More Inflation, Debt | Court Rail Ruling | Big Art Auction Sunday | Puff N’ Regulate

BY SAM SLOM – QE: More Inflation, Debt. Wonder why the stock market keeps increasing? It is because of QE, “Quantitative Easing,” the printing of money and buying of securities by the Federal Reserve. It is a Ponzi scheme without any payout-except politically. It is not product, it is not wealth, it’s not real folks; it is paper which will lead to more inflation and more debt. But the Market and many others are firmly addicted to your subsidies. I know the President says raising the debt limit doesn’t add to our debt, but then, he says a great many things that just aren’t true.

 

Government Shutdown? Will the bloated, corrupt, debt-ridden federal bureaucracy shut down next week? Will the destructive Obamacare be silenced? One could only hope, but not likely.

 

Sign Up For Sunrise! Still time to sign up for tomorrow’s monthly SBH SUNRISE Networking Breakfast. Who will help business during Hawaii’s next emergency? Find out from Mel Kaku, the City’s Director of the Department of Emergency Management, from 7-8:30 a.m. in the Pineapple Room, Macy’s, Ala Moana Center. Kaku’s topic is, “Disaster Support by the City for Small Business.” Networking, full breakfast buffet, and business updates. All participants will be introduced. For information and reservations, contact Jaynahe Self, TODAY at SBH, 396-1724.

 

World End? The latest memo predicts the world will end on Thursday, October 10. Don’t know what calendar this is relying on, but SBH says it’s ok to make future appointments. Come to SUNRISE tomorrow. And join SBH. And pay your bills.

 

Kailua Satellite City Hall Closes. The Kailua Satellite City Hall WILL close next week (September 30). These satellites are invaluable to the local communities. Mayor Kirk Caldwell, who is racking up large City deficits while kowtowing to the unions, says the closure is necessary to save money. There are better ways to save taxpayer money.

 

Road Rage. If you think the night closures on the H-1 Freeway are bad now, just wait to see what is planned for you in the near future. As rail ramps up, there will be more traffic and congestion problems ahead.

 

Court Rail Ruling. We are all still awaiting a ruling by the 9th Court of Appeals, after the August 15 rail hearing. Cliff Slaterof Honolulutraffic.com remains optimistic that the appeals court will stop the construction of the city’s $5.3 billion elevated steel on steel rail project.

 

UH Manoa Joins Consortium. The University of Hawaii at Manoa was selected to join a consortium of Pacific Rim research universities. UH said a university must be rated as a leading university of a country or a premier university within its geographical region to join the Association of Pacific Rim Universities. The group was established in 1997 by California Institute of Technology, USC and the Berkeley and Los Angeles campuses of the University of California. The association includes 45 universities in 16 countries from Australia to Thailand. The schools collectively enroll two million students and employ 120,000 faculty members. UH Manoa is among the top 30 public research universities in the nation for engineering and science federal research funding.

 

UH Job Openings. The University of Hawaii is currently looking for Deans for its Schools of Architecture and Travel Industry Management (TIM).

 

SBH Awards Banquet a Hit! Last Friday’s Small Business Hawaii Entrepreneurial Education Foundation Business All Stars Awards Banquet at the Waialae Country Club was a hit. More than 200 people attended. Primary event sponsors were:HMAA and McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii. Participants enjoyed a sumptuous buffet, fun, entertainment, a silent auction and good networking. Ensemble members of the new Hawaii Symphony Orchestra performed courtesy of Vicky Cayetano (this year’s SBH Jean Fukuda Civic Leader awardee).

 

The SBH Lex Brodie Business Person of the Year, John Carpenter of Island Slipper Company, showed up wearing…Island Slippers (the Elvis model). Everyone fell in love with SBH Young Entrepreneur of the Year,” 12-year oldSkylar Soares, who started her own successful sun-protection Hawaii hat business, “HI Sky.”

 

SBH George Mason Outstanding Business Reporting awardeeSteve Petranik, editor of Hawaii Business Magazine, related how years ago he interviewed for a job at PBN with Mason but was not hired. Petranik got the last word … and reportedly several return trips to the Waialae buffet.

 

Big Art Auction Sunday. There will be a huge art and music memorabilia auction to benefit SULY SANGUINO this Sunday, September 29th, 10 am at Aloha Tower Marketplace (free validated parking) presented by our own Joe Teipel.

 

A Wyland collection will go at no reserves and the Entire Pipeline Cafe /Aloha Lounge music collection. Never seen before … there will be an entire collection that will go to the highest bidders of Wyland sculptures, paintings by Scott Hanson, Robert Watson, Philip Rote, Luigi Fumagalli, Herb Fichter, Salvador Dali, Tarowsk, Tanya Pitre, Steve Power, Jim Warren, and Wilfredo Garcia.  

 

Music memorabilia includes signed Drum covers from Pipeline concerts, signed records, neon signage, artwork, bar and barware, Don Ho drinking glasses, Signed Andy Ironssurfboard, 4 ft mirror ball, 15 ft umbrellas, guitars and amps, concert sound system, restaurant supplies, leather furniture, ice machines and more.

 

For auction information, visit www.joeteipel.com or call 479-0817. This auction is a benefit for artist Suly Sanguino born without arms and legs, a woman of distinction and a world-renowned artist.  Proceeds will go toward the creation of the documentary about Suly Sanguino.

