Fukumoto was right to speak her mind
STAR-ADVERTISER / OCT. 2011
Beth Fukumoto
I truly admire Beth Fukumoto (“Isle Republican leader ousted,” Star-Advertiser, Feb. 2).
She speaks for a generation that is on the whole seekers of truth, less judgmental, more tolerant and more compassionate than generations before. My grandchildren are of this generation. They march, write to their congressmen and congresswomen. They are passionate about what they believe in and I am very proud of them.
There are some comments in the story that give me pause. Were they made in reference only to what she said and did, or also because she is young and a woman?
Merle Iseke
Waipahu
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Look for better ways to raise revenue
Hawaii has the nation’s fourth-highest gasoline tax. Mayor Kirk Caldwell says we all need to pay for rail and wants to raise the gas tax again.
Raising the gas tax is a bad solution. It will hurt Hawaii residents, who already struggle with the sky-high prices for food, shelter and electricity. I will not be using the rail system at all. I’ve paid a good share into the rail fund by means of the general excise tax surcharge.
State legislators often want to take the easy way and saddle kamaaina with the burden. There are probably many more creative ways to come up with money.
For example: Stop current projects like repaving roads; identify all B&Bs operating in Hawaii and collect registration fees and income taxes; or add a special rail fee to every ticket for flights leaving or arriving to all islands.
Katherine Miller
Waialua
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Dairy farm would pollute Kauai area
All billionaires are not alike. Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan purchased their land because of their love of Kauai. Their purpose is to quietly enjoy their property and the island; they have been gracious and they welcome being a part of the community.
This is in stark contrast to multibillionaires Pierre and Pam Omidyar and Steve Case, who not only do not live on Kauai, but are continuing their quest to build and operate a 2,000-cow experimental industrial dairy, whose manure could dump into the Pacific Ocean; whose stench could devastate the visitor industry; whose sludge dump, less than 750 feet from one of three wells, could pollute the drinking water of all of Poipu and most of Koloa.
All this in the face of irrefutable scientific evidence and the very vocal opposition by the community.
How about some investigative journalism?
Judith Rachap
Koloa, Kauai
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Chinatown crime hurts elderly folks
There is an area of Chinatown where crime is constant and seems to get little attention.
Many middle and elderly folk congregate on River Street between Beretania and North Kukui streets to play cards and socialize. They are often harassed, assaulted or robbed by teens who come over on bikes to prey on the helpless victims.
There are cameras set up, but apparently not facing the proper direction. The suspects are long gone by the time police respond.
This has long been an issue and the residents have tried to fight back, but with no success. Chinatown has its hands full with homelessness and other issues, but it’s such an amazing place with tons of potential.
We should be vigilant. If you sense anything suspicious, contact the police immediately so they can at least drive past and monitor the situation.
Happy Chinese New Year!
James Logue
Chinatown
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HSTA tax would raise rents a lot
If the Hawaii State Teachers Association gets its request for funds by raising the property taxes on rental properties, I will have to increase the rent by at least $400 a month. And my tenant is a teacher.
Mary Moore
Kailua
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Everyone has right to death with dignity
Polls clearly show that legislation allowing the right to die with dignity is years overdue in Hawaii.
My body, my choice. Your body, your choice. This is a civil right, and as such, does fit Hawaii.
No right is more personal than the right to a death with dignity.
Carol A. Dickson
Makiki
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U.S. must support Israel defenses
America’s military strength will be determined by our military aid to Israel. As America refuses Israel’s request for military defense and military aid, America’s military power will weaken accordingly.
Theresa Tamayo
Wailuku
60 responses to “Fukumoto was right to speak her mind”
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Judith Rachap where do you think your milk comes from? Everyone wants local food produced for local consumption but only on Kauai do they cry about something as basic as a cow farm. So you are ok with these problems (which are completely overblown and not real problems – and I’m an environmentalist) happening on the other islands, just not Kauai? Real classy, export the pain of production to someplace else and just send the nice stuff to where you live. Such selfishness is shameful.
IRT Theresa Tamayo: If Israel wants peace within its borders, it must afford justice to all those living in the country and on its occupied fringes. In other words, it must stop treating the Palestinians worse than most people would treat dogs. Only then would the U.S. have some obligation actively defend Israel.
Agree. Israel is no friend of peace or America. I am glad that even Trump is seeing through the choke hold that Israel has on Congress.
