Under the Sun http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun RSS Feed for Under the Sun en-us Thu, 20 Dec 2012 11:30:00 GMT Nature’s fury concentrates the mind on life’s basics http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20121101_Natures_fury_concentrates_the_mind_on_lifes_basics.html Sandy brought widespread destruction to the country at a time when political campaigns had grown as tumultuous as the rain, flooding, snow and wind the superstorm hurled across the Eastern Seaboard and points west. Gun debate grows tiresome amid continued shootings http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20121220_Gun_debate_grows_tiresome_amid_continued_shootings.html This morning, I measured water into the tank of a coffee maker, shook some grounds into the filter and slid the carafe on to the heating plate. Vicious slurs hit Cayetano, thanks to Citizens United http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20121024_Vicious_slurs_hit_Cayetano_thanks_to_Citizens_United.html With his libel-slander lawsuit, Ben Cayetano is calling out the cabal that has shamelessly tried to cast him as a crook. He’s saying he’s not going to take the slurs anymore. Build Honolulu upward or outward, but not both http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20111110_Build_Honolulu_upward_or_outward_but_not_both.html That’s going to be one colossal building kissing the Kakaako sky if all goes as intended by the state agency that gets to decide such things. Snakes might have a place as pets, but not in Hawaii http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20110728_Snakes_might_have_a_place_as_pets_but_not_in_Hawaii.html People love their pets. They lavish dogs and cats with the best foods they can afford, ornament them in cute collars, if not T-shirts and other human-oriented attire, and come Halloween, dress Fido and Felix in elaborate costumes. Bookstores’ ambiance can’t be digitally replicated http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20110721_Bookstores_ambiance_cant_be_digitally_replicated.html When I first took the book in hand, I did not know that the illustration out front was a painting by Charles M. Russell, an artist whose images of the Old West made him famous. How does Hawaii stack up? Consider the national rankings http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20110707__How_does_Hawaii_stack_up_Consider_the_national_rankings.html No disrespect to the great state of New Jersey, the first to sign the Bill of Rights and the third to ratify the U.S. Constitution, but when you think of the Garden State, nestled in there south of New York and east of Pennsylvania, the foremost image that comes to mind isn't its beaches. Public school teachers learn the hard way about hard times http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20110630__Public_school_teachers_learn_the_hard_way_about_hard_times_.html In April 2001, Hawaii's public school teachers went on strike, taking to sidewalks and street corners with picket signs after turning down a 14 percent increase in pay and benefits the state had offered. Food establishments have powerful sentimental value http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20110623__Food_establishments_have_powerful_sentimental_value.html Hop Sing grocery store disappeared from the corner in Palolo Valley at least half a century ago, but 10th Avenue Market a couple of blocks away was there to supply the neighborhood with bologna and bread for lunch-bucket sandwiches, watercress and a pound of ground for dinner, and dried cuttlefish and the best shave ice ever for Sunday afternoon snacks. Deference to tourism is wrecking what makes Hawaii special http://www.staradvertiser.com/columnists/underthesun/20110616__Deference_to_tourism_is_wrecking_what_makes_Hawaii_special.html Richard Lim raised some eyebrows if not heart rates when he bluntly gave voice to a reality not often brought up during light luncheon speeches in convivial downtown penthouse dining clubs.