Leaving Hawaii: Over Half Immediately Able to buy Home on Mainland
Hawaii Gun Bills: Decision Making Hearings Scheduled
Defamation: UH Law School Dean Sues Ken Lawson
2025 Wildfire Summit: 'Exploring our Wildfire Future'
Extradition to Hawaii ordered in 1977 murder case
Instant Results: Gabbard fires over 100 perverts from Intelligence Agencies
SA: … Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, said on Tuesday that more than 100 intelligence officers from 15 agencies had been fired for sexually explicit discussions on a government chat tool.
The chat program was administered by the National Security Agency and intended for discussions of sensitive security matters. But a group of employees used it for discussions that contained sexual themes, intelligence officials said this week. The chats also included explicit discussion of gender transition surgery, officials said.
Transcripts of the chat were first disclosed Monday by Christopher Rufo, a conservative activist who writes (reporter) for City Journal.
(And instead of telling us it isn’t real, the Trump admin is taking immediate action. That’s different.)
Appearing Tuesday evening on Fox News, Gabbard said she had issued a directive to fire more than 100 people who participated in the discussions and to strip the officers of their security clearances. She said the chats were an “egregious violation of trust” that violated “basic rules and standards” of workplace professionalism….
read … Gabbard fires over 100 intelligence officers for explicit chats
The NSA’s Secret Sex Chats
CJ: .…these logs, dating back two years, are lurid, featuring wide-ranging discussions of sex, kink, polyamory, and castration.
One popular chat topic was male-to-female transgender surgery, which involves surgically removing the penis and turning it into an artificial vagina. “[M]ine is everything,” said one male who claimed to have had gender reconstruction surgery. “[I]’ve found that i like being penetrated (never liked it before GRS), but all the rest is just as important as well.” Another intelligence official boasted that genital surgery allowed him “to wear leggings or bikinis without having to wear a gaff under it.”
These employees discussed hair removal, estrogen injections, and the experience of sexual pleasure post-castration. “[G]etting my butthole zapped by a laser was . . . shocking,” said one transgender-identifying intel employee who spent thousands on hair removal. “Look, I just enjoy helping other people experience boobs,” said another about estrogen treatments. “[O]ne of the weirdest things that gives me euphoria is when i pee, i don’t have to push anything down to make sure it aims right,” a Defense Intelligence Agency employee added.
These revelations come at a moment of heightened scrutiny for the intelligence community. President Donald Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard have each made the case that the intelligence agencies have gone “woke,” prioritizing left-wing activism over national security. These chat logs confirm their suspicions and raise fundamental questions about competence and professionalism.
According to our sources, the sex chats were legitimized as part of the NSA’s commitment to “diversity, equity and inclusion.” Activists within the agency used LGBTQ+ “employee resource groups” to turn their kinks and pathologies into official work duties. According to the current NSA employee, these groups “spent all day" recruiting activists and holding meetings with titles such as “Privilege,” “Ally Awareness,” “Pride,” and “Transgender Community Inclusion.” And they did so with the full support of NSA leadership, which declared that DEI was “not only mission critical, but mission imperative.”…
read … The NSA’s Secret Sex Chats: Intelligence officials maintained a chatroom to discuss polyamory and transgender surgeries, internal documents reveal.
Smaller providers stepping in to ease Hawaii insurance crisis?
HTH: … In 2023, large insurance provider Universal Property and Casualty Insurance Co. pulled out of the Hawaii market, leaving many of its roughly 1,000 Big Island policyholders with no coverage. With no other providers offering coverage in Lava Zones 1 and 2, Puna residents were left no choice but to seek home insurance through the Hawaii Property Insurance Association, a state-operated provider of last resort.
However, HPIA’s insurance premiums are high, and some residents reported their insurance bills quadrupling or more under HPIA.
As he did in 2024, Puna Rep. Greggor Ilagan once again introduced several bills this year to address the crisis, but no committee chair has scheduled any of those proposals to be heard.
“Insurance is a tough issue, and I haven’t been able to find a solution,” Ilagan said….
… Former County Council member and president of the Hawaiian Shores Community Association Eileen O’Hara said the presence of small insurers in the market again could attract a large insurer, with competition helping to drive costs down again.
