NextEra has stated what has been obvious to anyone watching its takeover efforts: Hawaii is no more than a snack on the way to its desired buffet luncheon (“‘We are the snack,’” Star-Advertiser, Dec. 16).

NextEra has never been interested in the people of Hawaii, whether lowering our rates, achieving our 100 percent renewable-energy goal, or preserving good jobs for local people. It just wants to chew us up and spit us out on its quest to become the next Enron.

Bigger is not better.

We deserve a utility that will put Hawaii’s people first. Kauai’s cooperative isn’t perfect, but at least it isn’t another greedy conglomerate that wants to squeeze as much profit as it can out of normal folks just struggling to get by.

Mark Aoki

Manoa

Who knew HEI was just a snack?

So, we are the “snack,” are we?

How callous, but not surprising, is the remark by Hawaiian Electric Industries President and CEO Constance Lau about Hawaii’s consumers and her take on our energy future.

Lau, who stands to personally gain millions from the possible sale of HEI to NextEra, likens us all to a delectable slider, down the gullet of the obviously ravenous Florida energy giant.

After HEI, who will it gobble next as the salad? The entree? The dessert?

NextEra and Lau have tried to derail the most promising new technology and business growth Hawaii has ever seen — solar energy — to go with its antiquated model of energy production and distribution, so they can all get even more rich at the consumer’s expense and our environment.

Kevin Roddy

St. Louis Heights

Kerry quote was out of context

Like many of his climate denier co-conspirators, Cal Thomas relies on falsehood to make his case (“‘Climate change’ orthodoxy is about money and power,” Star-Advertiser, Dec. 15).

He omitted the first and last sentences of a paragraph from John Kerry’s recent speech on climate change and global security.

The whole paragraph reads: “But let me be clear: We can’t address this problem all by ourselves. Even if every single American biked to work or carpooled to school, used solar power panels to power their homes, if we each planted a dozen trees, and did all of this at the same time — that still wouldn’t be enough to counteract the carbon pollution coming from the rest of the world. This is a global challenge, and that’s why we are working to offer global leadership. We can only deal with this with a global solution.”

Climate change is a planetary crisis: If we get our story right, we get our future right.

William Scarvie

Kailua

Trump would trample liberty

It makes you wonder why people still support Donald Trump regardless of what comes out of his mouth.

Perhaps it’s because he says controversial things that voters may want to hear in a presidential candidate.

As one supporter put it, “He has a spine and is not afraid to say what he thinks,” unlike the other Republican presidential candidates.

Yes, he undoubtedly has a spine, but seems to lack the cord that normally attaches to the brain. Heaven forbid he wins the presidency. Muslims will not be the only group of people who will have their constitutional rights violated. Trump will tear up the Constitution to advance his own agenda.

At the same time, he will conveniently hide behind it when it serves his purpose.

Our great nation of tolerance and compassion will never be same.

Peter Sison

Waipahu

Marine base ideal for Obama

I know it’s pretty short notice, but I was wondering if the president might alter his flight plan a bit and land at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe.

All his airplanes can land on the runway there and there’s ample parking.

Additionally he could stay at the beautiful oceanfront accommodations on the base for free.

By doing this, he would avoid inconveniencing an entire Kailua neighborhood, and he could even walk to the golf course and, of course, the gym. How very convenient.

If these simple decisions were made, a huge amount of taxpayer money would be saved. And since we have so few alternate roads, we wouldn’t be bothered by so many motorcades with the attending road closures. By staying on a secure base, he would not be burdening the Honolulu Police Department, which has to provide so much additional security.

Given these very attractive options, his choices will reflect what kind of guy he really is.

Gary Nitchman

Ewa Beach