FOR over 25 years I have been writing letters to the editor and op-eds trying to HELP the People of the CNMI — so I’m not the enemy. But unfortunately, I have been literally talking to “blind, deaf & oblivious” Republicans leaders who just refuse to listen and their supporters are clearly being misled. I know some don’t like the fact that I am SMARTER than some of the Republicans and my qualifications are actually BETTER than most of the Republicans — for TRUE! But if you don’t like the “Ali in me and my braggadocio language” and the fact that I can back-it-up just like one of my mentors Muhammad Ali, you need stop hating and get-over-it because I write about the TRUTH and my I Told You So(s) are proof that I was RIGHT!
The head-rest of George Washington’s “Rising Sun” chair.
File photo
The problem now is that after 20 plus years I’m now preaching more to the choir (those who support what I write) when there is a real need for others to wake-up before 2022, which is why I keep appealing to readers to share my articles with others. My appeals are not for my personal intentions but to help educate as many voters as possible in the CNMI who don’t have the money to purchase a newspaper nor do they have the ability to be on the Internet and Social Media leaving them “blind, deaf & oblivious to much of our daily politics” and depending mostly on the Coconut Wire. So readers, please be more civic minded for 2022 and help to educate those who don’t know how “blind, deaf and oblivious” the Republicans have been.
It’s really all about the “mind-set of our leaders” and for me the Republicans in the CNMI for the past twenty years have proven their mind-set is about being “blind to what the people want which is a quality of life that is more like the mainland — deaf to what the people and the former Independents were saying in the public media for accountability and to STOP the corruption that has gotten so bad the Feds had to step in and for being oblivious to what needs to be done which is why our economic base has been shattered by the Republican Party that is also in demise in favor FOR the Democrats.”
I’m giving the following Economic Advice FREE of Charge as a qualified Economist because it is needed and even justifiable given our economic challenges. But just to show you how “blind, deaf and oblivious” the Republicans really are given their unwillingness to endorse the Earhart Monument that has been publicly promoted for over two years as I have seen ENOUGH: 1. The CNMI like most Tourist Destinations is driven by Tourism and Tourism today is driven by 1. attractions (events, historical & contemporary attractions) 2. access to the tourist destination & cost 3. the ability to promote the location as a Tourist Destination. One solution to address this economic criterion challenge for opening our economy is: 1. While we have some historical attractions their notoriety has diminished over time which means we need to “up-grade” our events & attractions. 2. Access to the CNMI is limited but is driven by “demand” which means we must “increase the demand” for tourists to come to the CNMI with new historic attractions like the Earhart Monument & the Cannabis Tourism Industry. 3. While MVA is spending literally millions over time to promote the CNMI it should be obvious now, even though it’s oblivious to Republicans, that the Amelia Earhart Monument in the only place in the Pacific where Marijuana is also Legal will fit the bill for addressing number 1 & 2. The Earhart Monument will also give the CNMI an “unlimited and even a perpetual amount of advertisement in the 10s of millions over time and at the international level for FREE — HELLER! I shouldn’t have to say any-more about the monument and legalization for reopening our economy and I can only pray the Republicans get it by now because the Democrats are already meeting with the Earhart Monument activists to try and get the Monument built.
But it seems Senate President Jude Hofschneider thinks We the People are “deaf, blind and oblivious” to his Social Media Post that We the People should “give IPI a break because they have already paid 204 million in taxes.” While everyone is entitled to their opinion and I’m sure citizens do appreciate what IPI did pay but this is BUSINESS and past taxes paid doesn’t give them a FREE-ride as I expected MORE & BETTER from a Senator. Is he actually “blind, deaf & oblivious” because he has to know IPI has been “sc#%&ing” the People at every opportunity they could get! I guess the Senator was blind, deaf and oblivious to the fact that they “lied on their taxes recently” too and they are literally cheating the People out of over one hundred million in taxes that is DUE on the “Credit Lines” issued which was MORE than One Billion that was the alleged “money laundering scheme” that the Feds are investigating. In fact, I’m confident that if you add up everything that IPI already owes the People of the CNMI (ALL the taxes including the taxes on 1Billion in credit-lines, Community Chest & License Fees) it will be far MORE than the 204 million they already paid. So please stop trying to mislead the People Senator and be careful because Social Media is a two-edged sword like I warned, especially when you are caught fighting the “wrong-fight FOR IPI” over working FOR the People.
The Cannabis Commission still faces challenges when WE need this industry to help with re-opening our economy. I’m glad they do plan to implement the “Cannabis Tracking System” that I had in the draft Bill, but it won’t be worth one-penny nor needed if the CNMI can’t secure a Laboratory. I warned and provided solutions for “the funding & the Laboratory challenges” over SIX YEARS ago when Guam hit the SAME Laboratory Brick-wall with their Legalization. If they had listened the Industry would be up-and-running by now but the Governor and his Republican Crew were “BLIND” to virtually all the things I suggested and the needs of the Cannabis Commission. It’s obvious they threw most of my recommendations in the trash leaving them “DEAF” to most of the recommendations I made which resulted in them being totally “OBLIVIOUS” to what they really need to be doing to make the Cannabis Tourism Industry a reality. They are still making amendments that should have been part of the original Bill which is more PROOF of the blindness, deafness and obliviousness of the Republicans. There are more examples but I just wonder how much more of this “blind, deaf and oblivious leadership” are voters going to allow???
Finally, I know there isn’t a single elected official on the Hill with an Economics Degree and the Governor won’t listen to me even though I have a BA in Economics but his recent request to the public for economic ideas proves how “blind, deaf & oblivious he really is.” FYI Governor, WE the People have the Covenant with the 702 & 902 Talks that were meant to HELP the CNMI, especially with “technical assistance” but it’s obvious the Governor would rather gaslight-us-up on reopening our economy than do some work FOR the people. The Covenant provides the CNMI with the ability to get some of America’s Top Economists and Tourism Experts to come and help us but the Governor was so “blind, deaf and oblivious” to using our intended support system in the Covenant that he ends up gaslighting the reopening of our economy instead of implementing a real plan because we still don’t have a real plan for reopening our economy. This “blind, deaf and obliviousness” will continue until voters’ wake-up and get rid of this group of Republicans — it’s really that simple.
To be continued: One People One Direction.
The writer is a retired teacher, former CNMI Board of Education Member, James Madison Fellow (U.S. Constitutional Scholar), a Fulbright-Hays & Humanities Scholar who resides in Kagman III.