“It’s not the magic bullet, but it still breaks open the market,” O’Hara said, adding that her ex-husband saved about 40% from his HPIA coverage through one of the new providers. “That’s still more than what he was paying before HPIA, but when your insurance bill goes from $1,500 to $6,000, that’s hard on a fixed income.”
O’Hara said insurers are still skittish about Puna. Companies tend to get “a little more picky” after they sign up a certain number of clients — “they start to wonder why nobody else is providing coverage” — and at least one big insurer got spooked and aborted plans to enter the Big Island market after those plans leaked to the public, she claimed.
But still, O’Hara said, “there’s some hope on the horizon.”
In particular, O’Hara said, the Oahu-based insurer SwitchUp Insurance will host a community meeting at the Nanawale Community Association on March 15 to discuss insurance options in Puna….
Ilagan said one way or another, the private insurance market must be a part of the solution to the crisis.
He said it’s too risky for the state to use taxpayer money to take on Puna residents’ liabilities, and any effort to build an insurance subsidy fund will take time, probably decades, to accumulate an effective sum.
But even if such a fund ever materializes, Ilagan said he is unsure if it would last.
“One thing I’ve realized is that long-term funds like the rainy day fund tend to get targeted to be used for other purposes,” he said. “While the private sector maybe has the fiscal responsibility to not touch money they’re saving, lawmakers have a hard time not doing that.” ….
read … Smaller providers could help ease insurance crisis for Puna homeowners
HNN Investigates uncovers apparent geographic oversight in national kidney allocation policy
HNN: … A months-long investigation into the allocation process of kidneys that are donated in Hawaii has uncovered an apparent oversight in the distribution process.
The committee in charge of making sure organs are distributed fairly admits it didn’t consider Hawaii’s proximity to the rest of the country when making its decisions.
Records show over the past eight years, hundreds of kidneys donated in the islands have been shipped to the mainland, while Hawaii has received only a handful in return.
Weeks after HNN Investigates started asking questions about the striking disparity, we received a statement from the United Network for Organ Sharing that said, “The Organ Procurement Transplant Network kidney committee and board of directors did not consider the geography of Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Alaska during its kidney policy allocation process.” …
Records obtained by HNN Investigates show between 2017 and 2024, a total of 604 kidneys were donated locally. Of those 232, nearly 40 percent were sent to patients living on the continent. During that same eight-year time period, Hawaii received just five kidneys in return….
read … HNN Investigates uncovers apparent geographic oversight in national kidney allocation policy
California ‘body brokers’ offer to fly homeless zombies out of Hawaii
HNN: … Hawaii health providers and state officials are warning the community that so-called “body brokers” may be targeting homeless drug addicts.
They are recruiting people for substance abuse treatment homes in California, and have already succeeded in getting some to leave.
(CLUE: According to AETNA lawsuit, these rehab homes are really drug dens.)
It’s been called a scam in other states, but no one expected it would be happening here.
The alarm about possible “body brokers” was raised Friday night after two women showed up at Kauhale Health homeless treatment and housing facility on N. King Street, passing out business cards and an offer that seemed too good to be true.
Janet Nguyen, Kauhale Health project manager, says the women had found one of Kauhale Health’s clients at Aala Park and walked with him back to the facility.
“Lots of red flags for me,” she said. “She began to tell me that they’re here from there to try to recruit people. You know anybody that was interested in rehabilitation.”
Security cameras at the homeless health and housing facility recorded the women’s visit, project staff who questioned them, including security guard Raul Rodriguez, said they didn’t hide their intentions.
“It sounded legit,” he said. “I mean, if you’re going to come to the streets over here and tell homeless, ‘Hey want to come to California for free? We’ll house you, we’ll feed you. All you got to do is just this this and this,’ I would go.” ….
Related: Thielen: Homelessness is a Money-Spinner, Creates Thousands of ‘Positions’ in Hawaii
KITV: Millions on the line as groups battle childhood homelessness in Hawaii | News | kitv.com
WT: A West Hollywood Rehab Center is Listed in Aetna Lawsuit Alleging Fraud and Exploitation (Rehab homes are really drug dens.)
read … ‘Lots of red flags’: Drug rehab recruiters from California fuel concerns over ‘body brokers’ in Hawaii
Defend Hawaii: Mainland Drug Dealer Comes to Hawaii—busted in only FIVE DAYS
SA: … On Dec. 28, 2022, a Hawaii County police officer saw Bono and another man in a silver Kia in a parking lot engaging in what appeared to be a narcotics transaction, according to an affidavit by a HSI agent attached to the federal criminal complaint.
