Which Hawaiian Island is the most progressive Leftwing? (Honolulu, Hilo: appointed, 2014)
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I don't think ANY island is 'progressive leftwing' or 'republic conservative rightwing'.
These are labels that fit a VERY Washington DC orientation of the nation.
'Leftwing' seems to imply pro-gay, pro-marijuana approach to governing. 'Republic conservative rightwing' implies a very pro-gun, anti-abortion approach to governing. I know I'm taking those to the extremes, but that's basically what they both imply.
Hawaii isn't strongly pro-anything, or strongly anti-anything either. They vote Democratic across the islands, but only because they wouldn't fit as well with the rigid right-wing 'mission statement'. But they aren't 'leftwing' by any means either, as there isn't anything particularly progressive or radical or opinionated about anything 'leftist' either.
I don't think you'd find any islands to be 'left-wing' or 'right-wing', but you would find a very general theme across all of the islands that they definitely vote more for Democratic when it comes to Federal Politics at the national Washington DC level. Presidential races in particular. But, that doesn't make the Islands as 'progressive' or 'leftwing' though.
Hmmmmmmm.....
According to the map, I would say that Niʻihau would be the left wing, Hilo would be the right wing and there is a whole lot of good stuff in between!
I still haven't visited yet, but Hawaii to me comes across like a left wing state, on the same level as California, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts. It is one of the bluest states though I'm not sure if its because of how Honolulu dominates the state demographically. There are many smaller states like Maryland where a handful of very liberal urban jurisdictions control the entire state government and Congressional races and nobody else has a voice. I wonder if the other islands outside of Honolulu that are mostly rural are more conservative and Republican. Hawaii is always seen as a guaranteed Democrat vote for presidential elections as well as for Congress. I wonder if the Democrat elite in Honolulu engages in gerrymandering that silences the voices of the other islands the way the state government in Maryland does to the rural areas.
I also know that Hawaii has a lot of nanny state laws like the statewide plastic bag tax (that was only passed in one county in Maryland when I lived there and that is nonexistent and will always be nonexistent where I now live in West Virginia) and the cell phone driving ban which the guide book says is very heavily enforced, unlike in my state where the police rarely pull you over for talking on a cell phone only for texting. Gun laws in Hawaii also tend to be stricter than the national average, and the minimum wage is higher than the national average and the unions are very powerful. Hawaii also legalized gay marriage before it was forced to by the Obama appointed federal judges. All these are liberal Democrat characteristics. With the high Asian American population I woulda thought Hawaii would be socially conservative as evangelical Christianity is big among Asian Americans especially those of Korean descent. Asian and Hispanic votes were instrumental in defeating Proposition 8 in California for example.
It will be interesting what the election ads in Hawaii are like. Where I live, candidates from both parties try to out do each other in how pro-gun, pro-life, and anti-Obama they are. Many boast of their ratings and endorsements by the NRA, the Family Research Council, pro-life groups, etc and many from both parties very bluntly promise to "take the fight to Obama" and to "fight the EPA" and the "War on coal". The different is with Obamacare with the Democrats wanting to "fix" it while Republicans want to repeal it.
I still haven't visited yet, but Hawaii to me comes across like a left wing state, on the same level as California, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts. It is one of the bluest states though I'm not sure if its because of how Honolulu dominates the state demographically. There are many smaller states like Maryland where a handful of very liberal urban jurisdictions control the entire state government and Congressional races and nobody else has a voice. I wonder if the other islands outside of Honolulu that are mostly rural are more conservative and Republican. Hawaii is always seen as a guaranteed Democrat vote for presidential elections as well as for Congress. I wonder if the Democrat elite in Honolulu engages in gerrymandering that silences the voices of the other islands the way the state government in Maryland does to the rural areas.
I also know that Hawaii has a lot of nanny state laws like the statewide plastic bag tax (that was only passed in one county in Maryland when I lived there and that is nonexistent and will always be nonexistent where I now live in West Virginia) and the cell phone driving ban which the guide book says is very heavily enforced, unlike in my state where the police rarely pull you over for talking on a cell phone only for texting. Gun laws in Hawaii also tend to be stricter than the national average, and the minimum wage is higher than the national average and the unions are very powerful. Hawaii also legalized gay marriage before it was forced to by the Obama appointed federal judges. All these are liberal Democrat characteristics. With the high Asian American population I woulda thought Hawaii would be socially conservative as evangelical Christianity is big among Asian Americans especially those of Korean descent. Asian and Hispanic votes were instrumental in defeating Proposition 8 in California for example.
It will be interesting what the election ads in Hawaii are like. Where I live, candidates from both parties try to out do each other in how pro-gun, pro-life, and anti-Obama they are. Many boast of their ratings and endorsements by the NRA, the Family Research Council, pro-life groups, etc and many from both parties very bluntly promise to "take the fight to Obama" and to "fight the EPA" and the "War on coal". The different is with Obamacare with the Democrats wanting to "fix" it while Republicans want to repeal it.
Can the reality be out of your imagination?
No, I guess not. Because many things you assume are not what they are.
1. The mentioned "statewide plastic bag tax" is not exist.
2. Our minimum wage is not higher than the national average, just equal to the federal one.
3. Asian Americans are not united, a lot of us have zero interest in politics. Voter turnout rate is lowest in the nation. Therefore, it doesn't matter being conservative, liberal, or whatever since there's no vote.
For election ad, I see a lot of emotional dramas, very few on concrete policies.
Can the reality be out of your imagination?
No, I guess not. Because many things you assume are not what they are.
1. The mentioned "statewide plastic bag tax" is not exist.
2. Our minimum wage is not higher than the national average, just equal to the federal one.
3. Asian Americans are not united, a lot of us have zero interest in politics. Voter turnout rate is lowest in the nation. Therefore, it doesn't matter being conservative, liberal, or whatever since there's no vote.
For election ad, I see a lot of emotional dramas, very few on concrete policies.
Well unless this has been repealed it says all the counties in Hawaii have a plastic bag ban even stricter than just a tax.
Also this year, Hawaii did raise the minimum wage to $10.10 which is at the Obama dictated level far higher than the federal which is $7.25. Here in West Virginia its being raised to $8.25 over the course of 2-3 years and many people are against it since we know the cost will be passed down to consumers and it will make us less competitive than our neighbors in Virginia and Kentucky which is still $7.25.
I think any minimum wage above the federal level is liberal, and anything above $9 an hour is extremely liberal. The article does say the only other states following Obama's dictates and raising it to $10.10 are Connecticut and Maryland, which are dominated by expensive urban areas though this will be devastating for businesses and consumers in the rural counties. Having said this I do think its reasonable for Hawaii to be above the national average since the cost of living is above the national average, but in rural areas I think $7.25 is sufficient if not already too high.
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