Mufi Operative launches “fringe” GOP Senate Campaign
VIDEO: Occupy Wall Street–Preview of APEC Protests?
Abercrombie Admin Defends Emergency Decrees
APEC Hint for Realtors: Top of Chinese wealthy's wish list? To leave China
Borreca: Hawaii GOP merely devours its young
One of the reasons for the Hawaii Democratic Party's continued success is its ability to vigorously debate, scheme and fight amongst its own members.
This differs from the local Republican Party, which merely devours its young.
Democrats possess the ability to wade into a primary battle, gouge and eyeball their fellow Democrats and then launch into a serious talk about party unity for the general election. This is an ability that must be taught at a young age….
In contrast, the GOP appears perilously close to an internal collapse as the battle over leadership has intensified into a demand that the party chairman step down. Late reports on Friday indicated that Jonah Kaauwai might give in….
For Lingle and Djou…. If they can't nail down the trouble within the party without more bloodshed, both their candidacies are in peril. Interestingly, one of the ways to do that would be to mend fences and endorse Kaauwai as the GOP candidate for the 2nd Congressional District. That would bring new meaning to the phrase "party unity."
read … Dissension in local GOP testing unity and strength
Lingle should consider run for U.S. Senate
Linda Lingle proved over her eight years as governor that she has the best interest of the people of Hawaii at heart, regardless of their political party affiliation. She considered all sides and then made tough decisions openly. This is exactly what we need in Congress.
read … Lingle
Cataluna: Abercrombie is off the Leash, doesn’t care what people think
We shouldn't be surprised that he doesn't care what people think. Since he first hollered onto the Hawaii scene in the 1970s with the long hair and the yellow taxi, his shtick was that he's a free agent and a blunt talker. Along the way, particularly in his primary match against Mufi Hannemann, Abercrombie showed that he was smart enough to comb his hair, wear a nice aloha shirt and speak softly when it served him. But now that he has the job, he's off the leash.
ILind: Columnist takes cheap shot at Gov. Abercrombie
read … No Aloha
Drunken Abercrombie Aide Arrested at Waikiki Bar
An aide to Gov. Neil Abercrombie was arrested after allegedly refusing to leave a Waikiki bar early Saturday morning.
Tim McBroom, a special assistant to the governor, was arrested for refusing to leave a Kuhio Avenue liquor establishment about 2:40 a.m., according to the Honolulu Police Department booking log. The charge is a misdemeanor and, by definition, involves a person who is intoxicated and refuses to leave a licensed liquor establishment. It carries a penalty of up to six months in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.
After his arrest, he posted $200 bail and was released….
McBroom previously served on Abercrombie's congressional staff and also spent time working with Barack Obama's presidential campaign.
(When this kind of thing happens in DC, nobody notices….)
read … Nothing to see here, just move along
Rail needs to Start over with new EIS, new Rail car contractor
A partial restart is necessary to bring Oahu the most operationally efficient and cost-effective system — and it must be done through a cooperative effort by Mayor Peter Carlisle, his director of transportation services, the City Council and the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation.
The first step must be development of a supplemental environmental impact statement that covers all technologies because the first EIS was incomplete….
New requests for proposals should be issued for guide-way construction-train supplier teams bidding for a full five-year or longer contract.
read … Rail Restart
Visa policy clogs Chinese tourism
Hawaii leaders regard the China U.S. Tourism Leadership Summit in Kona this weekend as one of the best opportunities to push for changes in the U.S. visa policy that has put a damper on the number of Chinese visitors to the isles.
Qiwei Shao, chairman of the China National Tourism Administration, was scheduled to attend the Hawaii island meeting, along with 31 provincial tourism directors and other top officials from China's major cities and top travel companies.
SA: As China goes, so will world
APEC Hint for Realtors: Top of Chinese wealthy's wish list? To leave China
read … Visas
Water Board Manager: We need your money
Lets just skip to the comments:
Nice try Dean A. Nakano but twice nothing is still nothing. I checked with a BWS rep for information on sub metering our townhouse complex. Your rep apologized for the BWS failing to even consider this successful mainland program for use in HI. I asked about rebates for water saving clothes washers, again he apologized for no program in Hawaii. He agreed the BWS was decades behind mainland water utilities, only offering leak detection kits and cheap water nozzles. Also agreed the lack of a requirement for all new homes and homes being sold to have low flow toilets was another BWS failure. Mainland water utilities offer rebates for replacing grass with artificial turf, not here. Dean, do you see a pattern forming? One other issue Dean, until there is iron clad guaranties our elected bureaucrats will not raid BWS funding, your rate increases are going no where.
