Comments
Posted by Lisa on June 25, 2002 8:48 PM:
geez.. I don't like Democrats, but I can't stand Republicans. Honestly, I have yet to tell the difference between them here- with one exception. The Lingle ad I heard on the radio hit every Republican keyword from "family values" through "safe schools" (am I missing something on that one?? I mean, this isn't LA).
So yeah. Fat chance anyone's going to motivate me enough to bother to fill out the wikiwiki voter registration I've had hanging around since September 2000.
Posted by Linkmeister on June 25, 2002 10:02 PM:
I usually hold my nose and vote, and I will again this time. I'm leaning towards Case in the primary because of the three he seems the only one who recognizes that things have to change.
Posted by Stella on June 25, 2002 10:10 PM:
Since I can't vote legally YET (let's just say it's a matter that I still need to discuss with my lawyers) I'm torn. There's a part of me that wants to go ahead, be an agent for change, and vote for Linda Lingle - but seeing as I am surrounded by Democrats (and not so much from my family as it is from coworkers and acquaintances) there's a peer-pressure angle to it as well. I've seen some good things coming out from the Ed Case camp right from the beginning, and even if he doesn't win it this time I'm expecting good things to come out of him in the future.
Speaking of good things, has anybody seen that new campaign slogan from Aunty Mazie's campaign office window? (Yes, the office down on Kapiolani, right next to a certain strip club.) Something about how "the best minute" that she spends is the one she dedicates to the people, or something. My question: A minute?
Posted by jeff on June 25, 2002 10:16 PM:
After thinking it over for quite some time, consulting family & friends, and allowing myself some deep soul-searching, I have decided that I will not seek, nor accept, the democractic nomination for Governor of the state of Hawaii.
It seems everyone else is making similar announcements, so I thought I should do the same. Perhaps with this process of elimination, a viable canidate will be found.
Posted by Aaron on June 26, 2002 2:13 AM:
Mazie's van still says "You go girl!"
Posted by NemesisVex on June 26, 2002 6:24 AM:
When the UH chapter of SPJ requested the names of police officers who have been disciplined, Ed Case was one of two reps who voted against bringing a bill to the floor that would keep those names concealed. After that, he struck me as a stand-up kind of guy.
Posted by Linkmeister on June 26, 2002 8:33 AM:
LOL, Jeff. You and General Sherman, huh? "If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve."
Posted by Ryan on June 26, 2002 9:26 AM:
Fat chance anyone's going to motivate me enough to bother to fill out the wikiwiki voter registration I've had hanging around since September 2000.
Oooh. Disgust with politics in general, party-related or not, I can certainly understand. But I generally have less compassion for folks who use it as an excuse to opt out entirely out of the democratic process.
Too bad most of the "too cool to vote" folks were also the most likely to oppose a ban on same-sex marriage.
Voting doesn't just put morons into office. There are broader issues (from neighborhood boards to city departmental structure to constitutional amendments) and, perhaps more importantly, an opportunity to make a statement ... however small and insignificant.
(Hell, my first ever vote was for Ross Perot -- a "none of the above" candidate if there ever was one.)
Posted by Stella on June 26, 2002 10:10 AM:
For someone who has never voted in her entire life (well, I dunno, I never stayed in a single voting precinct long enough... it's the Philippines, of course, but I'm just saying) I'm actually agreeing with Ryan here. I think it's still an important civic duty, regardless of which moron happens to be running for office that day. And I think it's more important than ever here in the United States, especially when you consider how relatively bloodless elections really are.
No, really. Think of how good we have it here, where there are no armed goons poking AK's at your back waiting to mow you down when they think you're voting for the wrong candidate. Okay, so I never doubted that bribery and vote-fixing exists in the United States, but, let's face it, if that's the ONLY thing we have to worry about, without candidates openly plotting murder conspiracies against each other and even their own constituents, what else is left to lose?
And that's what disappoints me about freedom sometimes, you know? Because, really, we talk about change, but would it really kill you - LITERALLY kill you - to just pull a lever on a Tuesday morning for something you at least have faith in? Because it looks much easier than plotting an elaborate military coup to overthrow your entire government.
