Friday, April 13, 2007
Who are you calling a Ho?
Radio talk-show host Don Imus was having a conversation on his show about the recent NCAA women's college basketball championship game between Tennessee & Rutgers. ( Tennessee won that game).
Imus was comparing those 2 teams, their image, etc. Then Imus called the mostly African-American Rutgers team "nappy-headed hos".
That's where the controversy started!
Imus offended African-Americans and women by that comment!
I don't really know much about Don Imus, though it has been said that Imus had a long history of shallow, bigoted remarks.
1) Imus needs to grow up already! Imus is 67 years old! That means he should've been more mature than that before I was even born!
A mature adult shouldn't be making insulting remarks about how someone looks!
Even if Imus was just "joking", he's supposed to more mature than that!
2) Many have pointed-out that Don Imus "nappy-headed hos" comment is very similar to how many rappers describe women in their song.
Here's Snoop Dogg's comments on that issue
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1556803/20070410/id_0.jhtml
First of all, we ain't no old-ass white men that sit up on MSNBC going hard on black girls. We are rappers that have these songs coming from our minds and our souls that are relevant to what we feel. I will not let them [expletive] say we in the same league with them. . . . [Rappers] are not talking about no collegiate basketball girls who have made it to the next level in education and sports. We're talking about ho's that's in the 'hood that ain't doing [expletive], that's trying to get a [expletive] for his money. These are two separate things.
I grew up as part of the hip-hop generation. When I was a teenager, gangsta rappers like Snoop Dogg, 2pac, Biggie, Westside Connection, EAZY-E, etc were very popular, and I was listening to their CD's
Also, booty music by 2 Live Crew, Uncle Luke, etc were popular at school dances and I was a big fan of their music.
It was obvious that those rappers weren't calling their moms, grandmas or daughters "bitches" or "hos". However, they bragged about having sex with "bitches and hos". They made songs like "Me & My Bitch" So they were basically referring to young women as "bitches".
It was also obvious that they were just joking around when they calling young women "bitches". However, that doesn't make it OK!
3) I also remembered during my freshman year, my friend was joking about a male classmate "hanging out with the bitches", and I thought that was funny. I then made similar jokes, writing in classmate yearbooks about "hanging out with the b******s"
Obviously, I wasn't going to refer to my female relatives or my favorite female teachers as "bitches"!
It wasn't like I believed women had "inferior status". I NEVER believed that men should rule over women. It was just my generation's version of using the words "chicks" or "babes", just with a more "gangsta" edge to it. However, it doesn't erase the fact that the use of the word "b*****" was totally innappropriate!
I can't be going along with jokes that irritate innocent people. (This show I matured a lot faster than Don Imus)
I admit I'm taking a big risk admitting all this on the Internet, since not everyone who knew me back then (and definitely no-one who 1st met me afterwards) knew I was joking with my friends like that!
So if anyone heard me joking around in that manner, and was offended, I sincerely apologize.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
What do you mean "it wasn't a hate crime"?
A lot of people in Hawaii is so in denial when it comes to racism in their islands!
I know, Hawaii has more inter-racial marriages than any other state in the US, but that doesn't erase the fact that racism exists in Hawaii.
Hawaii hasn't had any large racial riots like LA, Detroit, Miami and other mainland areas.
But that doesn't mean Hawaii doesn't have a racial conflict
Recently, a car driven by a white guy accidentally hit a car driven by a Native Hawaiian guy.The Native Hawaiian guy (Gerald D. Paakaula) was so angered about it, he confronted the white guy (Andrew Drussell), called him a "fucking haole". Gerald Paakaula and his son attacked Andrew and his wife, nearly killing them. All this happened in front of Druseell's 3-year old son!
http://honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070224/NEWS01/702240334/1001/NEWS
1) Some say racism wasn't involved! Give me a break!
Some say it has more to do with a car accident than racism.
