November 12, 2005 - Saturday

From a reader:

Your reference to Jones at BYU (in yesterday's item about 9/11) trigger a recollection of the cold fusion debate -- much of which occured at a Maui conference.

Jones' credibility was dubious then -- not sure it is any better now.

The link is to an article by David Goodstein, Professor of Physics at the California Institute of Technology.

Yesterday Pacific Business News demonstrated how they are combining traditional with electronic delivery. An email alert reminded subscribers that an electronic version of the new issue could be downloaded although the Friday holiday meant the hard copy would be delayed.

As a print subscriber, you may access a complete electronic version of the Nov. 11 paper in a pdf format. The E-dition can be downloaded now. All you will need is your 9-digit subscriber account number and your ZIP code. Your account number can be found on the upper left side of your mailing label.

Finally, here's a longer critiique from a reader who still enjoys the cats:

Hey Ian, did you ever notice that nearly every single "reader comment" about the SB is an obvious attempt by your pals at THA (The Honolulu Advertiser) to stir up something negative. Your last posting regarding the so called "six figure" execs is an example.

The person to allegedly "be in the know" says six former THA employees moved over. Actually, it's three not six. The comment about their earnings is laughable and is an example of the dangers of Blog sites such as yours. This "one reader" would know the earnings of six different people??? Right. It's a blatant attempt to stir something up and you bit. Someone says it..and suddendly it's so.

Similarily, you commented on the "well publicized" lucrative deals of the SB's execs that left the Advertiser. The only mention that I could come across of a "lucrative deal" was what PBN reported from an all employee email from the SB competitor. It was hardly "well publicized" and once again it was said so then it's so. How the heck would their competitor know what the new guys are making?? No one jumps up and down about THA execs living in multi-million dollar ocean front and Kahala homes. From what I see, whatever their comp is it's well justified. The paper at least appears to be quite a bit stronger then a year ago. 

Union negotiations are never easy for either side so I think you shouldn't work so hard to stir the pot at such an early stage. What's the point? I suspect the people at the SB are working very hard to make this a permanent two newspaper town and it's sad that folks like you focus so much on the negative. I'm sure THA isn't exactly a bed of roses place to work either but apparently the people at the SB are too busy trying to do their work then to take the time to send your blog "planted reader comments".

I also noticed recently that in one of your rare positive comments regarding the redesign of the SB.com site that you asked for reactions. None came forward. You evidently spoiled everyone's fun by stating up front you liked it. Imagine all the piling on from "readers" if you had slammed it. You shouldn't let your web site be such an easy lay.

Aloha from a reader commenting. Still enjoy the pics of Toby and Duke. Keep em coming!

November 11, 2005 - Friday

It's a holiday. I'm behind schedule already because I slept a bit too long. So hold on, please. I probably won't get more of an entry until after we get back from our dawn walk. Stay tuned, please.

And, the dawn now behind us, here I am again....

What's billed as Honolulu Magazine's 118th Holiday Annual runs to 240 pages and is so full of advertisements that it's hard to find the stories. I supposed that makes for a good Christmas for Duane Kurisu and Floyd Takeuchi over at PacificBasin Communications.

Looking at the issue, I noticed Chuck Tindle listed as the go-to guy for back issues. Tindle's a former hands on circulation manager formerly with Hawaii Newspaper Agency and later with the Star-Bulletin.

And a reader added this comment about the Star-Bulletin:

Re the SB, it is becoming common knowledge that one of the first former THA (The Honolulu Advertiser) execs that moved to the SB, is attracting more and more THA folks to come over for 6 figure salaries.  I think there are six 6-figure additions in the last few months. That makes the upcoming (Guild) negotiations even harder to swallow in my opinion.

Here's an interesting piece from Raw Story on labor and its place in the current anti-war movement.

And to shake up settled "reality", here's a new perspetive on 9/11 from a professor at BYU.

I managed to select my favorite Kaaawa photos from the month of October, including this view of the mountains that rise so steeply just behind our small community. Just click on this photo to see the full October gallery.

November 10, 2005 - Thursday

I've been watching this new frond on the tree fern next to our front deck develop for weeks and it's been a beautiful process at every stage. It's just wonderful. Here you can see individual leaves curled within the still unfurling tip. It's remarkable. And it's clear that this fern is happy in the cooler weather. Just click the photo for a larger version.

