The Hawaii Supreme Court's Fractured Rationale For Invalidating The TMT Permit
Full Text: Court Orders State to Fund Hawaiian Homelands
Fitch: We Anticipate Successful NextEra Merger
NASA: Antarctic ice growth causing Sea Levels to DROP
Muslim Complains Hawaii Less Whipped Down by Political Correctness than California
SS: For Mahera Ahmed, a Chaminade junior, misinformation and prejudice regarding Islam has affected her life in a meaningful way.
“Sometimes I am worried about going out. I don’t feel safe in some ways because people will give me these looks like ‘Is she going to do something?’” said Ahmed about the comments she hears from non-Muslims. “It’s just frustrating because it makes me question if I am going to die tonight.”
Hawaii is considered by many to be a place with a great deal of diversity and tolerance, but this has not been Ahmed’s experience.
“I thought that the people here in Hawaii would be more accepting of people from other backgrounds, but that has not been the case,” said the Kenyan-born psychology major. “I grew up in Northern California and honestly I expected more hatred and racism from that area, but I definitely see more here in Hawaii.” …
Whipped Down by Political Correctness: Witness did not report 'suspicious activities' at San Bernadino suspect’s home due to desire not to engage in 'racial profiling'
read … A few fight, the rest make excuses and demands
Phobia of Stupidity in High Places
SA: The word “phobia” infers fear. I, personally, do not fear terrorists.
What I do fear is stupidity in high places. A low-ball estimate is that one-fifth of the world’s Muslim population are radicalized jihadi. That’s two out of 10. To put it simply: If I gave you 10 grapes, and I told you that two of them were poisoned, would you eat any?
Our governor needs to decide, once and for all, for whom does he work. Is it the residents of the state of Hawaii or the Democratic Party?
Meanwhile … WHT runs yet another refugee sob story
read … Work for Democratic Party?
Hawaii gun sales not rising with the rest of the nation
HNN: Gun sales across the country have been on the rise following a number of mass shootings this year but Hawaii gun enthusiasts are not following the national trend….
Events like those have prompted gun sales to break records nationally for the last seven months in a row. The FBI ran a record 185,345 background checks on Friday, roughly five percent more than the amount the agency processed on that same day last year, the Associated Press reported.
At X-Ring Security and Firearms in Waipahu, the gun shop’s sales people said gun sales in Hawaii have not followed the national upward trend.
"Hawaii, because it's such a distance away from where the trouble is happening, that people don't feel so threatened yet. But it's a big possibility," said Brian Takaba, X Ring Security and Firearms manager.
Takaba said another reason gun sales are not rising here is that Hawaii consistently has one of the lowest gun death rates in the country, along with Vermont, New Hampshire and South Dakota.
"The fact that we have such a low crime rate here is probably a big factor, why people are not in a panic yet," Takaba said. …
read … Hawaii gun sales not rising with the rest of the nation
Christian Escapes Muslims in Iran -- Murdered by Muslims in California
KHON: …Bennetta Betbadal, 46, was born in Iran in 1969 and came to the United States at age 18 to escape the persecution of Christians after the Iranian Revolution, according to a family statement on a fundraising account set up in her name.
Her cousin, Melani Betbadal, referred reporters to the statement and declined further comment.
She first settled in New York City but eventually moved to Rialto, California. She and her husband, a police officer, were married in 1997 and have three children ages 10, 12 and 15.
Betbadal graduated from California State Polytechnic University in Pomona with a degree in chemistry and took a job as a health inspector with San Bernardino County.
Her husband, Arlen Verdehyou, told The Daily Breeze that he and his wife exchanged texts at 8 a.m. Wednesday. He told her that he had withdrawn money from the bank and would do some Christmas shopping. Betbadal had recently decorated the family’s Christmas tree.
She was planning to give a presentation at the annual holiday meeting Wednesday and was excited about it, the family said.
“It is the ultimate irony that her life would be stolen from her that day by what appears to be the same type of extremism that she fled so many years ago,” the family said in the statement….
Related: So Far: Syrian Refugees in U.S. Include 2,098 Muslims, 53 Christians
read … Escape the Muslims
Hawaii's housing problem could be fixed by modifying regulation
PBN: “The one single thing that would have the most impact on the housing issue is regulation,” Dods told PBN in an exclusive interview this week. “It’s the time cost of money. It can take 15 to 20 years to get land zoned and in that time the cost of construction compounds. This is the hidden cost that no one talks about.” …
He recommends a summit where developers, environmentalists, members of the government and others all meet together to decide what the most sacred and untouchable parts of the land are.
After that section is decided, then they can consider, “what parts would be nice to keep, but when we weigh it against all the other considerations, [what parts] should be used for housing.” These parts of the land should then get “accelerated treatment” from the government to expedite the regulation process, he said….
read … Regulation
NextEra’s plans largely confidential
SA: NextEra has filed 60,000 pages of documents in defense of its proposed purchase, but thousands of those pages are marked confidential, said Terrance Revere, an attorney for the state Office of Planning. Henry Curtis, executive director of Life of the Land, said about half of the pages filed are stamped confidential.
Confidential documents cannot be discussed during the hearings unless the discussions are held behind closed doors.
The issue came up Thursday when one participant questioned how much money NextEra expects to save by reducing operating costs.