All this reminds me of what happened in March 3, 1991 in Los Angeles.An African-American man named Rodney King was driving drunk in the freeways. The cops stopped him, and King argued with the cops. Then the cops (all white guys) beat up Rodney King, with harsh strikes to the head!
This incident was caught on videotape! This incident was seen as a sign that America was a racist country, a sign that European-Americans hate African-Americans so much that they would brutally attack them any chance they got!
(Some of the white cops involved were known to make racist comments about African-Americans and other non-whites)
The 4 white cops were found Not Guilty on April 29,1992 This caused a lot of anger which turned into a major riot in LA!
Yet, some European-Americans living in or near LA still denied that LA has racial tensions!
Notice the similarities with the recent Hawaii incident. A car out of control! The person driving that car being severely beaten up by those with racist attitudes! People living in that area denying the incident was a sign that their area has serious racial tensions!
2) The word haole is controversial in Hawaii.
Haole is Hawaiian for foreigner. The 1st foreigners to come to Hawaii where of European ancestry. So the word haole became commonly used to refer to white people! For some reason, it's almost never used to refer to Asians, non-Hawaiian Pacific Islanders or African-Americans!
Some white people in Hawaii would occassionally refer to themselves as "haoles" So that word isn't always racist!
However, if you're a white person being attacked by non-whites calling you a "fucking haole", obviously you would consider that racist!
It's just like how the word "Asian" isn't a racist word by itself. But sometimes, a non-Asian attacking an Asian would say "you fucking Asian" Now that would be racist!
Reverend Alapaki Kim said the following
http://www.starbulletin.com/2007/02/26/editorial/letters.html
The racial epithet in Hawaiian for a white person is "Elelu Kea," which is referenced to cockroach nymphs that are white or cockroaches that have molted their exuviae and therefore appear white and dirty until the new cuticula hardens. Obviously, due to the distastefulness of this epithet, one never hears it.
Reverend Kim, get real!
If the word "elelu kea" was on Paakaula's mind when he attacked Drussell, of course he would've called him a "fucking elelu kea" before attacking him!
The only reason why we rarely hear the word "elelu kea" being used is that not many people know that word! If everyone in Hawaii knew it, obviously we'd hear it more often!
3) Another lame comment in Star Bulletin's letters section, this time by Kristi Sue-Ako
http://www.starbulletin.com/2007/03/01/editorial/letters.html
If the recent assault incident at Waikele was a hate crime, then the accused would have a lot more people to beat up.
A racist isn't going to attack everyone of the hated race! They'll attack when the opportunity is right.
I never met Gerald Paakaula, but his publicized behavior follows a pattern common among racists!
They might some anger/distrust/etc towards a certain race but hold it in! That is until they snap.
Chances are pretty high that Paakaula didn't like white people but never acted on it, until Drussell's car hit his car.Then Paakaula's mind was thinking "that's it, I'm teaching those f'in haoles a lesson, I'm gonna send a message to all haoles in Hawaii" Then he attacked!
4) Lee Cataluna (an editorialist who is part-Hawaiian, part-Portuguese) considers any discussion about Native Hawaiians attacking Caucasians as "racist" against Native Hawaiians!
http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Mar/04/ln/FP703040364.html
Obviously, not all Native Hawaiians hate all Caucasians. In fact, a lot of Native Hawaiians have Caucasian friends and even Caucasian spouses!
However, some Native Hawaiians still feel hostility towards white people. They are angry that the white man took their ancestor's land, and tried to eliminate their culture. They hear their grandparent's tell stories of being brutalized by white teachers for speaking Hawaiian! They hear about how the missionaries discouraging Native Hawaiian cultural rituals! And they feel that even today, some Euro-Americans still don't show their culture respect!
To say that there are no anti-white Hawaiian racists is to be dishonest! It is well known that white kids in areas like Waianae, Nanakuli, Waimanalo, etc get bullied. Not every Native Hawaiian in those areas bully Caucasians, but more than enough to show a pattern.
