Hawaii

Hawaii Republican Assembly By the Hawaii Republican Assembly - Ten days ago, the Hawaii Republican Assembly provided a chart to show the downward decline of the number of Republicans in our state government. We solicited inputs from our readers on solutions to this alarming trend, because we believe that only through the Hawaii Republican Party can we contest the Democrat super-majority. However, yesterday, resources of the Hawaii Republican Party were spent in an effort to debunk our chart. See their letter to Hawaii Reporter here. Why is the HRP spending time challenging an objective chart when we all agree that there are far fewer Republicans in office today than we had over a decade ago? We want HRP to address the issues of why we have this decline, not to get mired in red herrings. So, in defense against this transparent attempt to change the subject, let's start where HIRA and HRP agree . . . right now. At present, as the result of the recent 2012 election, there are only eight (8) Republicans in state office. Great, there's no dispute. There's Slom all alone in the State Senate and seven (7) Republican members of the State House: Johanson, Ward, Cheape, Fukumoto, McDermott, Fale, and Thielen. Moving on to the outcome of the 2010 election, when Jonah Kaauwai was chairman along with several current party officers. The HRP claims that HIRA's figures about elected Republicans in state office is over by 1 ("it should be 8 instead of 9"). In 2011, the State Senate had Slom (1) plus the State House had Thielen, Ling Johanson, Marumoto, Pine, Fontaine, Ward, Ching, and Riviere (8). One plus eight equals nine (9). Point to HIRA. Now, with the results of the 2008 election, the HRP claims again that HIRA's number is too high by 1 ("it should be 9 instead of 10"). Serving as Republicans in state government in 2009, there were Gov. Lingle and Lt. Gov Aiona (2), the State Senate had Slom and Hemmings (2), and the State House had Ching, Finnegan, Marumoto, Pine, Thielen, and Ward (that's another 6) which adds up to ten (10). Point to HIRA. Following the 2006 election, the HRP claims that there were eighteen (18) Republicans in state office, HIRA claims thirteen (13). Lingle and Aiona were in office, so that's two (2). There were a total of five Republicans serving in the State Senate: Gabbard, Hemmings, Slom, Trimble, and Whalen (5). That brings us to seven. Let's look at the official list from the State Capitol. There was Awana, Ching, Finnegan, Marumoto, Meyer, Pine, Thielen and Ward; that's eight (8) house members. That brings the actual total of elected Republicans in state government to fifteen (15)...and when you subtract the two elected Republicans who switched to the Democrat Party (Awana and Gabbard), that leaves thirteen (13). Point to HIRA. See where this is going? A large discrepancy exists between HIRA and HRP during the 2000 elections. The HRP claim thirteen (13), HIRA says twenty two (22). Quick roll call . . . Cayetano was governor and Hirono was his lieutenant. That brings us to zero (0). In the State Senate, there were Hemmings, Hogue and Slom. That's three (3). In the State House, there were Auwae, Bukoski. Davis. Djou. Fox, Gomes, Halford, Jaffe, Leong, Marumoto, McDermott, Meyer, Moses, Ontai, Pendleton, Rath. Stonebreaker, Thielen, Whalen. That's nineteen (19). That adds up to twenty two (22) elected Republicans in the State Legislature. Point to HIRA Ultimately, the question is: who do you believe? The history of our Republican Party in Hawaii is important. The reality is tragic. You cannot know where you are going unless you take an accurate account of where you are today. Success is a long way away, and we can get there through honest assessment, hard work, and conservative principles. The views and opinions expressed here are those of the Hawaii Republican Assembly (HIRA) which provides this conservative viewpoint for your consideration. Please forward this Code Blue to friends and family. 

