Enjoy the future In the midst of the “end of the world” talk and speculation, it may be helpful to be reminded that what, from a caterpillar’s point of view, appears to be the end of the world, can be
Enjoy the future
In the midst of the “end of the world” talk and speculation, it may be helpful to be reminded that what, from a caterpillar’s point of view, appears to be the end of the world, can be seen by others as an emerging butterfly.
It is also helpful to be reminded that everything in our universe (or “multi-verse”) comes to pass, not to stay. Everything does its thing, and then passes away, thereby making a way for the emergence of something new.
A Quark (the fundamental particle of which everything is made) comes into being, and then passes away in one 10-billionth of a second. Some stars are formed, only to explode in as little as 10 billion years.
Galaxies can last trillions of years, but will always dissipate. Our solar system is designed to fall apart in a few billion years. Human civilizations rise and fall.
Even Sears and Starbucks may have a limited shelf-life. For centuries, human beings lived no more than 20 to 30 years. We now can expect to live, on average and at our best, 70 to 80 years.
Preachers, teachers, writers, etc., have created followings and have made millions of dollars fabricating both predictions about a coming destruction of the world, and prescriptions designed to protect “believers” from being destroyed with it.
One possible antidote to this “anhedonic anosognosia” (anosognosia is a medical term for a condition in which a person who suffers a disability due to problems in the brain seems unaware of or denies the existence of it; anhedonia is the technical term for the inability to experience joy) is to use well and enjoy the time we have, while leaving the future in the hands of someone better qualified.
Robert Merkle, Koloa
Players of the game
Robert Merkle writes (Dec. 27, Letters) about the games we play here on “Spaceship Earth” but makes these games sound like individual efforts rather than those of special interest groups. On Kaua‘i, in particular, it is the group games that seem to dominate.
Consider the game between the developers and the ecologists, or the one between the visitor industry and the residents.
Profits, jobs, growth and “progress” are the key words on one side of these games.
On the other side are Hawaiian land rights, native flora and fauna, saving our reefs and seas, space on the roads and beaches, and preserving the Hawaiian way.
The outcome of the games seems clear. Money dominates. Isn’t it time that we regroup and determine what is best for our grandchildren instead of what is best for today’s pocketbooks?
Aloha doesn’t mean accepting the domination of money as some would have us believe. Let’s keep the holiday spirit alive on an individual basis, as so many of us have this season, and say no to those who want to profit by bringing in more hotels, more timeshares, more low-paying jobs and more demands on our land. It is time for new strategies to be applied to our games.
Marjorie Gifford, Princeville
Counting votes
On June 21 of last year I wrote about problems with electronic voting machines. On June 25, William B. Marston, chair of the Hawai’i State Elections commission responded stating that: “There has never been any evidence of ‘flipping,’ nor has any allegation of ‘flipping’ been made.”
I would like Mr. Marston to address the fact that the Vulnerability Assessment Team, part of the Argonne National Laboratory run by the U.S. Department of Energy with the responsibility of protecting our nuclear arsenal, has been able to manipulate votes using technology that requires no more than an eighth grade education to implement.
The team has also shown that vote flipping can be done by remote control using equipment that costs less than $50. More than 100 Hart Interactive voting machines were ordered removed from service on a Kentucky judge’s order after they were shown to be registering false votes.
I would like to repeat my call that the “heart of democracy” — our vote — be removed from corporate control.
If Mr. Marston wants an electronic machine, I want it to run open source software that anyone can examine for “backdoors” and software errors.
I also want a paper trail. I want those votes counted in an open forum that anyone can attend. Mr. Marston sent me to the elections web site. There is nothing there about the voting machines used.
John Zwiebel, Kalaheo
