NYT/CBS Poll: Ige 41%-Aiona 35%
2013: Ige's TAT Raid Set Up County GE Tax Hike
Video: Manny Pacquiao endorses Duke Aiona
Aiona: Cut taxes to make Hawaii more affordable
Djou Launches New TV Ad
2013: Ige's TAT Raid Set Up County GE Tax Hike
VIDEO: Cam Cavasso Launches TV Ads
Colleges Refuse to Renew Institutes That Spread Chinese Government Propaganda
UHERO: PV Growth in Hawaii?
Absentee Ballots Hit Mailboxes
SA: Across the state, people are already marking their ballots and mailing them in.
The selection of a new governor, U.S. senator and Hawaii congressional delegation is underway.
Neighbor island county clerks sent out absentee ballots last week, and Glen Takahashi, Honolulu elections administrator, reports that 127,417 Honolulu ballots go out Tuesday and Wednesday.
That is important because people who vote by mail love to vote. Takahashi reports that 82.7 percent of Honolulu absentee voters returned their ballots.
read ... Next Week
Kaiser, HPH in partnership talks with Maui hospitals
MN: Kaiser Permanente Hawaii said it is in partnership talks with Maui Memorial Medical Center and Kula Hospital in an effort to help the struggling public hospitals stay afloat.
Lawmakers shelved legislation earlier this year that would've allowed the Maui and Kula hospitals -- part of the Hawaii Health Systems Corp. -- to partner or be purchased by a private entity.
If an agreement is reached and legislation allowing a partnership is passed, Kaiser said it is committed to keeping the hospitals open for the entire Maui community, both Kaiser and non-Kaiser members.
Maui Memorial also is in similar discussions with Hawaii Pacific Health -- operator of the Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children, Pali Momi Medical Center and Straub Clinic & Hospital on Oahu.
read ... Bye bye HGEA
Maui Memorial Deficit to Quadruple, Thanks to HGEA, UPW Contracts
SA: The Wailuku hospital, facing an $11 million deficit in 2015, is anticipating "significant" shortfalls in the upcoming years, prompting it to start negotiations with Kaiser Permanente Hawaii ... Maui Memorial projects its deficit to be $40.1 million for 2016 and $46.5 million in 2017.
"It gets way worse in 2016 and 2017. All of a sudden as we look to 2016 and 2017, revenues aren't projected to increase at all, then you have continued inflation and then also it appears there's going to be additional raises (for workers)," said Maui Memorial CEO Wesley Lo, adding that the hospital recently was informed that its employee fringe benefit rates will increase significantly starting in 2016.
"The amount of losses over the next three to five years, I don't even know what you would do to stem those losses," he added. "At (a certain) point in time, what do you cut? (If) you start cutting services, you start cutting revenue."
read ... Maui Memorial in talks with 2 possible partners
Aiona, Hannemann: Abolish the LUC
WHT: Two of the three gubernatorial candidates at a forum Monday evening said they would like to reconsider the state’s Land Use Commission.
Republican Duke Aiona and Independent Mufi Hannemann both mentioned the commission during the forum at Kealakehe High School in response to a question about areas of state government they believed could be delegated to the counties. About 200 people attended the forum.
“Right now we have a state land use commission that sets the classification at the very top,” Aiona said. “I look at that as another layer of bureaucracy (that) causes more delay.” He said home rule could be done more effectively with county residents and officials developing their county, deciding where they want to develop, where the barriers should be and where the restrictions should be.
Hannemann said he would consider a move to eliminate the commission. The commission rules on land use classifications for larger parcels of land.
read ... Abolish
Teachers Union Drops $100K+ to Buy Ige
PR: A National Education Association super PAC has made a six-figure television advertising buy in Hawaii criticizing former Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona for the teacher furloughs under the Lingle administration.
The ad, "Enough," is meant to ensure that voters do not forget the tumult surrounding teacher furloughs, including a sit-in by parents and students in Gov. Linda Lingle's office.
Aiona, the Republican candidate for governor, has said that Lingle made the final decisions on public policy. He has also said that, unlike Lingle, he would have met with the protesting parents if he was governor at the time.
The independent spending by the NEA, the parent union of the Hawaii State Teachers Association, which has endorsed state Sen. David Ige...
Reality: Ige Renews Oath of Fealty to HSTA, Ige's Dirty Deal With HSTA: Phony 'Procedural Mixup' Dooms Key Education Measures, Quid pro Quo? HSTA Endorses Ige for Governor
read ... `Enough'
GOP Voter Registration Push Does Not Materialize
SA: Hawaii Republicans and religious conservatives wanted to significantly increase voter registration for the November elections to potentially help Republican candidates in a state dominated politically by Democrats, but the drive has fallen flat.
