Disappeared News

• Just a link to the rat video

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  It’s here, in case that’s what you came for. Heading for 21,000 views by now… [...]
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  Posted: December 08, 2009, 2:27pm EST
  by Larry

• What makes Washington tick—a chart of its sex and crime scandals

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  by Larry Geller Sam Smith of the Progressive Review has posted what he calls a beta version of a chart of sex and crime scandals that fuel our nation’s capital. Leave yourself some time, though. Sam is very thorough with his backup material. What you’ll find on your screen could [...]
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  Posted: December 07, 2009, 1:38pm EST
  by Larry

• Shipping to Hawaii options

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  by Larry Geller Robbie Dingeman’s research on ways to save money shipping to Hawaii in her article in Sunday’s Advertiser was a bit incomplete. I can add two more resources to it, anyway (I have no interest in any of them, and have personally used each). These services are useful [...]
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  Posted: December 07, 2009, 6:30am EST
  by Larry

• Honolulu rats in cartoon

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  Someone has even drawn a political cartoon—in Japanese—featuring the happy Honolulu Chinatown Rats. [...]
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  Posted: December 06, 2009, 3:39pm EST
  by Larry

• Vermin gone viral

  Number of comments: 4
  by Larry Geller It’s hard to believe, but overnight the Chinatown rat video racked up thousands of views and now approaches 17,000. CNN asked for a copy but hasn’t used it yet. KHON in particular has done a fine job of following this story. Their coverage will help raise awareness [...]
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  Posted: December 05, 2009, 6:40am EST
  by Larry

• How to apply the brakes to a viral video?

  Number of comments: 5
  by Larry Geller How long should a shocking video stay posted, assuming the problem it documents is solved? The YouTube video of rats frolicking in Honolulu Chinatown should cross 10,000 views some time today. It’s having its effect. There was TV coverage of the rat infestation on both KHON and [...]
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  Posted: December 04, 2009, 2:10am EST
  by Larry

• Thursday night Chinatown rat update

  Number of comments: 3
  by Larry Geller First, let me give credit for discovering the rat circus in the  Chinatown window to George Fox. In the struggle to process the video and get it out there while my computer fought hard against me, I neglected to ask him whether I might mention that he [...]
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  Posted: December 04, 2009, 4:14pm EST
  by Larry

• Rat story demonstrates need for professional journalism

  Number of comments: 4
  by Larry Geller I have to reiterate an argument I’ve made before—there is no substitute for experienced journalists to bring forward critical news. Dan Nakaso (Advertiser) and Andrew Pereira (KHON) both did a fine job in amplifying my little video into impactful news stories. Because of their efforts we might [...]
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  Posted: December 03, 2009, 2:59am EST
  by Larry

• Rats, no inspections at night

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller Update: For visitors from KHON and Advertiser websites looking for the video of the Chinatown rats: First article, including video is here Second article is here KHON story is here: Video Shows Chinatown Rats In New Light Honolulu Advertiser story is here: Internet video of rats in [...]
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  Posted: December 02, 2009, 11:59am EST
  by Larry

• Public employee health insurance, public health

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  by Larry Geller Ian Lind is working hard on the issue of public employee health plans. He seems to be the only one chasing this down, and I felt like supporting his effort in a small way. I did that by filing a request for opinion from the OIP. It’s [...]
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  Posted: December 02, 2009, 2:22am EST
  by Larry

• Embattled Chief Elections Officer resigns

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  by Larry Geller Two notable events at the troubled Office of Elections today: First, a new list of proposed precinct closings was posted, showing 97 out of 339 to be closed, a number likely to cause significant disruption. The document can’t be searched (it violates Section 508, by the way, [...]
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  Posted: December 02, 2009, 6:02pm EST
  by Larry

