Lingle not running from RINO label
Marumoto Renews Pledge to Fight Pension Tax
Hawaii Congressional Delegation: How They Voted October 24, 2011
Panos: Honolulu Heavy Rail Is an Energy Black Hole
Legislative Committee to Hold Briefing on Elder Abuse
Hawaii’s jobless rate up 3.6 points since recession began
Hawaii’s unemployment rate has risen 3.6 percentage points since the recession began, according to an analysis of newly released statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The state’s seasonally adjusted jobless rate was 2.8 percent in September 2007, three months before the official start of the recession. The unemployment rate last month was 6.4 percent.
The increase ranked Hawaii No. 22 in the nation in terms of percentage point increases in the unemployment rate during that time period, according to the analysis by On Numbers, an affiliate of Pacific Business News.
read … Abercrombie’s record
Worst Governor in the USA, Abercrombie Doubles Down of Failure, Incompetence
AP: Abercrombie plans to keep his administration on its current track, even after several aides resigned in rapid succession and a recent public opinion poll gave him low ratings….
Asked whether the Public Policy Polling survey showing a drop in his approval rating had prompted him to shift direction, the governor said he was staying the course to deliver on programs like his plan to improve housing for the working middle class. (What plan?)
He said, however, that he could do a better job explaining his policies and positions to the public.
"I think I can communicate better about what we're doing. But some of that is going to have to unfold," he said.
For example, the governor said he could have given the public a better idea of the "fiscal wreckage" the state was in when he took office in December. (Abercrombie’s failure: I didn’t blame Lingle enough.)
"Look, at one point, we were in a situation where we literally did not know how much was coming into the government in any given month and how much was going out," Abercrombie said. (But he refuses to Audit the DoE.)
CB: Abercrombie: 'I Play All Four Quarters'
read … More of the Same
Abercrombie Has Hit Bottom, Eating Crow, Not Changing Direction
SA: Abercrombie's advisers hope the worst of the public relations and public policy mishaps are behind him -- or, as one ally put it, that the administration has "hit bottom" -- and that his supplemental budget draft and legislative package will bring the focus back to his "New Day" agenda.
"I've been in public life now for almost four decades," Abercrombie said, "and I've been up and I've been down. It's not about me. It's never been about me in that sense. And it's never about a snapshot, as such. It's serious business, there's no question about that."
But Abercrombie accepted blame and said his administration has been working hard to implement his vision.
"I've always taken the position that when you have to eat crow, you should get that bird down your throat as quick as possible," he said.
Hawaii News Now video: Governor not changing direction despite low approval rating (Question: What is the definition of insanity?)
read … Abercrombie accepts blame for mistakes
Borreca: Abercrombie needs 180 Degree Turnaround
Gov. Neil Abercrombie told us that he was the governor and not your pal; last week we learned that most of us are not his pal either….
The fellow Abercrombie replaced as least-liked governor in the nation is Florida's Rick Scott, a tea party Republican who had 57 percent job disapproval rating.
Like Abercrombie's first reaction to the bad numbers, Scott shrugged them off, saying he was focused on jobs and "growing the economy."
After two poll cycles at the bottom of the barrel, Scott fired his senior staff, toured the state to listen to the people of Florida, invited the press to cover him and managed to get the disapproval rating to 50 percent.
In life you can rebuild a bad relationship; in business you can rebuild your credit rating; stay out of trouble and you can wipe your driving record clean. But once you lose it with the voters, you need a 180-degree turnaround, not a charm offensive.
read … 180
Abercrombie to Push for Soda Tax, claims Pension Tax is off Table
KITV: Abercrombie said his administration is considering once again proposing a tax on sugary beverages, a proposal that died in the legislature this year. Such a tax would not apply to diet drinks.
Abercrombie’s is discussing the soda tax proposal with legislators, some of whom support and oppose the idea, said Kate Stanley, the senior advisor to the governor.
Abercrombie said the soda tax would not be used to balance the budget but to pay for health-related expenses caused by drinking sugary beverages.
"I believe the public now is well aware of the costs associated with obesity, with high blood pressure, with diabetes, both childhood and adult diabetes," Abercrombie said.
Abercrombie said because the state's economic outlook has improved slightly, he will no longer push for a tax on pensions, a controversial idea that died in this year's legislative session.
