Ka`u Calendar News Briefs Thursday, April 21, 2016

MISS KA`U COFFEE CANDIDATES are practicing often to prepare their talents, their smarts and their beauty for the judges and the public at the pageant on Saturday, May 14 at Ka`u Coffee Mill.
      Candidates for Miss Ka`u Coffee are 18-year-old Ka`u High School senior Shaira Panganiban Badua, daughter of Mario and Lucia Badua, of Pahala; 17-year-old Ka`u High School student Jami Beck, daughter of James and Sharon Beck, of Na`alehu; 21-year-old University of Hawai`i-Hilo student Casey Koi, daughter of Corey and Connie Koi of Pahala; and 22-year-old University of Hawai`i student Rochelle Koi, daughter of Rory Koi, of Na`alehu and Michelle Ortega, of Pahala.
      Pageant Director Trini Marques said that “the opening number will be a sizzling dance routine to the Bruno Mars hit song Uptown Funk.” It features 2015 Miss Ka`u Coffee Maria Miranda with all of the girls.
      Tickets are available from the candidates and at Punalu`u Bake Shop and Shaka’s Restaurant.
      See Miss Ka`u Coffee Junior Miss and Peaberry candidates in upcoming Ka`u News Briefs.
      To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

THE STATE’S APPOINTMENT of a judge to a contested case hearing about the Thirty Meter Telescope is being challenged. John Burnett reported in Hawai`i Tribune-Herald that Richard Naiwieha Wurdeman, representing Mauna Kea Anaina Hou and others, filed an objection with the state Board of Land & Natural Resources because the process “circumvented his clients and the public.”

      “We believe that … the board was required to hold a public hearing to determine, under the rules, whether the board was going to conduct a contested case hearing or if it was going to delegate that function to a hearing officer, at which point, the board would then authorize the chair to begin the selection process. That public hearing was never held,” Wurdeman told Burnett.

      Wurdeman also said in the filing that retired Hilo Circuit Court Judge Riki May Amano failed to disclose family membership to `Imiloa Astronomy Center.
      “The fact is that they’re part of the University of Hawai`i at Hilo, and UH-Hilo is a party to the action,” Wurdeman said. “She’s a dues-paying member to a party in an action. We feel that’s at least an appearance of a conflict, to say the least.”
      See hawaiitribune-herald.com.
      To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

U.S. SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ JOINED three colleagues in urging the Department of Commerce to take steps to leverage the connecting of technologies known as the Internet of Things for the benefit of consumers, businesses and the government.

      In a joint letter to the Department of Commerce, the senators expressed their concern that U.S. agencies may not be taking a holistic view of how to facilitate and regulate the Internet of Things. In their letter, they suggest this could result in conflicting requirements by different agencies and an overall lack of collaboration to promote and regulate the IoT.

      “To the extent the federal government must take concrete steps to leverage the emerging IoT for the benefit of our country, we urge strong attention be paid to proposals that shed light on how we can better work across sectors and agencies to reap the full benefits of the IoT,” the senators wrote.

      The bipartisan group of senators became concerned about a lack of inter-agency cooperation regarding the IoT while co-authoring the Developing Innovation and Growing the Internet of Things Act, which was introduced last month. The DIGIT Act would address these concerns by requiring relevant agencies to hold discussions and generate recommendations for Congress on ways to foster inter-agency collaboration that would help protect consumers while also enabling innovation in the Internet of Things.

      In their letter, the senators highlighted that a comprehensive strategy could move the U.S. forward and provide the country with the opportunity to lead in the emerging space of the IoT. Additionally, they urge that special attention be given to proposals that shed light on how the government can better work across sectors and agencies to reap the benefits of the IoT.
      To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES with the electrical system, Namakanipaio Campground in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park will not reopen today as reported yesterday. Hopefully it will reopen in a week. “We apologize for the inconvenience,” a statement from the park said.

      To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar.

TWAIN MEETS TITA on Wednesday, May 4 at Kilauea Military Camp Theater. Kilauea Drama & Entertainment Network’s show celebrates the sesquicentennial of Mark Twain’s 1866 visit to Hawai`i, featuring Kathy Collins and McAvoy Layne.

      This powerful show could well be subtitled, Satire Meets Attitude, said Suzi Bond, of KDEN. Employing wit, wisdom and humor, the Island Tita of 2016 attempts to drag the Wild Humorist of the Pacific Slope into the 21st century. Where Twain’s price of land on Maui was as little as one dollar an acre, Tita insists that dollar today will get you “not even one bag sand.”
      In honor of Mother’s Day, as an added attraction at no extra cost, Collins and Lane will read from The Diaries of Adam & Eve.
      Layne has portrayed Mark Twain for the past 28 years in over 4,000 performances from Piper’s Opera House in Virginia City to Leningrad University in Russia. He is the ghost of Samuel Clemens in The DiscoveryChannel’s Cronkite Award-winning documentary, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and has received numerous awards for his portrayals, including the Nevada Award for Excellence in School and Library Service.
      Collins began performing on stage at the age of 13 and started her broadcast career at 17. Raised on Maui, she often calls on her pidgin-speaking alter ego Tita during her weekly storytelling sessions at Makena Resort and frequent appearances at schools and libraries. Collins and Tita have performed at festivals across the U.S. and Canada, including the Lincoln Center Out of Doors Project in New York City.
      Reunited 40 years after their Maui radio days, Layne and Collins sparkle with comic chemistry, tickling your fancy and touching your heart.
      Tickets are $15 and will be available at the door. Reservations may be made by calling 982-7344 or emailing kden73@aol.com.

BAY CLINIC HOLDS a kickoff event for its new pharmacy tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event features free healthy refreshments and free promotional items by Walgreens.

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK waives entry fees through Sunday.

KILAUEA MILITARY CAMP’S Crater Rim Café in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park offers Mongolian BBQ Saturday from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. KMC invites residents to experience how the facility supports America’s troops by visiting during National Park Week. KMC is open to authorized patrons and sponsored guests.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS ATPAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.