Hawaii Democrats Outraged Over Ban on Juvenile Sex Change
Wahiawa Veteran Wins in Class Action Lawsuit Against Iran
HMSA: 2nd Worst Health Insurance Company in USA
Maui residents’ recovery sees gains, but health and housing challenges persist
Trump ‘incensed’ – Tulsi Gabbard “on the brink of nuclear annihilation”
P: … As President Donald Trump privately mulled joining Israel’s campaign against Iran this month, one member of his Cabinet sent what he viewed as an audacious attempt to steer him in the opposite direction.
At 5:30 a.m. on June 10, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard tweeted a cryptic, three-minute video warning that “political elite and warmongers” are “carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers” — and that the world is “on the brink of nuclear annihilation.”
Trump saw the unauthorized video and became incensed, complaining to associates at the White House that she had spoken out of turn, according to three people familiar with the episode — two of them inside the administration and all granted anonymity to describe sensitive dynamics….
Those tensions came to the forefront early Tuesday when a reporter aboard Air Force One asked Trump about Gabbard’s declaration before Congress in March that Iran was not seeking to build a nuclear weapon. Trump appeared to dismiss her assessment.
“I don’t care what she said,” Trump replied. “I think they were very close to having a weapon.” ….
Read … Inside the clashes between Trump and Gabbard
Rade Vanic picked to serve as interim Honolulu police chief
SA: … Vanic was unanimously selected by the seven member commission to replace Arthur “Joe” Logan, who retires at the end of the month. Vanic served as interim Opens in a new tab police chief when Susan Ballard retired in June 2021.
Commissioners decided to follow the city charter and name the next-highest ranking officer to serve as the interim rather than Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s recommendation to have Hawaii island police Chief Benjamin T. Moszkowicz serve as the interim while applying for the permanent job.
Commissioners questioned the wisdom of putting the department through two leadership transitions.
“If the current leader steps down, you don’t invent a new process to search for an interim chief,” said commissioner Doug Chin, a former state Attorney General.
Vanic and Logan’s leadership team are familiar with the strategic plan adopted by the commission and can run the department while the selection process plays out, commisioners said.
Commission Chair Kenneth Silva thanked the eight applicants for their five-minute pitches to the panel.
“Being in law enforcement, that’s not an easy go,” Silva said after the vote. “We are very appreciative of the fact that you prepared and put yourself out there. You helped us through this process so we can think through the best path forward.
The other applicants were retired U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent Thomas K. Aiu; HPD Maj. Ryan T. Hironaka; HPD Deputy Chief Keith K. Horikawa; former Maui Police Department Lt. Wayne K. Ibarra; HPD Assistant Chief Brian Lynch; Hawaii Police Chief Benjamin T. Moszkowicz; and HPD Capt. Clifford K. Ramson….
Read … Rade Vanic picked to serve as interim Honolulu police chief | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Honolulu's Effort to Fast-Track Affordable Housing Projects Hasn't Worked
CB: … It was a simple, ambitious goal: Honolulu would approve or deny building permits for affordable housing developments within 90 days.
Former Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell touted the speedy turnaround when he signed Bill 7 into law in 2019.
“Ninety days,” he said during a press conference in the mayor’s office. “Quick, fast, and clean.”
Six years later, Bill 7 projects have been permitted as slowly — and sometimes more slowly — than other commercial projects. And the approval process has been far from clean, with permits often granted after a prolonged ping-pong match between the applicant and city employees.
More than 50 permit applications have been submitted through the program so far. None of them have been approved within 90 days, a Civil Beat review found.
Of the 18 projects that did get permits, the average time from application to permit issuance was nearly two years, according to an analysis of permitting records. That’s longer than the current median permitting time for commercial jobs.
Thirty-nine other applications submitted since 2020 still don’t have a permit, public records show. …
Read … Honolulu's Effort to Fast-Track Affordable Housing Projects Hasn't Worked - Honolulu Civil Beat
Queens Urologist: ‘There’s No Wrong Way To ‘Delete’ Zionists’
TI: … A doctor in Hawaii has come under fire after posting dozens of shocking comments about wanting Zionists to die on Monday and praising the deaths of Israelis on his public social media over the last week….