Related: Marumoto Renews Pledge to Fight Pension Tax
Read … Soda Tax
HECO’s Alm still Backs Abercrombie
"Whatever you feel about the current governor, it is a four-quarter game and he barely finished one term," he said, repeating the exact same thing the governor said just hours earlier. "This is someone who came in with zero administrative experience, and we knew that when we elected him, and we elected him for other reasons. ... We elected him for his passion and what he wants to do for the community (of green energy scammers)."
Alm continued: "So give him a break."
read … It’s the Tax Credits, Dummy
Fidell: Rejection of biofuel plan is a huge setback for Green Energy Scammers
(Annotations added in parenthesis for clarification) Local biofuel is the latest target in the war against renewable (energy scammers), and now the state Public Utilities Commission has issued a ruling based on its concern that biofuel will cost too much (for regular people who don’t have their snout in the trough….)
It was a dream deal: local company, local investment, local labor, local feedstock, sending less money overseas, increasing energy security, reducing vulnerability to oil volatility, producing utility-scale renewables that can be shipped anywhere in the state without waiting for an undersea cable, building the economy and making us look good—(if only the peasants would just pony up).
Consumer advocate Jeff Ono found that the contract was reasonable and in the best interest of the consumers. (And getting him to degrade himself in this way wasn’t cheap!)
Like the PUC's decision on Big Wind, the biofuel decision puts us back years and demoralizes the industry. (GOOD!) It doesn't provide a solution, but only a barrier. (GOOD!) This is not progress. (Oh yes it is!)
read … Another blast from the Corporate Welfare Crowd
Man to Face Extradition from Hawaii for 1997 Murder at Utah Homeless Shelter
KSL-Utah: Alan Lee Marx, 59, was arrested in the slaying of Ward Woolverton the same day charges of murder, a first-degree felony, were filed, according to Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. Detectives with the Salt Lake City Police Department traveled to Hawaii to arrest Marx on a warrant….
An autopsy confirmed that Woolverton had died as a result of blunt force injuries to the head, and the death was classified as a homicide, the charges state.
Marx told investigators the he met Woolverton at a homeless shelter and that the pair were together the day Woolverton was killed.
Gill said the case went "cold" soon after Woolverton's body was found and wasn't reopened until June 2010, when DNA evidence led police to Marx.
read … Homeless Problem
APEC: Maoists to Hang with Homeless for 3 Days, then Head for Ala Moana
The only group to obtain a city permit to protest decides to march to Ala Moana instead of the Hawaii Convention Center. World Can't Wait Hawaii has withdrawn its request for a permit to march to the Hawaii Convention Center. The group said it will now focus on a march to Ala Moana Blvd.
The plan is to still assemble at Stadium Park (with the homeless) over a three day period.
The American Civil Liberties Union has been helping the group understand its rights during the high security conference. On Monday the ACLU made its free speech tool kit available…. (not available to conservatives, only Maoists.)
“We do not have anything planned at this point. What we are calling for is a Nov. 12, march at 4 p.m. that will be on the sidewalk and that is all ‘World Can't Wait’ is calling for," said Revolutionary Communist Party Chair Carolyn Hadfield.
Maoist Scheme Busted: Homeless to be Swept out of Old Stadium Park, other locations
Read … Maoist Filth
Jackbooted Hawaii PBS Thugs to Eject Poor, Sick Homeless Women and Children from Vacant Lot
Residents such as Les Among, a member of the Waikiki Neighborhood Board, worry about where the homeless people across from the Hawai'i Convention Center will go once they're told to leave the property owned by PBS Hawaii, a private, nonprofit entity.
"We don't know where they're going to land, where they'll end up," Among said. "They're scattering, but they're not really completely going away. I have no confidence in what's going on. They're just going to find another place nearby in the neighborhood. Nobody's here to help them make the transition. I'm so disappointed. This is a complete failure on the state's part."
Donya Hernandes, 40, was born and raised in Waikiki and has lived across from the convention center for nearly two years.
"I've had five nervous breakdowns already, and most of us can't handle not knowing where we're going to live," Hernandes said. "Some of us have chemical dependency and mental illness or both. I don't know where I'll go."
Leslie Wilcox, president and CEO of PBS Hawaii, did not respond to requests for comment about why PBS needs to move homeless people off its property and when they'll be asked to leave.
read … PBS hypocrisy
50 Homeowners Blocked from Renovations because of Hydrant Distance
After being told the nearest fire hydrant was 286 feet from their property line, the couple said they were informed of the sprinkler option. They said they were quoted anywhere from $10,000 to $13,000 to install such a system.
"This is nothing more than extortion in the name of fire protection," said Stan Krasniewski.