Again, just saying.
Posted by Lisa on June 26, 2002 1:18 PM:
*cowering* ack, enough already! When I first moved here two years ago, people went out of their way to ask me NOT to vote since they didn't feel I was properly educated about the issues. I'm still not properly educated on the issues, and mroeover I *don't* have faith in the government to do anything other than what those who control it want it to do. (didn't MidWeek claim that the governorship was orchestrated years in advance?)
And I can't say as I have much faith in the voting public, either. Truly, can someone tell me why not voting is worse than voting for a candidate based on a TV ad? Or voting straight party line?
If I had been around for the bogus "marriage protection" issue, I would have voted on that, yes. Aside from that, I have pretty much given up- I devoted some serious time to political activism, primarily in trying to get people to learn about issues in detail and from more than one perspective.
I just don't see the point in voting when I can't differentiate my alternatives. And I'd rather not vote at all than come to realize I'd been duped into voting for something that, on the surface, sounded good, but ended up to be a really bad idea.
sElection 2000 proved to me what a scam "democracy" in this country is. Things need to change, but I don't think it will happen through democratic process, at least not for decades. My goal is to put my efforts into improving things in other ways, outside of the game called politics.
Posted by Ryan on June 26, 2002 1:25 PM:
And I can't say as I have much faith in the voting public, either.
Just had to say... I love this line when used in a "I won't vote" argument. Priceless!
Posted by Lisa on June 26, 2002 1:39 PM:
*shrug* I won't get into the number of "friends" I lost or enemies I made when I tried to actually discuss political issues with them. Funny how people have such strong opinions, but can't manage to back them up with evidence, let alone a coherent argument. For way too many people, politics is a knee-jerk, gut reaction thing, way too much like the stock market these days. I don't play that one either.
Posted by Stella on June 26, 2002 1:44 PM:
Um, Lisa? Please don't kill me for posting this link. Just know that I'll agree to disagree next time the subject comes up. If you must, kill the guy who bumped up this thread in the first place. Thank you.
*backing slowly away, wishing I never said anything, then running very fast until I trip on my slippahs and stub my nose...*
Posted by Lisa on June 26, 2002 1:51 PM:
LOL.. I never claimed to be consistent! I've been going back and forth on this issue for years, and right now I'm more in the mood to work without the system than within it. I haven't felt that the voting process, as it exists now, is adequate to bring about necessary change, and I want to find another way. That's not to say that there isn't value in voting- you and Ryan and I all essentially want the same things, but disagree as to the best way to get there.
Posted by Ryan on June 26, 2002 2:01 PM:
Lisa, I sure hope you're not suggesting that we're already at the "lost friends" stage! I don't see anything knee-jerk about this most articulate and level-headed exchange.
Hell, it's not like we're even debating a hot-button issue, or a controversial candidate. It seems there's unanimous agreement, in fact, that the system's broke. Hawaii politics suck. Fact, not opinion.
What would be appropriate evidence in debating the worth of participating in the democratic system? The fact that one vote doesn't make a difference? Florida proved otherwise - even if the outcome was questionably decided. Hawaii's political winners are decided in advance? Perhaps they were, but that depended on the fact that one party held all the cards. It's quite possible that will change. That your average voter is an idiot? True, but you are smart. I'm smart. We have a pass to play (dear Stella wishes she could, but can't!) and lift that average I.Q. a teeny bit. Why not?
And as far as not being educated on the issues? Well, again if you're looking at the "ignorant masses" that vote on the celebrity appeal of a glitzy campaign, then your vote would immediately be no worse in terms of merit. More importantly, though, you can get educated on the issues. You can look at Ed Case, Andy Anderson, Mazie Hirono and Linda Lingle and decide — if not which one you like — which one you hate the least.
Example? Link, Stella and Greg all note Ed Case for examples of perhaps being a not entirely worthless human being. I wasn't aware of some of them, but I am now. Discussions like these are a great example of that learning process. (I could visit EdCase.com to find out even more.)
