ALL the Top Local News
Hawaii Business wants you to have a quick read of the top local news stories every weekday morning. That’s why we are launching Hawaii’s most useful newsletter on Tuesday, March 28 called "Today's Hawaiʻi News".
Opinion
Editor's Note: Stop Whining
One of the biggest complaints about the media is we focus on bad news, so here’s good news: Hawaii is No. 1 on a national ranking vital to all of us. For the second year in a row, the Islands…
From the Managing Editor: The World Is an Island
LIKE MOST PEOPLE, I think about money often. Not about what I can buy with it – though occasionally daydreaming about a shopping trip to Tokyo never hurt anybody. No, my preoccupation is with how money works and how it…
From the Publisher: Unfortunately, the Boss Is Not Always a Leader
The year was 1994: I had just graduated from college and began looking for my first “real” job. I was fortunate to have been introduced to an executive at a Los Angeles media company and he lined up an interview…
Whose Truth Are We Talking About?
When I moved to Hawaii in 1981, I found it odd that many of the best-regarded or best-selling books about Hawaii were written by outsiders: “Shoal of Time” by Gavan Daws, now a deep-rooted resident but back then not long…
Editor's Note: Preventing Homelessness
As we step up our efforts to reduce homelessness, we need to work harder to prevent it. One way is to increase the number of people who have enough savings to weather a short-term financial crisis – a lost job, a…
Letters to the Editor: November 2015
HECO’s Ownership Not the Crucial Factor More important is the utility’s skill and innovation in adapting to disruption in the electricity sector I appreciate the efforts of Hawaii Business and Dennis Hollier to dig deep into the complex issues of…
Editor's Note: Two Affordable Ideas
IT WILL TAKE a lot to pull us out of Hawaii’s housing crisis, but here are thoughts on some partial solutions. ADUs are a good idea, and each county has different rules on what are formally called accessory dwelling units. Honolulu…
Editor's Note: The Sacredness of Mauna Kea
It is obvious to anyone who has been there or seen it shining in the distance, that the summit of Mauna Kea is a sacred place. Native Hawaiians are not unique in this reverence: Virtually all the great religions venerate…
Islands Don’t Always Control Their Destinies
Molokai and the battle over GMOs remind me of another island whose people struggled to control their destiny against outsiders. Newfoundland is the poorest of the Canadian provinces, much like Molokai is the poorest of the main Hawaiian Islands. The…
Let Me Interrupt You for a Moment, Ma’am
I was at a meeting and listening to one of the most powerful women in Hawaii when something astonishing happened. Her recently promoted male deputy interrupted her. Not once, but several times. Many studies tell me that I shouldn’t have…
Editor's Note: We Work With Words, But Some Challenge Us
For the 18 years I worked in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin’s newsroom, we never used diacritical marks – the okina and kahako – in Hawaiian words. When I moved to The Honolulu Advertiser in 2004, we used them in the newspaper,…
Editor's Note: I Struck Out, But the State May Have Money for You
You may have had this daydream, too: A letter arrives saying there is unclaimed property in my name worth $20 million (it’s a fantasy, so I didn’t scrimp). In my daydream, I collect the money and live happily ever after.…
Editor's Note: Love the Aina, But Love the People, Too
As Dennis Hollier’s story on page 40 points out, there are many impediments to local farming, but a shortage of farmland is not one of them. In fact, 45.8 percent of Hawaii’s 4.1 million acres are classified as agricultural district…
Editor's Note: Who Works the Second Shift at Your House?
My wife earns more money than I do. For many men, that would be a humiliating admission, but I’m proud of that fact and of her. And, though most of the credit for her success belongs to her hard work…
Editor's Note: Hanging Out with David Ige
As a journalist, I get more chances to meet our leading politicians than the average citizen. But Hawaii is such an intimate and casual place you don’t always need special access to talk story with the powerful – or someone…
Editor's Note: Heroes, Villains and Tech Laggards
I recently read “Flash Boys,” Michael Lewis’ account of how Wall Street has stolen from you, me and our 401ks. I was astonished by the sophisticated corruption, and about how many people and companies thought it was OK to cheat…
Editor's Note: Wrestling with Contradictions
We all live with beliefs that are not perfectly compatible. Look deeply and think carefully, and you can find contradictions or at least tensions within your morality and worldview. Excuse me for being presumptuous, but if your whole belief system…
Editor's Note: Instead of Gambling, Win Big By Saving Money
Why do families end up homeless? One big reason is they have no savings, so when a crisis hits – getting laid off or paying a big bill – they don’t have a couple thousand dollars in the bank to…
Editor's Note: This Fishing Story is No Tall Tale
Dennis Hollier is one of the best writers I’ve worked with during 36 years in the news business. His rare combination of intelligence, curiosity and writing skill generates stories that are both a pleasure to read and an insider’s guide…
Editor's Note: A Waikiki Love Song
When people tell me they never go to Waikiki, I wonder why they would want to miss so many wonderful things. Sure I love to play in the ocean and climb our green mountains far from the madding crowds, but,…
Editor's Note: That is What Your Brain Looks Like on Multitasking
I am writing this column while not checking my email, fielding a phone call, consulting with colleagues or eating my lunch. Sadly, I am only writing this column. To my complete shame, I am awful at multitasking. I can only…
Sorry, You Can't Read the Story Before It Runs
I get a few requests each month from sources who want to review stories before they go to press. Implicit or explicit in that request is the right to make changes. Each time, I tell them no and have to explain why, so maybe a lot of readers don’t understand that bedrock principle of journalism.
Editor's Note: Does God Believe in Gay Marriages?
My wife says I’m crazy for taking on this subject and she’s right. The reasons for caution are endless: I’m no theologian; passions are running high; I have friends and family with strong views on both sides; this is a…