With state and city leaders hitting the friendly skies, Hawaii’s U.S. Senate race was center stage as we "flASHback" on the week’s news that amused and confused:

» Former Gov. Linda Lingle announced she’ll seek the GOP nomination for the U.S. Senate and set a fundraising goal of $8 million to $10 million. That would nearly double the record auction price for a Hawaii politician.&

» U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono, a Democratic Senate candidate, responded to the Republican’s entry by asking supporters to send her $5. She’s differentiating her campaign from Lingle’s by pricing herself at what her accomplishments are worth.

» Ed Case, the other Democrat in the race, hired consultants to help him with strategy and marketing. While Hirono claims the left side of the political spectrum and Lingle leans to the right side, Case is testing how many votes there are on Dan Inouye’s bad side.

» The Cook Political Report classified the Hawaii Senate race a "tossup." In modern political parlance, this means it’s sufficiently competitive to bombard prime time with offensive ads that will make you toss up your dinner at least once.

» Gov. Neil Abercrombie and Mayor Peter Carlisle are both traveling in Asia this week on cultural exchanges. They find it refreshing to be misunderstood because of language differences instead of the usual reason that they don’t make sense.

» Carlisle’s host-paid visit to South Korea is his fourth junket to Asia and his 10th trip out of state during his first year in office. He’s away so often that when he occasionally drops in, the Hawaii Tourism Authority counts him as a visitor arrival.

» Also traveling on someone else’s dime are councilmen Romy Cachola and Ikaika Anderson, who are attending the Rail-Volution conference in Washington, D.C., as guests of a pro-rail trade group. For city officials, rail is their Freebie-Palooza.

» Maui Rep. Joe Souki said he’s deeply offended by the state Ethics Commission’s effort to track down missing gifts from a film company that lobbied lawmakers for tax credits. Nothing offends Hawaii legislators like ethics.

» Souki was so irate that he scolded Ethics Commission Executive Director Les Kondo: "I don’t need you to act as my conscience." That’s the job of his campaign donors.

And the quote of the week … from City Councilman Tom Berg to a losing bidder in the $1.4 billion rail car contract: "If I had a box of Kleenex I would have left the room. I’m in tears. I’m really in tears, sir. I can’t believe the way the city has treated you. The lawyers are feeding off the trough, the taxpayers’ trough, and I’m livid right now. I’m trying to hold back." Thank goodness he held back before he needed a box of Huggies.

Reach David Shapiro at volcanicash@gmail.com or blog.volcanicash.net.