Anyway, if I vote Democrat, I'd definitely favor Case above the other two. Too bad most folks are seeing him as the long shot.
Posted by Lisa on June 26, 2002 2:07 PM:
No, Ryan, of course I wasn't suggesting that. Although, as much as I like you, I really don't like it when people pick a key word or phrase and use that to ridicule me or lump me into a stereotype.
I'm not suggesting that voters are idiots, either- just that the average person won't question what they hear on TV or read in the newspaper; with the consolidation of media, that is not a good thing.
How about a compromise, then? I'll register to vote, and I'll let Stella be my, ahem, "advisor". That way, everyone's happy =)
Posted by Stella on June 26, 2002 2:30 PM:
I was going to come back in here to apologize to Lisa for that cowardly crack. (For the record: I still have my Philippine passport after more than five years of living in HNL, but I've just started the application process to secure my green card when my F-1/Practical Training visa ends in a few months. Not an American citizen, or at least yet. *keeping fingers crossed*)
I hope I haven't offended anybody or cost any friendships with this political things. It's OK to be inconsistent with these things, as long as your eyes are open. Politics is always a "deal-breaker" in every human relationship, however, so if we're willing on agreeing to disagree, we'll be fine. (Advisor? Really! :) )
Back on topic, though: I think that's what all elections come down to, oddly enough - the lesser of two evils. (A cartoonist in the Philippines said it at one point, though in a not-so-PC way: The last time we had someone in a leadership position who was genuinely virtuous and compassionate about the issues, we had Him nailed to a cross.) Reading up and measuring the information before deciding is always a good way to figure out these sorts of things.
Posted by Ryan on June 26, 2002 2:39 PM:
Hey, now there's an idea! Not that, you know, Stella would really be telling you who to vote for. Yeah.
Seriously, though, if you register? That'd be great. I'll even have a Defender of Democracy prize for you at the next shindig. (And this goes for anyone else who's resisted 'til now!)
I agree that modern media and marketing make politics - supposedly a noble and meaningful aspect of American life - indistinguishable from a new CD by J-Lo, and that's a bad thing. Up against folks who vote based on a commercial, though, even someone who votes randomly looks pretty admirable to me.
And I apologize for any implication that I was squeezing you into a stereotype. I really wasn't aiming to do that. I was just finding irony (or is that more Alanis-esque irony?) in the statement itself, rather than drawing any conclusions about the perfectly smart and sensible person who wrote them.
(I'm trying to draw a comparison to Clinton's "but I didn't inhale" line, but my brain's not working right. Okay, never mind, now I've forgotten my point. As you were!)
Posted by Linkmeister on June 26, 2002 3:33 PM:
Um, Ryan? Instead of the inhale line, how about: "I did not have democratic relations with that politician?"
Just a thought.
On the vote/don't vote issue, I've always looked at voting as my license to bitch when I don't like something some elected official does, whether I voted for him/her or not (see, if the guy I voted for had won, or well, no wonder I didn't vote for you!).
Posted by NemesisVex on June 26, 2002 8:24 PM:
Whenever I vote, it's mostly to keep someone out of office than to elect someone to office. If my candidate loses and the winner screws up on the job, I can always absolve myself from the blame of putting him/her in office.
Texas has a pretty weird political system. The Legislature meets once every two years and has only a certain number of months to pass laws. In short, they have X number of days to take care of two years' worth of government business. As such, the legislature in Texas wields far more influence over politics than the governor.
Just imagine how screwed Hawai´i would be if the state legislature ran on the same calendar.
Posted by scrivener on June 26, 2002 8:49 PM:
Okay. A couple of quick things here.
1. They've been telling us since we were kids that voting is our most important duty as American citizens. At its heart, this is true (see #2 in this list), but when our elementary school teachers told us this, they assumed we would use the brains they were helping to develop. Our most important duty as citizens is to VOTE INTELLIGENTLY or RESPONSIBLY, and no, I'm not going to go into what that means here, because of course those are subjective terms and could mean anything, depending on our perspectives.
