July 29, 2006 - Saturday

Here's another out-of-body experience, a second account of Jeremy Harris' recent appearance in Victoria, British Columbia.

The former mayor apparently brags about the upgrades he made to Honolulu's sewer system: "Harris (says he) purchased state-of-the-art technology for the city’s sewage systems, which automatically notifies staff of the date, time and nature of any problems." (italicized text added)

Whaaaaat? Millions of gallons of raw sewage might spill from time to time because none of the investment actually went under the ground, but someone in that control room is going to get a high-tech notice every time, courtesy of Mayor Harris.

From an "urgent" email addressed to "Friends of Koke'e":

I'm sending this urgent request that you send an email or a letter BEFORE AUGUST 4TH (to be received by August 7th) to try to stop the State from moving forward on its plans to sell off the mountain... By this I mean that the Master Plan/EIS for Koke`e and Waimea Canyon calls for: a 40-60 room hotel at the meadow, together with over 200 parking stalls, increased parking for the camping area, and BUS parking; "improving" the road up to the Kalalau lookout to accommodate "full size buses"; adding more viewpoints, with bus parking, concessions, etc., all the way up the mountain; building an "entry" booth... clearly intended to collect $ from those travelling up the mountain (though it currently says that Hawaii residents would be exempt from the charge); and auctioning off the recreational cabins to the highest bidder world-wide in early September!

I have attended 2 meetings and the public testimony couldn't have been clearer... but none of it has ended up in the Master Plan/EIS.  This makes it even more important that we put our comments in writing immediately. The deadline to submit comments is Monday, AUGUST 7, 2006.. less than 2 weeks from now.

Additional information, including the Master Plan, is available at www.malamaokokee.org., and a sample letter is available by clicking here.

I stumbled across a small box of slides yesterday that included photos of our first two cats taken back at the beginning of 1978. They were about nine years old at the time. This is Ms.Windfola, and other photos include Ms. Emma. Windfola is named for a character (a horse) in the Tolkien trilogy, while Emma's namesake is Emma Goldman, the early 20th century anarchist. What a pair! You can see why we're partial to gray tiger cats. Click for a few more photos.

A final note...I can report that Ms. Harry didn't go up in a puff of smoke and a distinct "pop", but the electrical outlet behind the toaster where she was apparently marking her territory wasn't as lucky.

July 28, 2006 - Friday

Hurricane Daniel may have fallen apart before reaching Hawaii, but it spawned some humid and ominous weather before giving up the ghost. This was the scene yesterday morning about a half hour after dawn--dark with some grand clouds.

Click for larger photo

My parents were interviewed a couple of weeks ago about the changes they've experienced in the nearly 70 years they've lived in Kahala. That results of that interview appear in today's Pacific Business News, according to the email teaser received overnight.

"A croton hedge has given way to a concrete wall. Shade is provided, not by trees, but by huge mansions next door. Such is life for owners of small, older homes in Kahala, which are becoming an endangered species. Janis L. Magin reports on the changing face of Oahu's very upscale neighborhood."

Before the PBN interview came up, my mother typed out a couple of pages of her recollections. Here's an excerpt:

"Farmers Road was aptly named. It was a narrow country road that meandered from Kealaolu toward Diamond Head through a forested area dotted with vegetable farmers, pig raisers, a riding academy with stables, a mango orchard, Doris Duke's hydroponic vegetable-growing structures and even a hula studio. Near the Kealaolu end was the Taylor chicken farm where on Sunday mornings we bought our weekly supply of fresh eggs and broiler halves, and exchanged greetings and gossip with neighbors."

It's interesting to read Congressional Quarterly's assessment of Hawaii's federal races. I noticed in the discussion of fundraising by 2nd District candidates that Brian Schatz raised more money than Colleen Hanabusa when the candidates' own money is omitted, but fell far behind Mazie Hirono's fundraising pace.

High school student leaders voted heavily for Akaka and Hirono in a mock election held during a conference at the UH Manoa campus last week, according to Ka Leo. Students also favored Neil Abercrombie and Linda Lingle by lopsided majorities.

