The time is way overdue for us citizens of Kaua’i to vote on issues directly that affect our lives dramatically. County elected and appointed officials have made too many decisions that would not be supported by a majority of voters.
The time is way overdue for us citizens of Kaua’i to vote on issues directly
that affect our lives dramatically. County elected and appointed officials have
made too many decisions that would not be supported by a majority of voters.
We can begin on Kaua’i by building on the good foundation of the United
States governmental system, and on the good aloha, aina, and ohana spirit in
the Hawaiian culture to create a democratic system for our island that truly
reflects what our hardworking people want and works for our best interests.
Over 200 years ago the American system of government was designed to be
a group decision-making process that would truly provide for the best interests
of the people, rather than the one-person decision-making system of a king
(where King George made decisions for himself and his friends to get wealthy at
the expense of the colonies).
The Founding Fathers were remarkable
statesmen, inspired to construct the best democracy they could under the
conditions of their times when it was clearly impracticable for the people to
vote on the majority of the issues because most people could not read or write,
and it could take a month for a letter to get from one part of the country to
another—no telephones, cars, TVs, computers, internet—the “horse and
buggy days.”
Therefore it was necessary at that time that the bulk
of both decision making and running of the government rest on elected
representatives.
However, what has resulted from the delegation of
decision-making responsibility to elected officials is a situation where many
crucial decisions are made not from the standpoint of what will benefit the
people as a whole, but from the standpoint of what will benefit those who have
acquired enough money to influence politics by donating to campaigns and making
“gifts” to elected officials—and the selfish interests of these
manipulators are usually opposed to the best interests of the majority of the
people.
It has increasingly become a government for the wealthy by the
wealthy, rather than for the people by the people. Increasingly in this country
the rich are getting much richer at the expense of the poor and the middle
class, and the gap between the rich and the poor is widening.
We can put
the decision-making process back where it belongs—directly in the hands of the
citizens. We as a people have changed a great deal since the days of the
Founding Fathers. On this island there is a higher level of education, and far
more accumulated knowledge, than in the 13 original colonies that declared
independence from England.
We also have the added advantage of women
voting, which the original 13 states did not.
We voters of this county
are mature enough to decide our own future. Campaign and lobby reform is only a
partial solution to our problems. We are now ready to take over the reins of
governing ourselves—we are no longer school children who are willing to accept
being talked down to and manipulated by a school teacher to fit into, and
believe in, a system that benefits the wealthy far more than anyone else and is
harmful to many citizens.
In my next letter, I will outline how a direct
vote system will work.
Sergai Bliss
What can you do?
To the
Forum:
I want to thank the community members for their participation in the
Silent March For Peace, Tuesday evening in remembering Miu Lan Esposo-Aguiar
and Lisa Bissell.
There was a strong sense of commitment to end domestic
violence and sexual assault on Kaua’i as well as to recognize the many children
and adults who currently suffer from such experiences.
Ironically, April is
National Sexual Assault Awareness Month. In the face of such recent tragedies
on Kaua’i, we can’t forget sexual assault and domestic violence are important
community issues and that safer communities are created through education and
awareness.
What can you do?
* Remember to discuss relationship and
safety issues with your children and teenagers and what to do in a situation
that feels unsafe.
* Violence whether physical or sexual most often occurs
between people that know each other, remember it is your business if someone is
being hurt.
* When talking to survivors of sexual assault and domestic
violence, remember to believe them, don’t blame them, and encourage them to get
help.
* 24-hour hotline numbers are: Domestic violence, 245-8362, and
sexual assault, 245-4144.
Thanks again to all that attended the Silent
March For Peace and The Garden Island newspaper staff for helping address the
loss of these two women and the need to end violence.
Joan Luzney, Director
Sexual Assault Treatment Program
Nancy Peterson, Director
Family
Violence Shelter YWCA of Kauai
Good turnout, some glaring
no-shows
To the Forum:
I attended the march in support of domestic
peace, and in memory of Miu Lan Esposo-Aguiar.
As someone who has had
first-hand experience with the heartbreaking issue of domestic violence, I was
deeply touched to see so many people of all ages and races, men and women
alike, turn out because one of the most important things we can do is remind
all those who are in such situations that they are not alone.
Fortunately,
Kaua’i offers some wonderful support through the counselors at the shelter and
elsewhere.
Still I was troubled to see that some key people were not in
attendance.
On an island where half the murders are linked to domestic
violence, where the police blotter is filled with reports of spouse abuse and
restraining order violations, where the family court calendar is packed with
these cases, I could only wonder, as we stood outside the county building,
where was the mayor? Where were our council members? Where was the county
prosecutor? Where was the police chief? And where were all the cops who deal
with this day in and day out?
Joan Conrow
Kilauea
Painting
disappears
To the Forum:
As chair of the Kaua’i Society of Artists
Annual Membership Show 2000 and on behalf of the artist Alethea C. Fernandes, I
am reporting the theft of The HMS Bark Endeavor – The Pacific Voyage, an
exquisite acrylic painting on a feather framed in a koa stand.
This family
heirloom was not for sale and was a gift from the artist to her nephew, Mark
Kimo Crowell, who is a member of the Endeavor crew.
The artwork was taken
on or around April 1 from a pedestal at the front of the Kukui Grove
Exhibition Hall. If you have any information leading to the recovery of The HMS
Bark Endeavor- The Pacific Voyage, please contact me at 822-1603 or simply
return the piece to the Kukui Grove Exhibition Hall – no questions asked.
R. Eve Solomon
KSA VP
