Fears that Hawaii’s tourist-dependent economy cannot pull out of its catastrophic tailspin may have been overstated, but don’t think Hawaii is a money-generating powerhouse. Read more
The cliche about Martians landing on Earth, walking up to a tree and saying, “Take me to your leader,” might have some relevance as we plow into the second year of the COVID-19 crisis and Hawaii’s less-than-precise and organized attempts to deal with it. Read more
COVID-19 continues to drive state policy much like it impacts our national government. Read more
Moving into our second year of the COVID-19 crisis, you can question whether the rising number of cases, especially those requiring hospitalizations, warns of the end of Gov. David Ige’s ability to run the state or is just a brief bump in the road. Read more
Today, the great worry is finding a way around the COVID-19 virus pandemic. Infection rates are in an unprecedented upward spiral, primarily caused by unvaccinated Hawaii residents ignoring the dangers of the virus. Read more
Hawaii’s race for governor is in the counting phase — not votes, but dollars. Read more
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Go back one year as the COVID-19 crisis was washing across the U.S. As deaths and sickness rose, the disastrous wake was unemployment and the resulting threat of homelessness. Read more
Almost one year from today, July 26, 2022, to be exact, Hawaii’s election office will start mailing out ballots for the 2022 primary election races. Read more
Former Hawaii First Lady Vicky Cayetano last week launched a nicely prepared trial balloon to churn the political gossip about running for governor next year. Read more
For years, the cry at the state Legislature has been, “We have to do something about tourism.” At first, the rallying call was that the Legislature must help tourism. Waikiki hotels needed to be built, permits expedited and land rezoned. Read more
Tucked just below Oregon and above the District of Columbia, Hawaii ranks 13th in the number of people fully vaccinated. That’s 709,205 people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution and administration data tracker. Read more
If you are a sports fan, putting a major league baseball game on the radio provides relaxing background sound. If you are a reporter, the chatter, whoops and squawks from a police radio scanner provide the same comforting feeling that you are plugged in. Read more
Fueled by the ridiculous claims that former President Donald Trump won reelection, Republican-controlled state legislatures want to make sure that in the 2022 election, the GOP will win a real majority. Read more
The state’s top economists appear in agreement: Billions of dollars in federal aid have rescued Hawaii’s economy, and while some help is expected to continue, Hawaii’s old bubbling tourist-based economy is still shaky. Read more
The definition is less than a precise measurement on which to base an entire state policy, but Hawaii’s economic future and health outcomes are all built on reaching community, or herd, immunity. Read more
The political implications of actually getting what you ask for are on display with the Legislature passing House Bill 862, which gives the counties the ability to raise their own hotel room tax of up to 3%. Read more
The state is in that delightful stage of preplanning for a new 35,000-seat sports stadium. It’s delightful because state officials are like kids in front of a big easel, coloring in where everything can go with no real rules or responsibilities. Read more
Colleen Hanabusa is apparently something of a danger junkie. Why else would she go back working with Honolulu’s rail project? Read more
This year women leaders are not seeing great advancements. First two prominent women, Honolulu Police Chief Susan Ballard, after receiving a highly critical performance report from the Honolulu Police Commission, said she was quitting. Read more
Doing nothing proved to be the best policy choice last week. Read more
Recent events point to a city losing its way. One of Honolulu’s major responsibilities is policing, but with the former chief of police, Louis Kealoha, starting a seven-year federal prison term June 1 for using his position to frame a relative for a crime the latter didn’t commit was Hawaii’s biggest corruption case. Read more