• Woe unto those who end up hospitalized in Hawaii without insurance

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  by Larry Geller This is an Australian article warning about the high cost of serious illness should one end up in a hospital in New York. But Hawaii got honorable mention. According to this article, we have the honor of being the second most expensive place in the country if [...]
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  Posted: December 01, 2009, 8:03am EST
  by Larry

• Military stimulus

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  by Larry Geller Sometimes a picture is the best way to understand an issue. Sam Smith included this simple bar graph in his article AF-PAK Math (Progressive Review, 11/26/2009). … and as Smith points out, the additional 30,000 troops that Obama may send don’t make that much of a difference. [...]
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  Posted: November 29, 2009, 5:46am EST
  by Larry

• Straightforward logic on the slippery oil tax

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  Henry Curtis scored a prime spot in today’s Star-Bulletin with his op-ed, Proposed oil tax a barrel of trouble for Hawaii (11/26/2009). His message is common sense and clear. Referring to the proposed tax on oil he begins: Unfortunately, the proposed state oil tax is anti-business, anti-labor and anti-common sense, [...]
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  Posted: November 26, 2009, 1:41pm EST
  by Larry

• Now you know what you already knew about Congress delivering the goods for their paymasters

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  by Larry Geller Obama’s teleprompter may be the butt of jokes, but Congress seems to have its own—the drug industry writes the lines they speak. Well, you knew this, of course. They say what they are paid to say. Here it is, exposed in print, something a bit rare. In [...]
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  Posted: November 26, 2009, 1:36pm EST
  by Larry

• Web news conglomeration is coming to a city block near you

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  by Larry Geller It’s not just newspapers or TV stations that join into (generally politically conservative) large media conglomerations. As our attention is drawn to the traditional media gobbling itself up, the same could be happening on the Web.As with the traditional media, these Web conglomerates will be controlled by [...]
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  Posted: November 26, 2009, 6:32am EST
  by Larry

• Insecurity upgrade

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  by Larry Geller Something else to worry about. Check out this YouTube video of a news report on how easy it is to steal the data from these chips. You would think that someone would have thought about this. RFID readers are getting better at reading at a distance. I’ve [...]
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  Posted: November 25, 2009, 10:12am EST
  by Larry

• Starting to ask questions about Hawaii food safety

  Number of comments: 4
  by Larry Geller Cute little fella, huh? I have enjoyed shopping at the Chinatown markets and didn’t think of visiting there at night with a camera, so I was intrigued when invited to come along and shoot some video. Check it out. It was worth the trip. According to regulars [...]
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  Posted: November 25, 2009, 6:59am EST
  by Larry

• Invitation to Chinatown, Honolulu, after dark

  Number of comments: 6
  by Larry Geller Please enjoy shopping in Chinatown, Honolulu.   Technorati Tags: Hawaii, Chinatown, Honolulu del.icio.us Tags: Hawaii, Chinatown, Honolulu [...]
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  Posted: November 24, 2009, 2:00am EST
  by Larry

• Hot news: Blackwater conducting operations in Pakistan that are more secretive than the CIA’s

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller According to reporter Jeremy Scahill, even Obama may not know what Blackwater is doing in Pakistan: Blackwater is also said to be involved in a previously undisclosed U.S. military drone campaign that has killed scores of people inside Pakistan. The article says the program has become so [...]
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  Posted: November 24, 2009, 1:35am EST
  by Larry

• Legislative auditor joins call for Ted Liu removal

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller Today’s Advertiser breaking news features the story Hawaii auditor calls for removal of DBEDT Director Ted Liu which begins: The state auditor, citing "numerous and egregious acts," has recommended that Gov. Linda Lingle remove Ted Liu as director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and [...]
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  Posted: November 23, 2009, 12:27pm EST
  by Larry

• Forget hydrogen, forget expensive lithium batteries, fuel up on compressed air? Maybe… The MDI AirPod rides through the streets of Paris