Related: Djou: Honolulu Board of Water Supply is out of control
read … Assessing its future revenue needs
Geothermal is latest Excuse for Interisland Cable
"Other places, they're way ahead of us and we just stick our heads in the sand," said Hank Banquer, who moved to Volcano after almost 35 years in the oil industry. "We keep looking for something that we should have, something new, when we've got geothermal."
Banquer and other members of the Hawaii County Energy Advisory Commission took up the geothermal debate last week as part of a legislative update from state Rep. Denny Coffman, D-Kona, Keauhou, Honokohau, the chairman of the House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee.
Coffman is currently working on a series of bills to introduce in the legislative session that begins in January, with an eye toward creating a unified energy plan to make the state less dependent on imported oil.
Geothermal and waste-to-energy are important components, he said. Geothermal especially could benefit the Big Island because the excess could be piped first to Maui, then from Maui on to energy-hungry Oahu, he said.
"We have all these resources ... and nothing is happening," Coffman said. "We need to crank it up on this island."
(Clue: They are talking primarily about building the cable. This will enhance profits of wind farms by creating a market for currently unusable electricity. Geo is just an excuse. This is about scoring more money from Washington. If they were serious about geothermal, the Geothermal Working Group would not include race-hustlers, mortgage scammers, and 9-11 trooothers.)
read … Geothermal -- Money pit or money maker?
$20/hr: Isle security guards get highest pay, report says
Hawaii's entry-level wage for security guards is the highest in the nation at more than $20 an hour, according to a recent report by the Greenwich, Conn.-based Institute of Finance & Management. The national average for security officers is about $12 to $13 an hour.
read … Secure Income
Lawsuit Challenging Property Tax Rates for Native Hawaiians on Home Lands Appealed to the Nation's Highest Court
Should native Hawaiians living on Hawaiian Home Lands, or state lands set aside for native Hawaiians with a 50 percent or higher blood quantum, pay a lower property tax rate than other Hawaii residents?
As of September 15, 2011, a lawsuit challenging this very issue is being appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court in Corboy vs Louie.
read … DHHL Taxes?
Big Development proposed for Sand Island
A 400- to 500-slip marina with yacht club and restaurant is the draw for a private developer to be involved in the project, and could result in an important improvement to a valuable piece of Oahu that has largely been ignored.
The relatively few present users of Sand Island are understandably concerned.
"We love it the way it is right now," said Kealii Paiaina, coach of the Kealani Canoe Club. "I hope we're not going to get displaced by this."
We echo the sentiment that as plans proceed, care be taken to ensure that regular users of the area are not blithely factored out. Already, early buzz is that organizations with temporary permits for other activities, such as a BMX motocross track, may be forced out.
The proposed improvements include expansion of the existing boat launch next to the present motocross track, new canoe pavilions, a canoe-kayak center, boat storage and repair facilities, as well as an ocean activity center, the marina and store and shoreline access to the state park. The $29 million proposal also includes a marina administrative office and other facilities.
read … Sand Island
Kauai Food bank to launch investigation
Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank’s Board of Directors on Saturday announced it will conduct an independent investigation into KIFB’s operations.
“As a result of recent claims, the board of directors of Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank will immediately commission an independent investigation of operating procedures, to include day-to-day accounting and grant administration,” the board said in a statement.
As part of the investigation, the board has placed KIFB Executive Director Judy Lenthall on paid administrative leave.
Read … Too little, too late
Kauai Council heats up over resolution on salary freeze
Long story about the games councilmembers are playing to get themselves and the administration pay raises while pretending to do the opposite.
Read … Dog n Pony Show
Hawaii's East-West Center to open exhibition of photos, artifacts belonging to Obama's mother
The Honolulu-based institution will begin Sunday displaying numerous photographs and art from Stanley Ann Dunham's field work in Indonesia.
Dunham, who died in 1995, was a center research fellow. The exhibition includes pictures taken by Dunham and artifacts from her own collection….
Her daughter — and Obama's half-sister — Maya Soetoro-Ng will attend an opening reception for the exhibition Oct. 2.
read … Obama’s Mama
Enviro Job Panic: Cuts to Hawaii’s invasive species control funds could spell ‘havoc’
"It's normal with biological invasions that unless it bites or stings, you don't really notice it until it's pretty much too late. And there could be things that get in before we get fully up and running again that are going to just wreak havoc," said Christy Martin, spokeswoman for the Coordinating Group on Alien Pest Species. "Who knows what that's going to be? We're playing a very dangerous game of roulette every time a plane lands."
read … Cry havoc, and let loose the frogs of Puerto Rico
East of Hilo, West of LA: NASA satellite plunges to Earth
A giant satellite designed to advance the fake ozone hole scam has burned up in the atmosphere somewhere between Hilo and Los Angeles.
read … Ozone scam