(CLUE: Drug dealing is reserved for local thugs only. The police enforce this rule. The slogan is: ‘Defend Hawaii’)
The officer watched the passenger in the Kia get out and the Kia drive away, making a left turn without using a signal. The officer saw that Bono was driving without a seat belt and pulled him over. A man in the passenger seat evaded law enforcement and was not arrested.
Bono volunteered that he was from Washington and had a Washington driver’s license and outstanding warrants. Bono also allegedly volunteered that he had a knife and there might be a gun in his Kia.
The officer removed Bono from the car and saw a methamphetamine pipe in plain view and arrested him on suspicion of seven counts of promoting a dangerous drug.
A search warrant executed on Bono’s Kia turned up 2,550 blue fentanyl pills disguised as oxycodone, $4,590 in cash, four grams of methamphetamine and two mobile phones.
Bono told police he flew from Seattle to Kailua-Kona on Dec. 23 and “acquired approximately 4,000 fentanyl tablets once he arrived.” Bono allegedly told officers he provided the fentanyl 500 pills at a time to a customer and subdistributor referred to as “Person A” in the complaint….
HTH: Plea deal in the works in fentanyl case - Hawaii Tribune-Herald
read … Defend Hawaii
Hawaiʻi Cost Of Living Is Creating A Mental Health Crisis For Workers
CB: … The sticker shock Hawaiʻi residents regularly experience at the grocery store has serious mental health implications for working adults struggling to get by, according to a new study from the University of Hawaiʻi Mānoa.
…Residents who spend a high percentage of their income on housing — even if they are well above the poverty line — are also more likely to experience mental health issues, Juarez said.
Nearly 40% of working-age adults in the study reported symptoms of depression — a higher rate than the state as a whole….
LINK: Frontiers | Socioeconomic determinants of mental health outcomes among Hawaii adults
read … Hawaiʻi Cost Of Living Is Creating A Mental Health Crisis For Workers - Honolulu Civil Beat
150 laid off as DLIR Cuts off MEO, CNHA--Blames ‘Federal funding Issues’
MN: … Citing issues with funding, Maui Economic Opportunity announced Monday that the National Dislocated Worker Grant, or NDWG, which provided jobs for people affected by the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfires has been shut down.
According to MEO, the program also provided labor at no cost for sites doing recovery work from the wildfires that killed more than 100 people and burned much of Lahaina.
The MEO says the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations informed MEO on Monday that the department did not have enough money to cover MEO’s January reimbursement, and that continued funding through the U.S. Department of Labor remained uncertain. The program is structured so that MEO fronts payments, and the state reimburses the local nonprofit organization.
“That left us no choice other than shutting down immediately to prevent incurring further potentially non-reimbursable expenses,” MEO CEO Debbie Cabebe said in a statement.
Additionally, the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement announced on Tuesday that 17 employees assigned to its Kākoʻo Maui recovery programs have also been placed on leave following unexpected federal funding cuts.
Today, just like many other community organizations, Kākoʻo Maui is faced with the loss of a majority of our staff due to a federal funding freeze affecting the National Dislocated Workers Grant,” the organization wrote in an email. “This loss has led to the temporary closure of the Kākoʻo Distribution Center. As we continue to work through staffing challenges, currently scheduled appointments will be canceled until further notice.”….
SA: 131 Maui fire survivors laid off after federal funding cut | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
MN: 17 employees with CNHA’s Kākoʻo Maui placed on leave due to federal funding cuts : Maui Now
MN: Another hit: Insufficient funding erases more than 130 jobs held by Maui wildfire survivors : Maui Now
SA: Maui Humane Society loses 3 workers due to cuts in federal funding | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
read … Federal funding issues threaten Maui’s wildfire recovery efforts | News, Sports, Jobs - Maui News
Legislators Reject $20M ‘Green’ Subsidy for Oil Refiner
CB: … The Hawaiʻi Renewable Fuels Coalition … ambitions to plant and harvest 100,000 acres of Hawaiʻi’s agricultural land — almost as much as the acreage currently planted in the state — has met with resistance from legislators, in part because the coalition has asked them to approve up to $20 million in annual subsidies for local fuel production….