We might as well admit that are some conflicts going on!
5) Even USA Today is discussing the incident involving Paakaula beating up Drussell, as well as other racial issues in Hawaii.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-03-06-hawaii-cover_N.htm?csp=34
Somewhere in that article mentions one of the least reported issues of Hawaii!
Hawaii's unemployment rate was 2% in December, the USA's lowest. The hot economy is attracting poorly educated immigrants who can have problems fitting in. Groups of young Micronesians from Western Pacific islands such as Chuk sometimes fight with other groups in low-income Honolulu neighborhoods, police reports say.
The Micronesians only came to Hawaii in large numbers within the last 15 years. Many of them are still in culture shock when they come here! And many local people are in culture shock when they notice a lot of Micronesians move into their communities! Unfortunately, some local people of Hawaii don't respect Micronesians, and stereotype them as "uneducated", "ignorant", "uncivilized" and "criminals".
I remember hearing from this one Marshallese guy saying that he was bullied by Samoans and that him & his friends got into fights with Chuukese and Asians. He was also upset that people say there is "too many Micronesians". However, that Marshallese guy has made fun of other cultures as well, so he is no angel.
The USA Today article failed to mention that even Asian immigrants have trouble fitting in. Some Filipino and Vietnamese immigrants have formed gangs to defend themselves against Polynesian gangs.
I also remember this one Chinese guy, born to immigrant parents and growing up in urban Honolulu, saying that he "hated Polynesians", and mentioned that he was slapped and robbed by a Samoan gangsta, and threatened at work by a Native Hawaiian guy. He was also upset that many Hawaiians and Samoans make fun of how Chinese language is spoken!
So the racial conflict in Hawaii isn't just Hawaiians vs Caucasians!
6) Therefore, the people of Hawaii need to stop being in denial!
We got to acknowledge that not everyone wants to get along in Hawaii.
Yes, Hawaii has been more successful in integrating many cultures, has a high percentage of inter-racial marriages, and never had the deadly racial riots that other places in the world has.
But can we admit we're not always perfect?
A lot of people in Hawaii is so in denial when it comes to racism in their islands!
I know, Hawaii has more inter-racial marriages than any other state in the US, but that doesn't erase the fact that racism exists in Hawaii.
Hawaii hasn't had any large racial riots like LA, Detroit, Miami and other mainland areas.
But that doesn't mean Hawaii doesn't have a racial conflict
Recently, a car driven by a white guy accidentally hit a car driven by a Native Hawaiian guy.The Native Hawaiian guy (Gerald D. Paakaula) was so angered about it, he confronted the white guy (Andrew Drussell), called him a "fucking haole". Gerald Paakaula and his son attacked Andrew and his wife, nearly killing them. All this happened in front of Druseell's 3-year old son!
http://honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070224/NEWS01/702240334/1001/NEWS
1) Some say racism wasn't involved! Give me a break!
Some say it has more to do with a car accident than racism.
All this reminds me of what happened in March 3, 1991 in Los Angeles.An African-American man named Rodney King was driving drunk in the freeways. The cops stopped him, and King argued with the cops. Then the cops (all white guys) beat up Rodney King, with harsh strikes to the head!
This incident was caught on videotape! This incident was seen as a sign that America was a racist country, a sign that European-Americans hate African-Americans so much that they would brutally attack them any chance they got!
(Some of the white cops involved were known to make racist comments about African-Americans and other non-whites)
The 4 white cops were found Not Guilty on April 29,1992 This caused a lot of anger which turned into a major riot in LA!
Yet, some European-Americans living in or near LA still denied that LA has racial tensions!
Notice the similarities with the recent Hawaii incident. A car out of control! The person driving that car being severely beaten up by those with racist attitudes! People living in that area denying the incident was a sign that their area has serious racial tensions!
2) The word haole is controversial in Hawaii.
