Ian Lind: Hawaii Moves Too Slow On Asset Forfeiture Reform
Civil asset forfeiture was thrust in the media spotlight last month when President Donald Trump told an audience of sheriffs from around the country he would “destroy” the career of an unnamed Texas...
View ArticleTrump Should Rescind Obama’s Hawaiian Government Rule
Despite the furor over President Trump’s executive orders, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the way the new president is shrinking the size of government, two regulations at a time. On...
View ArticleScience, Religion And Spirituality On Mauna Kea
To the dismay of so many Native Hawaiians, environmentalists and supporters around the globe, the condition of Mauna Kea is grim. This once pristine mountaintop, the highest on the planet measured from...
View ArticleHawaii’s Congresswomen Say Attorney General Should Resign
The announcement Thursday that U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions will recuse himself from any investigations related to the 2016 presidential campaign — including any probe into contacts between the...
View ArticleBan On Many Sunscreen Products Likely To Pass In Hawaii Senate
The Hawaii Senate is on track to pass a bill banning the use of sunscreens that contain oxybenzone, which studies have shown harms coral reefs. But with mounting opposition from convenience store...
View ArticleCaldwell Budget: Raise Taxes and Fees, Then Hope For Help On Rail
Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell devoted much of his annual budget presentation Thursday to trying to persuade state lawmakers and the public that it makes sense to extend a half-percent general excise tax...
View ArticleRemembering The Destruction Of A Community
For one brief moment, on Wednesday, I paid homage to the people of the Marshall Islands who suffered the end of life to their community, islands and way of life, by a demon created by the Americans....
View ArticleCoast Guard, Navy Board 16 Ships To Enforce Fishing Laws
The U.S. Coast Guard and Navy have finished an 18-day mission in the Central and South Pacific as part of the Oceania Maritime Security Initiative to fight transnational crimes, enforce fisheries laws...
View ArticleTad Bartimus: Maui, Me and Bobby McGee
KAHULUI, Maui — When Kris Kristofferson walked onstage at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center on Friday with a rousing “Hello, Maui!” he was answered with a standing ovation from the sold-out crowd...
View ArticleBills To Raise Hawaii’s Minimum Wage Are Non-Starters
Hawaii workers who are paid the minimum wage will see it grow from $9.25 to $10.10 in January. But it won’t be going higher than that any time soon. The Senate Ways and Means Committee has chosen not...
View ArticleCommittee Chairs Halt Bills To Ban Foam Food Containers
“Looks like it’s dead,” Sen. Will Espero said Thursday of his bill to prohibit food vendors from using Styrofoam and other polystyrene containers. Environmentalists argue that the lightweight,...
View ArticleHPD Reassigns Detective Who Investigated Toddler Abuse Case
The Honolulu Police Department has reassigned a detective who investigated the case of a toddler assaulted at an Ewa Beach day care, which the department admitted this week was botched. That same...
View ArticleTom Yamachika: Overhaul Of Taxes Still Alive In Legislature
One of the bills percolating in the legislative miasma this session is House Bill 1586, a multi-faceted measure that seeks to change some of the characteristics of Hawaii’s tax system. On the income...
View ArticleReader Rep: The News Media’s Shifting World
We haven’t had many “slow” news days in the past year, and I’m beginning to wonder if our peppy new media-ecology normal just might be a part of the “quickening” projected by futurist Ray Kurzweil in...
View ArticlePod Squad: Politics And Judges, Hawaiian Style
Senate Bill 673 would ask voters to change the way judges and justices are kept in office. Former Hawaii Chief Justice Ronald Moon is opposed to a proposal that would take approval of which judges...
View ArticleWhy We Need Kupuna Caregivers Assistance Bill
The crucial Ways and Means Committee in the Senate and the Finance Committee in the House has passed the Kupuna Caregivers Assistance Bill, Senate Bill 534 (House Bill 607). I want to thank our elected...
View ArticleNew Honolulu Housing Aims To Help Artists
Colorful murals that cover warehouses in Kakaako might attract local artists to the rapidly growing area, but the rents don’t. Artists are helping popularize Kakaako, but as auto body shops turn into...
View ArticleWhere Are Honolulu Rail’s Latest Financial Records?
Just about everyone recognizes that no one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes at one point or another, including government agencies and employees. With respect to Honolulu’s rail project, errors and...
View ArticleDoes The Justice Department Really Have A Case Against The Kealohas?
The grainy surveillance video is crystal clear to defense attorney Myles Breiner. Gerard Puana stole the police chief’s mailbox. There was no frame job. “It’s a matter of a self-fulfilling prophecy,”...
View ArticleState To Schools: Customize Your Hawaiian Education Approach
A 1978 amendment to the state constitution mandated that Hawaii’s public schools teach Hawaiian education. Thirty-nine years later, the state’s Department of Education still struggles to offer Hawaiian...
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