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  by Larry Geller It’s clean, it’s green. At last, it moves. It takes two minutes to fill the tank of this futuristic prototype air-powered car. It emits zero pollution. There are no batteries to replace or recycle, no hydrogen to explode in a crash. No fuel cell. But still too [...]
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  Posted: November 22, 2009, 10:58am EST
  by Larry

• Johan Galtung’s view from Europe: PTSD and PGED: Post Glory Exuberance Disorder

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  “Once upon a time 13 colonies-states on the Atlantic seaboard were peopled by Albion's Seed… USA, can you deny others what you made yourself? Why not rather help them, give institutional advice, do not leave that to the Europeans alone.  Make them your friends, do not try to turn the [...]
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  Posted: November 22, 2009, 9:46am EST
  by Larry

• “Raiders of the Rainy Day Fund” won’t stop the legal challenges

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  by Larry Geller   Today’s Star-Bulletin features a very clever movie poster style illustration by Bryant Fukutomi to accompany Richard Borreca’s article, Labor agreements to be redrawn (11/21/2009). Clicking on the image on the Star-Bulletin website gets a larger, almost-readable, gallery view of the poster. Try cntrl-+ to make the [...]
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  Posted: November 21, 2009, 7:11am EST
  by Larry

• Did you think the ballot you cast in the 2008 election was secret? Think again if you live in Hawaii

  Number of comments: 2
  by Larry Geller Bob Babson, lead plaintiff in the Babson v. Cronin lawsuit, has documented some of his concerns and suggestions in an email request for new legislation that I hope our lawmakers will take very seriously. As I read through his document, I was alarmed at some of the [...]
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  Posted: November 14, 2009, 12:53pm EST
  by Larry

• Will Washington State labor revolt against Dems spread to other states?

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller Labor is asserting itself in Washington State: The Washington State Labor Council, the Service Employees International Union and unions representing teachers and state workers have either stopped or sharply reduced donations to Democratic caucus political-action committees that back candidates for the state House and Senate. …There's even [...]
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  Posted: November 12, 2009, 4:55am EST
  by Larry

• Beating swords into carbon credits

  Number of comments: 2
  by Larry Geller So what would encourage Obama and the Russians renew the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty that expires December. 5? They could claim credit for reducing global warming. Read this snippet: Warheads are no small part of America's nuclear power industry. Currently, 10 percent of American electricity is nuclear [...]
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  Posted: November 11, 2009, 11:46am EST
  by Larry

• … but the judge knows best, doesn’t he?

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller So what do I think of the judge’s decision in the Friday Furloughs cases? You’ve read in the papers that 9th Circuit Judge Wallace Tashima did not grant any injunction to stop the DOE from closing schools for 17 days this year. I think he’s wrong. I [...]
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  Posted: November 11, 2009, 8:49am EST
  by Larry

• Creative mugging

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  by Larry Geller As an antidote to all the depressing news these days, check out these clever coffee mug designs. Actually, the site has clever alarm clocks, some strange and clever watches, and even some excellent examples of HDR photography (actually, tone mapping, the comments explain the difference). For a [...]
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  Posted: November 11, 2009, 4:20am EST
  by Larry

• Op-ed promotes distributed power generation

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  by Larry Geller Long-time energy advocate and watchdog Henry Curtis has an op-ed in today’s Honolulu Advertiser, Creating a new path to reduce energy footprint (11/10/2009). Henry follows in the path of Thomas Alva Edison in favoring decentralized generation of electrical power. Curious about feed-in tariffs (mentioned in Henry’s op-ed)? [...]
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  Posted: November 10, 2009, 9:49am EST
  by Larry

• Could furlough suits reform a system no one wants fixed?

