Safety inspections don’t come free

It’s worrisome that the state auditor has found the state unable to take on the inspection and regulation of zip lines, the individual transport method generally using cables and pulleys that has become part of popular amusements and challenge courses.

Among the findings in Auditor Marion Higa’s report is the observation that it would cost $350,000 annually to finance permitting and inspections, and that Hawaii’s 22 zip line businesses are already required by their insurance agencies to provide annual inspection reports by accredited companies.

Further, she said, there’s a backlog of 5,000 elevators needing inspection at the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, which doesn’t do the amusement-ride inspections already under its jurisdiction.

We can all feel very worried now.

Business is down, so raise your price

It’s time again to stock up on postal stamps that will be acceptable after the next cost increase goes into effect — a penny for a first-class stamp to 46 cents.

The U.S. Postal Service says it will raise postage rates on Jan. 27, including a 1-cent increase for the most-used stamp.

By law, the post office is not allowed to raise stamp prices more than the rate of inflation, or 2.6 percent, and Congress has refused to allow a higher rate.

With more Americans communicating by email to their friends and loved ones, though, a stamp increase doesn’t give quite the penny pinch it once did.