| I recently visited the East Coast (NJ, PA), Midwest (IL) and West (CO, CA) and met with a number of business people and some legislators. The
mood is upbeat and the economies are racing. No thought about Hawaii.
Castle Rock, CO has a major new outlet shopping complex several times
larger than Waikele. We are running out of time to fix our political,
not economic, problems, but still have enough creative, hardworking
women and men of integrity who can turn things around. We don't always criticize those in state government: Dr. Seiji Naya of DBED&T has been consistently helpful and aggressive in supporting many private initiatives and economic growth, in stark contrast to his predecesors and some current staff bureaucrats. Naya, an economist and former boxing champ, has knocked out a number of statist hurdles and has been personally involved and helpful to small businesses. (see letters) The message here: we won't always agree, but it's safe to ask for assistance from Dr. Naya. So a rat ran up the pants leg of Mayor Jeremy Harris in Waikiki. Wouldn't have happened if he wore short pants and zoris. People have complained for years about hundreds of rats on Kalakaua Avenue (four-legged, not two) but only when a politician's ox is gored, or leg hairs chewed by a rodent, can we usually expect action. The Mayor did the right thing and sent in the Exterminator Swat team who capital-punished 150 of the beasts in a day. Wouldn't you know, animal rights activists protested City efforts, implying that rats have been with humans so long it is the humans' fault and everything would be ok without people. The Mayor was so plagued by the criticism that he led a 150-member delegation to Red China to talk trade. Maybe he thinks Hawaii can export our rats (do they really taste like chicken?) in exchange for Chinese prisoner kidneys or more toys. A $3,000 COLA wage increase voted by Congress for themselves recently shows once again the priorities of politicos. First things first. Gary Rodrigues did not seek re-election as president of the Hawaii AFL-CIO, a post he has held since 1983. He continues as head of the United Public Workers, a post he has commanded since 1981. He continues on the Judicial Selection Commission, and many other committees, while rumors persist the feds may be examining some personal union financing. Former City Physician, Dr. John Hall, M.D., resigned his post after months of harassment from Rodrigues and lack of support from the City Administration. Hall blew the whistle on drug laxness involving some union workers and the Mayor's reluctance to challenge Rodrigues, a mentor. Met Ken Hamblin, talk radio's "The Black Avenger," in Denver. His show is carried daily on Real Radio 830, KHVH in Honolulu. He is a staunch supporter of small business. Former State Senator Mike Liu is in the race for GOP Lt. Governor in '98. Kioni Dudley was already there and Stan Koki is thinking of running. State Reps. Quentin Kawananakoa and Gene Ward may face each other for the 1st Congressional seat. Contested Republican primaries? The GOP must be expanding. Congrats to the 11 HIOSH inspectors who came forward to document quota and other violations by head Jennifer Shisheido. Hotel industry consultant, member and murder victim, Kenneth Brewer will be missed. I'm an Apple user, not PC, but the U.S. Government's attack on Microsoft, via AG Janet Reno's charges of "monopoly" bundling are laughable and ludicrous, especially when it is the Feds that condone and protect government monoplies that harm every small business and each consumer. Get a grip. Wally Amos was inspirational at SBH "Sunrise." Wally IS Mr. Positive and has struggled himself so he has been there, done that. His message is clear: stop complaining and do something about the problems. From our standpoint, that means GET ACTIVELY INVOLVED to change our non-responsive state government. YOU can make a difference! Take time out this month to remember the sacrifices of our veterans who sacrificed so much for all of us. Then celebrate our many blessings and bounty of Thanksgiving. Aloha!
 Small Business News comments can be addressed to:
Small Business Hawaii SBH also accepts articles relating to small business issues about its members and Hawaii. Submit your articles to SBH by the 10th of the month for publication into the next month's issue.
E-Mail:macpro3000@yahoo.com Small Business News is part of The Hawai`i NewsList family of internet features. Select this link for more information on how to subscribe.
Editor: Sam Slom
Hosted on: H4, Hawai`i's Data SuperHighway
|