Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

[mel]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

If you go looking for it, sure, you'll find liberals on the attack and conservative martyrs. But that doesn't mean you have to turn every conversation into a Good v. Evil battle.

I am not trying very hard to find the liberal attacks. The topics started by liberals are attacks on conservatives, traditional values and of course President Bush. Many of it easily found in the American Asylum section which probably should be renamed the Liberal Haven.

For crying out loud, the mayoral race is nonpartisan. And if you've been following this discussion at all, Bainum and Hanneman both have their share of fans and critics here. No one is spared. Why throw out the "rabid liberal" card at all?

While the race may be officially "non-partisan", the truth of the matter is that both candidates are Democrats... both liberal though I suspect Mufi skews somewhat a little more to the right. His problem is too much ties to the labor unions, access to the old boy network and of course his stance on rail. Both candidates not wanting to sign the tax pledge that I referred to earlier just cements this IMO.

I like what you have to say, but wish you didn't have to say it with such pessimism.

When it comes to matters that may negatively impact my wallet, erode Hawaii taxpayers buying power and increases the cost of living, I cannot help but be negative. Hawaii taxpayers have been burned far too long by 40+ years of a liberal agenda creating one of the worst tax hells in the nation. How can one not be pessimistic when another liberal will take charge and potentially spend more money on something most people won't use but nearly everyone will have to pay for?

[mel]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

You know, I never met a liberal who particularly liked paying taxes any more than a conservative. But many of us do think that it's the price you pay for a civil society, so we're less likely to whine about it.

Here in Hawaii we have been paying the price for liberal agendas too long. We are the 4th highest taxed state in the nation. Already we are paying way too much taxes, and already the liberals got more taxes enacted (bottle bill tax) and want us to pay even more (several years of local Democrats drafting bills to increase the GE Tax and others). There is no regard for how much the taxpayers actually have to dish out to support liberal agendas.

If you don't like rail (and I liked it a lot better 15 years ago than I do now), what alternative would you propose, Mel? More roads? Traffic is miserable now; more concrete seems unlikely to be any kind of a long term solution. So what might work?

Yes, what is wrong with building more roads? Motorists are the majority. Motorists use the roads the most. They pay the most taxes. So the ground transportation solutions should go to the people who pay the largest share of the taxes. The 10% or less who use mass transit already have TheBus here in Honolulu and that already is being subsidized by everyone in the county who pays property taxes.

[pzarquon]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

The ever enterprising Ian Lind has started digging into the Jennifer Alonso-Toma issue himself, as the Hawaii Reporter campaign apparently spreads far and wide.

Ian had noted previously that despite Murasaki's son's assertions, there are always two sides to any story, and that given the always messy business of family politics and estates, it was notable in this case that the courts had disagreed with him. Ian reviewed some of the records, and even posts one of the man's psychological evaluations, and makes it clear that although the man was not well, he decided early on he was upset with his son wanted his money to go somewhere else.

He notes, reasonably:

No one can claim to know the "truth" based on this public record, but it is strikingly clear that Zimmerman's version omits many of the basic facts needed to even appreciate that there are two sides to the tale.

If, meanwhile, Bainum opponents are seizing on the Jennifer Alonso-Toma issue as voraciously and aggressively as it sounds like they are, I think they've picked a gun that'll backfire.

Despite the 'train wreck' aspect, I think most people see the flap as irrelevant to the campaign... and if Bainum's critics whip themselves into too much of a froth, it'll turn even more people off. And as these latest poll numbers show, Hanneman's biggest liability isn't his support versus Bainum's support... but in the surprising jump in the number of people who separately have an unfavorable opinion of him.

[pzarquon]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

The Honolulu Weekly has its day-in-the-life ride-along profiles of both Duke Bainum and Mufi Hanneman online. Genevieve Suzuki captures the feel of both campaign trails. Lesa Griffith, meanwhile, briefly profiles the women who would be Honolulu's first lady.

[BKHale2007]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

It was She likes classical and jazz

[BKHale2007]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

http://www.hawaiireporter.com/story....e-ce415e424e35

Whether or not you think HR has a vendetta against Duke Bainum or his wife, this still merits consideration.

Two lawyers and one psychologist who helped ensure Jennifer Toma-Alonso received rights along with her mother to the entire fortune of 85-year-old Masumi Murasaki for whom she served as a "caregiver," are in court because of their professional conduct.

[pzarquon]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

Early results (absentee and early voting) fresh out of the State Capitol shows Bainum with a slight lead over Hanneman, 51 percent to 48 percent. Of course, these numbers are technically with zero out of 297 precincts reporting. We'll see how returns for today look in a few hours.

For once I agree with the KITV pundit who said election day and late voting probably favors Hanneman, so as they say, "Too close to call."

[mel]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

Well it looked like Mufi won at the so-called "final" printout about 11 tonight.

Mufi 145,353
Duke 144,059

The glitch: Someone forgot to send about 4,000+ absentee ballots over from the City Clerk's office to the State Capitol. These are mail ins from a 4:PM pickup.

So says News 8.

Where's the fat lady singing?

