while the effect on 300 households is significant. Considering that some potential riders will now seek alternative transportation, this decision appears to make no economic sense.

John Keiser
Kaneohe

Statehood hasn’t been beneficial

When I came to Hawaii more than 50 years ago, I made a friend of an older local man.

When Congress voted for Hawaii statehood in early 1959, my friend was apprehensive. He said, "I think statehood will bring changes, not so good changes."

I said, "I don’t understand."

He said, "You’ll see."

Fifty years and my old friend have passed. I look back at Hawaii then and look at Hawaii now and I understand.

Otto Cleveland
Pearl City