iLind.net

September 10, 2005 - Saturday

What in the world are public officials doing pontificating about the "failure" of the new gas price caps. Aided and abetted by the news media, Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona and others are out there with the most simplistic approach. In their view, (A) the cap was supposed to lower prices, (B) prices have gone up, and so (C) the cap is a failure. Whoa, big guy. Didn't you take any classes in science and learn about such things as "intervening variables"?

The states gas cap law went into effect at the same time as the world hit the largest oil "shock" since the gas crisis of the early 1970's. Can we blame our prices on the gas cap with everything else that's going on in the country and the world oil markets as the result of Hurricane Katrina? I don't think so. The gas cap is one factor, but given the extraordinary circumstances, there are a lot of other variables influencing the rise in local prices.

And while we're at it, we've just demonstrated the limits of Cliff Slaters' "you'll never get people out of their cars" assertion. We can say one thing for sure. High gas prices will prompt changes in behavior, including increasing use of mass transit, if it is reliable and available. It's already happening. Perhaps thats a bit of silver lining among the bad news.

Meanwhile, in Katrina's wake, how does life get back to "normal" when you've lost the legal system, government records, and all the framework of public life?

And if you're homeless in an area not hit by Katrina, will you be getting in line for the federal and state aid and assistance that's going to be flowing to survivors? Trying to enforce "Katrina only" aid is going to again highlight the hidden injuries of class that we've allowed to fester.

And a reader contributes several observations:

A few random thoughts--

1. Over the last few weeks I've noticed a few (but only a few) excellent headlines in The Advertiser. I thought they were excellent because they both clearly (and accurately) indicated the content of the story and did so with some style. Unfortunately, I can't remember the specifics, but they were similar to puns, e.g., "Complaints of Wasteful Watering Flood City Department" or "Insurers Eye LASIK Claims." Watch for the headlines. I wonder if they've got somebody new.

2. There was at least one headline that was completely misleading. It was critical of a politician (I think Lingle or Bush), but the story was really about something else and the politician actually came off well in the story.

3. The Advertiser included what probably was a wire story about the son of astronaut Wally Schirra being involved in a kiddie porn case. As the son reportedly is in at least his mid-'50s, I thought the reference to the dad was out of line, but I see more than 100,000 Google hits for "astronaut son porn"--including CNN. I couldn't find the story on FoxNews.com though.

I was curious as to whether others shared my distaste for the Schirra story: my wife didn't care and one of my partners agreed with me. Perhaps if I knew Schirra is a jerk, I'd feel differently…or would I feel different?

September 9, 2005 - Friday

This missive came in response to yesterday's post on the complaint to the FCC by Greg Kahlstorf:

Just wanted to opine in on today's posting regarding PROP and Greg's efforts to get his information out there.

Although there are times when I say to myself "well, there goes Greg again..." I do respect him very much in the fact that this guy is so connected to what is really happening in aviation in Hawaii.

Example to note: When the whole Aloha/Hawaiian merger was in process, I got calls from Greg almost every other day telling me things about how the deal was going down in Washington circles. He told me that Washington was looking at the deal and not liking it, contrary to what we were hearing in Hawaii. This all from Greg's connection with the regulatory agencies and his own intelligence in the aviation world.

Now he is off to expose the HIDOT. This is not new in Greg's world. He's been trying to get the HIDOT to modify the T hangers at Maui Airport for years, as his little airline bases itself out of there. He is persistent, and definitely would not put him or his causes into the "loony bin" file. Rick Blangiardi at Emmis might want to be careful.

My $0.02.

And thank you for it.

Here's another bit of news on the fate of newspaper classified ads, one of the battlegrounds between print and the Internet.

A very sobering view of post-Katrina relief efforts comes from two Bay Area emergency medical technicians who were in New Orleans for the same conference as the quartet from Hawaii who were trapped for several days. The San Francisco Chronicle looks at their account today, and their full tale has appeared several places and can be read here.

The spirit of their account appears to be supported by a New York Times report on the reprimand given two navy pilots who diverted from a supply mission to rescue trapped civilians, with one of the pilots later being reassigned to guard a kennel.

In other Katrina news, what about public records? Apparently many irreplaceable public records, including original land records, are in danger of being destroyed and, to make matters worse, attempts to save them have been snagged in the security bureaucracy. In one case, described in this AP story, federal troops turned away trucks from a contractor specializing in document retrieval hired to save original and historic records.

September 8, 2005 - Thursday

In an email addressed to the Federal Communication Commission's Media Bureau, Greg Kahlstorf, owner of Pacific Wings and a key player in www.airportscandal.com, has asked the agency to open a formal review of the exemption allowing Emmis Communications to own two of Honolulu's top television stations, KHON and KGMB.