Haole is Hawaiian for foreigner. The 1st foreigners to come to Hawaii where of European ancestry. So the word haole became commonly used to refer to white people! For some reason, it's almost never used to refer to Asians, non-Hawaiian Pacific Islanders or African-Americans!
Some white people in Hawaii would occassionally refer to themselves as "haoles" So that word isn't always racist!
However, if you're a white person being attacked by non-whites calling you a "fucking haole", obviously you would consider that racist!
It's just like how the word "Asian" isn't a racist word by itself. But sometimes, a non-Asian attacking an Asian would say "you fucking Asian" Now that would be racist!
Reverend Alapaki Kim said the following
http://www.starbulletin.com/2007/02/26/editorial/letters.html
The racial epithet in Hawaiian for a white person is "Elelu Kea," which is referenced to cockroach nymphs that are white or cockroaches that have molted their exuviae and therefore appear white and dirty until the new cuticula hardens. Obviously, due to the distastefulness of this epithet, one never hears it.
Reverend Kim, get real!
If the word "elelu kea" was on Paakaula's mind when he attacked Drussell, of course he would've called him a "fucking elelu kea" before attacking him!
The only reason why we rarely hear the word "elelu kea" being used is that not many people know that word! If everyone in Hawaii knew it, obviously we'd hear it more often!
3) Another lame comment in Star Bulletin's letters section, this time by Kristi Sue-Ako
http://www.starbulletin.com/2007/03/01/editorial/letters.html
If the recent assault incident at Waikele was a hate crime, then the accused would have a lot more people to beat up.
A racist isn't going to attack everyone of the hated race! They'll attack when the opportunity is right.
I never met Gerald Paakaula, but his publicized behavior follows a pattern common among racists!
They might some anger/distrust/etc towards a certain race but hold it in! That is until they snap.
Chances are pretty high that Paakaula didn't like white people but never acted on it, until Drussell's car hit his car.Then Paakaula's mind was thinking "that's it, I'm teaching those f'in haoles a lesson, I'm gonna send a message to all haoles in Hawaii" Then he attacked!
4) Lee Cataluna (an editorialist who is part-Hawaiian, part-Portuguese) considers any discussion about Native Hawaiians attacking Caucasians as "racist" against Native Hawaiians!
http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Mar/04/ln/FP703040364.html
Obviously, not all Native Hawaiians hate all Caucasians. In fact, a lot of Native Hawaiians have Caucasian friends and even Caucasian spouses!
However, some Native Hawaiians still feel hostility towards white people. They are angry that the white man took their ancestor's land, and tried to eliminate their culture. They hear their grandparent's tell stories of being brutalized by white teachers for speaking Hawaiian! They hear about how the missionaries discouraging Native Hawaiian cultural rituals! And they feel that even today, some Euro-Americans still don't show their culture respect!
To say that there are no anti-white Hawaiian racists is to be dishonest! It is well known that white kids in areas like Waianae, Nanakuli, Waimanalo, etc get bullied. Not every Native Hawaiian in those areas bully Caucasians, but more than enough to show a pattern.
We might as well admit that are some conflicts going on!
5) Even USA Today is discussing the incident involving Paakaula beating up Drussell, as well as other racial issues in Hawaii.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-03-06-hawaii-cover_N.htm?csp=34
Somewhere in that article mentions one of the least reported issues of Hawaii!
Hawaii's unemployment rate was 2% in December, the USA's lowest. The hot economy is attracting poorly educated immigrants who can have problems fitting in. Groups of young Micronesians from Western Pacific islands such as Chuk sometimes fight with other groups in low-income Honolulu neighborhoods, police reports say.
The Micronesians only came to Hawaii in large numbers within the last 15 years. Many of them are still in culture shock when they come here! And many local people are in culture shock when they notice a lot of Micronesians move into their communities! Unfortunately, some local people of Hawaii don't respect Micronesians, and stereotype them as "uneducated", "ignorant", "uncivilized" and "criminals".
