All I want for Christmas is … for the lava to stop

It might be too late for Santa to do anything about it, but wouldn’t it be a wonderful Christmas present for the 900 residents of Pahoa if the lava flow threatening to devour their town would just simply stop? For good?

That would be a great gift for that Hawaii island community, and one that wouldn’t cost a dime. There still would be plenty of fresh lava avail- able for viewing by tourists and others, including President Barack Obama, should he take up Hawaii County Mayor Billy Kenoi’s offer to make a special visit and check it all out. However, better for Pahoa residents than seeing the president rubber neck their slow-motion disaster would be for the disaster to just stop. Santa, you still out there?

Kauai Council starts slide down slippery slope

This bears watching: The Kauai County Council has approved a new rule governing its meetings that asks reporters and media organizations to provide a week’s notice before shooting photos or video.

Huh? For journalists, a week can be like an eternity. Much news breaks on a 24-hour cycle; further, notice of public meetings isn’t even required until six days prior.

Council members said they’re hoping to ensure order when big issues arise. Apparently, they saw a need for this rule after crowded meetings on the GMO debate. The rule apparently also lets the chairman assign spaces to reporters so they don’t interfere “with the convenience of the Council or its committees.”

Reminder to Council: This cannot be used to restrict, let alone ban, public access to public meetings. As we said: Bears watching.