Amidst the chaos and white noise that came out of the presidential debate on Tuesday, there came crystalline moments of clarity and hints as to the future of our country. No matter whose side you were on, there aren’t many who would disagree that our country is at an unmistakable crossroads.

The decision we face as we decide who we will elect as the leader of the free world will not be a small one. It’s a “bigly” decision.

I was disappointed there was no audience in attendance at the debate and the fact there was no mic that could pick up the back-and-forth comments that persisted between both candidates at times in the debate. That kind of information is gold.

In all fairness, this debate was much more entertaining and hopeful than the last, at least to me.

The last debate ushered in a frantic upheaval of limited choices we have in candidates and I have been critical of the Democrats not having a primary and foregoing an allowance of the American people to choose who they want for their president through a primary. I have also been critical of the democrat’s decision to run an 81-year-old man for president, only to catapult him out of the race months before the election.

I wasn’t much happier about a 78-year-old former president as the other choice in the race from a GOP that no longer resembles its former self. Not to mention January 6th.

I would hope at this point we are not sticking to business as usual.

Nonetheless, we are where we are and that was on full display Tuesday night as the political winds have shifted, yet again. Now we are isolated with a choice between two candidates we know and are stuck with. For at least four more years.

A lot can happen in four years.

The gambit of issues facing our nation were tackled by both candidates and take your pick as to who you think won the great debate. I think the rest of the world is watching very closely and they were tuning into the foreign policy parts, I can guarantee.

We were able to see the difference between the two candidates on where they stand there.

It’s crystal clear there are canyons of difference in foreign, and domestic policies, and the reality of the world that we live in for that matter.

We still have to choose between our two candidates for the leader of the United States. Our choice will be important, as it always has been.

For Hawai’i, there will remain a distance between what is transpiring on the mainland and what is transpiring on these eight islands that were the last to join the union. The 50th state watches with the rest of the country, as our fate and theirs will be guided for four more years as a result of the outcome.

Unfortunately, we have arrived in an era of American politics where everything a candidate says has to be independently verified because it may be a load of crap. Perhaps that was always the case? That’s the thin line we have to tow in this day in age of “fake news” and “alternative facts.” That’s something that will have to be addressed and trust will have to be won back because it has waned.

The choice is ours ultimately, and we will make a choice one way or the other. I guess it comes down to who you believe, or trust.