I remember hearing from this one Marshallese guy saying that he was bullied by Samoans and that him & his friends got into fights with Chuukese and Asians. He was also upset that people say there is "too many Micronesians". However, that Marshallese guy has made fun of other cultures as well, so he is no angel.
The USA Today article failed to mention that even Asian immigrants have trouble fitting in. Some Filipino and Vietnamese immigrants have formed gangs to defend themselves against Polynesian gangs.
I also remember this one Chinese guy, born to immigrant parents and growing up in urban Honolulu, saying that he "hated Polynesians", and mentioned that he was slapped and robbed by a Samoan gangsta, and threatened at work by a Native Hawaiian guy. He was also upset that many Hawaiians and Samoans make fun of how Chinese language is spoken!
So the racial conflict in Hawaii isn't just Hawaiians vs Caucasians!
6) Therefore, the people of Hawaii need to stop being in denial!
We got to acknowledge that not everyone wants to get along in Hawaii.
Yes, Hawaii has been more successful in integrating many cultures, has a high percentage of inter-racial marriages, and never had the deadly racial riots that other places in the world has.
But can we admit we're not always perfect?
Friday, March 09, 2007
The Life & Death of the Notorious BIG
10 years ago today, the rapper Notorious BIG, (aka Biggie, aka Biggie Smalls) was murdered. He was leaving party in LA when he was shot in a drive-by shooting. The killer has never been caught by police!
Biggie's death came 6 months after the death of another rapper, 2pac (aka Tupac Shakur). 2pac and Biggie didn't get along, and 2pac made insulting Biggie. Some thought Biggie was responsible for 2pac's death, and that Biggie was killed in retaliation!
(for my commentary on 2pac, go to http://pablothemadtiger.blogspot.com/2006_09_01_archive.html)
1) I still remember the first time I heard of the Notorious BIG. It was in the summer of 1994, between my 7th & 8th grade years. I first saw the video for "Juicy"The song was about Biggie's dream of being a rapper, living in public housing, his trouble with the law, and how he was trying to live a more positive and successful life! The video illustrated that even better than the song itself!
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/notoriousbig/juicy.html
That song was part of Biggie's 1st album "Ready to Die". It also had another song "Everyday Struggles", another song about how hard it was for someone in the ghetto to survive, and that getting in trouble with the law isn't glamorous at all!
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/notoriousbig/everydaystruggle.html
I also remembered the song "Big Poppa" which was his 1st mainstream hit! It was a more happy song, about living a life of luxury and being a stud. Every guy my age loved that song because we wanted to live that Big Poppa lifestyle!
http://www.seeklyrics.com/lyrics/Notorious-B-I-G/Big-Poppa.html
2) That song also had a beat that was popular with West Coast rappers at the time. Though Biggie was from the East Coast, and most of his songs used East Coast beats, he used a West Coast beat for "Big Poppa" because 1) West Coast rappers were the most popular that time, 2) he wanted to have fans in both the East & West coast!
However, Biggie had problems with 2pac (who was born in New York, but moved to California as a teenager) and it was seen as a "East Coast vs West Coast" war!
However, 2pac did make songs with East Coast rappers like Naughty By Nature, Method Man, Redman and the Outlawz.And Biggie made songs with West Coast rapper Too Short (the Word is Filled ..), and made a solo hit "Going Back to Cali" (another song with a West Coast beat), which he stated he loved to visit California!
3) While Biggie had some serious songs, he also had some funny stuff as well. Just go to the following website and you'll find some interesting stuff!
http://www.azlyrics.com/n/notorious.html
4) "Ready to Die" was Biggie's 1st album. "Life After Death" came out 2 weeks after he was killed.
The other 2 albums listed, "Born Again" & "Duets: The Final Chapter" had mostly stuff that Biggie made, but wasn't planned for release. However, the fans wanted more stuff, so Bad Boy Records released them.
