Musings: The Big Chill

A perceptibly whittled down moon was white and high in a sky dappled with orange clouds when Koko and I went walking on a morning so nippy that the water emerged already chilled from the tap.

Some folks claim that Hawaii doesn’t have seasons, but when you have to bring a sweatshirt to the beach for a late afternoon swim, and native plants with white flowers bloom, like hala and kukui, let me tell you, it’s definitely winter.

The Star-Bulletin yesterday put the chill on Hawaii Superferry with an editorial that made a crucial point about the draft EIS:

Many of the mitigative measures would rely on state agencies, such as the Department of Land and Natural Resources and the Department of Agriculture, either through enforcement of current regulations or heightened inspections, at a cost to taxpayers. But whether the state, which seldom seems to fund these divisions adequately, and the agencies that lack the capabilities for even current enforcement levels can handle additional biosecurity duties is questionable.

It ends by saying the final EIS is supposed to be pau by June, at which time the special legislation — Act 2 — that authorized ferry operations is supposed to be repealed, although the Lege could extend it “so other ferry companies can take advantage of it.”

Yeah, right. That gambit might have been plausible if other ferry companies were in the wings — or even on the horizon — when the law was passed, but since they weren’t, it’s obvious the bill was intended to benefit only HSF. At any rate, the SB weighs in with its opinion:

Given the current situation, extending the legislation would be risky.

The issue of selective enforcement is being raised by attorney Dexter Kaiama in his bid to have charges dropped against Palikapu Dedman and Andre Perez, who were arrested following last August’s protest at the Naue burial site.

Dexter called me before Christmas to discuss the circumstances that led to the warrant for my arrest on trespassing charges being dropped, and said he planned to address that in his defense. Trial for the two is set for Jan. 22, but this Thursday he’ll be arguing his motion for dismissal before Judge Trudy Senda.

Meanwhile, rumor has it that new Kauai Prosector,Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho will be dropping trespassing charges against all those who were arrested well after the protest, a move that would save the taxpayers significant money.

And Joe Brescia’s civil suit against Kaiulani Huff, who camped out on the beach for months in an attempt to prevent his house from being built atop the burials, is set for trial at 1 p.m. Jan. 26. She’s looking for 100 people to donate $50 to pay legal fees, and says those inclined can send a check made out to attorney Dan Hempery care of her at 6165 Alapaki Rd, Kapaa. 96746.

[Update:The legal fees Ka`iu is seeking are not for the civil suit, which also names Jeff Chandler, Nani Rogers, Louise Sausen, Dayne Aipoalani and others. She's instead "going on the offensive" and seeking a restraining order against Brescia to prevent construction at Naue from continuing.]

Finally, is anyone else getting tired of hearing Bush and Cheney defend their indefensible actions while in office? The last straw came at Bush’s last news conference, when he showed once again how utterly out of touch he is.

I disagree with this assessment that, you know, that people view America in a dim light," he said. "It may be damaged amongst some of the elite. But people still understand America stands for freedom."

You mean the elite like the beleagured Iraqi civilians and orphans, on whose behalf an Iraqi journalist Muntadar al-Zaidi threw his shoes?

The sooner this clueless guy gets the deep freeze, the better.