NextEra has promised to cut electrical rates by $60 million over the first four years of its ownership of the Hawaii utility. The company expects to meet that goal through reductions in operations and maintenance costs. But what NextEra hasn’t said is how much more than $60 million it expects to save through lower costs.
A document with that number is marked confidential, said Jason Kuzma, a Seattle attorney representing the Pam and Pierre Omidyar-funded Ulupono Initiative.
Gleason said the company has determined what it expects to save in operations and maintenance costs, but he didn’t disclose it.
IM: Florida Power & Light is Aggressive in Florida
read … Confidential
Getting Rid of Obamacare Exchange Costing State Another $27M-$30M
AP: The transition to the Federal Exchange is expected to cost $27 million to $30 million….
read … The Gift that Keeps on Giving
List of Criminal Hee Political Contributions
ILind: A review of contributions to state and local candidates shows that Hee, along with Sandwich Isles (the telephone company) and Waimana Enterprises (the parent company), and their officers and employees, contributed $69,300 from the last part of 2006 through 2014.
Nearly two-thirds of the total, or $42,700, went to the campaigns of former Gov. Neil Abercrombie, both his initial gubernatorial campaign in 2010 and his failed 2014 reelection bid.
The rest of the contributions in much smaller amounts to 15 other candidates, most of whom received a single contribution over those years.
A single $1,000 check went to Hee’s brother, former state Senator Clayton Hee.
See the full list of contributions to state and local candidates here.
According to FEC records, money went directly to the campaigns of members of Congress, almost all to Hawaii’s representatives and senators, as well as to political party committees.
See the federal contributions from Hee and his companies here.
read … Political Connections Pay Off
Retaliation? State firing Kulani prison warden
HNN: Forbes oversaw the reopening of Kulani Prison in July of 2014. A little more than six months later, prisons officials put her on leave without pay and started an investigation into whether she created a "hostile work environment" there.
Following department procedure, after 30 days of unpaid leave, Forbes remained on paid leave for nine months, until she was notified this week that she will be fired, effective December 18….
"This department, has a standard pattern of practice, a history of discriminating against women in these kinds of higher managerial capacities," Hong said.
Hong also said prisons officials relied on complaints against Forbes filed by employees who faced discipline for misbehavior or bad performance, including a corrections supervisor who quit earlier this year when she was under investigation for having improper contact with male inmates at Kulani.
"The department overreacted intentionally by taking the complaints of disgruntled employees who were retaliating against her because my client was holding them accountable to a higher standard of conduct," Hong added.
Hong said the investigation found Forbes was guilty of 40 alleged infractions of departmental rules.
"The sheer number of minor infractions indicates to me that the department is trying to find any reason to get rid of her," Hong said….
Dec 2013: DPS Names Ruth Coller Forbes New Kulani Warden
Feb 2015: Ige's DPS Deputy Nominee Placed Kulani Warden on Unpaid Leave, Then Quit Job
read … State firing Kulani prison warden
Former Police Commissioner Demands Kealoha Resignation
KITV: A former police commissioner is demanding Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha to step down from his job. (If you were thinking this was over the mailbox case, sorry. This is still Hawaii.)
The former American-Samoan law enforcement official is speaking out with his attorney, demanding a federal civil rights investigation after his son was killed in Honolulu.
Video was taken back on March 16th when 38-year-old Sheldon Haleck was seen jaywalking across King Street by Iolani Palace. Police say Haleck was wearing dark-colored clothing, running in the middle of the roadway and acting erratically. 11 hours after Haleck was tasered multiple times, he was declared brain dead.
Tonight, his father says HPD has refused to provide any explanation as to what happened to his son.
"Nobody has called me or said anything," said William Haleck. "In my opinion, HPD has been nonchalant about this. My son died as a result of this and nobody will own up or say anything about it."
read … Lawsuit
Ungrateful Bums Trash Apartment but Landlord Wiling to Try Again
SA: Victoria Roy says she plans to make the bottom portion of her Ewa Beach home available for rental to the homeless. Low-income renters once lived there, but the damage they did ended up costing her thousands of dollars. Roy said she is now willing to try again….
During last month’s Landlord Summit in the Dole Cannery ballroom, Victoria Roy told a roomful of attendees that her experience renting to low-income, drug-using tenants eight years ago left the bottom half of her Ewa Beach home a wreck.
The tenants burned her carpet, destroyed doors and punched a hole in the bathroom wall, costing Roy $15,000 in repairs, $5,000 for an attorney and $700 to sheriff’s deputies to get the tenants out….
read … Rent to Homeless
More Than 25% of City Garbage Trucks Broken Down
KHON: A spokesman for the Department of Environmental Services says 41 trucks are currently out of service, out of 163 used to pick up trash. That includes trucks that haul trash from transfer stations and take them to the H-Power plant.
But a spokesman says that even with that many trucks under repair, there are enough to service the island, so that’s not a reason for the delays.
The city is in the process of hiring 13 more drivers. A spokesman says there were 125 applicants and interviews will be conducted this month and next month.
read … Garbage
Schatz Goes to Paris for Global Cooling Denier Summit
CB: U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz is part of a group of 10 Democratic senators who have flown to Paris to take part in negotiations over the enormous international climate change accord taking place there….
This is the second time in two weeks that Schatz has been overseas and that a member of the Hawaii federal delegation has been in Paris. U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard traveled there recently with Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia and Emerging Threats, after the terrorist attacks.
read … Global Cooling Deniers
Can we GMO our way out of the mosquito mess?
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