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller Hawaii’s government has done little to nothing to reverse the cuts that placed us last among all states with only 163 instructional days in the year. The state legislature has declined to meet in a special session to work on the issue. Despite a popular parody song, [...]
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  Posted: November 09, 2009, 1:57am EST
  by Larry

• Following the Twitter trail from Ft. Hood to the US Army War College Quarterly and future warfare

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller Of course, the tragedy at Ft. Hood last week dominated not only the mainstream news but also echoed and re-echoed in the twittersphere and elsewhere in online media. The problem with following tweets wherever they may go is that while many stops along the way are useless [...]
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  Posted: November 08, 2009, 7:22am EST
  by Larry

• Watch history in the making – attend Monday’s Furlough Friday hearing

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  by Larry Geller (click for directions) If you can, why not be where the action is and also show your support for the attorneys fighting Hawaii’s toxic Furlough Friday school closures. No one is working harder for parents concerned about their children’s education than these attorneys. The hearing is set [...]
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  Posted: November 08, 2009, 5:15am EST
  by Larry

• Separation of powerlessness, or earned helplessness

  Number of comments: 9
  by Larry Geller Hawaii’s trashing of its children’s education is still achieving national publicity. Two letters to the editor kept the discussion going in the New York Times today. The latest word on Furlough Fridays is that Judge David Ezra, acting as Special Master to mediate between the parties in [...]
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  Posted: November 08, 2009, 5:15pm EST
  by Larry

• Honoring our dead

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  by Larry Geller As a country, we are very respectful of our dead. We and the world were shocked by the tragic losses of 9/11, and we grieve those who sacrifice their lives to defend our country in wartime. Rep. Alan Grayson of Florida is honoring those we prefer to [...]
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  Posted: November 06, 2009, 4:18pm EST
  by Larry

• Town Square today (Thursday) explores Furlough Fridays with attorney Carl Varady and parents

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  by Larry Geller The Star-Bulletin reported today: Third furlough lawsuit claims rights violation (11/5/2009). Tune in to tonight’s Town Square, Hawaii Public Radio 89.3 FM or streaming from hawaiipublicradio.org, 5-6 p.m. Host Beth-Ann Kozlovich takes phone calls, so listen for the number and call with your question or comment. Technorati [...]
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  Posted: November 05, 2009, 10:43am EST
  by Larry

• State will be liable for monetary damages after Hawaiian Homelands trial

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller (Click for larger) Carl Varady (center, right) answers press questions (center left is Tom Grande) (see previous article for judge’s ruling) The Hawaiian Homelands Trust is an obligation that Hawaii assumed as a condition of statehood. This trial covered a limited time period of 1959 (statehood) to [...]
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  Posted: November 05, 2009, 2:14pm EST
  by Larry

• Judge Hifo’s ruling on Hawaiian Homelands trial

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  by Larry Geller What can be more clear than this: The court, having concluded this five-week trial from 8/4/09 through 9/11/09 and having considered the trial evidence and arguments of counsel, determines that Plaintiffs proved by clear and convincing evidence breaches of trust by the Defendant State of Hawai'i ("State")' [...]
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  Posted: November 04, 2009, 6:30am EST
  by Larry

• Breaking news: Judge rules on Hawaiian Homelands trial – and the people have won!

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  by Larry Geller After ten years… the telephone tree says that Judge Eden Hifo of the First Circuit Court in Honolulu has delivered a written ruling in favor of the plaintiffs. This is very good news at a time when most news has been bad.  In many ways this has [...]
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  Posted: November 04, 2009, 5:28am EST
  by Larry

• Condo residents file objection to train whizzing by outside their windows

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller The associations of the Ko`olani and 1133 Waimanu condos in Kakaako have sent a letter dated October 29, 2009 to the US Department of Transportation expressing their concerns about the elevated rail transit system Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). The first concern is that the DEIS does [...]
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  Posted: November 04, 2009, 4:12pm EST
  by Larry

• Johan Galtung’s view from Europe: Disconnected Giant on Clay Feet

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  “The problem is not Goldman Sachs bonuses --that is even some kind of socialism-- but that they have that much to share.  A local level connect is needed, with cooperatives, decent savings banks sprouting, and labor and people, not only capital in command.” Disconnected Giant on Clay Feet By Johan [...]
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  Posted: November 02, 2009, 12:13pm EST
  by Larry

• Did Goldman Sachs peddle $40 billion in securities in violation of SEC regs?

