To Help Campaign Contributors, Hanabusa Blocks Missile Defense for Hawaii for 6 Years
Justice Department goes back to Supreme Court over Hawaii judge's block of Trump's travel ban
Honolulu 3rd-Worst City to Live In When You’re Struggling to Pay Off Debt
Hawaii Congressional Delegation How They Voted November 20, 2017
DCCA Report: Changing Patterns of Hawaii Air Cargo Traffic
Video: Hawaii Farmer Fighting Stigma of GMOs
Rate Hike Coming: UH, HECO Conspire to Establish 'Green Tariff'
Is cult tied to Congresswoman Gabbard launching cyberattacks?
ILind: That would be a reasonable conclusion based on the recent experience of two local websites, as reported on Sunday by Andrew Walden’s Hawai’i Free Press….
Related: DDOS Attack on Hawai’i Free Press tied to Gabbard’s Cult?
read … Is cult tied to Congresswoman Gabbard launching cyberattacks?
Honolulu Magazine Joins the Cult
HM: Did Tulsi Gabbard’s National Ambitions Just Suffer a Political Hit? …. Most of this is not news in Hawai‘i. … In the wake of the article, criticism of The New Yorker and author Sanneh have come from several points of the political compass, from Hindus (cult members) who see (deploy claims of) religious and perhaps racial (is a cult a race?) bigotry—a subject Gabbard herself brings up (Yes. It goes to the top.)—and a few who question the sensationalist aspects of “cult” coverage in the media…..”yet another project in otherizing (LOL!) Gabbard’s faith journey.”
Not News? Never reported in Hawaii MSM:
read … Flacking for the Power Structure
Wahiawa HD46 Vacancy: Democrats Send Ige Three Nominees
CB: …Marcus Oshiro, the longtime Democratic representative from Wahiawa and Whitmore Village, made headlines when it was announced nearly three months ago that he’d be leaving the Legislature to take a job with the Hawaii Labor Relations Board.
But Oshiro didn’t start the new gig until late last month. And that has community members wondering why it took him so long to leave and why a replacement hasn’t been named….
The state Senate confirmed Oshiro by a 22-0 vote on Sept. 1, when the Legislature was in special session. He started his position as HLRB’s chair Oct. 24….
On Nov. 13, the Democratic Party of Hawaii submitted to the governor the names of three possible replacements for Oshiro. Candidates must be selected by party officials in the district that is vacated.
A governor has 60 days from the day a legislative vacancy is created to select a new representative. In Oshiro’s case, that is Dec. 22.
The list of names submitted to Ige are Dean Harvest, Lei Learmont and Ricky Oshiro.
Harvest is a board member of the Wahiawa-Whitmore Village Neighborhood Board who has served on various Native Hawaiian community boards. He served as a shop steward for the Hawaii Government Employees Association and the United Public Workers.
Learmont was a legislative aide to Oshiro and Rep. Tom Brower. He worked as a human resources and personnel manager for City Mill, Del Monte and Hopaco. Learmont is also a the Wahiawa-Whitmore Village Neighborhood Board.
Ricky Oshiro is the cousin of Marcus Oshiro who worked in the office of former U.S. Sen. Dan Akaka. Past employers include Dole Pineapple and Big Way Bowling Alley..…..
read …Vacancy
City asks governor to hold off on Airbnb tax deal
HNN: …Caldwell said the city reached out to the governor, to ask that he not rush into any deal with Airbnb, to collect taxes until the city
can come up with a possible enforcement fix.
"We met with his staff last week and made that request and I think we will be working together and nothing will happen until there's a more comprehensive approach. It gives us some time to come up with something that solves the problem in a comprehensive way," Caldwell said.
This summer, Gov. David Ige vetoed an Airbnb tax collection bill that lawmakers passed.
Last week, he underscored his reservations. But he stopped short of saying he would sign off on the draft deal.
