State Bar shares a little — very little

We know that lawyers are paid for services by the hour, but do they bill for information by the piece as well?

That could be a conclusion drawn from the mini-disclosure by the Hawaii State Bar Association about the reasons for their thumbs-down evaluation of state Supreme Court nominee Michael Wilson.

Gregory Markham, the HSBA president-elect, released a few nuggets of explanation for the "unqualified" rating it gave Wilson, currently a Circuit Court judge. Apparently there were concerns about Wilson’s work ethic, professionalism and conduct toward professional women.

What does that mean? Does this relate to allegations that he harassed a Miss Universe contestant decades ago? Is he lazy? And unprofessional how? Who knows?

Now that the state Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee has called a second hearing onWilson’s nomination, for 11 a.m. Saturday, perhaps answers will follow the questions.

GMO ordinance: Ready, fire, aim

Sometimes appointing a task force is a way for elected officials to "do something" without doing much. Other times an advisory panel is necessary, to investigate an issue and prevent the passage of flawed bills.

The latter is the case on the island of Hawaii, where the County Council refused to appoint a task force to study the full implications of an anti-GMObill before passing the measure last year. Now papaya farmers unfairly targeted by the law are suing, and it will be up to the courts to decide an issue that deserved far more time and effort from the Council.