Bruce Omori, owner of Extreme Exposures Fine Art Gallery in Hilo, received the Windland Smith Rice International Award for his lava photo titled “Volcanic Vortices HILO, Hawaii — Bruce Omori, owner of Extreme Exposures Fine Art Gallery in Hilo, received the Windland Smith Rice International Award for his lava photo titled “Volcanic Vortices,” which will be displayed at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History’s annual exhibition in June. His winning photograph was selected from almost 20,000 submissions from photographers in 46 countries. “I’m humbled by this experience, to stand with so many other great photographers is an honor,” said Bruce Omori. “I love what I do and to be recognized in this way leaves me a little speechless.” “Volcanic Vortices” won the top honor in the Power of Nature category. Finalists from each of the 15 categories will be featured in the Fall/Winter edition of Nature’s Best Photography Magazine. “On an early morning shoot at the Waikupanaha ocean entry, lava from the Kilauea volcano poured into the sea. This created a huge escape of steam, and as it rose, multiple vortices began spinning off of the huge plume,” Omori described in his photo submission description. “A vortex or two is a pretty rare sight—but when one after another kept forming, my fumbling with the lenses turned into a panicked rush to switch my telephoto to wide angle lens to capture this awesome scene of seven vortices in a row.” Hawai’i Island’s premier master photographers, Bruce Omori and Tom Kualii, are the owners of Extreme Exposure Fine Art Gallery in Hilo, HI. They are photographers that live on the edge and go to extremes to create magnificent fine art pieces. They also lead exclusive private photography tours and workshops on Hawai’i Island. www.extremeexposure.com

Report from GasBuddy - Average retail gasoline prices in Honolulu have risen 1 cent per gallon in the past week, averaging $4.25/g yesterday, according to GasBuddy's daily survey of 214 gas outlets in Honolulu. This compares with the national average that has increased 8.9 cents per gallon in the last week to $3.67/g, according to gasoline price websiteGasBuddy.com. Including the change in gas prices in Honolulu during the past week, prices yesterday were 12.3 cents per gallon lower than the same day one year ago and are 1.6 cents per gallon lower than a month ago. The national average has increased 16.6 cents per gallon during the last month and stands 3.0 cents per gallon lower than this day one year ago. "The last seven days have delivered some shocks at the pump for motorists in the nation's Midwest," said GasBuddy.com Senior Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan. "I don't believe I've ever seen gasoline prices in the Midwest surpass California- areas of Nebraska, Minnesota, Oklahoma, North and South Dakota, and Kansas- have done that. Gas price records in these areas aren't being quietly replaced, they're being blown out of the water. I don't believe I've ever seen such crazy trends in gasoline prices occur all at one- prices spiking in one area, falling in another, and holding steady in others. What we're seeing today is certainly rare," DeHaan said. GasBuddy operates HonoluluGasPrices.com and over 250 similar websites that track gasoline prices at over 140,000 gasoline stations in the United States and Canada. In addition, GasBuddy offers a free smartphone app which has been downloaded over 25 million times to help motorists find the lowest gasoline prices in their area.

