FULL TEXT: ILWU Quits AFL-CIO Over Obamacare, Union Raids
ILWU: An injury to one of our corporate employers is an injury to all?
Abercrombie’s Refusal to Help Veterans Secure Home Loans Makes National News
Maui TEA Party Backs Hillsdale College Hawaiian Liberty Scholarship Fund
Global Warmers Can't do Simple Math, Claim Oahu is Sinking
SA: Around Oahu, sea levels are rising on average 1 to 2 mm (0.4 to 0.8 inches) per year, the researchers said. (Reality: 1mm = 0.04 in, duh!)
But Maui is experiencing a relative rise of 2 to 3 mm (0.8 to 1.2 inches) per year, perhaps due to other factors, including the bending of the sea floor under the weight of a growing Big Island. Variations in density of the upper levels of the ocean could be another factor, the researchers said. (Reality: 3mm = 0.12 in, double duh!)
Earlier studies show that the global average rate of sea level rise is about 3 mm (1.2 inches) per year, up from 2 mm over the past century. And the rate may accelerate in the coming decades, the scientists warn. (triple duh!)
read ... They Can't do Simple Math, but we are supposed to believe in Their Theory
DHHL Homestead suit going to mediation (again)
SA: For only the second time in 14 years, the state is scheduled to begin nonbinding mediation to try to resolve a class-action lawsuit over its failure to issue timely homestead awards to Native Hawaiians....
The only other time the state participated in settlement talks was in 2007, but that ended when the state pulled out without proposing a counteroffer to what the plaintiffs presented....
Representatives of the two sides said they agreed last week to begin mediation in January. They plan to hire mediator Keith Hunter to oversee the process.
The only potential obstacle is the question of who will pay the mediation expenses. Like almost everything else in this case, the two sides have filed opposing positions....
When the Star-Advertiser asked Attorney General David Louie in July about the possibility of settlement talks resuming, he said the two sides were far apart in 2007 and that that was still the case now....
In her court filing, Aina said the state presented no counteroffer in the previous talks because that would have been unproductive given what the state considered the plaintiffs' unrealistic demands....
Even if the two sides are able to reach a settlement, it would have to be approved by the court.
And the Legislature would have to authorize any appropriation to cover a state payout. A sizable one likely would get considerable scrutiny from legislators.
"I would hate to go through the process and end up with more money and time spent without producing something that the Legislature is going to agree to," Varady said.
read ... Mediation
Star-Adv: Tax Cut better than Minimum Wage Hike
SA: The movement didn't seem to have as much resonance in Hawaii, which is somewhat surprising: This state's minimum wage stands at the federal minimum, $7.25 an hour, despite the islands' high cost of living. There has been a push to raise the minimum wage in the state Legislature. Given the more recent improvement in the state's economy and the fact that there's been no raise for years, that proposal deserves more discussion next session.
The Star-Advertiser has preferred the approach of enacting the earned income tax credit, which would provide more targeted relief to working families, rather than raising the floor for everyone. One valid concern is that there could be a reduction in job opportunities for first-time, teenage employees needing part-time jobs for casual spending money.
However, the winnowing of certain low-skill job openings is the likely outcome, anyway, in the continuing trend of automation.
Meanwhile: How Hawaii Minimum Wage Workers Earn $24.24 per hour
read ... No Mention of Tip Credits
Work from Home? Maui Council Considers Hiking Your Taxes
MN: A bill to permit and regulate home-based businesses in Maui County will be reviewed Thursday morning by the Maui County Council's Planning Committee in the eighth-floor Council Chambers of the Kalana O Maui building.
According to the agenda for the 9 a.m. meeting, the measure would:
- Establish standards and restrictions for the regulation of home-based businesses. (ie: Ban Them)
- Set up such a business as a permitted use in residential, rural and agricultural zoned areas. (ie: Ban them)
- Classify home-based businesses as commercial property for property tax purposes. (Massive Tax Hike)
read ... Another Attack on Small Business
Kauai Council passes property tax hike
KGI: Kagawa and Councilman Mel Rapozo voted against the bill, which will bring tax relief to 57 percent of all taxpayers and 63 percent of homesteaders. On the flipside, the new system will raise property taxes for 43 percent of all taxpayers and 37 percent of homesteaders.
The average increase in taxes islandwide will be $387, and for homesteaders it will be $243. The average decrease islandwide will be $220, and $214 for homesteaders.
Rapozo had concerns with the unknown consequences of the bill.
“We’re finding out now the unintended consequences of the last property tax bill that we passed,” he said. Just now, people are receiving their tax bill and are finding out they have substantial increases, he said.
“This is in addition to that, so I’m really, really concerned,” said Rapozo, adding he was very aware the cap was causing equity problems, but removing it will cause more problems.