Kahlstorf alleges Emmis has misused its duopoly power by refusing to sell advertising time for a recent commercial prepared by www.airportscandals.com:

For some reason, the two stations operating under your exemption now refuse to air our material on the grounds that it is "too controversial." In contrast, both of Hawaii's independently operated television stations (KHNL-8 and KITV-4) have agreed to run our ads.

Rick Blangardi, who manages KGMB and KHON for Emmis Communications, has refused to provide any written response to our documented requests to buy advertising time. He has not acknowledged our letters. He has declined to explain, in writing, his repeated refusal to sell public spectrum to our public interest groups for the presentation of responsible opposing public views. Mr. Blangardi did, however, state that he "does not need this" at a time when Emmis is attempting to sell it's Hawaii television stations.

In addition, according to Kahlstorf, despite a direct request and legal requirement that a letter regarding the situation be added to the stations' public files, it did not appear in the files during a subsequent check.

We sent the attached letter to Mr. Blangardi for inclusion in the public files at KGMB and KHON via FedEx, and we have have confirmed proof of receipt. But when our representative visited KHON the following week to see if our letter had indeed been included in the station's public files, it was not there. Within moments of our arrival at the station, Mr. Blangardi appeared (despite the fact that we had not requested an appointment with him) and confronted our representative. Our record of the encounter indicates that Mr. Blangardi's demeanor was quite aggressive and intimidating, and that he warned our representative that he had better "be careful" a total of eight separate times.

I've posted the full text of Kahlstorf's complaint to the FCC, as well as the letter submitted for inclusion in the KHON and KGMB public files.

Time for a few reader comments. Judy writes: "Loved your story about the wonderful Toby and the twins. And he brought them a mouse! Greater love hath no cat."

Another reader, who asked that his name not be used, responded to the Seattle Times story about problems with Norwegian Cruise Line:

The article which I read in The Seattle Times about the bad cruise experience was of interest to me. My wife and I went on the 7 day cruise locally on the Pride of America from 20 August to 27 August. I guess it may be best to avoid new ships and new crew until things are in order.

Our major disappointment was the decision made by the Captain to not cruise past the lava flow at night as planned. I heard about it from a passenger. I asked at the main desk and they said it was true. The Captain would make an announcement. I talked to three people and finally their boss in order to find out why this was happening. I consider this the highlight of an Island trip.

Never received an answer, the Captain never made an announcement and many people lined the rails to see the lava flow. No apology, no explanation, no credit or refunds of any type were made.

This was our first and last cruise. Overall, the food was good, the music was good but other areas were not. My wife, while getting her shoes from under the bed saw a dirty pair of ladies panties.

September 7, 2005 - Wednesday

Apologies in advance for two days in a row of cat anecdotes, but it happens sometimes with a nine-cat count.

3:30 a.m. and sounds of a loud cat fight interrupted the normal sounds on a quiet night, the murmur of surf and staccato of crickets overwhelmed by the yowls of feline combat. I flew out of bed and down the hall imagining one of our crew bravely confronting a feral intruder perhaps lured inside by the possibility of a meal. Instead, there in the dining room, fur and claws flying, was our Mr. Leo locked in 8 paw battle with Ms. Harriet. Poor Harry normally gets picked on by Leo in slightly more benign fashion, but this was somewhat over the top. To add to the indignity, the surprising assault apparently caused her to empty her bladder, so that after separating the combatants and depositing Leo outside, I had to clean up the remnants of cat pee and flying fur. And then, silence restored, try in vain for that last bit of sleep.

Ellen Barry's Katrina story in Monday's Los Angeles Times had one of those killer leads that will be appearing soon in professional writing seminars in the months and years ahead. Two short paragraphs, just five sentences that paint a vivid picture and grab you, no escape. Simple, detailed, and humbling for those of us who pretend to be writers. Read it, read it again, and learn. To tell you the truth, it just overpowers the rest of the story, leaving just a few loose ends to be tied up in the remaining paragraphs.

Our favorite eating spot in Kaneohe must be good because it's been named the best Thai restaurant in Hawaii (or is it best in Honolulu?) for several years, according to several awards mounted prominently along one wall. I took a closer look. The accolades were from something called the Consumer Business Review, vaguely familiar sounding but...what the heck is it? When I got home after our last dinner there, I checked the phone book and state business registrations, and wasn't surprised that there's no sign of anything called the Consumer Business Review.

A Google search turned up this column from the Chico News & Review, which identifies the "Consumer Business Review" as simply an advertising sales gimmick used by Reno-based American Media. I wonder how much our little restaurant paid to this commercial equivalent of a diploma mill?

NYT columnist Tom Friedman penned a sharp appraisal of this Bush administration in today's op-ed:

So many of the things the Bush team has ignored or distorted under the guise of fighting Osama were exposed by Katrina: its refusal to impose a gasoline tax after 9/11, which would have begun to shift our economy much sooner to more fuel-efficient cars, helped raise money for a rainy day and eased our dependence on the world's worst regimes for energy; its refusal to develop some form of national health care to cover the 40 million uninsured; and its insistence on cutting more taxes, even when that has contributed to incomplete levees and too small an Army to deal with Katrina, Osama and Saddam at the same time.

