Hawaii Veterans Day Events
Gary Okino forced to resign from Democratic Party
Tourism Marketing: In London and ashamed to be from Hawaii
Hokulia Bypass: Hawaii Supreme Court upholds land acquisition for road
US Supreme Court refuses to hear Hawaii beach accretion case
Speaker? Calvin Say two votes shy
State House Speaker Calvin Say, (D-St. Louis Heights, Palolo Valley, Wilhelmina Rise), has 24 votes to remain as speaker, two votes shy of the majority of the 51 members necessary to control the chamber, several sources said.
State House Rep. Sylvia Luke (D-Pacific Heights, Pauoa, Punchbowl), has 16 votes in her dissident faction, sources say.
That leaves three lawmakers — Rep. Roy Takumi, Rep. Jessica Wooley and Rep. Cindy Evans — who have not committed, according to sources.
(Two missing votes: Bertram and Magaoay. So sad.)
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Governor Lingle says she will consider running against U.S. Sen. Dan Akaka
The Republican governor, who leaves office Dec. 6 after two four-year terms, said she would then give serious consideration to a campaign against U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka. She also has said she would consider a role in national GOP politics.
"I'm not going to think about it for six months," she said. "I've been in public life for 30 years. I think it's important for anyone who has lived this kind of a public life and intense life where they are making decisions every day, to have time for reflection, more time for reading, more time to create a context for Hawaii's future.
"Whatever I do, it will be something that will make life better. That's my mission myself. But I just think it's important to take some time and to reflect."….
Lingle's only short-term commitment, she said, is to co-chair a task force on alumni engagement at California State University at Northridge, her alma mater. Her co-chairman will be Earl Enzer, managing director of private wealth management at Goldman Sachs & Co. in Los Angeles.
"We'll try to create a plan for our alma mater on how you survive and thrive in a state that's a fiscal basket case," she said.
Political Radar: Breather
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Failure of Akaka Bill dims Akaka’s 2012 chances
By 2012, there could be a Republican president. More Senate Democrats than Republicans are also up for re-election that year. One of them is Dan Akaka.
If Akaka's signature piece of legislation is dead in its tracks — after 10 years of attempts to get it passed — how will it impact the senator's political future?
When Ed Case challenged Akaka in 2006, he questioned the senator's effectiveness and suggested Hawaii needed to consider how the state will shift when Akaka and Inouye, both 86, eventually leave office.
Lingle has already expressed her interest in running against Akaka in 2012. Case is a possible candidate, too, as is Mufi Hannemann — though likely only if Akaka decides not to seek re-election.
Akaka has indicated he will seek a fourth term. But he may do so lacking what would be the biggest accomplishment of his entire career.
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Shapiro backs DoE school closures
Every dollar in the DOE budget has a constituency, and any effort to re-prioritize faces stiff resistance, draining time and energy that could be better used finding ways to enhance learning in the classroom.
So instead of facing down the ‘stiff resistance’ offered by the hordes of scammers and grifters who loot hundreds of millions of dollars from the DoE budget annually, the BoE should just push back against parents from Kalihi.
the public has to recognize budget realities and demographic shifts. It’s simply not fair to keep accusing DOE of failing to make the most efficient use of its funding — and then constantly handcuff administrators in managing their resources.
AUDIT THE DOE BEFORE DEMANDING TRUST.
If we hire managers to do a job, it’s only reasonable to give them a measure of latitude and benefit of the doubt.
Poor David. Now that his “progressive” brethren have taken over everything, is he to be relegated to making up excuses? Oh, how the mighty have fallen….
CUT THIS FIRST: Hawaii DoE: Cost of waste, fraud, and corruption between $191M and $431M per year
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Josh Green: I’m keeping my seat
Kona Blog: I e-mailed Senator Josh Green this evening regarding his possible departure from the legislature. He kindly replied to my e-mail and addressed this rumor.
Reply: “I am keeping my seat as long as the people will have me. Please convey this to your readers.”
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DCCA: Easing regulations and expanding online services helped Hawaii businesses
The best way that government can help foster a healthy business climate -- so as to create jobs and strengthen the economy -- is to ease regulations and reduce the cost of fees and taxes. While more can be done, especially with regard to taxes, there has been much progress over the course of the Lingle-Aiona administration.
The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) has made it more convenient, affordable and easier to do business in Hawaii by initiating or improving operations in a number of key areas….
None of this would have been possible without the leadership of Gov. Lingle and the dedicated men and women of DCCA who exemplify the spirit of public service.
(And now Abercrombie will reverse it to create positions for HGEA)
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Green groups oppose MECO plan to bring in palm oil
…plantations of the African oil palm replace natural rain forests in places like Malaysia, Indonesia and Borneo. In response, the international palm oil interests worked out a system with the NRDC to certify that biofuels were being produced sustainably. HECO was one of the first utilities to sign on.