The Huffington Post raised another election-related question.

Will Bill Clinton stump for Akaka? Or will he only place his foot on the scale in favor of conservative, pro-war incumbent Democrats who blamed and shamed him during the Republicans' impeachment overreach?

I can only speculate as to the answer.

I found this observation on Hawaii's housing market buried in a story from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal:

Market analysts at Friedman Billings Ramsey Co. Inc. in Arlington, Va., this week predicted that U.S. house appreciation, at 7.1% in the year that ended June 30, will dwindle to less than half that by April 2007. They see one major ready-to-pop housing bubble - the Honolulu, Hawaii market - and 24 metro areas headed for smaller price dips, mostly in high-unemployment areas and none in Wisconsin. [italics added]

Asking prices in Kaaawa have been dropping from insane levels to merely rediculous, but I don't know if that qualifies as a "ready-to-pop" bubble.

In the meantime, Ms. Wally has been climbing the walls...well, actually, the screen door. She enjoys going in and out at will, and if we're home she balks at using the available cat door, insisting instead on the screen door. It's not a great photo, but I caught her in the act, trying ther best to hang on until the door was opened for her.

July 27, 2006 - Thursday

Silverman came home late yesterday morning with more fresh battle scars, this time a few deep gashes on his left ear and a wound on his head with some cat's claw still embedded in it. There are a few other nicks and scratches, but I think these are the major ones. So I invited him into his private spa downstairs and have had him inside since then. We're heading to the vet later today, not so much because I think the injuries are serioius but because he needs to get antibiotics so that we avoid the kind of abcess he suffered after his last fight that ended up with an expensive hospital stay.

Canvassers worked Kaaawa on behalf of Senator Akaka recently, leaving glossy and highly visible brochures throughout the neighborhood. Including some of the oddest places, like this one on a hedge along Kekio Road, or the one on the locked back entrance gate to the school which was closed for vacation.

There's a new Hawaii blog worth checking out, this one written by former Hawaii Tribune Herald reporter and Newspaper Guild activist Hunter Bishop.

In an entry yesterday, he discusses the challenge to a "secret" lawsuit by the Stephens Media Group, owners of West Hawaii Today and the Hawaii Tribune Herald. WHT ran a story yesterday, which was picked up today by the Star-Bulletin. But Bishop adds this caveat to his praise for Stephens' willingness to pursue public records:

That light on the East Side has dimmed in Hilo in recent years however. Only recently a reporter's story (not mine) about the late Doc Buyers, his failing health and a family dispute over the future of his substantial estate, which was solid and well-sourced despite secret divorce and conservatorship hearings that the newspaper would not fight to open, was never published because Stephens' mainland lawyers decided Buyers was not a public figure. 

In any case, check it out at HunterBishop.com.

What is wrong with those Democrats in Congress? Things are falling apart in Iraq and in the wider Middle East, Bush's ratings have tumbled, polls are showing deep public pessimism about both Bush and his Iraq "stay the course" policies, but Democrats lash out at Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for what they were calling his "anti-Israel" position.

Hello? That's Israel as in "America's proxy" in pressing the same "war will solve it" strategy that has failed so badly in Iraq. Perhaps its hard to keep one's perspective there in Washington, but one does not become "anti-semitic" for criticizing the war policies of Israel any more than one becomes anti-American for criticizing the Bush policies in Iraq. Democratic critics should be among the first to understand this.

So the Dems, instead of finding ways to emphasize their distance from the unpopular Bush policies, end up muddying the water and confusing anyone trying to choose between the two parties.

Before going on that riff I was going to offer some free advice to Randy Iwase. He's not going to have a whole lot of good opportunities to contrast himself with Gov. Lingle, but he could take advantage of world events to make a point. Lingle has been an outspoken supporter of President Bush and the war in Iraq, as well as a strong backer of Israel. She's traveled on the mainland and to Israel and taken many opportunities to speak out. With world attention focused on the human costs of the wars in Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine, and the threat of extending the conflict by drawing in other neighboring states, it's time to invite the governor to stand up for a humanitarian cease fire and an end to the fighting.

