David Shapiro: Dear tourists: Confusion is the true Hawaii experience
It’s the last Sunday in September and time to “flASHback” on the month’s news that amused and confused: Read more
David Shapiro
David Shapiro is a Honolulu Star-Advertiser columnist whose "Volcanic Ash" column appears every Sunday. Shapiro has covered Hawaii and national news for five decades as a reporter, editor and columnist for Honolulu daily newspapers.
Submit a News Tip
Latest Stories by David Shapiro
David Shapiro: Gov. David Ige’s inflexibility dims credibility on the pandemic
Gov. David Ige’s frequent emergency decrees on COVID-19 would go down easier if he’d show more willingness to adjust when reasonable concerns are raised or alternatives offered. Read more
David Shapiro: Department of Education keeps squandering our hard-won pandemic lessons
The local education establishment has fought efforts to break up Hawaii’s statewide school system, the only one in the nation, claiming centralization brings efficiency and equal educational opportunity for all. Read more
David Shapiro: Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi shows welcome practicality on pandemic response
Mayor Rick Blangiardi took office in January strongly inclined to open up restaurants, bars, gyms and other businesses that had been restricted by COVID-19, but promised Gov. David Ige he wouldn’t “go rogue” by acting without state coordination. Read more
David Shapiro: Hawaii burns with pandemic fever and combustible politics
It’s the last Sunday in August and time to “flASHback” on the month’s news that amused and confused: Read more
David Shapiro: Honolulu police shooting case should point way to more openness
It’ll take time for our community to process Prosecutor Steven Alm’s failed attempt to convict three police officers of murder and attempted murder for shooting a 16-year-old crime spree suspect who led them on a high-speed chase from East Oahu to Waikiki in a stolen car. Read more
Don't miss out on what's happening!
Stay in touch with breaking news, as it happens, conveniently in your email inbox. It's FREE!
By clicking to sign up, you agree to Star-Advertiser's and Google's Terms of Service Opens in a new tab and Privacy Policy Opens in a new tab. This form is protected by reCAPTCHA.
David Shapiro: End the vaccine fight: Get the shot, get tested or stay home
Mandates issued by Gov. David Ige and local companies to force workers to get vaccinated or face dismissal are a necessary step if we’re ever to extricate our community from the grip of COVID-19. Read more
David Shapiro: Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi rides money train to big campaign fund payday
For most of his term, Mayor Rick Blangiardi downplayed chances of building the $12.5 billion Honolulu rail line all the way to Ala Moana Center, suggesting it was unrealistic with the project more than $7 billion over its original budget and facing a current deficit of more than $3 billion. Read more
David Shapiro: If the Hawaii Legislature’s here in July, you know it’s a bad month
July is finally in the rearview mirror, and it’s time to “flASHback” on the month’s news that amused and confused: Read more
David Shapiro: Honolulu City Council’s new rail board nominee owes key rail interests
As public confidence in the $12.5 billion Oahu rail debacle sinks ever lower, chaos abounds at the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation. Read more
David Shapiro: If we can all agree on endangered monk seals, it’s a start
The local outrage over a couple of tourists who posted social media pictures of themselves touching Hawaiian monk seals was heartening and disheartening at the same time. Read more
David Shapiro: Hawaii will pay cost of tourism vacuum left by Legislature
The Legislature’s bill to gut the Hawaii Tourism Authority and reallocate hotel room tax revenues, passed over Gov. David Ige’s veto, has the whiff of a money grab passed off as tourism reform. Read more
David Shapiro: Shohei Ohtani, Fernando Tatis and Vladimir Guerrero are saving baseball from itself
It’s the Fourth of July, and I’m diverting from my usual local news focus to indulge my favorite patriotic topic: baseball. Read more
David Shapiro: Gov. David Ige and Legislature leave the rich richer … What’s new?
It’s the last Sunday in June and time to “flASHback” on the month’s news that amused and confused: Read more
David Shapiro: Fatal Honolulu police shootings raise tough questions for community
Shortly after new Honolulu Prosecutor Steven Alm promised tougher and more independent investigations of police shootings, he’s faced with two of the most problematic fatal shootings in recent times. Read more
David Shapiro: Hawaii has its problems, but the common good still counts
Being of the age and health demographic most vulnerable to COVID-19, I’ve played it safe and seldom gone out in the last year. Read more
David Shapiro: Legislators ignore lessons of rail on new Aloha Stadium
The next sound we hear from the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District should be a screeching halt, until scheming lawmakers provide coherent answers on what exactly is being built, who’s running it, what’s the cost and how we’ll pay. Read more
David Shapiro: Hawaii follows neither art nor science in COVID response
It’s the last Sunday in May and time to flASHback on the month’s news that amused and confused: Read more
David Shapiro: Honolulu police robo-dog plays mean game of fetch with tax dollars
Honolulu police turned the CARES Act, meant by Congress to bring relief from the COVID-19 outbreak, into the AINOKEA Act by blowing the funding on expensive toys such as trucks, ATVs and a $150,000 robotic dog named Spot. Read more
David Shapiro: Latest Oahu rail imbroglio takes a turn in public’s favor
Well played, Mayor Rick Blangiardi and Colleen Hanabusa. Read more
David Shapiro: Legislature used COVID aid to help well-off stay that way
The disconnect is striking between the Legislature’s chest- thumping over its accomplishments during its 2021 session and public frustration over misplaced priorities. Read more
Having trouble finding what you need? Try using our search feature.
Subscriber Favorites
Hilo man, 30, arrested in fatal stabbing of 81-year-old woman
Richard Chamberlain, TV heartthrob turned serious actor, dies in Waimanalo at age 90
Key Hawaii Republicans, voters mixed on Trump
Hawaii represented again on ‘American Idol’ by Thunderstorm Artis
Hawaii topples UC San Diego in 4 in a match that gets testy
More Editors' Picks
Concerns raised over Ala Wai flood control project’s $11B estimate
Key Hawaii Republicans, voters mixed on Trump
Hawaii topples UC San Diego in 4 in a match that gets testy
David Shapiro: Council chair presses to keep inflated paychecks coming
