While arguments about beach restoration, blocked view planes, high-water marks, vegetation lines and shoreline access take up much time here, these trivial disputes won't amount to a sand berm in the face of a fierce tsunami.
Trivial? If anything, what happened in Japan underscores the need in Hawaii for a joint State-counties coastal commission to address those matters, as well as the reality of climate change and rising sea levels. Our mission isn't just about protecting beach access -- it's about preserving what's left of our beaches as well.
She goes on to make the case that no amount of planning or spending can avert a catastrophe if we were hit by something akin to what happened in Japan. True enough. But does that mean we shouldn't do what we can to prevent smaller scale disasters from happening?
Moreover, there are things we can do that wouldn't cost anything. The first is so obvious, it seems like a no brainer: push back the legal shoreline setbacks for building! We have ample proof that allowing property owners to build closer to the sea leads to faster erosion rates in those areas. But these people don't seem to give a damn about anything other than their ocean view. They don't think Mother Nature can touch them. That is just human arrogance, plain and simple. If it was only the fool-hardy who suffered, I'd say they had it coming.
But we're the ones who pay for their hubris when nature strikes back. Who foots the bill for the clean up when those McMansions wind up destroyed and washed away into the eco-system? We do, since government workers have to deal with the mess. Much of their personal property loss would be covered by insurance... and guess who pays for most of that? You got it. The pay-outs come from premiums other homeowners pay, even if you choose not to live anywhere near a flood zone. We share their pain when calamities occur -- but not in their gains when they reap windfall profits from tax shelters and business write-offs.
What bugs me most though is many of these wealthy homeowners are also the ones who complain the loudest about government taxation and interference. But mark my words, if a hurricane or tsunami were to hit their exclusive enclaves, they would be first in line with their hand out, asking Big Government for help in restoring all the public services they receive on their "private" beach side lanes. And so it goes...
Here's the link to Cynthia Oi's column. What do you think?
