• Vote on Nov. 7 • ¿No quiero Taco Bell? • Wrong message being sent • Dear Mr. and Mrs. Absentee Landlord: • Forget the recount Vote on Nov. 7 My husband and I are residents of Kaua‘i who spend
• Vote on Nov. 7
• ¿No quiero Taco Bell?
• Wrong message being sent
• Dear Mr. and Mrs. Absentee Landlord:
• Forget the recount
Vote on Nov. 7
My husband and I are residents of Kaua‘i who spend some time on the Mainland every summer. This time, due to some health problems, we were going to be delayed in coming home. I requested the forms for absentee ballots so we could vote in the primary election. I assumed that I sent for them in plenty of time. Well my absentee ballots arrived two days before elections. And we never received the ballots for my husband. Had we received the ballots for both of us we could have express mailed them to Kaua‘i and they would have gotten there in time.
I do not know who was at fault. But this is just one example why it is very important that everyone goes to vote Nov. 7. My husband and I are making sure we will be there for that important election.
¿No quiero Taco Bell?
If it’s any consolation to those scratching their heads over the local primary election results, consider this: The same local folks who just voted overwhelmingly to re-instate our mayor and incumbent council also think that La Bamba and Taco Bell have better Mexican food than Monico’s!
Wrong message being sent
In response to Mr. Green’s puzzlement about why our Kaua‘i elected officials are not demanding an impact study, the good news is that the County Council has unanimously passed a resolution requesting an EIS from the state.
The bad news is that the governor may be turning a deaf ear. Her chief of media relations, Russell Pang, wrote The Garden Island Sept. 27 letter entitled “Communication crucial for open government,” in which he states that the governor “will make herself available to all people of our state to discuss their concerns and challenges.” How ironic that on that very day Gov. Lingle could not find five minutes to personally accept the 6,000 signatures from Kaua‘i residents who support the need for an EIS. What message does that send? Yes, Mr. Green, you’re right. Our government officials do need to remember the people that vote them into office.
- Martha E. Hodges
Princeville
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Absentee Landlord:
During the last nine months while you were away, the price of your single-family home has significantly dropped in value to the extent your rental prices are no longer justified, they are now ludicrous and much too high.
It is a sad day when a simple studio is renting for $1,400 a month in Kapahi! (Kapahi! Are you kidding me? I had to call the ad just to verify if indeed that was the real rent and sure enough it was. I laughed in their ear as it has been in the paper for almost five weeks and at that price it will not be renting anytime soon.)
Kaua‘i is starting to see what has already hit the rest of the nation: The slowing down of the economy and a drop in housing prices with a slowing in the sale of new homes. This is just the beginning. Unfortunately for recent homeowners who paid $600,000 or more for that new home a few years ago and are now ready to move, well, this is just not your time. For the rest of us who are renters, this could be our gold mine; it is time we stand up and collectively be heard, it’s long past time for the rents on Kaua‘i to be lowered to a “real livable rate.”
Forget the recount
Why waste time and money involved in a recount or audit when the people of Kaua‘i have chosen their mayor? Mr. Hoff says that it’s like “winning the World Series on a technicality.” No, Mr. Hoff, it’s like winning the World Series by two runs. Is that not a win?
I’d rather see us put sour grapes aside and have our duly elected officials get back to work focusing on the real issues facing Kaua‘i than spend the next five weeks campaigning in a race that has already been clearly decided.
