Hawaii has a serious infection of corruption raging through our local government. We have always suspected this, and we continually rediscover this fact every time some federal investigation names well-placed or well-known individuals as having been at the center of some scandal.

Our reaction to local corruption has always been, at best, anemic. Legislators can always be trusted to come up with new laws and ethics training seminars as a check-marking exercise, not for the purpose of actually deterring corruption, but for the theater of washing our consciences once a crime has been committed. “They knew the rules and received the training” is a convenient way of saying, “Don’t expect me to hold other people accountable for being a wolf in a sheep’s clothing.”

The voting public often asks, “How can these things happen, and how can people with so much power do such things?” They are even further surprised to discover that, in many cases, prominent leaders who were engaged in corrupt schemes sold out for so little, and wonder why big players can be bought off for small bribes.

Hawaii reminds me of Ian Fleming’s 1955 novel “Moonraker,” where Britain is enthralled with Sir Hugo Drax, a successful WWII veteran and self-made multimillionaire who is self-financing a missile for the Royal Air Force that will protect the country against Soviet attack.

As a media darling, Drax is beloved by everyone, from common citizens to the Queen herself as a national hero, and even superspy James Bond suggests Drax should run for prime minister. But to Bond’s surprise, Drax has a problem in his personal life – he cheats when playing cards. This seemingly small personal flaw is in fact the tip of a bigger iceberg, in which it is later discovered that Drax has plans to destroy London with Soviet assistance.

Bond thinks to himself of Drax, “at whatever risk, he must cheat his way to victory. As for the possibility of detection, presumably he thought that he could bluster his way out of any corner. If he thought about it at all … Kleptomaniacs would try to steal more and more difficult objects. Sex maniacs would parade their importunities as if they were longing to be arrested. Pyromaniacs often made no attempt to avoid being linked to their fire-raising.”

And that, dear friends, is precisely the problem we have here in Hawaii. We enable and even reward cheats, while finding ourselves annoyed and inconvenienced by those calling for accountability or integrity. We let corrupt people get a free pass, we allow corrupt ideas to become fully manifested in our midst, and then when evil is exposed, we all want to play innocent and pretend we had nothing to do with that.

I’m going to say something that is going to make all of you very mad, but it needs to be said: As voters, we are all individually and collectively responsible for the rampant corruption here in Hawaii.

We are responsible because we have become too lazy and too comfortable with a monolithic establishment that can do anything it pleases here in the islands. We often court the favor of people we know are not only flawed, but who are mercenary in their belief systems, because the bottlenecks for power in Hawaii are obvious and the rewards for kowtowing are consistent. Nothing ever changes in Hawaii, because nothing ever changes in our hearts and minds.

And what can we say about the Democratic supermajority here in Hawaii that controls our entire government, from top to bottom, and has its tentacles in everything from public unions to nonprofit government partners and large corporations? Corruption is inevitable when there is no political competition and only one party makes the rules for everyone.

The fact that we, the voters, seem to have no problem being ruled by one party speaks volumes about our intellectual and moral negligence when it comes to choosing our government. We are too easily seduced by the status quo and that needs to change.

We need to stop the rock, paper, scissors way that we prejudicially vote for party, race, or deference to established power here in Hawaii. We also need to stop treating candidates and elected officials like celebrities and superstars.

We let corrupt people get a free pass, we allow corrupt ideas to become fully manifested in our midst, and then when evil is exposed, we all want to play innocent and pretend we had nothing to do with that.

Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and unconditional public support can lead to conceit that destroys our institutions. In my experience working at the Legislature, I have learned that the public’s “angels” are often the biggest demons, and that too many people become too easily attracted to the false sainthood of well-curated virtue signaling and social media.

I have also seen good people who lack experience and character be bestowed with too much power, far too fast, and those individuals now are part of the very problem in government that, purportedly, they sought to uproot. That is the greatest tragedy of all.

The firebrand orator Patrick Henry warned in 1788, “Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect everyone who approaches that jewel … Let my beloved Americans guard against that fatal lethargy that has pervaded the universe.” Want to stop corruption in Hawaii? Be a better voter, because our representatives are ultimately a reflection of who we really are.