SENATE RACE

HAWAI'I POLITICS NEEDS TO OFFER US MUCH MORE

Hawai'i politics certainly provides entertainment, but we need so much more.

Already, the hopefuls are spewing all the regular stuff. "Education second to none" seems to be a favorite. Another is, "I know what's best for Hawai'i, and I can get it done, trust me."

These statements are as pathetic as those who consider the recent interaction between Rep. Ed Case and Sen. Dan Akaka a debate.

Please, let's try something new, Hawai'i. Let's try and be honest. All those who think they saw or read about a debate, please stay home on election day.

The rest of us will be forever grateful.

CASE WON TV DEBATE, AKAKA GETS THIS VOTE

It was a farce, a mockery and an insult to the intelligence of every individual who sat in front of a TV screen to witness the obvious: the aging, lethargic heavyweight and the younger, flashier, confident new kid on the block.

To say Sen. Dan Akaka was pummeled would be an understatement, but not a surprise.

I've always rooted for the underdog. And in my culture, the dignity of the elders will always be revered. Yes, Case was far more articulate, charismatic and knowledgeable. It takes far less than that to verbally beat up on any octogenarian.

From Case's poise on stage and his Republican-like responses, one can only surmise his plan of action is to win as a Democrat, switch parties in mid-stream and stave off a run by Gov. Linda Lingle in the next Senate election.

In a nutshell, the youthful Case won the debate, but the elder statesman Akaka won my vote.

CASE IS NOT LEADER WE NEED IN TRYING TIMES

Rep. Ed Case makes a strong argument for new blood in the Senate, but not that it should be his. On two of the most important issues before Congress — tax cuts for the wealthy and the quagmire in Iraq — he is beholden to special interests and credulous of the Pentagon.

This is the not the sort of leadership we need in these trying times. Hawai'i will be better served by an old man with principles than a peppy lap dog of the Bush administration.

AKAKA ACCOMPLISHED NOTHING FOR HAWAI'I

After watching the "one and only" debate last Thursday between Sen. Dan Akaka and Rep. Ed Case, I am convinced Sen. Akaka is ineffective, and having him serve Hawai'i for another six years will be detrimental to Hawai'i's future.

During his long tenure as one of the senators for the state of Hawai'i, he has accomplished nothing.

Rep. Case is our future. Even though I am not a Democrat, I will vote for Rep. Case in the Sept. 23 primary.

AKAKA, CASE BOTH FAIL IN TAX-CUT DISCUSSION

The Akaka/Case debate was enlightening. Although Sen. Dan Akaka has a long history in the Senate, it appeared obvious when comparing their performances that Rep. Ed Case would represent Hawai'i more effectively.

However, I was disappointed with both candidates when it came to addressing the deficit and tax cuts. Both claimed "tax cuts for the rich" are to blame for ballooning deficits. For this claim to be true, the tax cuts would have had to cause a decrease in the tax revenues collected.

The problem for both gentlemen is that tax revenues have soared since the tax cuts were enacted. In fact, the Treasury Department reported that tax collections in April 2006 increased 13.4 percent compared with April 2005 to a whopping $315.1 billion, the second highest level in history!

This phenomenon is historically consistent since tax revenues also increased after fellow Democrat John F. Kennedy cut taxes and after Ronald Reagan cut taxes. Therefore, the deficit is due to out-of-control spending by both parties that has outpaced the record-breaking income tax collections.

AKAKA DESERVES MORE RESPECT FROM PARTY

I am going to guess that if the Democratic Party of Hawai'i had a young man as bright as Rep. Ed Case who bowed to the old-boy politics of the party and voted as a hard-line Democrat, he would get full party support, and that Sen. Dan Akaka would be gracefully manipulated into retirement.

It is obvious that Sen. Akaka is not valued by the party for his potential to move mountains in Congress, or even to effectively deliver testimony prepared by others, but rather to rubber-stamp the party's agenda without getting in the way.

I have never been a great fan of Sen. Akaka. But, if I had been, I would look with disdain on a party that would allow a respected legislator to make a fool of himself and possibly leave office in disgrace.

After his long term in Congress, he deserves more respect from the party that he has represented throughout his career

CASE NOT THE RIGHT MAN FOR SENATE TRANSITION

I am a lifelong Democrat and a loyal supporter of Sen. Dan Akaka and Sen. Daniel Inouye.

However, it's time to be honest and admit that Rep. Ed Case is right about transition being needed because both senators are near the end of their careers.

Unfortunately, Ed Case is not the man for the job. He has shown that he is disrespectful and does not work well with fellow Democrats. The members of his own political party don't trust him, so why should the voters?

THE OVERWHELMING SUPPORT

for Akaka from the country's most influential Democrats makes me wonder if Akaka is that important or if Case is actually that much of a liability to the Democratic Party.

It seems that the best option is to vote for Akaka because we know that at least he won't vacate his seat to run for another office.

Let's hope that the Hawai'i Democratic Party learns from this situation and starts searching immediately to find better-qualified replacements for both Sen. Akaka and Sen. Inouye for the inevitable transition.

BLIND PARTY LOYALTY IGNORES THE ISSUES

Please raise your right hand and repeat after me: I, (say your name), promise to blindly follow the Democratic Party. I will vote for any candidate they tell me to. I will ignore the issues because they don't really matter anyway. I will support the old boy network until I can no longer vote.

DEVELOPMENT

RESORTS SHOULD NOT LIMIT BEACH ACCESS

Didn't we learn anything from the building of Ko Olina? When these hotels add on to their existing resorts, the locals are denied (or at least limited to) access to more beach locations.

Why is the state accommodating to these local-unfriendly locations?

Ko Olina has very few parking spots for what they call a beach that the locals can access. Is this the same thing that will happen with Turtle Bay?

Once again, the state is doing things without thinking things through first. I am not against development, although I am against the practice of limiting beach access to the local community.

READERS WEIGH IN ON FREEWAY CLOSING

DOT NEEDS A TRAFFIC CONTINGENCY PLAN

As I was sitting for 3 1/2 hours in traffic going westbound from town to Pearl City because of the H-1 Freeway closing on Tuesday, I wondered why these closings due to accidents have not resulted in a contingency plan for contraflowing traffic.

Although the news media reported this traffic jam as the worst of its kind, this happens frequently when a section or all of the H-1 is closed for hours from an accident.

Contraflowing Kamehameha Highway would have at least opened up another two lanes going west. Or even contraflowing the H-1 would have relieved the jam.

This would have been easy enough to do as HPD officers were stationed all throughout Kamehameha Highway controlling the signal lights.

I've been against rail, and after today, am even more convinced that fixed rail is not the answer. We need immediate traffic solutions. And having a contingency plan for days like Tuesday is a good place to start.

LEEWARD RESIDENTS AT MERCY OF H-1 CLOSINGS

Whatever the reason is to shut down the freeway, it is always a stupid one.

I believe that the Department of Transportation has everything all wrong.

People living on the Leeward side must be sick to their stomachs because this can happen on any day.

And on this day, it was all because of one person. One foot over the limit, one person can affect the whole island. That is just horrendous. Imagine how much gas was wasted because people were just waiting to move.