Most of the stuff wasn't as great as his 1st 2 albums!You could also find more stuff with Biggie on Puff Daddy's (aka Puffy, now known as Diddy) album "No Way Out"!
Puffy and Biggie were good friends, so they made a lot of songs together! "No Way Out" came out a few months after Biggie's death, and you'll find some great stuff there!
5) I remembered when I 1st found out Biggie was dead.
It was early in the morning, and I just got up. I was still tired!
I could hear my mom's radio (usually tuned to KSSK, which mostly played slow songs).
The hosts Perry & Price were talking about 2pac & Biggie's feud, and I was wondering why were they talking about it, since that radio station didn't play rap music! I was wondering if Biggie was being questioned by police about it!
Then about a 1/2 hour later( when I was finally wide awake!) , the TV news mentioned Biggie was killed!
Then it finally hit me! That was why Perry & Price were talking about it!
10 years ago today, the rapper Notorious BIG, (aka Biggie, aka Biggie Smalls) was murdered. He was leaving party in LA when he was shot in a drive-by shooting. The killer has never been caught by police!
Biggie's death came 6 months after the death of another rapper, 2pac (aka Tupac Shakur). 2pac and Biggie didn't get along, and 2pac made insulting Biggie. Some thought Biggie was responsible for 2pac's death, and that Biggie was killed in retaliation!
(for my commentary on 2pac, go to http://pablothemadtiger.blogspot.com/2006_09_01_archive.html)
1) I still remember the first time I heard of the Notorious BIG. It was in the summer of 1994, between my 7th & 8th grade years. I first saw the video for "Juicy"The song was about Biggie's dream of being a rapper, living in public housing, his trouble with the law, and how he was trying to live a more positive and successful life! The video illustrated that even better than the song itself!
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/notoriousbig/juicy.html
That song was part of Biggie's 1st album "Ready to Die". It also had another song "Everyday Struggles", another song about how hard it was for someone in the ghetto to survive, and that getting in trouble with the law isn't glamorous at all!
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/notoriousbig/everydaystruggle.html
I also remembered the song "Big Poppa" which was his 1st mainstream hit! It was a more happy song, about living a life of luxury and being a stud. Every guy my age loved that song because we wanted to live that Big Poppa lifestyle!
http://www.seeklyrics.com/lyrics/Notorious-B-I-G/Big-Poppa.html
2) That song also had a beat that was popular with West Coast rappers at the time. Though Biggie was from the East Coast, and most of his songs used East Coast beats, he used a West Coast beat for "Big Poppa" because 1) West Coast rappers were the most popular that time, 2) he wanted to have fans in both the East & West coast!
However, Biggie had problems with 2pac (who was born in New York, but moved to California as a teenager) and it was seen as a "East Coast vs West Coast" war!
However, 2pac did make songs with East Coast rappers like Naughty By Nature, Method Man, Redman and the Outlawz.And Biggie made songs with West Coast rapper Too Short (the Word is Filled ..), and made a solo hit "Going Back to Cali" (another song with a West Coast beat), which he stated he loved to visit California!
3) While Biggie had some serious songs, he also had some funny stuff as well. Just go to the following website and you'll find some interesting stuff!
http://www.azlyrics.com/n/notorious.html
4) "Ready to Die" was Biggie's 1st album. "Life After Death" came out 2 weeks after he was killed.
The other 2 albums listed, "Born Again" & "Duets: The Final Chapter" had mostly stuff that Biggie made, but wasn't planned for release. However, the fans wanted more stuff, so Bad Boy Records released them.
Most of the stuff wasn't as great as his 1st 2 albums!You could also find more stuff with Biggie on Puff Daddy's (aka Puffy, now known as Diddy) album "No Way Out"!
Puffy and Biggie were good friends, so they made a lot of songs together! "No Way Out" came out a few months after Biggie's death, and you'll find some great stuff there!
5) I remembered when I 1st found out Biggie was dead.