The legislation is hanging on by a thread, awaiting scheduling ahead of a Friday deadline in the House Finance Committee, whose chair Rep. Kyle Yamashita is known as a fiscal conservative.
Senators have taken issue with the tax credit’s almost singular focus on the Par Hawaii refinery in Oʻahu’s Kapolei, having already killed one related piece of legislation earlier this month. The refinery’s recent $90 million investment to produce sustainable aviation fuel, lawmakers said, is proof it’s a worthwhile enterprise that doesn’t need state investment.
And some concerns, including from a former Par Hawaii employee, are being raised about whether the subsidies actually will trickle down to benefit the farmers and travelers as promised by the fuels coalition….
Ted Metrose, a former Par Hawaii staffer, is also skeptical of the proposals, having opposed similar tax credits last year. Metrose, a whistleblower in a tax-avoidance-related lawsuit filed by the state against Par Hawaii, has raised concerns about the lack of guardrails in the bill.
Metrose said the bill is “basically a facade” because it subsidizes all sustainable aviation fuel, produced from both locally grown and imported feedstock. There is no guarantee the savings will be passed on to farmers or air travelers, he added. …
House Bill 976 still needs to be scheduled and heard before Friday to have a chance at success. If it doesn’t succeed this time, the coalition said it will continue to try in years to come. …
read … This Plant Can Power Grids, Planes, Poultry And Cattle. Hawaiʻi Isn't Sold - Honolulu Civil Beat
Rail Construction Damaged Honolulu Freshwater Springs
CB: … The Honolulu Rail Transit Project highlights the significant challenges posed by the lack of awareness and visibility of springs. While celebrated in traditional place names, springs were absent in the rail plans. In the 2011 Special Management Area hearing at the City Council, Chris Cramer of the Maunalua Fishpond Heritage Center provided a map of the major springs and fishponds along the rail in Puʻuloa.
He warned that the rail piers, acting as underground dams, could reduce flow and jeopardize the surrounding ecosystems and cultural practices. In response, Department of Transportation Services and Department Permitting and Planning officials testified “There are no springs and fishponds in the rail vicinity.”
When construction began, it disrupted springs’ groundwater flow paths critical for fishponds leading to massive groundwater flooding at construction sites. Observers described seeing “2-3 days of cement trucks” pouring concrete to suppress the flow ….
read … Care Of Honolulu’s Freshwater Springs A Shared Responsibility - Honolulu Civil Beat
$275,000 For Heart Attack Caused By False Missile Alert
CB: ... The infamous alert turned out to be false, of course. But by the time state officials sent out the all clear — anywhere from about about 15 minutes to 40 minutes later depending on whether it was on social media or your cell phone — Shields was in the throes of heart failure. The chest pains had started as soon as he’d texted his son and daughter on the mainland to tell them he loved them, a lawsuit filed against the state in 2018 says….
read … It's Your Money: $275,000 For Heart Attack Caused By False Missile Alert - Honolulu Civil Beat
Major Fireworks Seizure At Honolulu Port Points To Federal Failure
CB: … Last year a task force working to stem the flow of illegal fireworks into Hawaiʻi touted its biggest seizure yet: 24 tons of commercial fireworks that arrived at the Port of Honolulu from what is known as China’s “hometown of fireworks.”
Only fireworks companies licensed by the state can import, sell or even possess such explosives, and the company listed on shipping records as the importer, Explicit Pyrotechnics, was not licensed, according to the Honolulu Fire Department.
But the fact that the shipment even made it to Hawaiʻi exposed an apparent failure in federal oversight of fireworks, Civil Beat has found. Explicit Pyrotechnics was able to obtain a federal license allowing it to bring the explosives into the country even though it didn’t have a state license to do anything with them once they arrived.
Two state lawmakers and the national trade group for pyrotechnics and fireworks questioned how the explosives made it into Hawaiʻi without that state license….
Matson Navigation’s Daniel K. Inouye was … just in from Shanghai.
Among its cargo was a 20-foot container loaded with 1,320 cartons of display fireworks from the Liuyang Kingdom Company, according to the bill of lading. Those records say what’s being shipped, who sent it and where it’s headed.
At some point between Jan. 28 and Feb. 15, the task force conducted a routine inspection on container MATU2665206 ….
read … Major Fireworks Seizure At Honolulu Port Points To Federal Failure - Honolulu Civil Beat
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