Is there a message here?

[JerryCarr]

OK, it's the morning after, and I feel compelled to start the discussion of what happened at the polls yesterday. From my point of view it isn't a pretty picture.

Here in Puna we have a rerun runoff between two tarnished candidates who did not inspire my confidence in 2006 and do so even less today. The voters didn't seem to be able to warm to either of the two new faces in the race, so here we go again.

Bob Jacobson, a reliable progressive voice on the Council, lost the Kau-Puna Mauka seat to Guy Enriques. I know several families from Kau, and they are desperate for jobs down there. Mr. Jacobson opposed the resort/land development at Punaluu which would have created some jobs, but more or less epitomizes the faults of the current State economy. Mr. Enriques supported this development.

Angel Pilago has made it into a runoff for Mayor. That is about the extent of the good news here. He will have to get virtually ALL of the people who voted against Billy Kenoi to vote for him. Ms. Inouye's supporters do not impress me as the sort to go trooping over to a candidate who supports a whole new approach to County government.

Faye Hanohano got the Democratic nomination, which is usually a free ticket to office in Puna. In my view she has demonstrated no ability to challenge the status quo in Honolulu. She even said so at the Kalani forum. Mr. Blas, as a Republican, will probably not get much farther with overturning the status quo, but he will at least be assertive and make some noise about it. I urge everyone to vote Republican on this one. It's the progressive thing to do.

And so it goes. Somebody show me I'm wrong . . . please.

Jerry

[james weatherford]

Putting all aside except the Mayor's race.
Who is going to vote for Angel Pilago?
How many people did not vote?
We turned a few Kenoi votes just before the Primary and intend to turn some more before the General.
Inouye voters will be welcomed with open arms and courted.

btw: has anyone got a calculator?
Kenoi spent ~$286,000 and got ~45% of the vote;
Pilago spent ~$65,000 and got ~23% of the vote.
Kenoi spent more than 4 times as much and got less than twice as many votes.
Is there a message there?

Follow the money now with the General election$.

James Weatherford, Ph.D.
15-1888 Hialoa
Hawaiian Paradise Park

[Dave Smith]

One has to wonder how many of those who voted for Pilago were aware of his lie in which he said he has not accepted campaign donations from developers.

[Rob Tucker]

I am not of the opinion that this is or was a lie. But it may be somewhere just between enough to cause you concern. I have not had a chance to speak with Angel directly on this.... it has been busy, but what I am told is that the two, I believe it is two, individual donations which are being called "developer money" are in fact from two people who are old friends of the family and of whom Angel could not have conceived of as "developers seeking favors". The extent that they are developers or retired developers or owners of a mom and pop store that they developed I don't know or much care.

Two people from a life time on the Big Island is a small factor and the funds are not terribly large. One I recall was $200. The other was $1,000 I think. But I do hope to see this addressed directly by Angel.

There were a couple others mentioned which I recall were architects or some such providers of architectural services. One, I am told, is an old surfing friend of Angels who lives and works in California. The other I don't know about. Architects are architects.

We will find out. Facts need to be determined and will be.

Meanwhile the level of "developer" support for the opponent, Billy Kenoi, is clear and impressively heavy. But it may be that a year ago or so with the campaign starting up a couple old connections who could be called "developers" donated to his campaign.

I can't tell you that I know exactly what the job description of everyone I know is... do you?

[hikatz]

Dave, good to read your posts, not that I agree with you all the time[] Missed your reporting at the Tribune Herald, but I figure you will keep things interesting here! Take it as a compliment if I have the wrong Dave, cause you sure write like him, and he is a damn good reporter.

[james weatherford]

Rob, thanks for the patience to explain the trivia.



James Weatherford, Ph.D.
15-1888 Hialoa
Hawaiian Paradise Park

[Dave Smith]

hikatz, thanks for the kind words. You have the right Dave.

Rob, what you are being told is spin of the worst kind, and you are perpetuating The Lie by presenting misinformation. There is no gray here. Look up the reports yourself if you have doubts. Hunter's blog:

http://hunterbishop.com/journal/2008/9/1...again.html

has the links that tell of the recent examples of developer money Pilago has taken as well as the blatant quid pro quo when he took the maximum allowed from Kohanaiki's developers when he first ran for County Council in 2004. All together the developer money exceeds $5,000 for the current cycle and at least $12,000 overall. But the amount is not the issue. Violation of trust is.