Krasniewski said if the city believes homes are only safe from fire if they are within 175 feet of a hydrant with a 1,000-gallon-per-minute flow rate, then they should provide that to all homes.
Asking homeowners to install sprinklers "acknowledges the BWS' inability to provide even the most basic service of fire protection for all Oahu residents."
The Krasniewskis are among about 40 to 50 Oahu homeowners whose permits were held up until they install a fire prevention sprinkler system, Tsue said.
read … BWS wants a rate hike, but….
Hickam sized up as base for drone squadron
The Air Force is considering basing an unmanned aerial vehicle squadron of 280 people at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam that would control MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper drones far from Hawaii's shores.
Besides Hickam, Davis Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., and Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., are candidate bases for the ground-control station.
read … Drones?
Boys should get HPV vaccine too, panel says
The HPV vaccine has been recommended for young girls to protect them against cervical cancer and genital warts for the last five years. But the vaccine has been slow to catch on — only about a third of adolescent girls have gotten all three shots.
Experts say the HPV vaccine could protect boys against genital warts and some kinds of cancers. But they also say vaccinating 11- and 12-year old boys could help prevent them from spreading the human papilloma virus to girls.
SA: Good reasons to get HPV shot
read … HPV shot for boys?
"Native of Owhyhee" Featured on Olelo Television
HR: The 390-minute film is divided into three parts, each 2 hours and 11 minutes. Each part will be broadcast in Honolulu on 'Olelo TV at least 4 times from Tuesday October 25 to Friday November 18. Each part is already available worldwide "on demand" at the 'Olelo website, free of charge, at any time a viewer chooses. People living on O'ahu should watch the broadcast on TV for maximum enjoyment of its beautiful cinematography. People not home at the times of the broadcasts can use their recording device, which will also allow them to view again any specific scenes of special interest. The first cycle of broadcasts will be
- Part 1: Tues 10/25/11 NATV Channel 53, 1:00 pm to 3:11 p.m.
- Part 2: Thurs 10/27/11 FOCUS digital channel 122-8, noon to 2:11 p.m.
- Part 3: Thurs 10/27/11 NATV Channel 53, 7:00 pm to 9:11 p.m.
A webpage provides a link to the 3-minute trailer, broadcast schedule when each of the three parts will be broadcast four times scattered over a month-long period, link to view the film "on demand", details about the contents of the film, a list of all the speakers and narrators in the order of appearance, contact information for the filmmaker and producer, and links to webpages about Henry Opukaha'ia and the role of religion (both native and Christian) in Hawaii's history. See http://tinyurl.com/3z9lcvp
Full Movie: `Olelo
3-minute trailer: http://www.imdb.com/video/wab/vi3972661785/
read … Henry Opukaha'ia
Horizon Lines to discontinue service to Guam and Asia
GuamPDN: The company will no longer be serving Asia or Guam, according to a letter from the company.
The company is undergoing refinancing and has faced "ongoing challenges."
"We have been dealing with persistent rate and volume deterioration in the China trade and the adverse impact this is placing on our financial performance," said the letter from company executive vice president Brian Taylor.
LW: Horizon Lines To Discontinue Trans-Pacific FSX Service
read … On the Horizon
Guam fish trade alarmed by limits
ANN: Fishermen in Guam say an attempt by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council to limit how much they can catch is unrealistic.
The council has finalized its recommendations on next year's catch limits in US Pacific islands but is yet to receive final approval for them.
The limits apply to fish caught in the exclusive economic zone, which extends from three to 200 miles off of Guam, the Marianas Islands, American Samoa and Hawaii.
The council says the limits are based on the acceptable biological catches, as recommended by its scientific and statistical committee a bunch if activists.
read … Fishing
Inouye is Victim of Credit Card Fraud
Trianna Chenee Moss, 20, appeared in a DeKalb County court Monday accused of helping two other people buy $12,000 worth of Wal-Mart gift cards and other merchandise using counterfeit credit cards with real account numbers encoded on the magnetic strip early this year. Her preliminary hearing Monday was postponed until Nov. 28.
"The Senator was immediately informed of the theft in February while on official travel on the island of Maui," Inouye spokesman Peter Boylan said.
First Hawaiian Bank officials told Atlanta police that Inouye's credit card also was used at other Wal-Mart locations.
Moss, 20, was indicted in May on one count of identity theft and credit card fraud.
Police are still looking for her alleged partner, Tahir Abdul Hamed, 36.
read … Fraudulent