October 15, 2009 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Thursday, October 15, 2009

October 15, 2009 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 12:04 PM :: 8336 Views

HGEA, state reach furlough agreement: 42 days over 2 years

The HGEA will hold ratification vote on Thursday, Friday and Monday. The union hopes to announce the results on Monday evening.

Counties would have the option to order up to 18 furlough days this fiscal year and 24 furlough days next fiscal year for county workers represented by the union. County mayors, however, have said they will likely not need to call for furloughs until next fiscal year.

Under the proposed contract, the Lingle administration would not pay any additional costs for health care for state workers, so state workers will have to cover a 23.4 percent increase in premiums in effect since July.

Counties would continue to cover 60 percent of county worker health care costs this fiscal year — absorbing most of the premium increase — but may negotiate supplemental agreements with the union next fiscal year if costs rise substantially.

Union leaders told members they would pursue the issue of health care costs with the state Legislature next session.

SB: HGEA deal struck

Hawaii students' math improves but still below U.S. average

"While there is still work to be done, it is evident that standards-based learning in the classroom is making a difference as demonstrated by the continued growth in Hawaii's NAEP scores in mathematics," Hamamoto said in a news release.

(If 'standards-based learning' does this, imagine what would happen if DoE had a curriculum!)

SB: Hawaii's public students improve scores in math

Whitewash Panel's report recommends 7 areas for DOE to improve

School officials need to focus on teacher development (hire more consultants), fostering environments where staff members collaborate to improve teaching (more program days but no curriculum), and allowing students to take control of their own education (less discipline, more chaos), according to a new report on the Department of Education's performance standards.

(Disruptive students are already in control of many DoE classrooms. That's part of the problem, not the solution...but it gets funnier....)

The same report found the Department of Education also met 11 of 12 recommendations in a review of the 2006 performance standards.

(So these 1960s throwback feel-good "reformers" are already carrying out 11/12 of their program, producing the disaster that is the DoE.)

TV ad explains UH faculty union's rejection of contract

"When the University of Hawaii administration takes the wrong direction for higher education, our students pay the price," a narrator says.

The spot continues noting that UH faculty have offered solutions, advocated for students and maintained high educational standards.

"And although many of our ideas were rejected, our faculty stand united," the narrator says. "We won't give up on higher education. Not now. Not ever."

Shapiro: Congressional race intriguing contest

Case and Hanabusa have both been at the top of the class in their generation of Democratic lawmakers, and the articulate Djou has been one of the few local Republicans to succeed in recent years. That's exactly what we need more of in Hawai'i politics — real choices among our best and brightest for our highest offices.

(Wow! A column which actually treats the candidates equally instead of acting like Djou doesn't exist? No. For Shapiro, after several "intriguing" paragraphs of Case vs Hanabusa, the big Djou question ends up being "Rush Limbaugh", sigh...proving once again that liberals are obsessed with their own psychoses and those psychoses shape Hawaii print media. Shapiro even writes this...)

Hanabusa led the ouster of former Attorney General Margery Bronster in the middle of her Bishop Estate investigation and has drawn questions about her close ties to Ko Olina developer Jeff Stone, for whom she engineered a $75 million tax break for an aquarium that turned out to be nonexistent.

(...without mentioning that Djou was one of only two Legislators who challenged the Ko Olina deal.)

Pro-Abortion EMILY's List Endorses Colleen Hanabusa in Hawaii's First Congressional District

Hard-core pro-Abortion group gives early support to Hanabusa in Dem. Primary for Congress.

ADV: State elections office resolution is critical

a potential train wreck looms, with the upheaval brewing in the state Office of Elections. The state Elections Commission, witnessing a hail of criticism about Chief Elections Officer Kevin Cronin, this week decided to send Cronin a letter expressing its "displeasure."

Surely there needs to be more action than that if a disastrous election cycle is to be averted next fall. The commission, which hired Cronin, needs to take a hard look at their options and come up with a plan to close the gaps in election planning in time for next fall.

(After Cronin is fired who will replace him?)