And I'm not clear as to your "architects are architects" comment, but in this case, as its Web site notes, Ali Ghalamfarsa's firm Alii Architects provides a wide range of services for developers including architectural, engineering and other planning. And why would the owner of that firm be listed as a "property manager" on Pilago's reports if not to deceive?

Note also that Pilago removed his "We have not taken any money from developers or special interest" letter from his campaign Web site after Hunter's article appeared with a link to that claim. I have a copy of the old Web site for disbelievers.

And Hunter's blog didn't even mention the money Pilago has accepted from special interests. In the current cycle alone he took $1,000 from Gentry's Kona Marina, which is no doubt keeping a keen eye on the ongoing issues of expanding and privatization of the state marinas, and thousands more from other businesses. Why would a business donate to a political campaign? The answer is special interest.

Truth be told, I was considering voting for Pilago until the truth came out. But I can't conceive of voting for someone who will obviously do and say anything to get elected, especially if that involves violating the trust of many of his supporters on a core issue.

Again, I wonder how many votes Pilago would have gotten if the Tribune-Herald had reported the matter prior to election day:

http://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/arti...ocal01.txt

or if West Hawaii Today hadn't failed to report it at all.

[Rob Tucker]

well Dave we can agree to disagree.

I see Isemoto money as much more meaningful.

But you seemed to ask so I took the time to answer. Sorry if you do not accept my POV.

You say it's a matter of trust and the truth must be told. Fine.

I do trust Angel and I don't expect perfection from anyone. You are watching dimes and I am watching dollars.

I don't have sufficient campaign spending experience to know who declares their occupation. Would I call myself a farmer because I have a farm? Or a businessman because I have a business? Or a Developer because I sell building materials and provide some architectural services to my clients?

But we each can make our choices. That's what campaigning and voting is about.

[cynmkolohe]

This is exactly the kind of conversation I have been waiting to see/hear/read.

I'm undecided as to who I will vote for in November. (I did vote in the primary--hoping that we would have a chance to see the two top candidates more closely examined over the next few weeks.)

I doubt I will ever feel as though my vote is anything more than a vote for the "lesser two evils"...I just want to feel that I am voting for the lesser...I'm not looking for perfection.

In this election, for the sake of our island, I want to have some measure of confidence that the candidate taking office has some kind of vision that falls in line with mine and that he can work effectively within the community, but also foster the relationships on a state/federal level that will benefit Hawaii Island. For me, the jury is still out...


Cynthia

Cynthia Hoskins, R(S)
Cell: 808 443-6564

Clark Realty Corporation
99 Aupuni St Hilo, HI
Office: 808 961-6015

[Rob Tucker]

Thanks for your post Cynthia, Well put.

My interests are similar. I have made my choice for mayor though and am working for his election. It's an uphill battle but with the field narrowed to two we are all optimistic.

I am not a long term follower of anyone. This is my first experience in electioneering. Not an expert.

Part of what influences me is how these two candidates came to my attention in the first place.

I first noticed Angel Pilago as a council member. I was impressed that we actually had council members that were capable of looking outside their districts and thinking of the island as a whole. That was how I first learned Angel Pilago's name. I was frustrated that other district representatives were doing a better job of looking out for Puna than our own was. Since then I have learned more about Angel and have had opportunity to speak with him and understand that he operates from a moral center and has the best interests of his island at heart. He is prepared to lead the Big Island in a new direction which values community more than personal profit.

I first learned Billy Kenoi's name when he filed as a candidate for Mayor. Billy who? He was Mayor Kim's assistant for the past several years? I've never seen his face at any meetings or events in Puna before? I met him. I found him to be a warm and likable guy. I was told he had been put in charge of coqui eradication (really?). I was told he had been in charge of ICE eradication (really?). I went to his events. He said really nice things with enthusiasm. But I wasn't clear on what was said. Then I look at the massive campaign contributions and saw off island lawyers, lawyers, lawyers. Big money contractors. Big (very big) landowners from Oahu and from here and I got concerned.

So I have chosen the present underdog. I will not expect him to be perfect in everyone's eyes. I do expect him to take on the ways of doing business in Hawaii that serves the few and I expect him to serve the many. I know he is smart enough and experienced enough to do good work. I trust him.

If you want to learn more or get closer to the election contact me by clicking on my name. There are many meetings and get togethers coming up.