Done with a little finesse, Iwase could appear the statesman. But with those D.C. Democrats running in circles, it may be a harder stand to make.

July 26, 2006 - Wednesday

When we were in Hilo earlier this month, there were several consumer grade extension cords used in our hotel room to power appliances and lights. Recalling that extension cords are often blamed for starting fires, I emailed the Hawaii County Fire Department after getting back home (using a general information address provided at the department's web site) and suggested they check the situation out. That was on the 18th.

Within just a few minutes I got a message back informing me that the information was being forwarded to the Fire Prevention Bureau.

Then yesterday, just one week later, I received an update from Captain Jack Pacleb of the Fire Prevention Bureau reporting that a surprise inspection had been done and found "extension cords being used as permanent wiring. That, as well as their use of multi-plug adaptors are fire code violations."

"Management and maintenance staff have been informed of our findings, were very cooperative, and reported they will take immediate corrective action in all affected rooms," Pacleb wrote. "We will be conducting a follow-up inspection to ensure compliance has been met."

I'm not sure which impressed me the most, the prompt follow-up on a public complaint of this kind or the immediate feedback. The best I could do yesterday was to email Mayor Kim's office to express my appreciation. This was an unexpected example of how responsive public agencies can be, and such examples are relatively few and far between.

But the situation also raises the serious question of how common such things are in hotel rooms and how often fire inspections are done that examine rooms as well as the public areas of hotels.

Also on the Big Island, the Office of Information Practices issued an opinion last week finding that the Hawaii County Council violated the state Sunshine Law when it amended its March 1 meeting agenda to add an executive session relating to settlement of the Hokulia lawsuit.

The law does not allow an agency to add any item to the agenda "if it is of reasonably major importance and action on the item will affect a significant number of persons."

The opinion also found that agencies use a generic notice of an executive session to allow consideration of a matter without publicly disclosing the subject. OIP states: "Such entries would not provide the public with the statute's expressly required public notice of the agenda item to be considered and the purpose for which the executive meeting is being held."

On a lighter note, a special news update arrived around noon yesterday from the Seattle Times. Here's the way it was supposed to look.

July 25, 2006 - Tuesday

Concerned about the approaching storm? My friend Michael over in Hilo, which will be the first island Daniel will hit, suggested checking the Central Pacific Hurricane Center's animated predictions of wind speeds for the week.

With images of war dominating the news, I've been looking for alternative perspectives.

This report by Christian Peacemaker Teams provides a different view of Hamas from the area from a small farming village near the town of Hebron. And from Israel, I was introduced to the Coalition of Women for Peace made up of nine organizations maintaining a voice for peace. This morning, while looking around, I came across the MidEast Web Group with quite a diverse collection of viewpoints, all agreed on the need for peace. Their "Israili-Palestinian Conflict in a nutshell" presents a concise history of the issues that continue to haunt the region, and Middle East News Service compiles current headlines and commentary.

It is also possible to donate towards humanitarian relief to the victims of this war in Lebanon. Unicef is one major organization accepting donations. The International Committee of the Red Cross is another group accepting donations.

And so it goes.

[5:26 a.m. and I just woke up. I'll blame the thick layer of dark clouds that is obscuring the twilight, apparently pushed along in front of the approaching tropical storm Daniel. In any case, I won't have a chance to update this entry before we leave for the early walk in about half an hour. Check back in a couple of hours.]

July 24, 2006 - Monday

The Seattle Times reported yesterday on the situation at Seattle Weekly since its takeover by the New Times Media chain at the beginning of the year.

Here's one way to beat the summer heat. This is a very recent photo of the US Coast Guard Cutter Healy, which is somewhere way up north on a research voyage known as Arctic West Summer.

And here's a bit of canine excess to start the week. This is Malama and his hyperactive puppy friend on the other end of Kaaawa. Click on the photo and you'll be treated to a short video clip of the levitating lab. Enjoy.

