Small Business Hawaii | Volume 24 Number 5 | May 1999
Sam Slom is also a State Senator from the 8th District (Waialae Iki to Hawaii Kai)
and has a website at this URL: http://hotspotshawaii.com/sam/slom.html
Sam Slom is also a State Senator from the 8th District (Waialae Iki to Hawaii Kai)
and has a website at this URL: http://hotspotshawaii.com/sam/slom.html
May is busting out all over and is going to be a very active month for small business in general and Small Business Hawaii in particular. May is when we celebrate "Small Business Week" (May 23-28 officially this year). For 51 weeks, politicians tax, regulate, prescribe, mandate, ban and prohibit business activities, then on the 52nd week, tell us how important we are. But it is important that those of us who reach our own hands in our pockets and meet payrolls and create jobs, honor our Hawaii successes. Radical-turned-Libertarian best-selling author and commentator, David Horowitz, is coming to Hawaii, co-sponsored by SBH. You must see and hear him May 3! May 4 is the scheduled end of the 1999 State Legislature and if it happens, and a Special Session is not scheduled, you can loosen your two-handed grip on your wallet or purse ‹for a while. May 4 & 5, join us in booth #302 at the annual "Small Business On The Move" expo at the Blaisdell. On May 6 ‹ can you keep up with this excitement? ‹ join our radio hero, KHVH's Rick Hamada, for an after hours "Spotlight on Small Business" networking at Rumors in the Ala Moana Hotel. May 13 is the SBH cosponsored 12th Annual US SBA Small Business Week Awards Luncheon at the Ilikai. Reserve now and honor our fellow small business owners. SBH, long a leader in building small business coalitions, is even more aggressively working with, and uniting, Hawaii's many regional business associations. Our first new alliance is with the ever pace-setting Aiea-Pearl City Business Association. SBH welcomes all local business and civic organizations who share our common objectives to join us. Call me personally (396-1724). Watch for more exciting changes and a new direction for your organization, coming soon. By the way, Dick Rowland, SBH member insurance executive, Libertarian, columnist and Aiea/PC Director, personally wrote to all 76 Hawaii lawmakers and delivered copies of the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution at the Capitol last month. Mea Culpa. Last month I wrote that it looked like Hawaii's efforts to lure the most successful worldwide syndicated TV series, "Baywatch," from California and away from Australia, failed. Little did I know that the Governor would stop at nothing and do everything possible to get that series filmed here. Calling in chips from union supporters, politicians, and the team of Al & April Masini who helped taxpayers spend $3 million last year to produce the Miss Universe Pageant in Hawaii, the deed was done. "Baywatch Hawaii" will film here and the world will continue to see T & A, silicon (not Silicon Valley) or saline, and enjoy. Glamorous, yes. More than 1,200 local residents tried out for two permanent and several guest TV shots. Money will be spent and the economy will benefit. Hawaii's flagging film and TV industry will get a shot in the arm and that's good. But is this really more important than improving our overall business climate and giving relief‹and hope‹to our struggling small business owners? You judge. Hilo GM of Chem Tainer of Hawaii, Fred McCleaft, recently received a terrific letter from the Governor, saying in part, "My administration has worked aggressively with the legislature to forge a comprehensive economic development program. It is part of our initiative to attract quality companies to our state, and we invite your firm to be part of our corporate community." The letter from the Governor talked of tax cuts on labor, materials and services. He wrote, "....character is the foundation of business and the hallmark of our hard-working, educated work force. Our favorable business climate can help your company be successful." He told Chem Tainer the Lt. Governor will contact the firm soon. Sound too good to be true? Have I been wrong about our Governor? The letter dated April 13, was from the Governor all right ‹ Bill Graves, the Governor of Kansas‹trying to entice this Big Island firm to the home of Dorothy and Toto. Too bad our local politicians don't put half the effort into making local businesses feel welcome. Our Gov's latest idea‹after doing his famous 180-degree turn on the private construction of a prison, is to see if a prison can be built outside of Las Vegas. How convenient. Our Gov's appointee for the State Employees Health Fund as Trustee, is Clifford "Chip" Uwaine, former state Senator who was convicted 10 years ago in a voter fraud conspiracy case and sent to prison. Uwaine, a UPW deputy close to Gary Rodrigues, was also fined $4,000 by the Campaign Spending Commission for misuse of campaign funds. Great choice as Trustee! In light of recent presidential action, a revised judicial oath has been proposed: "I solemnly swear to tell the truth as I know it, the whole truth, as I believe it to be, and nothing but what I think you need to know." Hawaii courts will implement soon, after the judges' 18% retroactive pay raise is approved by the '99 Legislature. Don't say there is nothing to do, to do more business. Get out of your shop and meet new people and create new business with SBH during the merry month of May!
 Small Business News comments can be addressed to:
Small Business Hawaii SBH also accepts articles relating to small business issues about its members and Hawaii. Submit your articles to SBH by the 10th of the month for publication into the next month's issue.
E-Mail:macpro3000@yahoo.com Be sure to include the letters SBH in the subject header of any email sent to Small Business Hawaii. This requirement is due to the growing number of unsolicitated commercial email spam that the webmaster does not like.
Editor: Sam Slom
Hosted on: H4, Hawai`i's Data SuperHighway
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