It was early in the morning, and I just got up. I was still tired!
I could hear my mom's radio (usually tuned to KSSK, which mostly played slow songs).
The hosts Perry & Price were talking about 2pac & Biggie's feud, and I was wondering why were they talking about it, since that radio station didn't play rap music! I was wondering if Biggie was being questioned by police about it!
Then about a 1/2 hour later( when I was finally wide awake!) , the TV news mentioned Biggie was killed!
Then it finally hit me! That was why Perry & Price were talking about it!
Monday, February 19, 2007
In memory of Danielle DeMatta
I have known Danielle DeMatta from this one pre-school that I occassionally work at as a substitute teacher.
She was a part-time aide, working in the afternoons, with the youngest of pre-schoolers.
I have only known her for 2 months, and already she has gone. She was only 22 years old.
She was a very nice person and she loved working with the kids.
Based on the few conversations I had with her, she was a Kamehameha grad, lived in Hawaii Kai, and loved music by 98 Degrees and NSYNC!
--
The circumstances surrounding Danielle's death was shocking, and caught me & many of her co-workers by surprise.For more info on it, go to http://starbulletin.com/2007/02/15/news/briefs.html, (you'll need to scroll down to find it) or http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Feb/15/ln/FP702150372.html
--
Condolences to her family & friends, and may Danielle DeMatta rest in peace in heaven!
I have known Danielle DeMatta from this one pre-school that I occassionally work at as a substitute teacher.
She was a part-time aide, working in the afternoons, with the youngest of pre-schoolers.
I have only known her for 2 months, and already she has gone. She was only 22 years old.
She was a very nice person and she loved working with the kids.
Based on the few conversations I had with her, she was a Kamehameha grad, lived in Hawaii Kai, and loved music by 98 Degrees and NSYNC!
--
The circumstances surrounding Danielle's death was shocking, and caught me & many of her co-workers by surprise.For more info on it, go to http://starbulletin.com/2007/02/15/news/briefs.html, (you'll need to scroll down to find it) or http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Feb/15/ln/FP702150372.html
--
Condolences to her family & friends, and may Danielle DeMatta rest in peace in heaven!
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Minimum Wage
Congress wants to raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25
That just sounds so great - those working for minimum wage will have an easier time paying for neccessities right?
Not really.
Look at it this way, employers will have to pay the workers more. But the money to pay for that is NOT going to come out of nowhere! Prices are going to be raised in order to pay the workers more!
So, with the minimum wage increasing from $5.15 to $7.25, that means everything that once cost $5.15 will now cost $7.25
And that won't even erase the struggles of those on minimum wage!
In some cases, employees might even lay off workers or cut their hours! Why? Because they can't afford to pay the higher wages!
Congress wants to raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25
That just sounds so great - those working for minimum wage will have an easier time paying for neccessities right?
Not really.
Look at it this way, employers will have to pay the workers more. But the money to pay for that is NOT going to come out of nowhere! Prices are going to be raised in order to pay the workers more!
So, with the minimum wage increasing from $5.15 to $7.25, that means everything that once cost $5.15 will now cost $7.25
And that won't even erase the struggles of those on minimum wage!
In some cases, employees might even lay off workers or cut their hours! Why? Because they can't afford to pay the higher wages!
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
WAC football
1) 1st off, much props to the University of Hawaii football team. After early struggles against Alabama and Boise State, the UH team went 11-3.
Colt Brennan made many difficult throws and dodged many tackles, Nate Ilaoa brought the running game that was missing from UH the last few years, and defense finally gained more speed and tackled faster than they did the last few years.
This was one of the best UH teams in history.
2) Because UH plays Boise State every year, I am well aware of how good the Boise State program is!
But because UH and Boise State are in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), they are overlooked by much of the US.
Boise State finally made it to a big time bowl game (the Fiesta Bowl) and defeated the big-time Oklahoma team. It was one of most exciting games I ever watched, with both teams taking the lead several times in the last few minutes and went into overtime, with Boise State winning.
