Exactly three years ago I bought my first cellular phone and felt lucky it was "on sale" (at 50% off) for only $175 plus activation. Two years later I was even luckier, buying a smaller, full-featured phone for $29. This year, you get a FREE cell phone. Government regulation? State protection? Union benefits? H-e-l-l-o! It's the private, free market, competitive system that produces better products and services at lower prices and that's what we desperately need in government services, here, now. (Just think, if the government had been in charge of manufacture and distribution of cell phones, they would probably cost $5,000 each, take three people to hold them, and be distributed on the basis of political party affiliation, race, color and sexual preference. The mobile model would require a separate trailer.
Proud moment recently for SBH's Jonathan Gullible book written by member Ken Schoolland: the prestigious Freedom's Forum bookstore in San Francisco reported The Adventures of Jonathan Gullible: A Free Market Odyssey was the # 2 book in sales among their Top 10 Bestsellers. Jonathan retails for $14.95 but SBH members can purchase it for $5. Number 1 book? Fart Proudly: Writings of Benjamin Franklin You Never Read in School, edited by Carl Japikse. By the way, did you see the 2-part Gulliver's Travels with Ted Danson on NBC-TV in February? It was excellent!
Speaking of network, check out the Web page for SBH. It's way cool. Our own Melvin Ah Ching, of Melvin Ah Ching Productions, is the WebMeister and he does great work. See for yourself at H4's website. The URL is http://www.hotspotshawaii.com/sbh.html.
Governor Ben Cayetano's State of the State speech was fine; the first in years to put business issues on the front burner. He spoke of work comp reform and a change in attitude by government. But, alas, talk is cheap and action and attitude-changing is still lagging.
Only in Hawaii: first the Governor, then theLegislature, called for creation of a "Rainy Day Fund" for the State‹ at a time when the state has already squandered its (and our) savings, is supposedly $200 million in the black hole, and when every resident is overtaxed. We continue to lead the nation in bankruptcies. They still don't get it. The taxpayers need REDUCED TAXES so we, not the State, can have our rainy day fund against the flood of big spending government.
Whatever happened to all those state employees that were losing jobs? Of the 68,000, only 600 were to be laid off and it is hard to verify any. Many were transferred. Others have gone from full-time to "casual," "temporary" or "emergency" workers, with the total INCREASING. Last year's "slashed" state budget, was actually 11% MORE than 1994. It seems the only thing multiplying faster than government bureaucrats in Hawaii is feral cats. The estimated wild cat population on the Islands of Oahu, Maui and Kauai, is 327,000. Nearly 30,000 were euthanized‹ a wonderfully politically correct term ‹last year. Euthanizing "high three" bureaucrats? Nah!
The State will pay unemployment comp strike benefits, at a cost to taxpayers of $1.5 million, to public union members who walked voluntarily during a 12-day stoppage in1994. How long must we put up with this idiocy?
The State also admitted it paid nearly $2 million in erroneous overpayments to state employees during the past 17 years; nearly 40% during 1995 alone. It simply didn't verify submitted time cards. Hey, its not their money, right? The Department of Public Safety (now there's a poorly named state agency) was the biggest offender with an estimated $940,000. Employees, including those who have left state employment, will be asked to return the overpayments. Good luck.
Honolulu has overpayment problems too; about $1.6 million. The City blamed its errors on a "faulty computer." And, it was missing two expensive septic tank pumper trucks for more than a year. No one seems to ever be in charge, or responsible, in government here.
The State Department of Transportation wants to substantially raise fees paid by Hawaii's predominantly small, off-airport, car rental firms. Garth Panzer, manager of Maui's Atlas Rent-A-Car, is leading a protest effort. His firm has been paying the State‹in addition to all other taxes and fees‹ $20 flat fee per car, or $2,800 annually for his 140 car fleet. The proposed increase, 5 1/2% per month for gross revenues (7% for Oahu firms), would amount to nearly $60,000 annually. (Rental companies on airport property, already pay a 10% gross lease fee). Some large national firms have more than 10,000 vehicles and could pay close to $1 million. Soon, you may fly to a Neighbor Island and rent a car for $1,000-a-day, or a second mortgage on your home; something that should be welcome news to the "Thumbs Up" financiers.
Sadly, the State is also once again trying to force the thrill-craft industry out of business.
Great thumb-in-your-ear-news: Honolulu now has a sister city, Hue, communist Vietnam. They should be able to give Mayor Harris many tips on improving our business and social climate. I don't know how many "sisters" Honolulu has, but they all seem to be far away and costly to visit. Why not make Honokaa, or Kapaa, sister cities and spend the money on local airfare, shops and hotels?
Do it: Support the Hawaii Small Business Congress reforms. FAX your lawmaker.
DISAGREES WITH SBH, SUPPORTS HARRIS
RE: Your February issue article on rail "untruths". Mayor Harris is independent and business friendly. His efforts to streamline building permits are helping us in the construction and engineering industry. He appears to be the best we've had in the mayor's office in many years.
Articles such as this can only hurt small business in the long run, particularly if someone like pro-labor/union Morgado is elected as a result.
Masa Fujioka
Thanks for Senator Mike Liu's recent Guest Commentary, regarding thoughtless waste in ill-conceived DOE programs. It seems that everything the State touches turns to waste and mismanagement.
The Health-Quest program is an excellent example of "the spend first, plan later" mentality: After the Program has gone bankrupt from overutilization, it was decided to consider a means test for participants. Now we learn that 40% enrolled in this State scheme, intended to cover those "unable to afford" private insurance but not qualifying for free medicaid, are not even eligible! Attempts to pull these freeloaders away from the trough will be met with the usual whining, followed by costly concessions.
One state worker reported to me, "We've even got doctors and other well-to-do on the Quest! If the state is giving handouts, why not take?" Why not, indeed!
Keep after 'em Mike! The only solution is to cut state funding by 50% per year, until we return to bare-bones government.
John M. Corboy, M.D.
I read with interest the article by State Representative Cynthia Thielen (R-49th Dist.) in your last issue. Ms. Thielen states that legalized gambling in Hawaii is "an industry killer." I suppose that she is not among the multitude of Hawaii residents who go to Las Vegas every year to discover the opposite.
It seems strange to hear a Republican say that government is a better decision maker for the economy than consumers and businesses in a free market. Ms. Thielen is entitled to her opinion, of course, but I wish that she wouldn't try to impose it on others with laws that remove the consumers' freedom to choose for themselves.
Ken Schoolland
Comments about anything you read in Small Business News can be addressed to:
Small Business Hawaii
Hawaii Kai Corporate Plaza
6600 Kalanianaole Hwy., Suite 212
Honolulu, Hawaii 96825
Telephone: 396-1724 / Fax: 396-1726
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: macpro@lava.net / E-mail forwarded to SBH via local fax.
Small Business News is part of The Hawai`i NewsList family of internet features. It can be delivered directly to your e-mail address. Send a subscription request to listproc@hawaii.edu, with the text "SUBSCRIBE HI-NEWS-L Firstname Lastname" in the body of the message. You will receive a number of Hawaii based publications along with your Small Business News e-mail subscription.
Editor : Sam Slom
Web Page Hack: Melvin Ah Ching
Web server: H4, Hawai`i's Data SuperHighway