In case you missed yesterday's update, UH football coach June S. Jones' middle name is "Sheldon", and not "Shirley", and those seatbelt violations were racked up by someone else with a similar name.

Former UH journalist Jahan Byrne added this bit of history:

I remember when the TVB (under Tom "Fat Boy" Okuda) had this bizarre rule that you could only get another person's traffic abstract if you were related to that person and had the same last name. Bizarre. I pointed to a state law that said any person can have access to any other person's abstract, but they still wouldn't change their rule. A threatened lawsuit finally did it.

Speaking of bunnies, as I did earlier in the week, prompted a reader to share this story:

I started work for Continental Airlines, in Hawaii. As a gate agent I had to be in the boarding area to greet flights. We had a flight arriving at 11am and when I opened the jetway door, from the boarding area, there to my surprise was a little bunny. I had no idea how that bunny got there or how long it had been there, but there is sat, twitching it's nose at me.

Bunny was adopted by another agent and I have never found another other animal since, thank goodness.

Is this journalism? Oral history? Whatever, the I-10 Witness Project is collecting varied accounts of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and putting the audio files online for the public. It's another great example of new information forms made possible by the Internet.

And just for a bizarre Thursday moment, check out this " inexplicable Japanese gameshow involving hungry lizards and girls wearing pork chop hats" (link from BoingBoing via Good Morning, Silicon Valley.

November 9, 2005 - Wednesday

We were almost rained out yesterday morning. We delayed our departure about 15 minutes and skipped one segment of the walk to save time, but managed to get to the far end of the beach and back with only a little rain along the way. It threatened the whole way, though, as you can see.

Morning rain in Kaaawa

There are lots of potential leads in the judiciary's new searchable online database of traffic violation cases, a significant step forward in public access. A quick search of the new system turned several items of interest. Former UH President Evan Dobelle was tagged in December 2004 for an expired safety check. Galen Fox was snagged for running a red light on September 29, 2004.

And June S. Jones was ticketed for driving without a seat belt in August 2002, October 2002, and again in January 2004. Could that be UH football coach June S. Jones, who was reportedly not wearing a seat belt when he was seriously injured in a one-car accident in February 2001?

The June S. Jones in the traffic system is also identified as "June Shirley Jones". Is coach named Shirley?

Well, no. Late word from UH is that Coach Jones' middle name is "Sheldon" and not "Shirley", a reminder of why caution is needed when using these and other public records. But this is still quite a useful tool and is sure to turn up many interesting tidbits.

If you find any good ones, send them my way (ian@ilind.net).

Another question:Why is Hawaiian Electric being given such a free ride for their public admission of a repair and maintenance crisis? Local media are simply transmitting the company's plea for conservation without probing its admission that it faces a crisis with nearly one-third of its generating plants having problems at the same time. Are HECO's problems a reflection of underfunded maintenance and repairs? Bad planning? Is it the PUC's fault for not granting a requested rate hike? Or just plain bad luck? What's really going on? I think the company will eventually have to report on this incident to the PUC, but that will only come long after the fact. Shouldn't more hard questions be asked now?

November 8, 2005 - Tuesday

It's another wet & windy morning in Kaaawa.

I've been betrayed by Costco. After hooking me on their inexpensive but quite good Seattle Mountain Coffee, they pulled the plug on the decaf. I stood there in the crowded aisle on Sunday in shock. No decaf. As far as I know, there's no source of fresh whole bean decaf at anywhere near that amazing Costco price. I normally brew a mix of decaf and fully leaded coffee in the morning, so this is a significant setback. Any ideas for a reasonable replacement?

The Los Angeles Times has another grim look at trends in the newspaper industry, and the story sees no good news in the demands of some Knight Ridder stockholders that the company be dismantled and sold.

With more circulation declines being reported almost everywhere, the Times reports:

Knight Ridder's situation illustrates a larger predicament for newspaper executives, who are under pressure to improve their product at the same time that they are being urged to cut expenses to increase profits.

