Today We Vote

A  L  O  H  A !

I love Hawaii!

Election signs for:

A Hapa-Haole Appearing local guy link

 Marshall

link

Hawaiian: 

Brickwood 

[ my State Senator ]

Chinese-American: 

[ by way of Malaysia]  

Djou

Local Ethnic-Japanese American: 

Takai

ALL on a popular 

local family operated 

Chinese Restaurant!

THAT'S HAWAII STYLE-

If it is Election Day

near You:

V O T E !

People died for this.

In wars over seas,

in civil rights actions

 at home.

The first western democracy

in ancient Greece

was a direct 

meet-argue-vote

situation.

Not everyone participated

in the discussion,

or the voting

YET.

But the basic idea

was good.

As the Vikings,

the  Iroquois,

and other First Nations

 knew as well.

Town Meetings today,

even family meetings,

show the survival of this

basic impulse

to have a say

in the things that effect

our lives;

To disagree, yet cooperate.

Thanks for voting

for our Comfort Spiral

by visiting here.

            Warmly, cloudia

Elections Lasting Longer than Four Hours

A   L   O   H   A  !

"  The time for promises 

is past. "

Charles Edison

" There the traveler

 meets, aghast,
Sheeted memories

 of the past- "

Edgar Allan Poe

" The people 

who cast the votes 

don't decide

 an election,

 the people 

who count the votes 

do. "

Joseph Stalin

" A politician 

thinks of the next 

election. 

 

A statesman, 

of the next 

generation. "

James Freeman Clark

 

 

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                                                                    Thanks for visiting!
                                           Warmly, cloudia                                                                  

Finally Here

E l e c t i o n    D a y

Aloha!

After eight years our beloved islands will soon have a new governor.

“The vote is the most powerful instrument  ever devised by man  for breaking down injustice  and destroying the terrible walls  which imprison men  because they are different from other men.”

Lyndon B. Johnson

In a few short hours voting will end.

Tonight we will know.

“Individual rights are not subject to a public vote;  a majority has no right to vote away the rights  of a minority;  the political function of rights is precisely  to protect minorities  from oppression by majorities  (and the smallest minority on earth is the individual).”

Ayn Rand

We need a new day

a fresh start.

Have YOU voted, American friends?

After all the attack ads based on a morsel of truth

shouting every moment

 on all media,

after the high passions,

there will be

Quiet.

And we come together, fellow citizens all.

Yeah, RIGHT!

The battle for what is Pono (right) will continue. . . 

"One of the greatest blessings that the United States could receive. . .

a great pause in her world of affairs. . .

We should be hushed and silent,

and we should have the opportunity to learn

what other people think."

John Cage

Who Judges?

Which is the best religion?

Is there a judge up there keeping score?

"Whatever makes you more compassionate,

more sensible,

more detached, more loving,

more humanitarian, more responsive,

more ethical.

The religion that will do that for you is the best religion."


Dalai Lama via my pal Bishop Randolph Sykes

"See how nature -

trees, flowers, grass -

grows in silence;

see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence...

we need silence to be able to touch souls."


Mother Teresa

"Creativity is contagious.

Pass it on."


-Albert Einstein.

Diamond Head Light, home of the Coast Guard Commandant





"A sensible man will remember

that the eyes may be confused in two ways -

by a change from light to darkness or from darkness to light;

and he will recognize that the same thing happens to the soul."

Plato



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"There are two kinds of light -

the glow that illumines, and the glare that obscures. "


James Thurber

The Land of ALOHA is a little less worthy of the name today.

The head of our local Republican Party sent around a letter to pastors (not Buddhist priests, rabbis, or Muslim clerics, not to mention Shinto, Taoist....well, you get the idea.)

-Anyway, this political operative advised the pastors as to who is and who isn't righteous in the upcoming elections! He urges them to Jesus triumphalism and even topped Keith Olbermann's Worst Person In The World:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

I couldn't rest until I crafted one of my Letters To The Editor of a local paper. Here are excerpts from that letter:

Aloha Neighbors;

According to my dictionary, ‘omniscience’ is the capacity to know EVERYTHING. After reading this weeks MIDWEEK, I thought how lucky our community is to have omniscient folks among us right here on Oahu.

But something didn't feel right.

My deeply held faith teaches me that only God is omniscient and omnipotent, and that it is not (hallelujah!) my job to judge my neighbors; just to love them and work with them for our common good.

When we have local officials and ministers who confidently declare certain candidates “unrighteous” and others “righteous;” When some claim our Hawaii for Jesus, rather than respecting the freedom and pluralism that make our Islands unique in the world, Well, I wonder what bible they are smoking.

I call on my neighbors of ALL faiths, those honestly seeking the truth, and those who are agnostic, to join our majority of citizen patriots! Let’s vote for the ones who will play nice with everybody. Isn’t that what you learned in Sunday school (or Buddhist camp, or Synagogue, Mosque, or Temple)?

Respectfully, Cloudia Charters,
Honolulu

Thanks so much for visiting today. Thoughts?

Bitter Sweet

At Indianapolis rally from which Obama returned to Honolulu for his final visit with dear "Toots."
courtesy of Dan Axler













Ted Trimmer Photo (middle)

Just so we can vote.

Young Barry Obama's Young Street between his home and school. (below)

Madelyn Payne Dunham

1922 - 2008

"From clerk to vice president of Bank of Hawaii (1970); The Tutu (grandmother) called 'Toot' who largely raised young Barry (Barak) Obama."

[She] "was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength and humility. She was the person who encouraged and allowed us to take chances. She ... left this world with the knowledge that her impact on all of us was meaningful and enduring," said Obama and his sister, Honolulu teacher Maya Soetoro-Ng, in a statement yesterday.

Victorious Roman generals rode through the imperial city amidst a great public celebration called a "triumph." To remind them of the passing nature of all earthly glory, and to keep them grounded, someone rode in the chariot just behind them, every so often whispering in their ear: "This too shall pass." Let's celebrate this election day by honoring the hopes and sacrifices of those who came before us. Let's honor our children; and their children too with our vote. For today, history is being made; even as those who helped bring it about take their leave . . .

Warm ALOHA to you this day! Cloudia