• Tourists needed guidance • Lovin’ the Kaua‘i Cacophony • Alternative Road Map for Peace Tourists needed guidance There were a few of us out (Thursday) night doing the necessary moving of canoes to highter ground and we saw many
• Tourists needed guidance • Lovin’ the Kaua‘i Cacophony •
Alternative Road Map for Peace
Tourists needed guidance
There were a few of us out (Thursday) night doing the necessary moving of canoes to highter ground and we saw many island guests lost on the roads. I’d like to share that one couple had been evacuated from the Kaua‘i Sands. They seemed to have not been given any direction on where to go. I think it’s so important for the resorts, vacation rentals, and other guest destinations to take responsibility in providing a good evacuation direction to our guests. It doesn’t take much. Just copy the phone book directions and pass them out please. This was not a good thing watching rental cars passing us on the road when they had no knowledge of the island and should have been given good direction. Please, can we make sure our guests are safe. What if one had an accident on the road looking for the evacuation site near them?
Dawn Wooten, Lihu‘e
Lovin’ the Kaua‘i Cacophony
I am disgusted by Philip Stevens’ letter (March 11, “LA more peaceful than Kaua‘i and its roosters”). I live in Southern California, and while I love the place where I live and work, my heart belongs to Kaua‘i and the beauty and nature of that magical place, where I married my sweetheart 24 years ago and have been visiting ever since. When I come to Kaua‘i, what I am seeking is the Kaua‘i experience, whether it be camping on Kalalau beach or visiting with friends.
If Mr. Stevens wants to enjoy an urban experience, let him travel to New York or London or Paris or any of the many other wonderful cosmopolitan urban centers where there are no roosters or other pesky natural wildlife.
Those who do not appreciate the beauty of the island symphony of nature — the Kaua‘i Cacophony — should find a location more suitable to uptight, narrow sense of wonder.
I would also like to express my relief in hearing from friends that the expected tsunami was minimal and that all appears, at this writing, to be OK. You are in our thoughts and best wishes for safety and goodwill to all.
Douglas Dunn, Escondido, Calif.
Alternative Road Map for Peace
The concept of the Road Map for Peace drafted by U.S. Foreign Service officer Donald Blome nine years ago does not seem to work and still there is no peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis. When a plan does not work, we need to revise or replace it. Let’s revise it using logic and common sense. Here is a suggestion:
1. Remove the United States from among the mediators of peace since it has much better track records in the area of starting new wars than in making peace. It is also the closest ally to one of the warring parties, Israel, which invokes the distrust of the Palestinians.
2. Appoint two progressive countries, excelling in diplomacy, like China and Brazil, to be the mediators in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Both have long lasting peace experiences and the choice will assure impartiality.
3. Give one month to Israel to stop building settlements in the occupied territories, which seems to be the biggest obstacle of peace.
4. If Israel does not comply with the settlement-freeze order, follow the USA’s favorite “peace making” initiative that in case of other countries has always been supported by Israel, and impose sanctions against Israel. Wait for two weeks and if no results, establish a no-fly zone over Israel.
5. Recognize the independent Palestinian state diplomatically.
If American diplomacy considers the sanctions and no-fly zones as peacemaking solutions and expects the world to support it, why think here otherwise? The goal is to bring peace to the region, and the entire world would benefit from it. The Palestinians would have no more reasons to shoot rockets into Israel, and the Israeli troops would have no more reason to be in Palestine. And on the home front, the American troops could also be withdrawn from Iraq and Afghanistan completely, because the Arab world would have no reason to hate the United States for its unconditional support of Israel. Isn’t this is a cheaper and quicker solution than pouring billions of dollars of U.S. taxpayers’ monies into wars that the U.S. will never win and will not bring peace?
Janos Keoni Samu, Kalaheo