The Omidyar Fellows Report from the The Omidyar Fellows - HONOLULU - The Omidyar Fellows -- a program launched in May 2012 by the Hawaii Leadership Forum -- has opened applications for its 2013 class. Applications for the rigorous and comprehensive leadership program are now being accepted online at www.OmidyarFellows.org/hawaii through June 30, 2013. Developed by Bill Coy, director of leadership learning for the Hawaii Leadership Forum, the Omidyar Fellows curriculum is tailored to meet the unique and diverse needs of participants. The customized program includes a kickoff event and series of orientation activities, one full-day session each month, executive coaching, and conversations with current leaders. In addition, Fellows learn new skills, network with peers, self-reflect, and participate in personal growth opportunities. "Last year we were fortunate to receive more than 150 applications from many engaged and dedicated individuals seeking leadership development for the benefit of not just themselves, but their organizations and their communities as well. We were impressed by the strong representation from all islands and sectors and the overall level of understanding and commitment to Hawaii" said Kalei Stern, director of Omidyar Fellows. "We look forward to engaging with the community and the next generation of leaders to build a strong second cohort of Fellows." Omidyar Fellows is looking for applicants who represent a wide range of sectors including government, nonprofit, for-profit businesses, and labor unions. The ideal candidate for the Omidyar Fellows is someone who has: Demonstrated, as a leader, the courage, commitment, passion, and capability to get things done Solved complex problems within an organization or community Developed a working style that incorporates problem solving, original thinking, collaboration, and innovation Earned leadership responsibilities beyond his/her years of employment based on track record of accelerated achievement Demonstrated engagement in the community beyond professional responsibilities Arrived at an understanding of Hawaii's cultural, social, and political contexts As the current inaugural class nears the halfway point of the 15-month program, the Omidyar Fellows program hopes to build upon the momentum of its first year and bring these exciting opportunities to a new group of up to 15 up-and-coming local leaders. The program is designed with the goal to inspire and equip emerging leaders with the skills needed to affect positive, lasting change in Hawaii. According to Colton Ching, a current Omidyar Fellow and vice president of energy delivery at Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc., the program is already succeeding. Ching said, "Through the Omidyar Fellows program I have learned important lessons on leadership and developed lifelong friendships with my cohort that will be invaluable in my professional career." The 2012 fellows will be graduating in November 2013. Selected participants for the second Omidyar Fellows class will be announced in September, and their program will begin in October 2013. For additional information about Omidyar Fellows and Hawaii Leadership Forum please visitwww.OmidyarFellows.org/Hawaii. Omidyar Fellows is also on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/OmidyarFellowsHI and Twitter at www.twitter.com/OmidFellowsHI.

DCCA Headquarters REPORT FROM THE DCCA – The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) Division of Financial Institutions (DFI) issued an immediate temporary cease and desist order for a Maui woman and mortgage company operating on the Valley Isle. Commissioner of Financial Institutions Iris Ikeda-Catalani ordered Kathleen Patricia Morris and Herman-Morris Enterprises Inc., dba Hawaii's Premiere Mortgage Co., to cease operating as a mortgage loan originator and a mortgage loan originator company on suspicion of violating Hawaii law. DFI alleged Morris and her company were: ·        Originating a mortgage loan in a consumer's name without their authorization; ·        Receiving payoffs of mortgage loans and not remitting the payoff amounts to the lenders; ·        Attempting to solicit a complainant with a payment to withdraw his complaint against the licensees. ·        Using a trade name without properly notifying the Commissioner of the name; ·        Failing to update the financial disclosure pursuant to changes in financial status; and ·        Failing to notify the Commissioner about a revocation of a previous license; Morris is also known by the following names: aka Kathleen P. Morris, aka  Patricia Morris, aka Tricia Morris, aka Trish Schaberg, aka Tricia Schaberg, aka Patricia K. Morris, aka Kathleen K Herman, aka Patricia Kathleen Herman, aka K. P. Morris, aka Kathleen P. Morris, aka Tricia K. Morris, aka Tricia NMN Morris, aka Tricia P. Morris, aka Patricia Kathleen Morris. Herman-Morris Enterprises Inc. also does business as: dba Hawaii's Premier Mortgage Co., dba Hawaii's Premiere Mortgage Co., dba Lemurian Interiors & Development, dba Nature's Treasures of Maui. An administrative hearing on the immediate temporary cease and desist order will be held on May 29, 2013, on Oahu. The Division of Financial Institutions ensures the safety and soundness of state-chartered and state-licensed financial institutions, and ensures regulatory compliance by state-licensed financial institutions, escrow depositories, money transmitters, mortgage servicers, mortgage loan originators and mortgage loan originator companies by fairly administering applicable statutes and rules in order to protect the rights and funds of depositors, borrowers, consumers and other members of the public.