It's worth a read. And when you're done, check out the Times' editorial, which says, in part:

No administration could credibly investigate such an immense failure on its own watch. And we have learned through bitter experience - the Abu Ghraib nightmare is just one example - that when this administration begins an internal investigation, it means a whitewash in which no one important is held accountable and no real change occurs.

September 6, 2005 - Tuesday

A story in the Seattle Times today provides a very negative review of Norwegian Cruise Lines, accusing the company of misrepresentation, failure to disclose itinerary changes, delays and other problems. The story cites an online survey that ranked NCL last among 41 travel industry firms. Unsettling news, given the company's key role here and the state's increased dependence on its ability to move passengers.

Gannett's newspaper division has a new chief, Sue Clark-Johnson, publisher of The Arizona Republic. ""I'm buying stock in Gannett today," was the comment of one Arizona banker familiar with Clark-Johnson's track record.

The Poynter Institute identifies a number of ethical questions faced by journalists covering the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The same page includes links to other interesting takes on the situation, including quite an extraordinary collection of photos. Take some time and browse.

I have to admit being haunted by those images of the looting of Baghdad's art treasures as I worried about the fate of the New Orleans Museum of Art, where we spent time during several visits to the city. But the New York Times reports NOMA and it's collections survived the storm, although they still face major challenges from post-storm conditions. The fate of other museums is uncertain.

Toby had a breakthrough this weekend. For much of the last year, he's been prowling the periphery of the house two doors down from us. He paces along the roof, peers down through a skylight, observes from the safety of a wall, even makes surprise appearances on one of the large decks surrounding the house. But whenever a person would approach, Toby would run away, maintaining a safe distance. Their twin daughters, now just six, have been yearning to get closer.

They had concluded Mr. Toby didn't like people, although we've been trying to explain that he's really very friendly, but also very shy. But taking advantage of the long holiday weekend, we took dinner over on Sunday night and unwittingly became Toby bait. First he appeared at the door to peer inside, apparently after hearing our voices. Then he moved around to the front deck and we all traipsed outside, the twins about ready to explode with excitement.

Somehow, they controlled themselves enough to sit quietly as Toby approached when I called. He let me pet him and then, tentatively, let first one and then both twins touch him. Touches quickly turned to strokes and pets, and suddenly Toby was transformed from Mr. Shy to Mr. Happy, actively courting more contact. He even sprawled on his side while they pawed at him.

And it wasn't just a one-time thing, as he demonstrated by putting on another show yesterday afternoon, accepting and soliciting the attention of his new friends and then, without warning, darting into the bushes and emerging with a mouse. Ah, the joys of cathood! Anyway, the twins, their family, and Mr. Toby are all very pleased by the new state of affairs. We're feeling pretty good about it ourselves, I have to admit.

September 5, 2005 - Monday

[I just fixed the "previous week" links so that they actually return to last week. Sorry for the temporary confusion.]

Labor Day. How does one acknowledge this? "Happy Labor Day" doesn't exactly slide off the tongue.

The CBS Evening News was playing in the background last night as I was across the room at the stove browning chicken thighs for a red sauce to go over pasta when I was stunned by a throw away comment dropped by the anchor: "Too bad politics had to rear its ugly head in this." Apparently he was referring to criticism of the federal response to the Katrina disaster, but what in the world was he thinking? Did he mean to say that collectively we should properly just shut up, close our eyes, and be glad for whatever manages to get done, however feeble, inept, or inadequate? Criticism, part of what would more positively be called the process of accountability, is both necessary and desireable. But perhaps not to CBS.

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman comments today one aspect of the politics of the situation, tying the shortcomings of the federal response to the ideology of those who argue government has no constructive role to play in public life. Meanwhile, journalist Greg Palast asks, "Where is our Huey Long?"

By the way, Palast's Labor Day column is also definitely worth taking with your coffee or juice this morning.

I started wondering what New Orleans hotel web sites are saying about the situation there. Many I looked are unchanged from the days prior to Katrina, as if still welcoming visitors. The Pontchartrain Hotel, an older place down along St. Charles where we stayed one of our last times in New Orleans, has replaced its site with a brief message: "Whats New! Pontchartrain Hotel Is Temporirly Closed". I expect that will end up being closed for good, along with many others.

Meanwhile, back in Iraq, the other unfolding disaster, criticism of behind-the-scenes manipulation of the constitutional drafting process is now emerging. I flagged two very interesting articles this morning, one which examines US-financed groups heavily engaged in the political infighting, along with an Asia Times story on the U.S. push for a free-market structure to benefit, well, the U.S. corporate world.