Kudos to all who were candidates

The polls are closed. The votes are in and the winners announced.

This is a state where there are more people who don’t vote than do. Where candidates who have been fined and sanctioned run unopposed. Where victory is often determined by how often the candidate waved a sign, or wheth- ervoters recognized his or her name while in the voting booth.

I’m sure I speak for many in saluting all who had the courage to throw their names into the hat. Though just as passionate on the issues as any of the winning candidates, they may have found themselves uninvited to debates or, worse, discovered their opponents refused to debate them at all, and in general just dismissed them as a long shot.

Mahalo to all of them and I hope to see them again in two years. At least then we may recognize their names.

Mark Ida
Salt Lake

With GOP at helm, expect more wars

The Good Lord have mercy upon us.

We know America is on the way down, and it’s probably unstoppable.But with the Republicans now in the majority in Congress, the decline will be even faster and deeper.

What have they done?They started the war in Afghanistan, which we lost already.They started the war in Iraq, which we also lost.With all those stupid wars, we incubated extreme movements like ISIS, which decapitates innocent people in full view.

Good luck, America.

Gerhard C. Hamm
Waialae Iki

Maui anti-GMO vote not praiseworthy

I finally get it: politics is a game to be won or lost, and not necessarily about important issues that affect our lives.

I watched as pundits (ex-governors and the like) expressed extreme admiration for how "well" the anti-GMO folks did in the elections, a kind of "I gotta hand it to ’em" attitude, seeing as how much more money was spent trying to defeat them to almost no avail.

This admiration was expressed despite the agreement of these pundits and the scientific community that the science does not warrant a ban on GMO products.

What it shows is not encouraging, not praiseworthy. What it shows is a large portion of our population is extremely susceptible to cult-like, pitchfork-wielding behavior, science be damned.

That’s a bummer, and rather than being admirable, it’s scary.

Faith Burns
Hawaii Kai

Nothing changes, so why vote?

The people of Hawaii need to be congratulated on keeping Hawaii almost 100 percent Democrat.

Since the U.S. House and Senate are now being run by Republicans, we basically no longer have a voice in Washington. Our representatives will have the same power as our local Republicans have in the Hawaii House and Senate — none.

The Star-Advertiser, our nonpartisan paper, also needs to be congratulated, since most of the people it backed won. It looks like most of the people of Hawaii are extremely happy about the status quo,so no complain. Remember, unions rule.

Gee, I wonder why there is voter apathy?

Carl Bergantz
Kaneohe

Hawaii Democrats behave like sheep

Once again, Hawaii has demonstrated itself to be out of touch with the dismal effects of the one-party rule.

Much like a utility company with high rates and no competition, the 60-plus years of one-sided rule, high taxation, bad policies and ineffective government will continue.Hawaii Democratic Party supporters have sided with sheep-like party identification rather than personal integrity and true constituent representation.

One would think that the ousting of a governor for supporting same-sex marriage and taxing of pensions, counter to overwhelming public opposition, would also apply to candidates like David Ige and Mark Takai, who both voted initally with the governor.Not in Hawaii.

While the rest of the country moves back to the center, Hawaii favors the status quo with partisan big government, miserable schools, the worst and most expensive roads in 50 states and failed lopsided policies.Would Hawaii vote for President Barack Obama’s dismal record and agenda yet again?Is he a Demo-crat? Well, then, of course.

Rob Espinosa
Makakilo

Finally, a rest from political robo calls

It is comforting to know, now that the election is finally behind us, that the next time someone violates the no-call list and interrupts our personal evenings, it will be a con man breaking the law and not some politician who has put himself above it.

Tim Newsham
Ewa Beach

Military in Pahoa on a power trip

Now that the lava is crossing Pahoa and we are under martial law, we desperately need to keep staffed the County Council and mayor’s offices on the southeast side of Hawaii island.

It would be prudent to focus all the military might to help the police in the vacant neighborhoods where the looting, squatting and the attendant crack cocaine and methamphetamine houses are operating openly — instead of wasting our valuable police resources on the ongoing financial extortion of poor citizens by the continuing seatbelt, registration and safety checkpoints in downtown Pahoa, and ticketing people trying to see the lava.

The police and National Guard should continue to be friendly toward the local residents, who are well aware of their unalienable rights. They should realize the inappropriateness of laws aimed at keeping people safe from a lava flow moving a few feet an hour, and be aware of the Homeland Security power trip over Pele and Puna that’s happening now.

Sara Steiner
Pahoa