That was totally unexpected from you allie, thank you for being able to see both the good and bad from both sides. Most people who dislike Trump will dislike him no matter what he does. Its refreashing to see that people can listen to each other civily.
Israel has been practicing a form of ethnic cleansing on Palestinian soil for decades. The US is reluctant to call it that. Why so shy?
whs1966 says: If Israel wants peace within its borders, it must afford justice to all those living in the country and on its occupied fringes
Even if those in country and on the “fringes” deny Israel’s right to exist and would happily see all the Israeli Jews exterminated?
You call that Justice?
My my my.
“Those who do not learn from the lessons of history are doomed to repeat it.” The Arab world laughs and rejoices at the naivete of American Liberals who choose to believe the LIES they have perpetuated. It’s such lunacy that allowed obama and Kerry’s laughable “Nuclear Deal” with Iran, leaving a mess for the next administration to untangle.
Carang> Isn’t that what happened during the last 8 years? Nothing, absolutely nothing was accomplished of any worth by Hawaii’a BHO. Shame on him for being such a loser. I voted for him the first term, but not the second time. All show and no go. That’s why our country is in such a mess. Glad we have a POTUS that is progressively moving the country forward. IMUA MAGA America First
I sure hope the Atlanta Falcons win tomorrow!!
🙂
You and most of the rest of the country. For SO MANY reasons…
I just hope the game isn’t filled with political ads and lectures from the performers. I just want to escape for awhile.
Or the players taking a knee during the national anthem…..seeing that would kind of ruin the game cause I want to see football not someone’s political views….
Agree totally with Merle Iseke’s comment re: Beth Fukumoto. A person’s conscience comes before any organization.
But not before the voters who voted for her. She should have resigned before betraying her constituency. How shameful!
My guess is that her constituents voted for Clinton rather than Trump. No problem there.
The only whiners here are a couple cranky old white men in the State House. Time for them to go.
Because they are white, right?
Sam Salom must love retirement.
She hasn’t switched parties yet until she speaks to the constituency you speak of.
Its good that she is truthful, however she has turned on those that voted for her. Their expectations will not come to fruition. She has every right to change Political Parties, but I think it is not conscionable to do it until her term is done. She can still vote for what she believes, but she needs to keep those campaign promises. Thats what an honest person does.
Those of a GOP persuasion should look at the bright side: Not only is it good this turncoat is at last truthful about what she really believes, the even better news is that she bolted the party thus clearing the way for some real fireball talent in that party to unleash her energy and electrify a moribund party that many feared was heading for the Le Brea tar pits of political extension.
By becoming a Democrat this turncoat has actually helped the Republicans.
Or as Al Jolson used to say,
“Baby,
you
ain’t
seen
NOTHIN’
yet!”
It’s alright that she wanted to change party affiliations if she had done so in advance of the election but she was elected as a republican by her constituents but after winning does a bait and switch which is dishonest and why people dont trust politicians……
IRT PublicBraddah, I also agree with your post and therefore, Ms Beth should have joined and seek her office as a Liberal Democrat and not as a Conservative Republican. She was fooling with herself.
Merle Iseke, “on the whole seekers of truth, less judgmental, more tolerant… ” Are you kidding me! Every time these young liberals don’t agree with something, the riot. Yes riot, not protest. Look at the latest at Cal Berkley as a classic example. Instead of listening to opposing views and trying to educate themselves, they silence the opposition. The liberals like to get their information from headlines (that are fake news) and facebook or comedians. Just ask any liberal to back up their statements and they’ll recite what was said on programs like MSNBC, CNN or some talk show. Just repeating the narrative.
IRT to Carol Dickson. I’ve been saying the same thing on my earlier posts. MY body, MY life, MY choice…PAU…
My this.
My that.
My the other.
What an immature self-centered outlook!
To begin with it is NOT your body. You did not design it. You did not make it.
Your body is a GIFT from the One Who DID design and make it.
From those to whom much has been given, much is expected.
The One Who gave you this precious gift also gave you free will and a bit of time to exercise it.
You are thus free to ignore responsibility and live only for yourself if you choose to do so, but if that is your choice, what a WASTE of the precious gifts – – time on this earth, life, a body, free will – – you were given.
