Let isle residents play Powerball

The only thing certain about the Powerball jackpot is that it won’t be won with a ticket bought in Hawaii.

We are one of only six states that do not participate. We prefer to deny our residents a chance at this lottery, or any other form of gambling they desire, such as local casino gambling. We would rather let hundreds of millions of dollars flow out of the state to mainland gambling locations every year instead of giving average citizens what they want and keeping part of the money here.

In an era of declining revenue and budget shortfalls, we would rather pass on a huge source of revenue, that is also desired by a majority of residents, and instead gouge people with new or increased fees and taxes, with Big Rail being a prime example of a financial black hole.

How lame can our self-righteous leaders be?

Gary N. Sparks

Waipahu

_____

Be careful what you wish for

Regarding the end of sugar on Maui, I think the people on Maui who are elated at sugar’s demise will truly be sorry in the next few years.

They are happy now that there is no more smoke and Hawaiian snow, but they can’t seem to see what the future holds for them.

The joke about sugar lands now being freed up for diversified agriculture would be funny if it weren’t so tragic. The sugar lands soon will be the target of developers, and, as has happened so often in Hawaii, the deep pockets will win in the end.

There will be a day, in the not-too-distant future, when these people will be crying about too many people, insufficient roads and schools, and all of the other things Oahu is trying to deal with.

I hope they enjoy their victory over sugar.

Don Chambers

Mililani

_____

Japan is model for fixing roads

If you’ve ever traveled to Japan, you may have noticed that on the roads, there is not one single pothole.

It doesn’t matter if you are in the city or the country. Wouldn’t you think that they are doing something right?

With more inclement weather than in Hawaii and a greater population and more vehicles, I still have not encountered a single pothole in the more than 13 years that I have visited Japan.

Whereas, in Honolulu, there are potholes and gouges in our roads driven on only for a few weeks — I’m speaking of the newly opened right lanes on the H-1 freeway past Exit 10 heading westbound until the Waipahu cutoff.

We should stop being the Band-Aid government that we are now and do things right from the get-go. Invest our tax dollars in something that will last. Don’t you think it’s worth finding out what they are doing right?

Sharon Ansai

Pearl City

_____

Not all Muslims are terrorists

I was proud of President Barack Obama while listening to his final State of the Union speech.

The part that resonated with me was when Obama called out those who attempt to marginalize or demonize the Islamic community. Many took his comments as a swipe at Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.

I hope it was a wake-up call for U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard. She has spent a lot of time and energy trying to get Obama to identify Da’esh with Islam.

I wouldn’t be so infuriated with giving Da’esh a religious label if they did it for all terrorists, foreign and domestic.

Not once have any of them even attempted to label the Colorado or South Carolina shooters as Christian terrorists.

Why does this matter?

We have seen an increase in hate crimes targeting the Islamic/Middle Eastern community as a whole. Small-minded people think that it’s open season on this community, and Trump and Gabbard gave them this signal.

Michael J. Golojuch Jr.

Kapolei

_____

NextEra would perpetuate past

NextEra’s name really should be PastEra.

It wants to saddle us with billions of dollars of upgrades to an old system that relies on fossil fuels rather than accepting that our future must be focused on producing our own energy.

There is no shortage of sun and wind here. There is no need for us to have the most expensive energy in the nation. Our electricity bills would drop enormously as we switch from shipping energy sources to Hawaii to creating our own energy.

The current scenario of using fossil fuels benefits NextEra and its investors, but it would not benefit the people of Hawaii.

Suze Salm

Kailua