updated
5:20 a.m.
Now that my adopted state has gained both power and notariaty with a new President and new chairmanships for our ancient Senators I thought it would be a good time to so my long planned Birds of Hawai'i photo diary. Well that actually has less to do with it than general boredom and a desire to share. So here goes... We will start with the birds that are most likely to see when you ...
DailyKos (Hawaii) - 12:51 a.m.
The John Adams DVD was due back at the library yesterday, and we had two episodes plus the features still to watch (the Making Of and McCullough's bio sketch are both worth the time). This meant that we had to......
Linkmeister - Fri 12:41 p.m.
Hawai'i is converting to digital television signals on January 15, 2009, one month earlier than required by law. Why are we switching early? Well . . .Federal wildlife officials suggested tearing down the old analog transmission towers earlier to avoid......
Linkmeister - Thu 11:29 p.m.
I don't mean to rain on the hope that the Democrats might gain 60 seats in the Senate including the two independents -- I really hope they do. However, I thought I should point out that regardless of whether Al Franken wins in the recount (decent chance) and if Jim Martin prevails in the runoff (unlikely), there's another factor that isn't being discussed very much and which might serve as ...
DailyKos (Hawaii) - Thu 6:25 p.m.
Wow. I thought the last three episodes would be anticlimactic and that all the events leading up to the Revolution would far exceed any drama after Washington's election. It's true that the Great Events slowed down after that, but it......
Linkmeister - Thu 4:45 p.m.
Hawaii Independence Blog - Thu 4:45 p.m. - 9 clicks ![]()
I see the cable shows are wringing their collective hands about the return of some Clinton-era Democrats to actual policy-making jobs in the Obama Administration. Correct me if I'm wrong, but when GWB brought John Negroponte and Elliot Abrams into......
Linkmeister - Wed 11:45 p.m.
A 46oz pickle jar can hold about $15 worth of pennies. I know this because, thanks to my friend Kate's post, I learned about a coin-counting machine maker named Coinstar. I found a credit union at the bottom of my......
Linkmeister - Wed 3:41 p.m.
ESPN has paid $125 million for the rights to broadcast the Bowl Championship Series from 2011-2014.ESPNs president, George Bodenheimer, said the network planned to keep all of the games on ESPN and not broadcast any on ABC, but would not......
Linkmeister - Wed 1:04 p.m.
Hawaii Independence Blog - Tue 6:28 p.m. - 18 clicks ![]()
A final thought on Lieberman: you know that phrase people use about a guy "on their side" even though he's a jerk? "He may be an SOB, but he's our SOB?" Lieberman campaigned for the other side, raised money for......
Linkmeister - Tue 2:11 p.m. - 2 clicks ![]()
For those bloggers who thought they had some influence over Harry Reid and the rest of the Democrats in the Senate, guess again.Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) easily won a vote to remain chairman of a key committee today and will......
Linkmeister - Tue 10:09 a.m. - 3 clicks ![]()
Hawaii Independence Blog - Tue 10:09 a.m. - 10 clicks ![]()
Hawaii Independence Blog - Tue 12:42 a.m. - 14 clicks ![]()
A letter in the print edition of the Nov. 24 issue of Time, received this week:To the supporters of California's Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage: 1963 called; it wants its bigotry back.......
Linkmeister - Mon 4:50 p.m. - 2 clicks ![]()
Rob Schumacher - Mon 11:26 a.m. - 2 clicks ![]()
These segments were important to the biography, but I thought neither was particularly compelling. There were moments, though. As Abigail was riding up to the chateau where her husband had been living for over a year, her facial expressions were......
Linkmeister - Mon 10:22 a.m. - 2 clicks ![]()
Hawaii Independence Blog - Mon 10:22 a.m. - 14 clicks ![]()
Jonathan Cohn makes it better than I can: it's not just the immediate job losses that would occur if the companies were allowed to fail, it's the downstream losses at suppliers and all the businesses and towns that depend on......
Linkmeister - Sun 4:31 p.m. - 2 clicks ![]()
Jim Macdonald is an EMT in New England and a moderator at Making Light. For some time now he's been writing up "how-to" responses to medical emergencies for laymen. An index to them can be found here. Everyone should read......
Linkmeister - Sun 1:43 p.m. - 2 clicks ![]()
Congress is Congress, whether it's the Continental one in 1775 or the current edition. Horse trading and large egos are the norm. We were amused to learn that the rock-ribbed and principled John Dickinson of Pennsylvania was played by .......
Linkmeister - Sat 9:49 p.m. - 2 clicks ![]()
I usually manage to escape memes, but not this time. Step #1 - From Liz: Step #2 - write five fun/interesting facts about yourself. "I've been a puppet, a pauper, a pirate, A poet, a pawn and a king." Not......
Linkmeister - Sat 12:40 p.m. - 2 clicks ![]()
I can hardly imagine how many attempts were involved in producing this! If they had a nickel for every one… haha. ...
Poinography - Nov 14 - 2 clicks ![]()
When I requested the DVD of this film there were 98 people in front of me, and each had only a week to watch all ten episodes. Six months later we finally got it. We watched the first episode this......
Linkmeister - Nov 14 - 2 clicks ![]()
Linkmeister - Nov 14 - 2 clicks ![]()
Within an Advertiser story about a legal battle to allow the latest plaintiffs against the Kamehemeha Schools to remain anonymous, is this: Attorney David Rosen yesterday said that news stories about U.S. Magistrate Judge Barry Kurren’s ruling generated new threats and Rosen asked Kurren to reverse his decision. Rosen said callers to his office threatened physical [...]...
