|
Under the Sun Cynthia Oi |
Searching for hope
during troubled times
A Pennsylvania resident last month complained to me that she and her neighbors are tired of being "Bush-whacked" as the Republican candidate seems to pop up in her city almost every week to campaign. "Enough, already," she e-mailed.Well, at least you get to see the candidates live and in person, I replied. We, the million or so citizens living on specks of islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean far, far away from the continent, run too deep below the radar to draw any of the hiss and bawl of presidential politics. And with a scant four electoral votes that usually slide to the Democrats, there's really no reason to spend time or money in Hawaii.
That was then. Now, with polls showing John Kerry and George Bush in a near tie here, those four little votes have suddenly gained some respect. There's speculation that Hawaii could decide who will be the next leader of the free world.
Be that as it may, it surprised me that political experts were startled to find Hawaii could be as divided as the rest of the country.
Part of this can be laid on the change in the state's population as new people move to the islands and younger residents and retirees move away and on the dilution of a political culture bred from plantation days. Just as fast-food and clothing chains have recast Hawaii's retail contours, so has time shifted island attitudes and notions.
The Bush-Kerry split in Hawaii echoes what the zillions of polls have shown in the past few weeks. The general assumption is that the fissure between Kerry and Bush supporters is unchanging. I'm sure there are hard-core disciples on both sides, but I suspect there are also a whole bunch of sliders, voters who don't like Bush, but aren't sure they like Kerry and vice-versa.
They've seen what Bush is all about, but cannot predict how Kerry will govern. The horrible war in Iraq, the uncertainty and enduring fear seeded by 9/11 have intensified the importance of their vote and no one wants to make a bad choice.
Whether he acknowledges it or not, Bush -- if re-elected -- will remain engulfed in a guerrilla war of his own making. As the new president, so will Kerry. Americans will have to brace themselves for an extended slog that may not result in a democratic Iraqi society.
By this time next week, this long campaign season will be over -- or not. If the election is close, legal challenges over provisional and absentee ballots, voting machines, poll watchers and even hanging chads could draw out the election for weeks, maybe months.
If that happens, the rift in the nation will grow wider and the remnants of unity Americans tasted so sweetly after the terrorist attacks will further dissipate. In dark moments, I doubt that either man could heal a greater breach, but this country has survived war, scandal, civil strife and bad presidents. There will be better days.