January 6, 2010 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

January 6, 2010 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 11:56 AM :: 11171 Views

LINK>>>Constitutional Amendment: Aiona Proposes Hawaii Elect Secretary of State

OHA to make case for (NEW) Akaka bill during live television broadcasts

The broadcasts will be carried by KITV at 8 p.m. Thursday and 7 p.m. Jan. 14.

The first broadcast will include panelists professor Lilikala Kameeleihiwa of the University of Hawaii-Manoa's Kamakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies; Michael Kahikina, legislative chair with the Sovereign Council of Hawaiian Homelands Assembly; Robin Danner, chief executive officer of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement; and Bruss Keppeler, a member of the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs.

The second broadcast will cover the legal implications of the bill, OHA said.

(So much for "ironing out the differences" with the State, eh?) +

Cayetano puts trust in Matayoshi: Others question whether the acting schools chief can indeed make hard decisions

"Kathy is smart, honest, innovative and has the courage needed to put the public interests above all else," Cayetano said. "As a noneducator, I think she will bring a different perspective. ... She did a great job for me ... and I think she will do the same at the (state Department of Education)."

...She is balancing on a political tightrope on her route toward potentially becoming the new head of the state Department of Education.

She is backing a plan between the teachers union and school board that would add more instructional days but not enough to restore all 17 Furlough Fridays.

Meanwhile, she is trying to persuade federal officials to give Hawaii millions of dollars in competitive educational grant money....

Hawaii business advocate state Sen. Sam Slom said Matayoshi has "fresh eyes" and did a good job as director of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs under Cayetano.

But Slom, president of Smart Business Hawaii, said he would prefer that the Board of Education wait for a while before appointing a permanent superintendent and see how Matayoshi performs as interim superintendent.

ADV: Lingle aides, Hawaii education officials meeting today for furlough talks

SB: Welcome Hamamoto to labor talks

Hamamoto's departure should be not regarded as her shrinking from responsibility. (Why?) She has said that her decision to retire at her present age of 65 is personal, much the same as that of many Americans who look at that age as a transition point from career to golden years. (Oh. That's why.)

In a short time, Hamamoto showed she could be assertive and independent without the flair of her predecessor. In 2004, she asked to address a joint session of the Legislature, where she called the school system "obsolete" while rejecting calls by former Gov. Ben Cayetano and Gov. Linda Lingle to break up the system into four or seven school districts. She maintained that the breakup would "add more layers of bureaucracy" to the system. (That was the line used by Democrats to defeat Lingle's decentralization plan--"more school books, not more school boards". And we all know how much Hamamoto did to reduce bureaucracy....)

Hamamoto's role should not be diminished and may even be enhanced in contract negotiations by her emeritus status as a nonvoting member of the department team. (No. Boot her. Its Matayoshi's game now and Matayoshi needs to take responsibility.)

Kauai: Arakaki open to being state DoE superintendent

Kaua‘i Complex Area Superintendent Bill Arakaki said Monday that he would consider moving up the state Department of Education ladder if asked....

Video messages from Hamamoto and Matayoshi may be seen on the DOE Web site, doe.k12.hi.us, or hawaiidoe.org.

UH won't rescind faculty pay cuts

UHPA accused the UH administration of breach of contract and filed a grievance calling for Greenwood to retract the letter and for the two sides to meet with an arbitrator. In an e-mail forwarded to UHPA members Monday, the union said "the rapid response is needed due to the magnitude of (Greenwood's) proposed action and to avoid litigation."

(The State judge which UHPA hand picks will cancel Greenwood's order and restore the pay.)

Across-the-board cuts in Hawaii budget criticized at hearing

The Lingle administration imposed nearly 14 percent budget restrictions on many state departments this fiscal year, giving each department a target and generally allowing department directors to choose how to make the cuts.

(and this is bad because .... )

Oshiro: "the lack of priorities was disappointing." Bonham: "The question is where should we be doing the cutting?"

Carl Bonham, a University of Hawai'i-Manoa economist who serves on the state Council on Revenues, called it disturbing and said public education should have been a priority.

(For participating in this cheap partisan circus, Bonham shows himself unqualified to be part of the CoR)

Georgina Kawamura, the state's budget director, invited critics to come up with their own suggestions on where to cut.

"With due respect to Carl Bonham, I wish he would have told us what targeted programs to eliminate," she said....

Oshiro told reporters after the briefing that he was disappointed the Lingle administration appeared to be deferring major budget decisions involving state worker health and retirement benefits, Medicaid and even the delay in tax refunds, which will count toward the budget next fiscal year.

Lawmakers are also worried about how to plan for the so-called funding "cliff" when nearly $1 billion in federal stimulus money runs out in 2011.

Lingle is in the final year of her second four-year term as governor. She has said that her budget and financial plan positions the state for economic recovery, but Oshiro disagrees.

"This lame-duck administration is basically kicking the can down the road," he said. (This will be a key Democrat talking point with which they distract voters from what they are really doing during the next Leg session.)

