Latest News
How to Buy an Election on Maui Almost $1 million from pro-development interests has been raised to defeat three progressive Council candidates
As part of a broad effort to reverse progressive legislation introduced by the current Ohana member-dominated Maui County Council, a new record has been set for…
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Endorsement: Yes on 12 & ‘Onipa‘a 2022 Candidates Vote to stop development money from buying control of Maui's County Council
View the Maui Independent’s video endorsement, narrated by Alika Atay, or read the text version of the commentary below. Corporate America has a vision for…
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‘Onipa’a 2022 Candidates Unite Against Pro-Development Millions Flooding Council Election Johnson, Paltin, Rawlins-Fernandez, Sinenci, Ahia, Boone, Hocker, and Knox fight to preserve Maui’s five person progressive majority
As Maui’s electorate prepares to vote for County Council candidates a clear choice has emerged. Eight progressive candidates have united as ‘Onipa’a 2022 on a…
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What Happened to Tulsi Gabbard? Maui’s former congress member, who once embraced aloha, has careened to the extremist side of American politics, boosting Trump & the GOP’s lawless insurrection
About five years ago, as managing editor of The Maui Independent, I wrote four articles praising Hawai‘i’s former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, defending her from attacks…
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A Tribute to Maui’s Dedicated Activist Mark Sheehan Mark Was a Guiding Force and Tireless Fundraiser Behind Many Environmental Efforts
Mark Sheehan, a champion for Maui’s environment and progressive causes, passed away on September 9 in Haiku at the age of 87. He had contracted…
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Vote Yes on Charter Revisions Passed By County Council Term limits & new Dept. of Agriculture for sustainable future to transition Maui out of plantation era policies on the ballot
Passed by a majority of the Maui County Council, the 7 charter amendments on the November ballot, were authored by Kelly King, Shane Sinenci, and…
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Mainland SuperPACs & Old Guard Try to Stop Important Charter Amendments Offshore money floods Maui to stoke fears and thwart people-powered Democracy
Banners urging Vote NO on all Maui County Charter Amendments are proliferating around Maui, while an off-island Super PAC is also disseminating more fear during…
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How Agro-Chem and Big Ag Industries Conspire to Dispute Benefits of Organic Food Locally Their Strategy is to Minimize Adverse Impacts of Pesticides Here on Maui
The agro-chemical industry has long downplayed the adverse impact of pesticides often in collusion with government agencies. Official narratives, pushed by the industry, the media…
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An Extraordinary Account of One Family’s Journey to Healing Their Autistic Son How an Israeli Family Refused to Accept There is No Cure for Autism and Found a Dietary Regime to Help Him
Yonatan Cohen was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at the age of 7. By the age of 8 all his symptoms had disappeared. Meeting him…
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Will Unregulated Gene Editing Technology Destroy Nature? Untested Side Effects of Fast Growing New Technology May Have Catastrophic Consequences
We’ve all grown up with the existential threat of nuclear annihilation and more recently the ominous impact of climate change. Now we might be facing…
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New Bella Abzug Play a Timely Antidote to Trump’s Toxic Masculinity
Bella Bella, the new off-Broadway play about the indomitable 1970’s congressional titan Bella Abzug, feels timely and significant in this, the season of Donald Trump’s impeachment. In…
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Monsanto Exposed for Spraying Banned Pesticide on Kihei Land in 2014 Felony Charges Disappeared After Political Fixers in Washington Intervened
Yahoo News recently reported that the agro-chemical giant Monsanto (now known as Bayer) had been close to being charged with a felony by the Justice…
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Opposition Grows to Massive Telescope on Hawai’i’s Sacred Mountain Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard Slams TMT As Latest in History of Desecration and Disrespect of Hawaiians
In his exquisite song, “The Beauty of Mauna Kea,” revered Hawaiian musician Keola Beamer extols the majesty of this sacred mountain. “The moon moves around…
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Senator Roz Baker Attacks Eminent Maui Physician for Opinion on Medical Alternatives Dr. Pang incurs wrath of Big Pharma booster by suggesting that widely-prescribed anti-parasite drug might be considered for Covid treatment
Photo – Dr. Lorin Pang, Terez Amato, and Dr. Joe Ritter, credit Darius Taj One has to wonder why Maui’s Senator Roz Baker has launched…
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The Looming Threat of 5G in Hawai’i We’ve Fought GMOs And Toxic Pesticides - Now We Face A New Threat To Our Health
Ever since the launch of the early cell phone systems, the telecom industry has assured consumers that they are safe. While a few maverick scientists…
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Acquisition of Monsanto Proves Toxic to Bayer Corporation Roundup Lawsuits Shrinks German Megacorp’s Value By Billions of Dollars and They’re Just Getting Started
