Audio: Trump Threatens Election officials if they don't 'find 11,780 votes'
Gaming on Hawaiian Homelands
Hawaii Congressional Delegation How They Voted January 2, 2021
Blangiardi no comment on plans to tackle mountain of problems
KHON: … The new Mayor did not address the myriad challenges he and his cabinet will face…
Blangiardi declined to comment on how he plans to tackle the mountain of problems….
read … Blangiardi takes oath of office tells cabinet he ‘anticipates making great things happen together’
Honolulu City Council members sworn in-- Waters was elected Council chairman
SA: … After the oaths were taken, Waters was elected Council chairman by a 9-0 vote. Kiaaina was selected vice chairwoman and Tupola as floor leader…. New members Radiant Cordero, Esther Kiaaina, Calvin Say, Augie Tulba and Andria Tupola will play major roles at City Hall the next four years by virtue of simple math ….
read … Honolulu City Council members sworn in-- Waters was elected Council chairman by a 9-0 vote.
Steve Alm sworn in as Honolulu prosecutor—Launches Audit of Kealoha Cases
KHON: … The retired circuit court judge faces the daunting task of heading a department marred by scandal in the wake of the federal corruption probe and misdeeds of former deputy prosecutor Katherine Kealoha.
Alm plans to restore the public’s trust in the prosecutor’s office and is already making changes, but he says he does not feel it is necessary to replace every single staff member.
Alm says, he will take appropriate action if any improprieties are discovered. He added, he reappointed many of the deputy attorneys because he is confident that they are not guilty of any wrongdoings….
read … Steve Alm sworn in as Honolulu prosecutor
Vax for Age 75+ to begin Mid-January?
SA: … Lt. Gov. Josh Green, the state’s COVID-19 response coordinator, acknowledged the disappointment that the initial distribution of 66,000 doses fell well short of the 81,000 allotment expected at the outset. This was a common experience of most states.
However, his assessment on Thursday was optimistic, projecting that by mid-January, distribution will ramp up significantly. Seniors 75 and older who live independently will begin receiving the first of the two shots these vaccines require. About 150,000 doses are expected to arrive each month after that, Green said.
“We’ve already vaccinated about 4,000 more people in Hawaii than all the people who have had COVID-19 here,” he added; the count was current as of New Year’s Eve. At that point about 25,000 doses had been injected in arms statewide, whereas the infection case count for the duration of the pandemic stood at around 21,400….
(NOTE: According to Census Bureau, Hawaii is home to 100K people age 75+. Some have already been vaccinated in nursing homes and some will refuse the vax. Two weeks in January should be sufficient to vaccinate all the rest before opening vaccinations up to age 65+. There are 166K people between ages 65-75 in Hawaii and so they should be completed by the end of February. Once everybody 55+ is vaccinated, COVID deaths will be reduced almost to zero.)
read … Smooth vaccine rollout is crucial
Hawaii has most believers in Eco-Religion
SA: … Hawaii has the largest majority of citizens in the nation who understand the urgency of climate resilience and have demanded real solutions instead of hollow words. Over the past four years, then-Mayor Kirk Caldwell and the City Council have quietly answered that call and worked together to lay a foundation for a “green” economic recovery with an impressive series of strong climate policies.
We developed an islandwide resilience strategy informed by thousands of community voices. We revamped our building codes to ensure every new house is wired for solar panels and electric vehicles. We started the move away from single use plastics to protect our oceans and health.
We changed streetlights across the island to LED bulbs, and are now focusing on energy-efficient equipment and renewable- energy systems throughout our park system and city buildings. We filed suit to hold oil corporations responsible for 50 years of climate deception and protect Oahu taxpayers from millions in climate damages. We put into law a mandate for carbon neutrality by 2045, and a fossil fuel-free fleet by 2035 — but also acted on it by building charging infrastructure and adding the first of what eventually will be hundreds of cleaner, quieter electric busses to our city routes.
The result is that Honolulu is now in pole position as the Joseph Biden administration unveils new programs and funding aimed squarely at tackling climate change, investing in infrastructure, accelerating renewable energy and transportation electrification, and providing more stimulus funding to jumpstart an economic recovery from COVID-19.
The baton will now be passed to a new administration and new City Council who will need to work hard to continue to transition the city fleet, add bike lanes, adopt an aggressive Climate Action Plan, expand micromobility, install renewable energy on city facilities, and keep Honolulu in the Paris climate agreement….
Reality: Crichton: Environmentalism is a religion
read … For Oahu, climate progress is pathway for economic recovery
Do local youth have a future in Hawaii?
SA: … The pandemic has further emphasized what many Hawaii residents already know: living here is unsustainable. As much as I and other local youth envision carving out places for ourselves in Hawaii’s future, it’s likely that we will join the ongoing exodus of local people from Hawaii unless the possibility of having a home and career in the islands becomes more realistic.
For the past three years, Hawaii has experienced simultaneous population and economic loss due to a dangerous cycle of residents leaving the state for better economic opportunities. According to the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization (UHERO), in 2018, 67,000 Hawaii residents migrated elsewhere while more than 54,000 mainlanders moved here….
read … Do local youth have a future in Hawaii?
Report shows coronavirus pandemic increases the need for doctors in Hawaii
KHON: … The Hawaii Physician Workforce Assessment Project Report for 2020 shows that out of 989 doctors offices interviewed about 44% said that the coronavirus pandemic altered the way they do things including more telehealth, early retirement and seeing less patients.
The pandemic has increased the need for doctors. The report shows that Hawaii could use 700 to 1,000 more doctors.
This report was given to the legislature in December 2020….
read …Report shows coronavirus pandemic increases the need for doctors in Hawaii
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