February 16, 2026 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

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February 16, 2026 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 1:30 PM :: 132 Views

HB1875: Juvenile Sex Change Bill Advances

Bribery: ILWU, UPW Back Sylvia Luke

Phase one: How the Sylvia Luke story is already reshaping Hawaiʻi politics

Hawaiʻi County: Former department director beats rap

REPORT: Hotels are Big Source of Votes, Campaign Contributions and Contacts

Survey: Almost Everybody Fooled by Sea Level Rise Hysteria

SA: … The survey showed 90% of Hawaii residents believed sea-level rise was occurring. When split by political party, it showed 97% of Democrats, 90% of Independents and 80% of Republicans believed it was happening. Splits among political ideologies showed similar results, with 96% of liberals and 84% conservatives believing sea-level rise was happening ….

(CLUE: "Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, reconsider." — Mark Twain)

It’s the third in a series of sea-level rise surveys conducted by University of Hawaii associate professor Colin Moore, assistant professor Ketty Loeb and Arizona State University researcher Zena Grecni, and the first systematic effort to measure public opinion on the topic. The first two surveys polled elected officials and civil servants….

(CLUE: UH wants sea level hysteria funding from Legislature to make up for Trumpcuts.)

(REALITY: Per NOAA, sea level rise at HNL is 1.5mm per year. 6 inches per century. LINK >>> NOAA CHART <<<)

So Sad: UH: Feds Cut Funding for Sea Level Hysteria

What they are selling to you: Six Feet Under: UH Doubles Sea Level Rise Projection (again)

read … Sea-level rise concerns most Hawaii residents, UH study finds | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Hawaii tourism plan aims to identify crowded hot spots on each island

TW: … This year's plans place particular emphasis on hot spots, or places that are strained by overcrowding or traffic congestion, and it focuses on the top two or three sites on each island. Here are a few ….

read … Hawaii tourism plan aims to identify crowded hot spots on each island: Travel Weekly

City bus drivers get high-gear contract

SA: … The new deal reportedly includes a 16% total pay increase over the four years — plus 100% employer-paid medical coverage for employees and their families, 100% employer-paid lifetime medical coverage for retirees and spouses, and 100% employer-paid pension contribution….

read … Off the news: City bus drivers get high-gear contract | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Student Loan Relief for 988 Health Care Workers

SA: … The Legislature has provided $30 million in HELP funding again for the 2025 and 2026 budget cycles for a program that has exceeded expectations.

When it began, Withy said, “I thought we would get 400 applications. We’ve gotten … I think it’s 3,000 applications now.”

So far 988 health care workers with island ties have seen the size of their student loans reduced, said Withy, who’s also responsible for tracking Hawaii’s overall shortage of health care workers, which includes about 800 doctors statewide….

But this session, lawmakers are considering Senate Bill 2409 and its companion, House Bill 1574, that would extend the service commitment for future recipients. Under the proposal, those who receive a total annual loan amount of $50,001 or more would be required to work in Hawaii for three years instead of two….

read … Demand soars as loan relief keeps health care workers home | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Kaala Gondola Debacle Excuse for Council to Crack Down on Ag Tourism

SA: … On Jan. 27, the pair introduced Resolution 17, which initiates updates to the city’s Land Use Ordinance, or LUO, to bring greater oversight of agritourism projects on agricultural lands, according to a Council-issued news release.

“Agricultural lands are meant first and foremost for agriculture,” Kia‘aina said in a statement. “The gondola proposal exposed gaps in how agritourism is evaluated when projects grow in scale and intensity.”

(One problem is turned into a county-wide system.)

“This resolution strengthens accountability, provides greater public input, and ensures agricultural zoning is not used as a workaround for incompatible development,” she added.

Under the LUO, agritourism is defined as accessory agricultural-related tourism for recreational or educational purposes on zoning lots primarily used for ongoing crop production or livestock and poultry keeping, the news release states. Permitted activities include kayaking, hiking, mountain biking, boating, horseback riding, ziplining, and picnicking, and similar uses, and may include accessory destination events such as weddings.

Entertainment-based activities, including luaus and performance-related shows, are expressly excluded.

Waters asserts the legislation is about restoring alignment between the current land-use policy and its original intent. “(Resolution 17) reinforces that agritourism must remain truly accessory to farming, strengthens Council oversight in instances where that is not the case, and ensures that ~~the public~~ (activists) have a ~~meaningful role~~ (heckler’s veto) when proposals raise legitimate concerns.” Waters said in a statement….

read … Council works to boost agritourism oversight | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Hyundai to Upgrade Pearl Harbor Shipyard

SA: … The ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine has challenged assumptions about 21st century warfare as both sides have innovated in real time using cheap, low-cost drones and other tech on the battlefield — including modifying or even manufacturing them on the front line with tools like 3D printers.

Lt. Gen. James Glynn, the top Marine officer in the Pacific, said he’d like to see that sort of capability spread across the Pacific to produce everything from munitions to food.

“On the grand end of it, in my view, there would be co-production facilities or additive manufacturing facilities that are the product of maybe public-private collaboration in other nations closest to where the requirement is needed,” Glynn said.

South Korean shipyards already have begun providing maintenance on U.S. Navy ships, and South Korean companies have also invested in aging American shipyards and pledged to help modernize them. Meanwhile, there are ongoing discussions between U.S. and Japanese officials on working together on missile production and other ventures.

“The Japanese have expressed an interest in growing their defense industrial base and expanding. They’re looking at more co-production capabilities and opportunities,” Cadenazzi said. “We see that going both ways, where there’s opportunities for Japanese (intellectual property) to be manufactured in the U.S. and for us to go to bring more capabilities over. Those are active (discussions). We met with our Japanese counterparts here in Hawaii and previously in the states.” …

read … Military wants Hawaii to be a hub for Pacific arms manufacturing | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Suicides 50% of deaths at Halawa Prison

CB: … Confirmed or suspected suicides accounted for more than half of all deaths in the state’s largest prison in the past two years, and amounted to one-third of all deaths in the statewide Hawaiʻi correctional system during 2024 and 2025, according to data compiled by Honolulu Civil Beat….

(REALITY: Because doo-gooders closed the insane asylums, the insane are out on the streets committing crimes. They eventually get locked up. All we have done is trade a padded cell for a concrete cell. This problem will not be corrected until we reopen the insane asylums and put the insane back inside.)

The state has been sued repeatedly over suicides in its prisons and jails in recent years, and the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation last year allowed national experts to inspect Hawaiʻi correctional facilities to assess the mental health services being provided to inmates.

Those experts produced a report last summer that described “atrocious” conditions for mentally ill inmates who receive inadequate treatment in understaffed facilities.

This year DCR Director Tommy Johnson is asking lawmakers for more than $2.6 million to hire nearly three dozen new health care workers including psychiatrists and nurses to improve mental health services and medical care in general as part of a settlement of the class action lawsuit….

(REALITY: The soft-on-crime crowd is purposefully trying to juice the crisis in hopes of getting another federal consent decree. Dead criminals are just pawns in their game.)

read ... String Of 'Devastating' Suicides In Hawaiʻi Prisons Continues - Honolulu Civil Beat

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