The bird’s-eye view of Thursday’s pro-telescope rally wouldn’t reveal much beyond cars passing by, honking. Though it was ostensibly a rally favoring the Thirty Meter Telescope, the contrary view was represented by more ralliers on the mauka sidewalk.

But some of the TMT backers said they saw clearly who honked in agreement and who flipped them off or yelled at them.

Nervous or not, supporters have to hope that someone might plan an event closer to Mauna Kea. Oahu is far from Ground Zero.

Cash out that gift card

Hold onto those low-balance gift cards. Under a just-enacted state law, starting in January, in most cases you’ll be able to redeem a balance of less than $5 in cash rather than through purchase of an item or service. State Rep. Scott Matayoshi (D, Kaneohe-Maunawili-Kailua), who introduced the measure, said the law aims to benefit consumers and the local economy. “With so many gift cards issued by mainland companies, that (unspent) money is being held … out of state instead of returned to local consumers,” he said. Twelve other states already have laws requiring that a merchant issue cash on remaining gift card balances.