One could say that Ryan Ozawa's family thrives a little more with Democrats in charge (at Ryan's college grad party, someone leaned toward me and asked, "Ryan's dad is just as impressive in person as in the news"), so the point could be made that one of the most responsible things Ryan could do is vote blindly Democratic, just because of who his dad is.
Oops...I said I was not going to go into the definition of those terms.
But since I already have, I'll just say that Hawaii voters (and, I'll bet, voters everywhere in this country) typically do not vote intelligently or responsibly. Why did Carole Gabbard win that BOE spot? Because of name recognition. And don't even get me started on John Waihe`e IV (or is he III? I can never remember).
2. Why is voting (even stupidly) better than not voting at all? Quick (and this time I mean it) story:
When I was in high school, my school had a club period on Wednesdays, at the end of the school days. I went to a private school, so there was no early dismissal for faculty meetings on Wednesday. That day's class periods were shortened by five minutes each, creating a 40-minute period for clubs to have their meetings in.
You didn't have to stick around. If you didn't join a club, you could just leave.
Well, you know what happened. As years went on, fewer and fewer people joined clubs, until it didn't make sense to have the club period anymore. Why offer it when nobody was using it?
So the school did away with it, and everyone complained.
The point is that the electoral process SUCKS but if we don't participate in it, even at its most basic level, two things happen:
(a) Only the people who vote will have a say--any say at all, and
(b) Eventually, we'll do away with the system entirely and go with one that works.
Now, I'm not saying that we'd be worse off without free elections--In fact, I believe that we'd ALL (and I mean every one of us, even Walter Ozawa and his progeny) be better off if I had the supreme authority to install the political servants of my choice). What I'm saying is that if living in a democracy MATTERS to us, then we have do the bare minimum in keeping this a democracy: We have to vote.
3. So why don't we? Because we're lazy. Because we live in a 24-hour a day society that values busy-ness. It takes TIME and EFFORT to understand the issues, and then to interpret what it is the candidates claim they believe about these issues. I'm pretty involved in the process (I've worked the polls, and I've attended community forums, and yes, I watch O`lelo), but do I really know what I'm doing when I vote for a BOE candidate?
Sadly, no, and I'm a teacher. If I have a hard time identifying the issues and even choosing sides on issues I believe I understand, how are other people--people who don't know the jargon and history of certain issues, such as standards-based education-- supposed to vote intelligently and responsibly?
4. What we need (and this is a project I'm sorta working on) is CliffsNotes for voters (better yet--CliffsNotes on Tape for voters!), or, as I'm calling my little project, "Politics for Lolos." We need someone to do the research and to publish little "cheat sheets" of the issues, with opinions from the candidates AND from reputable, non-political people (although where we find those is a big problem!).
Quick example.
Issue: Business in Hawaii.
Several good paragraphs, identifying key parts of the issue--this is where a lot of the research comes in. The editor-in-chief of _Pacific Business News_ says these are the issues. The president of the Small Business Owner's Association says these are the issues. We break stuff down and explain it in in clear, concise terms.
The Republican Candidate says:
The Democratic Candidate says:
The Green Candidate says:
The Libertarian Candidate says:
(and of course, we'd include all the independents, too)
Professor so-and-so, who admits he's a member of the Republican Party says:
Professor so-and-so, who's not an American citizen, says:
This would differ from the cheat sheets the newspapers print in the amount of time and space devoted to each issue. It would HAVE to be longer than the tiny paragraphs the papers print, but not so long as to make it TOO much work to read it.
Anyway, it's something I'm hoping to develop before the next elections in two years. Too late for this yaer, I'm quite sure.
This is too long. I have more to say, of course, but I guess I'll spare you. Sorry.
PS: Would you please at least CONSIDER voting Libertarian?
Posted by Linkmeister on June 26, 2002 9:48 PM:
I'd consider voting for a third-party candidate if I was a) sure he/she had a legit chance to win or b) wasn't going to scarf up enough votes to shift the election to the candidate I despise (see Florida and Buchanan/Nader, 2000). I have plenty of libertarian leanings, but the party doesn't have enough of a base to meet requirement a) up above.
