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Editorial

Don’t lollygag in cars, COVID

This newspaper recently ran a letter to the editor from a Makawao reader offering polite advice to slow drivers who insist on cruising our multilane highways in the passing lane: Activate your turn signal, merge right and let faster-moving vehicles pass on the left. We always wonder what those drivers are thinking as the line grows behind them. Do they notice the dozens of frustrated eyes staring lasers through their rear windows? Are they aware of the rules of the road? Did they somehow miss the news that the Hawaii State Legislature passed a law against vehicular lollygagging in ...

J&J vaccine needs study

Blood clots in veins that drain blood from the brain can lead to alarming strokelike results. The symptoms can be severe headaches, abdominal pain, leg pain and shortness of breath. That’s why it made sense for federal, state and local health officials to hit pause Tuesday and again on Wednesday on continued distribution of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. Six known cases of a rare clotting disorder called cerebral venous sinus thrombosis in women between the ages of 18 and 48 might be linked to the vaccine. More information is needed. On Wednesday, the Advisory Committee on ...

Permanent housing crisis

One problem with government emergency actions is that the political class never wants them to end. Witness the Biden Administration’s extension of the eviction and foreclosure moratoriums, which by now are creating more trouble than they’re worth. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau this week proposed a rule that would effectively prohibit foreclosures through December. It has also threatened to penalize mortgage servicers and landlords who don’t take action to prevent a surge in “avoidable foreclosures” and evictions when government forbearance programs end. In short, ...

Putting brakes on overtourism

Maui County Council members heard testimony this week on a pair of measures that could dramatically change the beachgoing experience for residents and visitors alike. A bill introduced by Maui County Council Vice-Chairwoman Keani Rawlins-Fernandez calls for reserving half of all public beach access parking spaces for local residents. She also proposed charging nonresidents for parking at our beach parks. We imagine public reactions ranged from fears of killing the golden goose to, “It’s about time!” Maui is not alone in holding these sorts of debates. From Kaanapali to ...

Infrastructure upkeep needed

The United States is the wealthiest country in the world. You wouldn’t know it from the condition of the systems that make it work. There are 45,000 bridges and more than 170,000 miles of highways and major roads in poor condition. Drinking water is delivered to many residents through lead pipes. Floods regularly devastate public and private structures. Electrical systems are vulnerable, and internet connections are unreliable. Iowa has the highest number of structurally deficient bridges in the country. More than a third of our major roads are in poor or mediocre ...

Anti-Asian talk harmful

Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted is a savvy and reasonable man who aims for higher office. So why is Husted so dead set against apologizing for his ill-considered March 26 tweet: “So it appears it was the Wuhan Virus after all?” Husted says the words were aimed at the Chinese government’s failure to come clean on the origins of COVID-19, and were not aimed at those of Chinese or Asian descent. He added in lengthy public comments Thursday that no harm was meant, that he has many Asian American friends and that the word Wuhan is “inseparable” from the back story of the ...