If you've got an interest in the shape of the upcoming election, here is the list of those filing to run for office as of last Friday. The list includes both those who have filed and those who took out nomination papers but had not filed as of Friday.

July 23, 2006 - Sunday

Credit to Star-Bulletin photographer Jamm Aquino, whose photo of a slashed watermelon at the scene of a stabbing death in Pearl City expresses so much more than the traditional crime scene pictures.

The spreading chaos and violence in the Middle East seems a terrible result of the Bush administration's failure of policy and abandonment of diplomacy. Very depressing to contemplate on a Sunday morning in summer.

I wish I had noted who it was who commented during a recent NPR interview on the Bushies' refusal to "talk to terrorists". Paraphrasing, this expert responded, "But talking to your enemies is what diplomacy is all about!"

That seems to sum up where the U.S. is today. We've almost abandoned diplomacy because of the neo-conservative delusion that we can do everything on our own and don't need or want the compomises that necessarily follow from cooperation with others.

Professor Juan Cole's blog is always informative and full of inconvenient facts, perspectives and challenges.

"I was there!" That was the quick reply from Star-Bulletin webmeister Blaine Fergerstrom after he took a look at this photo among the batch of Kahoolawe-related pics I posted yesterday.

Blaine wrote:

See the photographer in the yellow shirt, right side of this photo? That's me! Got my Olympus 2-1/4" dual-lens reflex in-hand, my other 35mm camera in the bag. I still have both cameras. I was covering this event for Sunbums.

No cameras were allowed in the courtroom, so I did "courtroom sketches" which ran in Sunbums, along with the photos I took outside. After the hearing, the group went across the street to Iolani Palace where they continued their rally.

I have the copy of Sunbums that described the proceedings. I'll have to dig it out tomorrow.

Another reader had his own recollection:

If I had to guess, I would say that that was Sam Kealoha's trial, in Sam King's court. That was an amazing drama. Sam, wearing a malo and accompanied by your warriors in gourd helmets, called Judge Sam King "Mister America," told him he did not recognize the legitimacy of the court and walked out.

He went to the City of Refuge at Hounaunau on the Big Island.

I don't think we had the same kind of traditional Hawaiian dress on the same scale at the other trials.

And my sister, Bonnie, responded to yesterday's scans of Civil War era letters from Meda's family: "Fun reading those old letters. One thing is certain -- Meda's ancestors and yours fought on opposite sides of the same war."

Oh, oh. Then she filled in more detail about our ancestors, the Thomas family.

This was our Grandfather Yonge's mother's family. These are the folks that lived in McMinn Co. TN (over on the eastern edge, between Knoxville and Chattanooga), having moved from NC and KY, and possibly before that down from VA. They left TN circa 1852, moving to south-central MO at the southern tip of present-day Lake of the Ozarks, and about an hour's drive from Branson MO. Why leave TN? They were slaveholders. Kept their slaves in MO until the area where they settled turned into a Union headquarters, then moved south into Texas (pretty much along the OK border). Our great-great grandmother Ellen (Thomas) Brittain Knowlton left Missouri as a young wife in 1857, but lived for several years near Carson City NV. She was there when Lincoln was shot, and tells of going to a 'town meeting' where the men were all bad-mouthing the Confederacy. She, according to her version of the story, stood up and gave them what-for, telling them that she and her husband were Southerns, her father was an officer in the Confederate Army and her brothers were fighting for the Confederacy, and she was proud of it!  

At least one of Ellen's brothers was at Vicksburg -- probably more. The youngest brother spent some time as a prisoner at Alton, Illinois. His service record says that he went AWOL after Vicksburg. Shows what his commanders didn't know. Another brother was declared incompetent -- probably what we would now call Post Traumatic Stress Disorder -- because he was so dysfunctional after the war.

And, Bonnie concludes: "When you sort the family out, the war had a tremendous impact on their lives. As do all wars on all lives."