Facing an avalanche of lawsuits alleging serious harm from the weed killer Roundup, German pharmaceutical giant Bayer has seen its stock price plunge since last…
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Tulsi Gabbard Becomes First Presidential Candidate to Call for Ban on Monsanto’s Roundup "Victims Shouldn't Have to Go to Trial to Get the Truth"
Presidential candidate, Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, has renewed her criticism of the agro-chemical industry’s use of toxic pesticides, calling for Monsanto’s Roundup to be banned.…
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“America 2034” Offers Visionary Utopian Hopes Alongside Misery of a Trump Dystopia New Novel Contrasts West Coast Ecotopia With Nightmarish Kleptocracy of a Tyrant Trump as President for Life
What if, after the political horrors and social cruelties of his first presidential term, Donald Trump should win the 2020 election? That is the premise…
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Hawaii Dept. of Health Tries to Force Hazardous Ineffective HPV Vaccine on All Public School Children Parents Protest Placing Big Pharma Profits Over Public Health
After a public outcry in 2016 against a bill sponsored by Maui’s Senator Roz Baker to mandate the controversial HPV vaccine for Hawaii’s children, led…
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Maui Ohana Slate Surges to 5-4 Council Victory with New Activist Energy Keani Rawlins-Fernandez Says She Will Support Kelly King as Council Chair to Implement Progressive Solutions
A major victory for Maui Ohana candidates in Tuesday’s election is likely to signal a sea change in direction for Maui’s County Council. Even though…
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Historic Maui Ohana Victory Will Bring Public Interest Government to County New Progressive Majority Defeats Old Guard That Has Controlled Maui Since Statehood
Since statehood, political power on Maui has resided with resort, development and agribusiness interests. Through their campaign donations and backroom support, this powerful business establishment kept…
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Real Estate Money Floods Victorino, Arakawa and Lee Campaigns Developer Donations to Old Guard Seek to Stop Maui Ohana Candidates from Bringing Public Interest Government to Maui
With the Maui election just a few days away we’re turning the spotlight again on how some County candidates have their campaigns funded primarily by…
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Q&A with Maui County Council’s People Powered Leader Alika Atay "We have the opportunity to wake everybody up and say what is important is keeping Maui Maui"
What brought you to politics? I’ve been a community servant and leader for well over 35 years. My aloha for Maui has been well established.…
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Betrayers of Maui Democracy Ask Voters to Re-Elect Them This November Arakawa, Victorino, Crivello, and Hokama Enabled Monsanto’s Historic Theft of Voter-Approved GMO Moratorium
The public initiative system is a unique and magnificent tool for grassroots democracy. Four years ago, Maui’s GMO Moratorium made history in a number of…
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Political Vendetta Against Alika Atay Shifts into Overdrive for Election Investigation of Queen’s Celebration Part of Relentless Campaign to Discredit Native Hawaiian Reformer
Almost weekly leading up to the November election on Maui we have seen front page articles damning Council Member Alika Atay for various trifles. One…
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Hokama’s $76 Million Wailuku Parking Boondoggle Council Member Squanders Taxpayer Money for Unnecessary Structure While Homelessness Soars
For a politician supposedly serving the island of Lanai, Maui County Council Member Riki Hokama seems overly interested in the development of Wailuku. As head…
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Out of State Real Estate Donors Back Incumbent Stacey Crivello to Expand Mokoka’i Short Term Rentals Challenger Keani Rawlins-Fernandez Thinks It's Time For A Change on Moloka’i on Election Day
For many years Maui County Council Member, Stacey Crivello, who is running for reelection next month, has positioned herself as a champion of the people…
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Can Elle Cochran Win Maui’s Mayoral Race and Send the Good Old Boys Packing? Q&A With the Most Outspoken Populist Reformer in County History
Council Member Elle Cochran, who was the top vote-getter in the 2016 Maui Council election, is running for mayor this November on a platform of…
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Will Maui’s Corporate Donor Swamp Buy This Election for Victorino and the Old Guard? Flood of Campaign Cash from Recipients of County Contracts Tries to Stop Maui Ohana Candidates from Advancing Public Interest Government
This November’s mayoral and Council election finds Maui at a critical crossroads. Voters could allow the old guard, in the pockets of major developers to…
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Just Say No To Roz Baker Ignore Her Ads: Her Record as a Backroom Booster of Pesticide Conglomerates Has Been Disgraceful
Almost Orwellian in its doublespeak deception, Maui Senator Roz Baker’s latest campaign ad promotes her as a champion of ‘aina protection. “From protecting our reefs…
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