Foreclosures climbing in Hawaii

There were 969 filings statewide last month, which was a 63 percent rise from 594 filings in the same month last year and close to the record of 990 set in July, according to a report from real estate research firm RealtyTrac.

National: Foreclosures: 'Worst three months of all time'... (Obamanomics in action)

Dust still settling on go!, Mokulele deal

In the near future, the new carrier anticipates making roughly 60 flights a day in an effort to reduce the number of empty seats that had plagued go! and Mokulele. Previously, the two carriers were operating 144 daily flights, or 50 for go! and 84 for Mokulele.

(This looks more like Mesa/Go! bought out Republic's Mokulele and shut it down.)

OHA cronies' Intervention denied again in hotel case

There is a good chance Hall will appeal the denials of intervention to 2nd Circuit Court, so it could be some time before Pyramid Project Management will be in a position to apply for building permits on behalf of the Grand Wailea Resort Hotel & Spa.

Hawaii Supreme Court To Review Turtle Bay EIS Case

Is A Change In "Context," But Not The Project, Enough To Trigger Supplemental EIS?

Hawaii Supreme Court hears Arguments In Ala Loop Homeowners Appeal: Are State Zoning Laws "Environmental" Statutes? (Bigger than Superferry?)

This case has not garnered the broad public interest of the Superferry litigation, but the case could be more important. The court is considering whether Haw. Rev. Stat. § 205-1 et seq., gives rise to a private right of action. The core issue in the appeal is whether Hawaii's statewide zoning laws are "laws relating to environmental quality" which may be privately enforced, or whether they are classic Euclidean zoning laws which can't. The Hawaii Constitution (art. XI, § 9) provides that "any person may enforce" the "right to a clean and healthful environment, as defined by law relating to environmental quality, including control of pollution and conservation, protection and enhancement of natural resources."

The case involves a "new century charter school" located in the County of Hawaii (Big Island) . The school sought to begin operations on land classified (zoned) as agriculture on the island of Hawaii. Such uses are not normally allowed in the Ag zone. The school's neighbors, the Ala Loop Homeowners, asserted the school needed a special permit pursuant to Haw. Rev. Stat. § 205-6, which allows a county planning commission to permit certain "unusual and reasonable uses" within an agricultural or rural district, despite the land not being zoned for such use. The County filed a declaratory action, seeking confirmation the school was exempt under state law from any special permit requirement. The trial court permanently enjoined the school.

LINK: Video of live arguments

Hawaiian Electric signs with biodiesel supplier

HECO announced Wednesday that it has signed an agreement with a subsidiary of Iowa-based Renewable Energy Group to supply 400,000 gallons of biodiesel for testing at the new plant.

(Plough the plains for soybeans. Drive up the price of basic foodstuffs for the poor. Just so enviros will feeel goood.)

Kauai power deal forged

New plant will use sugar cane, wood to produce electricity.

Burning wood? This is progress?

Global Cooling: National weather outlook sees cool, dry winter in Hawaii

BBC: What happened to global warming?

Surge: Hawaii's Sen. Inouye sides with McChrystal on Afghanistan

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, just back from Afghanistan and Pakistan, said yesterday that he backs the strategy there advocated by the top U.S. ground commander, but is awaiting "specific recommendations" from the military and White House before concluding for himself the number of troops needed for the job.

SB: Inouye makes strong case

Politico: Daniel Inouye embraces Stanley McChrystal strategy

Inouye: "Just weeks ago, for example, Inouye told POLITICO: “Alexander the Great tried to do something there and he got thrown out. The Russians got thrown out. The British got thrown out, and the Germans before that went in and left right away. For some reason, Afghanistan always has succeeded in getting people out of there.”

Is he taking history lessons from Abercrombie? This shows how ignorance is repeated through the echo chamber. The Germans were never in Afghanistan before they joined the current NATO operations. And Alexander defeated everybody in and around Afghanistan. He died of natural causes on the way back to Greece in triumph. Greek-derived kingdoms ruled Afghanistan for the next 300 years.