Photo: Emily Metcalf By Leighton Loo - Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s $300 million dollar budget surplus is a fake “paper” surplus. The reality is that the state has a massive deficit of at least $483 million!  The state’s Employee Union Trust Fund and Employee Retirement System both have a $15 billion and $9 billion shortfall, respectively. Also there is a $461 million backlog in needed University of Hawaii repairs of which only $37.5 million will be made up this cycle. So how do you “create” a “surplus” when state finances are so fragile?  Simple! You just don’t pay your bills! The state needs to be paying one billion dollars every budget period to eventually make up for those EUTF and ERS shortfalls for about 30 years.  However, it will only pay $217 million this period – by way far too short to address the shortfalls disaster.  This is like shorting your mortgage payment so that you can claim to have savings or a “surplus” of cash. Also, if you accept that the state has “shorted” the UH by not repairing and maintaining to the full $461 million in backlog, then the deficit rises to $906.5 million (hopefully, no building collapses like the state’s Farrington High School Auditorium did). The concept is easier to see if compared to a family’s household budget.  You can increase your savings at the end of the year by simply not paying to repair and maintain your home, make only bare minimum and insufficient payments to your credit cards and mortgage.  Quite simply, not paying your bills can temporarily build you a savings account or in the State government’s case – a “surplus”. However, there will be disaster right around the corner as your home crumbles and your debt goes out of control. While one can argue that the state should have used the surplus for school supplies that teachers are personally paying for or the proposed $22 million UH faculty pay raise, etc. but definitely the state is in financial trouble. To very loosely paraphrase Abraham Lincoln, “if you fool enough of the people enough of the time …” Leighton Loo is a resident of Honolulu, Hawaii

The National Weather Service in Honolulu has continued the high surf advisory for South facing shores of all Hawaiian islands until 6 p.m. Tuesday (May 21). The large South swell is forecast to be in the seven to 11 foot range dropping to six to nine feet Tuesday. - visit Hawaii 24/7 to read the full story -

Photo courtesy of Scott Gold, a director and photographer in southern California. Nearly four decades ago, veteran Maui lifeguard and Waterman Hall of Famer, Archie Kalepa saw the legendary Eddie Aikau in action—feats of selfless courage so formative that Kalepa knew he’d someday join that brotherhood of elite Hawaiian life savers. “We perform unrecognized heroic acts everyday,” says Kalepa with disarming humility. He and the 450+ guards of the Hawaiian Lifeguard Association each proudly wear OluKai footwear as they patrol the rocky cliffs and rip tide ravaged shores of the islands. The Kia’i Trainer, Kamiki and Kia’i sandal are part of their uniform, “part of our tool chest,” says Kalepa. This is rugged footwear for rugged terrain—the day-to-day demands of the HLA have tested these shoes and sandals for the needs of a true waterman. Simply put: “It’s a shoe that works,” says Kalepa. He and the rest of the HLA put these shoes to the test far before they find their way to the shelves. From the fit and overall performance to breathability and traction, the HLA take these shoes through real field research—the actual gauntlet of lifeguarding. Hawaiian lifeguards provide recommendations and suggestions to properly shape footbeds and increase traction—it is this kind of rigorous testing that vastly improves final design of the product. Photo courtesy of Scott Gold, a director and photographer in southern California. These shoes are not just inspired by Hawaiian lifeguards, they’re thoughtfully constructed specifically to meet their needs from the slick rocky outcropping around Hanauma Bay, to the 25 foot swells of the storied North Shore. Hawaiian lifeguarding is a proud and vital tradition, the highest standard to which guards in other coastal communities aspire. OluKai is humbled to play a significant role in nurturing that tradition through the ‘Ohana Giveback Program. A portion of the proceeds from these shoes supports Hawaii’s Junior Lifeguard Program, inspiring and training the next generation of Kalepas and Aikaus. “No matter what anyone says, if you put your mind to it, you can do it,” Kalepa tell these Junior Guards. “I know it’s true because I did it. Stay focused, stay healthy, stay fit, and keep your integrity. Those are things that we need to build, not just lifeguards but great leaders in the community.” See The Entire HLA Collection: http://www.olukai.com/HLA.aspx Story courtesy of http://talkstory.olukai.com/2013/04/05/hla/ Photo courtesy of Scott Gold, a director and photographer in southern California.