SB: Lingle's plan pushes financial woes onto future officials, legislator says

KHON: Mayors Unite Against Tax Takeaway (four more clowns come to the circus)

Tax delinquencies prompt relief consideration

Hawaii county expects to receive about $2 million in penalties and interest this year from property owners who haven't paid their property taxes. And that's not counting the latest round of property taxes that are due by Feb. 21.

That's inspired Hamakua Councilman Dominic Yagong to see if there can be some relief for cash-strapped property owners who might be able to pay their taxes if given some leeway on the deadline.

Fed judges: Wash. felony inmates should get vote (could set precedent for Hawaii)

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) -- Incarcerated felons should be allowed to vote in Washington to ensure that racial minorities are protected under the Voting Rights Act, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday....

Tuesday's ruling affects only Washington state but could be the basis for litigation in any area covered by the 9th Circuit - Oregon, Idaho, Montana, California, Nevada, Arizona, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the Northern Marianas, said Janelle Guthrie, spokeswoman for Attorney General Rob McKenna.

Guthrie said McKenna is weighing the state's next step. The state could either ask a larger group of judges from the 9th Circuit to reconsider the ruling or go straight to the U.S. Supreme Court, she said. If it appeals, the state likely would seek a stay on inmates' ability to vote until the case is resolved.

A policy director with a conservative think tank in Washington state called the ruling "an embarrassment."...

The lawsuit was filed in 1996 by Muhammad Shabazz Farrakhan....

(Democrats, desperate for votes, Hawaii Leg voted to do this last session)

Deputy sheriff arrested in child rape

Edwin Salinda, 55, a state deputy sheriff for about 19 years, was arrested yesterday after being indicted Dec. 16 on four counts of first-degree sexual assault.

The female victim, now 23, told police she had been sexually assaulted by Salinda when she was 6 or 7 years old and in the first grade, from about 1992 to 1993, and again from 1995 to 1996 when she was about 8.

The woman told police Salinda raped her at least 10 times and forced her into oral sex at least 20 times when she was in the first grade, a police affidavit states. She also alleges more incidents of oral sex when she was about 8 years old, from 1995 to 1996.

Forbes ranks Bankoh as top performer of nation's largest 100 banks

When the housing market heated up, Forbes says Bank of Hawaii stayed conservative in its underwriting strategy, which helped minimize its bad loans today.

(In other words, they didn't issue the sub-prime mortgages that Democrats pressured/enticed other banks into issuing.)

Waihee's Ex-cemetery chief will get out of jail

In 2004 the state attorney general sued Rightstar, its officers, including Dooley, and its trustees, including former Gov. John Waihee, seeking a full accounting of the company's trust accounts. The state later took over Rightstar's operations.

Trash may finally be shipped to Washington next month

"The smell is unbearable," said Carroll Cox, Envirowatch.

"There's about 15,000 tons sitting there right now," said City Managing Director Kirk Caldwell.

All piled up at Hawaiian Waste Systems at Campbell Industrial Park.

"What we have right now is basically a 2nd landfill in the making," said Caldwell.

(Gee, Kirk, maybe you should have done a better job writing the RFP, eh?)

Court bolsters public access to beaches

Under the ruling, landowners who can prove they had beach-front property taken away by the state can claim compensation from the state in individual lawsuits. More important, if affirmed by the Supreme Court, the ruling should halt the loss of precious public beach areas to private homeowners.

Quakes, tsunami strike Solomon Islands

From the air, extensive damage could be seen on a remote western island after a 7.2-magnitude temblor triggered the landslides in the Pacific Solomon Islands yesterday, said disaster management office director Loti Yates.

No injuries have been reported about 30 hours after the biggest in a series of quakes churned a tsunami wave that was up to 10 feet high as it plowed into the coast, officials said.

However, more than 1,000 people have been affected after about 200 houses were destroyed on Rendova, an island some 190 miles from the capital Honiara. Only 3,600 people live on Rendova.

(The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Ewa beach said there was no Pacific-wide tsunami generated and there is no tsunami threat to Hawaii.)

American pirates' Anti-whaling vessel damaged in clash with Japanese ship that it was attacking

Rich American environmentalists are pirates, too....

The boat's six crew members were safely transferred to another of the (eugenicist) Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's vessels, the newly commissioned Bob Barker. The boat is named for the American television game show host who donated $5 million to buy it. (What's wrong with American bourgeoisie, Pt1)

Clashes using hand-thrown stink bombs, ropes meant to tangle propellers and high-tech sound equipment have been common in recent years, and crashes between ships have sometimes occurred....

The society said its vessel Ady Gil — a high-tech speedboat that resembles a stealth bomber — was hit by the Japanese ship the Shonan Maru near Commonwealth Bay and had about 10 feet of its bow knocked off. (so sad)

The Ady Gil is a 78-foot black-painted trimaran made of carbon fiber and Kevlar in a design meant to pierce waves. It was built to challenge the record for the quickest circumnavigation of the globe and can travel faster than 46 mph.

Sea Shepherd unveiled the Ady Gil last October saying a California millionaire with the same name had donated most of the money for it. (What's wrong with American bourgeoisie, Pt2)At the time, the group said the boat would be used to intercept and physically block Japanese harpoon vessels. (And surprise, surprise, now it has been run over. But of course they are innocent because their cause is "sacred".)