The new system will cause 110 properties to have an increase in taxes greater than $2,000, and 17 of those properties are in the homestead class, according to Hunt.
“Some unlucky soul is going to get a tax bill increase of $13, 575,” Rapozo said. “Can you imagine that person when they pick up that tax bill?”
Another taxpayer, in the homestead class, will have a $12,753 increase, he said.
read ... Tax Hike
Report predicts thinning ranks of caregivers
SA: "About half of older Hawaii residents believe they will be able to rely on their families to meet their needs when they need long-term care," said Gerry Silva, Hawaii state president for AARP, a senior advocacy group with 148,000 local members.
"But this confidence is likely to erode when it collides with the dramatically shrinking availability of family caregivers in the future."
Caregiving has consumed Enchanted Lakes resident Ken Takeya's life for seven years. His wife, Charlotte, 69, suffers from a form of dementia.
"It became my job. It was important enough because she is my wife and it's my responsibility," said Takeya, also 69.
It also grew to be too expensive to use a caregiving service at $25 an hour, he said, adding that eventually he started to make less money while working than he was paying out.
AARP: The Aging of the Baby Boom and the Growing Care Gap: A Look at Future Declines in the Availability of Family Caregivers
read ... Report predicts thinning ranks of caregivers
State program partners with businesses and offers support and training to help people with mental illness find employment
SA: Wayne Ogasawara, owner-manager of Mililani Agricultural Park, said acquaintances question his decision to hire people who have had mental health disorders to work on his farm, which he has done frequently over the years.
"They say, ‘Gee, aren't you afraid of them?' It's a very common concern among people," the plain-spoken farmer said. "I tell them, no, that's the least of my concerns. … I've never had a situation whereby I felt threatened or anything like that."
He cited a prized employee who has worked on his farm for years, whose fastidiousness is part of his condition and perfectly suits his job trimming nursery plants and pulling weeds.
"He does such a fantastic job," Ogasawara said. "Even the piles of weeds are laid out symmetrically. And he's happy as a lark."
Ewa resident Flora Patton, 48, a once-melancholy mother of two, also found new friends and a new path to mental health at the Waipahu Clubhouse. After a couple of temporary positions, she landed a permanent job as a classroom cleaner that helps support her boys, ages 7 and 9.
"Work makes me feel very good," Patton said. "I look forward to going to work every day. I will work there until I retire."
Grambs called the Clubhouses "a bright light" in the state's mental health system. They are inexpensive and effective, she said, helping people who might otherwise spiral downward get services and earn paychecks and respect. But she emphasized that they need to be restored to full staffing after earlier budget cuts and also need more business partners.
read ... Clubhouse
30 Years Later Demolished Disability Housing Rebuilt
SA: At one time Hale Mohalu was home to as many as 100 people with the disease once commonly referred to as leprosy, though occupancy dwindled as the facility fell into disrepair. After acquiring full control of the former federal property, the state announced in 1978 that it would close Hale Mohalu.
Thirteen remaining residents were given an option to move to Kalaupapa or to the more institutional setting at Leahi Hospital near Diamond Head. The decision was viewed in some respect as an affront to the dignity of patients who had long suffered at the hands of the government. Some residents refused to leave, and argued that the state had a duty to maintain the Pearl City care facility.
The state responded by cutting off services including water, electricity and medical care — a move that spurred volunteers to help the protesting residents. A five-year legal battle ensued.
A federal appellate court ruling in 1983 ended the standoff and allowed state enforcement officers to launch a predawn raid that resulted in 18 residents and supporters being arrested. In front of news cameras, Punikai‘a and Naia, the lone holdouts, were carried out. By the end of the day, Hale Mohalu was demolished by bulldozers.
read ... 30 Years Later
Gay Church Preaches the Usual Stuff, Makes News
KHON: "I think we all know God is love. But frankly, from his letter, I don't read a lot of love, either his or God's," said Rev. Liz Zivanov, rector at St. Clement's Episcopal Church in Makiki, in her Sunday morning sermon.
"Let me also remind the bishop and other conservative leaders that they do not represent all Christians. They do not. They are not better Christians than those of us who hold different beliefs," she told the congregation.
(Let me remind the liberals with their empty churches, that they don't represent anyone at all. Since they are pursuing goals to which they do not yet admit, they don't even represent themselves. But they do represent the only kind of religion which will be allowed if gay marriage becomes law.)
Most of the congregation applauded after Zivanov completed her sermon.
"Well, we have a lot of gay members in our church. And we have a lot of gay couples...."
What They Are Afraid You Will Read: Bishop Silva: "To Discriminate Regarding Marriage is NOT Unjust"
Same Style: Liz Zivanov bashes traditionalist Episcopalian over gay Bishop
read ... Dog Bites Man
QUICK HITS: