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In This Issue: NTU visit and Hawaii's Economy, Honolulu Rail Update, Liberty News, Family Brain Gain, and More!
Bungled Fiscal Policy
Turning Around Hawaii's Economy
By Josh Culling, National Taxpayers Union
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GRIH Founder Dick Rowland and NTU's
Josh Culling on the floor of the Hawaii House
of Representatives. Culling had the honor
of being introduced from the floor during his recent Hawaii visit. |
Just about all of us have heard a story or seen a movie featuring that quintessential character from high school days: the prom queen. And the plot often turns out the same. Spending her youth getting by on good looks and a million-dollar smile, the good years are a lot of fun for the prom queen. She’s reached the height of her popularity, attracting attention from everyone simply by her stunning appearance. Unfortunately, as times change, life’s not so easy – she becomes just another pretty face, or worse, loses her allure and realizes she should have paid attention in class.
Hawaii, having enjoyed a strong national economy and a booming tourism industry, has a lot to learn from the tale of the prom queen — and unlike a book or a movie, there are real-life consequences if the lesson doesn’t stick. Unless the Aloha State embraces pro-growth tax and fiscal policies, sandy beaches and cloudless skies won’t be enough to sustain its economy.
(To read more, click here.)
GRASSROOT PERSPECTIVE
A Local Process?
An Update on Oahu's Elevated Rail Transit Plan
By Cliff Slater
With the budget crunch and economic challenges the state and city of Honolulu face the rail debate has diminished and the Mayor has made it clear it full stream ahead so GIR asked GRIH Board member and Treasurer Cliff Slater to provide us an update.
First we are concerned that the City Council will agree to spend $1.1 billion to build the “Train to Nowhere” — the 6.5 mile segment from East Kapolei to the Pearl Highlands Shopping Center — without any stipulations about receiving federal funding. Many organizations have filed comments about the flawed Draft EIS. (see the comments at http://www.honolulutraffic.com/EISComments.htm ) and presently citizen's await the outcome of the FTA’s decision as to whether they will require the city to perform a Supplementary Draft EIS, which should be thought necessary given the deficiencies in the current Draft EIS.
(To read more, click here.)
GRASSROOT REVIEWS
Have you read a good book or viewed a good DVD on liberty or free market subject recently? Let your fellow GRIH members know and share your views with the 'Grassroot Reviews'. Please send your book, movie or video review to tom@grassrootinstitute.org
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GRASSROOT TV
Please check out three NEW videos we have at GTV!
http://www.youtube.com/user/GrassrootHawaii
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'GRASSROOT INSIGHT' PODCASTS
GRIH Director of Communications Tom McAuliffe interviews VIPs, community leaders, and special guests from the liberty and freedom movement. The FREE audio interviews are available for download to your portable listening device or for listening via the Internet. In this issue GIR sits down with Josh Culling from the National Taxpayers Union in Washington DC to discuss Hawaii's taxes and economy.
Click to listen to Josh Culling discuss Hawaii's taxes and economy
Please check out our other recent podcasts with:
• Citizens Against Government Waste's David Williams
• Author Dr. Ken Conklin on the Akaka Bill and Hawaiian history
• GRIH Youth Coordinator Lora Burbage on education reform
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LIBERTY EVENTS
Information on the Institute’s upcoming events, research publication dates and speaking engagements are always available and updated via our website. The Grassroot Institute has regular meetings on Oahu, Maui, The Big Island, and Kauai. Please contact our office for more details.
• Family Brain Gain Seminars Celebrates 6 month Anniversary
April's showing of the movie Expelled-No Intelligence Allowed, an award-winning documentary by Ben Stein at Trinity Presbyterian Church and School on Oahu's windward side was a big hit. Expelled was in theaters last year and is now on DVD at Blockbuster. It is a valuable tool to have on the GRIH list of films made available to schools. Good comments ensued after the film, especially from Li Schoolland about the so-called "Discovery in China" confirming a transition form for Darwin's theory. National Geographic had to eat their words when the fossil was tested and found that the form had been fabricated to create what scientists were looking for.
"GRIH Youth Program's monthly Family Brain Gain Seminars have been successful in educating youth and adults on many important topics," said Lora Burbage, coordinator for the event. "The films and discussions that follow have been broad and varied. We learned about the roots of liberty throughout history, saw the success of free markets at work in various countries, heard personal accounts of life in communist China, watched the small country of Estonia free itself by singing, and this month, we saw how free speech really isn't free in the evolution and intelligent design debate," she said. "Students and parents have commented that these films have been interesting and unique. We believe these evenings are helping educate entire families. What great topics for discussion around the dinner table!"
The event will be on vacation during May but stay tuned for more information! If you have any suggestions for videos please contact Dick Rowland, GRIH Founder and Youth Program Director and/or Lora Burbage –LLburbage@yahoo.com. If you have any questions, call Lora at 772-0787 or Dick at 864-1776. Donations to help defer expenses will be gratefully accepted. Mahalo nui loa to Trinity Presbyterian Church and School for their support!
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• Li Zhao's The Foolish Things Idea Exchange
Date: Sunday May 17, 2009
Time: 6 pm - 8 pm
Speakers/Topic: GRIH Chairman of the Board Dr. Jeff Crawford is giving an opening presentation:
"Guns, Drugs, and Roses: Rethinking Drug Policy"
followed by lively discussion.
Cost: $5 monthly (or $40 annual) membership donation. Heavy pupus.