However, the local environmentalists have called this "greenwashing," and say specifically that Sime Darby is planning large palm oil expansions in Indonesia and West Africa.
Blue Earth's refinery proposal never went forward, and other potential suppliers of biofuel also evaporated.
With local or at least American sources not available, HECO went to the PUC for permission to tap the international palm oil supply…
BioFuel Earmark: Abercrombie defends $3.5M earmark after being nailed by CBS
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Stalinists, Soros team up in attack on HawaiiNewsNow
BY HAWAII MEDIA COUNCIL – (The misnamed, George Soros funded group known as,) FreePress, the nation’s leading media reform control organization, will bring the concerns of Hawaiians UH Marxist perfessers directly to the FCC, filing complaints about Raycom Media’s takeover of 3 TV stations in Hawaii.
More than one year ago, (the Stalinist) Media Council Hawaii (MCH) filed a complaint with the FCC seeking to stop the Raycom takeover of stations KGMB (CBS), KHNL (NBC) and KFVE (My TV). This complaint points to clear violations of FCC rules that are supposed to guarantee diversity of opinion, competition, and localism. To date, FCC rulings have made public financial details about the merger, but no action has been taken on the main complaint.
REALITY: Honolulu Community Media Council has its own issues with "media control" and don’t forget this The Frank Marshall Davis Network in Hawaii
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Carlisle nominee Chin: “not intent of admin to grow number of City employees”
Chin faced only two questions from committee members. Ann Kobayashi sought clarification on the Cabinet appointments and Councilman Romy Cachola asked if city government will grow under the new administration.
"If we're following our current fiscal policy, which is to maintain the hiring freeze except under extraordinary circumstances, then my guess is that we will be losing people by attrition," Chin said. "It is not the intent of this administration to grow the number of city employees."
Nominations of acting Planning and Permitting Director David Tanoue and acting Environmental Services Director Tim Steinberger were approved Tuesday. The nomination of acting Information Technology Director Gordon Bruce is scheduled to be heard by the committee tomorrow.
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Maui: Council members discuss leadership posts
Incoming Council Member Don Couch, who will take over the South Maui seat, said organizing talks had been happening "fast and furious," and that he'd been getting calls from council members since Nov. 4, two days after he was elected.
"It's eye opening and interesting at the same time, and I didn't expect it to start so fast," he said.
He said he had a list of "two or three" preferences for committee assignments but realized he might not get what he wanted. More than one person had expressed an interest in the council chairmanship, he said, but Couch said he was reserving his decision for who to support until he had talked with everyone.
"I kind of liken it to (the TV show) 'Survivor,' " he said. "Before they go to the tribal council, instead of saying, 'who are we going to vote off,' they say, 'who are we going to vote on.' "
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Decision pending on Alii Health
Is it time for Alii Health Center to become part of Kona Community Hospital?
The 90-day time frame allotted to bring the center under the hospital's auspices, or recommend another course of action, has nearly run out, and the health center is on this morning's agenda as the Hawaii Health Systems Corp. board is set to meet at 10 a.m. in Honolulu.
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State sues 2 firms over alleged prescription drug price gouging
The suit by the Attorney General’s Office is a followup to its earlier lawsuit against more than 40 pharmaceutical drug manufacturers that recovered more than $82 million in out-of-court settlements for the state and the federal government.
The Circuit Court lawsuit is against McKesson Corporation, wholesaler of the drugs, and First DataBank Inc., which compiled prices that the state used in paying for the prescription drugs.
“We are bringing this second phase of this litigation as part of an ongoing effort to recover overcharges and restore transparency and fairness,” Attorney General Mark Bennett said.
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Bank lawsuit seeks to overturn nonjudicial foreclosure by condo association
The Association of Apartment Owners of the Ilikai Apartment Building was named in a lawsuit filed on November 3. The suit was filed by Wells Fargo Bank, which serves as trustee for a mortgage loan trust that included a mortgage on Apartment 1731 in the Ilikai.
The bank is seeking to recover clear title to the apartment following a disputed sale to a third party in a nonjudicial foreclosure initiated by the Ilikai.
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Controversy persists over possible road sale
Several Native Hawaiians said the trail is actually a Hawaiian road dating back to the monarchy, and urged access to the road to visit burial grounds and to observe cultural practices.
"It's not even your land to purchase," said Abel Simeona Lui (who was convicted of manslaughter April 11, 1977). "You guys live here with us. You don't understand the word 'aloha.' ... This is the Hawaiian people's land."
Imagine that, a convicted killer lecturing others about the meaning of aloha. Congratulations, Kau, you have returned to the status quo ante.
MORE of the same: Proposed processing plant placement panned
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