 

What’s in your wallet? WalletHub, the leading personal finance social network, released its 2013 Checking Account Cost Comparison Report, which offers a breakdown of the fees associated with banking at the 25 largest consumer-facing financial institutions in the U.S. The findings help consumers more effectively compare checking accounts and fees. Most notably, the report found that a checking account could run you anywhere from $0 to $750 annually, with costs varying as much as 350% across financial institutions.

 

Puff N’ Regulate. The Hawaii Attorney General is joining several other state AGs to regulate, then tax, the booming E Cigarette industry. The E companies in Hawaii have enjoyed phenomenal success and explosive growth so you know government is going to muscle in. Aaaah, that vapor.

 

Death & Taxes. The national “Tax Foundation” in Washington, D.C. compiled its annual study of sales tax rates from around the country. This year they used a population-weighted rate that took into account local sales tax rates imposed in 38 of the states that do allow their local governments to levy a county or city sales tax.

 

As expected, Hawaii came in almost dead last as one of the lowest combined state and local sales tax rates, outdone only by Alaska which posted a 1.69% rate compared to Hawaii’s 4.35% rate. Unfortunately, another think-tank organization called the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA) picked up the more sensational parts of the report listing the states with the highest combined sales tax rates and the states with the lowest combined sales tax rates. Hawaii stood out like a sore thumb as being in the bottom five with a “low” combined rate.

 

Although the NCPA news release did note that some states relied on other taxes and, therefore, may not have as a high a rate as those states that depend heavily on the sales tax as a major source of revenue, it failed to note that the other factor in determining the burden of the sales tax – or in the case of Hawaii, the general excise tax – is the base against which the rate is applied.

 

Had the NCPA newsletter been more careful, it would have quoted Scott Drenkard of the Tax Foundation who wrote:”This report ranks states and cities based on tax rates and does not account for differences in tax bases (e.g., the structure of sales taxes, defining what is taxable and non-taxable). States can vary greatly in this regard. For instance, most states exempt groceries from the sales tax, others tax groceries at a limited rate, and still others tax groceries at the same rate as all other products. Some states exempt clothing or tax it a reduced rate.

 

“The taxation of services and business-to-business transactions also vary widely by state. Experts generally agree that Hawaii has the broadest sales tax in the United States, taxing many products multiple times and, by one estimate, ultimately taxing 99.21 percent of the state’s personal income. The base is far wider than the national median, where the sales tax base applies to 34.46 percent of personal income.”

 

Gun Fight in Houston. I will join more than 600 participants at the 28th Annual Gun Rights Policy Conference (GRPC) in Houston, Thursday-Sunday. With all the gun violence, and government still trying to take away 2nd Amendment rights from law-abiding citizens, it should be an interesting and informative conference. I will speak on a State Legislative panel. Also speaking will be former SBH keynoter, John Fund, now of National Review, and Malia Zimmerman of Hawaii Reporter, discussing media bias towards legitimate gun owners. The event is co-sponsored by the Second Amendment Foundation, Citizens Committee For the Right to Keep and Bare Arms, and others.

 

SBH Young Entrepreneurs. Smart Business Hawaii (SBH) is seeking Young Entrepreneurs. The SBH YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS is now up and running. The very capable and energetic Noelani Bonifacio, is heading up the group and she wants you to join other young professionals. Annual dues are only $75 for those under 35. The SBH YE group’sKimberly Canepa made an excellent presentation at last Friday’s SBH Awards Banquet. Save Thursday, November 7; that’s the YE “Table Topics” 5:30-7 pm at the LS Success Center. Details soon. Contact SBH), go online (www.smartbusinesshawaii.com) or call 396-1724.

 

Hawaii Reporter.com, Hawaii’s first electronic daily newspaper launched in 2002, has all the breaking news and unlike other publications in town, is still free. Award winning Hawaii Reporter and Malia Zimmerman report daily (M-F) on the Rick Hamada Show heard on KHVH radio on 830 AM at 7:05 am. Malia will share the news behind the news.

 

Tune in to Panos Prevedouros. SBH Director and UH Engineering Professor Dr. Panos Prevedouros is a weekly guest on Rick Hamada’s morning radio show every Tuesday from 7:05 a.m. to 8 am. Tune in!

 

Read SB NEWS. Don’t forget to read your current (September) monthly SB NEWS by PDF attachment or link. More expanded news and views for the Hawaii business community. A limited number of printed copies are available for mailing if you call SBH (396-1724).

 

Want More Business? JOIN SBH! Is YOUR business a member of SBH? No? Lots of benefits. Strong networking organization. Call 396-1724 or go online to  www.smartbusinesshawaii.com.

 

Advertise Here. Some readers have inquired about placing an ad on the right margin of these weekly blasts, which reach more than 15,000 people. Interested? If you want your business ad posted, the cost is $50 for one placement or $150 per month (4-5 placements). Contact 396-1724.

 

Want more local business information? Please visit the several SBH websites at www.smartbusinesshawaii.com,www.educate808.com and www.sbhfoundation.org

 

Celebrating a business milestone? Your business press releases are welcome in the weekly SBH News & Views e-News, which reaches more than 15,000 business owners and government leaders in Hawaii.

 

What? Not receiving your copy? Send PR, additional requests and email address to  SBH@lava.net or call 396-1724.

 

SBH can help you with YOUR business. Just starting a business?   Call me personally for help at 396-1724 or email:SBH@lava.net. Smart Business Hawaii Means Business and we’re here to help you.

 

As always, SBH appreciates your support, so please consider joining or sending a donation to help SBH continue to assist the private, independent businesses in our community.

 

Mahalo!

 

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