The state Office of Elections said Monday that voter registration is at 706,890, a marginal, 0.17 percent increase from the 705,668 registered in 2012 and a 2.3 percent bump from 690,748 in 2010.
Pat Saiki, chairwoman of the Hawaii Republican Party, had said at the party's state convention in May that the GOP wanted to register 25,000 new Republican voters. The drive was part of her "back to basics" message to build up the minority party.
Miriam Hellreich, the state's Republican National Committeewoman, was even more candid, cautioning that Republican candidates could not win in Hawaii with the existing pool of voters.
While the GOP did not reach its voter registration target, the party does believe it has engaged potential Republican voters. "When you take the combined results of our aggressive grassroots efforts though phone-banking, canvassing and community outreach, we have substantially surpassed that benchmark by registering new voters and reengaging Republicans who previously felt like they did not have a voice in our government," Saiki said in a statement....
Political analysts are skeptical that voter turnout in November will match the 55.8 percent that voted in 2010, the most recent gubernatorial election. Turnout was a record low 52.7 percent for a general election in 2006.
read ... Voter Registration
Voter Registration up 9% in Decade--Lags Population Growth
- 2014/706,890
- 2012/705,668
- 2010/690,748
- 2008/691,356
- 2006/662,728
- 2004/647,238
Link: Hawaii population growth 2000-10 = 12.3%
read ... 9% Growth
Restaurant Assoc Endorses Djou
Former Congressman Charles K. Djou issued the following statement on the National Restaurant Association backing his congressional campaign:
"I am honored to earn the support of our community's hard working restaurateurs," stated Djou. "The Hawaii restaurant industry is one of our community's largest employers and often the first job for so many of Hawaii's residents. If elected to Congress, I look forward to working hard to lower the cost of living and make it easier for all small businesses in Hawaii, including the restaurant community and their employees, to grow and thrive."
Hawaii GMO case heads for court Oct 23
CP: Opponents of the GMO ban have asked a federal judge to invalidate the ordinance because the county government cannot override rules and laws enacted by federal and state agencies.
The County of Hawaii and supporters of the ordinance counter that existing regulations don’t address their concerns about genetically engineered crops cross-pollinating with conventional and organic plants and thus don’t preclude the county government from trying to prevent that possibility.
The two sides have submitted court briefs buttressing their positions and are scheduled to appear Oct. 23 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barry Kurren for oral arguments.
The case is being watched closely by biotech proponents and critics since it could have implications for other litigation over GMOs, such as a possible lawsuit against a similar ban in Oregon’s Jackson County.
Farm and biotech groups that filed a complaint against the ordinance argue that it’s superseded by the “coordinated framework” of GMO oversight by the USDA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The federal policy, under which genetically engineered crops are studied prior to deregulation, is in conflict with the county ordinance, which imposes a “near-blanket ban” without any analysis, the plaintiffs claim.
“In other words, the county is choosing specifically to ignore and contradict the federal structure and its hundreds of associated federal scientific determinations based on an unsubstantiated gut reaction to technology that it does not understand,” plaintiffs said in a court brief.
Opponents of the ban also claim that state law governs agriculture and counties don’t have the authority to regulate GMOs.
read ... Court
Anti-GMO Activists Operating Illegal TVRs with Cesspools Caus Coral Bleaching
KE: ...not only did most of these TVR owners acquire their permits improperly, they're now being allowed to degrade the ocean and groundwater with impunity.
Yet curiously, the North Shore crowd that lives in the thick of this shitty situation has become obsessed with GMOs/pesticides on the westside rather than screaming about the crap, literally, that they surf and swim in daily.
Uh, hello, Ohana O Kauai? Is anybody home? Mayoral candidate Dustin Barca and sidekick Fern Rosenstiel — is this even on your radar? I saw nothing on your website. Don't you folks think that e-coli is a threat to the keiki and fisheries? Not to mention all the other stuff that people flush down the toilet. Or are the donations from the richy-riches and North Shore Realtors blurring your vision?
What about North Shore Council candidate and "red shirt" Felicia Cowden, who weighed in on everything from GMOs to cat licensing? Nothing but crickets on this important issue. Instead, she emphasizes only the impact of agriculture on water quality....
read ... About the Environmental Elite
Cult Members 'Rapid Response Team' Runs Interference for Tulsi Gabbard
CB: My guess is the responders, who appeared to be missing the point, understood perfectly well that Gabbard’s office had been manipulating the truth because the office was worried Gabbard’s choice to continue surfing might make her seem superficial.