The doctor has not responded to numerous inquiries from the Times Of Israel. …
Read … Hawaii DR: ‘There’s No Wrong Way To ‘Delete’ Zionists’
BJ Penn back in the courtroom, jury trial set
HNN: … Penn was charged with three crimes including allegedly assaulting his mother and violating her temporary restraining order.
Penn still does not have an attorney.
The judge advised him on Wednesday that he should get a public defender or hire a lawyer….
Read … BJ Penn back in the courtroom, jury trial set
Testimony continues over bill to ban thousands of Maui vacation rentals
HNN: … the meeting started off contentious.
Housing and Land Use Committee Chair Tasha Kama tried to ban certain words from testimony.
“Occupiers, illegal immigrants, transplants, extractors, colonists, settlers, terrorists, foreigners,” said Kama….
Opponents of this bill say it is a band-aid solution and will create more unemployment, tank the economy, and bring on lawsuits.
“If your solution requires sinking as many families today to maybe house the same amount of others tomorrow, it’s not a solution. It’s shifting pain from one neighbor to another,” said Sean O’Donnell, who is against the proposal.
Committee Vice-Chair Nohelani Uu-Hodgins asked O’Donnell, a manager of 10 of the units, what will those owners do if this bill passes.
“They do not plan on selling them. They all use the units quite actively,” O’Donnell answered. “They just rent it the times they’re not actively using it.”
Councilmembers are expected to vote once they have heard all testimony which will continue Monday….
SN: Maui council members clash over inciting language
MN: Maui Council hears another 70 testifiers on vacation rental phase-out bill; still more to come
Read … Testimony continues over bill to ban thousands of Maui vacation rentals
What if the 100% Renewable Energy Law is the Wrong Goal
IM: … If the grid was powered by only wind and solar, then firm renewables would be needed….
Building expensive batteries that would provide power only a few days per year would create exorbitantly expense electricity….
Read … What if the 100% Renewable Energy Law is the Wrong Goal | Ililani Media
New Homeless Drug Addict Behavior: Laying in Road and Walking on Freeway
KITV: … While no one was hurt in Wednesday’s encounter, it’s part of a concerning trend. According to HPD, pedestrians currently account for the highest number of traffic deaths on Oʻahu in 2025, and not all are happening in crosswalks.
“Pedestrians and motorcycle riders have been two of our biggest concerns last year as well as this year,” Slayter said. “We’re getting a lot of individuals just walking or standing in the roadway. Some of these could possibly be attributed to mental health issues or substance abuse.”…
(REALLY OBVIOUS QUESTION: New Drug Fentanyl = New Behavior?)
Read … Pedestrian in road shocks drivers on airport off-ramp: HPD issues safety reminder | News | kitv.com
Oʻahu Wants To Crack Down On Homeless Bus Riders
CB: … New rules for TheBus could prohibit passengers whose belongings emit noxious odors or who ride with no destination in mind, signaling a stricter approach to how Honolulu transit systems handle homeless people.
The changes are part of a City Council bill that aims to boost safety in public transit. In addition to addressing the homeless, it would target vandals and empower the city to ban troublemaking passengers for up to a year.
There’s a small group of frequent offenders who damage Skyline rail cars, for example, said Roger Morton, director of the city’s Department of Transportation Services….
Similar to other transit agencies, ridership on TheBus is still down about 30% compared to pre-Covid times. Especially after the pandemic shone a spotlight on personal hygiene to avoid spreading pathogens, improving perceptions of public safety is paramount, Morton wrote in a letter introducing the bill.
It has cleared the first of three required votes by the full council.
Morton said in an interview that the timing of the bill comes from a federal initiative last fall to increase safety for transit operators by protecting them against assault, as well as from conversations he’s had with the bus drivers union….
Read … Oʻahu Wants To Crack Down On Homeless Bus Riders - Honolulu Civil Beat
Shakedown: Another Bogus Surfrider Beach Pollution Report
TGI: … Waikomo Stream, that empties into the popular Koloa Landing, has made the top of this year’s list at being polluted with concentrations of enterococcus bacteria more than 90 percent of the time….
(TRANSLATION: The Marriott Koloa isn’t paying Surfrider off.)
MN: Samples indicate pollution in some Maui waters | News, Sports, Jobs - Maui News
REALITY: Feds Debunk Surfrider's Fake Bacteria Counts
Read … Task force annual reports highlight chronic pollution - The Garden Island
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