One of the little observed results of the 2012 election on Maui was the decisive approval of a Charter Commission proposal calling for a County Auditor. While not the sexiest job around, a decisive majority of voters (54 percent to 29 percent) voted to bring Maui County into the 20th century and hire an independent […]
We talk story with Maui Public Defender Wendy Hudson on her office limitations and caseload and what to do when you get arrested
The Maui Police Department has a brand new armored truck. State law conceals the identities of active duty police officers who’ve been busted by Internal Affairs. Filming a cop on a public street–an act protected by the U.S. Constitution and has been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court–will get you arrested and charged with a […]
Hawaii Cops Get Big Raise While Maui Police Get Armored Truck And Maui County Council Votes To Investigate Old Wailuku Post Office Demolition
HAWAII COPS TO GET MONSTER RAISE As I’m sure most people on Maui have noticed, we live in delicate economic times. The Hawaii Tourism Authority has released regular reports for the last year showing ever greater numbers of visitors coming to Maui and the rest of the state, but for many individuals and small businesses […]
Tom Cannon Stays Classy While Resigning From WMSA And Maui Mayor Alan Arakawa Apologizes For Old Wailuku Post Office Mess
TOM CANNON STAYS CLASSY AS HE RESIGNS FROM WMSA It’s hard to remember now, but there was a time when the non-profit Wailuku Main Street Association (WMSA) was a respected, helpful voice in the development of Maui’s small towns. But these days, with the state Attorney General’s investigation of the organization (which began after WMSA […]
Before The Maui County Council Votes To Investigate The Arakawa Administration On The Demolition Of The Old Wailuku Post Office We Look At What The Council Was Doing And Not Doing In Regards To The Building Over The Last Two Years
From their eighth floor offices in the Kalana O Maui building in Wailuku, the Maui County Council members had one of the best vantage points on the island to watch the demolition of the old Post Office at the corner of Wells and South High Streets. They could hear–and feel–the rumble of the jackhammers as […]
First Amendment Blues and Celebrity Immigration and People With Too Much Money
FIRST AMENDMENT BLUES A bar in Horry County, S.C., named the Suck Bang Blow filed a lawsuit in May challenging the county’s new ordinance prohibiting motorcyclists’ “burnouts” (engine-revving with back-tire-spinning, creating smoke–and enormous noise). The bar claims that burnouts are important expressions of its customers’ “manliness and macho” and as such are protected by the […]
Our Take On The 2012 Election
Guess we don’t have Linda Lingle to kick around anymore. On Election night, the former two-term Republican Governor of Hawaii who had trounced Democrat Mazie Hirono at the polls a decade ago, was herself shown the door in her bid to succeed retiring U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka (D–Hawaii). The final summary vote tally, released by […]
Official MauiTime 2012 General Election Candidate And Amendment Endorsements
It’s that time again. Time to take stock of America, think about the challenges facing this great nation, look deep into our hearts and decide which person who probably didn’t get enough parental affirmation when he or she was an infant should write our laws and stand around like they actually run the place. It’s […]
Male Cosmetics In South Korea and The Art Of Sleeping Women
MEN WANT TO BE PRETTY, TOO For some reason, South Korea (with about one-sixth the men that America has) is the world’s largest consumer of male cosmetics, with its leading company approaching $1 billion a year in sales. According to a September Bloomberg Business Week dispatch, South Korean males became fascinated with the country’s 2002 […]
First Amendment Blues and Celebrity Immigration Policies and People With Too Much Money
FIRST AMENDMENT BLUES A bar in Horry County, S.C., named the Suck Bang Blow filed a lawsuit in May challenging the county’s new ordinance prohibiting motorcyclists’ “burnouts” (engine-revving with back-tire-spinning, creating smoke–and enormous noise). The bar claims that burnouts are important expressions of its customers’ “manliness and macho” and as such are protected by the […]
2012 MauiTime Hawaii Primary Election Candidate Endorsements
When you don’t vote, you have no voice. There’s no truer statement in a democracy. Sure, we can bitch and moan about the influence of money in political elections, or the stranglehold “special interests” have over our legislatures or even the moral and intellectual bankruptcy of most candidates, but when it comes down to it, […]
Senate Shenanigans and War Memorial Gym Floods and Kamehameha Day Trips Up Governor Neil Abercrombie
SENATE SHENANIGANS There are 11 people running active campaigns to succeed US Senator Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, but the biggest three names in the race seem to be rolling over everyone else. The juiciest news so far is that former Republican Governor Linda Lingle is paying $5,000 a week to Oceanic Time Warner Cable so she […]
County of Maui Investigated Finance Director Danny Agsalog For Yelling and Swearing
County of Maui Finance Department Director Danilo “Danny” Agsalog was recently the subject of an investigation involving his conduct in the office, two individuals with knowledge of the investigation said this week. County Communications Director Rod Antone confirmed on May 14 there was an investigation involving Agsalog, but said he couldn’t comment on specific allegations. […]
Here is Why The County of Maui Should not Give Terryl Vencl and the Maui Visitors Bureau Three and a Half Million Dollars
The story goes that Terryl Vencl spends a lot of time at Maui County Council budget hearings. Supposedly, she’s there every day, during the spring months when the council painstakingly reviews its proposed budget, which is hovering between $550 million and $560 million. It makes sense, because Vencl, the executive director of the Maui Visitors […]
Lifelong Stupid
The only good thing about doing dumb shit is that you learn some things (at least, hopefully)—even when you’re likely doomed to repeat your mistakes. Here are the epiphanies that my latest foible’s earned: 1) We really need to keep an eye on those Russians. 2) The fetal position is only comfortable if you’re suspended […]