I left for greener pastures in 1984 and have been living in Seattle since 1985. Yes, Hawaii will always be home to me. Like most expatriates, I plan to retire in the islands. Annually, I return for a two-week vacation. Hawaii politics is mired in the good ol' boy system.
Business is in bed with government.
Their interest is not the good of the people, but the good of their own pocketbooks. Hawaii, with its present cast of officials and politicians, will be forever at the mercy of external economies and whims. The ol' boys will do fine but, for the rest of the population, it will be high unemployment, low wages, a high cost of living and weak public schools. Remember, a poorly educated population is the strongest ally to the politically entrenched. The supposed Bush lead in Florida was only 1,784 at that time.