I think it is most important for citizens (read "voters") to note that PUBLIC WORKER UNION DUES ARE MANDATORY, which amounts to a funding "PASS THROUGH" for the public worker unions to receive what are essentially TAX PAYER DOLLARS to fund their lobbying efforts. While it isn't always one big happy family singing Kumbaya around the camp fire, it is a deeply entrenched system benefiting the Democratic Party of Hawaii and the growing government bureaucracies hiding in plain sight.