"We will move it forward if we find agreement that will allow us to collect taxes that are owed in a way that doesn't facilitate illegal activity," Ige said.
The visitor industry is against any deal that doesn't disclose the list of illegal operators….
Related: What's in the Secret Air BnB Agreement?
read … City asks governor to hold off on Airbnb tax deal
HART Pretends to Care About $18M Rail Cost Overrun
SA: The board overseeing Honolulu’s rail project rejected a request by rail staff to increase a key engineering contract by nearly $18 million, with several board members saying they didn’t have enough information to approve the sizable request.
Sam Carnaggio, project director for the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation, presented a request last week to the board to increase the so-called general engineering services contract for consulting firm CH2M Hill Inc.
HART initially awarded Colorado-based CH2M Hill a five-year, $46 million contract in 2013 to provide “oversight support” covering five tasks, including management support, cost analysis, environmental planning and management of design services. The requested change order would increase the firm’s contract to $64.8 million. (Three previous adjustments totaling $699,572 were made since 2015.)…
read … All Fake
Star-Adv: Hike Taxes on E Cigs
SA: Currently, there’s no Hawaii consumer-related tax tied to electronic smoking devices, known as e-cigarettes. But there ought to be. State lawmakers prepping for next year’s legislative session should draft a bill that imposes hefty taxes as a means to discourage escalating (encourage tobacco) use among youth in the islands (because tobacco taxes pay for the salaries of our friends).
read … Tax could help curb e-cigarette use by minors
Republicans Announce 2018 Legislative Agenda
CB: …For state House Republicans, their 2018 legislative package is all about the three A’s — accountability, accessibility and affordability….
…we’re calling for the City and County of Honolulu to slash the amount of time it takes to get a building permit from an average of 17 months. That’s the longest time in the entire country!….
You can find more information about the Hawaii House Republican Caucus 2018 Bill Package at houseminority.wordpress.com…..
read … Better Solutions For The Best Hawaii
Deportation Next: Muslim Gets Time Served for Practicing His Religion
KITV: Turkish man who disrupted a flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu won't receive additional jail time and must pay American Airlines more than $8,500.
Anil Uskanli was sentenced Monday to the six months that he has spent locked up.
Prosecutors have said Uskanli acted oddly on the May flight, including walking to the front of the plane with a blanket around his head. Crewmembers feared his laptop contained explosives. That prompted fighter jets to escort the plane to Honolulu….
His immigration attorney Gary Singh says a deportation hearing is scheduled for next week…. (B-bye.)
DoJ: Anil Uskanli Sentenced For Interference With Flight Crew
AP: Trump asks Supreme Court for full enforcement of travel ban
read … Deport This Problem
Hawaii, which leads the nation in prevalence of multigenerational homes.
CB:…The Nu’uanus are one of over 34,000 families in Hawaii and 60 million people nationwide who live in a multigenerational household, where two or more adult generations are represented in the same home.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, multigenerational households are most prevalent in areas with high costs of living, large immigrant populations and housing shortages….
Multigenerational households have become more popular nationwide. From 2000 to 2010, their number shot up from 3.9 million to 5.1 million. Asian communities made up 28 percent of those households.
At 11 percent of households, the Aloha State has the highest proportion of multigenerational homes in the country, with Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (18 percent), and Asians (13 percent) being the two ethnic groups with the largest proportions of multigenerational households. …
Flashback: Gays Attack Hawaiian Culture, ‘Multi-Generational Families’ Use Feds to Pressure Hawaii DoE Bullying Programs
read … Multi-generational
Will State Renew Free Money Giveaway to people Claiming Eviction?
HNN: …The initiative was around for just a year.
But in that short amount of time the program, managed by Aloha United Way, helped eviction rates on Oahu drop a staggering 25 percent.
Statewide, the initiative prevented 1,124 evictions, helping thousands of people stay in their homes.
"The AUW program, when it was available, was able to move very, very quickly and get people the money they needed so they could stay in their homes," Chee said.
