Inouye urges review of newspaper sale to company partly owned by Ed Case’s family
The letter comes about a week before Star-Bulletin owner David Black is expected to complete his purchase of the larger Honolulu Advertiser on Sunday. Black is required to put the Star-Bulletin up for sale to satisfy the Justice Department's antitrust requirements.
The senator wants to ensure that the newspaper deals are conducted in accordance with federal antitrust laws, said Peter Boylan, spokesman for Inouye.
"The sale of these properties could leave hundreds of workers and their families without a job and every effort needs to be made to ensure the transaction is above board," Boylan said in an e-mail yesterday.
(Of course this has absolutely nothing to do with the role of Ed Case’s uncle, Dan H Case, as a part-owner of the Star-Bulletin. Really.)
SB: Justice Department looks at offers for Star-Bulletin
Frederick "Derick" Harris, the Big Island owner of Cyber ID, said yesterday that he had met the final bid deadline. Hawaii Reporter editor Malia Zimmerman and state Sen. Sam Slom (R, Hawaii Kai-Kahala) did not return calls yesterday, although Slom said Friday that they planned to bid.
Brian Ferguson, managing principal of Texas-based Anthem Newspaper Holdings LLC, said earlier that his team had submitted several proposals
RELATED: Advertiser Endorsement: More Case family media manipulation?
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SB: Hawaii stifling charter schools
On balance, the success of charter schools nationally has been mixed. Stanford University's Center for Research on Education Outcomes found last year that only 17 percent of charter schools reported academic gains that were significantly better and 37 percent showed gains worse than traditional schools.
However, the Stanford report also found that states with caps on the number of charter schools showed significantly lower academic results than states without limits on charter growth. It suggested that a cap may be "a barrier to entry" of school operators attracted to less restrictive states. (EXACTLY THE PURPOSE)
Following the Stanford report, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan urged states to become more active in weeding out inferior charter schools. The best way to do that in Hawaii is to lift the cap and, by doing so, attract highly-skilled operators capable of building successful charter schools.
Hawaii's Board of Education did not help that cause when it upheld a decision last month by the Charter School Review Panel to suspend charter school applications. That effectively halted efforts to convert the Laupahoehoe High and Elementary School, facing closure on the Big Island. It also sent a discouraging signal to potential skilled operators of other charter schools in the islands.
RELATED: Laupahoehoe Liberation: Rural school targeted for closure votes for charter conversion
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Waters of Life looks to future
"We will begin summer school in May and use ($50K) Title I funds for that," he said Sunday afternoon.
RELATED: Out of money, Puna DoE school shutting down next week
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Union Shills’ plan to launder HSTA demands into Gubernatorial campaign
Lingle has offered $62 million to return only essential employees to work on furlough days, which she contends is all the state can afford. She says she won't release funds provided by the Legislature for any deal that costs more than she's proposed or doesn't settle all remaining furlough days.
The "People's Plan" offered by the groups who staged a sit-in in Lingle's office last week is well-meaning, but it's only a partial settlement and appears to be a non-starter.
Still, the parents and their supporters in the Legislature want lawmakers to fund the deal just in case Lingle and the union reach an agreement or the next governor to be elected in November wants to fund the HSTA/DOE agreement that Lingle has rejected.
(Thus making it a Campaign issue designed to allow Democrats Abercrombie and Hannemann to say, “Vote for me and I will end Furloughs”. Meanwhile HSTA/NEA funds will be used to fight the BoE reforms on the Nov. ballot. Who willl organize a PAC to advocate a YES vote?)
PRECISELY AS PREDICTED: Furloughs vs Layoffs: The union no-solution strategy
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CQ: New Filings Give Glimpse of Candidates’ Special Election Funding
Hanabusa brought in about $461,000 in the first three months of this year and reported having $329,000 in cash on hand at the end of March. Djou raised $298,000 in the first quarter and reported $492,000 in cash on hand.
The other Democrat in the winner-take-all May 22 contest, former Rep. Ed Case (R), raised $157,000 last quarter and loaned his campaign another $20,000 in personal funds. Case reported having $214,000 in the bank as of March 31.
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PA-12: Burns/Critz 44/41 (PPP)
GOPer ahead by 3 in the OTHER Special Election… This is the aftermath of the death of the King of Pork, Rep. Jack “Abscam” Murtha (D-PA).
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More Obama Admin lies: Stimulus bill adds destroys 11,000 Hawaii jobs
PBN: “Hawaii added an estimated 11,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2010 as a result of the federal stimulus bill, according to a new White House report by the Council of Economic Advisors.”
But the 5-page White House Report merely estimates of the number of jobs that Obama Stimulus spending should have created. Since it is clear that few, if any, jobs actually have been created, this number is more accurately used as a measure of the number of jobs DESTROYED by the Obama depression brought about by Senator Obama’s sub-prime mortgage collapse and then exacerbated by President Obama’s borrow-and-waste policies.
READ REPORT>>>LINK
DePledge: Stimuli
DCCC attack ad vs Djou: LINK (only 165 views)
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Latest data suggest auto sales decrease 1% in 1st quarter—lowest in over 20 years
The Auto Outlook report said car sales on O'ahu rose 2.4 percent to 6,335, while they fell in other counties.