The responders’ goal was to deflect attention from the uncomfortable fact that Gabbard’s office initially failed to tell the whole story.
As I read the two Civil Beat reports, I was wondering who all those people are, and why do they jump in almost simultaneously with their ad hominem attacks on Blair and Epler and why do they all sound alike?
I got the answer a few hours later during a sunrise run with a friend from Washington, D.C., who explained I was reading push back from a “rapid response team” in action....
“It looks creepy, like a put-up job, “ says a campaign consultant for one of Hawaii’s top Democrats....
Zimmerman says, “The meaner and more personal the comment is, the more likely it is to have come straight from someone on a political campaign team.”
Totally Related: Tulsi Gabbard Office Manager tied to Chris Butler Cult
read ... Creepy Put up Job
Pearl City merchants blame rail work for slumping sales
HNN: Merchants along Kamehameha Highway in Pearl City complain that rail construction is costing them money. Some said their revenue has fallen 20 to 50 percent.
Youngseon Ikeda's massage business is on the 800 block. Her sales have plummeted 60 percent or more.
"This month I don't know yet. But September, August were really bad. I don't think like that keep continues, I don't think I'm going to survive," she said.
Billy Reichling manages Easy Music Center. He said lane closures and restricted turns are a double whammy.
"One of the main problems is all the U turns to get to our store are just blocked off for some reason. They're just coned off," he said.
read ... Pearl City merchants blame rail work for slumping sales
Scam Alert: Two Solar Contractors Installations Up
PBN: From January through September, there were 4,874 permits issued, a drop of 50 percent from the same period last year, which tallied 9,877 permits issued....
“Somewhat amazingly, two contractors —American Electric and REC Solar — have been able to buck the painful downward trend, especially REC Solar with a significant increase so far this year,” Mangelsdorf told PBN in an email. “Again, one of the big unknowns is whether a PV permit being issued by the [City and County of Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting] equals a Hawaiian Electric-approved system. Some contractors wait to permit until getting HECO approval, others do not and permit immediately after sale with some of those contractors installing systems before utility approval.”
One solar industry exec on Oahu told PBN recently that at the height of the industry, it was installing 60 systems each month, but now it’s installing just four systems a month.
read ... How Many Scam Systems?
City pays $2.6 million to Settle HPD Abuse Suits So Far this Year
SA: The Honolulu City Council approved two settlements Wednesday for $37,500 and $22,500. So far this year there have been 12 settlements involving police.
More than $2 million of this year's total comes from only two cases. Those cases were $1.4 million for the family of Aaron Torres, who was suffocated while police were trying to restrain him, and $950,000 for a woman struck by a subsidized police vehicle.
ILind: Could Honolulu police have avoided recent shootings?
read ... Year's Not Over
Longtime prosecutor accused of harassment
HNN: A long-time city prosecutor is accused of stalking and harassing a former co-worker.
Deputy Prosecutor Darrell Wong is a 29-year veteran of the office who is assigned to challenging and high-profile cases.
But on Thursday, police were called to Wong's office after a 31-year-old former co-worker with whom he had an extramarital affair filed a criminal complaint.
The complaint and a subsequent TRO application alleges that Wong barged into her family's home and grabbed her her and pushed her on a bench. It's one of about a dozen incidents of alleged harassment that the woman says occurred over the past ten months.
But Wong's attorney said his client never threatened nor was he violent with the woman.
read ... Harassment?
Extreme 'clean' eating may exclude essential nutrients
SA: The push to eat only "pure, clean and healthy foods" is everywhere. The message implies that to do anything else is harmful to your health and even to the environment. As these concepts infiltrate national dietary guidelines, some experts are questioning this rather elitist approach to nutrition and health.
In a recent commentary article, professor Joanne Slavin of the University of Minnesota-St. Paul and previously a member of the prestigious Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, suggested the "nutrition elite" actually may be harming our health. These "food snobs" generally are more privileged than the average American. They can afford to purchase more expensive foods and are obsessed with eating "pure and clean" unprocessed foods. They really know what's right for everyone. Their messages are black and white, pervasive and righteous.
As your brain processes these messages, you might feel like you lack self-control and would like to be more like these individuals who are so confident in their messages. You might even find yourself moving toward eating more raw foods along with those media-labeled "superfoods." To a certain extent this may be a good change, but taken to extremes it can backfire big time.
read ... Bad for You
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