Sorry, but the “One” didn’t do anything to make me the person I am. I put food and drink into MY body. I put knowledge into MY body. I did everything on MY own terms. Schooling, military, jobs, family. I put food, clothes and a roof over MY body from hard work. The “One” didn’t do any of this for me. Is the “One” the same “One” that designed and made newborn babies with cancers, deformed bodies, heart and brain defects, blindness, deaf, mental retardation, and more? Do they deserve to be brought into this world like that? Maybe the “One” thought so. The parents and family’s lives are devastated. A lot of these newborns don’t even make it home from the hospital. If they do, most don’t live a normal and happy life. If you know of a relative or friend that suffers from cancers, diseases, etc., tell them it was a “GIFT from the “One.” Do I believe in the “One?” NO… I took care of MY body on MY own. I have seen relatives, friends and strangers suffering. Thanks to the “ONE.” Do what YOU like with YOUR body from the “One.”
You are much to be pitied.
You may not believe in the One, but He does believe in you.
One hopes your self inflicted torment will soon abate.
You are selling yourself short.
IRT Paniolo, why would you place your doctor in the middle of your body and life? Is it your choice to drag him/her into your decision? Is it not best to keep the doctor out of your choice?
“If the Hawaii State Teachers Association gets its request for funds by raising the property taxes on rental properties, I will have to increase the rent by at least $400 a month. And my tenant is a teacher.”>>> Kinda sums it all up for ALL the working class.
Any increase in property taxes on my rentals means an increase in rent. Will this help the housing crisis?
Is there anyone – – ANYONE – – in this state who actually believes that more taxes confiscated will actually find their way down to the plankton level of the DOE food chain as pay raises for classroom teachers?
GET [obscene gerund redacted] REAL!
More money dumped into the fiscal black hole of what passes for public education in this state will go where it has always gone:
[1] hiring more non teaching desk driving DOE bureaucrats,
[2] pay raises for existing non teaching desk driving DOE bureaucrats,
and
[3] more sweet heart/no bid/sole source contracts to the politically faithful to grease the wheels of what passes for “government” in this 19th century plantation era one party dominated backwater banana republic.
And for the classroom teachers themselves?
They will still need more fund raisers and more parents providing paper towels and other classroom supplies at the beginning of each school year and the need to go out of pocket to furnish their own classroom and WHY?
Because the trickle down ‘pay raise’ shibai never comes close to all the promises used to s c r e w the parents of the kids they teach out of even more tax money.
The Democrat Party has had a death grip on the levers of power in these islands for the last 63 years and that ain’t no accident.
So, one might ask, how have they managed that feat?
Because like the mafia, for Democrats POWER is the unvarying way. To maintain power it is necessary to create a one of its kind in the nation single statewide school “district” that can be placed under the control of the powerful elite (who send THEIR kids to private schools).
And so by design the public schools can assure an unending and critical mass of functionally illiterate, innumerate, apathetic ‘grads’ who [1] will never bother to vote since they cannot read and [2] WILL perpetuate the single parent poverty cycle and [3] thus remain dependent on government services ergo the PARTY of government services……… forever and ever amen.
The ancient alchemists have been proved right: a perpetual motion machine not only CAN be created but has in fact BEEN created right here in the middle of the Pacific with no signs of slowing down. The key that winds up this machine day after day after day is our own special brand of public “education” that is designed to steal from generation after generation of the bright capable kids who populate our classrooms their intellectual birthright.
Thus endeth the lesson on the only thing that matters to our alleged “government”: POWER.
Just ANOTHER bs reason..ANY reason for more taxation.
“There are some comments in the story that give me pause. Were they made in reference only to what she said and did, or also because she is young and a woman?”>> No, but it may have come across that way to you if you are “less judgmental, more tolerant and more compassionate” of another’s viewpoint.
US needs to drop Israel like a drug addict needs to go clean.
With friends like Israel…
agree..Israel has made America suffer beyond belief.
Name one – – just one – – country in the Mid East other than Israel on whom we can count on to as a solid ally.
Right now Israel is the ONLY country in the region not engaging in the Muslim vs Muslim slaughterhouse blood fest.
And keep this in mind: it ain’t Israel that the tsunami of refugees now flooding Europe is fleeing from.
Isn’t Egypt our bestest buddy we sell weapons to and one of the nations NOT on Drumpf’s Muslim Ban?
Oh yeah…I’m pretty sure there aren’t any other ME countries selling American military technology to China on the sly.
With friends like Israel…
Egypt, eh?
Does the term ‘Muslim Brotherhood’ ring a bell?