The National Weather Service in Honolulu has continued the wind advisory for Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea until 6 p.m. Tuesday (May 21). Winds are forecast to be from the Southwest at 25-35 mph with localized gusts over 50 mph. A strong area of low pressure several hundred miles North of the state is causing these strong winds. Tradewinds should return Thursday and Friday. - visit Hawaii 24/7 to read the full story -

Christopher Adamo By Christopher G. Adamo - In a sane world, Barack Obama would already be facing the prospect of impeachment over his mishandling and subsequent cover-up of the Benghazi fiasco. But in a sane world, an inconsequential Illinois state senator who voted overwhelmingly “present” in order to duck hard issues and who then served only a matter of months in the United States Senate would never have been elevated to the nation’s highest office, even if his rival for that office was as hapless as John McCain. Unfortunately, a significant portion of America’s populace was willing to take a chance on the Obama platitudes of collectivism and wealth redistribution. Worse yet, despite the glaring disaster that ensued as a direct result of his policies, at re-election time in 2012, America tacitly chose to accept another four years of the same. In many ways, it seemed that he had become immune to any consequences for his words and actions. His two nominees to the U.S. Supreme Court, Sonya Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, sailed through the confirmation process with relative ease despite their liberal agenda-driven “credentials,” buoyed only by the contemptible forces of ethnic and gender politics. He has never been held accountable for squandering the nation’s finances in a misbegotten and fraud laden pursuit of a green energy socialist utopia, leaving a trail of billion dollar abuses such as the failed Solyndra enterprise. And the list goes on. Given these circumstances, it is entirely understandable that conservatives and patriots might be anticipating an Obama day of reckoning from the recent convergence of three major recent scandals, Benghazi, Internal Revenue Service abuses, and Obama Justice Department wiretaps of Associated Press reporters. However, it is far too soon to presume that the game has changed and conditions are now right for justice to prevail over an administration that has flaunted its lawlessness during the past four years with total impunity. Admittedly, the Benghazi episode vastly eclipses every aspect of Watergate. This is a scandal in which the “cover up” actually began before the main event, and in many ways directly contributed to it. Fears by White House political strategists that the deteriorating situation in Libya might redound negatively to Barack Obama’s re-election campaign, a decision was made to deny the necessary security reinforcements fervently and repeatedly requested by Ambassador Chris Stevens. At the risk of Stevens’ safety, Obama sought to maintain a facade of diplomatic success in the Middle East. Ever since the Sep. 11, 2012, Benghazi attacks, and continuing to this day, the entire focus of Obama and his underlings, including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, has been to deceive the American people and evade culpability for what actually happened and what might have been done to prevent it. Hillary’s now infamous “What difference does it make?” response in last January’s Senate hearing was the most flagrant attempt to make the case that a thorough review of the Administration’s misdeeds is both unnecessary and unproductive. Yet the reality is quite the opposite. With each passing day, new evidence is uncovered which reveals an abhorrent Administration negligence and indifference to the imminent peril faced by Stevens. With total disregard for him, the White House and State Department were willing to gamble that nothing major would happen which might undercut Obama’s assertions of diplomatic prowess in the Arab world. Even after the Al Qaeda attacks blew that fabrication apart, the sole focus of the administration has remained on “damage control.” Each new inquiry results in strangely disconnected stories of what happened on that night and why critically flawed decisions were made. In the most telling contradiction the administration was ostensibly befuddled for weeks as to actual motivation for the attacks, steadfastly blaming an anti-Muslim video on YouTube as