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December 04, 2008 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 26
I was wondering when this was going to happen: The Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau has finally seized on the fact that the President-elect was born and (partly) raised in the Aloha State. After drawing criticism for dragging its feet, the Bureau set up a Web site (gohawaii.com/obama) that highlights some of Obama's favorite restaurants and recreational hotspots on Oahu. On the page you'll find shots of Obama eating shave ice and body surfing and sightseeing with his family. What you won't find are his awesome high school yearbook photos, which surfaced a while back but stayed mostly under the radar. Some fuss was made over one picture in particular that prominently featured a beer bottle and rolling papers. To which I say: yawn. We're about to do away with a frat boy President who, before he found Jesus, snorted coke and got more DUIs than Nick Nolte. Are we really going to make a big fuss about a little weed? No, the image I love is a group shot featuring young Barry with big hair and an even bigger '70s collar. Look for yourself—that's our new commander-in-chief. Pretty cool.
|  | | |  | | Barry Obama, the high school years. |
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. To be honest, I have mixed feelings about this holiday. On the one hand, there's something rather sick and hollow about commemorating the deceptively congenial beginnings of the Native American genocide by stuffing our fat faces and watching football; on the other hand, it's a great excuse to get together with family and loved ones and stuff our fat faces and watch football. Also, as the name would imply, it's a good time to give thanks. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the many people I've met thus far on Maui, both the friendly ones who made me feel welcome and the not-so-friendly ones who reminded me I've still got a lot to learn about this amazing, complicated place. Also, thanks to the sun, sand and surf for making even the worst days pretty freakin' sweet. And, if you'll forgive a moment of unabashed sappiness, thanks to my beautiful family—you make it worth the while.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 28
Hyperbole gone wild: The Maui Planning Commission gave its stamp of approval to a transportation center set to be built next to the Puunene Sugar Mill, though some expressed concerns over whether the center would be an eyesore for tourists as they fly into nearby Kahului Airport. The fact that that's a major concern is troubling enough, but then we arrive at this gem from Commissioner Bruce U'u, quoted in The Maui News: "[This] has to be the ugliest place on earth." OK, granted that particular stretch of turf isn't the prettiest Maui has to offer and slapping down a big parking lot ain't going to gussy it up. But Bruce, my man, if you think that's the ugliest place on earth you have either never left Maui or you have the most suspect aesthetic in the history of the universe.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 29
I do my little anti-consumerism rant over in the Business End so I'll spare you here. But let me just say this headline from today's Maui News is sadly telling: "With Thanksgiving over, it's time for shopping." OK, I lied. I am going to rant a bit more. The problem isn't the promotion of shopping per se. The problem is the indiscriminate promotion of shopping, the notion that it doesn't matter where you shop or what you buy, just so long as you're out there waiting in lines and spending money, quite possibly on things you don't need and can't afford that were made by underpaid children in China who are right now dying from chemical exposure so you can have some crappy piece of plastic you'll probably lose or throw away before the next Black Friday and that's the whole idea because why keep old stuff when you can buy new stuff? Whew. Now I'm done.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 30
Top cops on the Big Island are holding firm to the position that the recently passed marijuana law is "unenforceable." Hawaii County Prosecuting Attorney Jay Kimura told the Hawaii Herald Tribune that the measure, which makes pot offenses the lowest law enforcement priority, directly conflicts with state and federal law. True enough, and further proof that this battle has to be waged at the national level.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 1
Obama keeps talking about the "new dawn of American leadership," and I want to believe him. But from keeping Bush's Secretary of Defense to tapping someone named Clinton to be the nation's top diplomat (a long-anticipated move made official today), this is looking an awful lot like an old dawn. I understand the value of experience and continuity but it would've been nice to see at least one out-of-left field Cabinet selection. For all the talk of hope and change, thus far the President-elect's defining traits seem to be caution and pragmatism. Which, after eight years of cowboy diplomacy and insular unilateralism, might not be all that bad.
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 2
Just got word from Publisher Tommy Russo that Uncle Boy Kana'e, the "Hawaiian Supaman" and a voice familiar to anyone who listens to KPOA, passed away. Though I never had a chance to meet him, I'm told he was a tireless force for good in the community, one of those rare individuals who touches lives just by being himself. Always sad when someone like that leaves us, but the hope is that the spirit and the message live on. MTW
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| Entertainment and lifestyle news for Maui, Hawaii and the surrounding Islands. Maui Time Weekly is Mauis only independent and locally owned newspaper.
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