And to top it all off, Boise State running back Ian Johnson made a proposal to his team's cheerleader, and she accepted!
3) Boise State's victory shows that those from lesser known conferences have been underestimated! We need a playoff system in Division 1 college football, with teams from all conferences.
It's not fair to have a championship if some conferences don't at least get a shot at it! So, maybe the big-time conferences would win most of the championships. But if we're gonna call anyone a Division 1-A champion, then all Division 1-A conferences ought to be involved. Period. Otherwise, we might as well delete some conferences from Division 1-A.
4) Hopefully, UH can go undefeated in 2007, then go to a big time bowl game. And defeat a team from a big conference in that bowl game!
Now THAT would be exciting!
Colt Brennan should think about that, and return to UH one more year
1) 1st off, much props to the University of Hawaii football team. After early struggles against Alabama and Boise State, the UH team went 11-3.
Colt Brennan made many difficult throws and dodged many tackles, Nate Ilaoa brought the running game that was missing from UH the last few years, and defense finally gained more speed and tackled faster than they did the last few years.
This was one of the best UH teams in history.
2) Because UH plays Boise State every year, I am well aware of how good the Boise State program is!
But because UH and Boise State are in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), they are overlooked by much of the US.
Boise State finally made it to a big time bowl game (the Fiesta Bowl) and defeated the big-time Oklahoma team. It was one of most exciting games I ever watched, with both teams taking the lead several times in the last few minutes and went into overtime, with Boise State winning.
And to top it all off, Boise State running back Ian Johnson made a proposal to his team's cheerleader, and she accepted!
3) Boise State's victory shows that those from lesser known conferences have been underestimated! We need a playoff system in Division 1 college football, with teams from all conferences.
It's not fair to have a championship if some conferences don't at least get a shot at it! So, maybe the big-time conferences would win most of the championships. But if we're gonna call anyone a Division 1-A champion, then all Division 1-A conferences ought to be involved. Period. Otherwise, we might as well delete some conferences from Division 1-A.
4) Hopefully, UH can go undefeated in 2007, then go to a big time bowl game. And defeat a team from a big conference in that bowl game!
Now THAT would be exciting!
Colt Brennan should think about that, and return to UH one more year
The execution of Saddam Hussein
Finally, Saddam Hussein has been executed. Hussein was the dictator of Iraq and one of the worst violators of human rights
Hussein used poison gas on Kurds and Shiites, tortured his critics, invaded Kuwait, used Scud missiles against Israel, and threatened to acquire weapons of mass destruction!
The US did support Saddam Hussein when Iraq fought a war against Iran in the 1980s. However, when Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, the US turned against Hussein. The 1st President Bush led the US troops to get the Iraqi troops out of Kuwait.
The US also led UN sanctions against Iraq, which both Bushes and Bill Clinton supporting the sanctions!
After 9/11, the younger Bush feared that Hussein might want to further retaliate against the US by acquiring weapons of mass destruction. Because of that, Bush allowed the US troops to invade Iraq in 2003.
To learn more, check out
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein
Finally, Saddam Hussein has been executed. Hussein was the dictator of Iraq and one of the worst violators of human rights
Hussein used poison gas on Kurds and Shiites, tortured his critics, invaded Kuwait, used Scud missiles against Israel, and threatened to acquire weapons of mass destruction!
The US did support Saddam Hussein when Iraq fought a war against Iran in the 1980s. However, when Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, the US turned against Hussein. The 1st President Bush led the US troops to get the Iraqi troops out of Kuwait.
The US also led UN sanctions against Iraq, which both Bushes and Bill Clinton supporting the sanctions!
After 9/11, the younger Bush feared that Hussein might want to further retaliate against the US by acquiring weapons of mass destruction. Because of that, Bush allowed the US troops to invade Iraq in 2003.
To learn more, check out
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein
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