The Big Island's car sales were off 10.4 percent during the first quarter, while Kaua'i's sales dipped 14.4 percent. Maui was off 9.1 percent.
(Click the link and look at how this news was wrapped up in fluff.)
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Bank of Hawaii CEO to retire: Peter Ho will replace Allan Landon
Peter Ho Campaign Contributions (All Democrat): http://www.campaignmoney.com/political/contributions/peter-ho.asp?cycle=08
Kind of ironic, considering that BoH is on top now because it refused to participate in the Democrats subprime mortgage scam.
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Canceled contract cost keeps rising
The City Council tomorrow will consider setting aside an additional $20,000 to pay an outside law firm to fight off legal challenges relating to a canceled $1.68 million rapid transit insurance-related contract.
The city already has spent $49,500 of a $50,000 contract awarded to the law firm McCorriston, Miller, Mukai, MacKinnon, which is defending the city.
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Aid cut proposed for aged, disabled
About 400 households would no longer get monthly financial assistance through the Aid to the Aged, Blind and Disabled program under a proposed change in eligibility requirements designed to meet a budget shortfall.
The remaining 950 households in the program would see their benefits reduced by $130 a month for one person or about $177 for a couple. The changes are set to go into effect June 1.
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Hawaii's A+ cost will probably hit $80: Parents expected to have to make up for $2.1M cut in funding
State lawmakers are on the verge of bumping the $55 monthly cost for Hawai'i's popular A-Plus after-school care program to $80, meaning Kimi Swan will have to dig that much deeper to balance her childcare needs.
House and Senate conference negotiators wrestling with Hawai'i's overall hard fiscal times have chopped the state's $2.1 million share from the program, which has served about 21,000 students every year since it was created in 1989.
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2 charged in murder over pakalolo
Problems arose about a year ago when Williams gave Khan marijuana to sell and Khan kept the money, the affidavit said. When Williams confronted Khan, Khan pulled a gun -- one of more than a half-dozen firearms he owned, both registered and unregistered.
More recently, Williams and another man referred to as "Buddah" became upset with Khan because he was not contributing his share of the pot operation, the affidavit said.
Khan, for his part, told an acquaintance that he wanted to get out of the operation and start up another farm without the two men.
ADV: Victim's throat was slashed
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City ban on tents goes into effect
Daniel Gluck, senior attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union in Hawaii, said the ban does nothing to address the underlying problems of homelessness. (Wrong. It forces them into shelters, which is the ONLY way to address the “underlying problems.”) "These types of laws are the reasons why Honolulu was rated among the 10 meanest cities for the homeless," he said. (That translates into “10 meanest for the Homelessness Industry”—something Honolulu should be proud of.)
REALITY: Kapiolani Park: Homelessness industry takes Hawaii tourism hostage, Defeating the "homelessness industry" before it gets a grip on Hawaii
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Controversial “Lanai” Council member eyes top Maui job
The three-term council member announced his intention to run for the county's highest elected office Saturday during a meeting of the Democratic Party's State Central Committee at Kanaha Beach Park, said Lance Holter, chairman of the Democratic Party of Maui. Later the same day, Kaho'ohalahala reiterated his intention to run during a Democratic Party fundraiser at Charley's Restaurant & Saloon in Paia.
Holter said the council member's announcement was well-received by Democrats at both events.
"I think the Democrats now have a real choice" for mayor, he said, adding that Kaho'ohalahala would be a "wonderful" alternative to presumed frontrunners, incumbent Mayor Charmaine Tavares and former Mayor Alan Arakawa.
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Council again grapples with concurrency
Kohala Councilman Pete Hoffmann introduced a concurrency measure to the Planning Committee Monday at the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort and Spa, this time to require developers to cover the costs of new fire stations and provide land for parks.
"It either needs to be addressed through conditions in the rezoning, pursuant to recommendations from planning commissions or County Council or the application of a fair share fee," Planning Director Bobby Jean Leithead-Todd said. "It really stops the small development. I don't think that that's what the council wants to see. We've already addressed these needs through fair share."
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Kauai Administration trying to improve project accountability
NAWILIWILI — A new document designed to bring accountability to Kaua‘i County projects may soon become standard, providing a step-by-step report of all capital improvement projects.
The Project Initiation Document puts down in writing specifics about a project’s intention, funding, development and timing, County Administrative Assistant Gary Heu told Kaua‘i County Council members Monday. (Imagine that. They actually have to know what they’re doing and why before starting. What a concept.)
“It kinda forces us to put a little more skin in the game,” he said.
LINKS: Project Initiation Documents, WIKIPEDIA
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Jack in the Box begins selling BLENDED Kona coffee
Excluding tax, Kona Classic(R) is available at participating Jack in the Box restaurants for a suggested price of $1.39 and $1.59 for regular and large hot coffees, respectively, and $1.99 for a 24-ounce iced coffee.
Restaurants in Hawaii will continue to serve a specialty Kona blend produced by a local vendor, Hawaiian Paradise Coffee
LINK: Jack in the Box
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