Off the News: Some welcome zeros in virus numbers; There are mayoral debates, too

However brief, it was good to see all those zeroes — as in zero new coronavirus cases on the neighbor islands in the Monday report. It’s been several months since there had been no new cases for all neighbor islands, said the Hawaii COVID-19 Joint Information Center — and adding to that happy news, no COVID-19 deaths were reported that day.

But Oahu did see 90 new cases on Monday, a sober reminder that we all must stay vigilant against the dreaded disease. Only with the “3 Ws” — wearing masks, washing hands and watching our 6-foot distances — can we keep the case numbers low, and hopefully, lower.

There are mayoral debates, too

So much for high-minded civility. Mayoral candidate Keith Amemiya accused his opponent, Rick Blangiardi, of dodging televised debates because he “decided to protect himself.” Amemiya added, “This is a preview of the kind of Mayor he would be.”

Of course, the facts are more nuanced. Blangiardi said that he already has appeared with Amemiya 19 times in various forums. And the two rivals are expected to appear in two televised debates, on KITV4 (Oct. 10) and KHON2 (Oct. 14) — but not on Hawaii News Now, where Blangiardi was general manager.

Amemiya is right about one thing: The TV debates are very useful. They attract far more viewers than a midday Facebook forum, and give voters a good way to compare the candidates. Make sure you tune in.