Posted by Aaron on June 27, 2002 1:17 PM:
I think as a form of protest, I voted for Lilian Hong once. Please don't tell anyone.
Posted by Ryan on June 27, 2002 7:40 PM:
Hey! I love Lillian Hong! Her shows on public access are... something else.
I reliably vote for Fasi for similar yuks.
Posted by Aaron on June 27, 2002 10:48 PM:
LOL Ryan!
Actually she's a really nice lady. I kinda dig her.
Posted by Haken on June 28, 2002 7:37 AM:
I voted for Lingle, and I'll vote for her again this time around.
Posted by Stella on June 28, 2002 10:58 AM:
Ryan, that crack you made about Frank Fasi almost made me question my faith in the electoral system. But just a leeeeeeetle bit. ;)
Posted by scrivener on June 28, 2002 11:22 AM:
Lillian Hong. I voted for her, too, for Mayor. She's a nut, but you know what? She's doing democracy the way it should be done.
She doesn't shovel large amounts of money at candidates, hoping to gain influence. She goes out, she sees a problem, she videotapes it, then she airs it. Then, in faulty english, she writes captions for the images, and says, "Look. If this bugs you the way it does me, call someone."
One of the classic Lillian Hongs was when she shot video of the port-a-johns at Ala Wai Park. The bathrooms were being remodeled or something, and these port-a-johns were supposed to serve in their place.
Lillian was disgusted by the condition of the potties, and she showed us why. It was truly disgusting, as you'd expect. I mean, it was REALLY gross. Lillian posted phone numbers of people you could call. She quoted people she spoke to, who said the port-a-johns would be only up until a certain date, who said that someone would be down to make sure they were clean.
Now, a half-hour show devoted to something like this is kinda ridiculous, and Lillian needs to get over the "look-what-I-can-do-with-my-video-editor" trip, but she's trying to make some kind of difference, and she's not just whining and complaining.
There was another show, where Lillian didn't actually talk. For half an hour, all you saw were skateboarders at one of the city/county skateboard parks. I'm not sure what her point was, but what I got out of it was that the park gets USED, and that these boys and girls who were hanging out there were getting along, and not being destructive, and that's pretty good use of parks&rec money. More skateparks!
And, while we're at it, more lighted tennis courts.
I hope she runs again, because I think I'll actually campaign for her.
Posted by Lillian L. Hong on June 24, 2004 2:45 AM:
6-23-04
Did you receive my first message sent about 30 minutes ago?
Please say Hello for me to
Aaron, Ryan, and Scrivener.
Thanks.
Love, Lillian Hong
P.S. I am leaving for Toronto, Canada to-morrow.
Will be back on 6-29-04.
See you.
Posted by Lillian L. Hong on July 2, 2004 12:44 AM:
Hi!
I am back.
I am learning computer.
Sometimes I got what I want. Sometimes I don't.
Just wish to say to those whom watch my programs on Olelo Channel 54: Mahalo for watching.
Please give me some feedbacks, straight from your heart. No foul languages please.
I surfed under "lillian hong" this is what I found.
Last correspondence was on June 28,2002.
I am not sure if this is still alive!
Love, Lillian Hong
Posted by lillian l. hong on July 6, 2004 7:36 PM:
7-6-2004
Hello, anybody home?
I am running for Honolulu Mayor.
I am a little people and I am not accepting any campaign contributions.
I will donate all my 4 years' salary,$448,800.00 to educational projects in this city & county of Honolulu.
My issues:
Education,
Little people fight back,
Tilii: Tell it like it is,
TheBus system on time,
Convenient,
TheBus employees as essential workers,
TheBus never sleeps.
Bright yellow sunshine law.
I need your help.
Please tell your families and your friends about me running for Honolulu Mayor.
Please surf Olelo Channel 54.
I talked about my Mayoral issues.
Please give me some of your feedbacks.
Thanks
Love, Lillian Hong
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