Despite that success, the state chose not to renew funding and instead shifted money to other housing initiatives….
HPR: Kahauiki Village for Homeless Families a Community Project
read … Effort afoot to revive eviction prevention aid
Hawaii County Bus Ridership Declines Sharply After Free Rides Abolished
HNN: …Hawaii County buses used to give more than 1.3 million rides a year — a helpful pickup for locals and visitors in the town areas, a lifeline for others in more rural spots.
“Our routes are very long, from Pahoa all the way up to Kona,” explained county managing director Wil Okabe, “because a lot of these people who are using the bus are using it to go to work at the hotels.”
And no one could argue with the price.
“It was a good thing for the community to have those free bus rides,” said interim mass transit administrator Tiffany Kai, “but then it went to $1, and then a year later we increased the bus fare to $2. We used to keep it (bus fare cash) in our storage in the back room.”
It was from that storage closet that thousands in cash fares disappeared in an as-yet-unsolved theft last year.
But that’s not the only thing mass transit is missing. Hundreds of thousands of rides have evaporated too.
“There was a big change in these last eight years,” Okabe said. “The demand from 1.3 million people who started using the bus is presently 800,000 people using the bus. When Harry (Kim) was first mayor, the fares were free.”…
HTH: Transit chief to start Feb. 16: Californian brings ‘significant experience’
read … Free Ride
Crackpot Congressional Candidate accused of harassing interracial teen couple
MN: …The 49-year-old Haliimaile resident has pleaded not guilty to harassment and disorderly conduct in connection with the incident at 6:46 p.m. Feb. 22 at McDonald’s in Pukalani.
After hearing testimony and arguments, Judge Kelsey Kawano took the matter under advisement and set a Dec. 15 hearing for his ruling.
Testifying Friday, 16-year-old Antonio Mason said that he walked into the McDonald’s that evening holding the hand of his then-girlfriend Christiane Keyhani.
After ordering ice cream, they were waiting for their food when Gimbernat “walked up behind me, threw up his hand” and said, “I’m sick of these n***ers,” Mason testified.
“It was definitely loud enough for the entire McDonald’s to hear as well,” said Mason, who is African-American….
Gimbernat was throwing away what was left of his food when he “turned around and continued to shake his hand at me and yell, ‘Do you know your ethnicity? You shouldn’t be with this white girl,’ ” Mason said….
Gimbernat ran (as a last place loser in the primary) as a Republican for U.S. House in 2010 and for U.S. Senate as a Democrat in 2012….. (Maui News left out the mention of his Democrat candidacy, natch….)
read … Man accused of harassing interracial teen couple
WHT reporter to be celebrated Dec. 9 for work cracking pCard case
WHT: …The Big Island Press Club will celebrate Cook Laurer as the club’s 2017 Torch of Light winner during its annual Christmas Luncheon from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Dec. 9 at Hilo Bay Café.
“I have won a lot of state and even a few national awards in my career, but this one means the most because it’s in recognition of almost five years of persistent questioning, trying to get at the facts despite government stonewalling,” the 11-year WHT reporter said.
Cook Lauer is being recognized by the club for her work breaking the story of former Mayor Billy Kenoi’s misuse of a county-issued credit card, known as a purchasing card, or pCard…..
Best Comment: “Nancy Cook-Lauer deserves this honor. She spent years trying to overcome the resistance put up by (now-Star-Advertiser reporter) Kevin Dayton.”
read … WHT reporter to be celebrated Dec. 9 for work cracking pCard case
Red Hill Tanks Critical to National Military Strategy
SA: …The defense bill also notes the “strategic value” of the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility, which is under review following the report of a fuel leak in 2014.
“If the facility were closed, the United States armed forces would be unable to support the National Military Strategy, including the goals of the United States Pacific commander, and national security interests would be significantly undermined,” the bill states….
read … An Article Entitled 'Defense bill includes over $300 million for Hawaii'
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