Location: The Schoolland's, 94-1072 Alelo St., Waipahu, HI
RSVP to 808-676-0825 or Li.Schoolland@gmail.com
• Freedom Fest 2009
July 9 - 11
Bally's Las Vegas, NV
PH:1-866-266-5101
www.freedomfest.com
Last year 1,427 individuals came from all 50 states and around the world (as far away as New Zealand), and this year the folks at Freedom Fest expect even a bigger crowd. Representatives of all the top free-market think tanks and organizations make it a point to be there, including Reason, Cato, Heritage, Fraser, FEE, Hillsdale College, Newsmax, and Campaign for Liberty. Lots of organizations piggyback onto FreedomFest as an ideal time to meet. Liberty Editors Conference holds their annual conference there. And Laissez Faire Books is the official bookstore. C-SPAN also films the event every year.
The event covers everything from philosophy, history, science/technology, economics to geo-politics, healthy living, and money. Over one hundred of your favorite speakers, nine great debates, a world-class investment conference, and Congressman's Ron Paul's Campaign for Liberty all combine to make this a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The theme for this year’s event is "Imagine the Possibilities."
This year nine debates are planned, including:
* US Foreign Policy – isolationist or imperialist?
* Should hard drugs be legalized?
* Keynes, Hayek, Friedman: Who Best to Solve the Financial Crisis?
* John Mackey takes on the Objectivists in "Randian vs. Conscious Capitalism"
* Prof. Richard Vedder tackles Al Norman on "Wal-Mart: Good or Bad?"
* "Lincoln on Trial" with Hillsdale Professor Thomas L. Krannawitter, author of the book Vindicating Lincoln.
Freedom Fest Producer Dr. Mark Skousen is a award winning economist and author of the best seller Econopower. He was part of the Grassroot Institute's 2008 Speaker Series. For more information please visit: www.freedomfest.com
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LIBERTY NEWS
GRIH Visits the Reagan Presidential Library and Heritage/SPN Event
President Jamie Story and TeamGrassroot recently attended the Heritage Resource Bank and SPN Leadership Development Breakfast in Los Angeles, California on April 23-26, 2009.
This year's event was held at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza and featured management and leadership experts providing strategies for advancing free markets and limited government. According to Story, it was a valuable session for all grassroots advocates, policy leaders,
and think tank staff. In addition to seminars and networking opportunities, the two day event featured a State Think Tank Dinner and a Atlas
Liberty discussion forum. Jointly sponsored by the State Policy Network (SPN) and the Heritage Foundation the annual event also afforded President Story the opportunity to visit the famous Reagan Presidential Library.
For more information please visit: www.heritage.org/about/community/resourcebank.cfm
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Smart Business Hawaii
New Name and 2009 Small Business Awards Banquet
SBH, Small Business Hawaii is now, “Smart Business Hawai’i”. The name change was officially adopted by the SBH Board of Directors last month. Unique in the U.S. among business and trade associations, SBH began in 1976 as the “Small Business Association of Hawaii,” started by Lex Brodie, to provide effective advocacy for growing numbers of very small businesses (five employees or less) in Hawaii. In 1983, SBH officially became, “Small Business Hawaii.”
"SBH always has been, and remains, success oriented and solution based," said SBH President Sam Slom. "SBH believes businesses must act “smarter” in today’s business climate and make better decisions. As an organization, SBH continues to be in the forefront of enumerating those solutions and working for their adoption in the workplace, the community and at the State Legislature."
(To read more, click here.)
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Grassroot Media Hits
 • Information on the Institute's new HawaiiVotes Web site is currently being seen by thousands on the State Policy Network Web site home page.
• As co-sponsor of the 2009 Hawaii Tax Day Tea Party GRIH received vast media coverage including 34 segments on TV across Hawaii and coverage in all of the state's daily newspapers.
• Policy Analyst Pearl Hahn recently had a Letter to the Editor in the Honolulu Advertiser on the 2009 Hawaii Tax Day Tea Party.
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 • GRIH President Jamie Story was recently quoted in a front page Honolulu Advertiser story "Hawaii income tax increases aimed at state's richest" which talked about the state increasing taxes by up to 11% for the top 2% of income earners.
"The problem with a progressive or graduated income tax like we have in Hawaii is that it actually penalizes people for making more money," she said... "So the last thing we want to do is discourage that or take away incentives for people to make more money by penalizing them."
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• The nationally recognized and popular site Townhall.com has recently picked up and run many of the articles you read in Grassroot in Review for national distribution.
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FAVORITE GRASSROOT BLOGS
Join the conversation and express your views! Use these links to access our interactive sites.
• Check out HawaiiVotes for the latest on the Hawaii State Legislature.
http://www.hawaiivotes.org
• Hawaii Sunshine Government Transparency Web Site
http://www.hawaiisunshine.org/
• The Mystery of Hawaiian History
http://historymystery.grassrootinstitute.org
• Hawaii Sunshine Chronicles
http://www.sunshinechronicles.wordpress.com
• Aloha For All
http://www.aloha4all.org
Read what others have written and add your own thoughts. See you there!
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NEED A GOOD SPEAKER?
From taxation to education and health care to transportation, the Institute’s staff is excited to address your group regarding the
important policy issues facing all citizens of Hawaii. Call (808) 591-9193 to check availability and make arrangements, or e-mail us at tom@grassrootinstitute.org.
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SUPPORT GOOD PUBLIC POLICY IN HAWAII!
Please help us continue to provide independent research on issues important to Hawaii! The Grassroot Institute operates only through the generous donations of friends and benefactors from around Hawaii and the United States, and even the smallest of donations can be used to accomplish great things for the future of our beloved state.
Will you please consider becoming a supporter today? Donations are tax deductible and it's quick, easy and secure. Click here!
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Grassroot Institute is a proud member of the State Policy Network, Townhall.com,
Americans for Tax Reform,
The Sam Adams Alliance and more.
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