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I was once a Democrat and I am glad I left the party to become a Republican. Read more

Meaningful week drives home concept of aloha

This was an important week of remembrance: the illegal overthrow of Hawaii and its observance on Jan. 17, while our marching, protesting, chanting and guarding of beloved Hawaii nei continues.

Ongoing assaults, misappropriations of deeply held concepts like aloha — used deplorably to “name” U.S war air exercises, as in “Sentry Aloha,” whose ultimate result wreaks havoc and suffering, or the Aloha ‘Aina Realtors award for folks who do explicitly what po’e Aloha ‘Aina -patriots protect — continue the erosion of our values and cultural principles.

The concept of aloha is the highest form of care, respect and love for not only one another, but for the land, for truth, for all that is sacred. It’s not just a word, it is a value that is practiced, revered and honored.

An Aloha ‘Aina is a patriot who protects the land, not sells it for the highest profit; kia‘i is guardian, not Sentry Aloha war machines.

Meleanna Meyer

Makiki

1 columnist on Mideast poor, 1 columnist spot on

I read with great fascination the juxtaposed “insights” in Sunday’s edition (“U.S.-Iran tension: Heavy histroy, perilous moves,” Star-Advertiser, Insights).

New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman plays his usual faux-elegant, faux-objective game as an observer of the Mideast scene. But you know what? He never uses the word “Israel” — at the end of every day, Tom’s first love — much less writes of the malign influence of Zionist zealots in their decades-long blood-lust to goad the U.S. into getting rid of Iran. I’d term that commission (of poor/deficient/agenda- driven “journalism”) by omission.

Columbia Professor Rashid Khalidi, on the other hand, displays a comprehensive sense of history and humanity that is true elegance and uber-pertinent to the colonial misadventures that the U.S. and its “entangled ally” obsessively pursue in waging murder, mayhem and war with the aim of making the Mideast safe for Israel … as long as it’s Americans and not Israelis who do the dying.

Robert H. Stiver

Pearl City

Democrats abuse power; Trump’s doing great

I was once a Democrat and I am glad I left the party to become a Republican.

President Donald Trump has done more for the blue-collar worker in three years than President Barack Obama did in his eight years. The Democratic Party has nothing to offer except more taxes and more government giveaways.

Their candidates are weak, and despise Trump because he isn’t part of the present swamp in Washington, D.C. They have done nothing but work on ways to impeach and remove Trump from office since he was elected.

The Democratic politicians are the ones abusing their power. I have never seen a party so despicable, and I commend Tulsi Gabbard for voting “present” because she knows the whole impeachment process is one-sided.

I will continue to stand by Trump in 2020. The economy has never been greater, and if a Democrat becomes president — economy, look out.

Robert Hensler

Kakaako

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