[pzarquon]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

As of 5:30 a.m., Mufi's come-from-behind win has held, 147,943 to Duke's 146,588. A notable turnaround from the strong lead Duke had mere weeks ago in statewide polls. I personally know maybe half a dozen people - family, friends, coworkers - who switched to Mufi in that period, so I definitely think it was an unexpected trend.

Like I said above, "I favor Bainum, if only in the way I favor a bee sting over a dog bite," and at worst Mufi's win, to me, just means more of the same in City Hall.

Interestingly, a number of folks - including the current mayor - is chalking up this reversal to the Jennifer Toma Bainum "smear" (if not so much Zimmerman's initial work but the way it was seized upon, amplified, and spread far and wide by "unknown parties"). With folks going on record about it, mainstream media is now in the awkward position of explaining something that it previously tried to ignore. Though I guess this is a tangent better suited to a separate Hawaii Media thread.

[mel]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

Bring out the fat lady.

[lillian l. hong]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

Bring out the fat lady.

You mentioned twice the "fat lady", what does it mean?
I looked for the threads almost every night or morning. Now it is all over this election, what's next?
Thank you again for all the kind words, suggestions, advices you all had
given me over the pass few months. Thank you also for your shoulder for me to lean on when I needed the most.
Please take good care of yourself and your loved ones.
If you ever go to any gift show, please drop by my booth and say hello, please.
Love, Lillian Hong

[mel]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

You mentioned twice the "fat lady", what does it mean?

Hello Lillian,

The term has generally has its origins in Opera I believe, but has also been used in sports. "the game ain't over till the fat lady sings."

That said here is what I picked up from the infoplease website:

Today's Question:

Where did the saying "It ain't over until the fat lady sings" come from?

The Answer:

Often mistakenly attributed to N.Y. Yankees Hall of Famer Yogi Berra, this popular quote is not usually written or quoted in its entirety. The actual quote was the following:

"The opera ain't over until the fat lady sings."

This modern-day proverb is credited to San Antonio sports writer/broadcaster Dan Cook. Cook wrote the phrase in an article in 1976 and then used it again on TV in 1978. Cook, who used the quip during an NBA playoff game, was trying to give San Antonio Spurs fans hope after their team lost a game against the Washington Bullets and was on the brink of elimination.

But historians argue that the phrase may be older than that. It may have originated from an old Southern proverb, "Church ain't over until the fat lady sings."

To put this back in context of the Honolulu's mayor race.

I fell asleep election night with my TV on. When I awoke around 2 in the morning or so, there KITV was broadcasting live Mufi Hannemann and his supporters singing "Hawaii Aloha." I think he had Vicki Takamine Holt or someone lead the song.... and well I guess by this time the counting was probably over and the "fat lady" and people were singing! (I don't consider Vicki fat)... of course I was kind of in a daze and turned off the TV shortly after and went back to sleep.

Anyway besides Honolulu getting its first mayor of Samoan ancestry, we also have a mayor who can sing. Someone mentioned earlier in this thread about Mufi and Duke going out for a karaoke sing-a-long... hmmmm....

[BKHale2007]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

$5 Million House of Cards Collapsed With Puff of Truth

http://www.hawaiireporter.com/story....e-e46dee60ed5e

[BKHale2007]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

Ian Lind mentions a temporary website:

The plot thickens. The press advisories from D.C.-based Qorvis Communications that were received right before the election, offering to arrange interviews with Hawaii Reporter's Malia Zimmerman, also pointed to a web site, www.hawaiiansfortruth.com, "for more information on the (Bainum) scandal."

The site was registered on October 30, 2004 and disappeared immediately after the election.

A quick check shows it was registered using an address in Paonia, Colorado, a town of no more than a few thousand people. Interesting to note, though, the telephone number listed is in Arlington, Virginia. Nowhere near Paonia. I tried calling the number yesterday and got a recorded message. No call back as yet. It smacks of a bit of false info to obscure those actually controlling the site. But we'll see.

Whois Output for: hawaiiansfortruth.com

Domain Name Owner:
Seeking Truth
4024 P Lane
Paonia, CO 81428
US

Administrative Contact:
Seeking Truth
Kline, G [GK-135]
4024 P Lane
Paonia, CO 81428, US
Phone: 571-217-3630
Email: *********@comcast.net

Technical Contact:
Omnis Network
Network, Omnis [ON-1]
3655 Torrance Blvd Suite 230
Torrance, CA 90503, US
Phone: (310)316-2744
Fax: (310)316-4991
Email: ******@omnis.com

Billing Contact:
Seeking Truth
Kline, G [GK-135]
4024 P Lane
Paonia, CO 81428, US
Phone: 571-217-3630
Email: *********@comcast.net

Record Information:
Domain Record Created: October 30, 2004 00:00
Domain Record Updated: October 30, 2004 19:33
Domain Record Expires: October 30, 2005 00:00

More to follow, I'm sure.

[Miulang]

Re: Honolulu Mayor's Race 2004 - Chapter 3

Excellent sleuthing, BK! You do the profession of investigative reporting proud. Keep up the good work. Eventually the truth will come out.

Miulang