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“Get Ready”
October 2013

Senior editor David Thompson cataloged a few of the worst-case scenarios that might befall Honolulu, including hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis and nuclear attacks.
 

What saddened me most about this article was that everyone seems to be out there on their own. It’s “me” against “them.” Whatever happened to banding together for the common good, where everyone worked together to overcome a disaster crisis, and people helped each other out? Then the wayward individual would not pose a threat, but could be invited in to help overcome the disaster. “A house divided against itself cannot stand,” said Abraham Lincoln.

—Rich Maggiani | Essex, VT.

“Rep. Jo Jordan: Why I Voted Against the Marriage Equality Bill”
November 2013

One of the most commented-on stories this past month appeared on our website. Digital web producer Diane Lee interviewed Rep. Jo Jordan, an openly gay state legislator who voted against the marriage equality bill during the recent special session. The Q&A garnered almost 300 comments.
 

I admire Representative Jordan’s courage and willingness to make decisions based on her concerns rather than her sexuality. It’s very sad to see the hateful comments that abound because she chose integrity over just going with the flow. I will assume that most of the posts are from Mainland people who have no concept of Hawaii or its culture. So I will take this opportunity to inform you that Ms. Jordan did not simply vote “against” her people. She had a problem with the bill and the way it was written and PRIOR to the second vote she offered amendments to shore up what she saw as problems. She was ignored by the speaker, who had his own agenda in mind. Before you spew your hate, find out the facts.
—Marsha Krieger | Hilo, Hawaii
 

Ashamed to have voted for Jo Jordan, who I thought would be a leader for a community that is often discriminated against, shown prejudice on a daily basis, and made to live their lives in shame for being who they are. The Waianae LGBT community has a representative who cannot make up her mind if she should stand up for equal rights. The bill wasn’t asking for special privileges, it was a bill for equality. And Jo Jordan doesn’t believe everyone should be equal.
—Taffy Tuck-Ashton | Waianae, Hawaii
 

If she had constitutional, legal or civil-rights concerns, she should have worked to address them in the bill draft once the special session was announced; she did not. What are the specific concerns that she had regarding SB1? Instead of making a case that there were such valid issues, she instead subjected us to rambling incoherence, and failed utterly to defend her lack of vision or leadership. The cause of equality in Hawaii has been moved forward by countless women and men throughout the years, ranging from the drag queens and queer kids at Stonewall, to Harvey Milk, to Tammy Baldwin, and to every person who testified before the Hawaii Legislature. When the roll of those who stood up for justice is called, Jo Jordan will be recorded as having said, “I’ll get back to you.”
—Lee Bolin | San Diego, Calif.
 

( Ahana koko lele )

In our November From Our Files, the item on the first pilots to fly nonstop from California to Oahu in 1927 should have clarified that they were the first civilian pilots. The Army made the first official flight 16 days earlier. Thanks to Ruth Freedman for catching the error.