And here at home, the Newspaper Guild is starting to gear up for negotiations for a new contract with the Star-Bulletin, the first time since the newspaper was sold to B.C.'s David Black. No one is expecting that a contract accord will be easy to reach. Reporters salaries have never been fully restored after acceptance of a "voluntary" cutback following the 9-11 attacks, while key execs have been given lucrative and well publicized deals, a source of increasing frustration for the folks who put out the newspaper every day.

The BBC is reporting on an Italian documentary alleging U.S. use of white phosphorus weapons in Iraq, charges which are getting lots of international coverage.

Similar allegations have previously been denied .

BBC notes: "Washington is not a signatory of an international treaty restricting the use of white phosphorus devices."

According to Wikipedia: Use of white phosphorus is not specifically banned by any treaty, however protocol III of the 1980 Geneva convention prohibits the use of incendiary weapons against civilian populations or by air attack against military forces that are located within concentrations of civilians. The United States is among the nations that have not signed this protocol.

November 7, 2005 - Monday

It seems we're back on a relatively normal pattern. It rained several times this morning between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m., but now it seems to have passed. That's a "typical" start to the day out here in Kaaawa and elsewhere along the windward coast, although it hasn't really been typical for some time.

Issues are converging in Washington and reaching a critical point. The debate over treatment of prisoners (the polite description) or the legalization of torture (the impolite description) is drawing international attention and, according to the Washington Post, splitting the Bush administration.

Legalization of torture (or, as other headline writers put it, an exemption from the ban on torture) is being pushed by Veep Cheney, but, as the Post reports today:

"Cheney's camp is a "shrinking island," said one State Department official who, like other administration officials quoted in this article, asked not to be identified because public dissent is strongly discouraged by the White House.

Sen. McCain, a POW himself, has taken the lead in opposing Cheney from within his party's ranks, another part of the political battle that is drawing worldwide attention.

This winds back around to domestic policy and politics for those who may have “written and promoted opinions that are contrary to the government of the United States of America.” Plain language: Criticized government policy. Doug Thompson of Capitol Hill Blue writes that he has become "a person of interest" to the government due to publications that have crossed the administration lines and courtesy of the provisions of the USA Patriot Act allowing increased spying on U.S. citizens.

Thompson had a friend in the Justice Department who disclosed his file. How do the rest of us know whether we're on "the list"?

Back at home, Mr. Toby showed up this weekend with another scratch on his nose. We don't know what other cat he might be going nose-to-nose with. So far, no serious damage has been done and we hope it stays that way. Of course, he's no longer a small cat, weighing in something over 13 pounds, but we still think of him as the kitten. I guess parents are like that, too.

click for larger photo

November 6, 2005 - Sunday

HELP! It's adoption Sunday. We have a bunny that needs a good home. And a puppy. Not necessarily in that order. Please read on. Mr. or Ms. Rabbit (how do you tell with a bunny?) was apprehended at the end of last week after I noticed a large area of our newly planted lawn had been nibbled down. Rabbit is now resting and recuperating downstairs in Romeo's old cage and we're trying to find a home that avoids the Humane Society. He (or she) seems like a nice rabbit. Not aggressive. A bit dirty after apparently surviving outside for a while. Any bunny people out there? I know you exist. You can email me at ian@ilind.net with any adoption offers or suggestions. And on the puppy front, this gal needs a home. We finally heard her story after including her photo in a couple of recent collections of morning dog photos. She was found abandoned in Halawa, and then brought to Kaaawa while the rescuers looked for a home. Now they have moved and she's left homeless. She seems a sweet little dog, destined to be a small-to-medium size dog, I expect. Free for the asking, was the answer when we inquired yesterday morning.

We paid a special puppy visit this morning, and I had my first direct contact with Ms. Puppy. She is sweet, very friendly, a bit smaller than I thought. In coloring, she looks a lot like a beagle with longer legs. If you're thinking about a dog, she looks like a winner. If you're at all interested, email me (ian@ilind.net) or call my cell phone, 371-9129.

And for Sunday reading, Lee Cataluna's column today on Dalton Tanonaka is well worth reading. And for browsing, try The Smoking Gun's gallery of mug shots of civil rights protesters found in the files of the Montgomery, Alabama sheriff's department.