Poinography - Nov 13
Hawaii Independence Blog - Nov 13 - 17 clicks ![]()
DailyKos (Hawaii) - Nov 12 - 2 clicks ![]()
Okay, these photo-shopped “elephant hunter” pics are genius, in my opinion. From there, however, Eric Ryan (er, an anonymous writer, rather) sets out on a satirical rampage at ZeroShibai. Meanwhile, at Hawaii Reporter, we see posts from GOP Chair Willes Lee with a weak thank you and one from Garry Smith who lambastes Lee and [...]...
Poinography - Nov 11 - 12 clicks ![]()
I noticed this provocatively-titled post at Hawaii Reporter from RC Anderson who is characterized as an “Archbishop” and “Patriarch of the Ecumenical Catholic Church of America in Honolulu.” Anderson is upset about a new DLNR permitting process and argues that impending changes to the permitting process for weddings on state beaches are unconstitutional. [...]...
Poinography - Nov 11 - 10 clicks ![]()
Let’s see if this works, my first attempt to embed a video… For those of you have never marched and performed close order drill, I assure you that the level of precision in the Silent Drill Platoon is incredibly hard to perfect. …even for Marines. I’m a sucker for this stuff, so you’ll have to [...]...
Poinography - Nov 10
Hawaii Independence Blog - Nov 6 - 12 clicks ![]()
Attorney General Mark Bennett has released (PDF) a response to the Senate Special Investigative Committee on the Hydrogen Investment Capital Special Management Contract Award Final Report (another PDF). Bennett attempts to hand over the matter to Honolulu Prosecutor Peter Carlisle. In its Final Report the Special Committee had requested the AG to appoint [...]...
Poinography - Nov 5 - 15 clicks ![]()
Did you vote? Exciting times indeed. Now for the local results… ...
Poinography - Nov 4
Linkmeister - Nov 3 - 2 clicks ![]()
Linkmeister - Nov 3 - 3 clicks ![]()
Rob Schumacher - Nov 2 - 2 clicks ![]()
Okay, no matter where you stand on the rail project, this parody of the Advertiser front page is a clever satire. Via Zero Shibai. ...
Poinography - Oct 31
I can’t understand (or comprehend) some of the data in this Star-Bulletin article about Tesoro’s quarterly report: “This quarter’s performance highlights our commitment to delivering on our company’s stated goal of lowering crude costs and increasing product netbacks,” Bruce Smith, Tesoro’s chief executive, said in a statement. 1. How the heck does a refi...
Poinography - Oct 30
Linkmeister - Oct 24 - 2 clicks ![]()
This passage in the Hawaii Tribune-Herald caught my eye today: [Councilmember] Naeole has raised more money than [former Councilmember] Safarik, who made a strong primary showing to force a runoff for the lower Puna seat. Although she raised only $300 in the last reporting period, Sept. 6-20 — the final two weeks of the primary — [...]...
Poinography - Oct 23 - 10 clicks ![]()
From a Star-Bulletin story (similar to an earlier Advertiser blog posting): According to the state Constitution, legislators cannot accept pay raises that are recommended during their term of office, so the 2007 raises goes into effect with the next legislative session. Almost correct. Because of staggered 4-year terms, some Senators would get the recommended pay raise [...]...
Poinography - Oct 23
I noticed at least two passing mentions of Republican and Democratic proxies (i.e. Lingle and Boxer) to debate in Cincinnati today (Star-Bulletin and Advertiser), but, now that the debate has finished I have yet to find anything online describing how it went. Were the media excluded from the event? Unlikely. Perhaps it was a [...]...
Poinography - Oct 23 - 13 clicks ![]()
Linkmeister - Oct 23 - 2 clicks ![]()
Linkmeister - Oct 23 - 2 clicks ![]()
Hawaii Independence Blog - Oct 14 - 11 clicks ![]()
DailyKos (Hawaii) - Oct 11 - 2 clicks ![]()
Linkmeister - Oct 11 - 2 clicks ![]()
Linkmeister - Oct 9 - 2 clicks ![]()
First, the progress. The Garden Island News has completely updated the look of its website. Taking a significant step towards 2008—after hovering in a circa 2003 format for quite some time…. Meanwhile, the Maui News has decided to kill off the comments fora previously associated with each article on its website. Not [...]...
Poinography - Oct 8 - 13 clicks ![]()
Linkmeister - Oct 6 - 2 clicks ![]()
Hawaii Independence Blog - Oct 4 - 8 clicks ![]()
Once again we see articles (Star-Bulletin and Advertiser) where defendants in Hawaii courts base their defense on claims of being outside of the jurisdiction of the Hawaii courts. It’s an interesting debate, to be sure, but hasn’t the legal argument been defeated (or, more generally, ignored) again and again? This is not a rhetorical question: [...]...
Poinography - Oct 3 - 12 clicks ![]()
Hawaii Independence Blog - Oct 3 - 12 clicks ![]()
Hawaii Independence Blog - Sep 29 - 11 clicks ![]()
I was flummoxed by this paragraph in a recent Advertiser story: Rex Quidilla, of the Office of Elections, said voters who picked a party had their votes for that party’s candidates counted at precincts even if they tried to cross over and vote for another party’s candidates in certain races. He also said that votes cast [...]...
Poinography - Sep 27
Linkmeister - Sep 27 - 2 clicks ![]()
Poinography - Sep 22 - 5 clicks ![]()