  Number of comments: 0
  by Larry Geller We (taxpayers), lead by ex-Goldman Sachs executives now working for Obama, may have put the company back in business to do again what brought disaster to the country. A McClatchy Newspaper investigation posted yesterday suggests that Goldman Sachs may have violated securities laws. Snippet: In 2006 and [...]
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  Posted: November 02, 2009, 6:56am EST
  by Larry

• Frank DeLima parodies Furlough Fridays

  Number of comments: 0
  by Larry Geller Check this out (Honolulu Advertiser Breaking News, 10/30/2009). At the top is an mp3 file you can save to your computer. Your own copy of "Friday come and we gotta stay home". If the article link breaks, the mp3, on the Advertiser website, is here. On most [...]
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  Posted: October 31, 2009, 2:01am EDT
  by Larry

• “No School Fridays” now an English lesson for Chinese students

  Number of comments: 0
  by Larry Geller When we traveled in Japan during the school excursion season, it wasn’t unusual to be stopped on the street several times a day by a gaggle of giggling school children eager to try out their English on a real, live foreigner. I wonder if the same is [...]
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  Posted: October 31, 2009, 1:50am EDT
  by Larry

• Laugh of the week

  Number of comments: 3
  by Larry Geller From the Governor’s Quotes and Thoughts page: "We are being watched by the entire nation and by people beyond the shores of America because we are moving so rapidly and so confidently into the future." Hahahahahahahaha…. sorry… Yes, we’re being watched, but not for our questionable leadership [...]
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  Posted: October 31, 2009, 5:07pm EDT
  by Larry

• Furlough cases unfurl

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller Gads, I spend a few hours at the Senate hearing on the DOE furloughs and all kinds of crazy things break loose at the court while I’m not looking. Before getting into the court stuff, a little about the hearings. There will be plenty in the papers, [...]
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  Posted: October 31, 2009, 3:46pm EDT
  by Larry

• Change in date for Furlough Friday hearing on preliminary injunction

  Number of comments: 0
  by Larry Geller Update: the date has changed again, this time to Monday, Nov. 9 (as of 10/30/2009). I don’t know the time yet. The date has been changed for the two motions for preliminary injunctions against the DOE’s Furlough Fridays. The new date is Tuesday 11/3/2009 08:30 a.m. in [...]
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  Posted: October 29, 2009, 6:49am EDT
  by Larry

• Hawaii should clean its election house and join other states supporting open source voting software

  Number of comments: 1
  by Larry Geller Who will you vote for in 2010? If you live in Hawaii, the better question right now is “how” will you vote in 2010. If a crisis can be an opportunity, we’ve got the makings of a grand opportunity as our Office of Elections continues to melt [...]
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  Posted: October 29, 2009, 6:03am EDT
  by Larry

• Lack of competition should require Cost or Price Analysis of Hawaii voting machine purchase

  Number of comments: 0
  by Larry Geller Below is the Office of Elections Waiver of Cost or Price Analysis once again for your reading pleasure. If it doesn’t display properly below, please use the link to read it. I haven’t received any reaction to this from those I’ve asked, so heck, I’ll just offer [...]
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  Posted: October 29, 2009, 3:25am EDT
  by Larry

• Senate to hold hearing, take testimony, on Friday Furloughs

  Number of comments: 0
  by Larry Geller Two senators have formed a committee and will be holding hearings on approaches to teacher furloughs. Senator Brian Taniguchi (Chair) and Senator Will Espero (Vice Chair) will convene the hearing on Friday, October 30 at 12:30 p.m. in the State Capitol Auditorium, “to receive public input regarding [...]
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  Posted: October 28, 2009, 12:46pm EDT
  by Larry