Vote with brains, vote for Rubio
Vote with brains, vote for Rubio
If Ronald Reagan were alive today, whom do you think he would support for president? Reagan famously said that he would back the most conservative candidate who could win.
Donald Trump currently leads the pack among Republicans. But he is not a true conservative, because he favors socialized medicine, which would cost $28 trillion to fund. Even if we confiscate the entire wealth of the hated 1 percent, it would not be enough. There will be an astronomical tax increase for the 52 percent of the population who constitute the tax paying middle class, since 47 percent pay little or no taxes.
Trump has successfully tapped into the unbridled anger of voters frustrated by the failed policies of President Obama. But is he electable? The recent Gallup poll in January showed that Trump has an unfavorable rating with 60 percent of Americans. This is not surprising, considering that Trump has insulted his rivals, prisoners of war, unattractive women, Muslims, Mexicans, the Pope and former President George W. Bush.
If Trump wins the Republican nomination, Democrats will dance with glee as they look forward to a 60 percent landslide.
In that same Gallup poll, Hillary Clinton has an unfavorable rating of 52 percent, Ted Cruz 37 percent and Marco Rubio 33 percent. Rubio attracts conservatives, Hispanics, young people, minorities and independents. In contrast, Cruz is too extreme for the independent voters. With the charisma of John Kennedy and the eloquence of Ronald Reagan, Marco Rubio is easily the most electable candidate.
Hopefully, Hawaii Republicans will vote with their brains rather than with their emotions when they caucus on March 8.
Ben K. Azman
Lahaina
Dispensary issue just a money grab
I saw the “Dispensary game for the select few” letter from Andrea Tischler, published on Feb. 19. Spot on.
I also knew this was another money grab. There is nothing wrong with the present method of growing your own. Only the greed of some doctors was questionable in paying for their prescription for the permit. The permit was $25, if I recall correctly. The doctor’s prescription ran up to $250 in one case I’m familiar with. One doctor, now deceased, was only $50, because he was a pioneer in the “grow your own” permitting process.
This dispensary “can of worms” is going to cause more problems than the program already in place. Why “fix it” if it ain’t broke? Money, follow the money. Auwe!
Dennis L. Lawson
Kalaoa
Regulate big companies to save planet
As I have said in the past, if we don’t take care of our planet and stop polluting it, we will not have a place to live. As it is now, even the North and South poles are losing ice. Where will the animals that survive on this polar ice go?
Even our islands have seen the effects of the changing tides and the erosion of the land. Many places on Oahu are losing ground due to high surf. They a re-fighting a losing battle and no amount of replacing the supports for the roadways will prevent the forces of nature from taking it away again.
Why waste taxpayers’ money and the workers’ time and energy if we don’t stop the big companies now? Some may think it’s just nature and the normal way of the universe. This may be true to some extent but mankind certainly is helping to destroy out planet even faster than Mother Nature intended.
Colleen Miyose-Wallis
Kailua-Kona
Name calling not needed in no kill debate
It has been rewarding to see so many more groups and people on our island who are concerned with animal welfare and overpopulation. As we all know, spay/neutering is the answer to overpopulation. What we all might not know is that no-kill shelters still have to deal with abused, unwanted animals, including those too hurt and sick to survive and those made too vicious to retrain.
I see progress in the fostering of animals, for reasons of space and healing, and greater options for finding forever homes. What I also see are problems that are specific to this island. As an example, ask the folks at stophawaiidogabuse.com why there’s a need for radio ads targeting hunters. If you’re not aware of the specific problems here, then you haven’t had the years of experience trying to deal with those problems.
I have trained dogs who have ended up in a no-kill shelter in Idaho. Some of them must be fed and housed for many months until they are able to trust and live as pets. It has taken that shelter years to educate and reach out to all parts of the community, in order to reach the tipping point of spay/neutering, when there are, finally, the space and resources to care for those animals still needing help.
So, please, stop with the name calling: Educate yourselves and the community as to why there are more animals than homes for them on the Big Island, as well as stopping the abuse by people who think that they own animals.
Susan L Rhymes
Kailua-Kona