Due to technical difficulties, you’ll just have to wait for the photos of our anniversary activities.

Ka Leo, the campus newspaper at the University of Hawaii’s Manoa campus, is advertising on Craigslist for reporters and writers, although the Ka Leo web site is still “under construction”. Perhaps its time to dump Viacom and get back online.

I’m beginning to write this on Wednesday evening as Romeo, the 15-pound former stray, competes with the computer for a place in my lap. Why? He’s watching the kitten play in Meda’s lap and has had a fit of jealousy. He is just totally intent and insistent on getting in my lap. The fact that there really isn’t space doesn’t fit into his calculations, so the computer has to move over a bit to allow a large cat to get on, settle in, and start a long self-conscious cleaning. He’s not hostile to the kitten, but very, very jealous.

The New York Times reported this week on the hidden potential for conflict of interests in university study abroad programs. Sounds like a fertile field for reporting by Ka Leo.

Two unexpected emails arrived yesterday. One was from the author of a forthcoming book on the Matson white ships, who ran into my description of my uncle, who was chief pursor on the Mariposa for many years when she cruised the Pacific. He is soliciting photos or stories about my uncle that might be incorporated into the book. The second is from a Cathcart cousin, another great-grandchild of Robert William Cathcart. Our grandmothers were sisters, and she works at the Media Federal Credit Union, the former Hawaii Newspaper Agency credit union. Thanks to Google for making such connections possible.

I also received a comment on the story I did for the current Honolulu Weekly regarding the latest round in the ongoing struggle over the future of public access television.

DCCA regulations require that the P in PEG (Public, Education, Government) be available to the public on a first come, non discriminatory basis and there is another regulation that requires the “cable operator” to have specially designated, full time public access channel. As far as I can tell, neither of these requirements have been met. Olelo (which is not the “cable operator”) does not have a channel that is specially designated for public access, at a lot of the programming decisions (what actually gets air time) seems questionable—lots of legislator/religious stuff (3 day from Saturday thru Monday).

Although I’m not the best informed on these issues, it seems to me like Hawaii pursued a different path than most other states in terms of public access channels. Why didn’t Hawaii consider the models in other states? Putting all of these financial resources in the hands of nonprofit organizations (decided upon by governmental officials) raises serious political questions. Have you ever seen public access channels in NYC? That is the true city park/town square that Akaku asserts should be public access. We don’t have any of this in Hawaii.

No, I haven’t seen the New York access channels. It sounds like required viewing.

The following was received from Bob Jones:

Robert Kessler of Let Hawaii Vote, in a posting this week at Hawaii Reporter, claims that I wrongly quoted him in MidWeek as saying the present tax system in Hawaii “typically pits old against young, poor against rich, property owners against renters, residents against landlords, taxpayers against tax exempt, and residential against business.”

I need to remind everyone that in a news release (which he also posted at Hawaii Reporter on January 18, 2007) he said the present tax system in Hawaii “typically pits old against young, poor against rich, property owners against renters, residents against landlords, taxpayers against tax exempt, and residential against business.”

Kessler and Paul Smith, husband of Gov. Lingle’s senior adviser, signed their names to that. I didn’t make it up!

Okay. This message also appears as an entry on Hawaii Reporter.

I’ve been reading old friend Chuck Smith’s Of Two Minds blog for continuing commentary and insights into the liquidity meltdown. Both Chuck and his regular readers have a lot to say about the situation and its dynamics. He is not sanguine, I might add.

I also looked a bit for other informative financial blogs to go to after reading the Wall Street Journal. Here’s one recent Top 25 list, although I imagine there are many others. Here’s one from CNNMoney.com, although it’s a couple of years old, a millennium in blog years. Suggestions, anyone?

This was the scene at the people’s bedtime on our anniversary last night. It was a kitten milestone as she took a spot between Ms. Kili and Mr. Leo, all without human assistance. She apparently wandered down the hall, clawed her way up onto the bed, and settled down. And, quite importantly, they accepted her. By the time she’s finally adopted next week, it looks like she will have developed lots of social skills.