What country you think gave them a solid start and warm welcome?
The reason we’ve been paying them since the Carter era is to remind them to keep the Camp David Accord they signed with Israel.
Beth Fukumoto should be ashamed of herself. She betrayed her constituency in a very unethical way. She demonstrated very clearly that voters cannot trust her.
A lot of Republicans are still very critical of Trump and oppose much of what he is doing. However, they still remain true to their conservative ideology and remain in the party despite disagreeing with the top Republican. The Party ousted her because much she was saying had nothing to do with political ideology and much to do with the media characterization of Trump the “Bad Man”. If Ms Fukumoto really cared about the Republican Party she would stay put and promote and legislate a much needed conservative government agenda in Hawaii.
Truth be told, she has never done so doing her political career. SMH
During
I like to think that in Mililani, most of us try to vote for people rather than for parties. In the last election, there were two candidates and frankly, I thought both were well respected and the consensus was that either would do a fine job. I would imagine that if Fukumoto ran as a democrat from Mililani, the results would be much the same.
That would be fine if she ran and was elected as a democrat by her constituents but she ran as a republican candidate because she knew that what the voters in district wanted so after winning as a republican she now wants to switch party affiliations….it’s ok that she don’t like Trump or his politics but her loyalty isn’t to Trump but to her constituents who elected her…..
I am not affiliated with either party but I lean toward democratic ideologies. I have voted for Beth because she does what she says she will do and has the communities best interest at heart.
WRONG!
Beth Fukumoto could have done the GOP no greater favor than leaving it.
They owe this turncoat a debt of gratitude.
Mary Moore is spot on. If the HSTA gets the huge tax increase they are demanding, not only will teachers rents go up but so will teacher supplies, teacher fuel costs, teacher fast food, teacher electric, teacher clothes, teacher cost of living in general. Everything has a cost and those businesses that will be paying these increased real estate taxes will certainly pass it on to the consumer that of course includes teachers. Pretty soon the typical tax payer will have nothing left to live on and will need government support to survive. Then what!!?
Lottery then!
No, remember the tin hat liberals state over and over again…”no one in Hawa gambles or is interested in gambling.” and we can always raise taxes!…Las Vegas thanks them.
Free preschool for needy kids.
Over and over preschool has proven to be non-effective. It is daycare. Pay for own daycare. AND, most importantly do not give the DOE more money for for bureaucrats for more failed programs!
This is a lie….
There is a non-profit in Hawaii that is working on this problem. They lack the funds to address even half the problem, but know that for every dollar spent on these needy kids we get back $2.61.
http://patchhawaii.org/
Wow, we get 2.61 back for every dollar spent? No need to fund preschool anymore!
Free?
HMMMPH!
TANSTAAFL!
Beth Fukumoto is to be lauded for her integrity in being true to her honorable values as an independent ethical human first. No need for another self-serving hypocritical legislator. Perhaps the timing of her decision grates on her constituents but let’s recognize her right to follow her conscience regardless of whether people agree or disagree. Beth is a brave young person to stand up against the establishment There are procedures in place to oust her if that is what will serve her district best. Balanced decision making is required.
You err.
She is a turn coat.
Now, to no one’s surprise, she is a member of the Democrat Party.
Republicans have every reason to rejoice – – no longer do they have a snake in their midst.
Someone far better is taking her place and HOORAY for that.
Katherine Miller, I don’t support Rail at all because it will serve very few people. But I think your alternative taxes and fees stink. You must not like gas taxes because you live in Waialua. Of course, Oahu has a lot of commuters.
Ms Tupuuola, the new Minority leader had it right. The leader of a caucus must stand up for all the members of the Caucus.It is well known that different opinions are present in the Minority Caucus. The elected Leader must deal with those differences or not accept the position. I found Ms T. well informed and engaging when I had the opportunity to talk with her. If a leader cannot accept controversy, she must step down gracefully, not blame others.
marilynblee says: the new Minority leader had it right.
BINGO!!
Fun times dead ahead!
Or as Al Jolson used to say
“Baby, you ain’t seen NOTHIN’ yet!”
I find it interesting that on the one hand people say it’s my body and you shouldn’t have the right to tell me what I can so with my body…
Are we talking about right to die, or abortion here? OK, I won’t tell you what you can or can not do with your body… as long as you give me the right to die with dignity. You can’t have it both ways.